When was the last time a series against Alaska-Anchorage carried this much weight? Without looking, I’d say it was the first round of the WCHA playoffs in 2007. I just looked – I was right. That Gopher squad actually won the MacNaughton Cup as well as the Broadmoor Trophy (WCHA regular season and playoff champions). After a 6-2 win in game one, Anchorage managed to win 2-1 in overtime in the second game, forcing a third game, which was won by Minnesota.
Fast forward to October-November 2009 and the Golden Gophers are in a state of disarray. Despite calls from cool-headed fans to relax a bit, at least for a month or two, there is reason to worry. I’m worried and I consider myself a pretty level-headed fan. This team has opened the season by being shutout in three of its first four games. I know, many are pointing to North Dakota’s slow starts in recent years. You can’t compare the Fighting Sioux to the Golden Gophers in this regard.
North Dakota has been getting stronger as the year goes on and advancing to the Frozen Four. The past two seasons (plus four games) of Minnesota hockey have been very, very mediocre. A down year for the Gophers is usually a 3rd or 4th place finish in the WCHA, 25 wins, and an NCAA appearance. Now we’re seeing 20 wins (or less) and missing the NCAA tournament (last season).
I’m not prepared to say that Don Lucia’s job is in jeopardy. However, if this season ends in the same fashion as last season, I will admit that perhaps he should be given one additional year to turn things around. Right now the team is stuck with some upperclassmen who just haven’t panned out.
Some might recall that Doug Woog was forced out following a disappointing 1998-99 season. That season was not too far from his last MacNaughton Cup – 1996-97. The 1997-98 season was marred by injuries, one-goal losses, and the departure of Mike Crowley almost immediately prior to the start of the year. Two sub par seasons, one of which was almost completely out of his hands, and two NCAA playoff misses are the immediate reasons for Woog’s stepping down.
If the Gophers falter this year, that will be three sub par seasons, but I suspect two national championships give Lucia a bit more rope.
Does anyone remember this song from The Offspring? Enjoy!
I know that everyone who is reading this has been involved in a situation much like mine. In the back of your mind you think you should “do the right thing,” be honest, and tell that person the truth: You’re a good person, but I just don’t think we’re compatible so best of luck. It seems easy, right? Especially in a ‘relationship’ based on text messages and last minute plans.
Still, most of me wants to just let it slowly die. I don’t want to get a text message. The beauty of what SP and I had was the fact that we both preferred text messages. Emails existed in the beginning, as did a phone call or two, but eventually texts took over. I loved that aspect of it, being a huge believer in texting vs phone calls. At least I know I won’t get a phone call asking, “Where have you been?”
Right now I’m hoping she realizes that when it comes to extra-cirricular activities, we’re not a match. It has been three days and I haven’t heard a word from her. Of course she’s really busy, so it might be a week before I do. Hmm, now that I’ve thought about it, it might be easier than I thought to just let things die on the vine.
If you do a little reading (from the current month) on the United States Coast Guard 17th District (Alaska) website, you will find that even they are fans of The Deadliest Catch. Check out this particular post:
It’s almost time for boarding’s and I know the boarding teams are anxious to jump over the rail, possibly board one of the Deadliest Catch boats.
What fun is it to board just a simple crab boat? That’s all I have for tonight. Time for bed – hopefully a pretty good day at work tomorrow. I do have a couple of meetings – one in the morning and one in the afternoon.
Last week I was perfectly fine with letting the situation between myself and SP die on the vine. My last communication with her was a few text messages while on vacation. We went over a week without talking to each other and I wasn’t going to break radio silence. She decided to on Wednesday and I decided to give her one more chance.
A little background to the situation
SP and I met in August. We went on several dates, including one that ended with her spending the night, over the first month. I learned that she was not going to put out, as they say. Not a good egg. Sorry, I shouldn’t be harsh. I’m sure she has her reasons; I’m guessing she wants to wait until some sort of commitment is made (marriage or otherwise).
Back to last night
She came over, we hung out, had a few drinks, and it was my thinking that she would go home when all was said and done. I will admit – I didn’t expect anything to happen last night, but I held out a little bit of hope. Sadly, nothing did happen. We went from the couch to my bed when she said, “Can we go to your bedroom and just cuddle.” Just cuddle. Emphasis on the just. I didn’t have the heart to say no, and I figured maybe 30 minutes of it and she’d be tired and go home.
Hah!
“I’m soooo comfortable. Mind if I crash here tonight?”
Wow. I wanted to say, “No, you better hit the road. I’ve got some early morning plans and don’t want you to be shortchanged on sleep.” All I could muster was, “Sure, that’s fine.”
We lay there in bed. She was looking as comfortable as ever, ready for a good night’s rest. Meanwhile I’m staring up at the ceiling wondering, “Why me?” I settled in for a night of crappy sleep, hoping the morning would come soon.
I guess the one positive was that she was out the door before 8 AM.
Needless to say, I’m done with her.
If you’re like me, then you can appreciate hot women who can skate. Check out the Los Angeles Kings, nay, YOUR Los Angeles Kings Ice Crew.
Michelle: “I know how to shoot a t-shirt and scoop up ice!” (giggle)
Aww. Will you go out with me? We can go ice skating. And get some ice cream. Perhaps you can shoot me with a t-shirt.
With everyone having played 6-9 games, here’s what I’m thinking about as far as the National Hockey League goes…
1. Pittsburgh is going to go far. 8-1-0 in their first 9 – are you kidding me?
2. The New York Islanders remain crappy.
3. Toronto remains a major disappointment.
4. The Chicago Blackhawks will be a top three team in the West. I seem to recall someone on the NHL Network thinking the Hawks would fall the most from last year to this year. Was it Kevin Weekes?
5. The Red Wings are no longer the potent team they once were.
6. Calgary will give everyone problems and wouldn’t surprise me if they advanced to the finals. Most goals in the NHL right now.
7. The Minnesota Wild will struggle this year. New system and basically lacking skilled players to implement said system.
8. The Sharks will finish in the top three in the West and advance at least to the second round.
I’m not sure if I’ve ever posted this information here, but since June 2008 I have been involved in a lawsuit. It’s not your typical lawsuit as it involves my former employer and its parent company. In December 2007, with very, very little warning (my department knew barely more than one day in advance), the operation shut down.
We all received our final checks at home, but without any owed money (like vacation or commission). Once that didn’t happen, I filed my claim, which was in early February 2008.
At the end of that month, the Labor Commissioner’s office sent a letter to everyone who had filed that they would not be pursuing the case, and if we wanted to do so, we would be on our own. That obviously upset someone, as I’m sure 300-400 people actually did file something. A few weeks later they reversed their decision and took the case. I personally spent a couple of hours on the phone talking to the Attorney handling it. It even got to the point where I had to help provide a description of the company’s former president.
I believe the parent company decided to hit bankruptcy court took place in June or July 2008. Not long after that, they shut down one of the other companies that they ran in California.
Almost no further information was made available that year.
In early 2009, a letter was sent indicating that the process would be long and difficult. The parent company was fighting everything tooth and nail. Former employees of my particular company were told that the outlook was pretty grim that we’d see anything.
Now at least there might be some reason for hope. It appears that one company, that is actually considered an asset of my former company, might be able to be sold by the trustee, which would free up funds to distribute. However, we aren’t supposed to expect anything anytime soon, so this could last well into 2010.
Opening college hockey weekend, that is, at least for the Minnesota Golden Gophers.
Two thirds of the Friday night game sucked – badly. Minnesota played a fine first period on the road despite being down 1-0. They were moving their feet, matching North Dakota physically, and generally interested in battling. Not so much in the second and third periods.
I’ve noticed something about the Gopher hockey team the past couple of seasons – they don’t typically ‘get up’ for a rivalry. It’s like they treat every opponent the same, which is what you technically should do so long as you keep up the intensity on a consistent basis. However, if you’ve watched enough sporting events, you know that’s impossible. North Dakota, fans and players alike, are always up for the Gophers. I’ve seen enough of the games (in person and on television) to know this. They take it personally. This is the event of the year in Grand Forks.
On Friday night it was a team with desire playing against a team going through the motions. The end result was nothing surprising – a 4-0 loss.
Saturday’s game was different. The play was even, aside from the power play situation. As the game wore on, Minnesota became the stronger team and North Dakota found itself scrambling. It’s amazing how much different a game appears once you actually decide to skate and battle for loose pucks. The end result was a 3-3 tie, but it could have easily been a Minnesota win if not for a pair of game-saving stops in the final moments by the Fighting Sioux.
I added a little tweet last night, complete with cussing, regarding the WCHA officiating. Last night the worst of it was on display. One incident led to a scoring chance in the final moments, while another led to a North Dakota goal.
Late in the game, a UND player took a huge tw0-handed slash on I believe U of MN defenseman David Fischer’s stick, knocking it out of his hands. He then gathered the puck and fired it across the goal mouth. The ref was right there, but failed to make the call. I know, it’s the proverbial ‘letting them play’ nonsense, or ‘putting the whistle away late in the game’ crap. Sorry, there is no defense for this non-call.
The other incident I referred to took place in the second period. Fischer, again, checked his man, who had the puck, in front of the Minnesota net. It was a clean hit, and not even an overpowering hit. He was called for tripping. At no time did his stick, or any other stick, come in contact with the legs of the North Dakota player. Moments later, North Dakota scored.
I know calls are going to be missed; however, when the puck is right there it’s truly difficult to defend an official.
Nice to see it so soon after the Minnesota Twins got hosed in game two of the ALDS. And let’s not forget the Derek Jeter phantom tag of Torii Hunter a few years back!
Who hasn’t spent an entire day watching episode after episode of Deadliest Catch on The Discovery Channel? I know I have. Many times.
When you’re not watching the highly addictive show, check out some of these links:
F/V Northwestern – Get up to speed on what ol’ Sig and crew are doing.
F/V Cornelia Marie – Captain Phil reminds me of Bob Seger.
F/V Time Bandit – I don’t have any interesting quips about this vessel.
I’m in the process of coming up with a drinking game for this wonderful show. In the past, I’ve brought you the Survivorman drinking game (see the link on the side) as well as some upgrades to the San Jose Sharks drinking game. Once I come up with this, I need to find some Captain Sig’s Deadliest Ale.
