Game 7 and other crap

I really don't have much of a personal investment in the game tonight, but I am enjoying watching my friends and acquaintances who have a rooting interest just giddy with excitement and nervousness. I remember that feeling. Nothing like a Game 7 for all the marbles.

I'm excited about the game but also a bit melancholy. Until now, I could tell myself "hockey season isn't REALLY over yet," but as of this time tomorrow... baby, it's ovah.

The good thing is that maybe things can get moving on the coaching front in Minnesota. Boy is that taking forever, but that's okay. Take your time and get it right, Fletch.

I was listening to XM Home Ice yesterday afternoon and they were raving about all the effort Joe Nieuwendyk put into selecting Crawford as the new coach in Dallas. My jaw was in my lap hearing that. The guy's been the GM for 23 minutes and he's already tossed a great, winning coach for an iffy losing coach? Yeah, that's super work.

The proof will be in the pudding, of course, and I am, frankly, almost always wrong when I look into my hockey crystal ball and try to predict the outcome of a move like this. Maybe Crawford's style of play will finally get those Dallas "fans" in the lower bowl to cheer for something other than goals.

Anyway, as I've been telling my token Pens fan friend, Kevin, his team has been growing on me. They have more personality than I realized. And it seems Detroit actually has LESS, which I didn't think was possible. They remind me of these hockey players in Strange Brew:



So, Coach Stalin is coming over and we're ordering up a batch of wings to have for dinner. That seems appropriate.

Saturday, Mr.C is heading for London for a couple of weeks, so if anybody wants to go to the Leaf and buy me some beer, my schedule is wide open darlings. :D

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There's a Clutterbuck Facebook fan page that you should go join if you're a Facebooker.

Otherwise, it's been pretty quiet on the Clutter front. I know he did some charity hockey game up in Welland and he's slated to be on the Wild Road Trip or whatever they call it where they drag players around Minnesota when they should be home resting up (kidding, it's awesome. I'm just jealous.)

I sure miss the guy though. The smirk, the crashing. I was watching something the other day that showed him doing that little shoulder shimmy before one of his fights this season. That still makes me laugh out loud. Who has more fun? Nobody, I tell ya.

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So, you know I'm on this workout regimin from Coach Stalin. Running and abs. Well, I hate running. Like, I HATE it. But I'm trying and I know it will get better. As with all things athletic for me, it's requiring a lot more patience and diligence than I naturally bring to the table.

I don't mind the abs so much because there's lots of lying around involved in that, which is my favorite kind of exercise. Plus, I got a new fitness ball, which is plenty big and isn't killing my back like my smaller one did.

I have a little mental trick I use to keep myself going when I "don't wanna," but it's kind of insulting to a player I love, so ask me about it offline and I might tell you. Heh.

What I really need when I run, though, is to have a fox like Clayton Stoner running in front of me. Shirtless. If you think I won't run hard enough and long enough to maintain visual contact with that, you just don't know me very well. I'll chase that until I face-plant in the gravel from exhaustion.

Hey, there's a summer moonlighting idea for you boys... I might actually pay money for a service like that. Sort of like the rabbit in a dog race...

Anyway...

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No stick and puck for me this week. The new schedule at the Aerodrome kinda sucks and there's a camp going on at Space City. SLICE stick and pucks are too crowded and I loathe playing half-ice. So, alas, I have lots of pent up puck-stopping in me that will have to wait until Sunday.

Maybe I'll grab a public skate at Memorial City today since I haven't done any footwork drills in a long time. Yeah.

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That's all. Go Pens. Have a great weekend!