I will keep this short and sweet.
Tonight marks the first of the Aeros' last three games of the regular season.
The four teams that are in, are in ... and they just about have the order wrapped up as well.
I think the Admirals COULD catch the 'Hogs, but Chicago needs just one more point to secure the division crown.
That would be good news for Aeros fans, because I'd have to think the Stars would rest some guys for their season finale Saturday night.
As far as the Aeros go, they need to win all three games to get above .500 for the season.
If they do that, I believe they will get themselves out of the cellar, too. No way that happens, though, with all the call-ups and injuries right now. Fans really should pull for just finding a way to win that last home game.
Tonight could be real rough as the Rampage are a very high-scoring team and are coming off a game that frankly they dominated and lost at Texas Tuesday night. Couple that with Anton (possibly) getting his first start since March 27, and look out.
I gave up the public prediction business awhile back, but I will go on the record and say S.A. nets at least five against the Aeros tonight, and it could be more like seven. San Antonio is the most porous team in the division, so maybe the Aeros get a few on the board, too.
If I had to give you a score right now, I would say 6-2 Rampage. Too bad, for this reason, the game is on TV ... but Andrew Monaco will do a great job on the air tonight. He does TV for the Rampage games, and used to be their radio guy back in the early Rampage days.
But I digress ...
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Noreau to the Max
Max Noreau is headed up to Calgary, where the Wild are playing tomorrow night. It's not for sure that he'll play yet, but for heaven's sake, just even a few days of show dough is a swell bonus for a guy who has been a bright light in the fog this season.
Sure, it sucks to lose him, but I think it's clear he was overdue for this call and the Aeros aren't doing squat anyway, so he might as well get a taste of the ol' NHL salt lick for a few days. Great for him.
I'm pretty jacked for the guy. So jacked, the first thing I thought to do was churn some butter. I really am that white and stuck in the early 90s.
Nice Guy Matt Kassian
If you get the chance, I've got a story on Matt Kassian, enforcer, humanitarian, and all-around nice guy posted over at the mothership. Go give it a read.
Aeros Lose Again, The Baby's In Black Edition
The Aeros lost to Rockford tonight by a score of 3-1. That's nothing new. Nothing about this loss was new. The god awful first period. Yep, we've seen that before. The shoddy defense. Yep. The power play that turns into a short-handed goal? Yep.
I went down to the locker room after the game. I've got quotes from Kevin and Jon DiSalvatore. But really, there's no need to transcribe them because there's nothing new. DiSalvatore's upset about the first period. The team's better than this. The guy's care. They haven't given up. But just plug in a quote from him or any other player from one of the losses this season, and it will fit in. Same thing from Kevin.
It all kind of reminds me of a Beatles song -- yeah, shocking. "Baby's In Black" has a lyric that goes "Baby's In Black/And I'm feeling blue/Oh, what should I do?"
That's what it's like in the locker room. Heads are down. The silence is deafening. Guys just sit there, wondering what to do, feeling blue.
The season's over. Sure, there are still three games left. But the season's over. It's almost, looking around, like they can't believe it. Like this shouldn't have happened. That they're better.
That's it. I don't know what else to say.
TWO MISCELLANEOUS NOTES:
The grandparents were in the house tonight, the grandparents being Chuck Fletcher and Jim Mill. And I don't think they were happy by what they saw. They were here looking for someone to take back to Minnesota with them. I don't know if they found anybody. When asked, Constantine said that having the brass around sometimes gets in to the heads of the guys and they think too much and don't just play. This is sometimes known as the Doug Riseborough effect as the guys always played like crap when he was around.
*********
Kevin said the goal that came when Darcy Kuepmer got knocked over was a goal, to him and to the guys on the bench, and it was a goal without a doubt. In case any of you were wondering.
I went down to the locker room after the game. I've got quotes from Kevin and Jon DiSalvatore. But really, there's no need to transcribe them because there's nothing new. DiSalvatore's upset about the first period. The team's better than this. The guy's care. They haven't given up. But just plug in a quote from him or any other player from one of the losses this season, and it will fit in. Same thing from Kevin.
It all kind of reminds me of a Beatles song -- yeah, shocking. "Baby's In Black" has a lyric that goes "Baby's In Black/And I'm feeling blue/Oh, what should I do?"
That's what it's like in the locker room. Heads are down. The silence is deafening. Guys just sit there, wondering what to do, feeling blue.
The season's over. Sure, there are still three games left. But the season's over. It's almost, looking around, like they can't believe it. Like this shouldn't have happened. That they're better.
That's it. I don't know what else to say.
TWO MISCELLANEOUS NOTES:
The grandparents were in the house tonight, the grandparents being Chuck Fletcher and Jim Mill. And I don't think they were happy by what they saw. They were here looking for someone to take back to Minnesota with them. I don't know if they found anybody. When asked, Constantine said that having the brass around sometimes gets in to the heads of the guys and they think too much and don't just play. This is sometimes known as the Doug Riseborough effect as the guys always played like crap when he was around.
*********
Kevin said the goal that came when Darcy Kuepmer got knocked over was a goal, to him and to the guys on the bench, and it was a goal without a doubt. In case any of you were wondering.
Pigs with Guns: Aeros 1, Ice Hogs 3
Andrew tweeted that sentence after the game, and it made me giggle and required a stick figure. Angry pigs are fun to draw. Why didn't I figure that out earlier in the season? BACON!
I'm not gonna make any ham bones about it... that was a shitty game. I can't imagine how hard it is to get up for these last few games, but when ALL the bosses are watching up on press row, boy, I sure think I'd find a little extra something, right?
Also, the unfortunate reality is that tickets aren't any less expensive just because the team is out of it. Fans deserve a better effort than they got tonight.
Justin Falk was the only one I saw bringing it hard all night and he looked terrific. The Daoust goal was one of those as a goalie that just make your stomach flip and think, "Jerk." But it was a beauty, and he's not a jerk, I don't think, so it's not personal, JM. You get a cookie, too. Incredible patience waiting out Crawford there. Jerk. (Still kidding.)
As frustrating as it probably was for him, I'm glad young Kuemper had a night like this before the season ended. Until now, his experience with the Aeros has been pretty smooth and the team has played well in front of him.
Tonight? Well, this is what it looks like in the AHL when your team is half-assing it for most of the game. Nights like this, on a team with so little scoring talent, you have to be nearly perfect. Ask any of the other 3 goalies with this team how fun that is. But until the Wild can draft some scoring talent that isn't immediately sent north, or until they open up the pocketbook to buy some talent like they did last season, that's how it is playing for the Aeros.
Anyway, that's all. See you Saturday for The End (at home, anyway).
Saturday, April 3, 2010
The Kid Speaks, And Other Things
That's a nice post from Heather, below. I thought I would share some of the quotes from after the game, and discuss some other matters.
So it was Darcy Kuemper's first win on the AHL level. And of course, we talked to him.
"It’s a great feeling," he said about getting the win. "I didn’t even know if I would get any playing time when I got called up, and I go in and get my first win. It’s an amazing feeling. I’m on cloud nine."
The kid really does look young. But he held his composure pretty good, especially considering that Colton Gillies and Justin Falk were playing around with him and trying to make him break.
And a positive for him, last night, probably, was just his general ignorance of the league, especially his general ignorance of Chicago. Sure, he saw them, and faced them, on Wednesday, but he just doesn't realize how good they're supposed to be.
"I haven’t seen them [Chicago] play until now, but I heard they’re a good team and have a lot of offense," he said. "I’m not nervous, but in the third period I really realized that I can play at this level. I really calmed down and just played my game. I knew when we got that second one -- to go up 4-2, get the two goal lead -- I knew we were going to win it."
He knew that his play wasn't perfect, and there were some things that he wanted to set right, like that second Chicago goal which came off of a rebound he didn't handle properly. But unlike some young kids, and lots of veterans, he didn't let that goal get into his head.
"I would have liked to have that rebound back," he said, "but it came through traffic, and I was just like ‘you know what, we still have the lead here, we’re in good shape. I just need to play my game and stick with it, and we’ll still get the win.’”
He also gave credit to teammate and fellow goalie Wade Dubielewicz. If you ever watch the Aeros bench on a night when Dubielewicz isn't playing, and you'll note that he's the most vocal coach that you'll ever meet. He's always shouting and encouraging everybody and making suggestions. And during the timeouts last night, he was always confering with Kuemper.
"He’s been great," Kuemper said of Dubielewicz. "I owe him so much. Since the moment I got here he took me under his wing. He taught me a lot about the league, and he keeps teaching me. He’s really helped to calm me down and feel at home."
***************
If you thought the team was playing harder last night than they have recently, then you're right. Kevin Constantine noted afterwards that part of that had to do with protecting Kuemper. But he also noted that a lot of guys figured out that they're now playing for next year, i.e., contracts. And scouts are in the building, so they should probably be trying to impress.
***************
Speaking of next year, Heather noted that there will be a lot of roster turnover. And Andrew will probably deal with this later, like after the season. But for those who are curious, the following players are under a Wild/Aeros contract for next season:
Colton Gillies,
Marco Scandella,
Max Noreau,
Carson McMillan,
Justin Falk, and
Cody Almond.
The following are restricted free agents:
Anton Khudobin,
Jamie Fraser,
Robbie Earl,
Danny Irmen,
Petr Kalus, and
Matt Kassian.
The rest of the roster will be unrestricted free agents, are here on AHL contracts.
So take from that what you will.
So it was Darcy Kuemper's first win on the AHL level. And of course, we talked to him.
"It’s a great feeling," he said about getting the win. "I didn’t even know if I would get any playing time when I got called up, and I go in and get my first win. It’s an amazing feeling. I’m on cloud nine."
The kid really does look young. But he held his composure pretty good, especially considering that Colton Gillies and Justin Falk were playing around with him and trying to make him break.
And a positive for him, last night, probably, was just his general ignorance of the league, especially his general ignorance of Chicago. Sure, he saw them, and faced them, on Wednesday, but he just doesn't realize how good they're supposed to be.
"I haven’t seen them [Chicago] play until now, but I heard they’re a good team and have a lot of offense," he said. "I’m not nervous, but in the third period I really realized that I can play at this level. I really calmed down and just played my game. I knew when we got that second one -- to go up 4-2, get the two goal lead -- I knew we were going to win it."
He knew that his play wasn't perfect, and there were some things that he wanted to set right, like that second Chicago goal which came off of a rebound he didn't handle properly. But unlike some young kids, and lots of veterans, he didn't let that goal get into his head.
"I would have liked to have that rebound back," he said, "but it came through traffic, and I was just like ‘you know what, we still have the lead here, we’re in good shape. I just need to play my game and stick with it, and we’ll still get the win.’”
He also gave credit to teammate and fellow goalie Wade Dubielewicz. If you ever watch the Aeros bench on a night when Dubielewicz isn't playing, and you'll note that he's the most vocal coach that you'll ever meet. He's always shouting and encouraging everybody and making suggestions. And during the timeouts last night, he was always confering with Kuemper.
"He’s been great," Kuemper said of Dubielewicz. "I owe him so much. Since the moment I got here he took me under his wing. He taught me a lot about the league, and he keeps teaching me. He’s really helped to calm me down and feel at home."
***************
If you thought the team was playing harder last night than they have recently, then you're right. Kevin Constantine noted afterwards that part of that had to do with protecting Kuemper. But he also noted that a lot of guys figured out that they're now playing for next year, i.e., contracts. And scouts are in the building, so they should probably be trying to impress.
***************
Speaking of next year, Heather noted that there will be a lot of roster turnover. And Andrew will probably deal with this later, like after the season. But for those who are curious, the following players are under a Wild/Aeros contract for next season:
Colton Gillies,
Marco Scandella,
Max Noreau,
Carson McMillan,
Justin Falk, and
Cody Almond.
The following are restricted free agents:
Anton Khudobin,
Jamie Fraser,
Robbie Earl,
Danny Irmen,
Petr Kalus, and
Matt Kassian.
The rest of the roster will be unrestricted free agents, are here on AHL contracts.
So take from that what you will.
Avoiding the sweep: Aeros 4, Wolves 3
I guess one of us should write something about last night. I know how hard it is to write about this team when there's no "future" so I can't imagine how hard it is to get up for games as a player.
Obviously, as Constantine spoke to us about last night, there are still scouts coming to the games and a large portion of the team has next year's contract to play for, or will be trying to make it to the Wild. And of course personal pride of effort to play for.
As he said (and this struck me because I've learned this personally from playing goal), you're gonna go home after a game either feeling good that you did your best and gave an honest effort, or you're gonna go home feeling like poo because you didn't. There's not a lot of middle ground there and by his estimation, the team was a little embarrassed by Wednesday's 4-0 drubbing.
So, another enjoyable, but meaningless game in the books. Nice to avoid a season series sweep by the dominating Wolves, but thanks to several of their ringers for being out with injuries. No question that helped muffle the Wolves offense.
Of course, I'm still trippin' on the new goalie love for Darcy Kuemper, and wrote some more about it for one of my other gigs over at InGoal Magazine.
It was a real joy to speak with him after the game. He was about to go supernova, he was so excited, and it really epitomizes why I love covering this level of hockey.
BTW, the Wild are swapping Dubielewicz for Khudobin today as they are headed for a couple of games in Canada. So, Anton will be back with the Aeros for a few days.
-------------------
What's with the oddball refs lately? The guy last night, who is the son of NHL ref Kerry Fraser, really made me miss the low-interference of Jeff Smith. Long discussions after several plays and lots of penalties really affected the flow of the game IMO.
Honestly, the whole game felt a bit odd, but perhaps that's because the guys were playing with purpose like they haven't for a while. It was revealing watching the Kings vs. Canucks Thursday night because, between the Aeros and Wild, I've been mostly watching hockey from teams who have no playoff interests. There's a definite difference.
----------------------
Only two more, gang. Unless you plan to get to Austin tonight or San Antonio for Game #80 on April 11th. But April 10 will be the last time we see this team. As I mentioned, we went through the roster during a break last night and there are lots of UFAs and guys with AHL contracts on this roster, so it will look very different next year.
What I would love to see is the occasional guy come back. I know other teams do this, but the Aeros haven't for a while. I suppose it's a testament to Kevin Constantine and his staff that so many guys play well and the Wild/Aeros simply aren't willing to shell out for their increased market value.
I think Daoust is a guy they should try to get back. And Rau seems like a good fit, too. But we'll talk more about the changing state of the Aeros roster after the season. Andrew will probably have some good stuff there later on.
Meanwhile, Happy Easter, if you celebrate it. Otherwise, enjoy 75% off chocolate at your local CVS or Walgreens on Monday! See you Tuesday when Rockford, who clinched a playoff spot last night, comes to town.
Obviously, as Constantine spoke to us about last night, there are still scouts coming to the games and a large portion of the team has next year's contract to play for, or will be trying to make it to the Wild. And of course personal pride of effort to play for.
As he said (and this struck me because I've learned this personally from playing goal), you're gonna go home after a game either feeling good that you did your best and gave an honest effort, or you're gonna go home feeling like poo because you didn't. There's not a lot of middle ground there and by his estimation, the team was a little embarrassed by Wednesday's 4-0 drubbing.
So, another enjoyable, but meaningless game in the books. Nice to avoid a season series sweep by the dominating Wolves, but thanks to several of their ringers for being out with injuries. No question that helped muffle the Wolves offense.
Of course, I'm still trippin' on the new goalie love for Darcy Kuemper, and wrote some more about it for one of my other gigs over at InGoal Magazine.
It was a real joy to speak with him after the game. He was about to go supernova, he was so excited, and it really epitomizes why I love covering this level of hockey.
BTW, the Wild are swapping Dubielewicz for Khudobin today as they are headed for a couple of games in Canada. So, Anton will be back with the Aeros for a few days.
-------------------
What's with the oddball refs lately? The guy last night, who is the son of NHL ref Kerry Fraser, really made me miss the low-interference of Jeff Smith. Long discussions after several plays and lots of penalties really affected the flow of the game IMO.
Honestly, the whole game felt a bit odd, but perhaps that's because the guys were playing with purpose like they haven't for a while. It was revealing watching the Kings vs. Canucks Thursday night because, between the Aeros and Wild, I've been mostly watching hockey from teams who have no playoff interests. There's a definite difference.
----------------------
Only two more, gang. Unless you plan to get to Austin tonight or San Antonio for Game #80 on April 11th. But April 10 will be the last time we see this team. As I mentioned, we went through the roster during a break last night and there are lots of UFAs and guys with AHL contracts on this roster, so it will look very different next year.
What I would love to see is the occasional guy come back. I know other teams do this, but the Aeros haven't for a while. I suppose it's a testament to Kevin Constantine and his staff that so many guys play well and the Wild/Aeros simply aren't willing to shell out for their increased market value.
I think Daoust is a guy they should try to get back. And Rau seems like a good fit, too. But we'll talk more about the changing state of the Aeros roster after the season. Andrew will probably have some good stuff there later on.
Meanwhile, Happy Easter, if you celebrate it. Otherwise, enjoy 75% off chocolate at your local CVS or Walgreens on Monday! See you Tuesday when Rockford, who clinched a playoff spot last night, comes to town.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Happy Friday: A few little updates
The AHL is releasing its regular season awards this week, starting with the All Rookie team, on which the Aeros had no representation but I can't really argue with the picks.
Yesterday, they announced the first and second All Star teams for the season. The Aeros' own Max "Defies the Laws of Physics" Noreau was voted to the second team for his amazing offensive numbers and general badassery this season. Here's the release from the AHL. Note that 8 of the 12 are eastern conference teams, which seems a little bit skewed to me, but what do I know?
Congrats to Max, who has certainly had a season worthy of such accolades.
---------------------------
I write occasionally about the Aeros prospects over at a site called Wild Nation, and of course, with a new baby goalie in the house Wednesday, I had to give a little update. So if you want my take on Wednesday's game, Kuemper's debut, and the general sense of "what's next?" I'm feeling as the season winds down, go check it out.
To me, it seemed the defense played their stones off in front of Kuemper in the third period, in stark contrast to their play the first two periods. And if protecting the baby goalie is enough to light a fire under this team to play to their ability, I might take a chance and play him against Chicago tonight if I'm KC. But I'm not, of course.
He had a great first experience, and now it's time for a taste of reality. :) Get the full pro experience, right? But I guess we'll see tonight at 7:30 when the boys hit the ice.
------------------------
There apparently was some hope in Florida that they might get Brusty back for the end of the playoffs, but according to the team, they're not putting him on the playoff roster because his recovery from foot surgery is going to take longer than they anticipated. Of course, Coach Cameron also said he had the surgery a week before he actually had it, so... take it all with a grain of salt.
BrustyBobble stares blankly, but pleasantly, at this news. Probably wondering where his goalie stick is and hoping nobody aims for the face.
Yesterday, they announced the first and second All Star teams for the season. The Aeros' own Max "Defies the Laws of Physics" Noreau was voted to the second team for his amazing offensive numbers and general badassery this season. Here's the release from the AHL. Note that 8 of the 12 are eastern conference teams, which seems a little bit skewed to me, but what do I know?
Congrats to Max, who has certainly had a season worthy of such accolades.
---------------------------
I write occasionally about the Aeros prospects over at a site called Wild Nation, and of course, with a new baby goalie in the house Wednesday, I had to give a little update. So if you want my take on Wednesday's game, Kuemper's debut, and the general sense of "what's next?" I'm feeling as the season winds down, go check it out.
To me, it seemed the defense played their stones off in front of Kuemper in the third period, in stark contrast to their play the first two periods. And if protecting the baby goalie is enough to light a fire under this team to play to their ability, I might take a chance and play him against Chicago tonight if I'm KC. But I'm not, of course.
He had a great first experience, and now it's time for a taste of reality. :) Get the full pro experience, right? But I guess we'll see tonight at 7:30 when the boys hit the ice.
------------------------
There apparently was some hope in Florida that they might get Brusty back for the end of the playoffs, but according to the team, they're not putting him on the playoff roster because his recovery from foot surgery is going to take longer than they anticipated. Of course, Coach Cameron also said he had the surgery a week before he actually had it, so... take it all with a grain of salt.
BrustyBobble stares blankly, but pleasantly, at this news. Probably wondering where his goalie stick is and hoping nobody aims for the face.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Just A Slight Favor, If You Don't Mind
I hope Andrew, Fred, and Heather, will excuse me for what I'm about to do, because I didn't ask for their permission, but this is for my niece, and I'll do anything for my niece.
My niece Hannah is autistic. She's lucky. She's got a mild form of autisim, and is highly functioning. She's eight. She's in mainstream second grade. She's very outgoing. She makes good grades. She has lots of friends. But at about age three, she suddenly lost the ability to speak, she wouldn't eat, and she was terrified of children her age. My sister-in-law tells the story here. My brother and sister-in-law, Hannah, and her brother and sister, were lucky in that Hannah was diagnosed pretty quickly, and they were able to get her the proper care and treatment that she needs. And since she's got a very mild form, you wouldn't even know she was autistic.
But they're lucky. There are lots of children with autisim. And many of these children don't get the proper treatment because doctors don't spot it, or the insurance companies won't pay for the treatment because they don't consider it to be a medical problem, or the child has a severe case. It's a cliche, and most aren't that bad, but the Dustin Hoffman "Rainman" character is not far off for lots of autistic kids. The TV show Parenthood is doing a good job of having a child with a mild autism and having the family adjust after they get the diagnosis.
Now for the reason I'm writing. My brother and sister-in-law live in Austin. And they're getting together people to take place in a charity walk in October. I'm not asking for people to drive out to Austin and walk. You can if you want, and I'm sure that there'll be one in Houston. But if you don't mind, if you can spare it, go to their site and donate a few bucks to the charity so that people who aren't as lucky as they are can get the treatment they need for their kids, and maybe, just maybe, some kind of cure can be found.
Sorry for the interruption from our normal programming. And take out your anger on me, not Andrew, Heather, and Fred, because I didn't tell them I was going to do this.
My niece Hannah is autistic. She's lucky. She's got a mild form of autisim, and is highly functioning. She's eight. She's in mainstream second grade. She's very outgoing. She makes good grades. She has lots of friends. But at about age three, she suddenly lost the ability to speak, she wouldn't eat, and she was terrified of children her age. My sister-in-law tells the story here. My brother and sister-in-law, Hannah, and her brother and sister, were lucky in that Hannah was diagnosed pretty quickly, and they were able to get her the proper care and treatment that she needs. And since she's got a very mild form, you wouldn't even know she was autistic.
But they're lucky. There are lots of children with autisim. And many of these children don't get the proper treatment because doctors don't spot it, or the insurance companies won't pay for the treatment because they don't consider it to be a medical problem, or the child has a severe case. It's a cliche, and most aren't that bad, but the Dustin Hoffman "Rainman" character is not far off for lots of autistic kids. The TV show Parenthood is doing a good job of having a child with a mild autism and having the family adjust after they get the diagnosis.
Now for the reason I'm writing. My brother and sister-in-law live in Austin. And they're getting together people to take place in a charity walk in October. I'm not asking for people to drive out to Austin and walk. You can if you want, and I'm sure that there'll be one in Houston. But if you don't mind, if you can spare it, go to their site and donate a few bucks to the charity so that people who aren't as lucky as they are can get the treatment they need for their kids, and maybe, just maybe, some kind of cure can be found.
Sorry for the interruption from our normal programming. And take out your anger on me, not Andrew, Heather, and Fred, because I didn't tell them I was going to do this.
3/31/10 -- Aeros v. Wolves -- Everybody Hurts
After being absent recently because of other, somewhat more pressing mothership duties -- I was off covering the NCAA Regional Finals (aka the Sweet 16 and Elite 8) -- I returned to Toyota Center for last night's Aeros game versus the Chicago Wolves. And let's just say that I don't think I've missed too much as the Aeros lost 4-0.
I had three highlights.
Number one: I generally bitch about the audio guys and their music selections a lot. But last night, they had a genius moment. After the third Chicago goal -- one on which Wade Dubielewicz appeared to be screened by his entire team -- the sound guys busted out R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts." It was just serendipity. It was perfect. Kismet. Never has a song so matched the moment. And as Heather said, someone is so getting fired.
Number two: during the first intermission, there was a group of kids singing "God Bless America." Right in front of those kids, there was another set of kids signing "God Bless America." Heather, who was in her own world, looked up from whatever she was doing, saw the kids, and wanted to know why they were doing "YMCA" during "God Bless America."
Number three: I talked to Matt Kassian last night about his being team's Humanitarian of the Year, which makes him the nominee for the league's award. I remember talking to Brandon Rogers when he got this last year, so I know how much this stuff means to the players. And Matt, who is one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet, gave me some really great stuff for a story I'm going to write for the mothership.
That Kassian story was going to be for today's mothership story, but the Houston Cougars interfered last night and decided to name a new coach for the men's basketball team, so the Kassian thing will run next week.
Do I have any thoughts on the game? Are you kidding, did you see the game? I don't think there were any highlights. Because the wireless was screwed up yet again, I spent the third period down in the press room, writing my mothership post on the Cougars, so I didn't get to see the young kid, Darcy Kuemper, play. I'm sure Heather will contribute some words on that later. Andrew talked to him after the game, while I was with Kassian, and he says Kuemper looks to be about 13.
The Aeros give it another try to tomorrow night. So maybe they'll have some better luck. Hah, who am I kidding? Did you see them play last night?
I had three highlights.
Number one: I generally bitch about the audio guys and their music selections a lot. But last night, they had a genius moment. After the third Chicago goal -- one on which Wade Dubielewicz appeared to be screened by his entire team -- the sound guys busted out R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts." It was just serendipity. It was perfect. Kismet. Never has a song so matched the moment. And as Heather said, someone is so getting fired.
Number two: during the first intermission, there was a group of kids singing "God Bless America." Right in front of those kids, there was another set of kids signing "God Bless America." Heather, who was in her own world, looked up from whatever she was doing, saw the kids, and wanted to know why they were doing "YMCA" during "God Bless America."
Number three: I talked to Matt Kassian last night about his being team's Humanitarian of the Year, which makes him the nominee for the league's award. I remember talking to Brandon Rogers when he got this last year, so I know how much this stuff means to the players. And Matt, who is one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet, gave me some really great stuff for a story I'm going to write for the mothership.
That Kassian story was going to be for today's mothership story, but the Houston Cougars interfered last night and decided to name a new coach for the men's basketball team, so the Kassian thing will run next week.
Do I have any thoughts on the game? Are you kidding, did you see the game? I don't think there were any highlights. Because the wireless was screwed up yet again, I spent the third period down in the press room, writing my mothership post on the Cougars, so I didn't get to see the young kid, Darcy Kuemper, play. I'm sure Heather will contribute some words on that later. Andrew talked to him after the game, while I was with Kassian, and he says Kuemper looks to be about 13.
The Aeros give it another try to tomorrow night. So maybe they'll have some better luck. Hah, who am I kidding? Did you see them play last night?
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