Quick Hits: Fantasy, Ugly Jerseys, Vinyl Mask Art, Poodlecize

My fantasy team really did have a fantasy day today. I had 7 skaters active (no goalies). 9 goals, 5 assists, +12. Whatever I fed them for breakfast, they're eating every day now. Just sorry Corey Perry had to blow up against MY team, but whatever.

Between my +8.5 and the guy behind me with -6, I've finally got a bit of distance there and made a nice gain on the guy in the #1 spot. I'm coming for you, Kevin, and not in a good way.

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Got Friday's Binghamton game from AHL Live to watch tonight while I did some stitching and repairs on my goalie gear. Fun game and they weren't kidding about some big saves and some loud chanting. Lots of moving the puck behind the net. The team is clearly getting better at responding to that and taking advantage of it. THAT is fun to watch.

The Sens won again today in Rochester, but not quite as stalwart a defensive effort and it took 5 goals + 2 shootout markers to get the win. But hey, a W's a W.

Aeros stunk it up though. Expected a let-down after such a wild game Friday and some tough travel, so NBD.

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Some fuss about the Everblades hideous Christmas jerseys, including getting on the front page of Yahoo! Sports as a Puck Daddy feature.

A non-hockey friend even tweeted it to me, and the fact that she even knew it was off the hook sorta set me off. Ugly jerseys have always been a bit of a burr under my saddle.

I don't understand why teams would want to do that to their players. I know it gets media attention but it just seems disrespectful. To have to roll out and face a team you know is going, "Fuck man, you look like a Florida tourist shop barfed all over you." and have to grind it out. I dunno. Just seems like a bad idea. And just to make my point, the Blades lost.

I'd want my players to look good and feel good, wouldn't you?

Reminds me of when I shaved the dog at the beginning of the summer. He's just a dog but he knew he looked stupid and he was giving us stink eye for days over it. So you really think you're gonna get your best from guys you've dressed up like clowns?

And the SOCKS! My god, the socks....

*sigh*

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I bought this vinyl mask "paint." $25 for a totally new look for my mask. Worth a shot, right? I'll be sure and offer up a full review here, assuming I win the battle and am able to take my cage off. Hopefully it won't be like last time and require a drill and much frustration.

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Um. You can't un-see stuff like this. Especially at 2:45. Oh my.

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Donkey punch

Bitttterrrrrrrrrrr........ again.

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Awesomest post ever. Or not. Whatever. You people are so demanding.

I was going to wait until later to post Saturday's Brusty pics from the lovely Ms. Shilladay, but my Google Alerts magically brought me this blog post and I though it was worth sharing (and frankly, I've got such a sieve for a brain, I'd forget about it if I didn't post it right now).

This guy takes sports road trips and blogs about them. Gives a pretty good idea of the scene if you're looking to take in a game somewhere, from costs to facilities to the game itself.

He's obviously a very smart man since he liked Brusty and I'm assuming a Leafs fan based on this quote:

I was also impressed by Brust (shown below), who was unruffled after giving up the early goal. Turns out he is down with Florida on a rehab assignment from the AHL, so maybe we will see him back in the NHL at some point. He can't be as bad as Vesa Toskala, can he?

Rehab shmeehab. But yeah. Brust > Toskala. Do it, Vegas.

What a sweet set up for Vesa though. Sure, he's a punchline now, but any time he does well, it's all, "yaaaay, you DID it, Vesa! Have a cookie!" Unlike a guy like Luongo, where Nuck fans start cutting themselves when he has a bad game. No pressure, big guy.

Okay, on to Saturday's Barry pictures. But first, did you know, Mr. Mill, that he's the top goalie in the league right now with a 9-2-2 record, 2.26 GAA, and .925 save %. Seems pretty healthy to me.

It wouldn't surprise me to see him get Goaltender of the Week for the ECHL this week, which I assure you will cause no shortage of cognitive dissonance for me. Nice honor but ohfuckI'msobitter.

My bitterness is this adorable kitten. Meow.

*Ahem* Anyway... On to the fabulous Mr. Brust in the Blades' 5-1 victory Saturday. Here's some music to swoon by.



I tried to do an animated GIF of this series of shots but after two laborious attempts suggesting to me how much more laborious it would be to actually do it so it looks as good as it deserves to look, fuck it. Scroll down fast and maybe it will look like an animation.

A little old school, two-pad stack action that turns into a manage-a-trois in the crease. How cozy.

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Close one.

Barry the Peacemaker makes a rare appearance during a scrum around his net.
Usually he's causing trouble. :D

Lucky Olson.
Next time I see Barry, I'm gonna pretend to wanna fight someone so he'll have to hold me back. OMG, that's a genius plan. Must remember to fight a guy, though, because no man is stopping a girl fight.

When I make a save like this, I'm thinking, "MY PUCK!" like a 6 year old. I'm so dumb.

Mmm-hmm, just like that.


GOAL.
Because goalies can't make saves with their teammates reclining on them.
Also, put your pointy little hand back in your pocket, ref. :P
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NO GOAL. Snack on that, bitches.

ALLLLLL PHOTOS by Bethani "Superwoman" Shilladay
(Thank you again, Beth!)

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O Canada

So, Cody Almond has 9 points since yours truly informed him during an interview at the end of December that KC promised on the record he'd play in the NHL.

Now, I know it's Cody's hard work that's got him where he is right now and it was clear he was on the cusp of this, but hey, nothing like a crazy-positive scouting report from the bossman to put the wind at your back.

Tonight he got a career high 3 points, assists on all three power play goals the Aeros racked up in the first 6 minutes of the second period tonight. He also got the third star (and the only star for any of the Aeros).

I think it's safe to say that the Aeros have Abbotsford's number on the power play. It's really been exciting to watch the last couple of nights.

Dubie was not super sharp in goal tonight, and the Aeros allowed 4 goals (1 PP), so the game went to OT and Rogers just straight up hard-worked his way to the GWG.

Great start to this road trip, for sure.

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Blades won tonight 5-1, and Brusty was Brusty. I'm really out of superlatives. All the guy does is validate my adulation. The team played well in front of him, too, for the most part. It never ceases to amuse me when a fight breaks out around him, he's jumping in there to pull guys off or whatever. None of that typical goalie aloofness. More reasons to be lusty for Brusty, as if you needed more.

He also got the third star, after I jokingly fussed at the Blades beat writer for leaving him off last night. His performance last night I thought was more deserving. Lots more great chances for Gwinnett but still, tonight he stopped 28 of 29 and the one goal was a PP goal.

Also, once again, I got called away from my laptop to help Mr. C, and boom. Goal. So, Brusty's still pitching a shutout while I'm watching. :)

Dear Blades, I'll happily take cash or a practice sweater in exchange for being glued to the screen. *call me*

Gotta say though, my heart kinda went out to Gwinnett goalie Dan Taylor, as he got scored on literally at 19:59 in the third. :( It didn't matter in the game, but stats-wise, that's a punch in the gut for the guy and he went off clearly in a pissy, stick-swinging way. Clear a path for that one.

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Jaeger hasn't played in a while, but his partner Joe Palmer got his ass handed to him last night, so I expected Jags would be in tonight.

Well, he was and man, what a game that must have been. One of those rare games that goes through regulation and OT without a single goal on either side. Just a total tending clinic at both ends for Texas and Corpus Christi, with shots 34-37 respectively. Wow.

Texas ended up winning with Jaeger letting in only 1 of 5 shootout attempts and the Brahmas potting two in the skills competition.

To complete the hat trick of game stars for "my boys," he took home the second star, but more importantly, hopefully he's earned some starts over Palmer at least for a while. I know it seems crazy to award starts to the BEST goalie, but apparently some teams actually do that.

Is my bitterness getting any cuter? No? Here have a puppy and pretend it's my bitterness.

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I've been following this little blog that's all about Atlanta's Kari Lehtonen since last summer. The writer digs that oft-injured goalie an awful lot, so you can imagine, the blog speaks to me on a certain level.

Anyway, Lehtonen had his first conditioning start in Chicago for the Wolves tonight. Chicago lost 5-4 to Peoria, and from the Peoria tweets I saw, it sounded like Ben Bishop stole some of the game from Chicago with some really huge saves (though, does that guy do anything small?)

But I was just thinking how excited that blog's author must be tonight. Their goalie back in action at long last! Best wishes to Lehtonen on a solid return to the NHL and congrats to my fellow blogger on getting your goalie back. It's like the world getting back on its axis and definitely something to celebrate.

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Ridiculous

My little life lesson on fleeting greatness is eluding me tonight. I can't seem to shake my frustration that Brusty is playing such a kick ass game for somebody else's team.

I understand the business decisions and the logistics and the shitty luck of the draw, but logic just doesn't matter. My goalie is tearing it up for someone else and that just makes me want to cut a bitch.

Anyway, he was amazing tonight in the Blades 3-2 win over Gwinnett. I missed the initial goal against, which came only :24 into the first period. Oops. But he was a whirling dervish the rest of the game.

I actually missed the second goal against when Mr. C needed some help with something. I growled at him when I heard the goal. I'd like to point out, with absolutely no regard for modesty, Brusty had a shutout while I was watching.

---> Magically Delicious is, in fact, my middle name.

He stopped 31 of 33 and MANY of them (ahem, TOO many--I'm looking at you, Blades skaters) were grade A chances. But Brusty just manages to fling that big, athletic body to the right place to get a piece of the puck, regardless of how unlikely it seems.

The crowd was certainly behind him... you could feel it even watching online, so it must have been pretty electric to be there in person.

*sigh* We used to get that in Houston. Thanks for nothing, Mr. GM. I've gotta find a way to make bitterness cuter. This could get ugly.

Anyway, the three stars choosers misfired tonight and didn't give him any star even though really, this game would have gone an entirely different way without his amazing play. The radio dudes agree with me, so I'm pretty sure that makes me right.

But hopefully relief is in sight for my Brustyless existence. One more Blades game tomorrow and then presumably he'll join the team for the mid-west run next week and I'll get to practice enjoying the fleeting moment of greatness at having him "home." Or not. Fuck.

Watching the second half of the Aeros game now. Awesome that it's in Abby and so late. Even had time for a cookie between games. That's a good night of hockey and cookies, my friend.

Bethani took pictures tonight so I'll be back with photos later. Maybe I'll stack 'em all together and animate them and it will be like watching in person. No? Poop. Well, they'll still be awesome. Stay tuned.

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Greatness is fleeting and that's okay

My go-to radio station lately is Alt Nation on XM radio. I love this station.

(Except for one of the DJs, Madison, who is like nails on a chalkboard. To her credit, she seems to be aware of this and does it anyway, which if you know me at all, well... I'm pretty much the same way. Hopefully not nails on a chalkboard but, you know, eff off if you don't like how I roll.)

Sorry, tangent there. Anyway, it used to be that I never got into music because so little of it seemed like it was more than a one-hit wonder. And what's the point in that? I wanted to find an artist or band who I could hang my hat on and say, "That is my favorite."

I found a few through the years who could fit that bill. The latest is the Hip. The only one that has really stood the test of time is Simon & Garfunkel. That concert in Central Park album is still probably my all time favorite album in the history of albums. I even have the dialogue between songs memorized.

But as this Alt Nation station has grown on me, I've come to appreciate that something can be both fleeting and wonderful. I may never hear another song from As Tall as Lions, but I still love this song.



And I was driving around today (driving! my car works!) and thinking about the notion of greatness being fleeting and ephemeral. Not so much the notion itself but embracing the notion.

In other words, living in the moment with what's great in that moment and not worrying about what came before or where it goes next.

I think you can probably see where this has a goaltending application, right? I mean, the mindset of a goalie is 100% in the moment. And greatness is breathtakingly fleeting at times. Sure, the best of them can be consistently great over long periods, but even they have bad games, injuries, and other rapids to navigate.

So to be able to appreciate and enjoy those moments of greatness even if they're surrounded by less-than-stellarness would be a nice thing to be able to do, right?

My litmus test for what matters is, when I'm old and on my way to tend the ol' net in the sky and I look back, what do I remember? That I let in that floater from center ice? Or the moments of greatness that weave together to make the tapestry of my experiences?

The takeaway, as my corporate peers like to say, is that ideally we could embrace and appreciate the moments of greatness for what they are. Moments. Fleeting and rare and wonderful. And likewise, understanding that the space in between that is average-to-crappy is what makes us appreciate the greatness when it reveals itself again.

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Speaking of greatness, after my staunch declaration yesterday that I have no use for a goalie sweater with another goalie's name on it, Google Alerts tests me and sends me this.

In a million years, I wouldn't pay $350 for a hockey sweater unless there's a player in it. I'd rather have new pads. But damn. PURPLE FLAMES, BITCHES! FMD. It even looks like the sublimated kind, which I love to sleep in when it's cool enough.

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Big shout out to my girl, Artnhockey, who is IN Bonita Springs and went to the Blades practice this morning and is going to the Blades game tomorrow night. Can't wait to see pics of Brusty and all the rest of the boys (okay, don't really give a shit about the rest of the boys... not gonna lie).

Safe travels, you guys!

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In honor of my boys Simon and Garfunkel, one of my favorite movie scenes. Can't imagine why.

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Nightly wrap-up and whatnot

So, I was kinda dreading the Aeros game last night. I mean really. That Rockford series was like a weeklong thumb in the eye. But last night was good. Nice way to leave things before they run off for like 3 weeks of no home games. It was also nice to not be playing Rockford. I'm so over that big red pig.

Plus, it's never a bad night when Kassian scores, amiright? I'm guessing he would agree, either direction you wanna go with that.

At one point, I said, "Dubie's playing really well" and John about fell out of his chair. Yes, I can be objective. Even about goalies. Even about goalies I don't like. That said, he wasn't as good in the third. So there.

Up in Trenton, things were even rosier in goal, at least for the Everblades, for whom Brusty was fantastic, stopping 25 of 26 for a really solid win. And the one goal against was a power play goal that was poorly played by the defenseman covering the back door. But other than that, the team played pretty well in front of him, so muchas gracias for that.

Anyway, the big goalie took home first star honors, which is full of win and awesome and well deserved for sure.

This was his third straight start for the Blades and now they head back to lusty Florida for the All Star Break. They face Trenton 3 more times again before the month is out. Soooo, sick of them by February? Yeah, I figure that's a big affirmative.

BTW, here's videos from the shootout of Friday's game in Trenton. Good stuff.

Meanwhile, the Wild in Arizona. How about those Yotes, my friends? What a great story they have going this season. What's going on really though? I'm gonna say a lot of this is just plain better coaching. Imagine if Gretsky had bowed out 3 years ago and let someone else coach this club.

But of course, there's the whole "us against the world" factor that brings a group of guys together.

Back to the Wild, though, Latendresse! Name a trade that's been so mutually beneficial in the history of trades in any sport. I'm not kidding. 6 goals and one assist in 11 games for Benny, and frankly (more importantly) a huge smile on his face every time I see him. I love that.

And Latendresse is virtually unrecognizable, he's such a new man. Look at this:

In almost equal games, from scoring to PIM to +/- to shots on goal, the guy has gone from Clark Kent to Superman. Seems some Habs fans are still cranky with him, and I guess that's fair to some extent. Like, "where was that when we had you?" but I sure don't feel that way about Pouliot.

What's interesting is that they're praising Pouly up and down up there for going to the net and getting his nose dirty, when that's exactly what he wouldn't do for the Wild. You have to wonder if there was a certain mental block after all he'd been through with the Wild.

Maybe it wasn't so much a reluctance to do that stuff at all, but to do it for the Wild. Not consciously, I don't think, but you really have to be committed to play like that, and it's hard to be committed to a team you don't feel is really committed to you, right?

Ohhh, I thought the psychoanalysis of Benny would go away when he finally got traded. That's probably the last of it. But it is pretty fascinating.

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Tonight is supposed to be my only game of the week, but I've asked Scott to sub for me. My knee is still aching badly and I'm back coughing again (this shit will just not go away), so I think my body is saying it's time to take advantage of not playing Monday or Tuesday and also take Sunday off to really rest everything.

We'll see if he's up for it. I hate missing a game, but I've never missed a weekend of games and NOT come back fresher and better for it. Still. :( I hate missing a game.

Thinking I'll go get a good massage and see if Cheryl can work on my IT band and hamstrings so I can do some good stretching this week.

I was sitting on the edge of my bed the other day and held both my legs out in front of me (okay, I admit I was doing it to admire my wicked quads) and I couldn't straighten my left leg out completely without a ton of tightness. So there's definitely a kink in the works.

Hope I can get in though. The Houston Marathon is today and many of her clients are runners who will likely be seeking relief this week.

I should go out this morning and cheer for our friends who are running, but meh. I've done my marathon and watching people at Mile 21 where I live brings back not the fondest memories. Have I mentioned how much I don't miss that shit? I hope to god I never look back on playing hockey the way look back on that.

Not that I regret it, because it gave me a ton of courage to do the things I'm doing now, but man was that a helluva lot of time doing something not remotely fun and entirely painful.

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Big Pimpin' Hockey Night

Shout out to my boy Jaegs, who got his 100th career win tonight with the Brahmas. It's been a frustrating year with injuries and the new kid, Joe Palmer, getting lots of starts, so it's good to get a win and reach a milestone.

Jeers to the Aeros who still just can't get their shit togther. Didn't help that Dubielewicz allowed 2 goals in the first minute of play. The IceHogs actually broke a record for the fastest two goals to start a game in the AHL era of that franchise. Sweeeeeet.

I think Anton ended up playing literally 59 minutes (except for the bit where he was pulled at the end, when I guess the boys were supposed to score THREE goals in a minute... did Corey Locke come back?) and he let in 2. Then a rather predictable empty netter for the 5-1 final (Fraser with the goal).

But to tell you the truth, I didn't watch but the final period and I barely watched that. I was still recovering from watching Brusty's game and subsequent shootout.

Apart from one scary minute early in the second just after the Blades had gone up 2-1 and Trenton put two in past Brusty in less than a minute, it was a... well, I called the Blades a lot of names, if I'm being totally honest. Hack. Fucker. Lazy son of a no-backchecking-bitch. Move your feet. (Here's Barry's quotes on the game.)

Guess it could have been worse but I felt uneasy the whole time. And then it went to the shootout and I thought, "Ugh."

But I should know better than to doubt, eh? Brusty was once again money in the shootout and got the win, allowing only 1 of 5 shots. The drama stops were a big poke and the final stop, which the video person for the Devils replayed about 10 times at the end of the game trying to figure out what exactly happened.

I watched it over and over and still couldn't quite tell. It looked like some giant slight-of-glove trick and I have no idea how the puck got in his mitt but that's where it was.

Quote of the night was from my goalie friend who just had to see this Brusty I've been pimping, since she appreciates similar qualities in a goalie. Her comment after the shootout:

"Oh god. My ovaries."

Word, girl. Word.

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Back in the teeth

Well, let's see, it was a fun night of hockey for everyone but the Aeros, who lost 3-2 to Rockford. This continues Khudobin's 10ish game losing streak, though I'm told that none of the 3 goals were bad ones. A couple of of defensive lapses and one just heavy traffic and some friendly interference.

One thing that stood out to me was during the first intermission, KC was talking to Joe about how the number of defensive penalities the team is getting indicates that the team isn't possessing the puck enough. They need to control the puck more and win battles for the puck more, etc.

You know what's great for helping that? A goalie who plays the puck like a third defenseman and get the puck back in his team's control closer to their offensive zone.

But where can you get one of those? Hmm... let me think....



The Wild knocked out a big, decisive win against the Canucks, including chasing Luongo, which warms the cockles of my heart. It's not that I dislike Luongo... but he's one of the few goalies who I really don't mind seeing lose. Maybe it's because he's a Nuck and that team just grinds my gears. Or it could be the greasy mullet. Not sure.

And not only did they win on the scoreboard, there were numerous fights and John Scott's in particular was a monstrous beat down of Bolduc. Scotty used to kinda halfass his fights like he didn't want to hurt anybody, but I guess NHL money says, "If he dies, he dies." Rock on, Drago!

And if it's true what Boogaard told Russo about the Nucks coach telling his guys to go fight... man, that's... I dunno. That makes me squidgy. Bolduc got fed his own face and doesn't know which way is up now. It's just not cool.

Oh and, BTW, Latendresse Bitches! And also very relieved to see that Clutter seems to be okay. I don't trust the Wild medical staff re: concussions, but it sounds like Cal's being cautious. You'd have to be seriously concussed to not be able to look around you at the scrambled and re-scrambled brains in that room and not take ownership of your condition to some degree.

And finally, #(ahem)35 had a heck of a game for the Blades tonight. Had a shutout 58 minutes into the game and then one got past him.

Whoever said "shutout" needs to fess up and take your smack on the back of the head. Come on. You know who you are.

The shitty thing about watching online, even with a really spectacular feed like the Royals produce, is that generally you're following the puck by inference. Which is to say, you often only know where it is because of how players are moving and looking. So sometimes it's tough to tell what happened on a goal.

I'd guess by body language, it was deflected in or took a weird bounce, because Barry appeared to be well positioned for where the puck was at the last point I could actually see it. And then it was in.

Anyway, he stopped 20 of 21 in regulation and OT (perhaps the greater victory being that that's all the shots he saw), and then stopped all 7 shootout shooters. Thrilling!

Bonus was, of course, a big poke that honestly, the guy's head must have been up his ass because I don't know how he didn't see that coming. I even saw it coming and I'm fucking clueless.

Regardless, it worked. It was a fun shootout for a goalie lover, though to be truthful, these ECHL guys don't really seem to have much up their sleeves.

A couple went high glove and Barry Roy'd it up a little bit, which makes me laugh. Holding that glove up a couple of beats and then dropping it to the ice like, "Oh hey, you left this." I don't really know how that makes a shooter feel, but it can't be good because I know it makes goalies feel fucking great. Literally. KWIM? Yeah you doooooo....

My girl, Swamp Hockey has a great photoshop of Brusty the Wall here.

And also, um, I just have to get this off my chest: Matt Dalton is a weird lookin' goalie. Something about the way he skates and moves. Very stiff or something. *ahem* I'm totally NOT going to make the "normally I don't mind a stiff goalie" crack you were expecting. Oh wait....

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Waterproof Mascara

Man, I'm really going through the tear-stained hankies with Brusty this season. Which is to say, he's back with Florida again. Au revoir, gardien beau. *le sigh*

The wonkiest part is that he actually has a better record (6-3-0-2 combined between Florida and Houston) than the other two goalies in Houston, and this is with most of his games behind an Everblades defense that is truly a hot mess at times.

And I don't mean like how the Aeros are a hot mess. "REALLY???" is what you're thinking watching them 50% of the time. It was blowing my mind to watch Brusty see 22 shots in a single PERIOD, while the Houston goalies were seeing that many or fewer in a whole game. It's a really tough proposition for a guy trying to earn his way back to the next level.

But he's healthy and in great shape (and not just in the "my, what strong thighs you must have" way) and playing well, but so is everyone above him, for the most part. Anton's in a slump, but I imagine they're gonna let him work it out, and Dubie is playing well/lucky. Hard to justify a change, regardless of your opinions on style, when it's the result that matters.

Anyway, Brusty is heading up to Reading, PA to meet the Blades on their current monster road trip. I was reading today that he holds the single-season win record for the Royals, winning 27 games in the 2004-05 season, his rookie year.

He also had 27 PIM in 45 games that season. Who's got two thumbs and loves a high-PIM goalie? This girl. Some good stories there, no doubt.

Awww, shit. Gonna miss you, B.

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A holiday curbstomping (updated with killer photos)

So, the Wild were tres sad tonight. Shoulda put money on the Sens like Mr.C suggested because even with Mike Brodeur making his NHL debut in goal, they just weren't gonna win that game. Too much distraction between the fire and the flu and the man-short situation.

Even if the new gear was feeling okay, the whole shebang was just Too Much.

BUT, I really don't give a shit because O. M. G. Brusty's game was so bad ass I almost don't have words for it. And yet... I will give it my best shot because the performance deserves it.

Brusty with his "bring it, bitches" face on. That's right. *chomp*
Photo by Bethani Shilladay

The Blades won 5-1, scoring 11 seconds into the game, so you know, a little goal support always puts the wind at your back.

However, the wind at your front is... wait for it... 43 shots on goal. Baby, that's a whole lotta rubber.

And what's more, that's a whole lotta shots for Wheeling to be taking and NOT scoring, so they were clearly getting frustrated. They were running Barry, crowding the crease, generally being dicks around the net.

But the math is simple: Antagonize Barry = Get Your Ass Kicked. It's not even math. It's a law of nature.

One guy literally got his ass kicked when I guess B2 got fed up and just knocked him on his butt during a penalty kill. Okay, maaaaybe not great timing :) but they killed off the 5 on 3 and then the remaining 5 on 4.

And even though they let so many shots through, props to the Blades for an outstanding PK tonight. They went 1 and 6, and the one goal allowed was on a 5 on 3. Not a bad goal at all.

Here are some beeeeeeautiful shots from the game courtesy of the lovely, generous, and talented Bethani Shilladay. Muchas gracias to Fred Trask for editing them. Click to embiggen and see all the glorious detail:

This is one of those moments where I'm screeching,
"BITCHES, DON'T RUN MY GOALIE!!!"
Seriously. Don't run my goalie. He'll cut you.
Below, I cropped it tighter so you can see Brusty better.
Not sure where the puck is. Maybe in his glove.
But Kinley is getting a mask full of stink-eye from Barry anyway.

You can see the puck right in the tip of his glove.

I'm guessing the puck is in his glove, given the amount of snow
in the air right in front of the glove. And because he's awesome like that.

One of my favorite things: Playing the puck.

Every time I look at this one, I think, "OMG, GIT IT, BRUSTY!"
even though I know he totally got it.
All photos by Bethani Shilladay

Anyway, it was a fun game and the radio PBP guy was pretty funny on Brusty. Well, funny and at times frustrating as he flirted with jinxy-talk in the stuff he said. Like at the end of the second period, saying, "The first star of this game may be the man in the big pads." Um, dude. Whole period left. Stop that!

But the one that made me laugh was, "Brust has done a lot of rolling around tonight, but when he does, it's quality rolling around!"

Ha! I think that was after this big rolling poke check which Beth also managed to snag a great series of shots of. As you can see, it was some quality rolling around. I needed a cigarette and a nap after watching that save.

All photos by Bethani Shilladay

I have no idea where the puck is in any of those shots, but needless to say, it was not in the net. Unreal.

Ahhh, shame there's no highlight package because it was a gooder for sure. I'd have given him the first star because goal scoring was spread around but I'm pretty sure he made all 42 saves through his own sheer BAMFitude. But what do I know?

Now. Come home. :D

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The Blades may drive me bananas....

But their fans are the coolest. My girl over at SwampHockey had a great view of the penalty shot on Brusty in Saturday's teddy bear debacle and shot some footage.

Naturally, he crushed it in classic Brusty form. JHC, IFLTG.



I'd missed it because I was pulling up the game on my olllld slooooooow laptop with a bigger screen. I thought, "Oh, nothing interesting will happen for the 3 minutes this takes." Ha. I'm delighted she videoed it though so I could see it in better detail than B2 gives and, well, over and over. Heh.

I can't do moves like that in Novice league or I'll send somebody into the boards and give 'em a broken arm or a concussion or something. Tuesday, though... all bets are off. Though odds are, I'll poke check it into my own net or something. Still. Bad ass, right? No? Hmph.

Gotta get ready to go play. Wish I had time for a nap. Alas, I'll pop a B-12, some cough syrup, and some Advil and hope for the best. My equivalent of "rub some dirt on it." Hasta Luongo!

P.S. Because you're cool but not too cool for a little old school pop culture: The Tiki Doll episodes of the Brady Bunch.

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Oh just bite me

Everblades.

This bullshit of allowing 20+ shots in the first period is ... bullshit. Where's that 26-shot second period urgency when the game starts? Lazy hacks. Bite me.

My first intermission tweet:

Of course, even one goal against was too many because of the 47 (yeah, FORTY SEVEN) shots opposing goalie Ryan Munce saw, he stopped every. last. one.

It was really a tremendous performance by Munce and normally I'd be delighted to see a goalie play so well. But frankly, I have no use for hero goalies in this situation. So it was just annoying.

And it was teddy bear toss night. They ended up tossing the bears late in the second on a shot off the post that looked like a sure goal (one of about 10 shots that looked like sure goals). It's always a bit awkward to not score on TBT night.

Props to the Blades fans though. They brought the bear love big time. I'm not sure I've seen so many at a toss, which was nice because the the Aeros cleaned their bears up so fast Friday night, we didn't really get to appreciate the spectacle of all those bears on the ice. It was quite a scene though in Florida.

UPDATE: Here's SwampHockey's first-hand account of the game, including a bunch of Brusty pics. Hi Brusty!!! Though I look at him and all I can think is, "Wrong mfing sweater!" Augh. I hate this so much.

Canucks.

Your Kessler and your Burrows and your Sedinbots. You can all bite me, too. No real reason. I just sports hate you.

Aeros.

Khudobin kinda called out the Aeros offense for putting so much pressure on him to be nearly perfect in order to get wins. I appreciate the feeling, but I'm not sure about actually saying it on the record. Then again, he always brings a refreshing candor, so I shouldn't give him shit for it, should I?

Still... Schaef and Brusty did that for a full season two years ago. And all you could get out of them was appreciation for the defensive play of the team and for each other. I'm just saying.

So many Aeros fans point to last season as sort of the "good times" they wish they could go back to. Not me. I fell in love with hockey... DEEPLY in love... with the team the year before. If I could go back, I'd go there. But I can't, so... bite me.

But I'll end on a good note. My devotion isn't a total jinx. Jaeger's really found his game up in Dallas and had excellent games last night and tonight. Here's a great shot of him getting his #2 star Friday night after a 35-save OT win.

Bit of a slow starter, that one, but it's good to see him doing well. So, just for consistency's sake, no need for Jaegs to bite me. Heh.

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Back in the nets for me tomorrow. It's the last game in December for Novice, which means my last 3-in-3 this year.

Unfortunately, my left knee has been sort of swollen and stiff, but not hurting, after my Tuesday games. Not sure what's going on there but it's still stiff today. I think I need to stretch my quads better AFTER I play.

Apparently we're getting an extra hour of ice on Tuesday. We already have an hour and a half, by the end of which I'm just praying for the Zamboni guy to open the gate and shoo us off. Add an hour? Mercy. Bring an ambulance.

OH! And Monday is my one year anniversary of playing goal! I'll have a special look back at a year I describe as "one foot on cloud 9, one foot in the viper pit." Because I'm melodramatic like that.

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