BSB March Madness Tournament Pick ‘Em

It’s that time of the year again, and Selection Sunday is right around the corner. For a little fun, I created a Yahoo Pick ‘Em group. Unlike the BSB Fantasy Hockey League, there will be no prize for winning, but it will be for bragging rights. There is no team number limit, so the more the merrier.

Sign up at Yahoo by clicking here and selecting Join a Group. Then enter the information below:

Group ID: 28834
Password: blueseatblogs

Good luck.

Fire Sather Rally Tomorrow

For those of you who are interested, the infamous Fire Sather Rally will be taking place tomorrow afternoon at 5pm. Event organizer Mike Zippo, who has done a great job in arranging this and getting necessary publicity, will be meeting everyone at 5 on the MSG steps on 7th Ave. Zippo has done such a good job marketing this, that it is getting mainstream attention.

For those who can’t go, Blueshirt Banter will be covering the event, with The Mouth in attendance, on Blueshirt Banter Radio. Coverage will begin at 4:30pm.

Slap Fight!

Oh Maxime Talbot, my sister can beat you up in a fight. When they showed the replay of this, my section almost died laughing. In case you missed it, here’s Talbot trying to slap Sean Avery.

Talbot and Crosby really belong on the same team. One’s a bitch, one’s a slapper.

Playing GM

With Rangers news almost non existant thanks mainly to the Olympics I thought we could play a little ‘GM for the day’…

In the summer, assuming Sather doesnt do anything TOO ridiculous lets assume the only definite roster members of the squad are this;

Gaborik, Lundqvist, Staal, Dubinsky,Callahan, Del Zotto, Drury, Avery, Anisimov.

What changes would you make? Assume you cannot move both the R+R brothers.

Personally my changes would start from within. I’d tell Tortorella his job is safe but we’re going young – no matter what. I’d entice Stepan out of college, the same with McDonagh and i’d put up with the growing pains you’ll get with Sanguinetti up in the big league. I’d go young. Then i’d add a mid tier sniper, for short term. I’d bring back Prospal to help lead the kids brigade.

Players i’d move out? I’d trade Girardi at this years deadline. He’s asolid top 4 guy with some upside and given the picks that have gone on players so far a 2nd rd pick would be within reach. I’d be willing to move anyone other than the above for picks. No mercy.

Hell… if it got me a 1st i’d even move Dubinsky. As i said, no mercy.

Messier’s Impact as GM

With the Olympic break in full swing, and me on vacation (Note: This post was scheduled a while ago, I’m not magically posting from my cruise. I can’t. And even if I could, I wouldn’t.), there were some volunteers to help keep the content here at BSB in full swing until the NHL returns to action. Over the course of the week, you will be seeing posts from readers here. This post is courtesy of Ben, the lead writer at Bettman’s Nightmare, who analyzes the impact Mark Messier would have if he were GM of the Rangers. If you don’t feel like reading, thats ok, it’s a picture post.

At Bettman’s Nightmare, we have nothing but respect for the Moose. He breathes life into our sorry existence, paralyzes our enemies with icy stares (I know, I know, it should be “glare” but it’s called the “Messier Stare” and I didn’t want to blaspheme), and will never turn down Gary Coleman.

But can he deliver us from Slats?

The recent Jokinen trade has certainly spit-shined Glen Sather’s reputation around the Garden, but as George Carlin once said, “You can’t polish a turd,” and this is one GM that still has a funk.

So in a little stretch of imagination, let’s fantasize about what the Messiah can do for the home team…

- Mark Messier will bring back Cooperalls and Winnwell helmets.

Ron is excited about this.

DO NOT look directly into his eyes.

- Mark Messier will teach Marian Gaborik to fight.

“Maybe it would be better if you started with Brian Gionta.”

- Mark Messier will discover the Missing Link at MSG’s center ice dot.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, Gorilla Hartnell, or goaltenderus interferus.”

And finally:

- Mark Messier will re-sign Wade Redden to a 5-year deal worth 50…cents.

Of course I am confident in Moose’s abilities; this is a man who delivered the Cup after 40 years of futility. On the flip side, perhaps a dose of realism is in order:

- Mark Messier will not live up to expectations as a GM.

Hate to be a buzzkill, but I can live with that one. Let’s be reasonable

Avery-isms

As part of my other venture with Stalking Steve Phillips, I penned an article with some good Sean Avery quotes. We Ranger fans love Avery and his antics, and these quotes are pretty solid. Check out the article here.

I Caved…We’re On Twitter

Yes, now you can get an even bigger fill of BSB on Twitter, @BlueSeatBlogs. The Twitter page will automatically link to each new post as it is posted, just in case you don’t like RSS feeds. We will also be tweeting random comments while we watch games.

You can follow us by following the button on the right. Coming soon: BSB Reality TV!

The Sean Avery Hat Trick

In tonight’s game thread, Jeremy predicted a Gordie Howe hat trick for Sean Avery against his former team. We got one better, as Avery created his own hat trick tonight (this phrase was coined by old BSB author Stas, so full credit goes to him). What exactly is a Sean Avery hat trick? Well, it’s a goal, an assist, and a 10 minute misconduct.

Let us take this moment to congratulate Avery on his own hat trick, it truly is amazing to have your own hat trick in hockey.

Update 9:55pm Quote of the night from Avery:

Stan Fischler: What was different about tonight?
Avery: I was getting paid by two teams.

Petition for Sather to Step Down

During one of my random Rangers Google searches, I came across something that actually made me laugh out loud at work. There is a petition online that currently has 83 signatures calling for GM Glen Sather to step down. Should he choose not to step down, the petition asks that he waive Michal Rozsival, Wade Redden, and Chris Drury.

I did not start this petition, nor am I signing it. But it is actually really funny.

Why You Can’t Trust NHL ‘10

A few days ago, I wrote a post on the common misconception about dealing monstrous contracts. Well, there is something to add on to this, and that is the trade offers you can make in video games. Some believe that these are a simulation of real life. To that, I give you the trade the computer offered me during the offseason:

To NYR:
Joe Thornton
Manny Malholtra

To SJ:
Wade Redden
Matt Gilroy
P.A. Parenteau

I rest my case.