Take notice employers of human beings: The NCAA Tournament kicks off on Thursday March 15th. Expect the flu bug to kick in on Wednesday night. I wonder how many sick days will be taken on Thursday and Friday of that week? Whatever your guess is, multiply it by 10, and since St. Patrick’s Day is on Saturday night, you might as well include Monday.
I love the madness, but if you are so inclined, you might want to have your “clicker” ready to switch back and forth to Altitude during the chaos of this college basketball celebration. The Colorado Avalanche are in a street fight right now with 7 other teams for 2 spots in the Western Conference Playoff Race. The Denver Nuggets (as of March 6th) have won 4 in a row and are within a point of 6 other teams currently in the Playoff picture. Not good enough to stew your intrigue? How about this:
The Avalanche have 14 games remaining. Of those games, 12 are with teams fighting for position in the Playoffs (6 at home, 8 on the road). Gabriel Landeskog has proved he’s anything but a rookie. The man is a man, man. He is 205 pounds of solid muscle, and he’s taking the Calder Trophy Race by storm. Both goaltenders are on fire. 12 games in 21 days in March. You like Madness? Tune in.
The Nuggets took their bumps and bruises with the injury bug and turned it into a winning streak. You tell me another “TEAM” that can lose 3 of their best players and run some of the best “PLAYERS” out of the gym. Ty Lawson is making other point guards look stupid. Kenneth Faried makes the nickname “Manimal” seem tame. This is the best “TEAM” I have followed in 15 years. 12 games left in March and they are just starting an 8 game home-stand. Get your tickets and some popcorn and get to a Nuggets game this week!
So here’s my advice to you…get your “Honey-to-do-list” done. Pay your bills. Clean out your in-box. Return phone-calls. Get it all done, because March Madness is here, and it’s on RIGHT NOW….on Altitude.
March 06, 2012
February 28, 2012
I Have a Question...
Yes, I wrote about a toy car I got for Christmas in 1978. I also shared a heartfelt story about a little girl with cancer. I took you golfing to San Diego and on a raft trip down the Royal Gorge. Certainly none of these stories pertain to the world of hockey, but as Bob Costas once said, “If you’re always telling people what they already know, you’re not really telling them anything at all.” Over the last five months or so I have dipped into subjects like the Tim Tebow-Jeremy Lin debate, winning streaks, acquisitions of players through trades, Mark Rycroft’s’ path from hockey to Scooter-Mania, and the race to raise Lord Stanley’s Cup.
My question is simple…what do you want to hear about?
I read a lot of different blogs on the internet, some I really enjoy, and others seem too mundane and rehearsed, like watching the 5 o’clock news and the expecting different results at 6pm. Isn’t that the definition of insanity? Sorry Jeremy, no pun intended, although you’re story has been so magnified, I pray you stay on top. So much of what we read on the internet is just regurgitated garbage especially in sports. For instance, if you watch a morning run of Sports Center, get caught up on last nights’ action and then hop in your car and turn on the radio, it’s the exact same entrée with a little vinegar and salt, but nothing new. So goes the internet, all twisted in some other fashion to make you see the big picture from a different vantage point and a different opinion. But are you learning anything? Do you want to learn anything? Or would you settle for simply being entertained? If I write a re-cap from the week in hockey, do you enjoy reading it? After all the whole point of writing a blog is to connect with people through a message that makes them stop and think….and eventually agree or disagree. Either way, the reader has to stop and think. Is it so bad to take a break from every run down story, and take your mind in a different direction? A story about normal life, things that happen to you and me as we drive into work. Memories of being a child. Friends that have sick children, or a long weekend with buddies. Maybe it is….
So I put the ball in your court. What do you want to know about? Any question for a player, a good story idea, a new twist on the hot topic of the week…you tell me what you want to know about and I will do my best to give you an answer.
With a twist of course.
Fire away, I’m listening.
February 22, 2012
Downie Adds More Than Just a Punch
He’s listed as 5’11, 191 pounds, but numbers lie. He plays like he’s 6’2, 210 pounds and if you have a problem with that, try confronting him. Steve Downie is a perfect fit for this young Avalanche squad. Drafted in the first round of the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the Philadelphia Flyers (29th Overall), Downie is just 24 years old. Downie had played in 55 games for the Tampa Bay Lightning this year and compiled 12 goals, 16 assists, and a whopping 121 penalty minutes (even scarier, he had 208 PIMS two years ago).
But it’s more than just a sick right hook or the nasty left jab that will sting the opponent. He brings an attitude and flare that will be sure to spark the offense. He reminds me a little, of Adam Deadmarsh in his prime. Not afraid to throw his body around, score a timely goal, and add depth and energy to an already youthful lineup.
Do me a favor, go to www.hockeyfights.com and check out what Steve Downie does, and not just the fight, but how he goes to the net, fights for space and at the end of the day…just has enough of Alexander Urborn of the New Jersey Devils on December 12th, 2011. He’s no Bob Boughner, but I will take a guy like this every day of the week and twice on Sunday.
I like Kyle Quincey. He was a good defenseman. But this move makes the Avalanche stronger and gives them more depth and more spunk up front. Steve Downie, welcome to Colorado.
February 16, 2012
February 07, 2012
Who Wins the Cup?
It’s been called the hardest trophy of all four major sports to win. The Stanley Cup is won by the best team in the National Hockey League…right? Or is it the hottest team?
If I learned one thing from the Super Bowl this weekend, it’s that the best team, sometimes doesn’t even make it to the big game. The Green Bay Packers were un-touchable for most of the season until they lost to the Kansas City Chiefs by 5 points in Week 15. That loss didn’t just stop the Packers from winning every Regular season game, it stunted their growth, put them in their place, and reminded them that they were vulnerable. They were the favorites and they didn’t even make it to the NFC Championship game.
The New York Giants are the first team in NFL history to win the Lombardi trophy with 7 losses during the regular season, but if you watched the game with the New England Patriots on Sunday, they were clearly the best team…or were they just the hottest?
In the NHL right now, in my opinion, there are 4 teams that have the upper hand on the others. In the Eastern Conference you have the New York Rangers and the Boston Bruins. In the Western Conference you have the Detroit Redwings and the Vancouver Canucks. You’re probably saying, “Well he just picked the Top 2 teams in each conference, anybody can do that!” Yes, I did, but there is a reason they are there.
The Rangers and the Bruins don’t allow a thing. You try and score on Lundqvist or Thomas when the defense is swarming you like an angry pack of wolves. The Rangers, as of February 7th had only allowed 102 goals this season, that’s the best in the NHL. The Bruins beat you with size and toughness and 4 lines that can score.
As far as the Red Wings are concerned, they just don’t lose at home…ever. They are 20-2-1 at Joe Louis. The Canucks have been to the big dance. They lost in a heartbreaker series against the Bruins in Vancouver, you remember the party after Game 7 right? So does the fire department. They are angry and determined.
That being said, I am not picking any of those teams to win the Cup. I will wait to make my case until April 8th, when the seeding is complete and I can see what teams have done what over their last 10 games. Can you imagine playing the Chicago Blackhawks as an 8 seed? That just doesn’t seem fair to play in front of 21,000 fans at the United Center against a team that won the Cup just a few years back as a gift for being the number 1 seed. That’s your reward? I don’t think so.
Be cautious to choose your team too early, because it may be the hottest team that will bring home Lord Stanley, not the best.
January 30, 2012
The 2-Day Sneak-Away
The NHL All Star Game was in Ottawa. I was in El Cajon, California. It was a quick getaway with the boys, enjoying the sun, playing some golf, and remembering what it feels like to be young. These are the journey’s I will never forget.
Most people my age have families, a wife and kids, a job that is demanding, the hours are long and if you live in Denver, a few days in the sun playing golf can be just what the body and soul needs. The plane ride out is always one of great anticipation. The flights seem shorter, the energy is peaking, and the beer seems colder.
On the way back, it’s completely opposite. The flights can’t be longer, bumpier, the energy is at an all time low, and anything besides water in your body seems like a stupid idea. But I will say this, we all need trips like this to remind us who our friends are, what relationships we’ve created over the years, and what buddies will be there for you in the best and the worst of times.
Jon, Kevin, Dave and myself played golf for two days and reminisced on the good old days growing up in Wyoming. We laughed, ate and slept without a care in the world. Now Monday morning, a new schedule of work, responsibility and commitments to the family around me, I look back at it with only good memories and a lighter wallet. Love your wife and kids with all that you are, but if you get the chance to do the 2-Day Sneak-Away…jump on it, it’s well worth it.
January 17, 2012
January 10, 2012
Bring on the Patriots! Did I just say that?
f your hand hurts, you’re probably not alone. You are a Bronco fan.
I celebrated my 39th birthday on Sunday with family and friends at my house watching Denver take on the highly favored Pittsburgh Steelers. What started out as an informal gathering, a few dips, beverages, and pizza, turned into Wrestle Mania 2012. The outcome of the game speaks for itself, but what happened inside millions of homes across the country cannot. I must elaborate.
Picture this: Grown men huddled around a flat screen in one room, 9 maniac children running amuck up the stairs, out the front door, in the back door, while the wives gathered around the island in the kitchen to catch up on all the “He said-She said” stuff around town. Down 6-0 after the first quarter, the room remained intact, and the atmosphere was somber as expected. As the game continued, the mood obviously changed, the blood pressure increased, layers of clothing including jerseys of one #15 became more visible. Strangers became friends and the hand slapping started, and then it became more violent with every offensive drop by the opponent, and the miscues on special teams. The Home team was in this thing. The Fourth Quarter. By now, plates were not used for the pizza, slices of pepperoni just hung from the beards of many respectful men, runs to the cooler were now perfectly timed at commercial breaks, and the bathroom was just too far and way too risky at this juncture of the game. Overtime. You could hear a pin drop at the moment of the first snap……and then……it began.
Like a scene from Braveheart, men, women and children rose to their feet, running through the halls of the house, screaming and hugging one another. Two of my friends threw themselves through the front window….car sirens went off, the kitchen was on fire, as the dogs dropped from the chimney to join the chaos. Ok, maybe not, but it was anarchy.
The next morning my right hand was bruised from the insane high-fiving, the low-fiving, the “I’m stronger than you” handshake. All part of the magic of what happened in downtown Denver on Sunday afternoon. Regardless of what happens this weekend in New England, I’m proud of what this team has done, not just one man, but what the collective efforts of an organization and its’ members have done.
“There's no substitute for guts.”
-- Paul "Bear" Bryant
January 03, 2012
From Scrappin’ to Scooters
I’ve worked with a lot of different characters over the years, but no one can compare to Mark Rycroft.
He was born July 12, 1978 in Penticton, British Columbia and spent the better part of his days playing hockey. He spent 3 seasons playing for the Pioneers here in Denver and time in the NHL with the St. Louis Blues, and more notably the Colorado Avalanche. In his days with the Burgandy and Blue, he became my “go to guy”. You know, the one guy in the locker room that is going to give you the straight answer, no bull, just the truth. He was always fun to see after practice, a big win at Pepsi Center, or even a tough loss to a divisional rival. He always had good answers regardless of the outcome. We were buddies. Heck, he even cleaned my teeth on an episode of Avalanche All Access (although I’m pretty sure he wrecked a few cuspids from my five minutes in the chair). His NHL numbers go like this: 226 games played, 21 goals, 25 assists for 46 points, 6 fights and 113 penalty minutes. Don’t let the numbers fool you, if it’s spunk you are looking for, he’s got it.
Nowadays, he owns “Scooters on Broadway”. Mark runs the shop that boasts the Schwinn Laguna, Sport and Manhattan 200. I know, I don’t understand what any of that means either, but it takes up the majority of his time, when he’s not doing color for the Pioneer Radio Broadcasts or being the Studio Analyst for Colorado Avalanche games…which brings me to my story. Mark Rycroft might be the single most interesting man on the planet. I know what you’re thinking, that guy with the grey beard that climbs Mt. Everest and rides monkeys through the Sahara while drinking Dos Equis XX already has that title…not so fast. All you have to do is watch one hockey game with Ryker, and you’ll know what I mean.
Here’s a few little things I have noticed about him over the past two weeks, you tell me if I am crazy…
- Don’t even think about touching his makeup. That little compact of powder to him… is like what the blanket is to Linus.
- His “clips” are like his unborn child. He loves those hidden plays in the game more than life itself. If our server went down, he’d melt right on set.
- Some of the things that come out of his mouth should be made into t-shirts. “Where mum keeps the peanut butter”, and “that guy is a total wimp” and “He should be knocked on his butt”.
- He drinks 14 cups of Lipton tea during any given game and never uses the bathroom.
- His cell phone was made in 1998.
- He’s a Google freak. Say any name, within five seconds, he’s typing it up on HockeyFights.com, HockeyDb.com, or the last resort NHL.com. If there’s some scoop on somebody, he knows it.
- He fought Dan Carcillo without knowing that Dan Carcillo beats up people for a living. He said it was the scariest 33 seconds of his life.
- He loves to golf, but can only play on Sunday’s between 12 and 2. I know, it’s neat. He needs a membership at “Harvard Gulch”.
- He’s more concerned about his shirt-tie combination than Joan Rivers is about the Red Carpet.
- Behind closed doors, and certainly not on the air, he talks like an old school hockey player. Trust me, it’s hilarious, I need a thesaurus just to de-code his sentences.
People love to watch him on television for a lot of reasons, but I think the biggest reason is that he is REAL. He says what a lot of you are thinking. His brutal honesty is refreshing. His character is a breath of fresh air. His knowledge of the game is unbelievable. So here’s my little cheer to Scooter boy…I love working with you Ryker, you’re one of a kind.
