Observing the funny stuff in sports while being an avid fan of the Blues, Cardinals, Steelers, and several other teams. Here's the link to my old site: http://www.stlouiscardinalsnews.com/nehechow/weblog/
Sunday, following the Rams' first win in a home opener since 2006, was full of hope. They had a chance to beat a Bears team that was down to their second running back and struggled mightily to protect quarterback Jay Cutler the previous week in Green Bay.
Unfortunately, in football, you have to play on both sides of the ball. The Rams' defense was everything they could've hoped for against the pass. Cutler was just 17-31 for 183 yards and a pick without a touchdown. He was also sacked twice. The Bears' rushing game wasn't extremely effective either, overall, but they allowed the Bears to convert on a couple of crucial third downs. Their goal-line stand on which running back Michael Bush rushed for the Bears' only offensive touchdown was also unimpressive. But what was most disappointing about a pretty decent defensive day for the Rams, was two extremely stupid penalties that led to both the aforementioned touchdown and a field goal by extending two Chicago drives. Even the replacement refs know that you can't hit the punter and you can't hit the quarterback late. The Rams probably got away with a few late hits on Cutler, but if you do something illegal enough, you're probably going to be caught eventually. And that's exactly what happened. The flag was thrown, the Bears kept the ball, and eventually scored the game's only offensive touchdown to build a 10-0 lead. The Rams' anemic offense would ensure that would be all that the Bears would need.
I know that the St. Louis offensive line has struggled in years past and has already been decimated by injuries this season, but that's starting to not be an excuse anymore for quarterback Sam Bradford. He was sacked six times on Sunday and I would estimate that at least three of them, you could put on Bradford. He's simply holding on to the ball for too long. In the NFL, quarterbacks can not expect to get five seconds to throw the ball. They're lucky if they get three on most plays. If he can extend the play by scrambling, that's fine, but he doesn't do that very often. Bradford often goes into the fetal position and just take the sack. Sacks are better than interceptions, but these are not all coverage sacks, with zero open receivers available. On the pick-six he threw, wide receiver Danny Amendola was wide open on the left side of the field as the, but he forced it deep into tight coverage that quickly became double coverage on the same side of the field. He's clearly not going through his progressions and is still not comfortable in the pocket. Teams don't win many games in which their quarterback takes six sacks, so Bradford will either need to start making plays with his legs or at least learn to get rid of the ball quicker to get back to winning like he did in college.
The NHL is on the verge of its second lockout in under a decade and the owners and Players' Association are supposedly still very far apart on a new CBA. The NFL announced earlier on Wednesday that it will begin the 2012 season with replacement referees. Both of these situations could be greatly damaging to the leagues.
Only in the last couple of years has the NHL truly started to get back its fans in most of its markets. Most of the Canadian teams, Detroit, Boston, and New York, got their fans back either right away or pretty quickly. But even Chicago, an Original Six team, didn't see their fans come back until a few years after the lockout. This was partially due to their now deceased owner, William W. Wirtz, running the franchise in a very non-fan friendly manner, but the lockout certainly didn't help matters. St. Louis, which is a historically strong hockey town, also dealt with ownership problems in the post-lockout era and frankly wasn't a competitive team again until the 2008-09 season when they rallied to make the playoffs, before being swept by Vancouver in the first round. And like in any city, even when the fans are there, the tickets sell better when a team is winning. The Blues have raised ticket prices the last two years, which is certainly a signal that their fans are back strong. This is the case in many NHL cities at this point. But there are still franchises that are struggling as well.
The Phoenix Coyotes have been in financial trouble for years in the desert, and the vultures have certainly been circling the Jobing.com Arena for a while. The Coyotes are still currently being run by the NHL itself and are constantly being discussed as a team that could possibly move cities. The same can be said about the Florida Panthers. The Dallas Stars used to sell out routinely, but they've struggled in recent seasons both in the standings and in attendance. Even the New York Islanders, a historical franchise that had a dynasty of four consecutive Stanley Cups in the early 80's, have been talked about as a potential franchise that could move. The Islanders haven't won a division title since the 1987-88 season and have rarely been in the playoffs since the 80's. Their crosstown rivals, the Rangers, are bigger draw as they win more often, have the more famous arena, and have more history.
It is situations like these that could make the average fan side with the owners on the CBA. Teams like the Islanders, Panthers, Coyotes, and Stars can't afford to see the salary cap creep closer and closer to where it was before the 2004-05 lockout. But franchises like the Red Wings, Rangers, Flyers, Maple Leafs, and Canadiens certainly can. These teams might not like the revenue sharing, but they have to play someone and without all of the other teams, it just wouldn't be the same league. On the players' side, the owners and the league were completely unreasonable in their first proposal to the NHLPA. In addition to a steep drop in revenue sharing between the players and owners, they asked for salary rollbacks, a lower salary cap, and extended entry-level contracts, which was probably the worst part. There is absolutely no way that the NHLPA would agree to that and the NHL had to know that.
I understand asking for a lot in order to get a little in a compromise, but when another season is at risk and the deadline for negotiations is this close, this was a waste of time. The first proposal should have been more fair and with that, they could have expected a better first proposal from the NHLPA. We're now on the league's second proposal, with under three weeks to go until a potential lockout and things don't sound like they're coming to a head any time soon. I quite honestly don't think the NHL, which is miles behind the NFL and MLB in popularity, can survive another lockout, especially the franchises that are already struggling. I'm not sure I would want to keep following a league that will continue to shoot itself in the foot every time it starts to turn things around again. And if a hockey fan like me won't be in the stands, then who will?
As far as the NFL's referee situation goes, I again will side with the little guy, but mostly for my own sake as a fan. People complain about officiating all the time, no matter the sport. But in the country's most popular sport, the one that is talked about more than any other, does the league really want poor officiating from inexperienced referees to be what is talked about the most? Probably not. Talking about how bad the refs were on Sunday afternoon doesn't sell jerseys. It doesn't sell tickets either, except maybe on Stubhub when the fans get so frustrated with blown calls that they don't even want to go to the game anymore. By bringing in replacement refs, the NFL is downgrading its product, a product that has become the most popular sport in the United States, passing even America's past time of baseball. Why on earth would you want to give that up? Commissioner Roger Goodell will make $20 million this season. Are you honestly telling me that a league which can afford to pay its commissioner that much money can't afford to make a few concessions to appease its top officials? Especially when it will help keep its brand as the king of American sports? Please.
The NFL and NHL both need to do what is best for the fans and get these matters settled quickly before they do extensive damage to themselves. After all, the fans are the ones actually paying the salaries.
I was getting tired of reading about how Cole Hamels is going to get a ridiculous contract from either the Phillies or in free agency, so I decided to write a post about him not being that good and not being worth that kind of money.
Well, it turns out that Hamels has been extremely consistent since he entered the league in 2006. Since his rookie year, his ERA has only finished over 4.00 one time, and that was in 2009, the year after the Phillies won the World Series. He threw what is still a career high of 227.1 innings in 2008 and threw an additional 35.0 innings during that postseason, bringing the overall total to 262.1 innings. Most pitchers struggle after putting up a bunch of extra innings. Just look at Chris Carpenter. After the Cardinals won the 2006 World Series, Carp missed nearly two full seasons, pitching in just five games over those two years. Now it's 2012 and Carpenter won't pitch at all this season after the Cards won the 2011 World Series. Hamels had took a step back in 2009, suffering career highs in ERA, WHIP, and his only sub-.500 season, but he still was decent enough to help the team back to another World Series.
I'm not sure if Hamels is worth $20+ million a year, but the Phillies gave Cliff Lee $120 million over five year and Hamels has a career ERA .30 lower than that of Lee. At least if he does get that much, he can afford a better hair cut. If Philadelphia can't retain Hamels, he would be a prized asset that could bolster any team looking to make the playoffs this season. One major rule change could deter some clubs, though. Players acquired in mid-season trades will no longer result in draft pick compensation if they sign elsewhere. With this being the first year of this rule, it's difficult to tell how it will affect prospective trades, but teams might not want to give up as many prized prospects with the possibility of losing both those young players and the free agent, without a chance to replace either. If the Phillies re-sign Hamels, they're looking at close to $70 million on three pitchers between him, Lee, and Roy Halladay for next season. Add on Ryan Howard's $25 million, and that's $95 million on four players. The Phillies might be better off trading Hamels for the right package so if nothing else, they can keep some balance on their roster keep it competitive.
After an amazing April, the Cardinals have fallen a bit on hard times. The biggest reasons for this have been injuries and a sub-par performance from the bullpen. Allen Craig has been on the DL twice and has practically averaged an RBI per game when he's been able to play. Lance Berkman only has had 42 at-bats so far this season, but is on the verge of coming back. The biggest blow of all, however, is probably the fact that Chris Carpenter hasn't pitched and we found out a little over a week ago that he won't pitch again until 2013 at the earliest.
As for the bullpen, it simply hasn't been reliable. Whether it's been Marc Rzepczynski walking too many batters, Fernando Salas allowing a hit parade, or Jason Motte thinking he has God's gift to fastballs, the Cardinals have allowed far too many leads to be squandered this season. The Cardinals have blown 14 saves a team so far this season. Only the Colorado Rockies, who are having a historically bad pitching season, have blown more saves. By comparison, the division leading Pirates have only blown five. If the Cardinals had converted just half of those blown saves, they would have the best record in Major League Baseball. This isn't that unreasonable as they still wouldn't be perfect or even the best in the league at holding leads if they had managed this task. An improvement in this category is a must if the Cards are to make the playoffs. They blew way too many save chances in 2010 as well, and that cost them a playoff spot that year. There is no reason to think that this season would be any different.
General manager John Mozeliak made a trade last July to completely rework the bullpen. It took about a month for it to fall into place, but once it did, the Cardinals went on a tear, erasing the biggest September deficit in National League history to make the playoffs and eventually win the World Series. I don't think he needs to completely rework the bullpen this year. I think he may just need to add one pitcher and the bullpen can fall into place. The offense isn't a problem and hasn't been all season. There's no reason to believe that the offense will fade in the second half, especially with the addition of Berkman back into the lineup.
This offensive depth could be a way for the Cards to find that pitcher they need, as with the extra wild card spot, very few teams are completely out of the race. This could cause more trades where both teams are trying to improve for this season rather than the more conventional sell now/buy for the future type of trade. The Padres' Huston Street has been a name that has come up with the Cardinals being mentioned. This is an experienced closer who could thrive in either that role or be a setup man for Motte in the way that Francisco Rodriguez was for the Brewers when he was acquired last summer. The right side might be where the Cardinals need a bullpen arm most, as rookie call up Barret Browning has stabilized the left side for the time being. I will admit that Browning has a very small sample size of 4.1 innings, but if his success continues (he's yet to allow a base runner), it could allow Mozeliak to focus on a righty for the bullpen.
There has also been talk of the Cardinals adding to the rotation and possibly trading for Zach Greinke. I feel that the Cards would have to give up far too much to bring him in, especially within the division. Milwaukee gave up a lot to get him, so they're not going to ship him off for a group of second rate prospects. It might take a player like Craig and a decent prospect and I'm not sure I'd like to do something quite that drastic, especially with the way that Joe Kelly has pitched since coming up and Jaime Garcia returning from the DL in the near future.
The other part of the equation, with the Cardinals sitting in third place, 2.5 games behind the Pirates and 1.5 behind the second place Reds, is how will those clubs respond in the second half? The Pirates are currently playing out of their minds. Andrew McCutcheon is the only position player that is an A talent. Everyone else is pretty average. They've been hitting great for the past month, but isn't it kind of likely to expect that if they don't go back to how they were in April and May, that they'll at least fall somewhere in the middle? Also, the Pirates could go out and get a bat to help them make a playoff push, but when was the last time this team actually spent money? I'm confident that the Pirates could help themselves if they wanted to, I'm just not sure that ownership cares enough to do anything.
That brings me to their pitching. Starter James McDonald has pitched like the ace of the staff so far this season, posting a 9-3 record and an impressive 2.37 ERA. He's also already thrown 110 innings. He only threw 171 innings in 31 starts as a rookie last season, so it's very possible that he could hit a wall in late August or September when the Bucs will still need to be piling up wins to fend off the far more experienced Cardinals and Reds. A.J. Burnett also has an impressive record of 10-2, but his ERA of 3.68 is fairly mediocre. Erik Bedard and Kevin Correia have been pretty average this season as well, and their fifth spot in the rotation has involved three different starters, which isn't the consistency that you'd hope for to make a playoff push. I feel like the Pirates are still at least one more year away from truly contending for a playoff spot.
As for the Reds, they've won the division before, have a GM in place who can pull off a big deal with some solid prospects to trade if that's the direction they'd like to go. The big rumor for a while was that they were going to bring home an Ohio guy in Kevin Youkilis to play third, but now that he's been dealt to the White Sox, that's obviously not going to happen. There's really not much on the market anymore in terms of impact hitters at third base, so the Reds will likely have to look for an outfielder. They could use a little more pop, but also a leadoff hitter, so there will be several options. They've also been linked to looking at Greinke, who could help round out their already solid rotation.
If the Cardinals can get their bullpen settled like they did last year, they should be in great shape to make another run. The Pirates are young, the Reds have their problems, and the redbirds are starting to get healthy. They also have more motivation to make it to the World Series now, as they know they'll have home field advantage again if they make it. Thank you, Justin Verlander!
When I read that Nicklas Lidstrom had retired this morning, it made me smile from ear to ear. Not because I think he's a douche. Not because I think he's well past his prime and that he hung on too long. Because I think he's great and he played for a team I despise.
When a great player plays for a team that constantly stops your own from winning titles, playoff series, and lots of regular season games, you're going to hate him. This is how Bears fans feel about Brett Favre, how Cavs fans feel about Michael Jordan, and how Cubs fans felt about He Who Shall Not Be Named before he went to some stupid red team in California.
Lidstrom wasn't known for the bone-jarring hits of a Scott Stevens, the laser slap shot of an Al MacInnis, or even the vocal leadership of a Mark Messier. However, he made the proper checks in his own zone when they were needed. Lidstrom always found a way to get the puck to the net, either with his initial shot or with a deflection of the boards which he perfected, making him a menace on the power play. He led by example both on and off the ice and was described by teammates as a perfect person. Of course, if a guy helped me get into the playoffs every year and win a bunch of titles, I doubt I'd have many bad things to say about him either.
I'm thrilled that the St. Louis Blues will never have to kill another penalty with Lidstrom on the blue line, worry about him making an outlet pass, or have to try and dump it by him into the offensive zone. The Red Wings fell apart without him in the lineup for the 12 games he missed last year, which opened the door for the Blues to win the division. I'm sure Detroit will find a nice replacement with all of the money they have to spend towards the cap. Perhaps they'll lure Ryan Suter away from the Predators, but he's not Nick Lidstrom, nor will he ever be. And for that, I am very thankful. The door is definitely open for the Blues. They just have to step through it.
As we were walking into Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals against the Los Angeles Kings, we walked past a bus with the Peoria Rivermen painted on the side. For those of you who may not know, the Riverment are the Blues' minor league affiliate.
Well, my friend Steve joked that he hoped they weren't playing. He then went a step further, joking about the South Park episode in which Ike's peewee hockey team plays against the Detroit Red Wings. The sad thing is, I think they might have put forth a better effort than the Blues did in the first period, even if the results would've been similar.
The Blues came out flat, right from the hop. They failed to get an early clear and after one save, goalie Brian Elliott was down, the Kings roofed it, and just 31 seconds into the game, it was 1-0. Midway through the first, while the Blues were on a power play, defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo coughed up the puck in his own zone, leading to the Kings second goal of the game and their second shorthanded tally in as many games. The worst part about this? Colaiacovo didn't even learn anything from his huge mistake, as he made a similar turnover in the third period while the Blues were on yet another power play. Luckily for him, this time Elliott saved his ass, but the score was 5-2 at the time and the goal would've been of little consequence.
After the second goal, the Blues just looked ready to accept that the game was over, even with two-plus periods to play in front of their home crowd, which to our credit, continued cheering throughout periods two and three. This attitude and lack of resilience led to two more Kings goals before the first was over. And at 4-0, with the way Kings goalie Jonathan Quick has played in this postseason, the game was already over. It was flat out depressing to have two more periods to watch, knowing that they were inconsequential. The Blues outplayed the Kings over the last 40 minutes and the score reflected that, with St. Louis registering two goals to LA's one the rest of the way. But it was too little too late.
If the Blues would've shown the effort in the first 20 minutes that they showed over the last 40, they almost certainly would've won the came. But alas, they head to the west coast down two games to none, with Alex Pietrangelo still questionable for Game 3. That's quite a hole they've given themselves to dig out of, but with the last two periods of Game 2 as evidence, they're capable of doing it. They just can't play another period in this series like the first from Monday night.
Many fans wanted to blame the officiating after the loss. I'll agree that they were pretty awful, with Dustin Penner being three feet offsides for the Kings' third goal, but they weren't the reason the Blues lost the game. Any time you go 0-for-9 on the power play, including a 1:35 5-on-3, you deserve to lose. The Blues got what they deserved in Game 2. They should be down 2-0 in this series. Hopefully, they'll bring their A-game to SoCal, take back home ice advantage, and be back Tuesday for Game 5. Because after suffering through that mess on Monday, it's certainly what us Blues fans deserve.
The Blues have taken a bit of a skid as of late, winning just three of their last ten. They certainly laid an egg in the game last Saturday when they hosted Columbus. The Blues didn't respond well when the Blue Jackets got physical and they spent the majority of the third period with at least one player in the penalty box because of it. It's difficult to score goals when you're constantly outnumbered on the ice.
That said, St. Louis did play a much better game on Wednesday when they hosted Detroit. They may have lost, but they did pick up one point before succumbing to the Red Wings in the skills competition...err... shootout. The Blues have struggled for most of the season in shootouts, posting just a 4-10 record in them. Luckily, only two more games this season, tonight's and tomorrow's, have the possibility of going into one. After that, ties after regulation will result in the most beautiful thing in sports: sudden death overtime hockey, play until someone scores. This comes from a guy who watched the third longest game in NHL history when the Penguins and Flyers went five overtimes back in 2000. And it was a school night. I'm pretty sure my mom had thought I went to bed, but I stayed up until I saw Keith Primeau end it for the Flyers. I was disappointed, since I was cheering for Pittsburgh, but it was an amazing hockey game just the same. I hope for a few similar contests this spring.
Even with the Blues' struggles as of late, they got a nice gift from the Calgary Flames on Thursday night. Calgary trailed the Vancouver Canucks 1-0 heading to the third period, but the Flames managed to light the lamp three times in the third and held on for a 3-2 win over the Canucks in regulation. This kept Vancouver within two points of the Blues with one game remaining, while the Blues still have two left to play. Based on tie -breakers, the Blues will take the top seed in the conference if they win out, regardless of what Vancouver does in their final game. That is a huge opportunity for the Blues, seeing as they've posted a 30-5-5 record at home so far this season, with the 30 home wins being a franchise record. Their 65 points at home this year are the best in the league, one point ahead of Detroit, who has gone 31-7-2 at home. The Wings have their home finale tomorrow afternoon against Chicago, who would take the five seed from Detroit with a win. I'm not sure either team wants the five seed, as they will end up playing Nashville in the first round, who is certain to me a tougher opponent than the winner of the Pacific Division. So for those watching on NBC, you may see a game of "who's better at throwing this game without making it look too obvious." The current leader in the Pacific is the Los Angeles Kings, who have a tremendous goaltender in Jonathan Quick, but other than that, aren't nearly as threatening as the Predators.
The Blues will host Phoenix tonight. The Coyotes have already been assured a playoff spot, but they could win out and take the division title from the Kings, so they have a lot to play for still. The Stars, on the other hand, have nothing to play for but roster spots and contracts on Saturday. It shouldn't be a walkover game for the Blues, but they should definitely win it. Hopefully, with their first regular season conference title since the 1999-2000 season within their grasp, the Blues will show up more like they did against Detroit than they did against Columbus. The Canucks do finish up tomorrow night at home against Edmonton, one of the worst teams in the league, so the Blues should count on needing to win both to win the conference. I'm certainly looking forward to watching it all unfold tomorrow night, especially if the Blues win tonight.
It's official. The Blues are practically unstoppable at the Scottrade Center.
On Thursday night, they improved to 28-4-4 at home on the season and have lost just once in regulation in their building since a December 3rd loss to the Blackhawks. The one loss was to the Bruins of the Eastern Conference and with the rest of the team's home games being against the Western Conference, that should give Blues fans a big reason to smile. The team finishes a brief three game home stand on Saturday night against Columbus, who the Blues defeated in the teams' only previous meeting at Scottrade by a score of 6-4. Overall, the Blues are 2-1 against the Blue Jackets this season with a decisive 2-1 win in Columbus, a furious comeback 6-4 at home, and a rather deflating 2-1 loss in their last trip to Ohio that was a tenth of a second from at least going to overtime, as that's how much time remained in the period when Colubmus scored their first goal.
The Jackets have picked it up as of late, posting a 5-4-1 mark in their last ten games which includes a current four-game winning streak. However, the club is still just 9-20-4 on the road this season and that figured coupled with the Blues' ridiculous home record doesn't bode well for Columbus. I wouldn't expect the Blues to have much trouble with the Jackets on Saturday night.
Both teams will have a quick turn around as they head back to Ohio for a 5 pm central start on Sunday on the other end of a home-and-home series. With things so tight at the top of the conference between the Blues, the Vancouver Canucks, and the Detroit Red Wings, St. Louis really needs to pick up both wins since they'll be at an even disadvantage with the Blue Jackets as far as travel goes, and they'll still clearly be the better team. The Columbus game kicks off a seven-game road trip for the Blues and while they showed on the last trip with a 5-1 record that they can win on the road, it still won't be as easy as at home. The following game is in Chicago on Tuesday, against a Blackhawks team that probably won't be too happy about the way St. Louis pushed them around in a 5-1 win at Scottrade just a week earlier. I'm not saying that the Blues will lose in Chicago. I just think they should take advantage of playing weaker teams like Columbus right before that game and Carolina, the worst team in the east, right after the Blackhawks. That would certainly soften the blow of a potential loss in the Windy City.
The Blues need to use their current momentum to keep pressure on Vancouver and Detroit. The Canucks finish with nine of their last 14 games at home after a win over Winnipeg on Thursday, so they have a leg up on St. Louis. And while the Red Wings still have their injury problems with Pavol Datsyuk and Nicklas Lidstrom, they certainly won't lay down with home ice and the right to avoid a first round series with Nashville on the line. Detroit has been just as dominant as the Blues have at home, so earning home ice through at least the two rounds is quite a prize for whichever team can win the Central Division, even if neither can keep pace with Vancouver.
For the first time in quite a while, the St. Louis University basketball season hit a snag.
They dropped a game at Rhode Island, the last place team in the Atlantic-10 Conference. The itself would be bad enough on its own, but how it happened made it even worse. SLU had a 10-point lead with 10 minutes remaining against a team that had won just five basketball games all season coming into the tilt against SLU. The Billikens even lead by two with under two minutes left. But the team settled for three-pointers and jump shots the rest of the way, rather than going to their senior and leading scorer, Brian Conklin, inside. Threes are great when they're falling. A team can live off of them, like Duke did against North Carolina a few weeks ago, when they attempted 38 shots from beyond the arc. However, when they're not going in, a team has to look for other options, especially inside. The Billikens didn't go that route and it cost them.
The Rhode Island loss transformed the Billikens' home finale, senior night against Xavier, from a win that would be nice to have into a game that they probably needed in order to still make the NCAA tournament. The Bills came out sluggish in the first half. Maybe it was jitters. Perhaps it was just a fired up Xavier team that needed the win even more than SLU just working the home team. But whatever it was, the Billikens found themselves 10 points behind the Musketeers at halftime. SLU went from a six-game winning streak and a practical lock to make the tournament to a bubble team in big trouble in just three short halves.
Xavier came out and scored the first point of the second half, getting a free throw to expand their lead over the Billikens to 40-29. The senior, Conklin, then took over for SLU on senior night. The Billikens went on a ridiculous 24-2 run and like magic, an 11-point SLU deficit became an 11-point lead. During that run, Conklin scored 11 of the Bills' 24 points. He would finish with 23 points for the game, picking up 15 of them after the break. Seniors are supposed to carry a team and Conklin certainly did that Tuesday night. Winning at Duquesne would be a nice boost for SLU heading into the conference tournament in Atlantic City and could certainly help their seed. However, earning a sweep of Xavier, one of the league's top tier teams, the Billikens will probably get an at-large bid for the first time in over a decade if they fail to win the conference tournament.
When the Bills make their long awaited return to the big dance, the 12-year old kid in me that ran circles around my house after SLU knocked of UMass in their last tourney win will probably be in the mood to do the Homer Simpson chicken spin dance. And with my apartment being pretty much completely hardwood floors, I wouldn't put it past me.
Just when it looked like the Blues were turning a corner with what had been a struggling offense, they returned to form on Tuesday night, being limited to one goal in a 2-1 loss at lowly Columbus.
After the Blues managed to score a total of six goals in back-to-back home games over the weekend, four of which came on the power play, they turned in an abysmal offensive effort in Ohio. St. Louis' lackluster offense has been a problem for the majority of this season. However, the amazing goaltending that the team has gotten from both Jaroslav Halak and Brian Elliott had kept the problem under wraps most of the time. The goalie tandem has combined for 11 shutouts this year, which leads the NHL. It's a good thing that the pair are keeping the opposition off of the scoreboard so often, because in four of those 11 games, the Blues still only managed one goal for 1-0 wins.
Even when the Blues are getting fantastic play in the crease, it often leads to problems later as they have found themselves in shootouts which usually have resulted in them being stoned three times and taking the one point. It's only been recently, twice in the past five weeks, that the Blues have managed to win in shootouts and in both of those games, they still scored just once in the breakaway competition. Getting Andy McDonald back could help this phase of their game, as he has been one of their better shootout players for the last few seasons. T.J. Oshie has had some decent success too, going 3-8 on the year.
The biggest problem for the Blues still has to be the power play. It's not just failing to score on the power play, but they're failing to create power play chances for themselves most nights. They only had one opportunity in Columbus and it ended with more than 14 minutes remaining in the first period. The Blues have to start getting more attacking and more buzzing around the net. There have been times this season when they've done that, it simply has to be more consistent. This especially has to be the case on the road, where they'll be playing the majority of their games for the remainder of the season. The Blues only have 10 games left at Scottrade during the regular season, compared to 16 out of town contests.
This team has an offensive punch, it just needs to get focused. David Perron has really turned it on lately. He made a beautiful pass on a shorthanded break to David Backes in Columbus, resulting in the team's only goal and in the four games before that, he scored six goals. Backes and Oshie have been strong on the forecheck as well. It's really Chris Stewart and Patrik Berglund that need to pick it up. Stewart was dropped to the fourth line today in practice, according to Jeremy Rutherford of the Post-Dispatch. Hopefully that will light a fire under him, because if he doesn't get going soon, he might get going out the door as the trade deadline looms.
I've witnessed a lot of amazing things in sports over the years. I've probably seen about 100 buzzer-beaters live either on TV or in person. But tonight's, was definitely my favorite.
With just over a second remaining, Austin Rivers finally went into his shooting motion. Swoosh! Game, Duke. The Blue Devils had erased a 10-point deficit by going on a 13-2 run in the last 2:10 to knock off North Carolina at Chapel Hill 85-84. I'm not sure if I woke up my roommate, but it certainly took all of my willpower to restrain myself from yelling. I had dreamed last night that Duke would win on a buzzer beater. But I've also seen the Blues hoist the Stanley Cup in my dreams, so I certainly didn't trust that vision. But here I am, having seen it with my own eyes, and I'm still having trouble believing it.
The Tar Heels dominated that game starting around 12 minutes into the first half and continued to do so until two and a half minutes remained in the second. Every time Duke would get a stop, they would turn the ball over, miss a three-point shot, or get to the free throw line just to miss one or both attempts. If the Blue Devils scored, Carolina would answer almost immediately. No matter what Duke seemed to do, they couldn't get the lead below seven points starting at the 17:35 mark of the second half. And then bang! In a 21-second span, Tyler Thornton and Seth Curry both knocked down treys and just like that, it was a two-possession game.
Duke then took a charge, Ryan Kelly bricked a three, but followed his shot just like we're all taught to do from age five and up, and got his own rebound. He faked a pass and nailed a jumper tow make a two point game out of it. Kelly hit another jumper on the next possession that followed a Tyler Zeller 1-2 free throw trip and cut it to one. Zeller got fouled again and repeated the previous trip, going 1-2, setting up Duke to tie it with a two or win it with a three after gathering the rebound. Rivers opted for the latter. With ice water in his veins and his dad, Doc Rivers looking on from the stands, he dribbled behind the three-point line for a couple of seconds and eventually took the biggest shot of his life over Zeller. Rivers with that shot created a three-way tie for first place in the ACC and a goat in Zeller.
From an objective stand point, it should be really difficult for UNC fans to be upset with Zeller. The guy is seven feet tall, so he's not exactly used to guarding out on the arc. He also posted a double-double with 23 points and 11 boards. So sure, he missed a pair of free throws down the stretch and gave up the winning shot, but Rivers was 6-10 from long range on Wednesday. As George McFly would say, making that shot was simply a part of River's density. At the end of the night, it was easy to see that North Carolina was the better team. If Duke had an off night shooting the three, the game would've been a blowout to begin the second half. The Blue Devils took 38 three-pointer shots tonight, making 14. UNC only shot six, making one. Threes are great and can change a game, but they're not nearly as reliable as taking the ball to the basket. Duke will need to work on their inside game if they hope to sweep the Heels on March 3rd when they meet at Cameron Indoor Stadium to close the regular season. But for tonight, they can enjoy a massive win over their arch rivals and Rivers can dream about it for the rest of his life.
SLU Update:
The Billikens embarked on their last tough road trip of the season on Wednesday night, beginning at St. Joseph's with a 72-60 win. SLU will remain in Philadelphia for their Saturday afternoon tilt with La Salle, who lost at Richmond on Wednesday, knocking them out of what would've been a four-way tie for second in the Atlantic-10 standings. That tie currently involves the Billikens, Xavier, and UMass, all of who are 7-3 in conference play, with Temple a half game ahead at 7-2. The game won't be an easy one for SLU, as the Explorers are undefeated at home this season, including non-conference games. However, just two weeks ago the Billikens became the first A-10 team to win at Xavier in six years, so nothing is impossible. A sweep in Philly would certainly set the Bills up nicely, though, as they would then roll home for a couple of home games against Richmond and Fordham respectively, who are a combined 4-18 on the road this year
I hate the New England Patriots. I cheered for the Steelers' biggest rival, the Baltimore Ravens, to beat them last week. I think if it came down to it, I would cheer for the Cowboys over them as well. I think the only time I would ever cheer for the Patriots, outside of the result of them winning indirectly helping the Steelers or the Rams, is if in some weird alternate multi-sports universe, they ended up with them playing the Detroit Red Wings in ice football. Which is why, even when the pattern Super Bowl pattern points to the Patriots winning, I'm picking the Giants. I'm ESPN Streak for the Cash picking the Patriots, but only to curse them. The pattern is of course that the regular season winner always seems to lose the rematch in the Super Bowl.
1999 Rams lost to the Tennessee Titans in the regular season, beat them in the Super Bowl.
2001 Patriots lost to the Rams in the regular season, then cheated their way to victory in the Super Bowl
2007 Giants failed to end the Patriots' perfect season in the regular season, but finished the job in the Super Bowl.
The only thing that I expect could save the Giants is, they weren't playing their best football when they beat the Patriots. Their defensive line has been practically unstoppable during the postseason and the last few weeks of the regular season. I feel that won't change in the Super Bowl and that Tom Brady will be pressured for much of the game. Unlike some quarterbacks, like Kurt Warner, who thrive in those situations, Brady gets flustered. It was evident during the AFC title game when the Ravens were all over him in the backfield. This will be the key to the game. New England's defense is incompetent and while Eli Manning isn't nearly as good as his brother, Peyton, Aaron Rodgers, or Drew Brees, he makes the passes he needs to make. Speaking of which:
I expect to see a little more salsa from Victor Cruz as he dances through the Patriots' weak secondary as well. I'll take the Giants by a score of 31-26. And just for kicks, here's one more anti-Patriots extra as I'm sure Eric Cartman, a Denver Broncos fan, would put it:
"Well, Tom Brady's a bitch, he's a big fat witch,
he's the biggest bitch in the whole wide world,
he's a stupid bitch if there ever was a bitch,
he's a bitch to all the boys and girls.
On Monday he's a bitch, on Tuesday he's a bitch,
and Wednesday to Saturday he's a bitch,
then on Sunday just to be different he's a
super King-ka maya-maya beotch!
Have you ever met Patriots quarterback Tom Brady,
he's the biggest bitch in the whole wide world,
he's a mean old bitch and he has stupid hair."
I really think the hair part works well. Enjoy the game, the commercials, friends, and family. Go Giants!
On Wednesday night, the St. Louis University Billikens did something that no Atlantic-10 team had done in six years. They won at Xavier.
The little kid in me wanted to do what I did as an eighth grader when the Billikens won an NCAA tournament game against the University of Massachusetts. When SLU made it to the second round of the big dance, I had just gotten home from middle school and watched the last ten minutes or so of the game. After they won, I sprinted around my house yelling, slipped on the hardwood floor in the hallway and hit my knee, which hurt quite a bit. I then got up and continued running around the house in circles yelling. I was simply more cautious when I got in the hallway. I was at work, so I didn't do that, but I certainly wanted to run through the halls. SLU went on to lose to Kentucky in the second round and I hate them to this very day for that very reason. I at least got to have reverse revenge on the Wildcats through Duke, though.
What's reverse revenge? It's bragging rights that you didn't know about when you became a fan of a team. I became a fan of Duke because my dad liked them and because my Aunt Missy's father, Papa, was a basketball manager for them many years ago. What I later found out is that one of the most famous college basketball games of all time involved Duke beating Kentucky on a buzzer beater by Christian Laettner to advance to the Final Four. I have enjoyed reverse revenge on the Cowboys via the Steelers and the Brewers and many others via the Cardinals as well. It's not as good as seeing it happen and not needing Wikipedia or Youtube to pull it up, but it works well enough to shut up most people. But I digress.
I've added reasons to hate the Wildcats over the year, like how they ran a good man out of town in Tubby Smith and replaced him with a twice-proven cheater, in John Calipari. Maybe they'll run Calipari out of town if he gets a Final Four vacated there like he did at Memphis and UMass. Kentucky also seems to have a hand in keeping my brackets from winning every year. I still have placed high enough to make the money the last two years, but haven't won. And by money I mean play money because betting real money on such things isn't legal. Now, back to the Billikens!
SLU hasn't had an at-large berth to the NCAA tournament since the Larry Hughes season that Kentucky ended. They went on a crazy run to win the 2000 Conference USA tournament, allowing them to lose to current head coach Rick Majerus' Utah squad, but that was an automatic berth. Everything is coming full circle now for the Billikens. The man who knocked them out of their last tournament is trying to lead them back there and their next big test is on the road against the last team that they defeated in the NCAA tournament: You guessed it. Frank Stallone. No, just kidding, it's UMass like I said earlier. But how often do I get to make references to old SNL bits in a sports blog? I think it's allowed since it's from roughly the same time period as the NCAA tournament game I'm referencing.
SLU's RPI jumped nine spots up to 42 in the country after Wednesday's win over Xavier. If they can knock off the Minutemen on Saturday, SLU would take the tiebreaker against one of the four schools that they are currently tied with for the conference lead before coming home against a very beatable St. Bonaventure team. Due to the Xavier victory, UMass isn't a must-win, but it certainly would be nice for the Bills to keep their run going before coming back home to Chaifetz Arena, where they lose very rarely and springboard SLU's season towards an at-large NCAA tournament berth that they've been anticipating for over a decade.
I'm 5-3 this postseason and owe being over .500 to the Giants coming through for me in Green Bay last week. That said, I'm going to take the 49ers over the Giants today and get off of that train. The Giants' running game has struggled at times this year and they're now faced with one of the top running defenses in the league. Unless the Giants just crush Alex Smith, I don't see them stopping the 49ers through the air and I see Vernon Davis causing matchup problems over the middle.
49ers 27 - Giants 23
As for the "Teams Ryan Hates Bowl," I'm going to take the Patriots over the Ravens. I know that my high school could score on the Patriots through the air, but I still have zero faith in Joe Flacco. As much as I hate Tom Brady because he dynasty started with a bad non-fumble call hurting the Raiders followed by cheating, I still think he's a good quarterback. The Ravens only hope is to stop the running game, but that's where the Pats' defense is at least halfway competent.
Patriots 28 - Ravens 22
It's been a week and I'm over the Steelers loss to the Denver Tebows, er...Broncos. It was painful to watch, but the reality was, with the team as banged up as they were, they just weren't going to be able to make another Super Bowl run this year, and I suppose I'd rather have them lose to a silly sideshow than a team I actually hate, like the New England Patriots.
We didn't deserve to win the game, with the way we played. After our second drive, our offense pretty much shut down until the second half, which allowed the Broncos to build a two touchdown lead on their own field. Our secondary looked like it belonged in the Alamo Bowl. How a team allows over 300 passing yards on just 10 completions is beyond me. Sure, with a lot of our defensive linemen hurt, the pass rush isn't going to be as good, but that doesn't directly result in our corner backs and safeties not being able to tackle. I can't really explain how Tim Tebow keeps winning, I just know that he does. I hope he will at least continue it this week. The Patriots have 13 players listed as questionable going into tonight's game, according to Mike Rodak of ESPN. This gives me hope that more Tebow magic could be available. That, and the fact the Patriots have just a terrible defense. I feel that this game will be much closer than the beat down that took place in Denver, but I feel Tebow might turn back into a pumpkin soon and the carriage ride could be over.
I'm taking the Patriots in this one: 27-20 (Prove me wrong, Tim Tebow, prove me wrong!)
As for the early game on Saturday between the 49ers and Saints, I feel that the matchup probably favors San Francisco. They're at home for one and they have the top rushing defense to pit against the Saints' strong rushing attack. When a top offense takes on a top defense, the defense usually wins. That said, the St. Louis Rams stayed with the 49ers twice and they looked really unimpressive in both games. I still don't feel that they're that good of a team, nor do I feel that Alex Smith is that great of an NFL quarterback. Drew Brees, on the other hand, is a former Super Bowl MVP and if the ground attack doesn't do much, he can still make the offense work by throwing screen passes to Darren Sproles and hitting his myriad of receivers. Brees spreads the ball around like Antonio Cromartie spreads his, well, you know (click the link if you don't know). I have to take the Saints in this one, just due to experience and the quarterback factor.
Saints 38 - 49ers 30
The early game on Sunday I feel, is the easiest straight up pick of the week. The Ravens have finally gotten their home playoff game that has alluded them for years. Their defense is as strong as ever. And the Ravens beat the Texans 29-14 in Week 5 when Houston was at their best and still had Matt Schaub taking snaps. They're now down to their third string quarterback, rookie T.J. Yates, at this point. I just don't see a rookie going on the road against a top defense and being mistake-free enough to come away with this win. I mean, the Ravens don't have a great quarterback either in Joe Flacco, but he has much more experience managing games than Yates does. I think the Texans' only chance is if they can completely shut down Ray Rice and the Baltimore running game. Houston's defense is certainly their strong suit, so they can for Flacco to beat them, they might have a shot. I'm still taking the Ravens.
Ravens 16 Texans 10
For the last game of the weekend, we have one of those classic playoff scenarios. We have the best team, the dominant team, in the Green Bay Packers. They nearly went undefeated in the regular season and simply dominated the NFL this season. We also have the New York Giants, the classic "they're hot at the right time" team. We saw this match up in the NLDS between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Philadelphia Phillies and we know how that ended (See right for emphasis, especially Carp's face).
I'm going to go ahead and ride the crazy train, and pick the Giants on this one. A lot can be said for hot teams and the Packers aren't in mid-season form right now. Their offensive line is beat up and Aaron Rodgers hasn't thrown a pass in a game situation in three weeks. On the other side of the ball, the Giants defensive line finally has all of its starters together, which was not the case when these two teams met during the regular season. Eli Manning has been in the zone lately and the Giants have managed to get their running game going again in recent weeks. I went with the most logical picks last week and only went two for four. Let's see what a little bit of crazy will do.
Giants 27 Packers 25
Meanwhile, back at the ranch...
The Rams announced yesterday that they have hired Jeff Fisher as the team's new head coach. Or should I say Fisher hired the Rams, as he was choosing between them and Miami? Either way, this was a big victory for the Rams. The head coaching pool was pretty thin this season with Bill Cowher and Jon Gruden looking to remain with their television jobs for at least one more year. Fisher was the best candidate available, so it was important for the Rams to acquire him. For the first time since Dick Vermeil left, they've hired a coach who has previous experience in the NFL as a head coach (I'm not counting Jim Haslett since he was an interim and wasn't hired as an actual head coach).
The Rams already have a few building blocks in place with Sam Bradford at quarterback, probably one more good year out of Steven Jackson in the backfield, James Laurinaitis at linebacker, and Chris Long on the defensive line, who had a Pro Bowl caliber year regardless of what the idiot voters said. 13 sacks in a season when your team is almost always behind is impressive. First-round pick Robert Quinn also looks like he could be a solid player in upcoming years, especially with better coaching. The Rams also have the second pick overall in the upcoming draft and quite a bit of cap space.
Fisher chose the Rams because they have an attractive situation, even after yet another abysmal season. I don't expect the Rams to return to the playoffs next year, but if they add more weapons around Bradford (including drafting Justin Blackmon out of Oklahoma State) the one year turn around from a weak team to a power is possible in this league. The 49ers have shown us that this season. The 1999 Rams showed us that more than a decade ago by being the first (and last) team to go from 0-8 in a division to 8-0 in a division in a year's time. I'll give a true prediction on what I see the Rams doing once I see the schedule come out this spring, but for the time being, I'm hopeful that my other team can get back on track.
It's been quite the ride for Blues goalie Brian Elliott this season. He signed a two-way contract with St. Louis after a tough season which he split between Ottawa and Colorado after being dealt to the Avs late in the season. Elliott came in, won the backup job from Ben Bishop, who also played well in the preseason, and he hasn't looked back since.
Starting netminder Jaroslav Halak got off to a rocky start and Elliott was there to save the day, so much so, that when friends asked me what goalie was playing that night and I responded that Elliott was starting, they would say things like,"Oh good, we'll win tonight." That's a pretty high confidence level to have with a backup goalie. Elliott's play was so good that it took away from the fact that Halak wasn't playing up to his potential and it allowed Halak to get his game together. Halak now is 7-0-3 in his last ten starts and if the Blues could score in a shootout, it would be even better. I don't want to give Elliott all the credit for Halak's success, as Jaro certainly has been making lots of saves, many of them quality ones. However, Elliott's stellar play took pressure of Halak and now it doesn't seem to matter which goalie Hitchcock starts, as the Blues will have a solid backbone in either player.
For a couple of weeks, Elliott ranked number one in the league in G.A.A, save percentage, and shutouts. He still remains second in all of those categories (1.62 G.A.A., .940 SV%, and five SO) after a couple of bumpy games in Detroit (not exactly easy assignments), but he rebounded with a shutout on Saturday night against Colorado. The stat I find most impressive is easily the shutouts, as the only goalie he trails, the Kings' Jonathan Quick, has started in 35 games (sixth most in the league) but Elliott has only started 20 (29th most in the league).
Elliott would've played in Montreal on Tuesday, earning the start with Saturday's shutout, but head coach Ken Hitchcock opted to give Halak the start, as it was his first game back in the Bell Centre since being dealt to the Blues in the summer of 2010. Halak didn't disappoint in his return home, shutting out the Canadiens while making some tremendous saves, including the one shown in the video below, against a shorthanded breakaway. The video also shows him receiving a standing ovation from the Habs fans as he was leaving the ice.
That is probably the most impressed I've ever been with an opponent's fans. Montreal, you have some real class. Chris Pronger (when healthy) still comes into St. Louis and gets booed, which I'll never understand. He was traded when he would have rather stayed with the Blues, has never badmouthed the team that I've heard about, and is a great overall hockey player. To each their own, I suppose.
The Blues play Ottawa in early February, but Elliott's homecoming will happen a bit sooner due to his stellar play. It was announced today that he will be the lone representative for the Blues in the All-Star Game, barring injury to another player that was already selected. The Blues do rank second in the west right now and have a chance to slide into first with a win tonight over Vancouver, but most of the team's wins have occurred with different players stepping up each night. Alex Steen could've been considered as he was one of the team's scoring leaders before missing the past two weeks, as could David Backes, who represented the team at the game last season and currently leads the Blues in goals. However, the reality is no one on this club, aside from Elliott, really has "all-star" numbers. But that's just fine, as I'd much rather watch a team with incredible depth that should claim its first playoff berth in three seasons than a team with one superstar who is a lock to make the NHL All-Star Game.
My hockey club has been playing extremely well as of late. The Blues are just one point back of the Chicago Blackhawks for the lead in the Central Division. The Colorado Avalanche went into Chicago last night and left with a 4-0 win. Hopefully, they come into St. Louis tired and the Blues can use their one day off to spur them past the Avs and into the top spot in the Central and maintain pace with the Vanouver Canucks for the top spot in the conference, as the Canucks are leading late in the third period in Boston. The Blues's dramatic comeback on Thursday night against the Edmonton Oilers showed the heart that this team has. They spent virtually half of the second period shorthanded, getting completely hosed by the referees with bad penalties going against the Blues and obvious calls not being whistled on Edmonton. Getting the first power play goal after a quick delay of game penalty in the third was huge. TJ Oshie completely running one of the Oilers and not retaliating when they cheap-shotted him for making a clean hit was even bigger. The Blues went back to work on the power play, tied the game, and they just kept the momentum from that point on in the third. Matt D'Agostini wristed a laser past Devan Dubnyk to put the Blues back in front and they held on from there.
With the Blues playing nine home games in January and just two on the road, they have a terrific opportunity to separate themselves from some of the lower teams in the conference and perhaps build a bit of a lead on Detroit and Chicago. The Blues' home record is an outstanding 16-3-2, which ranks tops in the NHL for home wins. Winning the division would be a huge advantage, as the winner will likely get the top seed and the two runners up could face each other in the first round as the four and five seeds. Not only will that knock out one of the better teams in the conference early, but that will be a tough, tiring series that could lead to the winner being too beat up to make much noise beyond that round. This month is critical with all of the road games that the Blues have to play in March. They must position themselves well now so that they can withstand a possible slump later, as I hold the same thoughts as team president John Davidson. "I don't want to make the playoffs, I want to win the playoffs."
There are many sports holidays that I celebrate: MLB Opening Day, the first two days of the NCAA basketball tournament, and the opening of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Today, I celebrate another: the beginning of the NFL playoffs.
Wild-card weekend starts with the Houston Texans hosing the Cincinnati Bengals.I don't see the Texans, who haven't won a single game since clinching their first playoff spot in franchise history, turning it around now. Much of the Texans' success came early in the season when they had Matt Schaub at quarterback. They're now on their third string QB after Matt Leinart got injured in his first outing, and I just dont see rookie T.J. Yates making the plays that a team needs to win playoff game. And sure, the Bengals are also starting a rookie at quarterback, but Andy Dalton was a first-round pick and looks like a starting NFL quarterback. He has poise as well as a talented supporting cast with quick receivers and the rejuvenated Cedric Benson at running back. And speaking of the Bengals speedy receivers, here's my favorite moment of the season from that group:
I'm taking the Bengals 20-13.
The late game on Saturday could turn into a shootout between the Detroit Lions and the New Orleans Saints. The Lions put up 41 points last week at Lambeau Field and now they'll be back inside, which will just add to their speed. The Saints can score with anyone, so I think the difference in this game will be experience. The Saints have been there before and are just two years removed from winning the Super Bowl. The Lions haven't been to the playoffs since I was walking the halls of Parkway Southwest Middle School on a regular basis. I see the Lions putting up a fight and keeping the game close early, I just don't see them pulling it off.
I'll go with the Saints 41-30.
Sunday's games will probably both be a little ugly. The Atlanta Falcons and New York Giants have both been winning ugly for a while. A quarter of the Giants wins this season were against the Dallas Cowboys, which if you watched this season, you'll know that wasn't much of an accomplishment. For me, this game comes down to the experience factor. Tom Coughlin is a Super Bowl winning head coach (and God bless him for that!) and he has a quarterback in Eli Manning that has proven he can win in the playoffs. We're still yet to see if Matt Ryan of the Falcons can do the same and winning on the road won't be easy. I think Ryan's going to have to wait at least one more year before he gets that monkey off of his back.
I'll take the Giants 27-23
The weekend closes in the Mile-High City with the Denver Broncos hosting my Pittsburgh Steelers. I don't like my team's chances of going all the way now that we're down to our third-string running back and Ben Roethlisberger still nursing his high-ankle sprain, but they're not going to lose to Tim Tebow. Tebow and the Broncos offense only managed three points at home last week against the lowly Kansas City Chiefs. Even without Ryan Clark, who will be sitting out due to his sickle cell trait which makes it dangerous for him to play at that altitude, I fully expect the Steelers defense to dismantle Tebow and the Broncos. One of their top offensive linemen will miss the game and their top running back, Willis McGahee, is a bit dinged up as well. The illustration on the right is what I expect to happen this Sunday. Just insert James Harrison for Bane and Tim Tebow for Batman. In this case, it's a metaphor, but I wouldn't put it past Harrison to go for the real thing.
