Last call for 2010!

Canada faces Sweden today in World Junior Hockey play with first place at stake in Group A, which brings with it a bye to the semi-finals.  That would come in handy for a very beat up Canadian squad.  Puck drop is 4pm on TSN, great way to get the New Year's Eve festivities started early.  Be sure to check out yesterday's post and the comments section for a spirited diatribe by Bukakke and yours truly on the "hats during anthem" issue.

Jason Whitlock says that Rex Ryan needs to be less clown and more coach.

Here's a great bit on some of the best plays in sports in 2010, and you can get your votes in to rate them as well. Worth the time, though more than a few were highlighted in this space over the course of the year.  For me, Landon Donovan's goal for the U.S. at the World Cup was the play of the year.  Goosebumps.  Yes, moreso than Canada's Olympic Gold winning goal from Sydney Crosby even, which didn't make the cut.

Steve Simmons at The Toronto Sun gives us his view of the year in sports.

I'll leave the analysis of Octavio Dotel's signing by the Toronto Blue Jays to Fark.com: Octavio Dotel agrees to a one-year contract of choking in the 9th inning for the Blue Jays.  Drunk Jays Fan is similarly unimpressed.  Or furious.  One or the other. 

LeBron James now says that he didn't advocate for contraction, and needed to go to the internet to see what the word meant.  See kids, stay in school. 

Thanks for reminding us we're watching a "football game" with "football teams", idiot colour guy at The Music City Bowl.  Also, you don't need to start every sentence with "when you talk about..."  Just talk about it, FFS.

If you're a fan of the chalkboard quotes that Woody Paige uses on ESPN's Around The Horn, you can see them here.  Updated often.

Not sure how they managed it, but the good folks at The Bleacher Report managed to narrow down Mike Singletary's coaching run - and I'd bet hard he never gets another head coaching job - with the San Francisco 49ers to 10 Most Bizarre moments.

UFC 125 goes tomorrow night with Gray Maynard - a good guy I met in Las Vegas in November - facing Frankie Edgar for his Lightweight title. Full card here.  The prelims are airing on Rogers SportsNet, free of charge.  A bit of a blow yesterday to the potential card for Toronto with word that Heavyweight Champion Cain Velasquez suffered a torn rotator cuff in his title win over Brock Lesnar.  He'll be out 6-8 months now.

A couple UFC entries here in the Top 24 Knockouts of 2010.

Dallas Cowboys fans will not be lamenting this Sunday's game likely being the last with one Roy E. Williams.

You may recall a few weeks back that Edmonton Oiler Linus Omark took a verbal beating from the Tampa Bay Lightning after his spin move - nowhere near the net, mind you - before scoring in a shootout against the Bolts.  Funny, I don't hear the Bolts crying now that Steve Stamkos pulled a similar move in tight against the Montreal Canadiens last night.  Hockey's "codes" are no less a joke than baseball's.

Complex delivers the best 90 women of the 1990's.  Some real blasts from the past here.

I read a reference to Chris Bosh yesterday that called him "Ringo".  Freaking awesome.

20 fantastic Bar Rafaeli photos, and some fresh Megan Fox ones.  You're welcome.

Before we close the day, there will be a brief entry tomorrow morning.  You're going to want to see it for sure.  Be safe tonight, don't drink and drive.  Catch you on the other side.

Now THIS is how you get jacked up for a soccer game.  Oh wait...the kids are 10-year olds?  Wild video from Poland.  Remember this the next time you hear an announcer talk about a "raucous" NBA/NFL/NHL/MLB crowd.

Raising the Bar

It didn't take long for the Congress grandstanding to begin. One Congressman wants A-Rod called on the carpet to see what else they can find out. Right, because the first time was so illuminating. Since these clowns figure they can review what happened in baseball five years ago and criticize, wonder who gets to call Congress on the carpet for letting the Wall Streeters take the global economy down the toilet? Way to keep your eye on the prize, fools...hope Tony Romo's girlfriend isn't a listener of the Jim Rome Show, where one caller dubbed her Jessicow Blimpson...Minnesota Wild defenceman Cal Clutterbuck has been the target of Don Cherry of late, and one Wild fan fired back with probably the best thing you could call Grapes on a variety of levels: Liberace. Amazing. Thanks to ROTR for passing this my way...good of an Ontario Provincial Police officer to get nailed - on duty - for breaking the province's racing laws, driving 165 kph in a 100 zone...the pressure of the Prime Time Picks got to me. I admit it. So I hit some 'roids. Forgive me for last nights dud of a pick...there are several soccer friendlies - and not so friendlies, like Mexico visiting the U.S. tonight - including England travelling to Spain to face the European Champions. English captain John Terry has vowed that if the Spanish fans continue with rascist taunts of England's black players, they'll walk off the field. Good for England. I'm sure, like the ill advised Spanish Olympic hoops picture, that the taunts are in tribute to the black players. Or not...it is no secret that I'm not a huge fan of Derek Jeter's personality - ask him if the sky is blue and he'll waffle on an answer - and even less a fan of the results of his leadership. But his plan to address the A-Rod steroids situation once and only once when camp gets together for the media is a great one. It'll minimize the distraction, at least to him, by not letting it become a daily discussion...Baseball Prospectus ran its projected finishes for the 2009 season for all teams and has the Boston Red Sox and Yankees finishing a game apart at the top of the AL East with the top records in the AL. A .500 season is forecast for the Toronto Blue Jays - I've got the under there. The Hardball Times ran 100 trials of the 2009 season and had the Yankees first in the East with an average of 101 wins...the NHL's best of the west - San Jose - dropped in to face the beasts of the east in Boston last night, and the Sharks exploded for three goals in a little over six minutes to win 5-2...Bar Rafaeli rode a RM plug last month to the cover of SI's Swimsuit Issue. Good stuff. More Bar from SI here. Also shockingly impressive in this issue is Danica Patrick..have a great Wednesday, back with your PTP later.

3:37pm UPDATE: Your PTP is up.