They Really Can’t Be Serious

– And Dick Jauron lives to see another season as Bills coach. I really think the respect of the players is what saved him. All the mentions of “continuity” in the Bills release make me think that management realized that they would have a player revolt on their hands if they canned Jauron.

– TSN is reporting that the NHL is considering moving their annual awards show to Vegas in the hopes of drawing more attendees and sponsors. The Palms has reportedly shown an interest in being the host venue, which…ew. I really hope that any players considering staying at the Palms get flea dipped afterward. There’s quite a history of debauchery at that hotel. I mean, that hotel was the site of the infamous hot tub threesome on Real World: Las Vegas. There could still be Trishelle cooties floating around that hotel.  Not to mention that Playboy has quite the presence at The Palms. Aren’t there enough “NHL Players Are Manwhores” stories out there without dangling Playmates in front of them?

Not to mention that Vegas brings up connotations of gambling, and the league did have that pesky Rick Tocchet gambling ring thing a couple of years ago.

Use some smarts for once, NHL!

– Continuing in the “what the…” mode, Barenaked Ladies have written and recorded lyrics to “The Hockey Song.” (aka the old HNiC theme). I didn’t realize that the song needed lyrics. Is this just adding something to the song for the sake of adding something to the song? It’s an instrumental piece for goodness sake.

– Is it really a big deal that Ovie chews tobacco? There are worse “drugs” he could be using after all. Let’s keep that in mind.

And now for some notes from tonight’s game…

– The Sabres really need to work on clearing people out from in front of Miller during a penalty kill. Laich was standing unmolested in front of Miller, leading to an easy tap-in for Washington’s first goal. Tallinder and Lydman should have done some quick math and realized that only four Capitals players were in front of them and noticed that Laich was just chilling out in front of the net.

– The first period was not the most inspired period I’ve ever seen the Sabres play. They were constantly beat to the puck by the Caps, and while there were some flashes of brilliance, more often than not, the team appeared one step out of sync with each other.

–  The second period was not fun to watch either. However, Gaustad gets a gold star for trying, as he leveled two Caps in one shift. He even dared to check the wonderful Ovechkin. I don’t think he got the same memo that the rest of his teammates got about Ovie being untouchable due to his status as a “superstar” (insert your best Mary Katherine Gallagher pose here).

– What. The. Hell. It’s like an entirely different Sabres team has taken the ice after Mair scored to end the Caps shutout. Why do they insist on teasing us like this?

– The little box between the two benches looks so sad and lonely without Rob Ray and his camera dude in there. Speaking of Ray, did anyone else try to figure out the layout of the arena as Ray suddenly went from the Zamboni entrance  during the game to standing just outside the Sabres locker room in the intermission?

– The camera lingered on Miller seated on the bench at the end of the game. Dude had a very intense look on his face, almost like he was praying into his catching mitt. And as I’m writing this, the Caps scored into the empty net. Guess those prayers didn’t work so well.

– Wow, Jose Theodore is short. He just disappeared into the Caps congratulatory postgame huddle.

– I’m watching the postgame show and Goose looks like he’s going to kick ass and take names later. He said about 14 times that the game tonight was embarrassing, especially in front of the home crowd. I also like the subtle dig about how it’s everyone’s job on the team to make hits, not just his or Mair’s. We’ve all noticed that there are certain players on the team who are a little wimpier than others when it comes to hitting. It makes me think that it’s being noticed inside the room, too. Did I mention already that Goose looked pissed? Just want to get that across.

– Somehow, Vanek’s post game interview – while saying the same things as Goose’s (minus the hitting part, of course) – lacked that pissiness and frustration that I wanted to see. Vanek sounded almost whiny, like he’s tired of getting asked these questions from the media. Guess what sunshine, you wouldn’t get asked these questions if y’all hadn’t sucked worse than a cheap hooker tonight.

– It’s never a good sign when Miller starts his interview by crossing his arms over his chest. That’s a classic example of defensive body language. And it’s really not good when Miller throws the media under the bus by making a comment about how media members don’t show up to get their own quotes and instead rely on other people for quotes and then write their articles based on this secondhand comment. Anyone else curious as to what media members Ryan is referring to?

– And Lindy continues the bus throwing theme, by throwing all the forwards except for Gaustad, Mair and Ellis under the bus…backing it up, and driving over them again. Lindy also mentions that wimpy play is not going to be tolerated and people will get pulled from the lineup. Though Lindy says it’s not an idle threat, I will really believe that when I see it. If Jochen or Roy-Z is riding the pine on Thursday, I’ll issue a mea culpa post.