Was The Ovechkin Hit On Gonchar Dirty? Watch

Remember When? Kasparaitis vs. Lindros

Do you remember where you were when Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Darius Kasparaitis rocked Philadelphia Flyers center Eric Lindros and ruined one of Philly's brightest stars?



I was watching the game at a local chicken wing joint.

Lindros was mush.

Let's Go Pens!

YouTube Video of the Day: 1988 Super Bowl

Because I am regularly tortured (as a Cincinnati Bengals fan) by ESPN and FOX Sports with pro-49ers footage of Super Bowl XXIII, I decided to look up one of the good parts of that legendary game.

I would have to say that Stanford Jennings' kickoff return is one of my favorite memories of my childhood. In fact, I will be posting YouTube videos of some of my other favorite childhood sports moments in the next few days.

Anyway, when Jennings ran back that kick, I was sure the Bengals were going to win the Super Bowl. They didn't. I cried. I was 11.

Cincinnati Reds Get New HD Scoreboard

While Great American Ballpark, home of the Cincinnati Reds, is less than a decade old, it has already received a scoreboard upgrade.

Daktronics has installed a 138' x 39' high definition (HD) scoreboard into the home of the Reds for the 2009 season, which begins today at 1:10 p.m.



For more information, check out the Engadget HD article here.

Sheffield to Reds?

The Cincinnati Reds are contemplating an offer for free agent outfielder Gary Sheffield, who was released earlier this week by the Detroit Tigers.

Sheffield, while more of a proven commodity than any of Cincinnati's left field options, is 40 years old and his skills are diminished. He was hitting .178 this spring at the time of his release.

TMD's take: Once again the Cincinnati Reds are pondering a move that would have made sense five years ago. That's when Gary Sheffield was still relevant. They should save their money and give one of their current players (Dickerson, Gomes) the chance to play every day.

Trade Alert: Jay Cutler to Chicago Bears

In a HUGE move the Chicago Bears have acquired quarterback Jay Cutler from the Denver Broncos.

ESPN.com reports that the Bears gave up quarterback Kyle Orton and first-round picks in both the 2009 and 2010 drafts to get Cutler.

TMD's take: While Jay Cutler is a quality quarterback, the Broncos weren't going anywhere anytime soon. The Bears should now be a force to be reckoned with in the NFC.

Calipari to Kentucky?

In a story that should suprise no one, Memphis Men's Basketball coach John Calipari is rumored to be interested in the head coaching vacancy at the University of Kentucky.

UK fired Billy Gillespie after a couple of mediocre seasons. He was never really their guy.

Calipari has a good thing going at Memphis, even though the Tigers play in a mid-major conference (Conference-USA). While it would be tough to leave, he can't pass this up. Too much money and too big of a stage.

UK fans should be happy too. Calipari is the next best thing to Rick Pitino.

Enjoy the Final Four.

TMD's NCAA March Madness Bracket Picks and More!

First of all, Happy St. Patrick's Day to all the Irish people that read this.

You love it.

Now that that is out of the way, we need to have one of those really cool articles on March Madness and who we recommend you pick.

But first...



Denver Broncos QB Jay Cutler wants to be traded. I can't think of a better team for him than the Tennessee Titans. He could go home. Jeff Fisher would keep Cutler in line.

Also in the NFL, the Jacksonville Jaguars released wide receiver Matt Jones less than a week after his latest arrest. This guy is a mess right now. I'm sure he'll catch on somewhere, but he needs to get it together if he wants to stay in the NFL.



On to hockey, where New Jersey Devils goalie Martin Brodeur faces the Chicago Blackhawks tonight with a chance to break Patrick Roy's career wins record as an NHL netminder. Brodeur will go down as the greatest goalie of all-time, no doubt about it.

The Pittsburgh Penguins continue their record 8-game homestand tonight against an Atlanta Thrashers team that has won 6 straight. The Thrashers are all but officially eliminated from the NHL's Eastern Conference playoff race, and they are on fire in the 'spoiler' role. The Pens can't afford to blow another 3rd period lead or they won't be in the 5th spot for long.

I would comment on the World Baseball Classic, but I honestly don't know if anyone cares about it. Hey, that last sentence was a comment. Allright.

Finally! On to the March Madness picks...



I like #1 Louisville in the Midwest. They are pretty darn good and they have a pretty easy path to the Elite Eight. My Midwest sleeper is 10th seeded USC. The Trojans are fresh off the Pac-10 tournament title and are as hot as anyone right now.

I'm going with #1 UConn in the West bracket. I just can't envision any of the other teams out West beating the Huskies. It might happen, but I would be shocked. #12 Northern Iowa is my upset special in this region. Kurt Warner's alma mater over #5 Purdue. Wooooooooo! #9 Tennessee is solid too.

#3 Villanova out of the East. #12 Wisconsin is my sleeper. Get it.

Look for #2 Oklahoma to survive the South region, although #3 Syracuse showed a lot last week in the Big East conference tournament. I was going to pick #1 North Carolina as a sleeper, but decided to go with #9 Butler. The Bulldogs program has developed nicely and is experienced. They could give the Tar Heels a nightmare.

Uhhhhhh...Oklahoma to win it all. Sooners rather than later...I'm turning into my father. Oh god.

Oh yeah, and if you were betting on the play-in game I would recommend Morehead State. My high school advisor went to school there. Yes, that is my reasoning.

Thank you and goodnight!

Penguins Are A Second Half Team

For all of you Pittsburgh Penguins fans out there (including myself) who have been freaking out all season long about your team's plight, remember that the Penguins are clutch in the second half of the season.

What? Examples you say? Of course. TMD: Sports wouldn't print this without examples.

Remember the 2006-07 season, when Evgeni Malkin and Jordan Staal were rookies? Thru 41 games that season the Pens had a 18-16-7 record for a pedestrian 43 points. The Penguins went on a tear through the end of the regular season that year however, going 29-8-4 (62 pts.) the rest of the way for a 19 point improvement (over the team's record during the first half of the season).

Last season (2007-08) they improved to 48 points at the midpoint of the season by going 23-16-2. The Pens improved via trades and Sidney Crosby's return and it showed in the standings. They went 24-11-6 (54 pts.) through the final 41 games of the season en route to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Through the first 41 games of this season Pittsburgh was 20-17-4 for 44 points. The 27 games since have seen the Penguins sport a record of 16-9-2 (34 pts.). They are currently ripping things up again, having won seven straight and nine out of ten. The scariest stat about this year's team is that they haven't scored more than one power play goal in a game since the midway point of the season, a January 6, 2009 win against Atlanta. That will have to change if this team has any delusions of grandeur.

What does all this mean? Well, it lets us know that Pittsburgh doesn't exactly tear it up in the first half of the season. They start out rather slow and are motivated by the trade deadline and the playoff push.

Thank god for the law of averages.

A-Rod Out Until May

In a stunning announcement that somehow overshadowed the Dallas Cowboys' release of WR Terrell Owens, the New York Yankees revealed that controversial third baseman Alex Rodriguez will be out of action for 10 weeks because of a torn labrum and a cyst on his right hip.

From our standpoint, the only other person that could have caused ESPN to relatively ignore the Owens situation would have been Tiger Woods.

Maybe tomorrow he will carjack Fuzzy Zoeller in a golf cart.

Only if we're lucky, right ESPN?

Steel Cage Match: Alex Rodriguez vs. Jose Canseco

The story between these two keeps getting better.

Here's the plot so far:

Jose Canseco had a relationship with Madonna in the early 90's. In the article, Canseco claims the two never got naked together.

Years later, Alex Rodriguez allegedly had a hand in Madonna's divorce.





Now, Alex Rodriguez has admitted to using performance enhancing drugs.. How did it come to this, you ask?

First, Jose Canseco said ARod was on 'The Juice':





Then ARod denied it on 60 Minutes:





Next, Sports Illustrated broke the story that ARod did, in fact, use a banned substance during his time with the Texas Rangers.





Finally, Rodriguez admits he 'juiced':





What does this teach us?

1. Jose Canseco was right about ARod.

2. Canseco is telling the truth about Madonna wanting to have his baby.

3. ARod is an &$$h*1e.

Stay tuned for more in this saga.

Game Highlights: Penguins vs. Lightning 2/4/09

It was the same old story.

The Pittsburgh Penguins were behind heading into the third period.

At home.

Against an inferior opponent.

Then, Evgeni Malkin went hognuts.

Berserk, even.

Malkin is a beast.

Let's hope he can do that 20-30 more times.

Otherwise, the Penguins will miss the playoffs.

Forgive Matt Millen? Not Lions Fans

During the 2008 NFL regular season, the Detroit Lions set a record for futility.

They went 0-16.

First team to ever do that.

Congratulations.

Before the season was over, the Lions fired Matt Millen as President of the team.

Millen has since been hired as an analyst for NBC.

He did some studio work during the Super Bowl, and someone at Detroit's NBC affiliate went a little too far.

Every time Millen's face popped up on the screen, Detroit's Channel 4 ran a scrolling reminder of his inability to produce a winning team in Detroit:

"Matt Millen was president of the Lions for the worst eight-year run in the history of the NFL. Knowing his history with the team, is there a credibility issue as he now serves as an analyst for NBC Sports?"

That is pretty funny, and it is a good point.

However, we at TMD-Sports have a feeling that NBC is going to be pissed when they catch wind of this.

Heads are going to roll.

It probably wasn't a good idea for the intern to learn to use the graphics software that day.

Santonio Holmes = Super Bowl MVP

It seemed like James Harrison of the Pittsburgh Steelers had locked up the Super Bowl MVP award.

Then the Arizona Cardinals' Larry Fitzgerald went nuts. The award became his to lose.

Then former Ohio State Buckeye (and current Steeler) Santonio Holmes made the defining play of Super Bowl XLIII:

Awesome game.

Things I Realized While Watching the 2009 NHL All-Star Game

1. Alex Ovechkin has taken Mike Ricci's place as the ugliest guy in the league:

That picture doesn't really do his hideousness justice. I saw one shot of him and he looked just like Sloth. That's my first real photoshop experience. Yay.

One more thing about AO, does anyone else think he puts off a serial-killer type of vibe? I think he may very well be certifiably insane. That might be his advantage over all the other players in the league.

I'm just sayin' he's kind of creepy, that's all.

2. The Canadiens are to Montreal and hockey what the Yankees are to New York and baseball.

They are the pulse of the sports scene in their respective cities, consistently showing up on the front page.



Their fans are so spoiled they expect a championship contender every season.

Habs fans, however, are among the most loyal and knowledgeable fans in all of pro sports.

3. Evgeni Malkin has got a bag full of trick moves. He scored this goal during the second period of the ASG in Montreal:





It seemed like every time Malkin got the puck in the offensive zone he would try some crazy practice-only move.

Overall, I would say the ASG was fairly entertaining.

Crosby Out of NHL All-Star Game

After Tuesday night's 2-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, Pittsburgh Penguins superstar center Sidney Crosby told the media he would play in this year's All-Star game in Montreal.

His status for the mid-season showcase was in the air after Crosby was injured during a loss to the Washington Capitals last week.

That was the extent of the story until today.

Team doctors advised Crosby today that playing in the All-Star game this weekend could cause further injury to his knee, and that five days of rest without skating could go a long way towards becoming 100%.

So, Sidney Crosby will miss his second straight All-Star game.

Martin St. Louis of the Tampa Bay Lightning will take his roster spot.

At least Evgeni Malkin is still playing.

The skills competition should be fun.

Go East.

Fleury = Steelers Fan

In case you missed it, the Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the New York Rangers 3-0 yesterday at Mellon Arena.

Penguins starting goalie Marc-Andre Fleury took his curtain call as one of the game's three stars and added a little Pittsburgh flair (a Steelers helmet and a Terrible Towel):

Apparently, Fleury is a Steelers fan.

FYI - Last night the Steelers defeated the Baltimore Ravens to advance to the Super Bowl. Bang!

Rangers suck.

Back to the Grind at the SHSB

Sorry, everyone.

Not only was I distracted by the whirlwind holiday season, but my wife and I recently found out that we are expecting!

So anyway, sorry about the lack of posting.

Here are some pictures from the trip Brent and I made to Pittsburgh on Wednesday, January 14, 2009:

The view from our seats:

Me:


Brent in his Rob Brown jersey:


If you're from the midwest, you know that the weather on Wednesday was dicey. What is normally a 4 hour drive took about 7 hours. We arrived with 6 minutes left in the first period. It sucked. We probably saw 20 cars flipped over on I-70 and another dozen accidents that were much less dramatic. It was such a white-knuckle experience that I didn't break out the camera until we got to the game. Brent and I were both just happy to arrive in one piece.

The game was ok, the crowd was relatively quiet, and Ovechkin was lucky. We'll be posting more the rest of the way. Thank you and goodnight.

Caps suck.

Goin' To the 'Burgh

My buddy Brent and I are going to brave the weather and head out to Pittsburgh for tonight's Penguins-Capitals game.

I hope the Pens can keep the momentum going after last night's 4-2 victory in Philly.

Let's Go Pens.

I will return with pictures like last time.

Caps suck.

NFL Playoff Picks Re-Cap

I went 3-1 with my picks for the wild-card round.

That's good, but it's not good enough.

AFC

+I nailed the Ravens beating the Titans. Never bet on a team with Kerry Collins at the helm in a big game.

+The Steelers also came through for me. Santonio Holmes got Pittsburgh going with a 67-yard punt return TD.



NFC

-The Cardinals are impressive. Did you realize that the NFC Championship Game is in freaking Arizona? They've come a long way. They destroyed the Panthers. Good for them.

-Donovan McNabb is headed back to the NFC title game, and this time it was rather unexpected. I know I didn't expect it. They dominated the Giants. I hate Philly.

So I went 2-2 this week. Not too hateful. My overall record sits at 5-3. Big weekend ahead. More picks to come!

NFL Playoff Picks 1/10-1/11

I went 3-1 last week. Damn Colts.

This week, things are going to be different.

AFC

Baltimore over Tennessee

I have no reason to believe this will happen. I just don't like the Titans. Go Flacco!

Pittsburgh over San Diego

Byron Leftwich could be starting this game and I'm still taking the Steelers at home.

NFC

Carolina over Arizona

Home field = big win for Panthers. Sorry Kurt Warner.

NY Giants over Philadelphia

This one has become more difficult to pick as the week has gone on. The Eagles are tough, but I'll take the Giants at home.

NFL Wild Card Weekend In Review

I must admit I didn't spend a whole lot of time watching football this weekend. The Penguins have me slipping deeper into a winter depression so I just avoided sports altogether. On the flip side, my dad and I made our reservations to go to Vegas in March. So I've got that going for me, which is nice.

First, a review of my picks and the games:

I went 3-1 this weekend, with my only loss coming because of a bogus defensive holding call during the overtime of the Chargers-Colts game. I hate it when refs decide a game. I was 'spot-on' with the Ravens, Eagles, and Cardinals. I have a feeling that next week will be a little more difficult to predict.

NFL Playoff games for next weekend:

Saturday:

Baltimore at Tennessee 4:30 p.m.
Arizona at Carolina 8:15 p.m.

Sunday:

Philadelphia at NY Giants 1:00 p.m.
San Diego at Pittsburgh 4:45 p.m.

Picks to come later this week!

Sidney Crosby Fights Brett McLean 1/3/09

Here is the YouTube from today's Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Florida Panthers game during which Sidney Crosby dropped the gloves and subsequently dropped Brett McLean:



As for the Pens, well, they're not good. The Panthers won the game 6-1.

This Week's NFL Playoff Predictions

First of all, Happy New Year everyone. I hope you had a great holiday season.

Time for my NFL Playoff picks:

AFC

Colts over Chargers

Peyton Manning is on fire. Look out. You have been warned.

Ravens over Dolphins

I like Joe Flacco and the Ravens defense. Although Chad Pennington made one of those Kurt Warner deals with the devil, so he might continue to dominate. But I'll stick with the Ravens.

NFC

Arizona over Atlanta

I'll take Kurt Warner and Larry Fitzgerald at home against a rookie QB any day of the week. Cardinals for me and I'd like to personally thank Kurt Warner for helping keep my fantasy football season interesting. That is all.

Philadelphia over Minnesota

This game would be worth watching if it were Randall Cunningham's Eagles against Herschel Walker's Vikings. Oh well. I guess I'll just have to settle for Tecmo Super Bowl on that one. Adrian Peterson will have to overcome his quarterback's mistakes for the Vikings to have a chance in this one.