Monday Morning Mehta 3/6/06

Edition # 152
March 6, 2006

www.mondaymorningmehta.blogspot.com

MMM returns after the longest break in the history of MMM! It's always strange when you're away in a foreign country for a few weeks. You come back and there's things that you completely missed that people consider commonplace. Like jokes about our Vice President firing a gun at his friends face. Or Darren Daulton talking about out of body experiences as if that happens to everyone. Or some midget from the Knicks winning the slam dunk contest by jumping over Spud Webb. Anyway, enough about me, let's get to MMM. February is generally considered the slowest sports month, and with record low interest in the Torin Winter Olympics, this February was no different. Here's the way the next couple weeks will breakdown:

March 14th - March Madness Preview with Bracket Breakers sponsored by Staples (Note: Next week's MMM will be on Tuesday!!)
March 20th - Monday Morning Mehta March Madness (5M)
March 27th - AL Preview & Predictions
April 3rd - NL Preview & Predictions plus the return of Derreck Sura & the NBA
April & May - NBA & NHL playoffs

NFL

We should be right in the middle of NFL's free agency season, but the talk around the NFL is the CBA. There continues to be snail's pace progress towards a new deal, with insiders now saying the owners are going to be voting Tuesday on a potential agreement. Free agency has been pushed back to Thursday, for now. By the time this hits the presses we could have three or four more changes though. I think something will get worked out eventually. The NFL is smart enough to recognize there's no need for a big fight, things are going too well to let any bad PR get in the way.

As for the Eagles, they seem to be taking the appropriate steps as laid out in my Official 2006 Philadelphia Eagles offseason guide sponsored by America On-Line. LeCharles Bentley is going to be the big pickup when free agency is allowed to start, who will upgrade the offensive line significantly. Generally thought of as one of the game's best centers, Bentley will turn 27 during the season and is just reaching his prime years. Bentley and Shawn Andrews will be pro bowlers on this line for years to come. Other rumored pickups are Jeff Garcia & Shawn Barber. Barber played well for the Eagles 3 seasons ago and would likely replace Keith Adams. I'm still looking to replace Dsucki Jones but I may not get my wish (recently released LaVar Arrington is a pipe dream - and a guy who seems like a bad seed). Garcia will upgrade the backup QB position, and also give McNabb someone who also hates Owens on the team.

Another rumor, which I hope isn't a rumor, is the Eagles interest in recently released Mike Anderson. Talk about a perfect fit to go along Brian Westbrook and Correll Buckhalter. If all the Eagles did on offense this offseason was sign Anderson, Charles and Garcia, I'd be relatively satisfied. But I'll get greedy and ask for a WR too (doesn't need to be Randle El, although that would be terrific). Just someone who pushes Todd Pinkston to # 3 (Kevin Johnson?).

MLB

The World Baseball Classic is underway (in Asia) and even though most of the big name players have dropped out, it'll still be fun to watch. The Dominican team appears to be the favorite on paper, with the US team, Puerto Rico, Korea, Japan, Cuba and Venezuela the other countries looking to make noise. Since this is the first tournament, and pitchers are all on pitch counts (65 pitches for starters in the first round, increases as tournament goes on), who knows what's going to happen. We could have a situation where a pitcher hits his pitch count, and gets taken out in the middle of an inning in the middle of a 2-2 count. But who cares.

One other interesting note, I think this is going to be Chase Utley's coming out party. He's going to be right in the middle of the US lineup and Phillies fans know his knack for the big hit. Look for chase to "parlay" this into all star starter status.

NBA - Derreck Sura

The NBA trade deadline came and went since my last column with thirteen deals going down league wide. So without further ado, it's time for the second annual 'Trade Spectacular' edition of MMM.

Deal #1 (1/31) - New Orleans/Oklahoma City acquires Aaron Williams from Toronto for two 2nd rounders (Miami's in 2006 & NO/OKC's in 2009). This was the first of what would turn out to be many smaller deals that GM's in the association would pull off. Williams is in his twelfth year and gives the Hornets a bruiser down low that plays defense and rebounds. He's a little foul prone and does not block shots or create his own offense. However, he does hustle and gives a consistent effort every night. Which is more then you can say about the guy he replaced (Chris Andersen).

Raptors' interim GM Wayne Embry did well to get two 2nd round picks for A Wil. Aaron's probably not worth more then one pick these days, especially when you take into account that's he's in the last year of his contract and can walk or retire after the season.

Deal #2 (2/1) - Philadelphia sends Steven Hunter to NO/OKC for two 2nd rounders (the Hornets' in 2006 & 2007). This trade was later rescinded by NO/OKC GM Jeff Bower who claimed that Hunter failed his physical. What exactly was wrong with Steven was never revealed, but speculation centered of his right knee (he tore his ACL in 2002).

The whole reason I'm even mentioning this failed trade is because Sixers' GM Billy King almost pulled another "BK Special" (TM). You see, BK signed Hunter on 8/11/05 to a 5 year 16.5 million contract. Then he tried to trade him approximately six months later half way into his first season with the club. If this was a one time thing with BK you could chalk it up to him realizing his mistake and cutting his losses early. The fact of the matter is that this is a very disturbing trend with BK. One that should have every Philly fan up in arms in my humble opinion.

Just look at the list of players he has signed and then traded before the ink was dry on the contracts he gave them. Kenny Thomas, Brian Skinner, Derrick Coleman, Eric Snow, Monty Williams, Dikembe Mutombo, George Lynch, Bruce Bowen, and Toni Kukoc. Then there's the guys he waived after giving them ridiculous deals. Greg Buckner (bought out) and Aaron McKie (amnesty cut). I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Efthimios Rentzias, who was released just a year after (35 games played) BK parted ways with two 2nd rounders for him. Lastly, I give you the case of Matt Barnes. He was acquired in the Chris Webber trade last year and proceeded to never play in a game for the Sixers and was not offered a contract in the summer. What does my man BK do after showing zero interest in Barnes? Signs him in December after the Knicks, of all teams, released him.

All these moves add up to what I like to call a history. I haven't lived in Philly full time since 1997, but I'd like to think I know a little something about the City's zest for all things sports. How Billy King is still employed is absolutely beyond me. I'm not even mentioning the coaching the carousel he has conducted the last four years (5 coaches). If you feel I'm being too harsh, check this link out and judge for yourself.

http://hoopshype.com/general_managers/billy_king.htm

Deal #3 (2/3) - Toronto deals Jalen Rose and a 1st round pick (Denver's this year) to New York for Antonio Davis. More then anything this was about Knicks' President Isiah Thomas getting another (already has San Antonio's) first round pick this year since he already dealt NY's pick (which figures to be pretty good) to Chicago in the Eddy Curry trade. Another facet of this deal is that Jalen's contract (16.9 million) is up after next season, making him a valuable trade commodity at next year's deadline. On the other hand, this deal doesn't do much for the Knicks on the court. Davis was their best interior defender and a veteran voice of reason in the locker room. Rose is not a Larry Brown type player to say the least. Jalen can still score and put up numbers in a variety of ways, but he does not defend or take kindly to criticism of his game.

For the Raptors this move puts them at least ten million dollars under the salary cap this off season. In the meantime though, Antonio becomes coach Sam Mitchell's best option at center and gives Toronto a decent starting five. This trade also helps protect franchise cornerstone Chris Bosh's back. Which they are hoping makes Bosh happy enough to sign an extension this summer.

Deal #4 (2/9) - Houston acquires Keith Bogans from Charlotte for Lonny Baxter. This seems like a very minor deal on the surface, but each team filled a void created by injuries. The Rockets' back court has been in flux all year with only David Wesley and rookie Luther Head available for every game. In Bogans they get a tough minded defender with good athleticism that is a perfect fit for coach Jeff Van Gundy's system. Keith has a tendency to hoist some bad shots, but if can adapt to his new role, he will pay dividends for Houston down the stretch.

The Bobcats' front court has been totally ravaged by the injury bug. Baxter is little more then a big body, but quite frankly, that's exactly what Charlotte needed. Lonny plays hard, can score around the basket when given the chance, and isn't afraid to use all six fouls on defense. He's a little short, but knows how to use his bulk to compensate.

Deal #5 (2/13) - NO/OKC sends Maciej Lampe to Houston for Moochie Norris. This may be the definition of an insignificant trade. The Hornets wanted a third PG in case Chris Paul and Speedy Claxton both got injured at the same time again. Moochie does know how to run a team, but he's a step slow on defense and his jumper is terrible. It seems to me that Norris lost confidence in his offense about the same time he shaved his 'fro. Grow it back Mooch, before it's too late!
It's well documented in MMM that Lampe is my boy because he's the first Polish born NBA player. Alas, he has not really panned out. The Rockets will be his fourth team in only his third year in the league. Maciej can stroke it from all over the court on offense, but he has no interest in playing defense or rebounding. He's still only 20 years old, and 6'11 275 lbs. guys that can make jumpers don't grow on trees, but he needs to work on his big man skills if he's going to stick. Reason being, he's no where near quick enough to defend on the perimeter. At this point he'd be best served by signing with a bad team this summer that can afford to give him the minutes he needs to develop.

Deal #6 (2/14) - Seattle deals Vladimir Radmanovic to the Clippers for Chris Wilcox. I love this deal for Los Angeles. Clips' coach Mike Dunleavy Sr. hated Wilcox for some reason, so dumping him for Vlade Rade is a very nice pick up. Radman can shoot the 3 with the best of them, and gave LA a nice fill in while Corey Maggette was out. Vlade does tend to lose interest if he's not getting the touches he thinks he deserves, and that could develop into a situation with Maggette back. Also, VR is not used to playing the intense type of defense the Clips have been this year. All that aside, whether he continues to be a starter, or is moved to the instant offense 6th man role, Vlade Rade is in a contract year, and should flourish spacing the floor playing along side LA's post players.

Wilcox is a bit of an enigma at this point is his career. No one denies the 23 year old's athletic ability and "upside", but he just hasn't been able to put it together for some reason. He has shown flashes, but never any consistency. Maybe Dunleavy sapped his confidence or he didn't like playing behind Elton Brand? Whatever the case may be, Chris' time is now. The Sonics play an up tempo style that should suit his game to a tee. Seattle is terrible taboot, so he should see plenty of minutes and get his share of touches in the post. He's also a restricted free agent after the season, so if he wants to get paid, now is his time to shine.

Deal #7 (2/15) Detroit trades Darko Milicic and Carlos Arroyo to Orlando for Kelvin Cato and a 1st round pick (Magic's in 2007 (top 5 protected) or 2008). The Pistons finally gave up on the Darko era. I have to temper my blasting of Detroit President Joe Dumars until I see what he does with the pick he acquired, but it's quite possible that Joe D could come away with nothing after having the second pick in what could go down as one of the best drafts in NBA history. Cato gives the Pistons another big body up front to deal with Shaquille O'Neal come playoff time. More importantly though, Kelvin's contract comes off the books after the season. This should allow Joe D to resign Ben Wallace and extend Chauncey Billups.

Orlando gets two young players that still have "potential". I like Arroyo's game. Yes he can be a little wild at times, but I think it's because he's trying too hard, rather then lack of basketball IQ. Carlos can run a team, create shots for others, and hit a mid-range jumper. His defensive technique needs work, but he does possess the foot speed to defend his position. As for Darko, who knows? Getting out of Detroit was certainly a good thing for him. His confidence was shot and he plainly did not want to be there anymore. Playing along side superstar in the making Dwight Howard should ease the pressure and expectations up on Milicic some. If Darko is really better facing the basket, his game should mesh with Howard's low post game perfectly. This was a calculated risk for the Magic, but having salary cap room, two good young PG's (Jameer Nelson & Arroyo), and two 20 year old seven footers with massive "upside" is a good place for a rebuilding franchise to start.

Deal #8 (2/22) - Orlando sends Steve Francis to New York for Penny Hardaway and Trevor Ariza. This move packed by far the most wow factor of any deal that went down. "What is Isiah thinking" must have been said ten thousand times in the days following this trade. Well, he did get Francis for two guys that weren't playing at all, so in that regard this exchange is a steal and a half. The thing is, winning games in the NBA comes down to more then who has the most talent. I have no doubt that the Knicks back court rotation of Stevie, Stephon Marbury, Jamal Crawford, Quentin Richardson, and Nate Robinson is going to be a train wreck. Mainly because their coach is Larry Brown. With that crew at their disposal most coaches would go to an up tempo run and gun style to maximize the talent they have. Wait, hold on a minute. I'm trying not to laugh. Larry Brown, adapting to his players strengths? C'mon now, we all know he's going to get his team to play his way, conventional wisdom be damned! At the very least NY will be more interesting to watch now, but I doubt they'll be any more successful. I'm willing to give Zeke until the next year's trade deadline to see if his "plan" is taking shape. If it's not, he's gone, and LB gets the keys. Which is really what Mr. Play-the-right-way has wanted from the start anyway.
The Magic waived Penny two days after the trade. I'm not surprised, but I am a little disappointed. I was dieing to see Hardaway and coach Brian Hill's tearful reunion. Anyway, in Ariza Orlando gets an athletic, long, 20 year old swingman with "potential". I thought Trevor was pretty darn his rookie year, but he was suffering under the "LB confidence reduction program" like many so young players before him have. Ariza's offensive game needs work, but he can finish in transition and is already an above average defender.

Sidebar: For those of you out there that think I bash LB too much, let me remind you of this. MMM was started as an outlet to blast Warren Sapp. So if you don't like me laying into LB every time I mention his name, tough cookies.

Deal #9 (2/23) - Seattle gets Earl Watson, Bryon Russell, a 2nd round pick (Denver's in 2008), and cash. Denver gets Reggie Evans, Ruben Patterson, and Charles Smith. Portland gets Voshon Lenard and Brian Skinner. Sacramento gets Vitaly Potapenko and Sergei Monia. I'd have to say that the Nuggets made out the best of all four teams in this trade. They received two players that fit nicely into coach George Karl's system and will help them immediately in their quest to win the Northwest Division. Evans is a tough rebounder and a nice insurance policy for Denver's perpetually injured front line. Patterson is a team cancer if I ever saw one, but he should be on his best behavior since next season is a contract
year for him. He gives the Nugs a tough perimeter defender and another energy guy to go along with Eduardo Najera. With Denver still needing a SG badly, I'm a little surprised that Charles Smith was released last Wednesday after only appearing in one game (2 minutes).

The Sonics finally acquired the back up PG coach Bob Hill had been grousing for. Watson is a nice fit with Luke Ridnour because Earl can defend his position with the best of them, but his J and decision making are a little shaky. Luke is basically the exact opposite, but I worry about how Rid will deal with the pressure of possibly competing for minutes. I would hope, for everyone's sake, that this is Bryon Russell's last stop in the association. He was also waived last Wednesday, after never gracing the court in a Seattle uniform.

The Trail Blazers were looking to rid themselves of Patterson and clear up more minutes for Travis Outlaw and Martell Webster at the swing positions. Nice work, but there's still plenty left to do in Portland. Lenard's contract is up after the season and I don't expect him to see much time or be resigned in the summer. Skinner has a limited offensive arsenal, but works hard, bangs down low, plays defense, and rebounds. B Skins is a very nice insurance policy if Joel Przybilla leaves and/or Theo Ratliff is traded. (Please let this be GM John Nash's final move.)

The Kings wanted to get below the luxury tax threshold and did so by swapping Skinner's contract for Potapenko's. The "Ukraine Train" should fit right in with Sacto's new tougher attitude. He's never met a foul he couldn't take, and take hard. Monia is a relative unknown after spending a year in Russia after being drafted 23rd in 2004. He only appeared in 23 games for the Blazers and always seemed a step slow to me. He's got enough athleticism though. I think it was more the speed of the NBA game that he was having trouble with. Barring injuries, I don't see him playing much for the Kings this year, but he'll get his chance next season when Bonzi Wells is gone. Just knowing President Geoff Petrie's track record, something tells me Sergei might surprise.

Deal #10 (2/23) - New Jersey deals Marc Jackson, Linton Johnson, and cash to NO/OKC for Bostjan Nachbar. The Hornets got their big man after rejecting Steven Hunter. Even though Jackson is the prototypical "black hole" type player on offense, he should be a nice back up for David West. He's not much of a defender, but with P.J. Brown and Aaron Williams already in the fold, all coach Byron Scott needs is his offense. Johnson is known for his defense and should see a few minutes off the bench in a stopper kind of role.

The Nets made this move to clear up salary cap space so they can sign a veteran free agent if they decide to. However, don't over look what Nachbar brings to the table. Granted, he is a liability on defense, but NJ lacks a consistent shooter from 3 point range, and that is exactly where Bostjan excels. With Vince Carter drawing double teams and Jason Kidd looking for him, Nachbar has a chance to fit in and really help the Nets.

Deal #11 (2/23) - Seattle sends Flip Murray to Cleveland for Mike Wilks and cash. Say what you want about Danny Ferry the player, but he's off to a pretty good start as a GM. Giving up the seldom used Mike Wilks (who?) for Murray will be a major league heist if Flip finds his shooting touch. I know that something about the Cavalier franchise makes shooters forget how to shoot, but since Murray was already struggling this year, maybe Cleveland will have the opposite effect on him. The Cavs desperately needed an outside threat with Larry Hughes and Luke Jackson both likely done for the season. Damon Jones and Sasha Pavlovic just were not cutting it. Flip has a chance to make himself a lot of money this summer if he can find the range again.

The Sonics basically gave Murray away just to be rid of him. Give Seattle GM Rick Sund credit, he unloaded every headache guy on the roster except Danny Fortson in one fell swoop. Vlade, Reggie, Vitaly, and Flip had all complained about minutes and touches at some point during this season. So when you look at it like that, it was a simple case of addition by subtraction. As for Wilks, he will be the third PG for the Sonics and probably won't play much unless Rid or Earl gets hurt.

Deal #12 (2/23) - Houston trades Derek Anderson to Miami for Gerald Fitch. I'm not sure the Heat really needed Anderson, but I suppose he's an upgrade over Jason Kapono. Derek has hardly been healthy this year, or the past three years for that matter. When able, Anderson is an above average defender that likes to get out and run and finish in transition. Isiah takes all the shots, but Miami coach/President Pat Riley adding another veteran to a team already struggling to find some chemistry should be questioned too.

For the Rockets, DA became expendable when they acquired Keith Bogans. They were just happy to be out from under his salary. Fitch will step into the third PG role vacated by Moochie Norris. I'd be surprised if Gerald is in the league next year.

Deal #13 (2/23) - Philadelphia deals Lee Nailon and a 2nd round pick (Sixers' this year with the option to swap with New Jersey) to Cleveland for a 2nd round pick (the Cavaliers will keep the pick they sent to Philly unless they finish with one of the top three records in the league). Cleveland waived Nailon the next day. Danny Ferry must have been doing some kind Duke alumni favor for Billy King or something.

Other then another "BK Special" (Nailon was signed 10/3/05), the Sixers were trying to get far enough under the salary cap that they could make the best offer for Tim Thomas. While I think TT would have been a nice fit on paper in Philly, haven't we seen his act before? He is not a team guy, never has been, and it's not like the Sixers have this great chemistry going on or anything. I'm just grateful that BK has a "plan", because if he didn't say so, it might appear to the naked eye that he's chasing his tail most of the time.

I'm making my way to Europe for the first time this Friday, so this is the last you will hear from me until April 3rd. By that time the NBA will be in it's stretch run and I know you'll all be looking forward to the return of my informed and witty commentary. I plan on not following anything to do with the NBA for the entire time (so it's like a real vacation for me). I'll be taking in the PSV - Ajax match at the Amsterdam ArenA while I'm there. I considered doing a report, then I remembered that none of you care about soccer.

NHL Week in Review By : Ed Wasser

- Sorry about that layoff everyone but I just had to pursue a dream, and thankfully MTV was there to cover it. Since I was a kid I had a dream, the same dream all kids have, to be a professional competitive eater. It's a dream that takes a lot of training, mostly with lettuce and pudding, to reach the pinnacle of the sport. The pinnacle of course being the caviar of competitive eating...hot dogs. Thankfully MTV featured my quest on "True Life : I'm a Competitive Eater" and, if you saw the show and my alter ego of Eater X you know that I have a lot of work to do but dammit I'm committed. Until then....ON TO HOCKEY!!!

- DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES?!?!?!?!?!?!? No. The American hockey team crashed and burned in Turino, don't call me Turin. They never even remotely got it together. Few reasons.....USA Hockey GM Don Waddell made A LOT of enemies within the last 3 months. C.C. Baird has a better chance of getting the award for P.E.T.A. Man of the Year then Waddell has of being USA Hockey GM again.(Anyone that gets that reference gets a pop culture gold medal) I thought it was kind of a good idea to put a few young players on the roster but Waddell was like Tom Cruise shooting the machine gun in the last 5 minutes of "Taps" on that roster ("It's beautiful, man!! IT'S BEAUTIFUL!!") But it wasn't beautiful because the international game is a different game and experience counts for a lot. The international game, due to the larger ice surface, is a 5 and 5 and 5 game. That's 5 men in the offensive zone playing offense, 5 men in the defensive zone playing defense, and 5 man lines. In the NHL game they have 3 man lines with the defensive pairings being treated as a separate entity switched on the fly independent of the forwards. The reason for that is the smaller ice surface in the NHL makes the time a team needs to make changes very short and if you tried to change all 5 players at once one mistake could make for a 5 on 0 rush going the other way and I'm guessing that might be tough for a goalie to stop. It's tough to get used to the international game for a player that doesn't have experience with it. Players from Europe and Asia, who play all their games on the 200' by 100' ice surface before they ever get to the NHL, jump back into that style like Hugh Hefner slipping into a pair of silk jammies. The Americans not so much. They were often out of position and had become so jittery and scared about giving up odd man rushes that they forgot they needed to score. Now granted Tony Amonte, John LeClair, and Brian Leetch aren't having the greatest seasons in the world in the NHL but they've played in the Olympics, World Championships, World Cups, you name it and they know how to play that game. They were missed.

I'm giving Jeremy Roenick and Cammi Granato their own paragraphs in regards to USA Hockey. First of all Roenick; the fact that he was left off the Olympic roster is a joke. Roenick was left off the roster as Waddell's revenge for Roenick skipping some international event years ago. It was just a petty "I'll show you!!" display of power. Roenick deserved to be on the team.

Now most of you probably don't even know who Cammi Granato is. Cammi Granato was without question the greatest women's hockey player in the history of the game. She was with USA Hockey women's program since it's inception and has played in every event in the history of the program, Granato also carried the flag in the closing ceremonies of the 1998 Nagano Olympics. Granato won the Olympic gold in 1998 and 2002. Did you get that? Cammi Granato donned an American hockey sweater for every game that the American women's team has ever played, she was the best player on all of those teams, she's the all time leading scorer in women's hockey history, and was an Olympic hero in 1998 and 2002. Oh, by the way, Cammi was also the captain of every American team she ever played on. She was tireless in her efforts to promote the women's game all around the world, before Cammi nobody gave 2 craps about women's hockey and it certainly wasn't an Olympic sport, Cammi and a few others made it popular. Well, it may not be THAT popular but you have to remember they were starting from zero. Granato was like Tony Hawk, seriously did anyone care about skate boarding before he put into people's thought process? Of course not. So Cammi is no kid any more in the athletic world (she's 34) and last fall they had "tryouts" for the women's American hockey team. Obviously I have no idea how Cammi played in the tryouts but she got cut. Granato got cut like she was some first timer going out for the team. There was no pulling her aside and asking her how she wants to go out, no press conference, no giving her a chance to retire, nothing. Just a disgrace. But you should have heard ESPN's Al Morganti when he heard about it. USA Hockey takes donations to help in training, spread the hockey message, etc. and Morganti said that over his dead body would he donate another dime to them. The women's team won a bronze medal, losing 4 - 0 to the Finns, which was ridiculous considering the fact that USA and Canada were the only teams that were really worth a crap. I was watching the Russian team play the US and the announcer said the Russian team had to borrow skates for the tournament. Huh? So the Americans got what they deserve.

- From the Ed Wasser conspiracy department.....why are the Rangers the only team in the NHL that didn't play a game until last Thursday, a full 3 days after the Olympic closing ceremonies while all the other teams played on either Tuesday and Wednesday? Not only did the Red Wings play on Tuesday but they played in San José, approximately 9,000 miles from Turino. But of course everything revolves around the Rangers so they get special treatment.

- Do you think the "Claymates" that actually believe that Clay Aiken is straight are all the granddaughters of the women that once believed that Liberace was straight?

- Truth be told the Americans never were predicted to do anything in the Olympics, the Canadians on the other hand were expected to win it all and they didn't even win any medal. I've seen more competitive fire from Beth on the "Real World/Road Rules : The Gauntlet". Remember the scene from "King Kong" when the monkey escapes into the streets of New York and the people panic and freak out and just run all over the place? That's the level of panic that is currently going on in Canada right now. The Canadiens are out of the playoffs, as are the Maple Leafs, the Canadian Olympic hockey team got shut out 3 times in the Olympics, including one to the Swiss who I didn't even know had an Olympic hockey team until about 2 weeks before the games. Granted the Canadian men's curling team took the gold but for some reason it's not appeasing the people like you think it might. Don Cherry on "Hockey Night in Canada" last Saturday had a good idea. Basically he believes that instead of taking a bunch of different guys and just sticking them on a team why not take combinations of players that are effective in the NHL? For example Eric Staal and Rod Brind'Amour are tearing things up for the Hurricanes, why not take the two of them, keeping 2/3 of their line intact, to play in the Olympics? The combination is a proven winner. At any rate the Canadians really blew it in the Olympics, they had the most talent by far, not mention a lot of experience. For them to come up totally dry is awful.

- As predicted by me the Swedes won the Olympic gold. Just call me Jimmy The Greek, not only for my bang on prognosticating but because I too would like to punch Brent Musberger in the face. I'm glad that I got that prediction in just in the nick of time because as we all know all predictions become null and void after 90 days. I mean really, who could accurately predict what say the Rangers for example will do for an entire hockey season? After 90 days I believe all predictions need to be erased and revisited.

- The Flyers are in free fall. They lost 3 games since the Olympics, all division games, including a devastating 6 - 1 loss to the Rangers. The Rangers toyed, and I mean TOYED, with the Flyers. Of course that was easy to see, everyone knew the Rangers would be good this year. I can't complain about the Flyers defensive zone coverage because it doesn't exist. Honestly the Flyers can't get out of their own way on defense. I just watch the Flyers and see guys with their backs to the play, two guys covering the same man, lazy back checking...I mean who the hell are Mike Richards and Jeff Carter to be lazy defensive players? I'm at a loss for a solution. Do the Flyers need some new blood before the trade deadline? Probably, but right now they're hemorrhaging and that would be a band-aid. This is the time of the year when teams should be coming into their own, the Flyers are falling apart quicker then Ron Burgundy after Baxter got punted off the bridge. Time is running out, they have to get their act together quickly or else this could really go down as one of the most disappointing seasons in Flyers history.