Friday, April 23, 2004
The return of Vinny.
Vinny Lecavalier, who was missing from the scoresheet in Round 1 of the playoffs like George W. Bush from the National Guard, was a beast tonight, scoring twice and setting up another as the Bolts bashed Montreal 4-0 in their second round playoff opener tonight at the Forum.
Lecavalier took the game over in the second period, and his assist may have been more impressive than his two goals. With the game scoreless early in the second, Vinny did his best John Tonelli impersonation, fightning like a maniac for the puck in the corner, and then coming out along the side boards and stealing back the puck, dropping it to Marty St. Louis in the corner, who one-timed a pass to Ruslan Fedotenko in the slot that Fedotenko buried. Lecavalier made it 2-0 with a nice deflection of a St. Louis point shot, and then in the third made it 3-0 with a great move coming out of the corner, beating a defenseman and flipping it past Jose Theodore. The Lightning ended up chasing Theodore from the game when Dmitri Afanasenkov made it 4-0 off another Hab turnover.
Meanwhile, Khabibulin got his fourth shutout of the playoffs, and it was without doubt his easiest. Montreal only managed 21 shots, and nearly half of them came in the first period. As the score indicated, it was total domination tonight, and St. Louis, who ended up with three assists himself, had a couple of partial breakaways that he failed to convert. The score could have easily been 7-0.
The only possible negative from the game is that the Lightning may think the rest of the series will come this easily and just "show up" in Game 2. While the Lightning are the better team, Montreal will undoubtedly put up a better fight in the games to come than they did tonight.
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Lecavalier took the game over in the second period, and his assist may have been more impressive than his two goals. With the game scoreless early in the second, Vinny did his best John Tonelli impersonation, fightning like a maniac for the puck in the corner, and then coming out along the side boards and stealing back the puck, dropping it to Marty St. Louis in the corner, who one-timed a pass to Ruslan Fedotenko in the slot that Fedotenko buried. Lecavalier made it 2-0 with a nice deflection of a St. Louis point shot, and then in the third made it 3-0 with a great move coming out of the corner, beating a defenseman and flipping it past Jose Theodore. The Lightning ended up chasing Theodore from the game when Dmitri Afanasenkov made it 4-0 off another Hab turnover.
Meanwhile, Khabibulin got his fourth shutout of the playoffs, and it was without doubt his easiest. Montreal only managed 21 shots, and nearly half of them came in the first period. As the score indicated, it was total domination tonight, and St. Louis, who ended up with three assists himself, had a couple of partial breakaways that he failed to convert. The score could have easily been 7-0.
The only possible negative from the game is that the Lightning may think the rest of the series will come this easily and just "show up" in Game 2. While the Lightning are the better team, Montreal will undoubtedly put up a better fight in the games to come than they did tonight.
Wednesday, April 21, 2004
Compare and contrast.
This
with
This.
Nothing we don't know already, but always illustrative to see it in black and white.
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with
This.
Nothing we don't know already, but always illustrative to see it in black and white.
More props for Marty.
Although not as many as he could have received. The NHL announced its awards finalists today, and unsurprisingly, Marty St. Louis was one of the three finalists for the Hart Trophy, the NHL's MVP. As mentioned earlier, he's actually a prohbitive favorite for it.
There was quite a bit of buzz among hockey people that St. Louis might also be nominated for the Selke Trophy, given to the league's best defensive forward, but Marty didn't make the cut here. Despite his excellent defensive work, his defense was more in the manner of a good offense (forechecking, all of those shorthanded goals) rather than continually shutting down the opponent's best player, so that combined with his lack of size left him out on this one.
St. Louis was nominated for the Lady Byng Trophy, given for sportsmanship. I suppose it's nice to win, but given the combination of the name of the award and the fact that it usually goes to the best player with the fewest penalty minutes, it's not something one hears bragged about very often. "Who's going to win the Byng?" isn't exactly a question on everyone's lips. Nevertheless, there's a very good chance that this award ends up with the Lightning, as in addition to St. Louis, teammate Brad Richards was also nominated for it.
Finally, John Tortorella seems a shoo-in for the Jack Adams Award, for Coach of the Year. Torts was the runner-up last season to Mad Trapper Jacques Lemaire, but seems a lock this time around taking the Bolts to the #1 seed in the East and #2 NHL record overall.
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There was quite a bit of buzz among hockey people that St. Louis might also be nominated for the Selke Trophy, given to the league's best defensive forward, but Marty didn't make the cut here. Despite his excellent defensive work, his defense was more in the manner of a good offense (forechecking, all of those shorthanded goals) rather than continually shutting down the opponent's best player, so that combined with his lack of size left him out on this one.
St. Louis was nominated for the Lady Byng Trophy, given for sportsmanship. I suppose it's nice to win, but given the combination of the name of the award and the fact that it usually goes to the best player with the fewest penalty minutes, it's not something one hears bragged about very often. "Who's going to win the Byng?" isn't exactly a question on everyone's lips. Nevertheless, there's a very good chance that this award ends up with the Lightning, as in addition to St. Louis, teammate Brad Richards was also nominated for it.
Finally, John Tortorella seems a shoo-in for the Jack Adams Award, for Coach of the Year. Torts was the runner-up last season to Mad Trapper Jacques Lemaire, but seems a lock this time around taking the Bolts to the #1 seed in the East and #2 NHL record overall.
A word of update.
For the one or two folks that might still be checking in, apologies for the lack of blogging lately. A number of factors are involved - I've been busier these last couple of weeks, MLB has started and I'm spending more time checking out games and following my Rotisserie teams, there hasn't been too much lately that I've felt compelled to blog about, and finally, I'm a bit burned out at the moment on the Presidential race and politics, although I'm sure I'll be re-energized at some point in the near future. Anyway, if you're reading this, check back in from time to time; it's more a temporary lull than anything else right now.
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Sunday, April 18, 2004
Movie roundup.
Some quick reviews of movies I've seen the past couple of weeks:
And Now Ladies and Gentlemen (2002): Jeremy Irons is a clever master-of-disguise jewel thief. No - wait it's about this female lounge singer with a brain tumor. But no, Jeremy has a brain tumor too. And what about Jeremy's "wife" and the guy with the boat? A strange, all-over-the-place movie with a strange, all-over-the-place title. Rating: 58.
B. Monkey (1998): Speaking of strange titles, this one's about a glamorous young female thief nicknamed B. Monkey (Asia Argento) who decides to settle down with Jared Harris' strait-laced elementary school teacher. But try as she may to stay out, her former partners in crime (including Rupert Everett, in his stock role as a gay, blase wastrel) keep pulling her back in. A rather ludicrous plot, but some interesting moments. And it helps that Argento is naked for what seems to be half the film. Rating: 65.
Holes (2003): My young son wanted to watch this one, and given that it looked to appeal to a slighter older age group, I watched it myself. Above-average kids flick, with Jon Voight a hoot as a tough-as-nails "warden", and Henry Winkler as a doddering inventor. He's not the Fonz any more. Rating: 70.
Billy Elliot (2000): 11-year-old working class English boy wants to be a ballet dancer. Hard-ass striking coal miner dad says no, the son must be "some kind of poof". Tears and triumph follow. Been there, seen that (Brassed Off, The Full Monty, etc.). Rating: 55.
Blind Horizon (2004): Val Kilmer is an amnesiac assassin. Assassins sure suffer a high rate of amnesia in films (cf. The Bourne Identity, The Long Kiss Goodnight), don't they? Perhaps they need a better medical plan. Meanwhile, Neve Campbell is The Woman Who Isn't What She Seems, and Sam Shepard is the local sheriff trying to put it all together before the President comes to town. Yawn. Right now, I'm wishing I could be an amensiac. Rating: 42.
Broadway Danny Rose (1984): The slight Woody Allen film received quite a bit of praise at the time. Maybe it's having seen most of his movies from the last 20 years in between, but his schtick is wearing thin to me, and there weren't any laugh-out-loud moments. The framing device for the film was a bunch of real-life Borscht Belt comics gathered around telling the story of Rose. Interestingly, the comic doing most of the storytelling was Sandy Baron, known to a wider audience as Jack Klompus, Morty Seinfeld's condo arch-enemy. Rating: 50.
Comic Book Villains (2002): Donal Logue and Michael Rappaport are comic store owners fightning over who gets the buy the valuable collection of Eileen Brennan's late son. Hijinks abound, then things get really nasty when Logue hires Cary Elwes as muscle to break in Brennan's house and steal the collection. Cary Elwes? Muscle? Yeah, I was wondering the same thing. And did Natasha Lyonne have breast reduction surgery? Thinking back to Slums of Beverly Hills, where one of the story lines was about how large her breasts had become at a young age, and seeing her in this movie in a low-cut dress with not a lot to write home about, I have to wonder. Anyway, the movie stunk. Rating: 41.
Haunted Mansion (2003): Another kid request. Eddie Murphy has become the Fred McMurray of his generation with all of these harmless kids movies he's been in, although he does get to a bit of his fast-talking comedy schtick early in the film as a hustling real estate agent. Otherwise, it's downhill from there, with the only redeeming feature being the singing busts. (I'm talking about heads on statues). Rating: 44.
Days of Heaven (1978): Always wanted to see this legendary Terence Malick film, and it didn't disappoint. Watching a Malick film is a bit like watching a movie that's 1/3 plot, 1/3 The Discovery Channel, and 1/3 voice-over philosophical musings. But it works, and makes for an unforgettable movie experience. And it's a blast seeing Richard Gere and Sam Shepard so young. A classic. Rating: 89.
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003): Nothing to say about this one that hasn't been said a hundred times by a hundred different people, other than, yes, I enjoyed it., yes, it had too many endings (almost 25 minutes of anti-climax), and yes, I still think Sam and Frodo are secret lovers, even if they did make a point of marrying off Sam at the end. Still a grand spectacle that you really don't see any more. Rating: 84.
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And Now Ladies and Gentlemen (2002): Jeremy Irons is a clever master-of-disguise jewel thief. No - wait it's about this female lounge singer with a brain tumor. But no, Jeremy has a brain tumor too. And what about Jeremy's "wife" and the guy with the boat? A strange, all-over-the-place movie with a strange, all-over-the-place title. Rating: 58.
B. Monkey (1998): Speaking of strange titles, this one's about a glamorous young female thief nicknamed B. Monkey (Asia Argento) who decides to settle down with Jared Harris' strait-laced elementary school teacher. But try as she may to stay out, her former partners in crime (including Rupert Everett, in his stock role as a gay, blase wastrel) keep pulling her back in. A rather ludicrous plot, but some interesting moments. And it helps that Argento is naked for what seems to be half the film. Rating: 65.
Holes (2003): My young son wanted to watch this one, and given that it looked to appeal to a slighter older age group, I watched it myself. Above-average kids flick, with Jon Voight a hoot as a tough-as-nails "warden", and Henry Winkler as a doddering inventor. He's not the Fonz any more. Rating: 70.
Billy Elliot (2000): 11-year-old working class English boy wants to be a ballet dancer. Hard-ass striking coal miner dad says no, the son must be "some kind of poof". Tears and triumph follow. Been there, seen that (Brassed Off, The Full Monty, etc.). Rating: 55.
Blind Horizon (2004): Val Kilmer is an amnesiac assassin. Assassins sure suffer a high rate of amnesia in films (cf. The Bourne Identity, The Long Kiss Goodnight), don't they? Perhaps they need a better medical plan. Meanwhile, Neve Campbell is The Woman Who Isn't What She Seems, and Sam Shepard is the local sheriff trying to put it all together before the President comes to town. Yawn. Right now, I'm wishing I could be an amensiac. Rating: 42.
Broadway Danny Rose (1984): The slight Woody Allen film received quite a bit of praise at the time. Maybe it's having seen most of his movies from the last 20 years in between, but his schtick is wearing thin to me, and there weren't any laugh-out-loud moments. The framing device for the film was a bunch of real-life Borscht Belt comics gathered around telling the story of Rose. Interestingly, the comic doing most of the storytelling was Sandy Baron, known to a wider audience as Jack Klompus, Morty Seinfeld's condo arch-enemy. Rating: 50.
Comic Book Villains (2002): Donal Logue and Michael Rappaport are comic store owners fightning over who gets the buy the valuable collection of Eileen Brennan's late son. Hijinks abound, then things get really nasty when Logue hires Cary Elwes as muscle to break in Brennan's house and steal the collection. Cary Elwes? Muscle? Yeah, I was wondering the same thing. And did Natasha Lyonne have breast reduction surgery? Thinking back to Slums of Beverly Hills, where one of the story lines was about how large her breasts had become at a young age, and seeing her in this movie in a low-cut dress with not a lot to write home about, I have to wonder. Anyway, the movie stunk. Rating: 41.
Haunted Mansion (2003): Another kid request. Eddie Murphy has become the Fred McMurray of his generation with all of these harmless kids movies he's been in, although he does get to a bit of his fast-talking comedy schtick early in the film as a hustling real estate agent. Otherwise, it's downhill from there, with the only redeeming feature being the singing busts. (I'm talking about heads on statues). Rating: 44.
Days of Heaven (1978): Always wanted to see this legendary Terence Malick film, and it didn't disappoint. Watching a Malick film is a bit like watching a movie that's 1/3 plot, 1/3 The Discovery Channel, and 1/3 voice-over philosophical musings. But it works, and makes for an unforgettable movie experience. And it's a blast seeing Richard Gere and Sam Shepard so young. A classic. Rating: 89.
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003): Nothing to say about this one that hasn't been said a hundred times by a hundred different people, other than, yes, I enjoyed it., yes, it had too many endings (almost 25 minutes of anti-climax), and yes, I still think Sam and Frodo are secret lovers, even if they did make a point of marrying off Sam at the end. Still a grand spectacle that you really don't see any more. Rating: 84.
Threats from the right.
Why is it that we're much more likely to hear about death threats against someone who upsets the right, as opposed to those who upset the left? Just thought I'd ask.
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