Monday Morning Mehta 12/26/06

Edition # 190
December 26, 2006

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NEXT MMM: January 2, 2007 (not 2006)

EAGLES/NFL

Wow. Quite frankly I'm downright speechless after the Eagles completed their 3 game divisional road sweep with a Christmas Day beat down of the Dallas Cowboys, 23-7. But I'll muster up a few words and pearls of wisdom. Game Positives:

- The Offensive Line. To say that the Eagles dominated is an understatement. A guy that has gotten no mention this year, which is a great thing for an O-lineman is Jon Runyan. The guy has been great. Shawn Andrews? He's one of the game's best guards and the best is yet to come.

- Running the ball. 34 runs to Westbrook and Buckhalter. Even if you take Garcia's 7 runs and call them pass plays, that's 34 runs (I won't even count the hand off to Tapeh a play) and 30 passes. Better than 50/50. Oh man. Marty Morningwhig must read MMM!

- The 3 points at the end of the half. Any momentum Dallas had was thrwarted by a nice drive at the end of the half with 30 seconds left. Now, G-Lew certainly scared me as he tiptoed the sidelines looking at the clock (because those "hometown" clock operators have a bad habit of little a second tick off before they stop the clock. But nonetheless, great job by Garcia, Westbrook, and everyone.

- Jeff Garcia. This is Garcia's 4th straight week here. I don't even know what else to say besides, yes, I was dead wrong. Hey, I can admit, see. And I'll gladly keep admitting every single week he's on here (hopefull all the way through the first Monday in February and as I'm on Broad Street (Ok, I know, I know, I getting out of control but that's what Iggle fans do).


Game Negatives:

- Owens not hurting himself??? Actually, maybe that's a positive. If he got hurt, he'd probably use that as an excuse. Honestly, what exactly can even the most cynical of Eagle fan, find wrong with a 23-7 beatdown of Dallas, IN DALLAS, on Christmas Day?

The Eagles now stand at 9-6 and in the drivers seat for the #3 seed in the NFC. The # 3 seed is an excellent place to be, and this is why next week's game versus the Falcons is huge. A win? Eagles get a home game vs. the # 6 seed (Giants, GB, StL, Car). A loss and a Dallas win (over Detroit)? They'll be the # 5 seed and travel to Seattle against a likely rested Seahawk team. Home game vs. Game in Seattle? Choice is easy for me. Kick the shiest out of Atlanta!

Some players definitely worthy of Game positives: Quintin Mikell, Matt Schoebel and the whole defense. I really question Dallas's game plan, as they didn't seem to want to establish any sort of ground game, but I guess the rush defense deserves plenty of credit after the bashing they've taken the last 2 months.
Around the League

How bad are the Colts? Giving up 150 yards to Ron Dayne is grounds for being stripped of a playoff spot.

How good is Vince Young? Titans clinch a playoff spot with a win, a Cincy loss, a Denver loss, and a KC WIN.

The playoff scenarios are a plenty. Pretty easy in the AFC. Four division winners are set, with some seeding jockeying for next week. Jets & Broncos win and they're in. If they lose, all heck breaks loose.

NFC? Bizarre picture. No team really controls their own destiny. The Giants and Green Bay have the best scenario. It's likely going to come down to how many points the Packers can beat the Bears by, if they win. It could be that wild if the Giants beat Washington on Saturday night in DC. If not, St. Louis is then involved and all heck breaks loose.


I'd really like to write some more, but my noon deadline is approaching. Also, I can't remember anything else to say. See you next year!! HAHAHAAHAHAA (How many times will you/have you heard that ridiculously old line...)

NHL Week in Review By : Ed Wasser

- A little house keeping to start off. There won't be an NHL Week in Review next week because I'll be on assignment in Tampa covering the Lightning vs. Canadiens game on Saturday. So when I get back I'll give you a full review of a stadium most of you will never visit and a sport most of you don't even like.

- I found a cool website. It's www.pleasesellthebruins.com. The site is dedicated to Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs who is one of, if not thee, worst owners in all of sports. Check it out, it's got some funny stuff.

- The Isle of Capri is a gambling company that was trying to get a slot machine license from the state of Pennsylvania and told everyone who would listen, including the mayor of Pittsburgh and governor of Pennsylvania, that if they got the license they would build a $295 million arena for the Penguins and a possible NBA franchise completely free of cost to the tax payers. Seemed like a slam dunk right? The Isle of Capri didn't get the license. Why? Because it would have made too much sense that's why. Ahhhh....you gotta love politics!! So the Penguins are pretty much history in Pittsburgh. And speaking of gambling, guess what city is making a play for the Penguins? Vegas baby!!! I hope it happens. I think it would be GREAT for the league.

- The Flyers are falling apart faster then Jani Lane on "Celebrity Fit Club". It's going to be tough but I'm thinking that the Flyers could go 0 for December. They still have 3 games remaining in the month, all away, against the Panthers, Lightning, and Hurricanes. That Panthers game will be a tough one to lose but I have confidence the Flyers can pull it off. The Flyers almost beat the Hurricanes last week but once again, proving that close only counts in hand grenades and slow dancing, they blew it. The Flyers lost 2-1. Then the Flyers almost beat the Canadiens. Almost. They lost that game 4-2. So just to make sure that the Flyers fans didn't start to get their hopes up the Senators came to Philadelphia and dismantled the home town boys 6-3. Flyer defenseman Derian Hatcher had a horrific turnover that lead to a goal and was greeted with an avalanche of boos from the crowd and from me sitting at a bar. Even drunk I can tell Hatcher is awful. Oh...and remember when I said the Flyers are the kings of the meaningless trades? Well trust me I said it. The Flyers just got Mike York from the Islanders for Randy Robitaille. Why? I dunno. It's a waste of time lateral move. Mike York's best years were when he played with Wayne Gretzky so unless the Flyers get him to come out of retirement I'd say he'll give little to the effort.

Monday Morning Mehta 12/18/06

Edition # 189
December 18, 2006

Next MMM: Tuesday December 26, 2006

This is our 100th posting on the web! WOW!

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Derreck's First Quarter Pole Review TODAY!! See below!

EAGLES/NFL

The Philadelphia Eagles get a huge win against their divisional rival NY Giants 36-22 in what felt like a playoff game. The Eagles now stand 8-6 and in the drivers seat for the playoffs. But let's not get ahead of ourselves, let's breakdown and savor this huge win yesterday (I hope you have some time, this is record breaking MMM information today...)

Game Positives:

- Brian Dawkins. I don't know how to compare games from years ago, but I don't remember Dawkins having a much bigger game than this one in his career. Dawkins has really stepped up his game in the past 2 games and is playing like a defensive player of the year would. With the inconsistency up front, Dawkins almost needs to play like he did yesterday. The cliche "He was all over the field" could be defined by Dawkins play yesterday.

- Brian Westbrook. Every time Westbrook touched the ball it seemed like something positive happened. Now back into the hyperbaric chamber until Christmas day, Brian.

- Jeff Garcia. Yes, these are the same positives as last week. Garcia has been amazing. I'll be the first to get into line and admit I was dead wrong on Garcia. The guy is like the anti-McNabb. Not the zip of an arm of Donovan, but way more demonstrative. The guy's nuts.

- O-Gat. Omar Gathier officially has a nickname after two straight weeks in the Game Positives column. This guy just makes tackles. Give the man a number in the 50's!

Game Negatives:

- The penalties. On the road you have to expect some more penalties than the home team, but yesterday was ridiculous.

- Anybody covering Plaxico Burress. Whether it was Lito, Sheldon or Hood, any pass that went up for Plax was a disaster. There's something about this guy that just kills the Eagles.

The Eagles now stand at 8-6 and control their own destiny for a playoff spot. If they win out, the Eagles are NFC East champs at 10-6. Winning 9 games will guarantee the Eagles a playoff spot with their impressive NFC conference record (it would be 8-4, in case of three way tie the Giants would also be 8-4, the Falcons would be the odd team out with a 7-5 conf record).

If the Eagles lose both of the games, all bets are off. This would also bring Minnesota or Green Bay into the mix (they play each other next week). But even so, the Eagles would still be in good shape because of their good conference record.

What do I see happening? I'm out of the Eagles predicting business! Who knows. They'll be hard pressed to win their 3rd straight road game, but who knows.

It's going to be sweet listening to the fallout from the Giants loss up in New York.

Why is it that our Receivers are suddenly making every catch? I honestly can't remember more than 2 or 3 drops in the last 3 weeks. Hank Baskett making diving catches, you got Greg Lewis giving you YAC. It's great stuff.

The balance yesterday was perfect. You'd really like to see about a 55% pass to 45% run ratio. That seems ideal. Yesterday was 27 run/31 pass (I'm counting the 3 Garcia runs as pass plays). That's 53% pass. YEAH!

The rush defense while not terrible, still didn't inspire confidence in me. Darwin Walker finally had a half decent game, his first in about 3 months.

We rarely look too much into next week here at MMM until the playoffs, but next week's Christmas day game at Dallas is certainly worth breaking down in detail. The Cowboys have won 6 out of their last 7 games and are probably the hottest team in the NFC. Tony Romo is passing at an amazing 66% clip and getting everyone involved, especially Terrell Owens.

There's obviously many keys to this game with turnovers and 3rd down conversions being the usual generic keys. One thing I'll mention is the Eagles better be ready to defend the run on 3rd down. Marion Barber III (not to be confused with Marion Barber I) is a real key on offense for this team. Julius Jones plays first and second down and Barber III takes 3rd downs and goal line situations. I've watched enough Cowboys games to know that you'll have Dallas stuck on 3rd and 7 only to see Barber III get 11 yards and a huge first down. It's just a killer.

As for the Eagles, I think they need to exploit Roy Williams' aggressiveness. This means lots of play action and possible a reverse or even a flea flicker.

Around the League

Is the hottest team in the league the Titans? They just find ways to win. Yesterday, it was defensive turnovers turned into touchdowns. To win a game in which you had 31 offensive plays versus 77 is just mind boggling.

Also at 7-7 playing great football is the Steelers. They could end up at 9-7, again, just like last year. Will it be good enough to get in the playoffs? Doubt it. But a Bengals loss tonight would go a long way towards helping their cause.

The AFC picture is becoming more of a playoff mess, which is great. The division winners appear set with the Jets, Jags, Broncos and Bengals all fighting for the Wild Card. Miracles needed for Steelers, Bills, Chiefs and Titans

The Seattle Seahawks are the strange team of the week. The defense of Seattle just hasn't been the same as last year's version and they're in slight danger of blowing the division. They play red hot San Diego next week and could be fighting for a division at Tampa the final week.
Who would they be fighting for the division against?? Joe Montana...eerrrrr, Alex Smith and the 49ers! A tough two wins to have to win out as they have Arizona and @ Denver. But why the heck not?

In Exhibit # 386 of how crazy the NFL is this year, the Saints after looking like the team to beat in the NFC pull a clunker to the Redskins. Talk about absolutely no life in a game, the Saints appeared to sleepwalk through the game.

Some people are concerned about the Bears play yesterday. Me? I'll call it an impressive win. When the defense struggles, which it rarely seems to do, the offense has to step up. While 13 2nd half + OT points isn't exactly Earth shattering, they got the job done.

The worst organization in football currently resides with the Detroit Lions. Maybe Matt Millen will get a contract extension this year?? There aren't many executives who have done a worse job in my sports watching lifetime.

The Clunker of the Week belongs to the Miami Dolphins and Joey Harrington. (next week this award will be named the Raiders award)

And finally, there's LT2. What does LT2 have to do to not be called, LT2? At this pace, he's going to be better than LT1. Not yet, but holy eff is the guy good.

NHL Week in Review By : Ed Wasser

- Well that was nice while it lasted. "The Hockey News" is reporting that scoring in the NHL is down almost a full half goal per game and the neutral zone trap is slowly starting to rear it's ugly head again. Considering that attendance is also down in a lot of cities and ratings are down in Canada (yes the ratings suck in the US but they always do) and the fact that the amount of the player salary cap is tied to league wide revenues....well, you get the picture. The league is suffering. And I love when NHL officials are pressed on these questions how they lash back with "OH YEAH!! WELL NBA RATINGS ARE DOWN TOO!!!" Yeah, so what? What does that even mean? The NHL should be taking advantage of the NBA's low ratings and try to grasp the headlines, not picking on them. Ahhhh....trying to teach the NHL how to market their game is like trying to teach algebra to a chimpanzee, can't be done.

- So I don't even know what to do anymore. You all tell me....I can try to continue to report on the Flyers, ignoring what it's doing to my health and well being not to mention my drinking habit, or we can think of something else. I can write about Ultimate Fighting, movies, you could send me money to go to bars and I can write beer reviews, whatever you want. Anymore I'm at a loss to explain just how bad the Flyers are; anybody got a thesaurus? But that's not the half of it. The announcers, the press, even some fans have given the Flyers such a free pass that it makes me sick. I mean people pay thousands and thousands of dollars to see this team play, at least give them a straight answer about what's going on. OK just for laughs, here's the top 10 things about the 2006 - 2007 Flyers that infuriate me.

10.) Nobody can ask head coach John Stevens a tough question. It's like it's illegal. After the Flyers lost to the Rangers 3 - 1 last Tuesday Stevens said during the post game news conference "the effort was there. It was a really great effort tonight". Now isn't the logical next question from a reporter something like "WHAT THE @^%* ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!?!?!?!?!?!?" The Flyers got crushed. They only had 16 shots on goal in the entire game and Jaromir Jagr flew past the Flyers defense like he was Paris Hilton going through the velvet rope at the Viper Room. That's a great effort?


9.) Everybody associated with the Flyers just leans on the injury crutch, 7th year in a row by the way. Wanna know who's injured that matters? Peter Forsberg, Peter Forsberg, and Peter Forsberg. Do you honestly believe the Flyers miss Jeff Carter and his 1 goal in 12 games? Or Robert Esche's 5.64 GAA? Or Mike Rathje's being the worst defenseman in the NHL? Please, don't insult our intelligence.


8.) Imagine if the Phillies brought a kid up from the minors and during his first at bat, after strike 3, he just stood there. And then you heard Harry Kalas say "well he's a young player, he doesn't know that at the major league level it's 3 strikes and you're out". You'd wonder if Harry was sucking back the hooch in between innings. So how come when the young Flyer players make atomically stupid plays, or take ridiculous penalties, or quite simply appear not to know the rules of a fairly simple game, the press and the Flyers announcers say "well he's a young player". Huh? Young players don't know that blind behind the back passes aren't a good idea? They teach that to 6 year olds. Young players don't know that you don't rocket passes to the last man high because if he misses it then it's a break away going the other way? I know it and I've never had a pair of ice skates on in entire my life. Young players don't know that they shouldn't pull down opposing players when they're 10 miles away from the puck, taking stupid and unnecessary penalties? It's a joke and a cop out. The Flyers have no worthwhile young talent is the real answer.


7.) Players diving to draw an undeserved penalty against the opposition exists in the NHL. It sucks but it's a fact. So since every team in the league is utilizing this technique to gain an advantage why don't the Flyers? Oh yeah that's right, the Flyers want to be the Elliott Ness of the NHL and not resort to such wild west antics. They are above such novelties. And as such the Flyers announcers will cry about the diving until the day they die while other teams use it as a strategy.


6.) Name me any sport in the history of mankind were penalties are a good thing. They're not, that's why they're called "penalties". So why do the Flyers broadcast team, along with a lot of the members of the Flyers press continue to mention that Ben Eager leads the team in penalty minutes like it's a badge of honor? It's 2006, the Broad Street Bullies are long gone. When Todd Fedoruk came back to the Flyers all I kept hearing was "he's a guy that knows how to drop the gloves". WHAT!?!?!? Fighting went the way of wide lapels and Studio 54 a long time ago. Imagine if the Eagles went out and specifically got a player and the broadcasters said "now this is a guy who knows how to get an offsides penalty like nobody's business". You'd think they were on crack. Why is it OK in Flyers hockey to be a penalty getter?


5.) The Flyers desperately need to change the culture in the front office. So guess who the Flyers recently named as their new senior vice president. BOBBY CLARKE!!!!!!!! Are you kidding me? First they finally get rid of Bobby Clarke after he was one of the biggest spending GM's in the game yet he produced I don't even know how many Stanley Cup-less years but then they hire Paul Holmgren who was just Bobby Clarke's bitc....protégé. And then they rehire Clarke. You think if a trade comes up Clarke won't throw in his 2 cents? Of course he will. So what has changed? Nothing.


4.) The player recycling is maddening. The Flyers brought back Todd Fedoruk. Why? He was terrible when he was here the first time. Same story when they brought back Chris Therien. Over the years they've brought back guys that they should have been happier then a pig in you know what to see go. Yet the one guy that I would LOVE to see back in a Flyers sweater, Rod Brind'Amour, remains in Carolina. And guess what, they ain't giving him up. And how would a quick, puck moving defenseman look on the Flyers right now? Pretty good huh? Someone like Kim Johnsson who the Flyers foolishly let walk.


3.) The Flyers are the kings of the worthless, unnecessary trades. Last week they traded Freddy Meyer to the Islanders for Alexi Zhitnik. Why? Who knows. All I know is that Meyer was a young player who may have became something and Zhitnik is 34 years old, slow, and has a reputation for not practicing hard and being late to games. The move makes no sense.


2.) There is no sport quite like hockey in that it completely disappears from the public consciousness when the local team is bad. Right now the Flyers may as well cancel the rest of the season due to lack of interest because the only way they'll get on the back cover of the Philadelphia Daily News is if Peter Forsberg murders someone.


1.) So here's the bottom line. When you watch the Penguins, Capitals, or even the damn Blue Jackets they have great young players making contributions. The 4 best players on the Penguins are Sidney Crosby (19), Evgeni Malkin (20), Jordan Staal (18), and Marc-André Fleury (22). These may not be the best teams in the league right now but they have a very bright future. The Flyers future is bleak. All these kids that they were depending on to develope aren't doing anything. And as long as they have Bobby Clarke hovering over every decision it'll never change.



- So as you may have guessed it was another craptacular week for the Flyers. 3 losses last week, 6 losses in a row in total, making for a record of 8 and 20. They're going neck and neck with the Blues for the worst record in the NHL. They lost to the Rangers 3 - 1, they were crushed by the Penguins 8 - 4 with Sidney Crosby having his first ever 6 point game, and then they lost to the Capitals 4 - 1. Oh and by the way, there's no real stars in the 2007 draft so there's really no end in sight as far as the Flyers are concerned. It'll probably be pretty bad for at least a few more years. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!

NBA - Derreck Sura


I've been avoiding writing about teams and their performance thus far because I hate to start out any analysis with "it's early, but." Now that every team has played more then 20 games, it's safe to start making predictions about what the future holds for each and every club. That's not to say that everything is completely set in stone at this point, because a few squads will still move up and/or down, but for the most part the trends of the first quarter of the season carry on throughout the year.

On to the third annual 'Quarter Pole Review'…

TITANTIC

Boston Celtics (10-13)

Watchability - Medium.

Surprise - Al Jefferson finally making the most of his opportunity over the last seven games.
Disappointment - The three-headed PG rotation of Sebastian Telfair, Delonte West and Rajon Rondo has been less then stellar.

Overall - If Al Jef continues his quality play when Kendrick Perkins returns, and the rest of the cast remains somewhat healthy, there is no reason the C's can't win their division.

Toronto Raptors (10-14)

Watchability - Medium to low without Chris Bosh.

Surprise - That they are even remotely competitive without Bosh.

Disappointment - Morris Peterson's production in his contract year.

Overall - The Raps have a bright future once they get a new coach (paging Marc Iavaroni). I think they're still a year away, but don't be surprised if they are on the fringes of the playoff race all season.

New Jersey Nets (9-14)

Watchability - Medium high.

Surprise - Jason Kidd finding the fountain of youth and having his best season since 2003-04.
Disappointment - Richard Jefferson having his worst year since his sophomore campaign in 2002-03.

Overall - The Nets still have the most talent in the division with four legit scoring options, but NJ will have to play the type of defense they are capable of more consistently to reach their full potential.

New York Knicks (9-17)

Watchability - Low to unwatchable.

Surprise - Eddy Curry showing a pulse when he gets the ball in the low post on offense.

Disappointment - Stephon Marbury pouting his way to his worst season ever.

Overall - Believe it or not, coach Isiah Thomas has his group playing pretty well. They undoubtedly have a lot of "ifs", but I'm not ready to count the Knicks out of the 8 th seed just yet.

Philadelphia 76ers (5-18)

Watchability - Extremely unwatchable to low.

Surprise - If you look closely enough you can see Andre Iguodala making incremental progress, albeit slight.

Disappointment - Take your pick of Chris Webber, Samuel Dalembert, Willie Green or coach Maurice Cheeks.

Overall - Brighter days are ahead, but make no mistake, things are going to get much worse before they get better.

CENTRAL

Detroit Pistons (15-8)

Watchability – Medium low to medium on occasion.

Surprise - Tayshaun Prince continuing to develop into one of the best all around players in the game.

Disappointment - Sixth man Antonio McDyess' career low shooting percentage of 38.6%.

Overall – The Pistons have to be considered one of the favorites in the East. I'll let you decide if that's a compliment or a slight.

Cleveland Cavaliers (14-9)

Watchability - Medium high to medium.

Surprise - Rookie Daniel Gibson showing signs that he could be the long term answer at PG.

Disappointment - Zydrunas Ilgauskas' sudden and sharp falloff in production.

Overall - The Cavs have been nothing special so far and seem to be basically the same squad as last year. Meaning they'll go as far as LeBron James takes them.

Chicago Bulls (14-10)

Watchability - Medium.

Surprise - Coach Scott Skiles actually loosening up the reigns on offense a bit.

Disappointment - Ben Wallace not having near the impact expected.

Overall - The Bulls have yet to hit their stride, and probably have at least one big trade in them. I still think they will be very dangerous come playoff time.

Indiana Pacers (13-13)

Watchability - Medium.

Surprise - They have managed to stay out of trouble since the "wild west strip club shootout" incident.

Disappointment - Coach Rick Carlisle reverting back to his old ways and old lineup after only 14 games.

Overall - The Pacers are what they are as a team at this point, which is a mediocre playoff contender in the East. Look for a roster shake up coming soon where no one is safe, not even Jermaine O'Neal.

Milwaukee Bucks (10-14)

Watchability - Medium low.

Surprise –The admirable job Ruben Patterson has done filling in for the injured (and out for the season) Bobby Simmons.

Disappointment - I expected a little more improvement from second year C Andrew Bogut, but I do like his nasty streak.

Overall - The Bucks defense ranks last in John Hollinger's defensive efficiency (109.7) AND in opponents field goal percentage ( 48.3%). So yes, those are vultures you see circling around coach Terry Stotts' head.

SOUTHEAST

Orlando Magic (16-10)

Watchability - Medium high to high when 100% healthy.

Surprise - Dwight Howard imposing his utter dominance upon the league.

Disappointment - Dare I say that my boy Darko Milicic should be averaging more then 7.5 points on 45% shooting, 5 rebounds and 1.73 blocks in 22.5 minutes.

Overall - The Magic really struggle to score points when they are not at full strength because Howard is not yet comfortable dealing with constant double teams. Grant Hill is key to balancing the floor, but so are Jameer Nelson and Hedo Turkoglu. Their lack of experience will hurt them come playoff time, but Orlando has a very bright future.

Washington Wizards (12-11)

Watchability - Medium to medium high on some nights.

Surprise - Caron Butler having a career year.

Disappointment - Etan Thomas and Brendan Haywood conspiring to make sure they get nothing out their C position.

Overall - After all of coach Eddie Jordan's pre-season talk about it, the Wiz still play no defense. They'll be in the playoff race all year, but are one and done if they get in.

Miami Heat (10-13)

Watchability - Very low to medium low.

Surprise - Third year swingman Dorell Wright finally showing a little something.

Disappointment - They don't seem to care all that much about anything. Playing hard, defending their title, procuring home court, you name it.

Overall - After Shaquille O'Neal is back playing for a month or so, the Heat will hit their stride. Will it be enough to win their division? Maybe, but it surely will be enough to make the playoffs in the putrid East.

Atlanta Hawks (9-14)

Watchability - Medium, because they play hard and compete every single night.

Surprise - Joe Johnson stepping up to have a career year.

Disappointment - "Big" free agent signee Speedy Claxton being hampered by a myriad of injuries.

Overall – If the Hawks can get any kind of substantial production from Claxton and Marvin Williams, they will be in the playoff hunt. Whether they make it in or not will depend on how many close games JJ is able to pull out for them.

Charlotte Bobcats (6-17)

Watchability - Medium low to low.

Surprise - Emeka Okafor coming back very strong after an injury plagued campaign.

Disappointment - Gerald Wallace reverting to his old self after breaking out last season.

Overall - I'm not the Bobcats fan I once was because this year's edition doesn't bring the same high energy nightly that has been their trademark thus far in their short existence. They have some pieces, but have no clue how to play as a team.

SOUTHWEST

San Antonio (19-6)

Watchability - Medium high to high if they are playing a good team.

Surprise - Brent Barry suddenly finding his touch again.

Disappointment - They have a tendency to coast against inferior competition .

Overall – Francisco Elson and Fabricio Oberto have done just enough in the middle, and the big three of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili have been their normal selves. Of concern though; Bruce Bowen, Michael Finley and Robert Horry all seem to have lost more then a step at the same time.

Dallas Mavericks (17-7)

Watchability - Very high.

Surprise - Josh Howard's continued evolution into a legit second scoring option.

Disappointment - Free agent Devean George shooting 32.9% from the field.

Overall - The Mavs have successfully avoided complacency and overcome a few injuries early on. This club is deep, dangerous and hasn't hit their stride yet. Look for them to make a deep run in the post season.

Houston Rockets (15-9)
Watchability - Medium high to medium depending on if Tracy McGrady is playing or not.

Surprise - T-Mac deferring to Yao Ming as the primary offensive option when both were healthy .

Disappointment - Bonzi Wells playing in only six games thus far.

Overall - The Rockets could be a very good team when healthy. As is, they will likely have to tread water during the regular season and hope that T-Mac's back is ready for the playoffs.
New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets (10-12)

Watchability - Medium high when healthy, but medium low right now.

Surprise - The way Chris Paul controls the game on offense is nothing short of brilliant.
Disappointment - Injuries to David West, Peja Stojakovic and Bobby Jackson derailed their season before it had a chance to get started.

Overall - The Hornets were looking better then I expected, but then the injuries hit. If they can get healthy with enough time to spare they'll have a shot at one of the last two playoff spots in the West.

Memphis Grizzlies (5-19)

Watchability - Unwatchable to very low.

Surprise - Hakim Warrick leading them in scoring at 15.5 ppg.

Disappointment - Brian Davis' bid to buy the franchise seems a little less then feasible, and has hamstrung any moves President Jerry West might make to rebuild.

Overall - Pau Gasol is back already, but I don't see it mattering all that much. This is a bad team that has already stopped listening to coach Mike Fratello. Once the ownership mess is resolved, look for wholesale roster changes.

NORTHWEST

Utah Jazz (18-6)

Watchability - Medium high to high.

Surprise - Carlos Boozer bouncing back from injuries to have a career year.

Disappointment - Andrei Kirilenko kind of shrinking into the background.

Overall - The Jazz are very good now, and should get even better as the season progresses and everyone settles into their role. If they address their SG situation, Utah will have a chance to win it all.

Denver Nuggets (13-9)

Watchability - Medium.

Surprise - J.R. Smith being second on the team in scoring at 16.7 ppg.

Disappointment - Nene Hilario's oh so slow recovery from right knee surgery.

Overall - The Nugs did a nice job recovering from a slow start, but something is not right with this squad. Coach George Karl is where I'd lay my money. "Furious" has the unique ability to alienate players while still winning games. I see that same pattern repeating itself in Denver.
Minnesota Timberwolves (10-11)

Watchability – Medium low to medium.

Surprise - Rookie big man Craig Smith (36th pick overall) looks like a keeper.
Disappointment - Free agent pickup Mike James reverting to his old form after inking his big deal.

Overall - I give the Wolves credit for hanging around .500 with this motley crew. It's yet another testament to Kevin Garnett's greatness. However, I don't see this club making the playoffs even if they acquire a certain tough little man.

Portland Trail Blazers (11-14)

Watchability - Medium.

Surprise - Zach Randolph's return to the land of the living.

Disappointment - A left heel injury limiting rookie Brandon Roy to five games.
Overall - This team is the biggest surprise to me so far. I went from thinking they were terrible, to thinking they aren't half bad. Roy's return, coupled with Joel Przybilla finding his groove, followed by smart trades of Z-Bo & Jamaal Magloire, and this franchise will be back contending before you know it.

Seattle SuperSonics (10-15)

Watchability - Medium to medium high.

Surprise - Luke Ridnour finding the confidence to finally become a legit third scoring option.

Disappointment - Earl Watson not embracing his role as backup PG and sixth man .

Overall – They stink without Ray Allen, plain and simple. With Ray in the lineup and healthy their scoring ability makes Seattle as dangerous as anyone on any given night. While the Sonics are a long shot to make the playoffs, they are not out of it yet.

PACIFIC

Phoenix Suns (17-6)

Watchability - Off the charts high.

Surprise - While not his old self, Amare Stoudemire is much closer to what he used to be then most thought possible.

Disappointment – Free agent PG Marcus Banks has been a complete flop.

Overall - Not like this is a news flash, but the Suns are very good. They will be in the race for the best record overall and extremely dangerous in the playoffs. The question for Phoenix is the same as it's always been, can you really win it all playing that style?

Los Angeles Lakers (16-8)

Watchability - High to medium high.

Surprise - Kobe Bryant's willingness to play a more team oriented style as soon as he entered the lineup.

Disappointment - Losing Lamar Odom for *at least* a month to a right knee injury.

Overall – The Lakers had been looking very good in the early going, moving the ball and playing the *team* game, etc. While defense was still LA's major weakness, they were working on it. Now, with the loss of Odom, I fear that my boys are going to revert to the "stand-around-and-watch-Kobe-offense", and that will be step in the wrong direction.

Golden State Warriors (12-13)

Watchability - Medium, but could go to medium high if they ever get 100% healthy.

Surprise - Second year guard Monta Ellis bursting onto the scene.

Disappointment - Jason Richardson being hampered by left knee problems all season.

Overall - I'm still not sold on the Warriors. They can be exciting to watch, but have no discipline as a unit and play zero defense. In other words, they play typical "Nellie Ball". I'll be very surprised if they remain in the playoff chase all year.

Sacramento Kings (10-12)

Watchability - Medium low to medium.

Surprise - Third year SG Kevin Martin leading them in scoring at 21.3 ppg is probably thee biggest individual surprise of the entire season thus far.

Disappointment - Coach Eric Musselman seemingly losing control of the locker room already.

Overall - I like to refer to the Kings as "Team tick, tick, tick…" There seems to be something of a power struggle going on between the old guard (Mike Bibby & Brad Miller) and the new regime (Ron Artest & Martin). I expect to see some roster changes in the near future, and possibly a playoff push after that, but Sacto is definitely lottery bound if they stand pat.

Los Angeles Clippers (10-13)

Watchability - Medium low to medium.

Surprise - That owner Donald Sterling locked up his core and his coach before any of them hit the open market.

Disappointment - Where to start? Sam Cassell, Chris Kaman and Tim Thomas are all nominees for their play. Then there's also Corey Maggette who just requested a trade.

Overall - Something is very wrong in Clipperdom these days. My best guess is that LA thought they were better then they really are when the season started, and hence have had a hard time adjusting ever since. The Clips have too much talent to miss the playoffs, but seem headed that way unless they start playing the same type of defensive intensity that they displayed last year.

Quarter Pole Awards
Defensive Player - Emeka Okafor (Charlotte Bobcats)
Sixth Man - Tyronn Lue (Atlanta Hawks)
Coach - Jerry Sloan (Utah Jazz)
Rookie - Adam Morrison (Charlotte Bobcats)
MVP - Carlos Boozer (Utah Jazz)

All NBA
PG - Steve Nash (Phoenix Suns)
SG - Dwyane Wade (Miami Heat)
SF - Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets)
PF - Carlos Boozer (Utah Jazz)
C - Yao Ming (Houston Rockets)

Monday Morning Mehta 12/11/06

Edition # 188
December 11, 2006

www.mondaymorningmehta.com

www.nba-jam.blogspot.com

Eagles/NFL

Eagles beat their division rival Washington Redskins 21-19 in a game of two halves. Just like the game yesterday, there's plenty of bad news to go along with the good. Which do you want?

Game Positives

- Brian Westbrook. I thought Westbrook looked as explosive as he's had in weeks yesterday. You still hold your breath on every play with Westy hoping he doesn't get hurt, but the guy can carry an offense at times there's no denying that. The most satisfying part of the win was running the clock out at the end of the game thanks in large part to Westbrook. Seeing Garcia take a knee after the 2 minute warning was a thing of beauty.

- Brian Dawkins. Big players make big plays. Dawkins made two huge plays in the 4th quarter to preserve a victory. The first will get the most pub, the sack of Jason Campbell. The other was a play earlier in the quarter where he deflected a first down pass. If the defense is going to be this shoddy (we'll get to that in a moment), Dawkins needs to step up and play like a Pro Bowler every down.

- Jeff Garcia. I can't necessarily pinpoint anything I like. And I have to admit I didn't think Garcia had anything left in the tank. But he has been incredibly lucky to go along with solid and I'll take that (he has no interceptions but has clearly thrown his fair share of interceptable passes). One takeaway from all this? Don't believe anything that happens in Detroit. That team is just a mess. (Except for Joey Harrington, he was never going to be a bigtime QB....sorry Duck fan)

- Omar Gathier. The natural instinct when a linebacker has a good game for the Eagles is to think "Oh my God! We finally have someone who can play!!" Gathier looked very good and what was most impressive is he played well against the pass as well as the run. Still need to see more though.

- Sean Considine & Michael Lewis. Considine at safety on most plays with Lewis roving at linebacker seems to work somewhat.

Game Negatives:

- Anything to do with defensive line play, ESPECIALLY Darren Howard. As far as I'm concerned, Andy Reid's two huge free agent signings of Jevon Kearse and Darren Howard have been busts. For the money they've gotten, the production has been very weak and inconsistent. But the blame can't stop there. Giving up all these yards to unknown running backs is out of control.

- 22 rushes, 23 passes. Why is this a negative? WHERE HAS THIS BALANCE BEEN ALL YEAR!?!?! If you do this with McNabb you win a few more games earlier in the year and maybe McNabb's not hurt. Eff!


Broderick Bunkley rant

I haven't talked much about Bunkley this year, mainly because he doesn't play at all. But at this point, it's out of control so I feel as though as a well respected member of the media (whom respects me is not a question you are allowed to ask), it's my duty to say something. I have seen Darwin Walker play football. He is downright sad. He gets tossed off the ball like a rag doll. I have seen Sam Rayburn play. He makes one tackle a game and the rest of the game he's blown off the ball. Mike Patterson? Young, played so-so yesterday, would like to see him a little fresher. Hey, how about throwing Broderick Bunkley in for 20-25 plays a game?? I have been watching like a hawk for Bunkley each of the last two games. He's sometimes used in goaline dime packages when the Eagles use 5 or 6 down lineman. In those circumstances it's really hard to view a guys play, even in HD. But yesterday I finally saw Bunkley. And on the one play I saw him he seemed to lightly push a guy and the guy flew like he was Darwin Walker. That tells me all I need to know. Get the guy in there already.

The Eagles now stand 7-6 and are holding down the 6th and final playoff spot in the NFC by virtue of their impressive 6-3 record in the NFC. Amazingly, they control their own destiny in the NFC (so does Dallas though). If the Eagles win out, they'll be 10-6 and win the division because of having beaten the Cowboys twice. The Eagles would have 5 straight wins and momentum going into a home playoff game. SNAP BACK TO REALITY!!!!

The realistic approach is this: They have two very tough road division games coming up. In all likelihood they're going to lose them. The key game is going to be NY's Eve against Atlanta. That is probably going to pit an 8-7 Atlanta team vs. a 7-8 Eagles team, for the final playoff spot (possibly battling Minny on tiebreaks - see below). And if this is the case, NBC will move that game to 8:15pm. NY's Eve Eagles night "playoff" game. Didn't we have that a few years back against Shaun King and the Bucs? Of course, all this could and probably will change by next week...

Next week the Eagles face the Giants. We owe them one. If we accomplish nothing else from this season I'd love to see the Eagles beat the Giants and put a huge hole in the Giants playoff chances. Yes, this is almost like saying "I don't care if we go 2-14 as long as we beat Dallas twice", but the Giants are just BEGGING for someone to put them out of their misery. Nobody wants to pull that final trigger though.

Around the NFL

Game of the Week: CAUTION! Due to lack of close, meaningful games we had to select Titans/Texans as the Game of the Week. But why not? It's fun to rip on the Texans. As Vince Young ran every yard of his 39 yard TD run each and every Texan fan had to be thinking "WTF did we take Mario Williams for?" In case people were wondering, Williams started off slowly and has actually played somewhat decent the 6 weeks. Note: I said somewhat decent. Vince Young and Reggie Bush have been off the hook lately (we're trying to learn the new cool lingo here at MMM so that we can attract the young audience).

MMM shouldn't and doesn't count Minnesota out of the playoff race. A tough hill to climb with a 6-7 record, but they have a 6-4 NFC record and a favorable schedule the rest of the way (Jets, @ GB, StL). They'll be heard from in the next few weeks I suspect.

Carolina really hurt their chances at 6-7 yesterday with a loss to the Giants. They now lose tiebreaks to Minnesota, Eagles AND Giants (lost head to head to each). They need to miraculously win a questionable Jake Delhomme to have a shot (Pitts, @ Atl, @ NO). A brutal schedule.

St. Louis can also jump into the fray with a win tonight over the Bears.

In the AFC things are just as jumbled. New England, Baltimore, Indy, and San Diego are close to being locks. Two spots remain with Jacksonville and Cincy leading the way at 8-5. but 3 teams at 7-6 are waiting in the wing.

As for Indy, they look terrible right now. Even in the Eagles game the defense looked shoddy, but right now their run defense is WORSE than the Eagles. Yes, I said worse. Maurice Jones-Drew (he started on my fantasy team in week 1 of the playoffs. Yeah boy) ran for like 3,000 total yards and Fred Taylor did about the same. They could've scored 80 points it seemed. David Gerrard has been amazingly good as backup QB. It's fun seeing Indy struggle.

LaDainian Tomlinson scored a few late garbage TD's to beat the Broncos and to set the single season TD record after just 13 games. He's amazing. The Chargers are going to be a tough beat, but as I state every week, BEWARE of Marty.

Phillies

Phillies make a big splash at the GM Meetings by trading for Freddy Garcia. The team is still a work in progress but the pitching staff is starting to take shape.

Pat Gillick is now looking for a righty bat, as well as some bullpen help. Jon Lieber is the name being brought up in trade rumors (to the Cards for Braden Looper and another reliever or Rangers for Akinori Otsuka (good rumor Cook))?

I think as Gillick steps back he's possibly thinking about trading Brett Myers. I certainly hope not, I think his off the field problems have been somewhat forgiven by Phillies fans. Myers could possibly land that big right handed bat that could protect Ryan Howard and Pat Gillick covets. Caution: Pitching wins. Chicks dig the longball.

Dragons Den

The Drexel Dragons beat the Villanova Wildcats. The Dragons beat a Big East team that went to the Elite 8 last year. Granted, most of this Wildcat team has gone pro, but this is still a huge win for the school.

The Dragons now take some time off before facing Syracuse, a nationally ranked Big East school. Before I get too out of control let's see what happens there.

Nobody should be surprised at the play of Drexel. They play in a conference in which a team made the Final Four last year (George Mason) and had 2 NCAA bids. They were very competitive within the conference also. With 4 returning starters this team is going to be very good this year, possibly the best in the city.

Bruiser Ball!!


NHL Week in Review By : Ed Wasser

- Think about this 24 hour period for Philadelphia sports fans. From Friday Dec. 8 to Saturday Dec. 9 the Sixers lost to the Wizards and the Magic, the Flyers lost to the Capitals and the Devils, and Villanova, St. Joe's, and Temple all lost basketball games. Sure Villanova lost to Drexel which makes one MMM reader happy but think about that for a second. 4 professional sports losses in 24 hours for Philadelphia. Like so many others, to combat the misery of the Philadelphia sporting disasters I often turn to the show "Little People, Big World" on TLC and watch the one midget kid playing soccer. A midget playing soccer, now that's comedy. Watching that soccer playing tiny terror has gotten this country through some tough times. At any rate at least we have the Philadelphia Barrage defending their outdoor lacrosse title coming up.


- For fear of being called on dereliction of duty and disappointing my loyal MMM reader (Yo Saurin, what's up?) I have still been watching the Flyers. I actually have to hand it to the Flyers, lately
they've added about 15 pieces of flair to their ineptitude. Sure any team can be bad, but not every team can be record breaking bad. I'll give you an example; last Friday the Flyers lost 2 - 0 to the Devils. On the surface it looked like your standard everyday pathetic Flyers performance but it turned out that the game was Martin Broduer's 84th career shutout, tying him with Glenn Hall for 3rd place on the all time list. By the way, I'm not sure but I think about 77 of Broduer's shutouts have come against the Flyers, I'll have to look that up. So that was a nice touch for the Flyers. Saturday's game against the Capitals was a real gem. Not only did the Flyers lose the game 5 - 3 to a team that, no lie, prominently features Donald Brashear on the power play, Flyer forward Kyle Calder committed a penalty that left me so stunned that when I saw it I looked like Chief Brody the first time he sees the shark while tossing chum in the ocean. OK, when you look at the box score it looks like Capital Chris Clark got a hooking penalty and Kyle Calder got a tripping penalty both at the 4:13 mark of the first period. But what really happened is that Chris Clark got the hooking penalty and was sent to the box. On the ensuing face off, as the puck was still in the air, before 1 (ONE!!!!!) second had ticked off the clock, Kyle Calder tripped a Capital and was sent to the penalty box. It was the shortest power play in the history of the NHL. That is weapons grade stupidity. And speaking of Kyle Calder, he lead the Blackhawks in points last year, this year with the Flyers he's played in 26 games and has 0 goals and only 3 assists.


And another thing about the Capitals. If Alexander Ovechkin gets into the Hall of Fame he had better thank the Flyers in his acceptance speech because he has made that team his bitc...well, I'll just say he plays well against them. Sidney Crosby too. They own the Flyers.

Monday Morning Mehta 12/5/06

Edition # 187
December 5, 2006

www.mondaymorningmehta.com

www.nba-jam.blogspot.com

Here we go...

Game Positives:

- Lito Sheppard. I thought Sheppard and Sheldon Brown played a very good game. They were beat a few times but against good WR's that has to be expected. Sheppard's interception with 27 seconds left was an absolute thing of beauty. Penalty? No. The funniest thing about the whole play was the side judge that made the 'no pass interference' call. A few years ago I went to Detroit to watch the Eagles/Lions game at Ford Field. On the plane I sat next to an NFL referee, his name was Rick Patterson, #15. Check the archives, I think I wrote about it. He's got the whitest hair ever, if you're watching NFL games you can't miss the dude. Anyway, he's the guy who made the non-pass-interference call. When I saw the game I noticed it was his crew doing the game so I was hoping he wouldn't have any "biases" towards the Panthers because he told me on the flight he lived in Charlotte (another USAir hub hence he had to take a connection through Philadelphia). Anyway, have I strayed enough for you?

- Jeff Garcia. For all the heat Garcia's gotten from everyone, including yours truly, he played very well last night. There were MANY throws where you scratched your head but for the most part he made things happen after a very shaky start.

- Donte Stallworth. Stallworth was open all night as the woeful Panthers pass defense got burnt on multiple occasions. I ripped Alligator arms last week, so I guess he somewhat atoned for his transgressions (whatever that means).

- The 3rd and 1 play in the third quarter where Correll Buckhalter ran the ball and got 4 yards. I seriously can't remember the last time I've seen that. Out of everything I saw last night, that was the most satisfying to see. Buckhalter and Westbrook can work as a duo running the ball, I'm convinced of it. If you sprinkled in Ryan Moats late in games when the defense is tired I think you'd really be onto something.

Game Negatives:

- LJ Smith. Hello??

Overall the Eagles now stand 6-6 and technically IN the playoffs by virtue of their 5-3 conference record ("IF THE SEASON WERE TO END TODAY" - a saying I absolutely hate). I think 8-8 has a great shot at making the playoffs, especially since the Eagles have tiebreak advantages. They'll need to go 1-2 in the 3 game gauntlet of @ Wash, @ NYG, @ Dallas, and then beat Atlanta at home. This way, they'd have the tiebreak advantage over Carolina and Atlanta. It's quite doable, but...

I think last nights game was the Eagles Super Bowl. National stage while the media and fans have been completely killing the players, front office, etc. for everything from coaching decisions to what color socks they wear during pregame warmups. The Eagles wanted this game badly. Whenever you get yourself on such an emotional high, especially in the NFL, you're bound for a letdown.

I'd like to make a bold statement about the Eagles, but everyone in the league is so bunched together that who knows what the heck is going to happen.

The run defense was improved but a few missed tackles really hurt them.

Around the League

Same ole same around the league. NFC has 8 teams bunched together, AFC isn't much better. Parity is abound and Paul Tagliabue sits back and probably is grinning from ear to ear this morning.

Thanksgiving on is the time you start to see teams "make their move". Who separates themselves from the pack and gets hot? Unfortunately, this year that team is the Dallas Cowboys. As for the Chargers, I can't take them seriously with that head coach. LT2 may be able to overcome that but it also worries me having a first year QB.

Don't have much more to add, kinda need to get to work this AM. Sorry, if you people would pay your subscription bills I'd write all day.

Dragon's Den

The Drexel Dragons are off to an up and down start to their season with a 3-2 record (not sure if Florida Gulf Coast is a real basketball team or a bunch of coast guard workers). The big win of the year so far is against city rival St. Joseph's, although SJU is sporting a pretty weak team this year, and it usually takes Phil Martelli a few months to find the right chemistry.
The Dragons have a huge stretch of games starting Saturday (Nova, Syracuse, Temple, all on the road -- who the heck would agree to play in Drexel's gym!!). Then begins conference play. The Dragons conference ain't a joke anymore kids. Last year the conference got 2 bids to the NCAA tournament including Final Four Cinderella George Mason, who the Dragons host on 12/28.

Phillies

The GM meeting began yesterday with a flurry of rumors, as usual. Manny Ramirez's annual trading speculation is the biggest news this offseason along with the ever escalating contracts for middle of the road players.

It seems to me like baseball is turning into a sport where your better off by signing the stud free agent for whatever he asks for, rather than giving Vicente Padilla or Ted Lilly $11 million dollars a year (that's not a misprint). There's tons of examples of extremely high priced average players in the last two seasons. I'm telling you, and this isn't a popular thing to say in Philadelphia, but look around: Pat Burrell's contract is suddenly not all that bad. Now, whether it's just time for Burrell to move on for a change of scenery is a different issue.

Pat Gillick at the GM meetings? I feel much more comfortable with Gillick there than Ed Wade. Wade at the GM meetings might as well have put on press credentials.

Look for Gillick to

- Unsuccessfully move Burrell (I think Gillick will realize Pat's contract isn't all that bad and he may be able to get much more for him next offseason when he's in his final year).

- Shop Jon Lieber. If they can get a decent prospect or a decent reliever I think Lieber is a goner.

- Shop Aaron Rowand. The White Sox are shopping one of Javier Vasquez, Freddy Garcia or Jon Garcia. My guess is Gillick would love to swap Lieber for one of these guys. Unfortunately, the Mets are desperate for pitching right now and may very well put Lastings Millidge to get a deal done, which GM Ken Williams would likely jump at.

- Try to get a catcher. Who?

- Reliever. Gillick knows he needs to sign a setup man. Setup men usually sign in bunches right around a week or so after the GM meetings.

Overall, it's too early to gauge the offseason. I do think Adam Eaton will be a decent starter and definitely a better pitcher and a cheaper price than Padilla or Lilly, but that's not saying much.

NHL Week in Review By : Ed Wasser

- OK, I'm back from my trip to my homeland (Ireland) and I'm refreshed and ready to resume my duties at MMM. For the record I actually have like 4 homelands. For those of you that don't know me my nationalities are Irish, Cherokee Indian, Icelandic, and Sephardic Jew. Anyway, a few observations from my jaunt into the land of the dentally challenged.....Obviously the most popular sport in Ireland is soccer, or as they call it, soccer. That's true. If you're an American most Irish people just call it soccer instead of football to avoid the old, "wait, that don't look like football!!", from ignorant Americans. But the other popular sports are horse racing, golf, rugby, and hurling. I couldn't grasp the rules of hurling but I think the object is to crack open the skull of your opponent with the Irish version of a baseball bat. I'm telling you, the first time I saw it I couldn't tell if I was watching a sport or the Rodney King video. And the entire sport, despite the popularity and the sold out stadiums, is completely amateur. So not only do the athletes get their arses kicked playing the game, they have to pick up their own hospital bills to boot. Rugby is played by professionals but it's just as insanely violent. The difference between those sports and the sports played in America, in my humble opinion, is that there is a huge skill level required to play American sports (linemen in football being the closest exception) were the sports of hurling and rugby require brut strength, no feeling of pain, and a complete disinterest of what your face and body will look like when you retire.....You know how the days of the hot stewardess have gone the way of the Seattle Pilots in the United States? Well those sexy stews are alive and well on Aer Lingus. Aer Lingus is like a flying strip club.

- As we continue to mourn the death of the Flyers season here's a few notes from around the NHL.....Dallas Star Mike Madano got engaged to "Dancing With The Stars" resident bimbo Willa Ford. Don't forget to sign the prenup Mike!!!.....Brett Hull is still the one of the greatest quotes in all of sports. He was interviewed on the CBC and he was asked about Ken Hitchcock, "until he adapts to the new NHL he'll never win again". He was asked about Mike Keenan, "the guy has ruined more careers then anyone in hockey. And he was happy to do it". Damn!!.....The NHL has these commercials were players appear in the lives of everyday people and when the person asks "honey, why is Peter Forsberg in our bed" or wherever the player is the response is "he's just here there to remind you that the season started". You know what, they need it because I'm not hearing anything about the league in the local or national media.....And the Ducks and the Sabres are far away the class of the NHL. So how does an Anaheim vs. Buffalo Stanley Cup Final grab you? Not exactly a ratings bonanza.

- Last week Flyer Mike Rathje did the impossible, he committed a turnover so incredibly bad it may have cost him his career. It was against the Predators and he fanned on a pass with 5 minutes left in the game and about 10 feet from the Flyer goal, Rathje put the puck on the stick of probably the worst person possible, Paul Kariya. Kariya promptly passed the puck to Mike Erat who buried the shot which turned into the game winning goal. The Flyers lost the game 3 - 2. So after Rathje's screw up every time he touched the puck he heard a thunderous cascade of boos from the Flyers fans. The next day it was announced that Rathje had an injury that may be career ending. Huh? When did that happen? And if Rathje gets well the Flyers want to "discuss Mike's future". Yeah, OK. It doesn't matter, good bye and good riddance Mike. The Flyers beat the Islanders 3 - 2 last Thursday which rocketed them past the Blue Jackets, Coyotes, and Blues in the standings so they no longer have the worst record in the league. YEAH!!! But last Saturday the Flyers lost to the Devils 4 - 3 in a shootout. So it was a nice 1 game winning streak for the Flyers. It's obvious that the main problem with the Flyers is team speed, so how are they combating it? They're getting slower. The brought back goon Todd Fedoruk and they're thinking of bringing back John LeClair. Why? It makes ZERO sense. The season is lost, accept it, so play the young kids. Let's see what they got. At any rate this is the lowest Philadelphia sports has been in memory. The Flyers and Sixers are terrible, the Phillies are treading water, and the Eagles are bad yet oddly enough they're still smug. This is going to be a long couple of years for Philadelphians.