The Vancouver Olympic Winter Games ends with a crescendo as high as Whistler’s Peak. No novelist could have written it better than this.
It started with a firm statement before the Games began. Canada’s Own The Podium was a program with the goal of collecting the most medals in the 2010 Olympics through funding and restrictions to give Canadian athletes fair advantages to the Games. But it’s unsportsmanlike nature was the centre of controversy after Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili died on the Whistler Sliding Centre track. Many felt the 21-year-old might be alive today had the OTP not prevented foreign athletes from training on the Olympic courses during training season. It was meant to help Canadians, but athletes in luge, skeletons and bobsleigh struggled on the fast courses and several admitted to being scared of going down the track. When racers crashed, people winced.
When the events started, a dark cloud loomed emotionally and literally. With Kumaritashvili fresh in people’s memories, warm, wet weather also slowed down early alpine events. Fog and rain continued throughout the Games including yesterday, the second last day.
Canadians began with a steady medal haul – one medal a day – until they hit a rut, a clear low point. During a couple infamous days, Canada placed fourth and fifth several times, often in heart-breaking fashion. It was clear after an emotional apology from Mellisa Hollingsworth that the pressure was too much – not necessarily to handle, but enough for the participants to feel deep remorse. There was some truth in Hollingsworth’s words: “I’ve let my country down.”
It was at that moment when the mentality shifted and the game plan changed.
It was no secret that Canada was disappointed after Hollingsworth’s race, but the more alarming issue was, why? The skeleton racer left Canadians feeling uneasy, as if we had punched her in the stomach by accident, as if her tears were our doing. But they were. We wanted gold – too much – and it made us, well, Un-Canadian. Canadians forgot that these stud athletes were everyday people too. These pillars of strength, speed and skill were also car salesmen and auctioneers, blueberry farmers, students and friends. Their fears were our fears, their faults were our faults.
I think people began to support our athletes first and their accomplishments second. And that’s when Canada flourished. In the last week, Canada earned four medals in one day three different times. Of course, taking pressure off their shoulders isn’t the reason they dominated down the stretch. Our athletes trained for years and their hard work and commitment is the reason Canada sits third in the medal standings. But momentum is a speed demon, and this country had tons of it.
And now we are at the end, with one more medal hanging in the balance. Red and White against Stars and Stripes for the gold medal in men’s ice hockey. If there was pressure on Canadian athletes, this surely is the pinnacle of it.
Oh, and I forgot to mention that another gold medal would set an Olympic record for most gold medals ever in one Olympic Winter Games. They can top Norway’s 13 in the 2002 Salt Lake Games and – get this – the Soviet Union’s 13 in the 1976 Innsbruk Olympics.
So while a gold medal in Canada’s favourite sport on home ice would be a story-book ending, it is now more paramount than ever that we put our players, our citizens, our countrymen first, and their accomplishments last.
Win or lose, you can only be proud of our athletes and of these Vancouver Olympic Winter Games.
14.2.10
A Time to Reflect
So the Leafs are on their Olympic break and the Raptors are celebrating the NBA's All-Star festivities in Dallas, leaving the Toronto Rock as the only professional sports team currently entertaining Torontonians.
It's rare, but not unwelcome. This city is saturated in sport, and a little break will help us to re-evalute... our sports teams.
As the world shifts their gaze to Vancouver -- and no I'm not implying that everyone's always watching Toronto, a very common stigma -- it's time to briefly reflect on this sporting season.
You can't say the Leafs are a disappointment because that would imply there would be expectations. I don't think fans expected much, although signing Komisarek, Beauchemin, Orr and other shiny Leafs this offseason must have left some people fouling their pants. I'll admit I was predicting defensive pairings on napkins this summer. We were all hoping that the first pick traded for Kessel would not be the first overall pick, and sure enough that pick is in the running for Taylor Hall, arguably the top prospect in the draft. That's Leaf luck. I think I've gotten over that potential loss because we do have a young, talented team. It's hard to be a Leaf fan, but at least there's effort involved.
On the other hand, the Raptors are doing surprisingly well. Two months ago, everyone wanted to explode the roster, to hang Colangelo for not improving the team this year. I've always preached a little patience. Patience, I said, as everyone gave up on Bargnani in his third year as a pro. And now he's shaping up to be an elite player. Ha! Anyways, coming up to the trade deadline, I hope we don't do anything too rash. This team has been moulding beautifully, and sometimes the best moves GM's make are the ones they don't. Here's to an excellent second half.
I have some thoughts on the Argos being bought by someone who already owns the B.C. Lions, but that calls for another day. The topic is too vast, the problems are too many, and the Olympics are a busy time.
Speaking of the Winter Games, I'm cautiously optimistic about Team Canada going for it all in Men's Ice Hockey. Getzlaf is a huge part of the team, and in a perfect world I would love to see this guy healthy and at the top of his game. If he's not, Jeff Carter or Steven Stamkos are pretty skilled guys to add. Yzerman and Getzlaf will find out today if the big Duck can't represent his country. The Russian team looks tough. Very tough. I hope all this talk about hockey being a team game stands true because we do have a better team, but our fiercest rivals have some outstanding firepower.
Soak it in everybody. There's nothing better than when sports hits the world stage.
It's rare, but not unwelcome. This city is saturated in sport, and a little break will help us to re-evalute... our sports teams.
As the world shifts their gaze to Vancouver -- and no I'm not implying that everyone's always watching Toronto, a very common stigma -- it's time to briefly reflect on this sporting season.
You can't say the Leafs are a disappointment because that would imply there would be expectations. I don't think fans expected much, although signing Komisarek, Beauchemin, Orr and other shiny Leafs this offseason must have left some people fouling their pants. I'll admit I was predicting defensive pairings on napkins this summer. We were all hoping that the first pick traded for Kessel would not be the first overall pick, and sure enough that pick is in the running for Taylor Hall, arguably the top prospect in the draft. That's Leaf luck. I think I've gotten over that potential loss because we do have a young, talented team. It's hard to be a Leaf fan, but at least there's effort involved.
On the other hand, the Raptors are doing surprisingly well. Two months ago, everyone wanted to explode the roster, to hang Colangelo for not improving the team this year. I've always preached a little patience. Patience, I said, as everyone gave up on Bargnani in his third year as a pro. And now he's shaping up to be an elite player. Ha! Anyways, coming up to the trade deadline, I hope we don't do anything too rash. This team has been moulding beautifully, and sometimes the best moves GM's make are the ones they don't. Here's to an excellent second half.
I have some thoughts on the Argos being bought by someone who already owns the B.C. Lions, but that calls for another day. The topic is too vast, the problems are too many, and the Olympics are a busy time.
Speaking of the Winter Games, I'm cautiously optimistic about Team Canada going for it all in Men's Ice Hockey. Getzlaf is a huge part of the team, and in a perfect world I would love to see this guy healthy and at the top of his game. If he's not, Jeff Carter or Steven Stamkos are pretty skilled guys to add. Yzerman and Getzlaf will find out today if the big Duck can't represent his country. The Russian team looks tough. Very tough. I hope all this talk about hockey being a team game stands true because we do have a better team, but our fiercest rivals have some outstanding firepower.
Soak it in everybody. There's nothing better than when sports hits the world stage.
10.2.10
Plenty To Like In Leafs Loss Against Sharks
You gotta be impressed.
Coming into Monday's tilt against the mighty San Jose Sharks, the Leafs were the youngest teams in the NHL with roughly an average age of 25. It would have been the first time the 'Frat Pack' -- Tyler Bozak, Christian Hanson and Viktor Stalberg -- would play together in the NHL. But when Hanson fell ill, the Leafs brought in their future ace, 18-year-old Nazem Kadri, as an emergency call up. At that moment, 'Leaf Bud' would have been a better team name.
All signs were pointing to a laugher, but it was anything but.
The Leafs were quick and feisty and surprised everyone by gaining a 1-0 lead in the first period. The Sharks came back with a couple goals, before the Leafs showed some resilience when they tied the game 2-2. They kept trucking in the third -- I mean really taking it to the Sharks -- and if their play determined the outcome of the game, they would have surely won. But a couple deflections and a bad bounce turned the game around. Of course, the Sharks strength on the puck and work on the boards led to those lucky bounces, but as the hockey cliche states: "You have to be good to be lucky, and lucky to be good."
There was no stunning upset, no headline reading "David beats Goliath". Nazem Kadri did not have the magical debut most rookies dream about when they hit the sweet NHL ice for the first time. But man was it exciting. The Leafs were flying, equal to the Sharks in almost every way. And while Kadri had several bad giveaways, coach Ron Wilson entrusted him with considerable ice time, including some on the powerplay. All this against one of the elite teams in the NHL.
With all the losing going on this season, I've been too preoccupied with the parting of our dear first-round pick to truly see the potential of this team. Phaneuf, Kessel, Bozak, Stalberg, Hanson, Gunnarson, Schenn, Kadri -- if they all turn out to be the players management thinks they can be, the Leafs will be alright.
It was one loss I couldn't groan about, that's for sure.
Coming into Monday's tilt against the mighty San Jose Sharks, the Leafs were the youngest teams in the NHL with roughly an average age of 25. It would have been the first time the 'Frat Pack' -- Tyler Bozak, Christian Hanson and Viktor Stalberg -- would play together in the NHL. But when Hanson fell ill, the Leafs brought in their future ace, 18-year-old Nazem Kadri, as an emergency call up. At that moment, 'Leaf Bud' would have been a better team name.
All signs were pointing to a laugher, but it was anything but.
The Leafs were quick and feisty and surprised everyone by gaining a 1-0 lead in the first period. The Sharks came back with a couple goals, before the Leafs showed some resilience when they tied the game 2-2. They kept trucking in the third -- I mean really taking it to the Sharks -- and if their play determined the outcome of the game, they would have surely won. But a couple deflections and a bad bounce turned the game around. Of course, the Sharks strength on the puck and work on the boards led to those lucky bounces, but as the hockey cliche states: "You have to be good to be lucky, and lucky to be good."
There was no stunning upset, no headline reading "David beats Goliath". Nazem Kadri did not have the magical debut most rookies dream about when they hit the sweet NHL ice for the first time. But man was it exciting. The Leafs were flying, equal to the Sharks in almost every way. And while Kadri had several bad giveaways, coach Ron Wilson entrusted him with considerable ice time, including some on the powerplay. All this against one of the elite teams in the NHL.
With all the losing going on this season, I've been too preoccupied with the parting of our dear first-round pick to truly see the potential of this team. Phaneuf, Kessel, Bozak, Stalberg, Hanson, Gunnarson, Schenn, Kadri -- if they all turn out to be the players management thinks they can be, the Leafs will be alright.
It was one loss I couldn't groan about, that's for sure.
3.2.10
Leafs Blank Devils; Raptors Can't Keep Pace
It was as close to an alternate universe as I've seen.
The new look Maple Leafs were calm, hard-working, even truculent, and cruised to a 3-0 win against the New Jersey Devils. Meanwhile, somewhere in Indiana, the Toronto Raptors struggled mightily to stop six-foot-one Earl Watson drive his way past seven-footer Andrea Bargnani.
Toronto fans are used to these mixed feelings. You know -- you win some, you lose some.
But it's been a while since the Buds got the W and the Dinos did not, or since the Leafs looked like a well-oiled machine while the Raps were caught running around. The Leafs snapped their six-game losing skid just as the Raptors' winning-streak halted at five.
It was a satisfying win for the Leafs, but we all know that one game doesn't mean a thing. J.S. Giguere, Dion Phaneuf (or as I like to call him -- DP3), and Freddy Sjostrom were impressive enough to be the game's first, second and third stars, respectively. Phaneuf rocked the house with some big hits, big shots, and a fight as his rite of passage. Sjostrom assisted on Nik Kulemin's game-winning goal, and J.S. Giguere was quiet and almost unnoticeable. In this alternate universe that's a positive thing. The Toskala and Gustavsson tandem often made games...interesting when in net, letting in questionable goals at times when the team needed a stop. That's why, in Giguere's case, no news is good news.
Martin Brodeur was not in net last night, but I'm sure he will be on Friday for the rematch. That's the game to watch. Yesterday's game was the honeymoon; on Friday it's back to the real world. Again, the Leafs were on a high last night after Burke's Sunday Shuffle. I'm interested to see how the new team plays in game two.
On the other end, the Raptors had been playing really well of late, but they were due for a loss. For some reason, Indiana has been a thorn in the side of Jay Triano and his troops the entire season. Almost every tilt has been close, and the Jan. 11 loss where they blew a 23-point lead was surely one of the more sour grapes they've eaten all season. The Italian duo of Bargnani and Belinelli were outstanding -- Il Mongo had a career best 34-points and Marco had 14 points in the first quarter -- but the team couldn't play defense and had several dry spells in the game. Like CBForce said in yesterday's post, the season's a pendulum. But if the Raptors lose to the New Jersey Nets tonight, watch out for that return swing.
The chances of that happening are slim. And with the Leafs playing the Devils, Sens and Sharks next, and the Raps playing the Kings and Sixers, expect things to be back to normal, the win columns straightened out, the stars re-alligned.
The new look Maple Leafs were calm, hard-working, even truculent, and cruised to a 3-0 win against the New Jersey Devils. Meanwhile, somewhere in Indiana, the Toronto Raptors struggled mightily to stop six-foot-one Earl Watson drive his way past seven-footer Andrea Bargnani.
Toronto fans are used to these mixed feelings. You know -- you win some, you lose some.
But it's been a while since the Buds got the W and the Dinos did not, or since the Leafs looked like a well-oiled machine while the Raps were caught running around. The Leafs snapped their six-game losing skid just as the Raptors' winning-streak halted at five.
It was a satisfying win for the Leafs, but we all know that one game doesn't mean a thing. J.S. Giguere, Dion Phaneuf (or as I like to call him -- DP3), and Freddy Sjostrom were impressive enough to be the game's first, second and third stars, respectively. Phaneuf rocked the house with some big hits, big shots, and a fight as his rite of passage. Sjostrom assisted on Nik Kulemin's game-winning goal, and J.S. Giguere was quiet and almost unnoticeable. In this alternate universe that's a positive thing. The Toskala and Gustavsson tandem often made games...interesting when in net, letting in questionable goals at times when the team needed a stop. That's why, in Giguere's case, no news is good news.
Martin Brodeur was not in net last night, but I'm sure he will be on Friday for the rematch. That's the game to watch. Yesterday's game was the honeymoon; on Friday it's back to the real world. Again, the Leafs were on a high last night after Burke's Sunday Shuffle. I'm interested to see how the new team plays in game two.
On the other end, the Raptors had been playing really well of late, but they were due for a loss. For some reason, Indiana has been a thorn in the side of Jay Triano and his troops the entire season. Almost every tilt has been close, and the Jan. 11 loss where they blew a 23-point lead was surely one of the more sour grapes they've eaten all season. The Italian duo of Bargnani and Belinelli were outstanding -- Il Mongo had a career best 34-points and Marco had 14 points in the first quarter -- but the team couldn't play defense and had several dry spells in the game. Like CBForce said in yesterday's post, the season's a pendulum. But if the Raptors lose to the New Jersey Nets tonight, watch out for that return swing.
The chances of that happening are slim. And with the Leafs playing the Devils, Sens and Sharks next, and the Raps playing the Kings and Sixers, expect things to be back to normal, the win columns straightened out, the stars re-alligned.
2.2.10
The Rise and Fouls of the Toronto Raptors
To kick off the Raptors portion of The Toronto Turnover, a friend of mine requested to post a special article on the state of the Toronto Raptors. He is a die-hard. I'm talking BFF-with-Doug-Smith die-hard. For several years now, while I've wallowed in self-pity at the site of mediocre Leafs teams, he's done the same in Raptors red. He knows the excitement and frustration that comes with being a Toronto basketball fan.
And so without further ado, a cautionary tale by CBForce:
Two years ago I was working at a summer camp when I heard the news that the Toronto Raptors had acquired six-time All-Star Jermaine O’Neal. Yeah we gave up two of my favourite Raptors in TJ Ford and Rasho Nesterovic, and almost half our team, but honestly we were going to be the next San Antonio Spurs. No really – we were. The modern day ‘Big Three’ in Boston was going to be one-upped by the new ‘Twin Towers’ in Toronto. Our front court was going to be unstoppable. You’d have Jermaine working the paint alongside CB4; Bargs would either light it up off our bench or run the 3 spot and make our starting line up huge. And don’t forget Calderon, our breakout feel-good story from the last few seasons, a pass first PG with an amazing assist to turnover stat finally coming into his own.
I know right? You read that and you laugh, maybe giggle a little. You amuse yourself at my, and probably your, ignorance a year ago. I bring it up because basketball, like a lot of sports, is all about runs, momentum, swings – and right now the 5th place, 26 – 22 Toronto Raptors are in the middle of a swing.
The funny thing is eventually the pendulum has got to go the other way. So you take news like “The Raptors are 19 and 9 since December” and “Friendly February” with a grain of salt. Yes we’re 4 ½ games behind Boston and the number 1 spot in the North East but it amazes me how many ‘true believers’ emerge after we scrap together a few wins. Don’t get me wrong, the Raptors are playing some of the best basketball since the VC era, but let’s come back down to earth a minute. I myself am guilty of reading way too much into one, two or even five victories. But we’re a 15 year old franchise now, so let’s show a little maturation.
I’m asking, pleading, for a bit of patience Toronto. A season is 82 games and we’re just a little over half way through. That’s a lot of basketball to be played. There are going to be some ugly ones before the end. They’re going to lose by 20 point some nights and they’re going to lose by 2 in others – but can we just…you know, watch them play?
If they keep playing the way they have this week, I promise you’ll enjoy it.
And so without further ado, a cautionary tale by CBForce:
Two years ago I was working at a summer camp when I heard the news that the Toronto Raptors had acquired six-time All-Star Jermaine O’Neal. Yeah we gave up two of my favourite Raptors in TJ Ford and Rasho Nesterovic, and almost half our team, but honestly we were going to be the next San Antonio Spurs. No really – we were. The modern day ‘Big Three’ in Boston was going to be one-upped by the new ‘Twin Towers’ in Toronto. Our front court was going to be unstoppable. You’d have Jermaine working the paint alongside CB4; Bargs would either light it up off our bench or run the 3 spot and make our starting line up huge. And don’t forget Calderon, our breakout feel-good story from the last few seasons, a pass first PG with an amazing assist to turnover stat finally coming into his own.
I know right? You read that and you laugh, maybe giggle a little. You amuse yourself at my, and probably your, ignorance a year ago. I bring it up because basketball, like a lot of sports, is all about runs, momentum, swings – and right now the 5th place, 26 – 22 Toronto Raptors are in the middle of a swing.
The funny thing is eventually the pendulum has got to go the other way. So you take news like “The Raptors are 19 and 9 since December” and “Friendly February” with a grain of salt. Yes we’re 4 ½ games behind Boston and the number 1 spot in the North East but it amazes me how many ‘true believers’ emerge after we scrap together a few wins. Don’t get me wrong, the Raptors are playing some of the best basketball since the VC era, but let’s come back down to earth a minute. I myself am guilty of reading way too much into one, two or even five victories. But we’re a 15 year old franchise now, so let’s show a little maturation.
I’m asking, pleading, for a bit of patience Toronto. A season is 82 games and we’re just a little over half way through. That’s a lot of basketball to be played. There are going to be some ugly ones before the end. They’re going to lose by 20 point some nights and they’re going to lose by 2 in others – but can we just…you know, watch them play?
If they keep playing the way they have this week, I promise you’ll enjoy it.
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