55fan

I'm not understanding you. Are you saying the Flames did nothing wrong? If you are, I disagree strongly. If I've misinterpreted you, I apologize.

Rig's coming off a wrist injury. Send Sammy.

Finally! That's my Sammy!!!!

Sloppy Seconds? They must score here! They MUST!

Do it again, boys!

ZATA! WOO!

PP! Let's see some energy!

Someone in another thread quoted Mule as saying that the Flames are a team they get up for. Let's hope.

Get it back. Plenty of time. All the same...poo!

Kill it, boys!

So, for those of you seeing the game: How do we look? Energetic? Lethargic? What does the pace/tempo seem to be?

Maybe they should train with the Pistons? I agree that there's something not there. There's too much "been there, done that" mode. Something's not clicking. Who knows? Maybe Kronner and Stuie are waiting until the playoffs to start knocking people around because they don't want to wear out their bodies (or in Kronner's case, break something) during the regular season. Maybe if they start playing like that- with fire in their bellies- it'll spark the D. I have to wonder if the turnovers aren't a symptom of the general lack of energy. There's no Drake factor this year. It's not "do it for ______". Hossa came to win a Cup, but he has a career ahead of him. It's not do or die like it was for Dally. I hope those guys sit down before the playoffs and watch the parade and all of the festivities and remember how great it felt. The 3- and 4- time winners on the team know how hard it is to get themselves up to do it again. Some of them were the ones who commented last year that it meant more to play for Dally than to play for themselves because they wanted him to have that great feeling that they already knew. Whatever it takes, they have the parts, they just need to get the energy to run the machine. They need a power source, a spark of some kind. Hopefully they find it by the playoffs.

I don't own an mp3, but I have some cassettes that are cringe-worthy. (12 inches of snow, anyone?) The person below me prefers whiskey to rum.

Never seen Man on a Wire. No plans for St. Patty's (other than wearing green). The person below me has already bought some Easter candy.

I prefer the iceberg. The person below me would have some sort of cosmetic surgery if money was not an issue, and if it was sure to be safe. (No surgery is perfectly safe- this is just a question as to whether or not one would do it if it was.)

Thankfully, no. I'm a klutz and have done lots of things, including slamming my elbow in a car door, but never knocked myself out. The person below me likes their feet.

Does digital (or whatever they call that where you actually get channels) count as a toy? The person below me likes the same foods as the other members of their household.

It means they're sleepwalking when they can.

Wings 3: Flip, Mule, Dats Conks fails to be within 150' of a red light. (Hossa projected back next game. Homer on 3rd line until he's 100%, from what I hear.)

Well thought out, Eva. I prefer your first scenario. I might promote Ericsson to #4, depending on how his wrist is, and how well he continues to perform. I'm just not as comfortable with the Kron/Stu pairing as I was last year. They might turn back into the great tandem they were during the playoffs, but I haven't felt that chemistry this year. I could easily be wrong, though.

Oh, yes. I've lived in this house for 12 1/2 years, and I have met the guy across the street, and have a waving acquaintance with the folks down the block. Beyond that, no one even knows I'm here. I keep up the yard and don't have a lot of company. Quiet as a church mouse and all that. The person below me wishes they could crawl back into bed where it's warm and cozy.

Beautiful. You only forgot one thing:

Oh, man. There was a poll, but I can't remember where I saw it. The results were along the lines of most people liking fighting, but would still watch if they got rid of it, the next largest group (much smaller than the majority) would quit watching if fighting was banned, and the smallest group (something like 8%) wanted fighting banned. They had a person giving an opinion to represent each group, and the "ban fighting" chick (yeah, it was a chick. I was embarrased for my gender) was some child psych parenting professional who talked more about the abuse of children in Canada than fighting in hockey, and felt that hockey fights were leading parents to make bad parenting decisions. It was pure crap. I have never played hockey, and have been in very few fist fights. The ones I was in, I lost because I just couldn't get mad enough at the person to hurt him. That said, if I ran the league (don't we all dream about that) this is how it would be: Fighters must throw down gloves and helmets. There must be a reason to fight. That reason may be a dirty hit thrown in March of '03 that has not yet been answered for, but it is still a reason. Clean hits are not answered for by fighting. If you can't tell if a hit was dirty, wait and watch the video. Get him next game or the game after that. It's more fair and it heightens the drama. Defend yourself to the best of your ability. If you are a skill player and the guy who wants to go is a skill player, go for it. Otherwise, defer the fight to your enforcer. That's what they're there for. We can't have Zata or Dats getting hurt. If you throw dirty hits, expect to be dog chow, no matter how skilled you are. If you are a capable fighter, throw down for yourself and your teammates. As for the rules: If a skill guy doesn't want to fight, the instigater must take it up with the enforcer. If a player doesn't want to fight and he is forced, the forcer gets 10 min. If the enforcer feels his teammate is at fault, he should take it up with his teammate and tell him if he doesn't stop hitting dirty, he'll flatten his butt in practice so he knows how it feels. If two guys want to go with just cause, they go. 5 for fighting each. None of this "he started it" crap. There are probably some things I left out, and some things where there are circumstances that would alter what I've written, but this is a general idea of the way I think it should be. What gets my goat is that the GMs should know this stuff. You hear players talking about it. You hear fans talking about it. Many GMs have been players. Have they forgotten how nice it is to know that someone has your back? What are they thinking? Has Bettman ever been in a fight in his life (with a guy)? I'm getting frustrated. This is worse than politics. Probably because it is, and it's messing with my hockey. Thank you for listening to my rambling.

Nope. I had one earlier, but it went away. The person below me has all of their adult teeth.

Well, heck. If it's ice and snow we want why don't we move them to Alaska? The Juneau Whats.