Boxing never lets us figure out what year it really is

Vancouver Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo, pictured at right, was yanked in last night's 6-3 loss to the Chicago Black Hawks after giving up five less than impressive goals. But hey, he's a champion now at the major level, so really, the rest of Canada doesn't much care.

If it were April 1st it couldn't be more lame, except it isn't a joke apparently. Mike Tyson is said to be set to make a comeback and as if that wasn't ridiculous enough, after a tune-up fight, he'll fight - wait for it! - Evander Holyfield. No, seriously. At least heavyweight boxing isn't a joke. Hey, what's Larry Holmes up to?

And speaking of what is old being new again, along comes Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlesberger and his latest sexual assault accusation. This time the 20-year old accuser sounds like she's got her story well in order. And me being a fan of a great crack, here's a name for Big Ben passed my way from TS: Ben Rapelesberger. Strong. I like it.

NFL free agency is under way and the Chicago Bears made a big splash in inking Julius Peppers and Chester Taylor. Anquian Boldin is now a Baltimore Raven too in a solid pickup for a wideout challenged squad.

The Phoenix Coyotes are 6th in the NHL this season, a surprise to everybody. Not a surprise? That they continue to draw small crowds. They had just over 10,000 for a game a few days ago. Yeah, save that market Bettman!

ESPN SoccerNet ranks the Top 50 players who will be at this year's World Cup. Man is that top 10 ever good.

Here's a peak at the Top 10 Saturday Night Live sketches over the years, and yes, the videos work.

Not surprisingly, the New York Yankees players are willing to go on the record about how glad they are that Roy Halladay is no longer in the division. Pretty impressive quotes here, in which the Yankees also crack Mariano Rivera for showing Halladay how to throw the cutter.

Have a great Saturday.

This will end badly

It must be spring, or at least spring training, if baseball people are making predictions. Texas Rangers exec Nolan Ryan predicts his squad will win the AL West with 92 wins. That division is going to be real tough this year with only the Oakland A's not in the division winner mix I'd guess.

Gary Bettman told ESPN New York Radio's Michael Kay that the NHL has "never been more entertaining and faster". No, seriously, he said that. Thanks for putting me in a spot where I have to play the "when I was growing up..." card, GB. At its most entertaining, the best of teams don't hold a candle to the Edmonton Oilers of the 80's for entertainment.

The last four seasons, the Toronto Blue Jays were 30 games over .500 when Roy Halladay starting. In games he didn't start over that time frame, they were 72 games under. This is going to be a Toronto-Maple-Leafs-ugly season for the Jays.

Recall Prince Fielder and the Milwaukee Brewers celebration after a 9th inning walk off shot from Fielder late last year, in which the San Francisco Giants were sour the Brew Crew played bowling pins and all fell down when Fielder reached the plate? Seems the Giants recall, as Barry Zito's first pitch to Fielder yesterday landed right between his shoulder blades. Fielder said it wasn't a big deal. Might have been the benefit of the soft throwing Zito.

Boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. has the Hyperbole Machine cranked up to 11, as he told ESPN Radio: "I'm the best to ever put on a pair of boxing gloves. Better than Ali.". Uh-huh.

So in a year or so, Allen Iverson has burned through 4 NBA teams, is now on leave because of an illness to a daughter - or so we are told - and now comes news his wife is filing for divorce. Do you get the feeling this guys life will end badly?

Check out this collection of middle finger flippers in the NFL over the years. Nice stuff.

Here are the 50 Funniest Facebook Fails. I've left it open to my personal fav, one which I know Bukakke will appreciate.

Have a great Friday, all.

What a wa$te

I would love to know how much money TSN, SportsNet et al poured in to covering the NHL trade deadline yesterday with probably 24 hours of combined coverage - easy - and almost no deals of significance taking place. I'd have lost the plot if Champions League play was pre-empted for that non-event.

ESPN's Erin Andrews, just named to the next season of Dancing With The Stars, is covered with 100 pictures here, and more than a few feature her ass, which isn't saying her front side is terrible (not even close), but is more a testament to an ass that should have a cape on it, because it's a super ass, as depicted at right.

Be sure to catch Cleveland Cavs highlites of their easy win in New Jersey last night. LeBron et al were pulling schoolyard meets All-Star Game type plays in the first quarter.

The Sports Guy (aka Bill Simmons) offers up a lengthy view on how to fix the NBA. Love his idea about charging less for season's tickets for every season your team misses the playoffs. Incentive to fans to stay on board, incentive to the team to turn it around. It'd never happen, but a great idea.

I thought Wikipedia was pretty handy. Handier? Ten Word Wiki. Exactly how it sounds.

Peter Crouch with two and Sean Wright-Phillips provided the goals for England in a 3-1 win over Egypt in an international friendly yesterday. Hate to break it to the English, but if those two are prominent come World Cup time, England is in a lot of trouble.

More MLB WAGs to check out. Does this ever get old?

I nearly screamed in horror at the site of a commercial last night for the Brier, starting in a few days. How can you go from the height of the Olympics to them going to your national championship? Does curling ever end?

Have a great Thursday...1 hour The Office tonight!

Boo Crosby?

I get the fans in Pittsburgh cheering Buffalo Sabres and Team USA goalie Ryan Miller during pre-game introductions last night. But there was also a healthy chunk who figured it was a good idea to boo their own captain, Sidney Crosby, who while he won gold for Canada, also happened to win a Stanley Cup for them last year. Lame.

Word is the NFL Pro Bowl will be back in Hawaii the week between the conference championships and Super Bowl for 2011. I'd say that must surely mean they drop the lame idea of flying in the Super Bowl contestants who would've otherwise been in the Pro Bowl like they did this year, but there is very little that is rationale when it comes to the Pro Bore.

Michael Jordan looks set to be the next owner of the Charlotte Bobcats and took the opportunity immediately to play - and lose - a game of HORSE. Somebody might want to let MJ know that being owner doesn't mean getting your competitive itch scratched on the court.

How is it the Toronto Blue Jays have a full page ad for their home opener in the Toronto Star but have nothing to identify the player at bat? If you're trying to build familiarity among fans for a largely unfamiliar team, that is not the way to do it.

99 days until the World Cup kicks off. Pass it on.

U.S. authorities have already talked to New York Met Carlos Beltran about his involvement with Canadian doctor Anthony Galea who was pushing some not approved pharmaceuticals and conducting some blood enriching work.

Longtime reader Bukakke passed on pics of this most ridiculous man cave. Clearly, we've all got work to do to compete with this.

Great story of how Jerry Jones called a restaurant in Indianapolis during the NFL combine last Friday to reserve a great bottle of wine for his staff on Saturday night. Problem was that New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton and his crew were in on Friday night and asked for the same bottle of wine, the lone such varietal. Be sure to read the rest. Good stuff. SI.com's Peter King noted that Jones would appreciate such a move.

Check out this chart on how close events at the Olympics were, complete with audio that indicates the closeness. Incredible.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman responded to questions about whether the NHL should shut down franchises who aren't getting good attendance by asking "did people think we should fold the Chicago Black Hawks when the United Center was half empty?" A couple things on that. One, even when half empty, the United Center holds north of 10,000, but that's besides the point. Nobody suggested ditching the Hawks because they were a storied franchise who had run into trouble with bad ownership and management, and who had been greatly supported before. That's far easier to turn around than Atlanta, for example, who have been a virtual disaster since entering the league, and are better known outside of Atlanta than in it. And they're not the only franchise people are suggesting that should be moved that you could say that about.

Have a great Wednesday.

Guess who's back in circulation?

Seth Meyers on Saturday Night Live this past weekend: "Gatorade dropped Tiger Woods as their spokesperson after realizing his thirst would never be quenched."

The Utah Jazz are the only team in the NBA without a fourth quarter come from behind win.

Seems hard to believe that more people watched the 2002 Gold Medal hockey game at 17.1 million (average) in Canada than Sunday's 16.6, what with the game on home soil and the incredible overkil...errr...buildup. The game also pulled a big number in the U.S., with 27.6 million tuning in. That isn't Super Bowl territory, but did top the Grammy's and Rose Bowl, and about 25 regular season NHL games combined.

Seems the Toronto Raptors, the version that is roadkill and can't play a lick of defense, are back. The Raps have now lost four straight after getting hammered 116-92 in Houston. They were minus Chris Bosh for the night and for parts, Hedo Turkoglu (knee) and Jose Calderon (boo boo on his elbow). Shame that trade deadline came and went so quietly.

Tough times if you're a Russian sporting official, what with President Dmitry Medvedev demanding you resign or be fired. The Russians only won 15 medals in Vancouver.

Alex Rodriguez has been contacted by U.S. investigators looking at Canadian doctor Anthony Galea. Galea has been linked to Tiger Woods and New York Met Jose Reyes in the past. Would love to see Woods on there giving his robotic answers.

Toss up: Jay Leno came back last night. The Toronto Maple Leafs play the Carolina Hurricanes tonight. Which is less interesting?

The controversy! If you open today's Toronto Star to page A9 and check out the big picture with Prime Minister Stephen Harper sitting among Team Canada hockey players, is that not - gasp! - a beer in Shea Weber's hand? The horror!

From the "Department of If It Ain't Broke, Break It", the idea is percolating of adding teams to the NCAA March Madness tournament. Why would you mess with a perfect 64 teamer that grabs peoples attentions like few other events? 96 teams is a bad, bad idea.

LeBron James has made his desire to move to #6 official. Does that make owning his #23 in Cleveland Cavs colours a good idea, or a bad one? One thing for sure: I wouldn't want to be buying a Cavs jersey with #6 and "James" on the back just yet.

Rocker Liam Gallagher thinks there is a correlation between the fortunes of his former band, Oasis, and the on-field performance of his beloved Manchester City. When Oasis was up, City was down, and now that Oasis is done, City is climbing. Funny stuff.

Could the successful use of the three points system in the Olympic hockey tourney cause the NHL to see the light and move that way? Doubtful. The far more logical Olympic version sees three points for a regulation winner, along with the 2+1 for overtime/shootout.

Have a great Tuesday.

RM returns this afternoon...

Winners!

Heading into overtime of yesterday's gold medal hockey game, you'd have had your sanity questioned if you were picking Sidney Crosby to be the Canadian hero as for vast stretches of the game (approaching "all"), he was invisible again. But there he was less than half way through the wild 4-on-4 overtime, working a give and go with Jarome Iginla, who always seems to have big moments in these final games, to beat the U.S. goalie Ryan Miller, who again played fantastic. Miller was named tournament MVP, while Canuck forward Johnathan Toews was named forward of the tournament. Not bad for a guy who barely made the team as the 13th pick. The gold win was the 14th for the host Canadians, the most ever by a host nation in Winter Olympics history. Pretty impressive.

Tough times being Sidney Crosby: World Junior gold medalist, Stanley Cup Champion and now Olympic gold medalist, all by the age of 22. He wasn't impressive overall at this Olympics, but no argument that he's not a winner.

And out of all that, we're now back to the drudgery of the never ending NHL season. Somehow, Detroit is going to play Colorado tonight. Posed a question to several people this past weekend as to if they still believe the NHL product is better than the international game, talent aside. Still waiting for someone to tell me the scrums and fights are more entertaining than what we saw the past two weeks, though yesterday's game wasn't quite up to the level of some of the other games we saw as often is the case with a prize on the line in any sport.

Sounds like the NFL is ready to change the overtime rules. Here's how it'll work: if the team that receives the ball goes down the field and scores a TD, it is game over. However, if they kick a field goal, then the other team will get a shot with the ball to tie or beat that. If they just tie it, then it reverts to the old sudden death rules. A great, great improvement methinks though I still think both teams should get a possession regardless of if the first scores a TD to open OT. The idea will be put to a vote shortly.

What's the biggest threat to the New York Yankees? Aging contracts, says Joel Sherman at the NY Post. Sherman points to the contracts of Alex Rodriguez, A.J. Burnett, CC Sabathia and Mark Teixera, who will collect $90 million in 2013. That's before they re-sign Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera, with Jeter surely in the mix for 2013. Risky stuff as guys hit their early/mid/late 30's and more.

Check out Dwight Schrute's tribute to Canada with his Office pals. Awesome stuff.

Guess Tiger Woods apology a couple weeks back isn't exactly going over well. After all, Gatorade dumped him as an endorser over the weekend. I don't get it - what could be a more perfect fit for Gatorade's traditional cardboard cutout ads of its endorsers? Who is stiffer than Woods?

UFC has been Chuck Lidell and his girlfriend Heidi Northcutt are in a new Reebok online ad working out. Naked. No, seriously.

Have a great Monday.

This. Is. Everything.

Showtime!

Canadian goalie Roberto Luongo has a 16-2-3 record playing for Canada in the World Championships and Olympics. He'll have to be at this best if he's to outshine the ridiculously in-the-zone Ryan Miller in the American goal.

Prediction? A Salt Lake matching 5-2 win for Canada.

Not sure if Own The Podium meant winning the most golds, but ended up being a hell of a run for Canada in Vancouver with 13 golds going into the final day. The red and white have collected 14 medals in four days.

Chelsea soiled the sheets yesterday at Manchester City, dropping a 4-2 decision that featured Wayne Bridge blowing past John Terry in the pre-game handshakes.

I haven't a clue how anyone finds Brent Butt remotely funny.

Now Bukakke, that guy is funny. His rant on Friday about the Canadian women's hockey team's coach Melody Davidson on the Friday entry was so good I couldn't even post yesterday. At least that's my story.

The Buffalo Bills will not be offering a contract to free agent Terrell Owens. As always, the Baltimore Ravens are the leading candidates to chase Original 81.

Safe to say the Boston Celtics won't be winning the NBA championship this year, not when they're losing to the lowly New Jersey Nets.

Hard to believe Wednesday is NHL trade deadline day, a day when Canadian sports networks forget there are far more interesting things in the sporting world and force feed us all a pile of rumors that mostly go unfounded, because we all really need to see eight hours of Bob McKenzie et al banging away on their BlackBerry's.

English Premier League stats: Burnley has all of one road point this season. Manchester United has benefitted from 10 own goals this year. United will play Aston Villa today in the Carling Cup final at Wembley Stadium in London.

GO CANADA!

If the Canadian Men's hockey team loses to Slovakia, I will think the end of the world is near. Frankly, I'll be shocked if they don't win by five, and then go on to throttle Finland or the U.S. in the gold medal game.

The Canadian Women's hockey team won the Olympic gold for the third straight time with a 2-0 shutout of the U.S. Worst part of the story? Hearing the IOC is sour that the ladies celebrated on the ice, in an empty arena, with some beers, champagne and cigars. How very IOC of them. That said, I could see the IOC chastising them for drinking that Molson Canadian swill.

Joannie Rochette = Man. And I don't say that at all to be insulting.

First Chelsea lost left back Ashley Cole to a broken ankle for three months, and now will be minus starting goalie Petr Cech for a month after he tore a calf muscle. The English Premier League race is about to get even a little more interesting I suspect.

Why is it "women's" hockey but "ladies" figure skating? 'Splain!

How awesome is that Roger's "Mix" channel (396) for seeing what is where on the Olympic coverage?

Cassie Campbell thinks the men's hockey team's failures in 2006 stem from them not taking a group picture with the women's team like they did in previous years or since. At least she's not taking herself too seriously.

The idea that the John Terry Affair won't be affecting the English national team can officially be put to bed now that Wayne Bridge, whose baby mama Terry tapped, has declined a call up to the English team for a friendly with Egypt and openly said he doesn't think his inclusion would be anything but a distraction. Translation: he couldn't see himself not pounding Terry in his smug face.

Forgot to mention yesterday that Okalhoma City Thunder Kevin Durant's streak of 25+ point games ended on Wednesday night after 29 games.

Some Tony Kornheiser gems to keep you busy while he continues serving that ridiculous suspension by ESPN.

The NFL has decided not to punish Oakland Raiders coach Tom Cable for smacking around an assistant coach last season and breaking his jaw. Well, at least they weren't waffling on the subject and got around to a decision quickly. Cable would be happy, if not for the fact that said assistant is now suing him for millions.

Have a great Friday. It'll be a late edition tomorrow with a night out in Toronto tonight for the big game. Enjoy. Go Canada!

RM returns at 2pm today.

You two won't be needing a shower after this one

Canada completely overwhelmed Russia last night in racing out to a 6-1 lead early in the second en route to a no-doubter 7-3 curbstomping of Russia. Not sure what was more shocking, that result or that Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin were mostly invisible all night. Hey, at least I had the side and the part about Russia getting three goals right in an easy -1 +143 wager winner on Canada. Next up are Slovakia, surprise winners over defending champion Sweden. The other semi-final will see the U.S. facing Finland. I'm going to go out on a very sturdy branch and guarantee a Canadian win Friday, and even more confidently guarantee that bars are going to be very, very happy Friday night.

Just wondering, is there anyone out there that is actually looking forward to the NHL returning after the quality of this tournament? If so, you're lying.

Going into tonight's gold medal game in women's hockey, the U.S. and Canada have combined to outscore their opponents 86-4. Yeah, quality competition, this. The Canadian women have wom seven of ten meetings against the U.S. this season. Not sure what is meant by "season" exactly, but there you have it.

Chicago White Sox manager and resident powder keg Ozzie Guillen has climbed aboard the Twitterverse, and GM Kenny Williams is less than impressed.

Pitchers and catchers have reported now, and for some teams position players as well. But to save checking out a collection of Derek Jeter's best work, we're going to look at the WAGs of pitchers and catchers. Have to say, Ashley Papelbon looks about how I figured the wife of that D-Bag Jonathan would look.

Author Roland Lazenby has a new book coming out on LA Lakers legend Jerry West (aka "The Logo") in which he debunks the story that Wilt Chamberlain was as successful with the ladies as he claimed to be. The Stilt, you may recall, once said he'd slept with 20,000 women over the years. While we're on the topic, I'm gonna call B.S. on KISS bassist Gene Simmons claims he's north of 5,000 while we're at it, mostly because I'd prefer to think ladies have some kind of taste, or pride. Hate that twat. Literally.

Don't look now, but Canada is tied for the lead in gold medals at the Olympics. Maybe it isn't quite "Disown The Podium" after all?

Have a great Thursday.

Two Old Rivals Renew Hostilities

The dream hockey match-up - Canada vs. Russia - will be a quarter-final affair instead of the much hoped final on Sunday. Canada downed Germany 8-2 last night and while it was good to see the offence show up, can't take big comfort in Roberto Luongo flopping about in giving up a pair. Word from Damien Cox of the Toronto Star (via Twitter) is that not some players were not impressed that Mike Babcock passed over Rick Nash to let Sidney Crosby take the penalty shot after Nash was hauled down.

The puck drops at 7:30 and the roads around Canada will be mostly deserted at what should be another record viewing audience. Prediction? Russia has hardly brought the offensive lumber they were projected to and have struggled to score the last two games, and have been getting some shaky goaltending, all of which should sound familiar. I'm going to say Canada wins a thriller 5-3.

Alex Ovechkin will surely get plenty of attention tonight. S.L. Price - and who the hell goes by S.L.? - at SI.com says Ovechkin haunts Canada's gold dreams.

Champions League action continues today and the matchup's don't get any juicier than Chelsea visiting Inter Milan in what should be a fantastic game. I'm sure former Chelsea manager Jose Morinho has more than a few quotes at the ready for post-game. That one kicks off at 2:45 on CITY-TV.

PTI host Tony Kornheiser has been suspended from work for two weeks for commenting on his radio show that Hannah Storm was sporting a less than flattering outfit. Didn't know you could be suspended for stating your opinion on someone's outfit. Way to go, ESPN, how very freedom of speech of you.

Best line of the spring so far: Chicago White Sock Andrew Jones showed up in great shape and about 25 pounds lighter than last year. And he proclaimed to all who'd listen "I am the best centre fielder you guys have in camp." To which Joey Cora replied, "You should be. Only pitchers and catchers have reported." That's the hardest hit of Cora's career.

Check out the 20 Funniest Figure Skating Faces. Awesome stuff.

There is a school of thought that exists that because the NHL didn't get coverage on NBC of the U.S. vs. Canada on Sunday, they may jump ship on future Olympic involvement. Now, if Gary Bettman's logic is that lack of support means you ought to change plans, then he should be looking to move a few teams out of markets that clearly don't care.

Sh!t on Jaromir Jagr?

Nice work at the right by ESPN in their caption of Alexander Ovechkin's hit on Jaromir Jagr on Sunday.

Heard something about a hockey game tonight. Details?

Boston Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett is living up to his rep as one of baseball's bad seeds. Entering the final year of his deal with the Sox, his contract demands are pretty straightforward: he is insisting he be the highest paid player on the team, nevermind he didn't perform nearly to that level at times. That said, he's been a playoff stud his entire career, and the Sox are going to have to back up the Brinks truck for him, or he's gonzo.

Nice of Manny Ramirez of the LA Dodgers to predict this will be his last season with the Dodgers and Randy Moss to predict this will be his last year with the New England Patriots. Wouldn't it be great if their teams came out and said "yep, dead right!"?

When asked if Roberto Luongo would be the goalie for the remainder of the Olympic tourney, Canadian coach Mike Babcock replied "that's the plan" which also marks the first indication he's got a plan. Best crack on Babcock to date: "what does Babcock know about coaching Canadian players?"

Check out these absolutely amazing pictures from the Olympics so far. Wish I had a camera that could take shots like these.

Not sure about you, but I find it real annoying hearing Cassie Campbell call a play "sick" or talking about her time as a player. The Canadian women's team earned a gold medal shot Thursday against the U.S. with an easy 5-0 win over Finland. The U.S. pounded Sweden 9-1. The women's tourney has been the polar opposite of the men's: predictable, dull, non-competitive.

The San Diego Chargers took the "LT" out of "Bolts" yesterday in releasing LaDanian Tomlinson. ProFootballTalk figures he could land in Minnesota or Indianapolis.

Finally today, Hitler reacts to the Canadian loss on Sunday to the U.S. Incredible finishing line on Dany Heatley. Wow.

Get off the ledge, Canada...

I'm going to go against the grain here, partly because I prefer to in many instances, and suggest everybody dial the national angst down and relax. Yes, Canada lost 5-3 to a hungrier U.S. side but save for a ridiculous goaltending performance from Ryan Miller, Canada wins that game easy. Sure, you can think that Martin Brodeur was at fault, though I don't know how Sidney Crosby deflecting pucks into his own net is Brodeur's doing, but you'd be ignoring the series of saves Brodeur made to keep the Canucks in the game the further on it went. Sure, the road is a little tougher with an extra game in there now but it is Germany and last I checked, we're not playing soccer, we're playing hockey and they'll always be inferior. That would see Canada face the Russians next who are having trouble scoring, and are getting shaky goaltending. Sound familiar? If Canada can't get up for that, at home, then they deserve the beating they'll take in the media and public over the next months and years, but they will. That'll likely mean a date with Sweden, the defending champion, Friday night in the semis. Impossible to beat? Hardly. Point is they're very much in this thing still and don't be surprised if they're in the gold medal game Sunday. I know I won't be. That said, for the love of all that is logical, keep Chris Pronger far far away from any important minutes, and as I said last week, coach Mike Babcock needs to settle on lime combination and live or die with them. The constant tinkering has gotten him nowhere thus far.

Canadian hockey fans cheer for a hit the way English soccer fans cheer a cross field pass that doesn't advance the ball. Sure, it is part of the game, but hardly the objective, unless, of course, you go like Alexander Ovechkin did yesterday with a crushing mid-ice hit on Jaromir Jagr that nearly dislodged his mullet and led to what would be the winning Russian goal.

Good friend of RM Bronx Bomber, who has his own blog cryptically entitled "Gambling and Hatred For Everything That Isn't Me" writes this piece on last night's hockey game and why the loss is pretty satisfying in a way. He makes good points that are sure to infuriate some.

The New York Mets hit 73 fewer homers than the major league average last year, so are cutting the size of the walls at Citi Field in half to 8'. They might want to move them in some, too.

Are mullets standard issue with Czech hockey helmets?

San Diego Chargers cornerback Antonio Cromartie is off to a hell of a start for his career at the tender age of 25. He's got 7 kids with 6 baby mamas in 5 states. Are 'domes not available in his world?

The MLS is assuring fans it will not lock players out and will play the 2010 season under the just expired rules. Problem is the players haven't said they won't strike, though it seems hard to imagine they would.

Wondering if The Lord told Deion Sanders to wager $100 on his son's football game, a game contested by seven and eight year old's? But hey, at least he won.

Have a great Monday.

Border War

John Ourand of the Sports Business Journal tweeted on why NBC is showing ice dancing ahead of the Canada vs. U.S. hockey game today. Regardless of that number, I have a hard time believing the U.S. public would prefer ice dancing to hockey, but then again, there is that whole American Idol thing to rationalize away. The two teams will get it on at 7:30 tonight with a whole lot at stake in the form of a higher seeding come the knockout rounds, and there's a tonne of pressure on Canada after a less than impressive second game against Switzerland.

Cain Velazquez knocked Minotauro Noguiera half way back to the U.S. at UFC 110 in Sydney, Australia in what some call a sizeable upset. Velazquez moves to a perfect 8-0 and has injected himself into the title picture to face Brock Lesnar down the road. Fantastic card overall, with none of the fights broadcast going the distance.

Everton continue to play the part of giant killers, with recent wins over Chelsea and yesterday, over Manchester United to their credit. American Landon Donovan continues to play real well during his loan period from the LA Galaxy.

The latest in the comedy of errors that is Vancouver 2010: a security guard with leprosy. And here I thought that stuff went out when the Bible was written.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman took the time to announce that the NHL is not opting out of future Olympic involvement. Guess he figures nobody will notice he didn't exactly say they were opting in, either.

Thanks to this past Thursday's deadline deal that brought the New York Knicks Tracy McGrady, the Knicks will now have $32 million to spend this summer when the big free agents - LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh - hit the market. That is ample money to get two of those three, and it wouldn't shock me if they get LeBron and say "tell us who you want" of the others. If Knicks GM Donnie Walsh can pull that off, he'll have earned his money.

30 Hot Female Tennis Players. Why not?

The great free agent soap opera of the baseball off-season is over, as Johnny Damon signed with the Detroit Tigers. I'm sure he'll be glad to sign for one year and $8 million after his agent Scott Boras told the New York Yankees, the team Damon desperately wanted to stay with, he wouldn't take a paycut from the $13 million he made last year and demanded a two year deal. That'll be worth chipping off 5% to him. At least the real estate in Detoilet is cheap.

So about that "Own the Podium" thing...nevermind.

In case you missed Mike Milbury's latest crack at Alexander Ovechkin, check it out here. Good to see Jeremy Roenick tune him like a harp on this debate. Hilarious to hear Milbury go on about what it takes to have a leader or put together a winning team. Wasn't he the guy who put the New York Islanders into the toilet?

More of the same old Tiger

The picture at right is the only time when Tiger Woods wasn't spewing bullshit yesterday. The only way that the presser would've been more ridiculous is if he rolled out Tom Cruise and John Travolta and went Scientologist on us all. Until this morning when I caught the video below, I was about the only one who hadn't seen it or Avatar, and my guess is that both appear about as genuine as the other. As usual, Jason Whitlock hammers it out of the park in this analysis in which he says Tiger asking for people to believe in him is as ridiculous as people doing so and that he's merely a corporate pitchman. Great stones not taking questions, Tiger. Rose DiManno at the Toronto Star decodes Tiger's speech brilliantly. Bill Simmons (aka "The Sports Guy") is the lone voice at ESPN not slurping Tiger and called this a borderline trainwreck. You can watch the performance here. Points deducted for a horribly collared shirt against his suit.

UFC 110 goes tonight from Sidney, Australia, the first time that UFC ventures Down Under. The main event will see Minotaura Nogueira take on the fast rising Cain Velasquez in a heavyweight bout, with the winner very much injected into the title picture. The rest of the card appears here.

NY Mets pitcher Johan Santana either knows something we all don't, or has lost the plot. He declares that the Mets will win the World Series, and he means this year, and also thinks he's the best pitcher in the NL East. Sure, if not for Roy Halladay and arguably Josh Johnson.

Manchester United visit Everton in the most attractive English Premier League match-up of the day, though not weekend. That'd be tomorrow's Liverpool/Manchester City tilt.

If you missed Them Crooked Vultures on PBS last night, one, it sucks to be you, and two, you can catch it here.

Great start to Antawn Jamison's days as a Cleveland Cavalier. 0-12 from the field as the Cavs went down 110-93 in Charlotte. Maybe now Phil Jackson and Doc Rivers will stop whining of how unfair the trade was and that the Cavs got 'tawn for next to nothing?

Seems that the luge/skeleton/bobsled run isn't just causing one injury (death) for one who committed a serious driver error. There have been a few others hospitalized - one with a spinal injury - and others left concussed. But more importantly, Canada won the men's skeleton gold!

The Olympic ice dancing pair of Alexandra and Roman Zaretsky aren't a couple, they're brother and sister. Extremely incestuous pics here.

Have a great Saturday.

Narrow escape

Tiger Woods will deliver his speech to the chosen sycophants this morning. There's a leaked version of the speech allegedly making the rounds in which he admits his marriage is done like one of John Daly's half dozen or so. Ernie Els isn't happy with the timing of the "presser" as it will take away from the Accenture - a company who dropped Tiger, not coincidentally - Match Play Championship. Els is taking himself far too seriously, it would take away regardless of timing and he ought to be thanking Eldrick for increasing the prize monies for the entire PGA. Not like golf has much of an off season, too. The always thought provoking Jason Whitlock thinks Tiger should retire.

Back to sports now.

Canada was life and death to beat Switzerland last night and needed a shootout to do it in a 3-2 final win. Martin Brodeur clutched up with four saves in the shootout and that ought to keep him between the pipes going forward. Sidney Crosby really wasn't a factor until the shootout where he scored the winner, though the constant line changes can't be helping. Damn impressive were Joe Thornton and Shea Weber. Not sure what Mike Babcock is doing changing lines so often. I know it is "early" and he's trying to find the right combinations, but in a tight game, that kind of thing breeds panic, and there's a reason the Sharks line looks the most organized shift in and out. Canada will have to really step up next game to beat the U.S. if they are to get an easier draw in the knockout rounds. In the upset of the tourney so far, the Russians lost 2-1 in the shootout to Slovakia.

Strange baseball fact: the Milwaukee Brewers spent as much this off-season as the New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox did combined on free agents. More crazy: the Kansas City Royals spent as much as the Yankees did.

While on the subject of money and baseball, Alex Rodriguez will have earned $470,404,010 for his career when his contract expires in 10 years time. That doesn't include any bonuses to come, which could total $30 million in his home run record chase alone, or any endorsements.

While you've been reading this entry, Canadian coach Mike Babcock changed line combinations three more times.

Seems the story we had here Sunday on an NHL team moving to Winnipeg has reached the mainstream media, as the Winnipeg Free Press acknowledges rumors of the Atlanta Thrashers moving north.

That stripper who once accused a few Duke lacrosse players of raping her - they were declared innocent - is back in the news. This time, for attempted murder. Nice work.

Edmonton Oilers goalie Nikolai Khabibulin was busted on a DUI in Arizona, which of course has brought about the name "Hasbeenboozin". Fantastic stuff, Bukakke.

Put down the pen, Mike Babcock.

That's what she said!

In case you missed one of the best reasons for a student to be hit with a detention, check out the picture at right.

Word is that Tiger Woods is going to come out of hiding Friday to make a statement at PGA headquarters. If it is anything like the previous Tiger Woods, I'm sure it'll be real electric stuff by which, of course, I mean dull as hell. That said, expect beyond ridiculous coverage, even though it appears Tiger is keeping the invitees to his trusted lackey's, err, media members.

Canada has a little payback in mind tonight in men's hockey when they'll face Switzerland, who embarrassingly bounced Canada out of the Turin Olympics four years ago. There's a lot of pressure on Martin Brodeur in goal after Roberto Luongo pitched a shutout to open two nights back, to go alongside a shutout in his last NHL start. Anything looking shaky and it will be hard to go back to Brodeur Sunday, though my guess is he does just fine and takes the ball here on out. Yours truly is having a wonderful run betting Canada - male and female - in Olympic hockey, among others, so do yourself a favor and click on the Pinnacle link above and get down tonight.

It was amateur hour for Arsenal and their goalie Lukasz Fabianski, who was soft on one goal, and brain dead on another, as the Gunners lost 2-1 at FC Porto. The highlights of the second goal have to be seen to be believed. Hit this site and scroll down to the appropriate game. In other Champions League action, Bayern Munich downed Fiorentina 2-1 at home. Also of note in the round of 16: if Real Madrid fail to come back and defeat Lyon in their round of 16 matchup, that will be five straight years that Real has gone out in that very round. No pressure, CR9 et al.

Chris Bosh is having an unbelievable year for the Toronto Raptors, his best ever no doubt. But the fans that are cheering "MVP" at the Air Canada Centre need to drop a foot or two into reality. They're a barely over .500 team and while he's important, he's not what LeBron James or Kobe Bryant are to their teams.

It is the NBA trade deadline and unlike the NHL version, the sporting world in Canada is moving along just fine. Would love to see the Toronto Raptors deal Jose Calderon and his terrible contract, but I'll settle for just dealing Jose Calderon. The Cleveland Cavaliers dealt for Antawn Jamison in what could (should?) be the final piece of the puzzle for them to take the Eastern Conference.

Mark McGwire took the first day of camp for the St. Louis Cardinals, his first day as the Cards hitting coach, to apologize for steroid use. He commented that he thinks "people understand how truly sorry I [am]" to which people responded, nodding: "not very".

Cincinnati Bengal Chad Ochocinco wants Terrell Owens to join the Bengals so badly he'll take a paycut to do so, or at least that is what he says here. He also reveals he and QB Carson Palmer aren't exactly best of friends in the off-season.

Tom Verducci at SI.com presents his annual look at "at risk" pitchers, those that had a considerable increase in innings from last season to the season prior by age 25 or younger pitchers.

As if the world needed more reasons to mock Dallas Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips, he gave it one. When Wade Phillips goes on the road, he thinks it is fun to stay at the "Y-M-C-A"...

8 is enough...to cover!

It took a period and change to hit the scoreboard, but the Canadian men's hockey team really got rolling once they did, and were 8-0 winners over a game Norway team, who to their credit didn't try to kill the game. Once Canadian coach Mike Babcock put Jarome Iginla on the first line with Sidney Crosby and Rick Nash, the red and white started lighting up the scoreboard. Nash is a beast in front of the net and such a crazy combo of size and speed. Most impressive was a very mobile and energetic defensive group, albeit against a lesser opponent. Up next are Switzerland, tomorrow night at 7:30 Eastern.

Maelle Ricker scored Canada's second gold of the Olympics, this time in the snowboard cross, and about a week from now, that may be the norm rather than particularly noteworthy if some predictions are to be believed.

First it was a lack of snow that led to the cancellation of some Olympic events, and yesterday, it was too much snow that led to some skiing events getting bumped. If this Olympics were in the U.S., our media would be teeing off on the Americans, as if they control the weather.

Not sure why, but I find it very funny that Pierre Mcguire's given name isn't Pierre, but is Regis. No, seriously.

Wayne Rooney is turning in an all-time season for Manchester United now that he's the focal point with Cristiano Ronaldo off to Real Madrid. Rooney took over in the second half as Manchester United scored a big road win of 3-2 over AC Milan. Definitely my fav player in sports right now. As for Ronaldo, he and Real were 1-0 losers at Olympique Lyon in their first round of 16 leg. Up today, Arsenal travels to face FC Porto and Bayern Munich host Fiorentina.

In the Olympic hockey tourney, a regulation win gets you three points. A win in overtime or by shootout two points with the loser getting one. Seems far more sensible than what the NHL is working, no? Mix in no touch icing, the almost certain lack of fighting and games that are far quicker paced and to complete and small wonder Gary Bettman and the NHL don't want their inferior game exposed to the spotlight, they're afraid people might want this stuff all the time.

Think UFC is doing alright? They've got UFC 112 slated to take place in the money pit that is Abu Dhabi on April 10th.

The IOC isn't happy with U.S. goalie Ryan Miller for having "Miller Time" on his goalie mask. It is a good thing the IOC isn't taking themselves too seriously. The U.S. beat Switzerland 3-1 to open their quest for gold.

If you're wondering, the next Winter Olympics will be in Sochi, Russia, which this week is seeing weather of +15 with rain.

I don't know who ESPN's Jenn Brown is, but judging from these pics, I'm guessing we'd all like to.

I'll be clear here: I hate figure skating. Hate. But I love me some figure skating wipeouts, especially of the Olympic varietal. As an added bonus, the commentator's sigh's of disappointment are fantastic.

Wouldn't it be hilarious if the WWE worked discussions of steroid eras into its Hall of Fame discussions that are always a part of its broadcasts leading up to WrestleMania weekend? There's a lot of potentially great comedy there.

Very classy of Oprah Winfrey to mistake Drew Brees birthmark on his face as lipstick.