Stanley cup: 2008 edition

It's Stanley Cup playoff time, and it's wreaking havoc on my sleeping patterns; the games start at 3:00am UK time. My Calgary Flames managed to back into the playoffs again this year, and they're now in the middle of a best-of-7, first round series against the hated San Jose Sharks.

Last game, the Flames had the lead, and with 5 minutes remaining they seemed like they were about to put a 3-games-to-1 stranglehold on the series. Being the Flames, however, they never like to do things the easy way: they collapsed, gave up 2 goals (including one in the last 10 seconds), and lost the game. Series tied 2-2.

Being a Flames fan is never boring, that's for sure. So tonight I'll be sitting in front of the telly, into the wee hours of the morning. Go Flames go.

The holy grail pt. II

Well, I suppose I should update the blog after this post about my beloved Calgary Flames' 2007 playoff quest.

With a heavy heart, I report that they were snuffed in 6 games by the superior Detroit Red Wings. To be quite honest, the Flames are lucky they lasted 6.

As far as Canadian teams go, that leaves Vancouver and Ottawa. How should I put this...? Go Ottawa.

And with the eternal optimism of the sports fan, I say, there's always next year.

The holy grail

The Stanley Cup. Isn't it the most beautiful sports trophy you've ever seen? This is Ice Hockey's "holy grail". Superstition has it that if you ever hope to win this trophy, you are never supposed to even touch it before the day you hold it over your head as a champion.

Guess I'll never win. I happened upon it at the local rink in San Jose, California one day, and couldn't resist pawing it. Besides, the London , England recreational teams aren't allowed to compete. ;-)

However, this year my Calgary Flames have managed to slink into the very last western conference playoff spot, in the most non-confidence-inspiring way possible. They nearly blew it by losing all of their last 4 games.

They'll face the second best team in the league, the Detroit Red Wings, in the best-of-seven first playoff round. In 2004 the Flames managed to beat the Wings in 6 games in the second round. In 2006 (there was no 2005 season) Calgary's historic rivals, the lowest-seeded Edmonton Oilers, did the same in the first round. Both Calgary and Edmonton subsequently went all the way to the finals, where both lost heartbreaking do-or-die 7th games (though I can't say my heart bled for the Oilers -- Calgary fans would never have heard the end of it).

This year the Oilers will be watching the playoffs at home on TV. Two other storied Canadian teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens will be doing the same. The Calgary Flames, Ottawa Senators, and Vancouver Canucks will be carrying the flag this year. A Canadian city hasn't won the cup since 1993.

Can you tell I'm excited? Go Flames go.

Oh lovely, this is back?

Americans and Canadians are booing one onothers' anthems at sporting events again?:

"booing started from the opening notes of singer Annmarie Martin's rendition of O Canada. While other fans attempted to drown it out by singing along, the boos were audible until the final notes."

Classy. Well, everyone remember that American fans started it this time. And, BTW, Sharks fans, how many of your team's players are Canadian? By my count, nearly half: 12 of 25, including both big stars, Jonathan Cheechoo and Joe Thornton. Oh well, nobody ever said Sharks fans know anything about Hockey (I've been to games at the Tank).