Stampede Is Coming!!!

So, the Stampede is almost upon us... which means... I can finally wear my cowboy hat without being laughed at or ridiculed, lol!! It also means, great times as we always head down to the Stampede on Family Day (because it's free if you get in before 9am... which is right before church anyways, lol) and it will be great again as usual. Fun times, Fun games, Fun Rides (though I never go on any... to save money) and great memories. For Example: 'Someone' puking on a poor kids shoes after a ride... 'someone' and 'someone' getting caught 'gambling' by Pastor 'someone', etc. If you have more memories, feel free to comment about them! :P (names are optional, :P)

Not much of a blog... just looking forward to Stampede... and trying to get some blog points, lol... so posted below is a photo of a CocaCola Bear that I won at the Stampede a couple years past. It is the largest prize I've ever won at the Stampede (from the break the beer bottle game) and therefore is my most memorable prize and favorite prize I've ever won. Which means it is one of my favorite bears! And ofcourse, Pooky from Garfield!!

Hockey News! *SHOCKING*

1) Todd Bertuzzi along with Bryan Allen and Alex Auld have been traded to the Florida Panthers for Roberto Luongo and a prospect! We knew that Bertuzzi was out of Vancouver for sure... but for Luongo? WHOA! Looks like a good trade for both teams. Vancouver had to get rid of Bertuzzi (salary and team/coaching chemistry wise) and ended up with a world-class goaltender (the teams weakest position for years) though this brings up a question of... what will happen to Clouthier? Assuming that Mika Noronen will end up being the backup for Luongo because of salary. Good trade for Florida as signing Luongo for a long-term deal was out of the question and this way they get something back. An all-star power forward (and the Eastern Conference can really wake up a sleeping giant), a top defensive prospect that will be a top 4 dman in his career and a decent number 1 goaltender. Not a bad pickup at all.



2) Chris Pronger has REQUESTED to be TRADED from the Edmonton Oilers for "personal" reasons! Edmonton looked like it had just turned a corner with finding a dependable number 1 goaltender in Roloson (if they can re-sign him) a number 1 defenceman in Pronger and a good mix of forwards... but now that Pronger... basically the cornerstone of the Oilers team this season wants out... oh man... luckily, Pronger's stock is quite high right now and the Oils can still get a good return from the trade.

More to come after the Draft is over today! Expect more to happen!



3) JORDAN LEOPOLD this years 2nd round draft pick and a conditional 2nd round draft pick for ALEX TANGUAY! Well, we definately needed an offensive lift and we got one! Not a centerman like we thought, but will definately be a boost to our team no matter what. Losing Leopold is tough... but we are really deep defensively, so it's not as big of a loss. But we sure like dealing with Colorado, lol... Yelle... Drury... Reinprecht... Tanguay... lets just hope he ends up like Yelle and stays long-term and performs well instead of like Drury and Reinprecht! Problem also with Tanguay is that he is not under contract still. He's a Restricted Free Agent, so let's hope he signs quick and for long-term and for not TOO much money!

4) Not so shocking... but interesting nonetheless. Minnesota, a team known for building up their team through draft picks has traded a 1st round draft pick (from the Dwayne Roloson trade) and a top prospect for Pavol Demitra. Different move for Minnesota as they are now bringing in experienced and expensive players instead of just building a team through the draft.

Stanley Cup Update

Edit: NOOO! Joe Sakic has re-signed with the AVS!! DOH, there goes the possibility of Sakic signing as a Flame! lol, knew it was too good to be true.





THE CAROLINA HURRICANES ARE THE CHAMPIONS!
Would have been much better if it were the Flames and not the Canes... but oh well, what can you do?
Great game though, great game. Both teams played hard and it could have gone either way, but great job Canes and great job to the Oilers as well!

And I called it:
Cam Ward = Conn Smythe Trophy Winner! First Rookie Goalie to win the award and the Stanley Cup since Patrick Roy in '86! First Rookie Goalie to win the award since Ron Hextall in '87!

Flames Update

Kristian Huselius has re-signed with the team for a rumoured 3mil for 2 years (1.5mil per season). That is good news for us cause he has skill that we need.

Rumours also have it that Kipprusoff will be a no-show for the NHL Awards this week because he is enjoying his timeoff in Finland too much to make a trip. This doesn't go well with me... shows that he lacks class. But oh well... as long as he plays the way he is then he can remain a Flame. :P But still... don't want another Patrick Roy around... all skill and buster but nothing going for personality.

MY current projections of the lineup:
Huselius - Free Agent TBA - Iginla
Lombardi - Langkow - Kobasew
Nilson - Yelle - McCarty
Nystrom - Lundmark - Amonte
Ritchie
Problem with this is:
- Will we be able to sign a top-knotch number one centerman?
- Will Amonte regain his confidence and be worth his 1.8mil salary?
Ro. Regehr - Leopold
Hamrlik - Phaneuf
Warrener - Ferrence
Ri. Regehr
Problems with this is:
- Will one of our top 6 dman be used as trade bait to get a number one centerman for Iginla? (Leopold and Hamrlik topping the dmen as trade-bait)
- Will Sutter bring back Marchment or Hulse?
Kiprusoff
Krahn

New Glasses

Well... there they are. Pretty similar to my old pair... except I think it's a bit more sophisticated?? Either way... new glasses cost way too much money. Sigh... I think I'm going to go and buy a second pair when I'm in Hong Kong during Christmas just incase and because it's so cheap in HK! :P
Also... seems my nerves were damaged in the hit as well... so... in 2 months time I have to go back and do a check-up again to make sure it isn't permanent! I sure hope it isn't... that would suck if they were. But it seems my left eye doesn't react as quickly as my right eye right now. So... give it some time and see if it heals... or... I'd have to get specialized lenses for my left eye to counter the slower mobility. Sigh...

Poll

How would your friends describe you (this case, being me - Geo)?

Aggressive and focused

Cheerful and easygoing

Dark and moody

Fun loving and wild

Hard to figure out

Indescribable

Quiet and shy

Steady and reliable

Hockey Rumour Mill

HOLY BALONEY!! If this were to happen, I would be extremely happy!!

-Sakic to Calgary is very possible. According to one source, "The idea of playing with Jerome in Calgary is really appealing to Joe. He'd like to finish his career in Canada, and since Vancouver isn't an option due to cap reasons, Joe is very interested in Calgary. Him and Iggy have played so well internationally together, it seems like a perfect fit" - http://hockey-leaks.blogspot.com/

Sigh... if only. Come on Colorado... screw up the negotiation process!! They'll probably still retire your number in Colorado regardless of whether or not you retire with them!

Shattered

My heart has been shattered... well... actually... my glasses have been shattered. Never have I seen plastic lenses shatter before, but now I have. Up close and way too personal!! But yeah... the story goes like this:
The event for YAC was Friars and Nuns (Guys and Girls separate and fellowship together without the other distracting sex). The friars (guys) ended up playing ping-pong baseball and at the end of the night, Jack and I were both going for a pop-fly... He had jumped into the air for the ball and when I saw him I braced for impact. But when he saw me, he got spooked and quickly pulled his arms back to protect his body and hence I received an elbow directly on my left glasses lens. Which then shattered into 4 peices and cut my cheek right below my eyes (LUCKILY it wasn't a couple centimeters higher, or else I'd be at the hospital with a lacerated cornea). And I was just wondering this past week whether or not I should get new glasses since these ones don't seem to be as strong as I need them to be. I didn't want to get new ones because I'm not insured anymore and a checkup and new glasses would no longer be covered, but I guess God's saying that I need new glasses, hehe.
Anyways, I fixed up my glasses as well as I could... but do you guys think it's obvious that they are broken? :P