A Few Of My All Time Favorite Shots

I'll keep it exclusive to Hockey. No Salgado. No Gretz or Henderson either.


Human misery? Check. Juxtaposition of triumph and despair? Check. Irony? Check. Absurdity? Check.


I never particularly cared for Linden. Then again, this isn't a shot representative of just one man. Or two men. Jesus, that's sad.


All those who say, "there's no crying in Hockey" are welcome to line up and blow me. Beautiful.





Remember the Olympics promo from 1994? "In case you've forgotten what joy looks like..."


Questions?


This is not a picture of Marty Brodeur.


This is not a picture of Teemu Selanne.

And just because I'm an asshole:




Let me say one thing: In sports photography, 99% of "iconic" shots require little or no talent as a photographer -- Ali vs. Liston, "Black Power" at the '68 Olympics, MJ taking flight, even Bobby Orr's "flying goal" -- so much of that is being in the right place at the right time. To create something from almost nothing -- to use only one's knowledge of the game, foresight, instinct, and anticipation... This is talent. This is when sports photography transcends mere documentation. Maybe I sound like an elitist, pretentious, insecure prick for saying that, but why should I let pucksandbooks have all the fun?

Caps/Flyers Firefight

Caps 4, Flyers 2
I love Mike Richards as I loved John LeClair. The guy's a stud.

Pic of the night:


Others:

Third Period Operetta -- Caps/Devils 10/12

Pic of the night:


Others:

Just Another Crowd

Lundqvist looked like he might have been completely baked for but one play in last night's match. The Caps, on the other hand, looked like they'd each just spent the day in Kingston.

A forgettable Thursday night, to say the least.

Tx, Fx Two Games Into It

--Firstly, I apologize for not having game or warm-up pics from the home opener. I've finally fried my eight gig CF card. It was bound to happen eventually; I'm just glad it didn't decide to crap out on me closer to Spring.

--I'm thinking about doing a photo bit on sports bars. If any of my dozen readers have suggestions, hit up my email. I don't want this to be exclusive to the DC area. Boston, NYC, and Philly shouldn't be left out. Hockey-centric bars are ideal, and I'm open to just about anything aside from an American Football-centric bar. The NFL will be our society's killing stroke.

--Theo and ShaMo look ready for bounce back campaigns. I've said already that Varly will (quite understandably) have a tough stretch. How many rookie goalies have we seen with brilliant playoff debuts? How many have replicated their success in the following year? The good news is that we know Varly has what it takes to be a show-stopper. If he can get a handle on his rebound control -- and there's no reason to think he won't eventually -- he's too goddamn athletic not to be an elite backstop.

--BMo's goal looked like something from Pat Kane's playbook. Gotta love the backhand, sans deke, to the roof.

--For all the Meth-heads, denizens of Pennsylvania, and generally unwashed masses, we want you to know that Brooks Laich is a God among mortals. In the imperishable words of Nas, "It's the feeling of a millionaire spending a hundred grand." Word.

--I'm a huge fan of Luke Schenn. I almost feel sorry that AO used him like a cheap whore, but I suppose any defenseman will do when it comes to the pull-up wrister/screen. I wonder if any other player's ever used that move so effectively.
So does Jim Hughson. Tony the Tiger wishes he had such talent.

How The Hell Is Ovie Not Andy Roddick In This Analogy?

"If you give him too much time to shoot, he will make you look bad. He is the hardest-working and hardest-hitting superstar in the league. He is the Rafael Nadal of hockey, and (Sidney) Crosby is (Roger) Federer."
--Denny Wideman

If we can ignore, for a moment, the fact that two hockey Gods are being compared to tennis players...

How the hell is Ovie not Andy Roddick in this analogy? Crazy talk.



Yeah, I know it's fake. Moving on:

Caps 4, B's 1


Ovie and Brooksie each had two tallies and a helper. Not bad.

Caps Drinking Game -- Opening Night Edition

The wait is over. The void begins to fill.
It. Is. Upon us.

Take one drink if:
--Alex Semin takes a stick penalty in the offensive zone.
--Alex Ovechkin beats two men and shoots the biscuit wide.
--The Caps give up a goal on the first shot of any period.
--The Caps give up a goal in the last minute of any period.
--Alex Semin has the puck in the slot but elects to deke himself into the corner instead of shooting the puck on net.
--Dave Steckel misses a gaping net
--Marc Savard breaks Jeff Schultz's ankles
--Milan Lucic concusses a puck-moving D
--Tim Thomas starts to remind you of Jean Grey
--The Versus crew show Alex Ovechkin blowing a snot rocket.
--Doc verbally fellaches either Pens superstar during a stoppage in play.

Take two drinks if:
--The Versus crew show Alex Ovechkin blowing a snot rocket from the bench.
--Doc verbally fellaches either Pens superstar while the puck is in play.
--Either commentator breaks breaks down a play before the action's stopped.
--Semin takes a stick penalty with the man advantage.
--The Versus crew show Claude Julien doing his best Bush-esque smirk after giving up a goal.

Finish your drink if:
--The Boston faithful think of a chant besides any variation of "Ovechkin sucks," "Caps suck," or "Let's go B's."
--Theo posts a shutout
--Gordon records a point
--Clark draws a penalty
--Schultz physically bests anyone on the ice
--Schultz drops his mitts
--Ovechkin goes more than ten minutes without a recorded shot on goal.
--Ovechkin scores either a penalty shot or shootout goal.


If you're at home
Drink: Stone IPA
Food: Homemade chili w/ tons of cheddar, sour cream, and onions
Sweater: Oates away, 1998

If you're going out
Venue: Bugsy's
Drink: Rolling Rock
Food: Deep dish pepperoni pizza
Sweater: Laich home, 2008. Chics dig it.

Let's play some hockey, dammit.