37 posts tagged “calgary”

So the Calgary Flames' 2007-08 season ended tonight at the hands of the San Jose Sharks in Game 7 of the Western Conference Quarterfinal. As a Flames fan- it's disappointing. What what's more frustrating is that- once again- this team has failed to progress past the 1st round despite roster and coaching changes.
But with so much going through my head tonight, I thought I'd put it all down in pseudo-point-form, just to get it out.

Is Kipprusoff Overrated?
Egads! How dare I make such an accusation!! If I even mentioned that jokingly in any public area of this city I would be taking my life into my own hands! But let's call a spade a spade here too. Kipper simply has not been the breakout goaltender he was when he joined the Flames and helped take the team to the Stanley Cup finals in 2004. It happens to the best of goalies. There was a time when a team like Calgary would require nothing less of divine intervention to have a player like Curtis Joseph on the team when he was in his prime- yet now he plays backup for Kipper. My point? I've been watching NHL hockey long enough to see that all the greatest goaltenders tend to have 1-2 amazing seasons, then fizzle out- usually never returning to their former glory. Cujo himself is a stark reminder of that very reality in this league.
In 2004, Kipper was of a calibur where he could (and did) singlehandedly win a game after coming off a loss. Typically, as the case was, the worse the loss was in the previous game- the hungrier and more furocious he was the next game. That isn't the case any longer.
Kipper was pulled from two games in this series. That alone was something that most Flames die-hards would have had problems conceptualizing back in 2004.
"Pull Kipper?? What does that mean!?!?"
It seems to me that Kipper was brilliant at a time when he had something to prove. But now that he's secured his position as a 'superstar' goaltender- with the big fat paycheque to go along with it, what's there to prove anymore?

Boo CBC
This entire series was nothing less than pro-San Jose. This is the CANADIAN Broadcasting Corporation. It is funded with public tax dollars! By default the broadcasters on 'Hockey Night in Canada' should be backing the home team. In this series, it was nearly impossible to go a single game without CBC singing the endless praises of the San Jose Sharks. Kelly Hrudy and his obvious man-crush of Sharks player Brian Campbell was evident before the puck was even dropped in Game 1- and it only gained steam as the series progressed. The play-by-play commentators were equally pathetic. A Flames goal typically resulted in a mild "and he scores" from commentator Mark Lee- who usually only went on shortly thereafter, along with sidekick Craig Simpson, to then dissect what the San Jose Sharks did wrong to allow the goal and analyze what they needed to do to prevent it from happening again. Little talk about what the Flames did right to score or the positive changes the team made in order to solve the (admittedly strong) San Jose defense. San Jose goals by comparison were greeted by the same commentators as if they had just been given the most incredible orgasm they had ever received- and continued to praise the Sharks team for everything they did right in 'shutting down' Calgary. Pathetic. I've been a huge fan of CBC, and specifically, Hockey Night in Canada for as long as I've been watching hockey. But after this series, I've never felt so shunned and disappointed by the network. I've lost a lot of respect for Hockey Night in Canada in the past few weeks.
But to clinch it all and confirm CBC's love for the Sharks- after Game 7 tonight, not a single Calgary Flame was interviewed by bonehead Steve Armitage (who had the gall to ask two different Sharks players the exact same question- but also to ask Sharks 'veteran', Jeremy Roenick, whether this will be his "last kick at the cat" for his career. Uhm- Steve, you realize this is the end of the first round, right? That question might be better suited had the Sharks been eliminated, or if, say, that big shiny 115-year-old silver cup was being paraded around the ice at the same time. Just a thought!), and the post-game analysis of Ron Maclean and Kelly Hrudy barely even included the word 'Calgary' at all- unless it was in a negative connotation. But that's really just par for the course for them in this series really. So no shock there.

Huselius Cost Us The Series
Huse hasn't been playing well lately. Towards the end of the regular season, the guy couldn't buy a goal. In fact, I tend to remember him missing a wide-open net at a time when he had gone weeks without getting on the score sheet. I felty sorry for him. I like Huse, but something has clearly distracted him in the past several months. Maybe we'll find out what in the coming weeks- but that doesn't change the fact that he hasn't been able to put the puck in the net, and even worse- has been involved in bad plays.
One such bad play was in Game 4 of this series. In the dying seconds of the game, the score is tied, the Sharks have pulled their goalie, and there is tremendous pressure in the Flames zone. The Flames are working hard to keep the puck out of the Sharks' possession- when it comes to Huselius. Every Flames fan with eyes on the puck knew this was a prime opportunity to raise the puck high and get it out of the zone. Relieve the pressure, let the clock tick out. Voila- tie game, going to overtime after a nice 20 minute rest to allow the team to recoup and find their legs again. Instead, Huselius holds onto the puck and tried to play it. The Sharks intercept the puck and score with 7 seconds left in the game to win Game 4 and tie the series. A golden opportunity for the Flames to take a stranglehold 3-1 lead of the series and keep the momentum squarely in their favor going back to San Jose for Game 5... wasted.
And now tonight, our season is over and the Sharks are advancing. Of course there's no guarantee we would have won Game 4 in overtime either- but it does make one wonder about the possibilities of what 'could have been' had one person made a single different decision. That decision is dictated based on their skill and where their mind is at. Huse has skill- but his mind clearly hasn't been fixated on playing the best hockey he can play for several months now. It's food for thought for him, and for the rest of the Flames team. And now they'll have all summer to ponder over those decisions.

In Sutter We Trust??
Here's another one I don't dare say out-loud in public around town. In 2004, Darryl Sutter- the Flames General Manager (and at the time, Head Coach) was being praised endlessly for taking a team that had missed the playoffs entirely for the previous 7 seasons, into a team that went to the Stanley Cup final (Game 7 no less). The phrase "In Sutter We Trust" was quickly coined and it seemed whatever Darryl Sutter did, was unanimously praised as being the best decision possible.
It's true that Darryl Sutter has been the best thing for this club since the late 80's. No question there. We are at least consistently making the playoffs and playing competitively (well, it's probably 60/40 to be realistic- there are still some serious consistency issues that need to be dealt with). But is Sutter the savior of the Flames the way he was 4 years ago? I hardly think so.
I draw a comparison to the most revered team in the NHL: The Detroit Red Wings. The Wings dominate the league every year. They have the top floor of the Western Conference standings on permanent reserve, and have for years. And while they do make roster changes from year-to-year, they generally seem to subscribe to the notion of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it".
The Calgary team that went to the Stanley Cup finals in 2004 clearly worked. There was genuine chemistry and comradery amongst the players and the coaching staff. It featured a lot of young talent who played with heart, with leadership that led by example. And as a result- they were successful.
But instead of working to maintain that core what obviouslyed gelled and worked well together- Sutter seemed to take it upon himself to begin making changes when, really, changes probably weren't needed. Within weeks of the end of the Stanley Cup final, it was announced the Flames had acquired Daymond Langkow from the Phoenix Coyotes. Still in the 'in Sutter we trust' mentality, people bought it- assuming this was the best thing for the team. And really, Lanks has worked out pretty well. Maybe not as well as we had hoped- but he's certainly made his mark in Calgary.
But then things snowballed. The following season was cancelled due to the NHL Lockout, and it almost seems as though in order to keep himself busy, Sutter began moving players to and from Calgary. In the process, the team lost a lot of the young, raw, passionate talent that helped the team achieve the success they had in 2004. Replaced instead by 'experienced' players. The result was losing players like Jordan Leopold, Shean Donovan, Ville Niemenen, Mike Commodore, and Oleg Saprykin. Even Craig Conroy was shipped off to Los Angeles! In the meantime, some of those players have had success since being shipped out. Mike Commodore has only been playing in the NHL since 2000- and has really only been a mainstay player in the league since his stint with Calgary in 2004- and yet he already has his name on the Stanley Cup! Whereas a superstar player like Jarome Iginla, who has been playing professionally for over a decade, has yet to have his name etched in the silver plating. How doesn't that seem a little unbalanced?
Maybe there were other reasons unbeknownst to us 'regular joe' fans that prevented Sutter from holding onto those players and retaining the chemistry within the team- but from the outside looking in, it just looks like a 'make-work' project that has gone horribly wrong, and being unable to have the same the same level of success, or shit, even just consistency with this team is the strongest evidence of that.
I expect Sutter to be facing a lot of questions in the coming weeks and months.

At the end of the day- at least we in Calgary can relish in the fact that our season lasted longer, and was overall more successful (statistically) than those of the Vancouver Canucks and the Edmonton Oilers. Plus we don't have the burden of facing a future with a radically different-looking team next season due to unrestricted free agents and sweeping changed in upper-management, both something that the Canucks are already dealing with, and the Oilers should be dealing with over the summer.

In the meantime, I'll keep a passive eye on the only remaining Canadian club in the post-season, the Montreal Canadiens, but certainly won't be rearranging my quickly-filling schedule to accomodate the games. In a way it's almost a blessing the Flames are out early. I have a lot of big projects coming up, and it'd be hard to find the time to dedicate to a hockey game every few days. So maybe in the end, the end of the Flames' 2007-08 season works out for everyone in order to do some hard work now in order to relish in the fruits of our labor this time next year.

Winter Came Back! (cont.)

A small piece of my soul died this morning- frozen to death. -31'C outside this morning, blowing/drifting snow. The picture I'm using is from last year- but shit, it all looks the same anyways, so why not recycle some media?

Maybe I'm just a little spoiled from having been in Maui earlier this month- but seriously. People choose to live in a frozen wasteland like this? Who in their right mind!?!? I've lived here all my life- and honestly, I've just about had enough of this year in and year out.

Anyone looking for a PHP developer in a climate that doesn't completely suck??

CuJo

A few years ago, before the Calgary Flames began clawing their way back into the upper echelon of the NHL and the future still seemed dismal, then-superstar goaltender, Curtis Joseph was officially a Calgary Flame for all of a few hours before being signed with another club. Joseph, or 'Cujo', was never actually going to be a Flame. The move was part of a trade that saw Joseph end up elsewhere (my memory doesn't help me remember where- and I'm still on Maui time, so Googling for an answer won't happen).
At the time, however, I remember thinking as a Flames fan that we could only ever dream to have a superstar like Cujo play in Calgary.

But the dream is over- and Cujo is now a Calgary Flame! More amazing- he's the backup goaltender to Miikka Kipprusoff! Admittedly, Cujo has lost some of the shine from his star over the years. The last few seasons he's been doing his thing in Phoenix with the at-the-bottom-of-the-league Coyotes. Certainly nowhere near the success he had in Detroit, Toronto and Edmonton- but he's obviously hungry for success again- even if it's as #2 to Kipper.

This move to secure a solid #2 goaltender in Calgary has been faaaaar too long in coming. The past few seasons the #2 goalie has largely been some rookie or hothead (who gets himself ejected from the game just minutes after being put on the ice). Bottom line- we haven't had someone that can be a solid, confident backup to Kipper. And while Kipper is good- he's not invincible. He's human- and he works hard, and he's gonna get tired. Seems that Mr. Sutter has finally come to realize that, and has done something about it.

I get the impression that the Flames are gearing up for another serious run to the Stanley Cup this season. Should be a very interesting spring.

It's hard to believe that Christmas is mere days away. Today was my last day at work for the next three weeks!!! w00t! That alone is difficult enough for me to comprehend. I can't remember the last time I had 3 consecutive weeks off!

Originally, the plan for this weekend was a weekend gaming binge with my friend, Marc, who is home from Poland for Christmas. But those plans got sidetracked a little on Tuesday night when Ange won the door prize at a staff function which included dinner and drinks, 'executive transportation' service to the Saddledome where we took in the Calgary Flames Vs. Dallas Stars hockey game in the best seats we've had yet (row 3 of the second tier- usually we're near the back of the nosebleeds) this season, while each wearing one of the brand new Flames jerseys (bringing our  combined collection to 5). Ange and I never win anything- especially something this sweet. We both said that this must be karma coming back after all the recent struggles we've had to endure over the last month or so. Seemed like a perfect way to kick off our Christmas vacation.

The game was great. Seats were amazing. It was nice to sit and feel like part of the crowd again instead of looking over it (although, life in the 'nosebleeds' is very different and fun in their own unique way). Both Calgary and Dallas played extremely well- definitely a few nailbiter moments, and certainly more than a handful of urges to kill a referee for a bad call.

Naturally I touted the camera along.

Saturday afternoon, the wife and I (yes, she came willingly) attended 'Video Games Live' at the Jack Singer Concert Hall in Calgary. In a nutshell- 'VGL' is a concert tour featuring the music of some of the best video game music as played by a local orchestra- in our case, the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra (CPO). The show has been extremely popular around the world. Both Calgary concerts (Friday night & Saturday afternoon) were sold-out.

We arrived early on Saturday knowing that there would be 'activities' beforehand- including a Guitar Hero III competition, a Wii demonstration station (where Ange proceeded to hand my ass to me in our first outing on 'Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree'), among others. The crowd was definitely not what you would expect for a philharmonic performance. I, along with plenty of others in attendance- wore geek/gaming-related t-shirts. Some even dressed up in costumes- and were entered into a costume contest. Being the gamer-geek I am, I brought my Nintendo DS along 'just-in-case' someone decided to throw an impromptu game of Mario Kart DS. No such luck- so I ended up taking it back to the car before the show started. Turns out a few others had the same idea- and during intermission it was not uncommon to see people sitting and playing their handheld systems- and even towards the end of the concert, the show's MC, Tommy Tallarico, told the crowd to hold your DS's, PSP's or cell phones in the air for an encore performance (and even poked fun at the PSP by delaying the encore to 'give them time to boot-up').

The show itself was amazing, but sadly, photography during the performance was not allowed- and really, any pictures taken during the show wouldn't have done it justice anyways. Video Game music does have fans out there. I've been a game music fan pretty much since I started playing them. It's evolved a long way from the 'blips' and 'bloops' of the early days of gaming- but music is music, and it conveys an emotion and feeds memories. The crowd at this concert reflected that. It was a wonderful experience- a lot of positive energy to be had. They hinted at a return to Calgary for the 2008 tour. Definitely worth going to see again.

... and somehow, I'm okay with it. For now anyways- tomorrow morning might be a different story.

The irony is that today was hot. Temperatures were around 20'C all day! I wore my jacket going out for lunch and I took it off because I was sweltering in it! Literally 10 hours later- there is snow on the ground, and suddenly that jacket isn't enough to stay warm outside. Amazing.

Seems as though tomorrow might be the perfect day to go ice skating (indoors- outdoor rinks won't come for another month).

I was awoken this morning by a sound that has come to be the equivalent to nails on a chalkboard to me- construction. Somewhat ironically, some of the sounds coming from within yards of our open bedroom window actually sounded like nails on a chalkboard. This was before 10:00am this morning- Saturday morning. Ange said she heard them before 9:00am this morning!
I tried to force myself to sleep through it- but to no avail- even with the window closed. No catching up on much-needed rest this morning. All thanks to more fucking construction. So tonight I sit on my balcony on a beautiful October evening- wanting to overlook my little piece of serenity, and instead feel like I should be donning a fucking hard hat.
I hate construction. It has done nothing to make day to day life in Calgary miserable- between massive traffic disruptions and poor air quality- and now it's directly outside my bedroom window and below one of the only places that I actually am able to find peace and serenity anymore.

Fuck construction.

I stumbled upon this on YouTube this evening. I didn't make it- but it's such a sweet idea I'd contemplate doing one from Calgary to Invermere. I've driven this stretch of highway more times than I can remember. It's a beautiful drive, and it's so cool to see it sped up like this. Every turn, every hill, every straight-away. In reality this trip takes about 60-90 minutes (depending how fast you drive).

Only 42 Days left until the first game of the NHL Regular Season on October 4th versus the Philadelphia Flyers!
Better yet- the pre-season kicks off in mere weeks! September 16th the Florida Panthers are in town.

Oooooooooooooh... I'm gettin' excited!!! Clearly this it one of the best things about the arrival of Fall (actually, it's one of the only good things).

Flames