Texas Rangers Lose Second Consecutive World Series

Did anybody catch the game, tonight?  It was amazing!  Another brilliant display of skill and determination between two ferocious competitors.  The level of play has been so elevated in the games between these two clubs that it saddens me to even think that one of them might be moved to the Eastern Conference next year.  Yes, the Sharks and the Red Wings have become a must-watch match-up for anyone in love with the sport of ice hockey.  They have looked to each other as measuring sticks for the past several years and are coming off of the most closely competed Stanley Cup Playoff series in history.  Tonight's game did not disappoint.  Sharks won 4-2, including an empty-net goal.  I eagerly await the Red Wings' first visit to San Jose this season, November 17.

Also: Somewhere in the World, baseball was played.  And Texas was eliminated in the final round for the second year in a row!  I know this because they lost to the Giants last year.  It's too bad that they didn't lose at home again so I could watch Sad George Bush's sad reaction shots.  I guess there's always next year...

In real news: The Sharks are on a roll!  The first four games of this road trip are done and won.  The Sharks came back in the third period to tie the Devils (then win the shootout).  They earned a 2-0 lead over the defending-champion Bruins and, when it evaporated in a moment, responded with poise and a game-winning goal.  They did a similar feat against the Nashville Predators, regaining the lead only a minute after surrendering it.  Now they've defeated the Red Wings in another hard-fought, high-tempo game of the caliber we've come to expect (and demand) from this rivalry.  The second back-to-back game is on Long Island tomorrow and it's up to the Sharks to not overlook the Islanders, who have sucked for some years now.  The Sharks have a history for playing down to less successful teams even as much as they play up to perennial powerhouses like Detroit.  But I don't think they will.  I'm sure they've been looking forward to facing Evgeni Nabokov, whether he ends up playing in that game or not.

A couple things overlooked in all this:
- Martin Havlat is a fucking boss and possibly our lord savior in disguise.  This win-streak began with his first game as a Shark and he has assists in all four wins.
- The Sharks have been losing face-offs.  I seriously can't remember when the last time was the Sharks were under 50% on face-offs.  It's not something worth worrying about, as long as we're winning, but that was a real shock to me.


The Sharks are now 4-3-1. (W-L-T)

Game 8: Don't Bring a Hat You're Not Willing to Throw

Congratulations to Joe Pavelski and his wife, Sarah, on their newborn son!

In other news:

The Sharks are once again at 500! They improved their record to 4-4-0 with a big win over the Devils and looked okay doing it! The gameplay wasn't all that smooth overall, but even though the Sharks aren't at the strength they were at this point last season, Devils are almost completely in shambles. Trading away a veteran defenseman for Ilya Kovalchuk and then signing him to a prohibitive, career-ending contract with a no-movement clause seems like madness to me. To add to their miseries, the NHL decided to disallow one ridiculous contract, allow a second ridiculous contract, and then punish the team for one of the two (does it matter which?). I don't understand that at all. At any rate, the Devils look awful.

Joe Thornton had a hat-trick (you don't see that every year) and a point on all five goals. And what do I see the rest of the night? Thousands of dickweeds still wearing baseball caps. But what am I supposed to do, walk up to each of a thousand people and say, "Hats off, Jackass. I know that Giants cap was expensive and you just bought it in the last two days, but can you at least take it off? The man just scored three goals for your stupid ass."? It seems disrespectful to me to flaunt your hat after somebody scores a hat-trick. Even for the other team. Apparently, that's just me, though.