Detroit Red Wings & the NHL

[Optimus Prime]

However , I'd like to watch you attempt a sit up some time, though.

[Tony G]

You are a shallow person if that is the breadth of your ability to gauge people. In Russian you would be known as nekulturny. Here it should make you an honorary buckeye for life. I'm done with you. I've just remembered something my grandfather said. "If you see a jackass braying, it doesn't mean you have to run over and join him."

[Optimus Prime]

I agree. I don't walk in dogshit. It's a good thing you went to Florida. It raised the collective IQ in Florida and Michigan

Tony you are approaching 400 lbs I highly doubt you do anything of a physical nature, even a brisk walk is probably out of question...... and no, watching television doesn't count either.

[youtube]OhhJwJbYruA[/youtube]

In Russian you would be known.....

In America, you are known as a lazy, fat, bastard, now STFU.

[Optimus Prime]

TEAM SLOVAKIA Sochi 2014

Forwards
Marian Hossa/Satan/Gaborik

Marcel Hossa/Handzus/Kopecky

Dano/Bliznak/Panik

Miklik/Kukumberg/Vondrka

Kytnar

Defense
Chara/Visnovsky

Meszaros/Sekera

Jurcina/Stajnoch

Tabacek

Goal
Halak/Stana/Budaj

Their top tier talent is really top tier. Zdeno Chara, Marian Hossa, Marian Gaborik, and Jaroslav Halak are all world class players in their respective positions. But the rest of the team is filled up with NHL role players like Hanzus and Kopecky, second tier prospects like Marko Dano and Richard Panik, KHL All-Stars like Marcel Hossa, and players for the Slovakian based KHL team Slovan Bratislava like Michel Miklik and Mario Bliznak. Slovakia’s run to the Bronze medal game last Olympics was fueled by the stellar play of Jaro Halak who will have to be great again. The Slovaks took Silver at the 2012 World Championship. Maybe the little team that could will finally make a push for a medal, but alas, I would be very surprised if this team medaled.

The other qualified teams are Slovenia, Norway, Austria, Latvia and Switzlerand. None of these teams are going to make a push for a medal even though they are anchored by some decent talent. Slovenia has NHL super star Anze Kopitar. Norway has Patrick Thoresen who is one of the best players in the KHL and dominated the 2012 World Championship. Austria has Tomas Vanek who is pretty good. Latvia’s roster is almost entirely made up of players from Dinamo Riga, the Latvian based KHL team. And Switzerland has an NHL defensive corp centered around Mark Streit, Luca Sbisa, Raphael Diaz, Yannick Weber, and Roman Josi. With some top tier NHL prospects like Nino Niederreiter and Sven Baertschi on the Swiss roster and All-Star Jonas Hiller in net the Swiss might be a dangerous team.

The rosters for the more elite teams may change depending on injuries or how some players perform over the next year in the NHL, but I think these rosters will be pretty close to the rosters we will be seeing next February in Sochi.

Final Rosters submitted by 12-31-2013.

[madootra]

Funny you should mention Flint, and Detroit.......

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/02/03/us-usa-cities-miserable-idUSTRE8121CM20120203

[lineygoblue]

Shouldn't be too difficult to find The fattest lump of crap in the stadium acting like an assclown.

ummmm..... that will probably be me ... :-)

[Optimus Prime]

Funny you should mention Flint, and Detroit.......

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/...8121CM20120203

I guess that's checkmate you wile O'mossback~!

Like most places in the US , it depends on whether you consider yourself among the 47% or 53% as O' Mitt fatally reiterated.

As for me, I've always worked extremely hard, took ownership of my decisions and enjoyed the fruits of my labor. SoBe has been very good to me. Damn, just "did" the kitchen, now I've got to let the new Mrs. OP know we are moving to Detroit.



Thought I wasvery happyl here but I guess I must move to Flint or Detroit to experience bliss while wallowing in hopelessness. seriously?

Just imagine, a "double-wide" awaits, flanked by crack 'ho LaKeesha and her 12 illegitimate children on my left and Tony Bag O' Donuts to my right. Then treated to his monthly waddle in underwear to his mailbox for that monthly check and perhaps a resuscitation now and then by EMS, funded with my tax dollars of course.

NOT in my lifetime! Seriously, evening using West Palm Beach, South Beach & Detroit in the same sentence is nonsense.



My grandparents were born in Detroit as well as my mother, thank God they had the good sense to get out in 50's, when the getting was good.

[Rob F]

Meanwhile, near Miami:

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/07/27/19711715-seven-killed-including-gunman-in-florida-shootout-2-hostages-rescued?lite

while Miami might have more "positives" that Detroit, I'm pretty sure that large areas of it are nothing better than a hellhole. Like most big cities, you stay out of certain hoods if you know better...

[Rob F]

To be fair, OP, no way I'd move to Detroit, either. Too old for that s***, I'll be the first to admit it. Several friends of mine live in metro Detroit, and unanimously none of them would ever move into Detroit or any of it's poorer inner suburbs.

But according to one of them, he says that there are more and more young professional-types that are heading into certain rejuvenated areas in downtown "D", where there is a lot of nightlife and other positives happening. And it's not only Caesar Illitch that's buying up large areas downtown, but also Cleveland Cavs owner Dan Gilbert that has been making HUGE investments and working on projects that seem to be pointing downtown in the right direction.

East side of Detroit, though? Gentlemen, start your bulldozers!

All of Flint, though? Nukes might be quicker....

[Optimus Prime]

I agree Rob, don't wish to be portrayed as a heartless hardass and I too voted for Obama and following link obviously has political overtones but frankly the disparaging numbers about Detroit are staggering.

http://frontpagemag.com/2012/dgreenfield/worst-city-in-america-votes-98-percent-for-obama/

[Mike]

They could have at least used an actual picture of Detroit. Google isn't hard to use.

[Optimus Prime]

"The weight of its gargantuan bureaucracy and the extent of its legendary corruption are staggering. Locally, city services have been likened to those of Third World backwaters."

It's the third world backwater comparison pic OT.
---------------------

http://sports.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=7080&lotNo=80105

Here you go Mike, get in on it...it's at 11K now.


Even then Gretzky was no ordinary 13-year-old and his hockey career was already the subject of media attention. That will happen when a kid scores 378 goals in a season.

Walter Gretzky started keeping track of his son's stats, so by the spring of 1974 Brantford, Ont., was abuzz about the prodigy's 1,000th lifetime goal. When he scored it in a late-season exhibition game, Gretzky signed his stick and gave it to Ron St. Amand and it remained in the coach's house until last year when he died at age 73.

Rather than decide which one of her children should inherit the historic stick, St. Amand's widow decided to put it up for auction with bidding through Heritage Auctions set to close Aug. 1. The value of the stick isn't clear because Gretzky memorabilia generally doesn't go back that far, but the U.S.-based auction house expects it to fetch $20,000 or more. The highest bid online as of Friday morning was $8,000.

[Optimus Prime]

Wayner shot Titan, OP shot Titan, Hespler & Koho. . Wayner skated in Daoust, OP skated in Daust. Made in Quebec, best skate in the world, bought-out by Canstar and they stopped making them!

Gretzky actually used the 301's, custom built, the Prime preferred the 501's. Wayne had the blue Tuuk blade holders, custom, exclusively for him.




Shawn Chaulk's remarkable collection of game-used Wayne Gretzky memorabilia sold for 1/2 million bucks. Only sold 20% of his private collection.



http://sports.nationalpost.com/2013/...ed-collection/

http://www.edmontonsun.com/2013/06/1...re-than-450000

[Mike]

My first hockey stick was a Mike Bossy Titan.

[Optimus Prime]

Me too, same stick lie, never had the success Bossy had. Used Sherwood PMP Featherlite , Lafleur, Borque, Larmer, Perrault models, they actually weighed a ton. Then went to Easton aluminums.