Nasty Hockey Show Part Deux

G'day folks!!!

The second episode of the Nasty Hockey Show was on Friday, Oct. 24th and it was a blast!!!

We had our very special guest Liam Maguire on board to handle some trivia that was sent in via email...and he didn't disappoint!!!

The Dummy of The Week was Sean Avery!!! We gave away prizes to anyone that could rip a slap-shot at him.

We had some great opinions from the folks in the crowd concerning the Sens and other hockey stuff.

But don't take my word for it...go here http://nastyhockeyshow.wordpress.com/ and check it out for yourself!!!! Don't forget to register once you're there...you'll get updates automatically and. more importantly, you can help us get ammo for sponsorship...the more people that are registered the easier it is to get our show sponsored! You can do that by clicking on the link to the right of the main post entitled "subscribe to the nasty hockey show by email" or you can simply use this link http://www.feedburner.com/fb/a/emailverifySubmit?feedId=2547676&loc=en_US.

We'll keep you posted for the date and time of the next show...in the meantime send me some comments about what you would like discussed...not sure if I can get Liam for the next one but send in trivia if you like and I'll make sure I keep it on file for his next appearance.

And DON'T FORGET TO REGISTER!!!!

CHEERS!!!
The Rokpig...

The Nasty Hockey Show

We kicked off Season 2 of the Nasty Hockey Show last Saturday when the MIGHTY BOSTON BRUINS were in town to take on the Sens. It was a successful night all around...the show went well and the Bruins won!!!

Check out this link and you can see the show... http://nastyhockeyshow.wordpress.com/

We'll be doing our 2nd show this Friday at 5:00pm when the Ducks come in to town. Can you say DUCK-SEASON!?!?!? So come on down to Philthy McNasty's at Kanata Centrum and check it out LIVE!!! That way you can offer your opinions and win some prizes.

Our special guest this Friday will be Liam Maguire...the NHL hockey trivia king!!! Try and stump him for a chance at some prizes.

Also...new to the show this year is the Nasty Dummy. Every show we will be picking an NHL player who has shown that even elite athletes can be idiots!!! Take a look at the footage from last week and you will see who the first dummy of 2008-09 was.

Once you're on the Nasty Hockey Show website please take the time to register so that you can receive automatic updates whenever something new is added. Also, you can send in some emails that you would like to be read during our email segment of the show.

Hope to see you all there...

CHEERS!!!!
The Rokpig...

Got an Opinion?

G'day Folks!!!

The NHL regular season has kicked off for 4 teams in Europe already but the rest of the NHL officially starts this Thursday, Oct. 9th. The new season always brings new hope for die-hard fans who suffer through season after season of terrible results. Most hockey fans have a favourite team and are not ashamed to show it or talk about it no matter where that team ends up by the first week of April.

The problem is this...who listens!?!?!?

Most radio talk shows will only take your call if you have something to say that fits what they want to talk about. Other stations will only take your call if it's about the home team. You can email team websites and hope your opinion gets heard...chances aren't good!!! How about the local newspaper? Thanks to the internet, you can send your opinion to papers around the world now so if you're a Coyotes fan living in Ottawa you should be able to send in your thoughts to the Phoenix News Daily and it should be heard LOUD AND PROUD!!! But not so my fellow hockey fan...not so at all!!!

So where can we go to vent about our hockey team??? Is there a platform that will allow us to speak freely about hockey?? Where can we say what we want and know that people are hearing it and feeling the same pain as we do??? I'm here to tell you that this mecca exists!!!

That's right...if you have an opinion about hockey and your hockey team that needs to be heard then read on. If you feel the need to stand up for your team no matter how bad they are then read on!!! I'm telling you about a place where true hockey questions are answered...true hockey tales are told...and true hockey dreams are squashed!!!! A true forum to express your opinions...in front of a hi-def camcorder...and posted on the internet for the world to view in an honest and carefree surrounding.

I'm talking about the Nasty Hockey Show!!! A place where you can voice your opinions and stand up for your team!! Can you think of any other medium where that freedom exists? I didn't think so...

If this concept appeals to you then please join us at Philthy McNasty's in the Kanata Centrum Mall on October 18th at 5:00pm. The Boston Bruins will be in town that evening and I would love to hear you Ottawa fans tell me how your goaltending situation is better than my beloved Bruins!!!!

Any takers??? I dare ya!!!!

CHEERS!!!
The Rokpig!!!

Senator's Spiral

Here's the deal...the Ottawa Senators are on a downward spiral folks!!! I know Sen's fans are all excited about their pre-season play but let's look at this a little closer. Gerber has let in the first shot of his last 2 pre-season games in North America. Then in Sweden he lets a floater get by him against the Frolunda Indians in the 2nd period. The Frolunda Indians???? Seriously!!! Can hardly wait to see what this guy will deliver when the regular season starts!!! Hey, you should have comfort with the fact that Alex Auld might steal a couple of games!!! I feel warm all over knowing that!!! As usual, another year of questionable goaltending in Ottawa.

On the positive side, Ottawa has won a couple of pre-season games but you have to look at the line-up that was used in those wins. In their losses to the Rangers and the Habs, the Sens weren't using their top lines but neither were those teams. However, in their wins they were using their top players against a no-name bunch. Also, against Montreal they actually had to resort to putting Alfie back with Spezza and Heatley. Sound familiar??? That's right...Ottawa has one line and no goaltending!!! Here's to an early golf season in Ottawa folks...I'm sure by January you guys will be calling for Bryan Murray's head!!! You'll also be wanting to trade Gerber and Spezza for Luongo...don't hold your breath!!!

This is a public service announcement that is meant to be an early warning to Sens fans!!! Your team is horrible this year and will not make the playoffs!!! But at least you'll finish higher than the Leafs!!!!

CHEERS!!!
The Rokpig....GO BRUINS GO!!!!

Tampa Bay Frightening!!!

So if you're not a hockey fan, how do you become one? Well convincing someone to become a hockey fan may be tougher than you think!!! We've got an ESPN hockey analyst that has now returned to the bench after a 13 year absence in Tampa. We've got the old Tampa coach trying his luck as a hockey analyst with TSN. Weird huh??? Let's take a closer look at this hockey team from Florida!!!

This Tampa team somehow received 1st pick overall in the draft which is supposed to be reserved for the worst team in the NHL. How was Tampa worst than Phoenix? Or Chicago? Or Los Angeles? Why don't we look at it this way...when was the last time Tampa won the Stanley Cup? Hmmm....2004...and they joined the league in the 1992-93 season. (Same season as the Senators if anyone's keeping count). Chicago is an Original Six team and they hold the distinction of being Stanley-free for the longest time...they last won it in 1961. Toronto last won it in 1967 but who really cares!!!

Phoenix used to be the Winnipeg Jets which joined the NHL during the 1979-80 season which also saw the Edmonton Oilers, Quebec Nordiques, and Hartford Whalers come in from the WHA collapse. No Cup winners in Winnipeg (including Phoenix) but there were a few in Edmonton...I'm sure that even if you're not a hockey fan you may have heard of a man named Wayne Gretzky.

Quebec won it twice but they were the Colorado Avalanche when they won them and Hartford won it as the Hurricanes in 2006.

Los Angeles joined the league for the 1967-68 season...in case you haven't heard Toronto won its last Stanley Cup in 1967...when there were only 6 teams!!! Anyway, Los Angeles joined at the same time as the Minnesota North Stars, the California Golden Seals, the Philadelphia Flyers, the Pittsburgh Penquins, and the St. Louis Blues. Out of those additions the Flyers and the Penguins have won the Cup...Minnesota had to move to Dallas to win one.

So what am I getting at??? How is it that the rules of drafting 1st overall favour a team that has won the Cup in its first 12 years of existence? That Cup was won 4 years ago yet they somehow managed to stink up the place since then that they got the 1st overall pick...Steven Stamkos! How the heck did that happen??? Sure they had some bad goaltending but the fire-power was still there. How do they even get in the running with the likes of Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Chicago stinking up the win-loss column and not even sniffing a chance at the first overall pick? If I was a Chicago sports fan I'd be suicidal. I mean seriously...the Blackhawks, the Cubs, the Browns, the Bulls...at least the White Sox have a chance at doing some damage in October!

I'm guessing it may be pretty hard to get new fans on the NHL bandwagon especially in the States but I would imagine that if the rules were a little easier to understand then you might be able to pull more people into it. I know of some Canadian hockey fans that are having a hard enough time understanding how things work but Bettman doesn't really care about the Canadian fan base so our complaints fall on deaf ears. Strange eh???

What The ?????

Anyone miss me?

I know I've been lying low all summer but I had a hard time trying to figure out which story to write about. There were so many crazy things going on in the NHL, every time I wanted to start writing about it something even crazier would surface! So I've decided to basically pick up where I've left off. I'll catch up on the other stuff in the next few days or so...bear with me!!!

The last time I posted a blog was when the Sens were eliminated in 4 straight to the eventual Eastern Champion Pittsburgh Penguins. Of course the Sens could've faced the Pembroke Pylons Over 50 Squad and the result would've probably been the same...yes...they were that bad!!!!

That being said, General Manager Bryan Murray decided that enough was enough. There were problems in the dressing room that had to be rectified and he set out to do just that. The rumour mill was running at a furious rate in Ottawa with respect to illegal substances and the players who were involved. I'm not in a position to say who was involved because I never saw it actually happen but the "Group of Three" are no longer members of the Sens.

Now let's keep that train of thought going shall we? Bryan Murray is not only one of the most demanding but one of the most fiscally responsible GM's in the NHL. He refuses to give big contracts to under-achieving players. He does appear to be in the minority because for some reason the New York Rangers saw enough potential in Wade Redden from the last 2 years to offer him a sweet deal. They are now paying him $6.5 Million per year over the next 6 years! Glen Sather must've been eating some Maple Leaf deli meat when he offered that amount. There's no way this man is worth HALF that amount!!! He's been an absolute bust since he signed a $6.5 Million contract with Ottawa 3 yrs ago!!! I'm sure Bryan was happy to see him go as he tried to get him to waive his no-trade clause before last year's deadline but to no avail! I'm betting he didn't want to leave his "snow-buddies"!!!

Now Bryan's down to the "Group of Two"!

Brian McGrattan has spent more time in the penalty box than on the ice during his stay in Ottawa. I have to admit that I love a good scrap so I've been a little disappointed that I haven't seen him on the ice more often while he was wearing a Sens jersey. On the other hand, he is a one-dimensional player that will probably hurt your team before helping it. That being said, I still love the way he re-arranged Tie Domi's nose on my birthday in 2005!!! That was beautiful! He cranked Tie's nose and connected it to his left ear!!! That was the last of the Domi factor in the NHL. Unfortunately, because he was just a scrapper, I believe Brian had too much free time on his hands. After all, a hockey player wants to play hockey right!?!? With Chris Neil in the line-up there really wasn't any need for McGrattan to be on the ice...at least Neil could score. So McGrattan used his free time to socialize...and he basically socialized himself out of a job with Ottawa. Good luck in Phoenix Brian!!! I don't believe it snows in Phoenix and I'm sure Mr. Gretzky will deal with it if it does!!!

So now Bryan's down to the "Group of One"!

You have to understand that I'm only picking out three Ottawa players who weren't re-signed. If you see any other link with the 3 people I've chosen it's purely coincidental. With that in mind the last player I'd like to mention is Ray "Razor" Emery. This guy has never really had to work too hard to earn his ice time. Always seemed to be at the right place at the right time. He is just one of those naturally gifted athletes that make guys like me jealous!!! He excelled in golf, baseball, and soccer until he decided to settle on hockey. He didn't start playing in goal until he was 9 yrs old. And once he did the trophies started piling up. This trend continued with the Sault Greyhounds, the Binghampton Senators, and then right through to the 2006/07 where he was a huge reason why the Sens made it to the playoffs. But then the wheels fell off. He signed a big contract and then he got lazy! He, like McGrattan, had too much time on his hands which led to rumours of his party lifestyle! Mr. Murray decided enough was enough and bought out the rest of his contract. Now Emery is drinking vodka, enduring "snow-storms" and living in a Russian apartment. Personally, I hope he gets his head straightened out...if not then the Russian Gestapo will take care of him and he will never be in the NHL again.

That's all I'm going to bore you guys with right now but I will be back next week to talk some more about other teams and the idiot contracts that were signed in the off-season.

Hey...if you have any comments about my opinions please let me know!!! I'll eventually convince you that I'm right!!!!

CHEERS!!!!
The Rokpig!!!!

Anybody Got A Broom?

It's official!!! The Ottawa Senators are the first team out of the 2007-08 playoffs! They were swept in 4 by the upstart Pittsburgh Penguins! Yes, this is the same Ottawa Senators that set a record for the best start in NHL history by going 15 and 2. The same Ottawa Senators who made it to the cup final last year. The same Ottawa Senators who have the likes of Jason Spezza, Dany Heatley and Daniel Alfreddson in their lineup. Well, like I said in the title, anybody got a broom?



The Penguins brought their broom and swept the Sens out of the playoffs. Now Bryan Murray needs a broom to clean out the dressing room. In my humble opinion there are a cast of characters that need a new address!! Let's start with the obvious...

1. Wade Redden - What happened??? He signs a huge 3 year contract at $6.5 million a year and he quickly became a defensive liability. When Murray tried to trade him (twice) he wouldn't waive his no-trade clause because he believed he was here to win the cup. Well, as long as he's here Ottawa has no chance to win the cup!!! He's an unrestricted free agent come July 1st and we can only hope that Murray can trade before then...even if he only gets a bag of pucks and a pair of skates it would be worth it!


2. Ray Emery - The cancer of the dressing room has finally wore out the welcome mat!!! If Murray can get anything for him he would be proclaimed a genius but, alas Ottawa will be forced to buy out the rest of contract. Look for Ray to emerge as a backup somewhere in LA or Phoenix.


3. Randy Robitaille, Luc Richardson and Mike Commodore - Randy and Luc were ecstatic to have the chance to end their careers in their own backyard...consider it ended!!! Mike Commodore was a complete bust!!! I was expecting the hard-hitting, energetic Commodore of past...what we got was another slow-moving pylon on the defensive core!!! SEE YA!!!


4. Martin Lapointe - Brought in for toughness when Chris Neil was injured. The only thing tough about Lapointe was watching him play! Useless as tits on a bull!!!


5. Brian McGrattan - There's no room in this league for a slow, bumbling fighter who can't score!!! It's time to put him out to pasture...I believe there's room at the Celebrity Texas Hold'em tournament right next to Bob Probert and Tie Dummy!!!!

Now for the not-so-obvious...again, in my humble opinion...

1. Jason Spezza - I don't know about you guys but I keep hearing trade rumours of Spezza being traded to Vancouver for Roberto Luongo. That would go down as one of the most lopsided trades in NHL history!!! What's fueling this rumour is the fact that Luongo has let it be know that he wants to be traded back to the east to be closer to his wife and new child. I understand that. His wife and child are in Florida...Ottawa will not be his number 1 choice especially after the debacle of a season they just had!!! I'm also assuming that Spezza is wearing thin on the fans in this town. With the way he coughs up the puck trying to make the highlight reel all the time...makes sense! Him for Luongo??? The new GM in Vancouver (whoever that may be) would be chastised by the Canuck fans! Of course there is the outside chance that Spezza and Emery could go for Luongo...wouldn't hold my breath on that one though!!!


2. Andrej Meszaros - This guy lead the league in plus/minus 2 years ago. He has since become one of the worst (or unluckiest) defencemen in the league!!! Give him a new address!!!


3. Antoine Vermette - Before the trade deadline his name was brought up quite a bit while Murray was trying to package something with Emery. Truth is this guy can skate...he can shoot...he can be tough in the corners...he can be a game-breaker...but only when we feels like it. Anyone remember Martin Havlat??? Sound familiar??? Give him a new address!!!


4. Christoph Shubert - This guy hates to play forward...he keeps complaining that all he wants to do is play defense and yet they keep playing him as a forward. They put him on defense when they need him. He is a great 2-way player who can play both positions but complainers become a cancer in the dressing room! If he would've proven to be a better player on defense they would've kept him there...he didn't!!! Too busy complaining I guess!!! Give him a new address!!!!


5. Chris Neil - Where was the fire and passion of Chris Neil? He used to be one of my favourite dirty players! He picked up his game last year and was actually able to put the puck in the net...not too many times but enough to be an effective team player who can scrap and jack up the team. He disappeared this year. He had fleeting moments of glory but for the most part he was invisible. I don't think you need to give him a new address...it seems he already has one and it hasn't been in Ottawa for the past 5 months!!!!

That's my assessment of this 2007-08 Senators team. If you have an official team photo, keep it!!! It'll be the last time a lot of these players will be seen together. The players I haven't mentioned should be kept in Ottawa. Murray should also bring up the likes of Brian Lee, Nick Foligno, Cody Bass, Lawrence Nycholat, Josh Hennessy and Matt Carkner. I also think Murray should give Jeff Glass and Brian Elliott the chance to compete for the backup goaltending job. Unless of course he's able to get Luongo out of Vancouver!!! Anybody got a big enough broom to sweep him into Ottawa?

Let me know your thoughts!!! Enjoy golf season!!!

CHEERS!!!

The Rokpig!!!

the sensquatch challenge

Hey Everyone (from Allan on behalf of the Rokpig),

I'm sure you're just as bummed out as I am about the Sens loss tonight. They came out of the gates incredibly strong with Alfie in the line up and it looked like they were going to take this one. When the Penguins came out in the third with two quick goals, the wind came right out of the sails and that was that.

Having said that, I wish I had been at the game and we would like to give you a chance to go to the next one. Our friends at Philthy McNasty's agreed to put up two tickets to the private suite for the Wednesday game but it is going to take a bit of work to get them. On Wednesday, we'll be shooting the Nasty Show once again starting at about 5:30 and we'll be giving away two tickets to the fan that does the best Sensquatch impersonation. The Rokpig and Allan may even join you! Lucky You! In case your head has been buried under a rock, I thought we would bring you up to speed on the Sensquatch by showing you an interview we did with "The Squatch" himself (see video below). So come on out to Philthy McNasty's on Wednesday at 5:30 in your best Sensquatch impersonation and the crowd will cheer with the final call being make by the red giant himself.



C U Wednesday
Allan (on behalf of the Rokpig who is too sad to write anything tonight)
PS. I'll upload the show we taped tonight as soon as possible

The Nasty Hockey Show - Episode 7

Hey Everyone,

First of all, you might have noticed a couple of extra features to the right (provided by my incredibly smart brother in law Allan Isfan who is the co-founder of FaveQuest and is sponsoring/producing/editing and posting this show). You can register your email and get blog updates by mail. Note that you'll have to come to the website to see the actual video. There is also a reader poll for you to vote on stuff.

The Nasty Hockey Show has now entered the playoff phase and, together with Ryan from Philthy McNasty's in Kanata, we are giving away some great prizes including sens t-shirts, hats, discounts for food and drinks. Watch the video below to find out how to win prizes during the Monday show (starting at ~5PM). Then, on Tuesday, watch the show to find out how to win the grand prize "two tickets to the Philthy Suite for the Wednesday April 16 game!!!".

One last thing. We are now taking reader questions on this blog that we will have one of the lovely servers read during the next show ... if you're worthy. Rokpig and Liam will the provide answers or opinions so leave some comments below.

Enjoy the show and we hope to see you at Philthy McNasty's in Kanata (Centrum, near AMC theater).

Start Your Engines!!!

Ahhh...the sweet smell of spring is in the air which can only mean one thing...the STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS are about to start!!! This is real hockey...rough and tough hockey...not for the faint of heart. The hitting, the fighting, the passion...and that's just the fans in living rooms and bars across the country!!! Watching the games can be harmful if you have high blood pressure or if you're wearing the wrong jersey at the wrong bar!! I have some hazy memories of being in Montreal a few years ago in a sports bar wearing my Bruins jersey. I guess it didn't help that Boston was actually winning the game and I was telling anyone who would listen how much the Habs sucked!!! That was a rough night but I survived...unfortunately Boston didn't and lost the series after being up 3-0!!! It's tough to be a Bruin's fan I tell ya!!!

As the final weeks of this season were drawing to an end I couldn't help but notice the amount of idiocy happening in the NHL.

1. Mark (Darth Vader) Bell from Toronto taking out 2 of Ottawa's stars and not even being challenged! The hit on Alfie was clean (according to the NHL rules) but the team should have made him pay. This shows a lack of support within the club. Something stinks in the dressing room and it ain't coming from their hockey bags.
2. Boston playing Ottawa and neither are gauranteed playoff births. Boston needs the win and Ottawa needs one point. Ottawa loses but thanks to Jaques Martin and the Florida Panthers beating 3rd seed Carolina, Ottawa gets in anyway!!!
3. Pittsburgh played Philadelphia on Sunday. If Pittsburgh wins they get 1st place in the conference which allows them home ice advantage in each round. They would also face Philadelphia in the 1st round. They don't like playing the physical style that Philly brings so they throw the game in order to face a much softer Ottawa team. If I was Bryan Murray that news item would be on the bulletin board in the dressing room and used for motivation. That alone might help Ottawa win one game...maybe!!!

It seems that there's at least one idiot a week in the NHL...my vote this week goes to Bryan Murray. When the Leafs were taking their liberties with the Senators he should've sent a message. If the players didn't feel compelled to stand up for their captain then Bryan Murray should've lit a fire under their collective asses!!!

Let me know what you think!! If you have an opinion for who the NHL idiot of the week is let me know! I've got a plan that should be fun...something along the lines of a voodoo doll and Super Dave Osborne!!! I'll keep you posted.

Before I leave I must share my picks for the 1st round...if you win any money with these just remember, I like Molson Canadian!!!

East

1. Montreal vs Boston -> Boston in 7
2. Pittsburgh vs Ottawa -> Pittsburgh in 5
3. Washington vs Philly -> Washington in 6
4. New Jersey vs Rangers -> New Jersey in 7

West

1. Detroit vs Nashville -> Nashville in 7
2. San Jose vs Calgary -> San Jose in 5
3. Minnesota vs Colorado -> Minnesota in 6
4. Anaheim vs Dallas -> Anaheim in 4

If you think I'm crazy and want to know why I picked the teams I did...email me and I'll let you know the method to my madness!!

That's it for now...I'll be back next week...enjoy the 2nd season!!!

CHEERS!!!

The Rokpig!!!!

History Repeats...Sort of!

When I was in high school there was a kid in the same grade as me who couldn't play sports to save his life. He couldn't catch a football, he would constantly fall while trying to skate, too soft for rugby, he just didn't have any sports ability in him at all. The sad thing about this is that the kid loved sports!!! I mean he craved it!!! He knew the players in every sport...he followed the games by the numbers...he was even one of the biggest fans of every one of our high school teams!!! The jocks liked him just because of his knowledge and that was the group he hung out with. I'm sure he was proud to hang out with the jocks. He couldn't be one so this was as close as he could get. This kid has pursued his love of sports and is now a prominent sports columnist. From what I understand he still hangs with his old high school friends as much as possible even though he gets to meet the most elite athletes through his profession.

I'm telling you this story because I believe it's a direct parallel to a certain hockey team. My high school friend is amazingly similar to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The team wishes it can be good enough to make the playoffs and hang out with the best of the best but they just don't have enough of that athletic ability to make it. Consequently they end up watching and cheering others that may be friends of theirs. Some of them will almost certainly be approached by TSN or Sportsnet to help out with play-by-play or just being the "special" guest for the playoff run. See the similarities?

Now, I'm not a Leaf hater. I just find it amusing that coach Paul Maurice started off the year by guaranteeing a trip to the playoffs to all of Leaf-Nation...and they bought it!!! This is their 3rd year in a row for getting the best tee-off times and it doesn't look too rosy for next year either.

Without getting too long-winded I will make some bold predictions for this year's post-season. Just remember, you heard it here first...

1. Ottawa will be lose in 5 games to their first-round opponent...probably New Jersey.
2. Washington will finish first in their division which will put them 3rd in the conference. This will give them home-ice advantage in the first round. I believe the Caps are the dark-horse team that wins the east and competes for the Stanley Cup.
3. The standings in the west will probably stay the same although I expect Calgary to move up a bit and Dallas to move down.
4. I believe San Jose will win the west but the dark-horse there is probably Minnesota. If I was a betting man I may put long money on Minnesota vs Washington for the Stanley Cup!!!

That's it for now...Like I said I didn't want to get too long-winded. If you have any thoughts about this years' playoffs please feel free to drop me a line!!!

CHEERS!!!!!

The Rokpig...

The Ship Has Been Righted

Hey Everybody,

This is starting to fall into the wrong pattern but I do have a good reason. I haven't been putting out a blog and speaking my mind lately and I'm sure you really miss me!!! OK...maybe not but hey I can dream right? Truth is I love speaking my mind when it comes to sports and anything else I'm passionate about...like my family! This leads me to why I haven't been blogging much lately and it has something to do with the blog title...my family ship has finally been righted. We have moved out of our 1300 sq ft house on one of the busiest streets in Kanata. We have moved into a 2700 sq ft house on a quiet street in Stittsville. Very busy with the whole move thing since the middle of September and there's still a bunch of work to do...but you don't care about that!!

So let's talk about one of the other ships that has been righted! The Sens have been going down a horrible stretch since the All-Star Break. Truth be told it's been going bad for quite some time. Hard to believe these guys were good enough to get to the Stanley Cup Finals last year! I guess Mike Comrie and Tom Preissing were really that good!!! Or is Bryan Murray that good? When he took over the GM job and assigned John Paddock as head coach I thought that wasn't a bad move! Bryan's been a very successful GM before and John had successfully coached the majority of the Sens stars while he was head coach in Binghampton!!! Besides, he's inheriting a phenominal team that any coach would dream of guiding to the finals again. Well....not so fast people!!! According to Liam Maguire, John Paddock is the first coach in the modern-era to coach in the all-star game and be gone before the end of the season. There's a lot of finger-pointing as to why this happened and the Ray Emery distraction seems to be at the centre of it all. He was a distraction from the beginning and John didn't handle it properly. He subsequently lost the players in the room. Enter Bryan Murray! The re-entrance of Bryan Murray should right the ship of this team and make them contenders again...that is, if one of the goalies can get it going!!!

Another ship that has been righted is the FaveQuest Nasty Hockey Show. For those of you who don't know I have been hosting a show with different co-hosts for the past 6 weeks at Philthy McNasty's in Kanata. Some of my guests have included Liam Maguire (http://liamslament.blogspot.com/), The Sensquatch (http://www.mefeedia.com/tags/sensquatch/), Shredder from The Sens Underground (http://sensunderground.com/) and Angela Grant Saunders from Saunders Farm (http://www.saundersfarm.com/). All video footage is posted on favequest.com (http://favequest.com/) and is pretty good entertainment if you have some time to check it out. We tape every Saturday at around 5:00pm for about a half hour but we'll be taking some time off to plan for the playoff run. The Nasty Hockey Show will return on Saturday, April 5th so circle that date on your calendars and try to make it out. Liam Maguire should be on hand to handle any trivia questions and to alert us of any "Gutless Pukes" that may have made it to the playoffs...he loves to speak his mind!!! Now the reason why I say this ship has been righted is quite simple...believe it or not this show is starting to attract an audience! Every week the hits on FaveQuest have steadily increased. For me it's a feeling of accomplishment as I have never done anything like this before in my life...but I love it! What a rush it is to be able to talk to passionate hockey fans over a couple of pints as it is being recorded and sent out on the internet! We are creating content and people are finding it interesting!!! Very cool!!!

With that in mind I hope you get a chance to check out the websites I've included. It should give you some insight into the fun you may have been missing...then you can right your own ship and check it out live on April 5th!!

CHEERS!!!
The Rokpig

Going Live And On the Internet

I know it's been a while since I blogged but I guess life's been keeping me quite busy!!
We've sold our house and bought a new one (well...new to us...it was built in 1984). We'll be moving for basically the last 2 weeks of February, which means we've been packing and purging quite a bit lately.
I've also been consumed by the Facebook world which can pull you in and keep you there for longer than you planned. That being said the Facebook world is very dynamic. You can generate your own application and host it on Facebook. This is a great idea for people who want a large audience to try out their latest fun ideas.
One such application is called FaveQuest. This app will show you videos that you may like based on your Facebook profile. You don't have to go to search engines and type in what you like...this application will do it for you.
Now, as some of you may know, I'm a huge sports fan. Not much of a trivia guy but I love watching sports. Especially the NHL!!! I have noticed that there seems to be a shortage of video content available on the internet for a lot of things I want to see. I like post-game shows with honest talk from the players...not the same old gibberish that they spew out for every interviewer. I also like to see shows that offer opinion from fans and not what sport's shows think the fan wants. As much as I like listening to the Hockey Insiders they don't supply the channels for me to ask my own questions. Hopefully all that will change...at least in a local context anyway.

This brings me to the significance of the title of this blog. Starting this Saturday, January 19th, 2008 at 4:30pm...Philthy McNasty's in The Kanata Centrum will be home to the launch of the FaveQuest Nasty Hockey Show. This show will be hosted by yours truly and Liam McGuire. We are planning to run this every Saturday at 4:30pm for at least 8 weeks. I encourage all who read this to come out and have your voice heard. Ask questions, start debates, offer opinions, make a statement...just make yourself be heard!!! This show will be videotaped live in HD and posted on the internet for the world to see. This will be a perfect forum for the regular hockey fan to make his case for what he truly believes in and to see who else agrees.

For example:
Was Bobby Orr the greatest player to ever strap on the blades?
Will the Toronto Make-Beliefs ever get an NHL team?
Can the East beat the West in the 2008 All-Star Game?
Why does Gary Bettman look like Pee-Wee Herman? Are they related?

Those are just some of the things swimming around in my cranium...there's a bunch more which will most definitely come out at some point during these hockey shows.

I hope to see you folks at these shows...you can even think of some questions to try and stump Liam!!! My money's on Liam!!! We will also be trying to get some Sens players to say what's truly on their mind! Can't gaurantee that for this Saturday but we should have something lined-up in the next couple of weeks...I hear Heatley has some down-time for the next 6 weeks or so.

Also, if you have something on your mind that you want to be brought up at this show just reply to this blog or email me at rokpig@yahoo.com and I'll make sure it gets brought up. Make it good though!!!

See ya Saturday folks!!!

CHEERS!!!
The Rokpig...