That's cute!

I'm sure that Steinberg will have more on this later, but the Washington Capitals are hosting a photo shoot at the present moment on their practice rink at the Kettler IcePlex. Is it of a new rookie or recently signed free agent? No. Is Slapshot showing off his new uniform? Nope.

The Caps are helping making the wishes of an engaged couple come true as the couple is having the photo for their wedding announcement shot on the ice in the new Caps uniforms. There are some great shots of the bride-to-be "checking" the groom into the boards and locking him up in the penalty box. It's a cute idea for the announcements and shows how passionate the Caps fans are at times. I'm just wondering if they will name their first child Alex...

WTF?! Seriously, WTF?!?

A sign that the world is close to an end:

Electronic Arts (EA) and Jostens today announced the introduction of rings based on a player’s level on “Madden NFL 08,” which will be available August 14. The rings can be customized to match a player’s advancement through five levels of the game. When a player reaches level three, the ring can be bought through Jostens’ Web site with a code provided within the videogame. Rings will range in price from $149-495

Ice in the summer

It's difficult to think about ice hockey in the middle of July but the Washington Capitals rookies have been on the ice for the past two mornings and are looking great. Backstrom, Alzner and friends have been working hard and showing off their amazing skills. The NHL will release the 07-08 season schedule tomorrow afternoon. I can't wait until hockey season!!

My Rating

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Old School sports

So as I approach my 28th birthday this week, I find that two of my favorite participation sports are dodgeball and kickball. The thing that I love about kickball is the social aspect of the game; being able to meet new people and interact in a very personal way which is something missing with other sports and in this city. It is often difficult to play a sport and still communicate with the other team since there is so much emphasis on not only winning but in beating your opponent. We still want to win every game but once the competition is over, we all head to the bar to become friends.

I heart kickball!

I think Mr. Ed would be against this!

Apparently the horses are unable to form a union to protect their rights:

For the first time, all 20 horses in the Kentucky Derby were administered surprise tests for performance-enhancing drugs. Waterman said testing has been difficult, in part because the drugs can be detected in a horse's system only three to five days after being ingested, but the effects last longer.
He said there was uncertainty whether three days before the race is the right time to test a horse. But, added Waterman, "It's better than post-race, I'll tell you that much."

So the NFL and MLB need prior permission to test their athletes and aren't forthcoming with the results but Derby officials can (not-so-randomly) test their athletes. In both cases, the health and safety, as well as the image of the sports, are the main reason for the testing. I believe that especially MLB should follow the lead of the horse industry.

Also this weekend, The Fight that "will save boxing" takes place in Vegas at the MGM Grand which has become the Mecca for great fights. I think that Saturday could go down as one of the greatest days EVER!!! Derby, potential for a great fight AND Cinco de Mayo?!?!?! The stars have aligned! (Hopefully the horses will not 'roid rage and attack each other!)

Coming Soon...

The Washington Capitals will unveil their new uniforms at a special Draft Day Party on Friday, June 22, held at the Kettler Capitals Iceplex in Arlington, Va. The event will be held in conjunction with the live broadcast on Versus of the first round of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, which takes place that evening in Columbus, Ohio.

The new uniforms will mark a return to a red, white and blue color scheme – the colors the Capitals wore from their first season in 1974-75 through 1994-95. The Capitals are the first team in the NHL to announce their plans to unveil their new uniforms, which are produced by Reebok and feature the Rbk EDGE Uniform System technology that was introduced at the 2007 NHL All-Star Game in Dallas. The Capitals are the first team planning to have their new uniforms on hand at the NHL Entry Draft.

Further details about the event will be announced in the coming weeks.

Wanna race?

There are advantages to sports in L.A.: Shaq was able to appear in some terrible movies and Rick Fox became better known for his on screen play than his moves in the Lakers' purple and gold. But when done right, the synergy that sports and Hollywood can provide is amazing:



The pair helped raise money for charity during their race which was won by Pete. (Details and video here).


Dr. Phil, you have some new crazies coming your way including a fun mascot next week. Someone who should be on your show is my favorite person, Psycho Stalker , who likes to send random e-mails to my friends. I hope all is well Dr. Phil and good luck because you will have your hands full.


I'm off to drink wine on the balcony.

Mr. Roboto and free fallin' in the draft

This is for Laura who is currently holding my first child hostage until I update my blog...

Dice-K was the talk of MLB, Boston and Japan today but who stole the show? That's right, the newest Mariners' ace, King Felix! Felix tossed a one-hitter to quiet the crowd and the frenzied Japanese media. Go M's!

Speaking of Japan:
So if you are Japanese and are playing a baseball game in Japan for a Japanese team and you speak Japanese, in what language would your name be on the back of your jersey?
Dice-K vs. Ichiro
So we import Japanese cars but export uniform lettering? Doesn't seem like the most fair trade to me, but then again, I'm not an economics specialist!

First, Mr. Junior Red Wing was resigned and now this!! Could anything else happen to the poor Caps this offseason? There was an 8% chance that they would drop in the draft and of course, that is what happened. Supposedly, there are only 4 decent players in this years draft (No Ovie or Crosby-esque players here) but the NHL draft isn't like the other leagues' drafts; NHL teams tend to draft by best available and NHL-readiness and not necessarily how a player fits into their system.
Speaking of hockey, from the Colbert Report: "I just figured out the difference between baseball and hockey: baseball is the one with all of the Hispanics."

And speaking of baseball:
I think that the Expos were better playing in Puerto Rico than in Washington, D.C.!!!

Football and Drinks

I had the chance to attend the Boswell launch event to night at Play bar/club/human torture chamber. As I have preached for the last decade, women (for the most part) that follow soccer players are very attractive. Tonight's crowd was no different as there was the additional plus going out to all of the tall ladies "in the house". However, the really mean, ugly and scary chick in the blue shirt should not have been invited; if you can't smile, relax about the occasional bump from others and just have a good time, you shouldn't be at a sports mixer/promotion party/cleat chaser event. The only thing worse than her attitude was the DJ. The music was TOO LOUD, his "mic work" needed lots of work, his ADHD needs to be controlled as some people like to listen to more than just 15 seconds of a song and oh, by the way, play some music that the room will enjoy. Instead of DJ Grandmaster Flex, Bobby had DJ I-am-going-to-try-to-dress-like-a-DJ-but-still-somehow-play-music-like-I-have-no-idea-what-decade-I'm-in. As for the guest of honor, Mr. Boswell was very nice, took time to chit-chat and pose for photos with fans and even got on the microphone to thank everyone for their help.

I'd also like to take a quick moment to give a Blogout to Mr. Steinberg over at THE Sports Bog for having the amazing skill of being able to interview those in line while still somehow being able to appear manly while holding the Canadian gift bag of stereotypes. Just don't hurt yourself while chugging that maple syrup, Dan.

GO X!

30 seconds left and XU just score to tie the game!!

BYU brings it down the court and calls time out…

Ainge takes a shot, rebound BYU then another quick shot but no good, rebound to Lavender. He’s fouled with 11.2 left in the game. He goes to the line and calmly hits both! Time out and CBS zooms in on the XU cheerleaders. Sadly, the Xavier squad was made for radio.

BYU brings the ball up, Ainge is bringing the ball up the court but is taking WAY TOO MUCH TIME. He drives down the middle, missed lay-up, clock ticks, ball on the floor, bodies flying, BYU puts up a shot and it goes in as the buzzer sounds…too bad they need four points, not just two!

XAVIER WINS!! XAVIER WINS!!

Bring on Thad and his Buckeyes. So what if Thad cashed in his XU chips at the height of Xavier basketball for his current gig with THE Ohio State University and their star player, the one-handed Oden? So what if OSU has one of the poorest graduation rates in the country? So what if their “student”-athletes don’t even attend most classes??

My First Time

Tonight is my first ever hockey game. I'm a little nervous and still sore from practice but hopefully it will be okay. And since the game is outdoors, I'm really excited that it is the coldest day of recent days. Hopefully my game will be hot to warm me up. Or at least I'll play well enough to not embarrass myself. Update coming soon.

BAD HAIRCUTS!!

I went to get a haircut today and to save a little $$$, I decided to go to one of those cheap places at the mall. So I was getting hit on by a guy who A) didn't speak English and B) acted as though he just discovered the wonderful tool called scissors. He still managed to give me a somewhat decent haircut. So how is it that Ovie gets a TERRIBLE haircut? I understand that he doesn't have the entourage that most professional athletes have (I know personally that some players hire their friends as their trainers, accountants, chefs and barbers!) but c'mon, Alex, you make a little more than me, go ahead and splurge on a haircut. You are the toast of the town but your hair looks like it was cut by a blind amputee. (Okay, maybe that was a little too harsh. Maybe Alex #2 cut his hair or maybe there was a dare involved.) I miss the days of Greenie (now in Hershey) and his spikey, Mohawk thingy. If you can't get a good haircut, Mr. Ovechkin, then just go old school with the hockey mullet. That would make the world a better place!

ARGH!!

I just wrote a HUGE post with some fun tidbits in it but stupid blogger ate it and now it is lost. If I get the energy, I'll try to recreate that magic...

Golfing with the Caps

The Tees for Tots charity function on Monday was lots of fun as several fans had a chance to hangout with Caps players in a social setting. Meanwhile, it gave me a chance to hangout with the fun and beautiful Laugh Girl. With opposite busy schedules, I haven't seen too much of Softball Girl and I'm not going to sit around and wait for her so I'm open to the possibilities of seeing others. It probably doesn't help that I've mainly been hanging out with married couples recently. Plus it didn't help that we had 4 home games in seven days last week. And now I'm snowed in so options have been limited. I'm feeling that things will pick up next month when I make the big move down to Arlington! (Finally!!) Hopefully we will move our offices down there soon too!!

Anyways, Laugh Girl is great and friendly and just an all-around fun person. Random phone calls and texts are keeping me interested and satisfied for now.

PS Don't park your car in the corner of my parking lot... it will result in your car being trapped behind a wall of ice!

CAPS WIN!!

Not only is he a hunky soap opera star, but apparently Jason Thompson called the Caps lady after he left town to thank her for all of her hard work and to say that he hopes to see her again when he's back in town... A gentleman and a nice guy! Good story!

The Caps ended their losing ways by starting their potential 17 game winning steak with a victory over the Islanders in a rare shootout win.

I found a new place to live so I'm looking forward to being closer to my friends and the rest of civilization.

Caps Fans, 1-27-07

The "infamous" Kimberly Tongue photo!!

Kimberly and Jason smiling for the cheering fans at Verizon Center
Kimberly and Jason with the Caps lady that made their appearance a reality!


It's always interesting to see who shows up at sporting events especially in D.C., a place that doesn't have the star wattage of places like L.A. or NYC...

Saturday's Caps game, a romp over defending Carolina, had some celebs in the house. What was fun to see was the reaction of the fans when certain people were shown on the big screen scoreboard:

Baltimore Orioles players Adam Loewen and Nick Markakis were booed when shown on the scoreboard telescreen, while D.C. United soccer star Ben Olsen drew cheers from the crowd of 16,924. (from NHL game recap)

D.C. and Baltimore have always had an interesting perception of each other; sometimes the two areas are linked together, other times they don't want to associate with each other. Now that the Nationals are in town, Washingtonians no longer support the O's. But to boo to young O's players? I guess I'm not too surprised. What I am surprised of was the strong and positive reaction fans gave Kimberly McCullough and fellow General Hospital soap star, Jason Thompson during their brief appearance on the Jumbotron late in the 3rd period. I know that they were supposed to be profiled earlier in the period but the flow of the game wouldn't allow that. Not many people approached them in their seats but the second they were on the big screen, there was a line of autograph seekers. Apparently there is a lot of overlap of fans between the Caps and GH. Now that GH stars have visited the Caps, I guess we'll see Ovie or Brashear make an appearance on the soap in the near future?!?

Hockey Song

Sadly, the best thing about watching Friday night's Caps game against Carolina was the action off of the ice. Once again, the theme of the loss was penalties. Hopefully the Caps will play better (and smarter) at home in the Phone Booth on Saturday evening against... the Hurricanes AGAIN!! At least this time Olie will be in goal defending us from the forces of evil! Speaking of evil, guess who's going to be attending the "Hockey Night in D.C." game:


Kimberly McCullough rejoined the cast of General Hospital in October 2005, when the character of Robin Scorpio - now a doctor living in Paris - returns to Port Charles where she is urgently needed. Upon her arrival, she immediately finds herself crossing paths with many friends and family from her past.

That's right... Kimberly and her fellow soap star, Jason Thompson, will be cheering the Caps on to victory. Hopefully when they are on the Jumbotron, they won't give the typical soap opera star looking: staring off into the distance, wondering if they left the oven on. Then again, after the recent performances of the Caps, I would understand if their minds started to wander.

Could Versus have even tried to make the All-Star festivities interesting?! I know that they don't have the audience reach as a major TV network but they could at least get cameras that work or even hire people that have prior experience with these types of events. During both the rapid fire shooting contest and the shootout, the network switched to a camera that showed to employees sweeping the ice. So we have the best hockey players in the world including The Whiner, displaying the speed and grace of this amazing sport but the viewers don't get the chance to see that; instead, we are treated to the thrilling action of Joe and Steve preparing the ice at the opposite end of the rink!

The Kettler IcePlex is B-E-A-utiful... too bad the offices aren't completed yet. Thursday was my first visit out there since the pre-ice days in July. It's amazing to see how much a little paint and ice can change a place. All I need to do now is learn how to skate and I'll be all set!

There's a new team in town, the Chesapeake Tide! 7-on-7 football? I know from personal experience that the Show Place Arena has had trouble keeping a long term sports team. I think that it is a decent facility, just not the ideal location for such a pro sports team to set its roots. I think non-NFL football leagues are a great idea and that there is a market for such a product in this area and I'll try to make it out to a couple of teams. Ambition and a smart business plan should make this a strong team with good fan support. They had over 150 fans show up for their meet the team party this past week.

Thanks to the advice of my dear friend (that never hangs out anymore!), I have decided to open up my eyes and be receptive to the possibility that there might be another woman for me. Apparently, there might be a couple: Beer Girl and CEO Girl have now entered my life! Beer Girl is fun, easy to talk with and has a very relaxed demeanor. Meanwhile, CEO Girl is HOT and also easy to carry a conversation with. If I have time this weekend away from work, I might actually try to spend some time with one of them.

Speaking of new girls, if only there were some device that I could use to display the photo of the beautiful woman in my life.

Love and Sports

Love and sports have a lot in common.

For example, it is more fun to celebrate winning a championship with teammates than by yourself. Look at tennis players, all they can do is fall to the ground and hold their head when they win. But if you look at team celebrations, you have a big dogpile with guys flying in and leaping onto the pile. When something goes well in life, it is nice to share that with friends and family but it is even that much more special to share it with the one, THE ONE, person that you truly care about. Of course, THAT pileup would probably be much more enjoyable!

Another thing that they have in common is that no matter how well you play, you don't always get the result that you want. You can have your plan in place and execute it to a "t", even have the game of your life but you can still come up short on the scoreboard.

Sometimes you play your best but your teammates let you down or aren't following the game plan. Even worse, they are on the same game plan but just can't get the proper rhythm necessary for victory. (Johnny Drama: "VICTORY!!")

Which brings me to my personal anecdote: I have a great match up but it's almost as if halfway through the game we switch between XFL, NFL and college rules each play without anyone notifying my head coach. There is no action; just reaction and questions. I'm at the line, waving my hands and calling audibles just like Mr. Manning but my receivers can't hear me in the noisy dome (figures, my team is always on the road!) and the play clock ticks down quickly. But that's the thing about sports: the competition, the adrenaline, the preparation and the game itself. No matter the sport, each game is different in some way and even if you face a similar situation, the outcome could be radically different. I mean, who says that they aren't interested but then leaves her friends after 12:30 am to meet up with yours truly by herself at a bar that is out of her way, not even close to her path of travel between point A (outing with friends) and point B (her house) to spend some time together talking?!? I mean, I could understand if I owed her money or something, but c'mon! Does anyone have an explanation about this?

Speaking of sports, the WNBA All-Star game is coming to D.C. this summer. I know, I know that it doesn't have the same flare as say the MLB All-Star game (in San Fran this year, NY in 08 and St. Louie in 09) but it does highlight the best players and characters in a league. I encourage people to show up and I think that they will be pleasantly surprised with the quality of play. There are some other developments on the local sports landscape that I think will surprise a lot of people (more to come in an upcoming entry).

Speaking of quality of play, Becks was never considered the best player in the world or even in his own country. He is an amazing footballer but not the best or even the most fit. I think the U.S. equivalent would be A-Rod: a very strong player and great for highlights but isn't going to win championships by himself. Both players have a high Q rating which directly leads to their increased salaries over comparable players with the same skill set. Obviously, Becks raises the MLS's profile on the national and international sports scene but he is on decline as a soccer player. The sad thing about the MLS that no one has mentioned the substandard quality of play; that an over-the-hill, above average player from Europe will easily be one of the top players in this "minor" league as long as he keeps his focus on the field. I don't expect for the media to pick up on this as they are just happy to bask in his glow and sell papers & magazines.

I like my shape

Since I'm trying to stick with my New Year's resolutions, tonight was my first workout of the new year and coincidently, my first work out since knee surgery two months ago. Wow, I'm really out of shape!! My trainer had me in a full sweat ten minutes into the workout and by minute 45, I wanted to fall to the ground and cry. Hopefully workout number two will include a little less pain.

My mood the past two months has been directly linked to the results of Caps games...So with the current bump in our season, I'm not in the greatest of moods but I know that things will start looking up after a win against Montreal tomorrow evening at the phone booth.