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September 20, 2006

You may have noticed my website "enhancements". Hopefully this will be easier to navigate than my old site. Well both of my TV interviews aired, and I am getting a lot of emails from people who saw me. VERY COOL! To all who have read the book and sent me very nice emails--my sincere thanks.

I would also like to mention my MICHIGAN WOLVERINES!! Puttin' a butt whippin' on the Fighting Irish. Moved up to #6 in the polls--but of course it is a long season, and a tough conference. But I still would like to throw out a loud:

HAIL, TO THE VICTORS VALIANT - HAIL, TO THE CONQUERING HEROES

GO BLUE!!!

 

June 21, 2006

Well the book is out, and this is a pretty exciting time in my life.

The book signing party on Sunday night is for anyone who wants to go. Just let me know so I can get an estimated head count.

The most important thing for me now is to get people to read it! Word of mouth is the greatest form of advertising, and if I can get people to tell their friends, that is how this will be successful. Do you think "The Da Vinci Code" would have done so well had people not talked about it. No matter how much marketing I do, there is no better marketing than getting a buzz going about your book. So I invite you to tell a friend.

Look forward to seeing everyone Sunday night.

 

 

May 1, 2006

Welcome to the first installment of my random babbles. While I do have a novel coming out, and should be spending my time talking about that, there is something far more distressing that needs attention.

THE REDWINGS!

Once again, the Wings were eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs by a less experienced, less talented team. The wings came in the #1 seed in the entire NHL, having only lost 16 games in the regular season. But as has been the case in recent years, the wings were out hustled, out hit, and out played. It was clear who wanted this playoff series more. Like most of the media, I will not spend any time bashing goaltender Manny Legace. I thought for the most part, he played pretty well. And I will not bash the offense for lack of goal production. Zetterberg was fantastic, and Datsyuk, while not scoring goals, was coming off an injury, and still was making some incredible passes to set up scoring opportunities.

I will spend my time bashing the defense. For a star-studded defensive lineup that includes Lidstrom, Schneider, Chelios, and young "phenom" Niklas Kronwall, their play was what lost this series to Edmonton. Lidstrom, considered by some to be one of the greatest defensemen ever, did absolutely nothing. Schneider, who led all defensemen in goals this season, did get 7 points, but had far too many turnovers to consider it a successful playoffs. Worst of all was Kronwall, billed as the next great Detroit defensemen. Sure he is young, and spent much of the year injured, but he looked completely lost in the playoffs. Blind passes to no one, giveaways in the defensive zone, not clearing the front of the net for Legace--all of that showed his inexperience at this level of hockey. Maybe he will be one of the greats. Maybe he will turn into a playoff performer. Remember all of the disappointments with Federov? In the Stanley Cup years, he played fantastic. So maybe Kronwall will be better in the future, but right now he does not have what it takes to be a playoff Redwing.

Even with all of that, the Wings still had game 6 all but wrapped up. A 2-0 lead going into the third period. For a team like this to give up 4 goals in the third period, including the game winning goal with just over a minute left is unforgivable. Sure there may have been some bad calls, but you have to expect those, and you have to fight through them. This team did not. They packed it in and said goodnight. They let the crowd, and the Oilers dictate the third period. When you have a third period lead, you have to suffocate the other team. That is what the Oilers did to us when they had a lead. You force them outside. You clog the middle and take away shooting lanes. You sacrifice your body and block shots. You get quick changes, stay fresh, and dump the puck. You DO NOT give up odd man rushes, or let someone in behind the defense. The Wings did, and it cost them a season.

What about El Capitan?

Will Stevie Y retire? For this fan, it will be a very sad day when and if he does. I would hate to see him go out after a first round elimination. He proved near the end of the season, and with his play in the playoffs, that he still has it. The old moves were back, the passes were perfect, and even the shots started going in. Stevie has been the epitome of what an athlete should be for 22 seasons. He has set the bar for others to live up to. When I see athletes like Barry Bonds, Kobe Bryant, and Allan Iverson act the way they do, I thank God for Steve Yzerman. The quiet captain has as much dignity as anyone on or off the ice. No matter how he goes out, he has had a brilliant and successful career, and maybe it's just me being selfish wanting him to play on. Truth is, I have never watched a Redwings team without Yzerman. He began his career there at the same time I started following hockey. He is the reason they have been the most successful NHL team over the last 12 years, and there will never be another like him. When he does hang it up, we all know that no one will ever wear #19 for the Wings again. I will be a Wings fan my entire life, but without Yzerman, I don't think it will ever be the same.