Well just start with the thing I feel like talking about the least and go from there.
And of course, that story would have to be last night's 2-0 Rimouski win at the Coliseum. That was just plain old fashioned, made from scratch, down on the farm bad. Name an aspect of the game and it was probably not the greatest thing you ever did see.
It's at this point where you're probably expecting me to go into a spiel about the officiating, particularly after having choice words for Lyndon Pike following the Commandos win against Yarmouth Sunday night.Well, that's not going to happen. First off, the penalties that were called against Moncton were, by and large, deserved. The only call I felt from my vantage point was undeserved was the Melindy diving call. I'd go through the list of infractions levied upon Moncton in this game but frankly, I don't feel like typing that much. Simply put, it wasn't quite as bad as the fans made it out to be in terms of what was called against Moncton. I will concede that there was a degree of inconsistency however. That being said, it was Thane Arsenault and Brad Mills running the game. One guy has a long history of officiating with some sort of chip on his shoulder while the other is Brad Mills... and I don't feel the need to expand on that point. It just happens, although to be fair that's far from the worst game I've seen those two call. Oh, and the Cats went a perfect 6/6 on the PK... which means they spent, including the Jaskin major, 15 minutes of the game shorthanded (actually less than that because one Rimouski powerplay was nullified by an Oceanic penalty). What's the excuse for the other 45 minutes?
What happened last night was lack of sync, poor decision making with the puck, and a complete lack of finish... on both sides. Two less than stellar goals on Alex Dubeau - who was rock solid otherwise - told the story of the game. I understand that killing penalties in bunches wears on a team... but usually, it provides a boost in momentum (just ask the Commandos on Sunday night). Moncton did very little to build off that momentum. Instead, Moncton took those successful penalties as an excuse to play trashy... and at times, they lost their heads.
I love some of what I've seen from this team post-Christmas. They give a ton of hope for the rest of the season at times... but maintaining composure is an absolute must. When you are a team with an outstanding powerplay and a subpar (improving... but subpar overall) penalty kill, taking more guys on the opponent's side to the box than your own is not just a bonus, it's could mean the difference between a win and a loss.
On the bright side, this Cats team has shown in the last few weeks the ability to bounce back from subpar performances in quicker fashion than earlier in the year. The opportunity to bounce back begins Friday night in Saint John. That game would be a good one to get the wheels back on the cart as the following night's game at the Metro Center would probably be the sort of contest one would like to have some momentum on their side going in.
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Congrats to Commandos' center Robbie Graham on second star honors in the MHL this week. It was one of those weeks where there were a number of decent individual performances from the local junior A squad. However, when the dust settled, Graham's six points in two games - including a highlight reel overtime winner against Yarmouth - stood out from the pack. The selfish broadcaster side of me feels I shouldn't say this, but it's true - Robbie Graham deserves to be in a major junior lineup somewhere. His skating ability, deceptively accurate shot and overall hockey sense (including impeccable lateral movement) all tell me there's a Q team somewhere with his name on it. For the third time in four weeks, a Dieppe player has snagged one of the league's three stars.
The Commandos take to the South Shore this weekend with games in Bridgewater and Yarmouth, Friday night and Saturday respectively.
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Let Scott Howson's tale be a cautionary one to those in the same situation: when you're using incriminating photos of someone as leverage in keeping your job, guard them with your life!
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Finally, I'm going to take a semi-step away from the world of sports and touch on a popular subject today. Bell Let's Talk Day. It goes without saying that most of us don't know one another as well as we think, only the very closest to us being the exception. There's usually something brewing under the surface... and sometimes, it's a very scary thing scratching and clawing under there. An inventory of people I know or knew in my life tells me that - as you've heard throughout the day via various outlets - mental health can affect anyone and everyone. It's a very compelling - and above all, very human - topic of discussion.
Quite possibly the greatest article I've ever read on this topic was written by a man who has become closely intertwined with the subject at hand. As first a kid and then a teenager, I grew up watching Michael Landsberg on TSN. Before anyone ever heard of Onrait and O'Toole, Landsberg and Brendan Connor were - for me - the most charismatic duo to ever enter the world of sports broadcasting. They were the reason I watched Sportsdesk (when it was still Sportsdesk, of course). If you had've told a 15 year old me that one of my favorite television personalities would one day admit to suffering from depression, I would've had a mighty hard time believing it. It really happened though... and Landsberg is one of those people fortunate enough to be around today to make a difference. However, it's a piece he did on someone who wasn't as fortunate that always resonates with me. Do yourself a favor and at some point and time, read this. If you've seen the piece already, go through it again. It's one of the greatest and toughest things I've ever read. If you want some hard hitting form of perspective, it's in the link above.
I write this blog to make people think. If the end of this post doesn't accomplish that, nothing will. Maybe- just maybe - thinking will lead to talking.
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