Good Thing I Changed My Beat

More conclusive proof as to why I don't gamble.

If This Entry Matters & You Know It, Clap Your Hands

NHL lockout news that I deem to be "important" and may not have mentioned during the semester:

- The meeting with the board of governors, originally scheduled for this Friday, has been canceled.

- "The Great One" thinks it might not just be this season that is in jeopardy.

- Gary Bettman is only the fifth worst manager of 2004, according to Business Week.

- The owners won't win many fans over if they replace their unionized players with scabs.

- When the NHL finally does return to the ice, fans will no longer have to settle for games resulting in ties; prepare for the era of the shootout.

- The Blackhawks' minor league team, the Norfolk Admirals, created some excitement a couple weeks back - by becoming involved in a wild brawl on the ice.

- Tommy Hawk (whose time is not cheap) was one of two mascots booed at halftime during the Chicago Bears season finale. The other mascot receiving catcalls was from the Minnesota Vikings.

Just A Bit Creepy

I don't know. Maybe it's the overhead view that disturbs me.

Where Have All The Broadcasts Gone?

Hey! Congratulations NHL! This lockout is now your longest work stoppage ever! Normally we'd reserve the act of removing our ballcaps for a hat trick, but we'll tip a cap to Goodenow and Bettman for their remarkable stubborness in failing to come to a compromise - no matter how many possible solutions came their way.
And so we look again to the Wolves instead of the Blackhawks, because unlike Chicago's NHL franchise (and unlike most Chicago sports franchises), this team is in first place. December was so good, Kari Lehtonen earned the AHL's goalie of the month.
Now, if only we could get these boys on the Wolves some TV time.
Enter Comcast, who agreed to exclusively broadcast all 80 Chicago Wolves games this season. The Wolves management must have been thrilled with the original deal, because they ended up extending the deal to 2007-08.
It would seem to be an ideal solution to the deprivation any hockey fan in the area might be experiencing, but there's been some problems.
The schedule on the team's website conveniently lists the channels and limitations of the agreement, but some fans are upset because they're local provider has been dropping the ball. Fans in suburbs like Carpentersville, Buffalo Grove, Lake Zurich, Alsip, and more have turned on their TVs when the puck is being dropped. What they found instead was infomercials for pilates or public access programming.
Wolves fans in these cities are growing frustrated, and Comcast is working on fixing the problem. However, the problem may be more with what local providers choose to air rather than with Comcast as a whole.
Point is, I'm in the middle of interviewing frustrated fans of these cities experiencing problems, and I'm speaking with some representatives from Comcast as well.
If, as rumored, the NHL calls off its season on January 14 (the next - and perhaps final - meeting between the two sides), are fans going to be able to find hockey on TV this year?
It'd be nice to actually see somebody win something in this town.

Anybody Else Tired Of The Ribbons?

If so, get a load of this site. Hell, even Roeper liked it.

Happy Holidays

Merry Christmas, yo

Nothin' new here, Boss Hogg

Are we actually supposed to post anything new? I'm too busy digging shit up for this little quiz we got. I hope that excuse is kosher for now.

My story, you ask? Uh . . . it's comin' along.

Any Organization Created Out Of Fear Must Create Fear In Order To Survive

I had been told that Phil's Sports Bar in Elmwood Park was an establisment owned by a "huge" Wolves fan and showed every game. So I stopped there this week to hopefully catch a game against the San Antonio Rampage and get a couple more interviews.

Well, what I found when I got there was a bartender heavily invested in combing the pages of the latest issue of "The Star," a woman eating mozzarella sticks, and two guys who had to get home by eight. There was a Wolves jersey in the bar - framed on the wall, with no apparent autograph. The owner is in Florida for the next couple weeks and Comcast Sports pre-empted the Wolves with a different hockey game - Notre Dame against Michigan.

So in other words - a total bust. I asked the owner to call me, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

Still, I think the five interviews will not be a problem for the final project. Those numbers to shape the story . . . are coming along. A couple of the links we were introduced last week have given me a lot of new options, but not anything I want to rush to post . . . yet.