Let's Go Caps! Games 1-3

The Stanley Cup Playoffs.

There really isn't anything else like it throughout the rest of the sports world.  The NFL has the "one and done" playoff race.  The NBA doesn't even count in my book anymore;  nothing more than ghetto thugs wrapped in millions of dollars and tattoos.  MLB is pretty close but unless they suddenly institute some rule changes that make hitting legal in baseball it will never quite measure up.  If you watched any of the Game 3 matchup between Vancouver and LA then you know what I am talking about...I really thought someone was gonna end up dead and there would be brains all over the ice before the end of the second period.

Playoff hockey is just a whole different game than the regular season.  Everyone finishes their checks (well, almost everyone....right Mike Green?) and you can feel the intensity in your seat, whether it be in your living room or in the stadium.  Every shot on goal, every save, every drop of the puck is just magnified and sometimes you catch yourself sitting on the edge of your seat and having to remind yourself to breathe.  I fucking love it.

The Caps, for the first time ever, have gone into the playoffs with the #1 overall seed and home ice advantage throughout the playoffs.  As Game 4 looms on the horizon, here are my recollections about Games 1-3:

Game 1

The opening game of the playoff series against Montreal.  Red and Supe invited us (by us i mean me and D) over to watch the game and have some dinner.  I threw on the old Pivo jersey and headed over to their place to have a few drinks and get into the spirit.  D wasn't leaving work until right around gametime so she was going to be a bit late for the start of the game and just going to meet me there.  Red, as usual, made her phenomenal jalapenos wrapped in bacon to start on as we watched the first period.  I absolutely LOVE these things.

The game was exciting through 2 periods being tied at 1 (This is about when D showed up from work).  We really starting going nuts in the 3rd period when, just 47 seconds into the period, Nick Backstrom put the Caps ahead 2-1.  We knew it was just a matter of time til we put the Habs in their place.  After that goal Supe went outside to start the grill so that Red could throw the steaks on that she had been marinating all day.  We were going to enjoy these steaks now because everything always tastes better when you wash it down with victory.

But fortune does not always favor the bold.  Just as Red put the steaks on the grill Scott Gomez scored the goal to tie up the game.  Grrrrrr....and that is how the regulation game ended tied at 2.

Just before the Overtime was about to start Red served up the amazing steaks, a cheesy potato dish of some sort and some really good corn concoction with cherry tomatoes in there.  We all sat down and started to dig in just as the puck dropped on the OT.  Everyone was sitting around chatting and leisurely enjoying the meal as the OT was underway...well everyone that is but me.  I was cutting and chewing, chewing and cutting and trying to quickly devour my meal.  I think I finished in record time too.  When I was done with my steak I raised my hands over my head as if victorious.  Everyone looked at me like I was crazy.  I then proceeded to explain that the steak was too good to waste.  This brought more quizzical looks.  I told them that all it takes is one mistake to lead to an overtime goal for the Habs and if you are sitting there with half a steak sitting on your plate if we lose you will regret it.   The steak will lose all of it's flavor and your appetite will be gone.  This brought laughter and ridicule for a couple minutes.   And then Montreal scored.

F U Plekanec.  Oh and Supe couldn't finish his steak either...

Game 2

Simply put...one of the best playoff games I have ever seen.  This time D, Supe, Red and I all were at the game.  And to be at the stadium and in the incredible seats we were in (First row, club level, center ice...Thanks again Red) was just amazing.  Coming back from being down 4-1 is next to impossible in the regular season and you pretty much need Divine Intervention to come back from that deficit in the playoffs.  But the "Cardiac Caps" did it again.  With a phenomenal effort by Nicky Backstrom.  Yeah, that is me over there on the left right after Nicky scored to tie it up at 4.  I was sitting right next to the camera man and he snuck that shot of me...had I known I was on TV I  would have done more than just stand there pumping my fist and saying "YES! YES! YES!".  You an click that link to see the video of the goal and me cheering like a foo'.

Going into OT in two straight games is pretty scary during the playoffs.  We were all on the edge of our seats for the start of the overtime and were so glad that we hadn't got up during the intermission.  Usually we are up and about..whether that is in the can or over at the Acela Club to grab a quick smoke and that almost always means we miss the first minute or so of play making our way back to our seats.  I was so thankful that we didn't do that this time as 31 seconds into the OT Nicky scored that third goal for the hat trick and the game winner.  As soon as Nicky scored, Supe and I looked right at each other for about 2 seconds and with each of us giving the other just the slightest of nods we launched our hats towards the ice.  It wasn't until later that I realized that was my favorite Caps hat but it was well worth sacrificing that hat to the Hockey Gods for that win.  Here is just a little of the celebration after that goal and you can see all the hats littering the ice.



My boy Rob texted me, from up in Maine, during the 3rd to say he say me on TV and so after Nicky ended the game I tried to call him to let him hear the madness.  It was so loud, even taking the phone outside in the streets, with all the Caps cheers I couldn't even hear him at all.  It was an incredible game and one that I can't thank Red enough for taking us along.

Game 3

The series moves up to Montreal for Game 3.  We move back over to Supe and Red's to watch the game (this time D was going to sit the game out and stay at home and avoid the drunks for a night) and grub it up.  As the game started I just remember Supe bitching about Boyd Gordon being back in the lineup and Steckel being a healthy scratch.  If there is one thing I have learned over the years of being friends with Supe it is that once he starts on the "I hate this player" groove that player is going to have an incredible night.  And sure enough Gordon gets the first goal of the night....and it is even a freakin' shorty.  Not only that but he also wins 13 of 15 faceoffs and was one of the best players on the ice all night.  Thanks Supe.

Speaking of luck....in the middle of the first period Woody made it to the house to watch the game.  He has a lucky rubber chicken that he takes with him to every game.  He was telling us all about this little kid sitting in front of him during Game 2 that started feeding popcorn to his chicken because, "It looks hungry" when the score was 4-3.  The Caps scored to tie it and the Woody and the rest of his buddies in his section were telling the kid to keep feeding the chicken so the kid kept feeding it popcorn and the Caps kept scoring.  So when the first period of Game 3 ended tied up at 0-0 Woody went out to his car to get the chicken.  When he brought the chicken in and it was fed some chips what do you think happened?  The Caps exploded for 4 goals in the second period.  Go figure....that chicken really fucking works.

Game 3 was all about the Grinders.  With goals by Boyd, Laich, Fehr and Bradley the Caps really came alive.  Those 3rd and 4th lines really were the difference in the game as they played like their playoff lives depended on it.  And with Boudreau having the difficult task of having to scratch healthy players alot of those guys are fence sitters and you could tell none of them wanted to be scratched for Game 4.  Oh and not to forget Ov's goal...it was classic Ovechkin.  He started off his entry in the zone with 3 Habs all over him and then all of the sudden he is all alone in the slot and unleashing a laser beam one timer from Nicky while falling onto his knees.  That kid continues to amaze.

So Game 4 is on the horizon.  Do we go ahead 3-1 and come back to the Phone Booth ready to close it down in 5 or do the Habs show up and make it a series?  I guess we will see tonight.  I can't wait.

LET'S GO CAPS!

Let the Right One In is the Best Vampire Movie In Quite a While

I had never even heard of this movie until this weekend when my sister posted about on her blog. Since we have relatively the same taste in movies I thought I would give it a try. So I added the movie to my insta-queue on Netflix, made some lunch and sat down and watched it this afternoon. I was impressed.

The movie is Swedish and the subtitles almost had me turning it off. I like to read and I like to watch movies but I rarely, if ever, do I like to do both at the same time. I am glad that I stuck it out though. Vampires are pretty creepy by themselves but a little kid vamp is really really creepy.  And bonus points for the following:

1. No Sparkles!
2. Attack Kittys!
3. Acid attack!

The movie is about isolation and loneliness and the Swedish winter really is a great supporting character. I read some reviews of the movie saying it was a “love story” and it really didn't strike me as that at all. It seemed to me that the little vamp needed to replace it's serial killer caretaker with another would-be psycho and it found exactly what it needed right next door with the Oskar the poor picked on little piggy that fantasizes about stabbing the shit out of the school bullies.

The other reason I don't think this was intended to be a love story....that ain't no little girl. At least not in the book (from what I understand). This is never explained in the movie though so I am not sure if the director wanted you to think it was a girl or not...I am thinking that much of the backstory ended up on the cutting room floor. It does seem that a whole helluva lot was left out of the story that was in the book but going into the movie without that knowledge probably was a good thing.

The special effects are so understated that suspension of disbelief is really easy. The pool scene was so well done that it was incredibly gory without ever really seeing anything happening.

All in all, this is a great little movie and I really recommend you get this into your insta-queue.

In case you are interested, here is a link the trailer

Eamus Catuli (and Let's Go Caps!!)

 Being a Cubs fan in the DC area is often just one more reason for anyone (and pretty much everyone) to take jabs at me.  I have even been in situations, especially at my job at the Old Studio, where my co-workers (that couldn't tell you the difference between a Homerun and a Touchdown) would make fun of my beloved Cubbies.  Even people that have never watched a game and have never once opened a sports page know enough to exploit my pain.  But unlike the Bandwagon fandom that is the DC area, I have always stuck by my Cubbies and Caps through thick and thin....but unfortunately it is mostly thin.  Once again the cold of winter recedes and April is upon us; full of hope and promise as we enter another season of Cubbies baseball and the Stanley Cup playoffs.

With only 4 games left on the schedule and a 7 point separation between the Caps and the Sharks the President's Trophy is pretty much a done deal.  The Caps have home ice advantage throughout the playoffs wrapped up and The Great 8, if not for his 2 suspensions, would be have been a lock for both the Hart and the Art Ross trophies. 

This is such a great time to be a Capitals fan too.  It used to suck when the Pens, Ranger and Flyers were in town as half of the crowd or more would be fans from those opposing teams.  It doesn't happen anymore.  The Phone booth is almost entirely Red now no matter who is here to play.  Even weekday games against shitty teams like Atlanta are sold out and the fans are going crazy during the entire game.  We are ready for the playoffs...and after two years in a row of really heartbreaking exits from the tournament...we are ready for it all.  Lord Stanley is coming to DC this year.

But the Caps take a back seat today because....

Hey, Hey Whatta ya say?  Opening day is finally here!!!

Is this finally the end of our motto being "Wait til next year"?  I seriously doubt it.  But with 162 games ahead of us you really never know.  The Cubbies have 13 new faces on the 25 man opening day roster.  Pretty hard to imagine going the distance with over half of your players new to the team.  But on the bright side...one of those 25 isn't that waste of space Milton Bradley. 

I can't believe that the games here in DC aren't until the last week of August though.  I really do hope they are games that still mean something that late into the season to make the games even more fun than usual.  It has been great having the Nationals here the last few years and getting those 3 or 4 games every year.  You would be amazed at the amount of Cubs fans in the metro area.

With the first pitch being just 5 hours away I could not help but try to start the indoctrination of my nephew:


Eamus Catuli!  Let's make this a great year.

Merry Zombie Jesus Day

Ahhhh....Easter.  Gotta love those religious holidays that just don't seem to make much sense.  I am just glad that it doesn't fall during football season or it would be fucking up a perfectly good Sunday of football.

I don't even really understand Easter either.  I mean this is supposed to be celebrating the day Jesus (click that link...love that Jesus is on Twitter) was resurrected, right?  So why is this a "moveable feast" day?   We "obviously" have pinpointed the date of Jesus' birth so why can't we get a grip on the date of the beginning of his Undeath?

Easter is also the only day of the year where my family has Ham for dinner.  Ok, there have been a few times over the years where we have had a ham on Christmas but generally speaking...except for the lunchmeat that we buy for sandwiches...Ham is never the meat on the table in a formal, sit-down family meal except on Easter.  What is that all about?  And a big FU if you Google this shit and send me the link...i already looked it up and it still doesn't make sense.

And we all know the story of why the Easter Bunny hides his Eggs too, right?  Because He doesn't want us to know that he is bangin' the chicken.
Colored eggs.
Chocolate Rabbits.
Marshmallow Chickens.
Plastic green grass.
All in a brightly colored basket.  WTF Zombie Jesus? I don't understand.

I am not against the holiday.   I just don't have even the slightest clue as to why we are celebrating this day.

If I was gonna pick a day for us to celebrate from the life of Jesus it would be Walk on Water Day.  This needs to be held in the summer and everyone goes to their neighbor hood pools or down to the beach for a day of family fun.  Or even better yet, Water into Wine Day.  I mean what could be cooler than a holiday that is specifically made for drinking (I am sick of that fake ass St. Patrick...F Him...we should have a Jesus drinking day).

Anyway, Angus should be here in a bit to spend a couple days with his FUNcle.  In honor of this special day of the year I present to you Angus just being so sacrilicious:

 

Now...GET OFF THE LAWN!!!