Good morning, and happy Friday, kids!
The week is ending, everything is wonderful, and playoff hockey is glorious.
We had four playoff games last night, and we finally have our first big loser (aside from the Bruins, of course) – the Red Wings were eliminated by Tampa Bay in game 5.
SCORES OF SCORES!
TB beat DET 1-0
PIT beat NYR 5-0
ANA beat NSH 4-1
CHI beat STL 4-3 (2 OT)
Sadly, last night could very well be the last time we see our friend, the Magic Man, Magician of Magicians, Wizard of Wizards, Pavel Datsyuk. It’s a huge loss for fans and the NHL, because he’s a spectacular talent, and seems like a really nice guy. Here’s some of his finer work:
I could go on and on.
Anyway, what’s on tap?
The weekend starts now!!!! Heading out to play some disc golf @ page park. C’mon Tallest81, come out and show us how it’s done.! We’re starting our round @ 530.
I wish, I am stuck in PA for one more week and then Vacation to DE…
Only took me four hours to do a table alignment when the normal allotted time is an hour and a half.
Thanks customer return printer!http://img.ifcdn.com/images/f93260679bfe572f775264be708e7a1f08764a4a11056200dd8ff5b1b5f658f3_1.gif
NBCSN cuts off Pat Foley’s rant about late NHL starts:
http://screengrabber.deadspin.com/nbcsn-cuts-off-pat-foleys-rant-about-late-nhl-starts-1772420552
The German Hammer got quite a kick out of that last night
I did. It was true but NBCSNOMGWTFBBQ did not like the criticism coming from the Chicago CSN affiliate (also owned by NBC) and cut it short.
I don’t understand why they didn’t just throw it on USA at 8pm or something.
Does anyone really care if a L&O: SVU marathon is interrupted?I had a bizarre dream last night.
My non profit HR team decided to open a school and we hired DrHandgrenaid. I was in charge of creating tests and entering their results. I made a mistake on a test and DrHandgrenaid got a croup of students to overthrow me.
I have been known to incite revolution, from time to time. A regular Jean Valjean I am.
I have no clue what the dream means
Viva La Revolution!
I certainly wouldn’t want to piss of a geologist. You all have axes and hammers and shit.
I break rocks with a hammer by choice. This is stuff they made old-timey convicts do. Do you have any idea how fucking hardcore geologists are? Do you?!
Do you also ride an old-timey hand car? Because I really want this to be a thing you do.
Self Portrait:
?w=326
Also, Dawson City is one of my favorite places ever because of course it is (and I am probably one of a dozen people in history who can claim I ended up there completely by accident)
There’s gold in them thar hills!
http://33.media.tumblr.com/0575ce61bf23fffdf9feac8513dd4bfc/tumblr_inline_nj2f28cPRc1rziur7.gif
Hey, it’s a live stream of HHG at work!
Treasure of the Sierra Madre?
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kL_drbBJxV4/VRNS3EbMfOI/AAAAAAAAHuM/SI3xPDSguCM/s1600/i_dont_have_to_show_you_any_stinking_badges.gif
I don’t have to show you any stinkin’ badges!
http://24.media.tumblr.com/e2bd49c2ced6048180541cbac72c6dbd/tumblr_n4j7jtqded1s2wio8o1_500.gif
Send all complaints to P.O. Box 24601.
Work breakfast is lovely today.
Also, @ Sis:
Tomorrow is the second anniversary of the Removal of Shelley DuGall.
Pouring some out in memory of Shelley DuGall:
Wait, did you have your gall bladder removed?
Two years ago!
And I named it Shelley DuGall.
Fun! Still getting the phantom pains? The wife had hers out ~3 years ago. There’s something about you women rejecting your own organs! (You’re the 5th or 6th person I’ve heard about having it out, all women)
Yup! No pain here. Actually, my situation was different from that of a lot of people I know – I would only have an attack once every few weeks, and it wouldn’t be sharp, absolutely miserable pain. It would feel like I had gas trapped in my belly/chest, and I’d feel like the only thing that would make it better would be to get sick. I can make myself do that pretty easily by thinking of stuff that grosses me out, so I’d do it, and feel better for a few minutes, and then it’d come back. Felt like I pulled an ab muscle, but it just kind of nagged and throbbed incessantly. Couldn’t sleep. Went to the ER a couple times because it was making me insane, they’d give me pain meds, do an ultrasound, and tell me I should really get it removed.
The second time I went to to the ER, the girl was telling me that she regularly would do ultrasounds for other problems on people, and she’d see that their gall bladders were absolutely loaded with stones and they’d have no problem whatsoever. I literally had ONE gall stone, and it was making me miserable every now and then. She kept making me roll over so we could watch it bounce inside me on the screen. It was kind of awesome. I’m definitely a weirdo, but I’m pretty disappointed that I didn’t get to at least see the stone when they were done.
I feel like only 50% of the females in my office still own their gall bladders., Very weird.
Good morning!
Oof. Seems like things behind the scenes at the NWHL are an absolute mess:
http://www.excellesports.com/news/nwhl-faces-lawsuit-founding-investor-imperiling-second-season/
Hopefully they can get it all sorted out and build off of their inaugural season.
Over $180,000? Even I think that’s chicken feed, and I’m perrenially broke.
Jeez.
I feel like the womens’ pro hockey scene has been pretty crazy in the last year.
One would expect some chaos and growing pains in the first year of any venture, but this has seemed especially nasty. The Hartford Whale situation was astoundingly toxic.
They’ve got to figure something out with the two leagues, as well. We have ONE top-level men’s pro league, and that hardly works sometimes.
I’ve gotten the impression that the CWHL pays its players less than a Starbucks would, so they have a very different take on how to run a league. Normally I’d expect them to run in parallel & compete until one established dominance over the other, then absorb the little sister. (See NHL-WHL or NFL-AAFL).
Unfortunately, I think the NWHL is structured & marketed like a pro sports league, but will fail because it is run with the skill of a volunteer little league baseball group. The CWHL is more sustainable, but doesn’t seem to have the savvy to grow into a league that can draw crowds and pay players.
The CWHL hasn’t paid its players at all to this point (its why they lost a lot of their stars to the NWHL this season). They are supposed to be starting to pay this coming season I believe.
As for the NWHL, this all looks ugly, but a lot of it is simply growing pains that are almost always present during the launch years of a new business.
Not to surprised when there was already an existing league. It’s hard enough to create an organization like that but to have direct competition as well? Even worse.
jesus wtf happened here?
Sounds like fallout from people doing sketchy things (money under the table, misrepresentation of roles & experience, etc.) during the startup phase of the NWHL. I’d like to hope they have a more stable operating environment now, but I think I believe the unnamed player when she says Rylan is dishonest & unqualified.
The way it’s been going, it seems that might be true.
Minor league hockey at it’s finest! A lot of leagues are rife with corruption. The less money involved, the dirtier the crook that wants it.
God, who knows? It all sounds pretty damn ugly.
Good Morning All! Friday!!!!! Yes, Datsuk is a great talent and drafted so late! The Wings really do groom their players well.
Looks like the Rangers are done. I’m still banking on the Ducks out west.
Coffee on tap with vitamin b (bourbon).
Kayaking again this weekend , Deerfield River this time.
Vitamin b is where it’s at!
Coffee on tap here. May toss some Irish cream in the next cup, I have a bunch of nips at my desk (shocking, right?).
I can’t believe the Rangers are laying down like this. I know the Pens are playing well, but still. Crazy. I’m one of the few people who doesn’t hate the Ducks. I’m actually OK with either team winning that series. Of course, I think the Ducks have a better chance of taking Chicago out if they come back against St. Louis (I think they will. Ugh.).
Yeah, with the exception of Corey Perry, the Ducks are okay. I might even be able to warm up to him if he wore a spoked B on his chest.
points to Ryan Kesler, nods sagely
http://cdn2.sbnation.com/imported_assets/1843707/60877-Duck-no-gif-zeih.gif
I don’t have a horse in the race now, but I have several not-horses.
I’m only saying no because I don’t want you to be right, not that I think you’re wrong lol
yup, I know!
I’m rooting for the Blues, and I feel like I’ve been sucked in to believing in them (for at least this round), but I’m pretty sure I have Chicago coming out of this round in my NHL bracket.
Have to give them credit… the old Blues would have folded last night after that dagger goal with 0.4 left. They never would have come back from a 2-goal deficit in the third against Chicago.
Trust the Gorton’s Fisherman!
Go Islanders!
It’ll be a shame to see the Magic Man go.
The Rangers just didn’t have it together last night.
No bourbon for me for a while.
Kayaking: Nice!
He’s just so, so good. A wizard!
I’m going to (h)Asheville, NC, tomorrow for my girlfriend’s birthday. God help me, because I hate that nature-peace-love-and-dreads town.
Someone give me a hell yeah!
We do whatever we have to for our partners bday!
True true! She’s put up with A LOT of jam sessions and hockey talk. If she wants to go to the mountains and hike, it will be good.
While Datsyuk is great, I do have to wonder if some of the praise is overblown. The broadcasters last night were saying he left a lot of points on the table by focusing so much on his defensive game. I looked and the guy started 55% in the offensive zone… that’s not exactly leaving points on the table to me.
Is that number for last night, this season, or his career?
Career, or at least as much data as hockey-reference has which it turns out is from 07-08.
From his age-29 season on, he only had one season under 50% (48% in 10-11). Last three years have been 58%, 59% and 61% O-Zone starts
So making him an absurdly undeserving Selke Nominee all those seasons, much like Toews when he won. Fair enough, I suspected as much, but wanted to confirm
The Selke seasons were 56%, 51% and 51% O-zone starts. His Corsi is still through the roof… 59% for career, Corsi-rel at 5.3 with similar Fenwick.
If I remember, many people argued takeaways/giveaways for him which are quite possibly the most useless stats in all of hockey. Incredibly subjective and hugely impacted by home scorers, just like hits.
Going by hockey-ref’s nebulous ‘Defensive Point Share’ he was still very deserving of the awards. Mind you, the same DPS system had Krejci as being better defensively than Bergeron in 13-14…
No question that Datsyuk has been a marvelous player, just not the defensive wunderkind we’ve all been told. Bergy’s possession and production, paired with his zone starts, however, is in a different class altogether
His zone start really does set him apart. His frequent Selke competition, Kopitar and Toews, both start primarily Ozone (53% and 60% respectively) so its hard to really compare them. Add in that Bergy now has 30 goals in 2 of the last 3 seasons and he really is ridiculous.
Before, he never really had the offensive stats relative to the others. Now he is just as good offensively while being superior defensively.
Thank you all for the fancy stat stuff. The eye test was telling us this for some time now. That and the intangibles are real!!!! And Bergh brings ’em….. in spades
Wow. I am surprised. But not?
Hey party people! Its Friday! Yayyyyyy!
Also, Earth Day. Listen to your friend Carl Sagan, He’s a cool dude.
http://i.imgur.com/84v8X.jpg
http://photodesk.chicagotribune.com.s3.amazonaws.com/Graphics/2015_earth.jpg
So earthy of you and Carl.
That passage and image are all the beauty and splendor of this super awesome planet we live on, and are no small part of why I love being a geologist
I was thinking about you being a geologist and it all making sense while I was reading it… as weird as that is!