Gordie Howe in a Lightning Uniform and Other Photos

I was flipping through my photo box looking for a particular photo to replace the one I have on my header on this site and stumbled across a collection of sports photos I've taken over the years. Since I don't feel like writing a lot today and I haven't posted a Chicago photo in forever I figured I'd give you, my loyal readers, a quick photo journey.  Here we go:

Baltimore Orioles

Albert Belle stretching some time in 2000. Pretty sure Albert is debating throwing a baseball at me.

 BJ Ryan warming up vs Rays 2001? Some would say he was the last true closer the O's had.

Saint Leo College Baseball

Thomas B. Southard Stadium Saint Leo, FL - Play at the plate probably 1997 or 1998 1996. One of my favorite photos of all time. Can't remember the catchers name at the time - Link or Saint Leo Mike help me out? (edit - Per fellow Saint Leo Monarch Pat - the catcher's name is Bryan Lafata.)

AL Lang Field, St Petersburg, FL 1996  - Link at the plate 1997 or 1998 - Before he was a part time blogger and full time steel-slinger he was the only hitter I've ever seen who could hit a home run that almost took off the second baseman's head.  Line shots that kid hit.

The Horse Track

Tampa Bay Downs 2002 - I probably bet on this horse.  I'm pretty sure he didn't win.

The Lightning and Hockey

 The Ice Palace 10/2/1999 - Opening night and Mr. Hockey was there to drop the puck.  Damn seamless glass messed up what would have been a nice photo to have.  In case you were wondering I had tickets in the lower bowl, 10 rows up that I bought the day of the game at the box office.  Cost - $40.00.

 Ice Palace 10/2/1999 - Felix Potvin looking at the action behind the net. Felix the cat always had some of the best pads in the game.

Ice Palace 10/2/1999 - A better shot of his pads with the cat face on them.  With the equipment I had at the time, pictures of the goalie were really the best I could do.

Ice Palace 10/2/1999 - Darren Puppa don't need no mask to keep his crease clean!

Ice Palace 10/2/1999 - Well maybe he does.  The Lightning actually won this game 4-2.  If I'm not mistaken that might have been the only time they were over .500 that season.

 Ice Palace  10/2/1999 - Puppa's backup that season - Dan Cloutier.  Pictured here not fighting anyone.

Ice Palace November 1999 - Freddie Modin.  The Cory Cross for Modin trade is usually the first move I look at that built the 2004 Stanley Cup team (other than drafting Vinny, of course).

 Ice Palace - No idea - I'm pretty sure this is Jassen Cullimore, but I'm not sure when I took this photo.  In 1999-2000 he wore 27 and Bruce Gadiner wore 5, and I don't have any other photos from the Rangers vs. Lightning to get a better grasp of when the game was played.

 Ice Palace November 1999 - TUCKSIE!  A young Darcy Tucker finished with 34 points that year. That was good enough for 5th on the team in scoring.  Not a good season for the Lightning.

 Ice Palace November 1999 - The captain for the Lightning at the beginning of the year - Bill Houlder! This was actually taken at Houlder's last home game with the Lightning.  A few days later he would be put on waivers and claimed by Nashville. Later that season a 19 year-old Vincent Lecavalier would don the "C" on his sweater. Which lasted about a season and a half.

Ice Palace November 1999 - Mike Sillinger.  Also known as the last Lightning player to wear the number 26 before Marty St. Louis. Sillenger was traded in March of 2000 and Marty was signed in July of that year.  I have a feeling that it's going to be the first jersey number retired by the organization  when Marty retires - which should be around 2031 or so.

 Ice Palace November 1999 - There he is!  A young Vincent in his second year. So young, so hopeful. He would score 25 goals that year starting a streak of 11 straight seasons with at least 20 goals.

 Ice Palace November 1999 - The Undertaker!  (Because he buries pucks - at least that's what the billboards said).  Stephane Richer would bury a total of 16 goals for the Lightning during parts of two seasons with the club.  He also fancied nice suits and loafers with no socks.

 Ice Palace November 1999 - In case Steve Guolla needs to prove to his kids he played in the NHL. Just kidding.  Steve actually logged over 200 games in the NHL with Tampa, San Jose, Atlanta and New Jersey.

Ice Palace November 1999 - We finish with Chris Gratton. Seen here in his second tour of three tours of duty with the Lightning.  He would be sent to Buffalo in March along with a 2nd round draft pick in a good ol' blockbuster deal that netter the Lightning Corey Sarich, Wayne Primeau and Brian Holzinger.

The Sabres would use the second round pick for Derek Roy - not bad.  When the Lightning acquired Gratton for a third time they dealt Florida a second round pick in the 2008 draft as well.  That player turned out to be recent TTM signer Jacob Markstrom.

I hope you enjoyed this trip down memory lane.

2012 Topps of Squirrels, Short Prints and Gooooolllllld.

Ah you silly bastards at Topps.  May I congratulate you on a job well done.  It’s been awhile since your flagship product has generated this much interest, both in the community and outside of it.  And all you had to do was take a picture of a squirrel.  Heck it wasn’t even an armed squirrel.

Rally Squirrel has nothing on Machine Gun Squirrel

I know there has been a lot of virtual ink spilled about 2012 Topps base set already, but I figured I’d add my two cents as well.  From the reports I’m seeing from folks who have actually ripped a few packs it seems like it’s a fun product to open.  Between American Pie and this set it seems that Topps is, at least for its lower end product, skewing towards the less serious side of collecting, and there is nothing wrong with that. 

What I look for in a base set is simple.  Is there a good selection of players? Are the cards themselves decent to look at? Can I put the set together with a reasonable amount of effort?  From what I’ve seen so far it looks like two yeses and a strong maybe.

Scanning through the checklist it looks like Topps uses the 330 card base set allotment pretty well. There are about 20 cards designated with the Rookie Card logo (including Wasteland Hall of Famer Michael Taylor), a decent mix of young players and veterans and the typical league leader multi-player cards sprinkled throughout.

From what I’ve seen the photography has improved which is something that fluctuates with Topps.  Some years it’s pretty standard (2007) and some years it is pretty underrated (1992).  Coupled with the simple white boarders the cards look pretty crisp.

Image taken from Cardboard Collections Home of the Affordable Card Break!

As far as the set building option.  That seems to be a bit of a problem so far.  It seems there has been a lot of dupes from people buying retail and some card damage from folks buying hobby or jumbo boxes.  Depending on how Topps handles customer complaints, which could be a big sticking point for some collectors.

There does seem to be the normal assortment of inserts for a Topps base set, which means there is a lot.  I do think that they need to trim down the number of insert sets that they produce on a yearly basis, most collectors would probably prefer another base card as opposed to a pointless insert of a player they don’t collect. That’s not a problem specific to 2012, though; it’s been an issue for years.

If I was to chase any of the insert sets it would probably be (like a lot of others) the 1987 minis.  The 1987 set does hold a special place in my heart as it was the first complete set I ever owned.  I think my dad spotted me the money or bought it for me (copious amounts of alcohol have destroyed the exact memory) and I remember thinking that it was a good investment.  With so many young stars in the set there was no way it wouldn’t increase in value.  I was especially fond of the Bo Jackson Future Stars card with him shagging fly balls in the outfield.

The Golden Greats/Moments/Futures/Standard/Grahams/Retrievers/Gates/etc are nice but not something I’d really go out of my way to put together. The same goes with the Classic Walk-offs and Timeless Talents. 

Of course, none of that is going to be a big problem for me since I’ve decided not to purchase any of the product this year.  It’s not because I’m morally outraged at squirrel cards or photo-shopped free agents. Simply put I don’t have the money.  I decided early on that any extra money I scrounge up will be spent on Heritage this year so I’ve cut the base set out of my life (well apart from a group break).  So if I’m to trade with you this year, feel free to send me any Orioles related inserts – doesn’t look like there are that many.

In the end Topps flagship isn’t about short prints or gold bar inserts.  It’s about being the most comprehensive product available (until they bring back Topps Total). People buy it because of tradition, they buy it because there is a binder on the shelf that needs filling, they buy it to see players from their favorite team, they buy it because building a set is fun. Gimmicks and variations don’t change that, but they do bring in new collectors and people outside of our world talking about it.  That interest makes money for Topps and if it doesn’t appeal to you, fine there is enough out there in the world for you to collect. Don’t take it so seriously, after all they’re just cards of men playing a child’s game.

Your unasked for Steve Downie photo of the day - getty images Scott Audette

Back To Hockey

There are several ways for teams to improve down the home stretch.  The most notable is to pull off a big trade that brings in a player to fill a specific need.  A team could also call up a young prospect to provide a spark in the clubhouse.  Or, they could just get healthy.  As the Tampa Bay Lightning return to action Tuesday night we’ll see how option three works.

The game against the Capitals will feature the return of Ryan Shannon, Tom Pyatt and Victor Hedman.  Depending on what line-up Coach Boucher goes with J.T. Wyman could also return to action.  While Shannon and Pyatt will add some experience to the bottom two lines the Lightning should see the biggest impact from Hedman.

Adding a player capable of playing 20+ minutes, who can move the puck out of the zone smoothly and provide a physical presence in front of the net would probably cost GM Steve Yzerman at least a first round draft pick or a top prospect.  With Hedman’s return the team gets that player for nothing.

"Crosby Shirtless" led to more page hits, hopefully "Hedman shirtless" works too!

The Big Swede has missed more than a month with a concussion, and I think there is always some concern with a player returning from a head injury (exhibit number one – Sidney Crosby).  That being said, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Coach Boucher throw him right into the fire especially with Marc-Andre Bergeron out with an injury.  Hedman should jump immediately to one of the top four pairings and ease some of the minutes that Bruno Gervais and Brendan Mikkelson have been logging.

Hedman has seen his production dip this season, logging only 6 points in 32 games, but is still the foundation for the future of the Lightning defense. At a listed 6’6”, 220 lbs Hedman is a big presence on the ice.  He is strongest when he is playing a positional game, despite his size and to the consternation of fans he’s not a big hitter. What he is, is a smooth skater who can accelerate the puck through the neutral zone and transition from defense to offense better than any other blue-liner on the team. It does seem that he doubts his talents from time to time and makes mistakes when he tries to be too cautious.

Despite his occasional gaffes, adding Hedman to the lineup should help the Lightning continue their current improved play.  During their 4-game winning streak their goals against is 2.25, more than an entire goal below their season average of 3.28.  Part of that is due to Mathieu Garon and Dwayne Roloson playing better between the pipes, but the team as a whole has been playing better.

Much like last season, everyone is starting to chip in.  Out of the 15 goals scored during the winning streak, only two belong to Steven Stamkos.  When names like Purcell, Angelidis, Thompson and Moore are showing up in the box score it’s a sign that the team is returning to the “pack mentality” that Coach Boucher likes to talk about to the press. 

They will definitely need to keep it going during the next two weeks.  Nine of their next 11 games are at home and eight of them are against Eastern Conference foes.  Of those eight teams only the Sabres are currently lower in the standings then the Lightning.  This stretch will determine whether or not the Bolts are going to seriously contend for the playoffs.

Sunday Night Product Preview - Heroes and Prospects

The NHL All-Star game just ended and with that, my self-imposed break from posting. Actually, it was self-imposed because I was extremely lazy this week.  Now it’s time to get back behind the wheel and drive this thing home. There should be plenty of posts spanning all sports to keep y’all somewhat entertained throughout the week.  Or, at the very least, kill five minutes of your work day.

First up, we’ll start up with a product preview.  I might not have the funds to buy any new product, but that doesn’t mean I can’t let you know what is out there.  Up for preview today the 2011-12 version of ITG’s Heroes and Prospects set.   I’ve lamented the fact that In The Game doesn’t hold an NHL license in the past.  By focusing on prospects and players in the junior leagues they can skip over that handicap and produce what I think is the best product in their portfolio

Heroes and Prospects has a simple 200 card base set and a plethora of inserts and autographs of younger players, many of whom have yet to make their impact on the NHL.  This year’s base set is broken up into a couple of different categories:

-          Heroes – 7 cards featuring NHL players that have graduated from the junior leagues ranging from Tony Amonte to Red Kelly

-          International – ITG cherry picked 3 international prospects and gave them cards. If you’re a fan of Adam Larsson, Mika Zibanejad or Vladimir Tarsenko be sure to pick up their cards from this set

-          CHL Prospects/Rookies – The best players in the CHL are on display here.  Think Dougie Hamilton, Malcolm Subban, potential #1 pick Nail Yakupov, etc

-          AHL Prospects/Rookies – Same as above just featuring players in the AHL such as Nazem Kadri, Kyle Palmieri and Brayden Schenn.

-          AHL/CHL Grads – This subset is composed of current NHL’s in their minor league uniforms.  So if you wanted a card of Ryan Miller as a Rochester American or Logan Couture as an Ottawa 67 this is where you would find one.

-          Tribute Card – Four cards dedicated to players that passed away this year (Luc Bourdon, Rick Rypien, Derek Boogaard, and Wade Belak).

Since I know some Lightning fans are reading this by accident, let me answer your number one question.  There are two Lightning prospects in this set.

Card 41 – Vladislav Namestnikov

Card 141- Carter Ashton

Namestnikov also gets an autograph card in this set whereas Ashton is featured in a non-memorabilia subset with his father Brent. The “Family Ties” subset doesn’t have a Michael Gross/Michael J Fox card, but it does celebrate the family tradition that runs throughout the history of hockey. So if you’re a Subban fan feel free to pick up the card featuring P.K., Malcolm and Jordan. Former Lightning goaltender Sean Burke also has a card with his son Brendan.

In searching for Lightning players in this set I’ve noticed that most of the prospects for the team are already skating in Norfolk (Ashton, Tyler Johnson, Dustin Tokarski), overseas (Nikita Kucherov, Nikita Nesterov) or are in college (Alex Killorn, James Mullin). That leaves some slim pickings for a set like this.

Design-wise the base cards are pretty simple.  Normally it’s an action shot of the player in his junior or minor league uniform against a non-descript background.  This year’s set seems to have a gold background with the a close-up of the players face while a blue strip down the left hand side bears the team name.  The players name and position are centered along the bottom of the card in white. 

ITG hasn’t listed their insert sets that feature memorabilia, but from the sell sheet it looks like there will be plenty to choose from. Single swatches to quad switches are littered throughout the set. Perhaps my favorite will be the “Net Prospects” which feature large pieces of uniforms from up-and-coming goalies.  What can I say, I like puck stoppers.

Based on some of the pre-sell information it does look like ITG will be welcoming Gordie Howe back into the fold. Mr. Hockey’s exclusive contract with Upper Deck has expired so it appears his autograph and memorabilia cards will be appearing in ITG and Panini brands this year.

Yes Please! Photo lifted from Canada Card World

The release date is set for 2/23/12 and online retailers show a price of about $78 per box.  Each box will feature 18 packs with 9 cards in each pack.  For $80 a collector can expect to pull about 6 hits from each box.  Keep in mind ITG considers their non-memorabilia inserts as a “hit”. It usually breaks down to 2 autographs, 2 relics and 2 other inserts.

This set tends to skew towards player collectors and prospectors. The autographs and relic cards tend to be a little cheaper on the secondary market than their licensed NHL counterparts so if you’re looking to pick up an affordable auto of a young player this is a good place to start.

Seventeen Things Better Than The Ravens Loss

Superman Smith breaks the goaline. Photo by David Butler II, US Presswire

So far 2012 isn’t treating my favorite teams any better than 2011.  Last year the Tampa Bay Lightning were one goal away from advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals. Liverpool was horrendous, sacked their coach and sold off their most prolific scorer while barely qualifying for the Europa League (European soccer’s version of the NIT). Now, as the opening month of 2012 draws to a close I have to watch a field goal sail wide of its intended target costing the Ravens a shot at the Super Bowl.

Len Bias Cocaine Surplus

Mon 23 Jan 2012 2:32 AM

What Went Wrong On Billy Cundiff’s Missed Kick?

I'm going to say the part where it didn't go through those yellow things

(Edit comment)

The above comment was posted on a deadspin article that broke down Billy Cundiff’s failed attempt to tie the game against the Patriots on Sunday.  It literally made me laugh out loud. Literally. I guess that means the healing process is well under way.  The stages as the happened:

1.       Joy – the football in Lee Evans hands.

2.       Surprise- The ball falling out of Evans hands.

3.       Dealmaking – Chip shot field goal ties the game, 50/50 chance in overtime.

4.       Shock – Football sails wide, CBS cuts to Terrell Suggs saying “Oh My God”.  (Seriously, that was an awesome piece of camera work.  Kudos.)

Totally stole this from Kissing Suzy Kolber

5.       Morose Mother F*cker – Walked back to the apartment in the chilly Chicago rain. If I had my iPod, Bill Withers would havebeen playing (probably the BB King version)

6.       ALCOHOL! – Good friend Hamel comes through with tickets to see Buddy Guy play at his club downtown.  Blues and beers perfect for getting over the loss. Legends is a bit touristy (I prefer Kingston Mines), but to watch a master craftsman tear up a stage at 75-years old is awesome. I’ll be lucky to get out of bed when I’m that age.

7.       Sleep – Nothing better than a good 7 hours of sack time.

8.       Laughter – Sure the jokes are at the Ravens expense, but they’re still funny.

9.       Writing – I guess that’s part of the reason why I write.  Helps get the sad out.

So that’s where I’m at right now.  By the way, in regards to point number two, I don’t think Lee Evans caught the ball.  It should have been reviewed, but I don’t think that would have changed the outcome.  It just didn’t seem like a catch, but at the same time it wasn’t a drop.  It was a great defensive play by Sterling Moore.  Moving on (as I’m sure Lee Evans will be in the off-season).

I could remember this season for the disappointment of being so close to the Super Bowl, but instead I think I’d rather remember the good things:

1.       The Week One curbstomping of the Steelers.

2.       The first quarter of the Rams game when Flacco to Smith was unleashed and millions of fantasy footballers rushed to their computers to pick Torrey Smith up on waivers.

3.       The second half comeback against the Cardinals

4.       Flacco to Smith to beat the Steelers in Week Nine.

5.       Being part of the 71,000 strong cheering for the Ravens on Thanksgiving.

6.       The Week 17 win in Cincinnati to clinch a home field playoff game.

7.       The Bernie Pollard to Jimmy Smith interception against Brady.

8.       Flacco to Dennis Pitta all season long made losing Todd Heap a little easier to take.

9.       The absurdity of “Ball So Hard University” and Joe Flacco skateboarding.

10.   Flacco’s mustache.

11.   The maturation of Lardarius Webb.

12.   Learning to spell “Lardarius”.

13.   Ray Lewis, a step slower, but still one of the best.

14.   My cousin’s slightly insane Ravens-related Facebook posting.

15.   My niece’s “Go Way-Bins” cheers.

16.   Did I mention the Steelers beat down?

17.   John Harbaugh with a cut in his chin quotingTeddy Roosevelt.

So I guess my point is that there was a lot of good in the 2011-12 Ravens season. I’ll be trying to ignore the NFL for the next two weeks, mainly because I don’t need to hear about the Patriots wanting revenge for the next fourteen days.  Besides the Lightning are fighting for their playoff lives, and that’s way more interesting than Skip Bayliss yelling at a TV camera.

I will throw one more football post up a couple of days before the Super Bowl.  After all, the gamblers need to know who to bet on, right?  Heck, maybe Link and I will even break down some of the prop bets for you as well. Till then, it’ll be more hockey and sports cards, yea! 

Get Your Short Term Investments In!

OK. Here we go! I know all of you sharps out there have been waiting for our NFL Conference Round predictions so that you can get your bets in.  I must say, both Link and I redeemed ourselves a bit in the Divisional round as we both went 3-1 against the spread and I pulled a 2-2 straight up (Link only gave me his numbers against the spread).  So for the playoffs he is at 1-3 straight up and 5-3 against the spread.  I’m at 4-4 against the spread and 3-5 straight up.  Both of our records are respectable with a chance to finish over .500 by the end of the Super Bowl.

Now onto this week.  As always the lines are from vegasinsider.com and represent what the betting opened up at.

Baltimore at New England (-7.5)

Link is taking the favorite and based on his final score prediction of 38-22 it looks like he thinks New England will be able to score on the Ravens defense.

For me, this is a tough one.  Everywhere I look people are picking the Patriots.  Most New England fans are already talking about how they are looking forward to getting revenge on the Giants in the Super Bowl.  Their main reasons are pretty sound:

1.       New England has an unstoppable offense

2.       Joe Flacco can’t beat them

To that I say “Poppycock!”

I’m going full-on Ravens fan here and consequences be damned. The Patriots offense is the best in the league, but it can be slowed down.  Pittsburgh was able to do it as were Giants and the Cowboys.  Throughout the season New England threw up a lot of points on a lot of crappy defenses.  The only top five defenses (based on yardage allowed) that they faced were the Steelers, Jets and Eagles.  Baltimore finished the season ranked third in yardage allowed (288.9) and points allowed (16.6).

I like those numbers for the Ravens.  Of course, the key is going to be putting pressure on Tom Brady, which isn’t the easiest thing in the world to do.  It’s hard for pass rushers to get to him since they rely on a lot of quick routes.  I think you’ll see the Ravens try and press the big three receivers (Hernandez, Welker and Gronkowski) at the line of scrimmage to throw the timing off on their routes.

If they are able to do that, it should give Terrell Suggs time to wreak havoc in the backfield. What Suggs and the rest of the team has to focus on is staying disciplined.  So far this year they’ve done a great job of not taking stupid penalties that extend drives for their opponents.  Going into the game they have to know that the refs will frown on anytime rough tactics visited upon Brady and his cohorts so they have to keep their emotions in check. 

Along with the pressure in the backfield they also need their secondary to make some plays.  Ed Reed, Jimmy Smith, Bernie Pollard, and Cary Williams have to have their best game of the season. They have to know when to go for the pick (which seems to be always) and when to know play the man to prevent the big play.  If they keep the receivers in front of them they can make the Patriots work for every yard. 

As for Joe Flacco.  We’ve had a season of Good Flacco/ Bad Flacco.  Hopefully this game sees the return of Good Flacco.  That’s the rub, they don’t need Great Flacco to win this game.  He doesn’t have to throw for 400 yards and 6 touchdowns.  An average day of 250yrds and 2 touchdowns will probably be good enough to win.  The key to winning will be Flacco being good enough to take the pressure off of Ray Rice.  If he makes enough completions down the field, it’ll force the Patriots to respect the pass and give Rice enough room to make his magic work.

I think the Ravens get physical early, get a defensive touchdown and pull off the upset.

Ravens 27, Patriots 24

New York at San Francisco (-2.5)

Link has the Giants pulling out ahead in a low scoring game, 17-6.

Link had San Fran winning 23-17.  Not sure how I misread the text that badly.

I’m not going to lie, I’m thinking along the same lines.  With the beatdown the Giants put on the Packers last week I’m kind of surprised that the 49er’s are favored.  There has been some late money coming in on the Giants that has pushed the line down to 2 in some casino’s which might indicate the public likes New York’s front seven against the Alex Smith.

By the same token I think San Francisco’s defense is going to present a challenge for Eli and the boys in blue.  As I mentioned last week, the 49er’s like picking the ball off.  They used that to their advantage last week against the Saints and I think it will be a factor this week as well.  However, Eli finds a way to win despite having horrible stats.

Giants 19, 49er’s 10

A TTM Braves A Chicago Snowstorm

As I type this up it appears the Florida Panthers bus is having issues making it to the United Center.  Such trouble that the start of the game is actually being delayed. Needless to say we're getting a pretty nice weather event up here in the Windy City.  Nothing like ThunderSnow, but still a pretty good accumalation is going on out there.

Speaking of South Florida, my buddy Hambone is flying up from the Pyscho state, he just boarded the plane in Miami and is hoping that he's actually able to land. He's only about 2 hours behind his original scheduled landing time which is kind of a surprise for O'Hare. Normally they would have shut the airport down for the day by now.

The Duchess worked from home today - no way that Florida is girl is ready to be driving in this mess. From what I've seen on the news sites in regards to the highways around the city - it was an excellent idea. We did go wandering down to Trader Joes for some dinner fixin's (didn't want to make some poor delivery guy ride his bike in this mess) and I think she enjoyed her first city walk in a snow storm.

When we got back I saw that I had a small little envelope with my address label on it.  TTM success! It also came from South Florida.

If I didn't know his name, I would have guessed "John Ell" based on his signature

Jacob Markstrom turned this baby around in a little more than two weeks, guess he had some free time due to his knee injury.  The signature is a little scribbled, but looks nice on the clean, white Score card.

Time to crack another beer and watch the cars slide there way along Belmont Ave! Thanks for the card, Mr. Markstrom!