thursday challenge #69: "sports"

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Thematic Photographic 82: "2009 - The Year that Was" v.2.0 - Prodigal Son Returns, Canes Make Playoffs, and Another Car Show

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"Return of the Maestro"
Greensboro, NC - April 2009 (Click to embiggen)

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"Nobody Greets Marty With a Runway Party"
Raleigh, NC - April 2009 (Click to embiggen)

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"Three 1960's vintage MG A's"
Raleigh, NC - May 2009 (Click to embiggen)

 Hosted by Written Inc.

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My son the music major returned home in the Spring semester of his junior year, leaving the remote and frozen environs of Potsdam, NY and the Crane School of Music for the closer-to-home University of North Carolina at Greensboro. In April he played his first recital at UNC-G followed shortly by his first gig with the school's Symphonic Band. This shot was from the former event obviously.

And about the same time he returned from the North Country, the Hurricanes returned to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since winning The Cup in 2006. After knocking off two of the top three seeds in the East in dramatic fashion (a pair of Game 7 wins, one on a buzzer beater and the other in overtime) Carolina ran into the juggernaut that was Pittsburgh, the eventual winner of the Stanley Cup. But until The Penguins marched into town, the middle-of-the-night welcome home parties at RDU International were in full swing each time the team returned home from the road.

And two days after Scott Walker banged a rebound past Tim Thomas to chase the top-seeded Boston Bruins from the playoffs, I was listening to the radio re-broadcast while on a photo tour with the Tonka Unit. Stop number one on the tour was the Antique British Car Show hosted by North Hills... what do they call it now that the mall isn't there anymore? Anyway, I question the antiquity of some of the cars on hand (somehow a 2006 Lotus doesn't seem like it would qualify) but while pondering if I had ever had occasion to use the plural of "Lotus" (I don't think I have) I caught this collection of 60s vintage MG A's.

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Wherein I Rant: "And Tonight's First Star, from Your Dallas Stars, Kerry Fraser!"

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Yeah, it's politically incorrect to call out the officials when you lose, and normally I wouldn't.

Photo: MIKE FUENTES - AP (from The News & Observer Online)

'Cause normally they do a great (okay good) job and if they blow one you gotta overcome, right? But when this (see photo - click to embiggen) isn't a penalty, something's wrong. Don't get me wrong, I like a good open ice hit as much as anybody. But when you come from half a rink away and leave your feet to go stick-first into a guy's head, there's got to be consequences. In this case, there were consequences, just not to Ott and the Stars. It wouldn't piss me off quite as much if they hadn't whistled Carolina's Tom Kostopoulos for retaliating in Dwyer's (the "target" of Ott's cheap shot) defense which led to Jamie Benn's goal on the ensuing power play. But they did and I am. Not that the Canes didn't take their share of (monumentally) BAD penalties later in the game. But this is the guys in stripes deciding the outcome. Literally. Because there was a straight line from a blown call to the game-winning goal. (And photographic evidence to back that statement up.) And even Kerry "Ted Koppel Award" Fraser will tell ya that shouldn't happen.

As for Ray Whitney's disallowed goal, all I can say is I didn't see "incontrovertible video evidence" that the call on the ice (goal) should be reversed. But I only saw one angle of the replay since there was no local TV (thanks very much Fox Sports Carolinas!) so I will grudgingly concede that one (even though it appeared in the highlight I saw that the puck changed direction from hitting Whitney's stick blade).

For the record, the referees in the NHL are generally pretty good, and the guys in the replay booth are usually pretty good at pointing out just how often the on-ice officials are right. Which is a lot more often than they're wrong. But in this case? Fraser, O'Rourke, et. al., you kicked it. Badly. And multiple times.

Okay. I feel better now. A little.

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Thematic Photographic 74: "Red" v.3.0 - Red Hot (Even if the Team's Not)

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"Brandon Sutter (C) DOB: 2/14/1989 6'-3" - 183 lb - Shoots: Right"
Raleigh, NC - September 2007 (Click to embiggen)

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The name Sutter is hardly new to the NHL. Back in the day, there were six Sutter brothers who did tours with various NHL clubs including Brent, father of The Hurricanes first round draft pick in 2007. Carolina went for the genes in that draft, and despite the fact that the kid can't seem to bulk up his 6' 3" frame (the roster lists him at 183... I think they must've weighed him with his skates on and both pockets full of rocks) he's showing a remarkable amount of moxie for a 20-year-old. In the Canes last three games he's scored their only 2 goals. And he did it centering the fourth line. He's quick, he's got good hands, and great instincts. He's responsible defensively and has very little downside other than a lack of bulk and a shortage of experience. But he played major minutes with the Albany River Rats (the Hurricanes' AHL affiliate) before being called up to fill a roster spot vacated by injury. Now with three of Carolina's top 9 forwards on the shelf including iron man Eric Staal (who had played 349 consecutive regular season games and an addiitonal 43 playoff games before sitting out Wednesday's game in Florida) sidelined for two to four weeks and winger Erik Cole just coming back from a broken leg, I'd expect to see Sutter moving up the food chain. Possibly centering the second line even. (Coach) Paul Maurice is big on giving the ice time to the guys who're getting it done and Sutter is earning his minutes. This photo was taken during a pre-season game the year Brandon was drafted. Andrew Ladd was wearing the #16 sweater at the time, but Sutter has reclaimed that number since Ladd's departure in a trade with Chicago. If he keeps playing the way he is currently, hockey's newest Sutter may just be in the NHL to stay.

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Thematic Photographic 70: "Hard" v.5.0 - Hard Rockin'

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"Rockin' the House"
Raleigh, NC - June 2006 (Click to embiggen)

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Note: Please take a moment to stop by the Written, Inc. and visit this post. And pay your respects to TP's creator, Carmi, on the sudden loss of his father. Best thoughts for you and your family Carmi.

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I suppose there's a twisted sense of irony in booking a band named "Suckerpunch" to play for the pre- and post-game festivities at a hockey game. And this wasn't just any hockey game, this was Game 7 of the 2006 Stanley Cup Final. The band was rockin' hard, and so was the home team, winning 3-1 to take the Stanley Cup Championship in front of a hard-rockin', standing-room-only home crowd that boatsed celebrity guests Kid Rock, Tim Robbins and Cuba Gooding Jr. But at the end of the night, those stars were eclipsed by the hard-working guys in red, white and black.

Your Turn: Got a "Hard" photo to support this week's theme? Feel free to share a link in the comments. If you're new to Thematic Photographic or just wondering how this works, you can find out all about it here or better yet, here at TP's usual home.

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Two4Tuesday #23: "Triumph/Defeat"

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"The Triumphant One is 13 in Red"
Raleigh, NC - January 2007 (Click to embiggen)

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My World Tuesday #50: "It's That Time Again"

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"Center Rod Brind'Amour (C)"
Raleigh, NC - September 2007 (Click to embiggen)

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In only a few short days my favorite season will kick off for another round. "Fall?", you ask. No, hockey season. Training camp is winding down, the rosters are being finalized, pared down to the limit that the NLH says a team can carry on active status. And around here, that means watching to see if top prospects like Brandon Sutter (yes, of the Sutters) will stay with the Big Club for opening night or be sent to the AHL to keep in shape and gain experience. Sutter may very well find himself in that position, not because he hasn' tacquitted himself well in camp -- he has -- but because the Hurricanes are stacked at the center ice position. Down the middle Carolina features a former All-Star MVP in Eric Staal (yes, of the Staals), a two-time Selke Award winner in their captain Rod Brind'Amour (above), and the most likley suspects for the other two spots on the roster would be Matt Cullen and Stephane Yelle. All four of these guys have their names on the Stanley Cup, three of them with Carolina's 2006 team and the fourth (Yelle) twice with the Colorado Avalanche.

Another off-season priority for GM Jim Rutherford was shoring up a slightly suspect defense corps. Not that the Canes were weak along the blue line, but with Glen Wesley retiring, there was no "veteran leader" stepping up to fill that vaccuum. This, proabbly more than anything, prompted Rutherford to re-acquire former Hurricane Aaron Ward from Boston. Ward was an integral part of Carolina's two trips to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2002 and 2006 and is the owner of three Stanley Cup rings, one with the 2006 Hurricanes and two with the 1997-98 and 1998-99 Detroit Red Wings. That kind of experience is irreplacable and Ward -- who kept his home in the Raleigh area even after leaving for the Big Apple via free agency in 2007 -- should fill the void left in the locker room by Wesley's retirement admirably.

In goal, expect Cam Ward to get the kind of workout his boyhood hero Martin Brodeur makes routine. In his last tour of duty with the Hurricanes Coach Paul Maurice rode Arturs Irbe to seasons of 74 and 77 starts in consecutive years. I wouldn't expect Ward to see that kind of work, but if his late season play last year from mid-February on is any indication, he may well be up to the task. Which leaves the question of how ready Michael Leighton will be if called upon to play for an extended period due to an injury. Ward's career has been fairly injury free with only a few relatively minor cuts and strains keeping him out of the lineup for more than a game or two. But I'd feel better about life if Leighton got some work.

Speaking of coaches, after Rutherford shocked the world by bringing Paul Maurice back behind the Carolina bench mid season last year, "Mo" devised a coaching program thta's almost modeled on the NFL. With first-ballot Hall of Famer Ron Francis working the offensive side of the house and another Hall of Famer, Tom Barrasso working the goaltenders, Maurice - always a defense-first style of coach - is free to oversee the "big picture". The system worked well enough last season as the Hurricanes turned the ship around and stormed into the Eastern Conference Final only a few weeks removed form being below the cut line for the playoffs. How well it works over the course of a full season remains to be seen, but the outlook is promising.

And then there's the X-Factor. Or more accurately the "O-Factor". "O" as in "Olympics". In the last two Olympic years (the real Olympics mind you, not those nantsy Summer ones) Carolina has claimed two Eastern Conference titles and a Stanley Cup. Coincidence? Probably. Or maybe the extended break in the schedule for the Olympics does something for these guys that it doesn't do for other teams. Whatever. I'll take it. And a Stanley Cup to go.

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Pic A Theme #15: "Twos" - 9.21.2009

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"Retired Number"
Raleigh, NC - September 2007 (Click to embiggen)

To see more from the Pic-A-Theme Community of Bloggers, visit Pic-A-Theme

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Hurricanes #1 in the NHL

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I gotta say, I did not see this one coming. The Hurricanes getting the love from ESPN? Maybe the bitterness of separation has finally worn off, eh?

It's not like the Bristol, CT based network had any regard for the team when they were still in Hartford. Prior to the move to North Carolina, it's doubtful that even a hardcore hockey fan south of New York City could have named more than one player on the Whalers' roster. (I couldn't... could you?) We simply never, ever saw them play (unless of course, they were playing the Rangers who seemed to be on every other broadcast). But all that's changed now in the world of the NHL on Versus (which still baffles me).

With ESPN now relegated to highlight reels and the Team Formerly Known as the Whalers hoisting a Stanley Cup banner, they've begun to take notice of The Little Franchise That Could. Like this gem for example.

Since 2003 ESPN has been compiling what they call the "Ultimate Standings" for all teams in all major (by their definition, okay?) sports. In their words: "in which we measure how much MLB, NBA, NFL and NHL franchises give back to the fans in exchange for all the time, money and emotion the fans invest in them."

The formula for computing the standings is dizzying, and a few of the categories puzzle me to no end. But when they tallied everything, my beloved Hurricanes finished #2 in the overall rankings across all sports and #1 among NHL teams. It's not a Stanley Cup, but I'll take it.

So in the overall standings for all sports, we got nudged out of the top spot by the MLB's Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (WTF is up with teams from Anaheim and names that won't fit on a marquee anyway? Must be a Disney thing. At least the Ducks finally figured that one out.)

Where did some of the more "iconic" sports franchises finish? Well, predictably the Super Bowl Champion Steelers were #3, but surprisingly the Stanley Cup Champion Penguins only rose to #8. The Detroit Red Wings landed in the #4 slot despite a 7-game series loss to said Penguins in the Stanley Cup Final. (Come on Pittsburgh, get your priorities in order here!) Other notable teams, the Green Bay Packers finished in the #13 spot, and Boston's highest ranked entry was the Celtics at #20 (with the Bruins and Red Sox coming in at #56 and #58 respectively. If you want to count the Patriots as a "Boston" team, they came in just ahead of the Celtics at #19.)

And one development that had me laughing up my sleeve was the 76th place finish of The NFL's Lords of Arrogance, the Dallas Cowboys who got smoked by both of theirs neighbors, the NHL's Stars (#22) and the NBA's Mavericks (#46). Take that Jerry Jones.

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Dear Red Wings and Blackhawks...

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Whichever of you emerges as the Western Conference champs, I'll give you a little heads up. The Penguins are for real. Make a mistake and they'll make you pay. One bad line change, one failed clearing attempt, one puck that needs to get deep and doesn't, one turnover at the blueline... odds are good it's gonna wind up in the back of your net. Just sayin'.

Fact is, yeah... the Canes have been known to lay an egg -- even in the playoffs. They've played some stinkers in this postseason. But not four in a row. This isn't the Overachievers Anonymous bunch that won the conference last year. They really are that good.

You've been warned.

You can thank me later.

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That's My World Tuesday #31: Caniac Fever

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"Signs and Symptoms I"
Raleigh, NC - May 2009 (Click to embiggen)

It doesn't happen every year, but when it does it's unmistakable. When the end of the NHL's regular season arrives, the top eight teams in each conference begin the grueling pursuit of the Stanley Cup. Four rounds of best-of-seven and the best hockey you will ever see. If one of the eight teams in the Eastern Conference Playoffs is Raleigh's Carolina Hurricanes, there will be an outbreak of Caniac Fever. Symptoms include spontaneous and thematic decorating by both the public and private sectors, and perhaps most notably periodic gatherings at RDU International Airport when the team charter returns from a road trip. The worst outbreak to date occurred in 2006 when the Canes won their 16th game of the post-season and claimed the ultimate prize. That outbreak lasted well into the following fall.

"Signs and Symptoms II"
Raleigh, NC - May 2009 (Click to embiggen)

Banners of the type pictured above are a sure sign of the condition, and pop up all over the city. Neither the private nor public sectors are immune. As the Hurricanes go deeper into the playoffs, even the state capitol building has been known to fly the team flag from its roof. But the surest and earliest warning sign is the gathering of large groups at the airport on nights when the team travels home. For the seasoned fan, relapses of this symptom occur instantly. For the recent convert or casual observer, it may take longer. But by the time the final game is played, scenes like the one below will play out multiple times. This year there could be an unusually high number of these parties since the Hurricanes will not have have home ice advantage in any round of the playoffs, and both of the first two rounds went the full seven games. The photo below was taken after the most recent of these deciding games. Estimates of crowd size vary widely, but the range seems to be between 500 and 1000. At 2:30 a.m. on a weekday. And the Eastern Conference Finals are just starting.

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It's The Playoffs Stupid - The Series That Wouldn't Die

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Starring Cam Ward, Eric Staal, Jussi Jokinen, Sergei Samsonov, Chad LaRose
with
Tuomo Ruutu, Scott Walker, Ray Whitney, Matt Cullen
Joe Corvo, Tim Gleason, Joni Pitkanen, Dennis Seidenberg
Ryan Bayda, Rod Brind'Amour, Erik Cole, Patrick Eaves
Niclas Wallin, Anton Babchuk, Frantisek Kaberle

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I gotta give the Bruins credit... I stuck a fork in 'em after Game 4 and they weren't quite done. The Series That Wouldn't Die took 7 games and almost a full overtime period to settle, but in the end one team goes on, one goes home. See you at RDU International in an hour or so. *grin*

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It's the Playoff Stupid - Time to Close This Out, Guys.

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It's The Playoffs, Stupid - Dear Boston Bruins:

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To you, to your coach, to your media I say "You got owned. Get over it."

I'm sick to death of hearing how you didn't play your best game. How you haven't executed your game plan. How you're being persecuted by the officials.

You want to know why you're facing triple match point in this series? Can you handle the truth? You've been outworked, outhustled, and outthought -- in short outplayed -- by a team you came in with too little respect for. You breezed through a series with a Canadiens team that had been trying as hard as they knew how to implode for most of the year and you expected it to be easy. Trouble is, now you're up against a team with some teeth and it's not easy anymore.

It's the playoffs, stupid. If you're not gonna bring your A-game, you don't belong here. Go home. We'll help you pack.

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It's The Playoffs, Stupid: Airport Landing Party 2009, Chapter 4

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You didn't really think I'd forget to put up the latest Caniac Landing Party photos did you? Actually I meant to shoot video instead this time, but ...heh... forgot to charge the camcorder battery. Maybe after Game 5, eh?

So what can I tell you that you don't already know? After a puzzling implosion in Game 1 that had the Hurricanes looking like the team with nine days of rust buildup, the good guys rebounded with a solid-if-not-always-pretty performance in front of a sensational 36-save outing by The Caminator. As a group, the Canes still have another level (or two) they can reach -- which is bad news for Bruins fans, but encouraging for those on the side of the angels. There were still some pretty iffy decisions with the puck in the defensive zone and far too many clearing attempts that misfired and could have been disastrous. They weren't disastrous simply because Cam Ward was completely unconscious, snuffing out anything bearing a passing resemblance to a shot on goal. The team as a whole may not have played a perfect game, but The Caminator was as perfect as a goalie can get: a playoff shutout. His fourth in his young career and second in these playoffs.

But don't get the idea that Boston will roll over and die now that they've lost for the first time in the postseason. You have to win four games to advance and the Bruins didn't get to be the top seeded team in the East 'cause they're pretty (they're not). And every hockey mind in the business is calling for a long six- or even seven-game series. Of course, many of those same great minds stuck a fork in Carolina after Game 1. So consider the sources...

Game 3 tonight at 7:30 on our ice. Forget the stats about the team winning Game 3 of a series tied 1-1 winning the series. In fact, you can take all those averages and heave them cheerfully over the side, because Carolina beat those odds in every odd-numbered game in the first round. The team winning the go-ahead game in a tied series -- whether that be a 1-1 tie or a 2-2 tie -- wins the lions share of best of sevens. Carolina lost both of those games against New Jersey, but won the one that counted when the series was tied 3-3. How huge would a win tonight be for the Canes? Consider this: Carolina has not had a series lead in the post season other than after the final game of the first round -- to win the round. So the difference between 2-1 and 1-2 would be monumental in scope. The converse of that statement, however, doesn't hold. Being down in a series is just another day at the office for these guys and I don't think a Game 3 loss will have nearly the impact on the locker room as a Game 3 win would.

The keys will be to take better care of the puck in the defensive zone, to traverse the neutral zone as quickly as possible and to get Tim Thomas moving his feet. Thomas isn't a practitioner of sound positional goaltending, he's strictly a reflexive style player. Which is much, much harder to be proficient at Dominic Hasek notwithstanding. Bad angle shots with a couple of low forwards there to cash in on the rebounds should get him moving which will expose some holes that can be exploited by snipers like Eric Staal and Ray Whitney. And considering the disappearing act of the Canes power play, they would be better served to play this game at even strength. so far their penalty kill had shut down Boston's very impressive power play unit, but that isn't a well you need to go to this often. In the two game sso far, Carolina has yielded 7 PP chances while getting only 2. And strangely enough the Canes have scored more often on the Bruins' power play than the Bruins have so far. that is not a trend that will continue if Boston continues to get the preponderance of PP chances.

But this is why they play the games. If the Stanley Cuop were won by bloggers, it wouldn't be the Stanley Cup. So look at some pitchers and keep yer fingers crossed.

Full sized version available here!

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It's The Playoffs Stupid - Round 1 Wrapup, Round 2 Schedule

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As promised, here are the photos from this year's third RDU Landing Party. This one was more like the ones of years past. And about time too!

Full sized version available here!

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Eastern Conference Quarterfinal Results

(1) Boston Bruins       d. (8) Montreal Canadiens    4-0
(2) Washington Capitals d. (7) New York Rangers      4-3
(6) Carolina Hurricanes d. (3) New Jersey Devils     4-3
(4) Pittsburgh Penguins d. (5) Philadelphia Flyers   4-2

Western Conference Quarterfinal Results

(8) Anaheim Ducks       d. (1) San Jose Sharks       4-2
(2) Detroit Red Wings   d. (7) Columbus Blue Jackets 4-0
(3) Vancouver Canucks   d. (6) St Louis Blues        4-0
(4) Chicago Blackhawks  d. (5) Calgary Flames        4-2

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Eastern Conference Semifinals (all times Eastern)
Boston Bruins (1) v. Carolina Hurricanes (6)

1. Fri 5/1  7:30 PM @BOS     3. Wed 5/6  7:30 PM @CAR
2. Sun 5/3  7:30 PM @BOS     4. Fri 5/8  7:30 PM @CAR
5. Sun 5/10 7:30 PM @BOS*    6. Tue 5/12 7:00 PM @CAR*
7. Thu 5/15 TBD     @BOS*    * if necessary

Washington Capitals (2) v. Pittsburgh Penguins (4)

1. Sat 5/2  1:00 PM @WSH     3. Wed 5/6  7:00 PM @PIT
2. Mon 5/4  7:00 PM @WSH     4. Fri 5/8  7:00 PM @PIT
5. Sat 5/9  7:00 PM @WSH*    6. Mon 5/11 TBD  PM @PIT*
7. Wed 5/13 7:00 PM @WSH*    * if necessary

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Western Conference Semifinals (all times Eastern)
Detroit Red Wings (2) v. Anaheim Ducks (8)

1. Fri 5/1 7:00 PM  @DET     3. Tue 5/5 10:30 PM @ANA
2. Sun 5/3 2:00 PM  @DET     4. Thu 5/7 10:30 PM @ANA
5. Sun 5/10 5:00 PM @DET*    6. Tue 5/12 TBD     @ANA*
7. Thu 5/14 TBD     @DET*    * if necessary

Chicago Blackhawks (4) v. Vancouver Canucks (3)

1. Thu 4/30 9:00 PM  @VAN    3. Tue 5/5  8:00 PM  @CHI
2. Sat 5/2  9:00 PM  @VAN    4. Thu 5/7  8:00 PM  @CHI
5. Sat 5/9 10:30 PM  @VAN*   6. Mon 5/11 9:00 PM  @CHI*
7. Thu 5/14 TBD      @VAN*    * if necessary

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It's The Playoffs, Stupid - Airport Rally, Take 2

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Cam Ward allowed just one of 42 shots on goal to get by him Thursday night as the Canes took on the Devils in Game 5. One shot from the point through a screen and deflected at the last millisecond. One goal. Which was exactly one more than Marty Brodeur allowed at the other end. And now the Canes are in the unenviable position of facing elimination with the Devils up 3 games to 2 in the series.

Considering the number of first class scoring chances generated by both teams this could have very easily been a 6-5 game. Between them the two teams put 86 shots on goal (44-42 with the edge to Carolina). And the highlight reel will be an end to end progression of "He-did-what??" saves from both goaltenders.

It wasn't the outcome we expected, and certainly not the one we wanted, but a group of True Believers still gathered to pay homage as the team landed at RDU International at 12:50 a.m.. But this time -- to their credit -- the airport authority was prepared for us. And in a good way. It seems that a lot of back channel conversations took place since the last episode (recounted here) and the RDU Airport Authority decided it was easier and better for all concerned if they worked with us than trying to chase us off. (As a postscript to that... "encounter" we did get a shout out from Mike Sundheim, the team's Media Relations Manager, here.)

I give the RDU folks full marks too. They didn't stop at just letting us hang out in their airport, they opened up Park and Ride Lot #2 -- normally only open on holidays as an overflow lot -- for us to use and even put out signs along the road directing arriving fans to the lot. (Granted, the signs weren't very big and easy to miss, but they were there and that's the point.)

As a veteran of the Greensboro Days (the Hurricanes' celebrated "Black Period") I grew to hate the phrase "small but enthusiastic crowd", and I'd really hoped for a better turnout than there was. But after all, it was a weeknight and we'd just lost a tough game and yada-yada. So by the time the plane touched down there were only about 50 of us on hand.

By all reports I've heard from fans in other NHL cities, that's about 50 more than you'd see in most places though. Even in the "traditional" hockey markets it seems this isn't a common practice. Canes players who have come here from places like Montreal, Detroit, Chicago... they're always amazed by the phenomenon. Then again, I'm not sure I'd be all that keen about hanging out at the far end of O'Hare in the middle of the night. Could be hazardous to your health.

For their part the team had that grim-faced look that guys who've just lost a tough game always have. I've always wondered how they feel about it when they have to run the gauntlet of fans after a loss. Does it pick them up or would they rather pass on the festivities? I don't know about the players, but the Canes GM Jim Rutherford actually stopped his car as he made the turn onto the road and thanked the folks standing along the curb for coming out.

But perhaps the greatest quote of the night came from one of the airport police officers who's been on hand for both of this year's events. As we were leaving, he said, "Thanks for being so compliant."

I had to laugh.

Of course there are pictures!

For a full-sized slideshow (that you can slow down), go here.

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It's The Playoffs, Stupid - Things That Happened

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In order to understand what you're about to see, a little background is necessary first.

In 2001 a small band of Hurricanes fans (we weren't called "Caniacs" yet then, but this was part of the legend behind that nickname) managed to suss out where and when the team charter would land after Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series against New Jersey. And they came out to RDU International to meet the team when they touched down. At the time, this was probably considered a blip on the radar and probably not very well attended because nobody knew about it.

But it didn't stop there. During the miraculous -- or at least improbable -- run to the 2002 Eastern Conference Championship and the team's first ever appearance in the Stanley Cup Final, the "improvised airport rallies" became entrenched in the culture of the Caniac Nation. By the time the team brought home the Prince of Wales Trophy representing the conference title, the crowds numbered in the hundreds -- or even thousands. The team and the airport played the time and location of the team's arrival pretty close to the vest initially. Then I guess somebody figured out that it made a good media event, and the affairs became semi-legitimized.

By 2006, fans were tracking the plane by its tail number on Blackberries and wireless equipped laptops and keeping the rest of us informed of progress. The events got bigger, and the press was taking them over. The airport authority cordoned off areas for use by the media -- which they didn't use because they could pretty much go where the rest of us couldn't anyway. But being the professionals that they are, the fans got through it. (I featured a bit about the last of these rallies of 2006 in this post. That crowd was big enough that getting them all in one photo required a helicopter shot, so you can guess the scale.)

So after another extended hiatus from the postseason, the Canes are back and so are the rallies, right?

Not so fast. They threw us a curve this year. They moved and didn't tell us. They don't fly into the same place anymore. Not that the old spot was anything to write home about -- just a nondescript unmarked hangar on the ramp in General Aviation. So after Game 2 of the East Quarterfinal, the cluster of fans that arrived expecting the usual gathering in the usual place were greeted by nothing but darkness. No lights, no cars, no sign of life at all. The hangar we'd grown to love looked completely deserted. And there had been no mention of this on the team website or in the paper or on the TV...

It was a sucker punch. But clearly these people fail to comprehend the level of commitment of a Caniac. You won't be able to hide from the True Believers indefinitely. And they didn't. After wandering around in the dark for an hour or so, the gathering took to the road and some of our more devoted (and yes, female) fans noticed that the players' cars were parked at Landmark Aviation. (No, I don't know how they came to know what the players drive, I thought it best not to ask.) Eventually the gathering found its way to the Landmark hangar, and started to set up camp.

Not as great an idea as it sounds like... Apparently somebody at Landmark noticed the crowd and informed the FAA who summoned the gendarmes to go and disperse the mob. Equally apparent was the apprehension the two (count 'em, two) officers they sent to disperse the crowd felt when they realized they had roughly 100 people on their hands. But after a brief show of force (which included clapping one of the crowd in irons temporarily) they realized we weren't going to get belligerent, we were simply continuing a time-honored -- and peaceful -- tradition. But it seems that nobody in the Canes organization had filled Landmark in that this was as much a part of post-season life in Raleigh as ticket scalping and ibuprofen. (Though you'd think after the last three trips to the playoffs, everybody at RDU would realize this... but I digress.)

Were we deterred? Surely you can guess the answer to that question. One of the more diplomatic among us managed to arrive at a compromise that was agreeable to both the fans and the airport cops we outnumbered 50-to-1. We would go and park at the Observation Deck and then take up station along the roadway where the park and ride lot abutted the road the players would use to exit. So the improvised pep rally became an improvised parade. Which could actually turn out better in a way. If nothing else, the media will have their own area and can leave ours alone. But I notice none of them were there last night. Did they have so little faith in the resourcefulness of the fans that they figured there was no story to be had?

Surely that can't be it. Because if that were true, this post wouldn't exist. And since it does, there must have been a story. And the media would certainly have known that, right? Right?

Well they know now.

For a full-sized slideshow, go here.

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It's The Playoffs, Stupid

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You heard it here first. The roads to the Stanley Cup Final will lead through Newark and Detroit.

Do I mean that we'll see the Devils and Red Wings playing for the hardware? Not necessarily. But my feeling is that the teams that wind up in the Final, will either be those two or the team(s) that beat them. If you want to make it to the top, these are the teams to beat in my humble estimation.

Now why would I say this when the Bruins and Sharks have been at the top of the heap all year? Don't misunderstand; I'm not disparaging either of those teams or trying to minimize their accomplishments -- not for a minute. But take a hard look at what the Devils and Wings have done -- and the context for it. Both teams finished with 51 wins (the Sharks and Bruins finished with 53 each by comparison) and in the process won their respective divisions. Those two divisions though, account for half of the teams in the playoffs.

Detroit won another Central Division title. Ho-hum-yawn-big-deal, right? Detroit wins the Central division every year usually because the Central is a one- or at best two-horse race. Nobody other than Nashville has really challenged the Wings for supremacy in the division in years. This year, Nashville is the only Central team not in the playoffs. So the Red Wings didn't collect their 51 wins and 112 points by feasting on a weak division. And even though divisional play was (thankfully) scaled back from 8 games to 6 this year winning the Central was anything but a cakewalk for once.

Then there's New Jersey, who win the Atlantic Division almost as frequently as Detroit wins the Central. They did it again this year in a year when the Atlantic also has four representatives in the playoffs. But here's the kicker: They did it without Martin Brodeur for a large part of the year. Brodeur, who claimed the top spot in career wins by an NHL goalie this year, missed 50 games of the regular season and the Devils not only won the division, but a franchise record 51 games. When you can do that without the services of arguably the best goalie in history, I have to say you're the team to beat. But there's another wrinkle in the story. Marty Brodeur typically plays 70+ games a year. Being his backup is -- in most years -- the Maytag Repairman job of the NHL. This year, he's heading into the playoffs fresher than he's ever been because his body hasn't suffered the abuse of a 75-start regular season.

And in another statistical oddity, the Devils have played the Hurricanes in the playoffs three times since the 2000-2001 season. All three times, the winner of that series represented the Eastern Conference in the Stanley Cup Final. And the Devils first round opponent this year? The Carolina Hurricanes. This setup excites me because Carolina won two of those three previous meetings -- in 2002 and 2006.

The schedule was still being sorted when I checked last, but here are all of the matchups for those that care.

Eastern Conference Quarterfinal Round
(1) Boston Bruins (53-19-10 116) v. (8) Montreal Canadiens (41-30-11 93)
(2) Washington Capitals (50-24-8 108) v. (7) New York Rangers (43-30-9 95)
(3) New Jersey Devils (51-27-4 106) v. (6) Carolina Hurricanes (45-30-7 97)
(4) Pittsburgh Penguins (45-28-9 99) v. (5) Philadelphia Flyers (44-27-11 99)

Western Conference Quarterfinal Round
(1) San Jose Sharks (53-18-11 117) v. (8) Anaheim Ducks (42-33-7 91)
(2) Detroit Red Wings (51-21-10 112) v. (7) Columbus Blue Jackets (41-31-10 92)
(3) Vancouver Canucks (45-27-10 100) v. (6) St Louis Blues (41-31-10 92)
(4) Chicago Blackhawks (46-24-12 104) v. (5) Calgary Flames (46-30-6 98)

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Ruby Tuesday #8: 'Tis the Season

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"Canes Country"
Raleigh, NC - October 2008 (Click to embiggen)

 Hosted at Work of the Poet

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I love this time of year. The oppressive heat of summer is gone, the mornings are crisp, and best of all... a new hockey season is starting with all of the possibilities that brings with it. The off season was just way too long this year, but hope springs eternal... as this banner in downtown Raleigh's Capitol District clearly declares.

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