Hangin With the Ghost

Whatever Happened to Ol'Jase?


Back in the summer of 2007, a fine semi-young chap named Ol'Jase hatched the idea for this blog. Now, all none of you who read this online journal are no doubt wondering why the man has never actually posted anything. Well, that's a good question, and one that I will now answer for you.

First, Ol'Jase was, by accident, drafted into the US marines where he shipped off to Iraq. After killing thousands and thousands of terrorists, but no innocent civilians, the marines got wise to their error. Once the marines realized their mistake they sent him home. However, the plane carrying him lost an engine and crash landed. All 209 people on board were killed, exept Ol'Jase. Somehow he miraculously survived.

Ol'Jase was now stuck in a foriegn land, with no food, no contacts, and no water. He was in the vast wastelands of southern France. Luckily, a middle aged widow took pity on him and invited him into her home. But, she turned out to be possesive and controlling. She wanted contstant sex and attention. Ol'Jase just wanted a hot sandwich and a beer. This was not going to work out. So, without copulating with the French cougar, he escaped with her Visa card and Mini. Once at the Paris Airport, he charged up a plane ticket home. However, once again the plane crashed, killing everyone....except Ol'Jase. He swam to the shore of what was New Jersey. When he told his story to the authorities, he was quickly scooped up by the CIA. They believe that he has massive superpowers, since nobody could survive 2 plane crashes AND resist bedding a hot, leggy french cougar.

So, where is Ol'Jase? I can't tell you that, it's classified. And the CIA won't either.

So, there you have it. So for all none of you who regularly read this journal, and eagerly anticipate Ol'Jase making a contribution, you're out of luck.

The Love Affair Is Over

Why I'm Done With The Canadian Football League


If you shopped at a store that sold you damaged goods and then refused to take the product back, you likely wouldn't shop there again. Well, as customers, we have that right. And no matter what terms or labels you want to put on it, sports fans are exactly that: customers. You can call them fans, supporters or whatnot. But in the end, the root term is customer.

Now, as a lifelong customer of the Canadian Football League, I've been shopping at it's Edmonton Eskimos location for 25 years at least. Well, my father paid the way for the first 10 years, but you get my meaning. I've always preferred the Canadian game to the American one, even though I am also a customer of the NFL. Three down football on a longer and wider field with an extra player was just always more entertaining for me. As a customer, I felt that my money was well spent. But in recent years, some things have changed.

The CFL has, for at least 20 years now, been a league that has struggled to make ends meet. They've always had at least one store that was close to failing. But the other locations would bail it out. A true corporate effort, if you will. But that spirit has been lost among the different franchises, who cannot agree on the direction the corporation should take on any issue. The league has grown considerably in recent years in terms of fan support and television ratings. The head office has done a better job under recent commissioners of marketing the league and getting corporate sponsorships. But why, then, has the actual product on store shelves continued to decline in terms of quality?

The ever fighting and greedy CFL Board of Governors refuses to empower the league's commissioner, instead preferring that the commish be the de facto head of marketing and not much more. Those same governors fight it out over the financial structure of the league. They agree on a salary management system then several of them blatantly cheat and refuse league auditors access to their books. Others cheat and will gladly pay the penalty. They have the cash or draft picks and don't care. Meanwhile the players continue their steady stream back to the USA to play in smaller but more financially stable leagues like the Arena Football League, which pay better. Or they just get real jobs back home, which also pay better. Quite frankly, the CFL can't manage itself to save its life. All this affects the product on store shelves.

The quality of player in the CFL has dimishished considerably. Expanding leagues like the NHL have an excuse: more teams equals more players equals a watering down. The CFL has no such excuse. The explanation is poor management in every sense of the word. Low salary expectations have driven many players away. Right now Ricky Ray may be the best quarterback in the league, but the man has no deep ball, and cannot read a defensive secondary. This is the best? Not everybody is going to be Warren Moon or Doug Flutie, but I think we can expect at least a few Holloway or Austin calibre players. Ricky Ray isn't that, I'm afraid. The fact that he, or perhaps Henry Burris, is the best right now shows how bad the talent level in the CFL has gotten.

The league now makes more money than ever before, yet still doesn't have a full-time crew of officials. They haven't invested in referees who are employees of the league full-time, and who are properly funded and expected to keep to a high standard. Employees who train, and hone their skills. This just isn't the case. The referees in the CFL are some of the worst in professional sports anywhere in the world. Not only do they affect the outcomes of games in a negative way, but they negatively affect the entertainment value. Ruining Sean Fleming's last field goal at Commonwealth after a long and storied career via a non existant holding call was just the latest example of how embarrassingly bad it has gotten. And to rub salt in the wound, the league's head of officiating, Mr. Black simply insults fans by saying that there is no problem at all.

So where's the incentive for me, as the customer, to continue to shop at the CFL? And in particular, where is the incentive to shop at their Edmonton location, a store that used to be the envy of the whole corporation, but is now one of the worst run stores of them all? Quite frankly, it will take some serious changes at the league level to bring me back. The sincere promise of a better product league wide, not just at my local store. The Eskimos ridding themselves of Danny Maciocia and getting some better marketing people would be postive steps, but that only affects one store out of eight. Edmonton running things better doesn't mean that underpaid players will stop abandoning the league. It doesn't mean that officiating will improve. It doesn't mean that the league will take the proper steps to improve the product in meaningful, long term ways. If the league took those steps and asked me as a customer to be patient while the store underwent renovations, I could see myself continuing to give them my business. But none of that is happening. There is no real investment in officiating. There is no empowering of the commissioner. There is no decent pay for players who aren't top-end quarterbacks. So, where's the incentive for me, the customer?

The answer is, of course, that there is none. And until there is, I'm done shopping there.

You've Lost That Loving Feeling

Why Are Edmonton Sports Fans Afraid to Cheer?


While I was watching Rangers FC give Celtic FC a sound 3-0 drubbing this morning in the year's first Old Firm derby game, I was wondering why sports fans in my city, and in my country really, are not so passionate about the games they are watching. Often times watching hockey in Rexall Place is like being at a funeral. I've seen people frown at goals and sit there with their arms crossed. At Commonwealth, they've resorted to pumping up the crowd with pathetic announcements like "Let's make some noise!!!". The crowd gets the same treatment at Rexall with messages on the scoreboard encouraging them to wake up. Awful.

This morning's Old Firm game at Ibrox was deafening from the beginning right through to the end. Chanting, singing, and cheering are considered the responsibility of the supporter; a help to the on field squad. A silent crowd is considered a disgrace. The result would be the same if the game had been held at Celtic Park. The supporters of these teams, and of many football teams in Europe, take their "responsibility" seriously. Many travel at great expense for away games. Good for them.

In Edmonton, people seem to only turn on for playoff games. And even then, football playoff games (back when we had those) have had a regular season kind of atmosphere.

It's a shame that fans in Edmonton, and in Canada, don't do more to make the games they attend more of an event. But it's in our nature to be reserved I guess. There's always the playoffs I guess...if the Oilers ever get back there. Until then, I'll have to content myself with victorious performances from Rangers FC.

Our Winter of Discontent

Sports Life in Edmonton Should Be Better Than This


When it comes to sports, the City of Edmonton has been blessed by a combination of great organization, and great talent. However, in the current climate, going into another long winter, things do not look rosy for our major sports teams. The Edmonton Eskimos are an organization that has lost it's way, and everyone can see it. From their lame marketing attempts to awful coaching, to fan unfriendly gameday policies to the awful on-field product, many things have gone horribly wrong at Commonwealth. Fixing it is the responsibility of Rick LeLacheur. If there was any time for him to prove that he can bring his alleged business savy to the pro sports world, the time is now. He needs to clean house on and off the field. Will he have the skill and courage to deliver? Let's hope so. But even more Edmonton fans are worried about what's going on one stop down the LRT track.

The Edmonton Oilers do still have a very good organization. The Edmonton Investors Group has its share of detractors, but in the honest light of day they run a tight ship, and they run it well. As General Manager, Kevin Lowe has put some nice pieces into a rebuiling puzzle, without coming right out and calling it a "rebuilding". But that is what is happening. It is a true shame that the Oilers will not acheive greatness until Lowe gets over his personal loyalty to Craig MacTavish. Mr. Blender is easily the weakest link in the Oilers chain, and the Oilers will not grow as a team into the powerful contender that they could be while MacTavish is coach. He stubbornly refuses to play guys together for more than ten minutes, and insists that every player show the same two way play as he did as a player. It's just not possible. Add to that the awful special teams and the jury will come back with it's verdict of guilty.

Most everyone in this city can now see it. And when a popular guy like Craig MacTavish has the rumblings against him, you know it's time. In Edmonton, it is not politically correct to blame the coach. That is the purview of the knee-jerk fan. When people come to a common agreement on it, however silently they choose to express it, then you know that a move has to be made. The 2007-08 Oilers are a rebuilding team, make no mistake. But they also have some talent that can be useful in the here and now. And Oiler fans deserve a competitive team. The Cup run of spring 2005 was weekend at the Ritz in an otherwise lengthy stay at Hotel Mediocrity. The excellence that the team became known for is now 20 years past. The time is now to regain the rightful throne. This simply cannot happen with MacTavish, and everybody in town can now see it. It's your move, Mr. Lowe.

Out of Their Depth?

Why Both of Edmonton's Major Sports Teams Need Coaching Changes


In addition to the excitement of the moment, Cinderella runs can do so much damage to a pro sports team's future. Any mediocre team can catch fire with the right ingedients. In the Spring of 2005, the Edmonton Oilers were a mediocre team who barely made the playoffs. But once in, they caught fire and went to the final. It's a bloody shame that they lost because it may be some time before the Oilers are in a position like that again. Likewise with the 2005 Edmonton Eskimos. A massively talented and yet underachieving team with a mediocre record that caught fire. A few last minute additions never hurt either. But these kinds of runs can mask serious issues within a pro sports team's makeup. They can also give extra life to a coach's job. Sometimes, that coach doesn't deserve it.

Danny Maciocia is a man who, prior to becoming the head coach of the Edmonton Eskimos, had very little experience in coaching at the pro level. The record is there for all to see. Defenders have always pointed to the Grey Cup of 2005; but honest fans have to admit that the 2005 Grey Cup run was largely made possible by the late addition of Troy Davis from Hamilton, and the yanking of Ricky Ray in the conference playoffs for Jason Maas. Well, it turns out that Maas was the return for Davis, just 2 months later. The fact that the team caught fire and won the Grey Cup in an 8 team league masked some serious problems with how Maciocia had been running things in his first year as head coach. But the chickens soon came home to roost.

After missing the playoffs for the first time in 35 years in 2006, Maciocia plucked Jacques Chapdelaine from the coaching staff of the champion BC Lions. Yet the Eskimos offense has not improved. It has, in fact, gotten worse. An inhumanly stubborn refusal to run the ball, along with a revolving door player personnel policy have been just two of many problems in Edmonton this year. With Ray now out for the season, one has to ask why Maciocia is still around. Considering his total ineptness at assessing player talent, and his complete lack of skill regarding player and asset management, it serves little purpose to kick Maciocia upstairs, as seems to be the plan. Perhaps Chapdelaine can do better has a head coach, but with Maciocia picking the players, he may not have a full canvas with which to paint on.

It does seem that everyone in town can now see the problem. Even the most stubborn Maciocia defenders are now calling for him to be fired. Rick LeLacheur should take notice. The football fans in Edmonton are not used to a loser, and will not stomach it for long. LeLacheur, not having any experience with pro football at all, will likely ignore the home support and keep Maciocia. It is the wrong decision. Attendance and revenue will suffer. Make no mistake, Edmonton has been spoiled, but Eskimo fans will tolerate a "rebuilding". They will not tolerate incompetence.

Down the street at Rexall, Kevin Lowe doesn't have the excuse of ignorance regarding the business he is in that Rick LeLacheur has. One has to marvel at the loyalty that Lowe has shown MacTavish in the last 18 months. Here we have another example of how a Cinderella run can hurt a team long term.

MacTavish has presided over a team with some of the worst powerplay numbers in the last decade. The Edmonton Oilers have started the 2007-08 campaign 0-16 on the powerplay. This despite additions that were supposed to bring a nonexistant powerplay to life. Yet it hasn't happened. It's early days yet, but the slow start is simply a continuation of the status quo. To another team it would truly be a slow start. In Edmonton it's steady as she goes!

MacTavish's worst sin, however, is his complete lack of patience. I predicted to a friend that the Oilers' line combos would be mashed up within 10 minutes of the first period in the first game. That was an exaggeration, but not by much. Already in game 4 of the season Sam Gagner had been scratched even though he had shown a great deal of talent and desire, and the combos were mixed up. I lost count of how many centres Dustin Penner played with against Minnesota. Apparently Raffi Torres is supposed to now score 30 playing with JF Jacques.

The man simply refuses to let guys get a feel for each other. It's "produce NOW or forever hold your peace". It's ridiculous. And you can tell that the players agree with me. How can you play for a guy that can't make up his mind? How can you excel for a coach that shows no confidence at any time in your abilities? And this is why the Oilers will struggle to improve throughout the year. MacTavish will not allow team mates to learn the nuances of each other's playing styles. He expects that he'll throw some guys together and either it works right away or he'll try something else. This is not the mark of a skilled professional coach.

Both men, sadly, need to be fired. Now.

Cry, Baby, Cry!

What Brian Burke Is Really Playing At


Every time a sports news anchorman or a sports journalist gets a hold of Brian Burke, the temptation to bring up Kevin Lowe simply overwhealms them. And Burke, for his part, plays the role to perfection with the constant scowl and the repeated insults that he throws at Lowe. It makes great copy; the journalists must love it.

But what is Burke really playing at? There's little evidence to suggest that he's really as obtuse as he play-acts in interviews. He's generally one of the most respected GMs in hockey. So what's the deal? Let's analyze it through a process of elimination, and several truths will become clear.

Let's start off with a look at just what happened with Kevin Lowe. Lowe, who had struggled in the unrestricted free agent market, was in dire need of a player to replace Ryan Smyth's offensive production. He also needed to strengthen his powerplay, which was second to last in the NHL last year. Nobody scored fewer goals than the Edmonton Oilers. So, without some offensive help, the Oilers were looking at finishing close to the bottom in the standings, and this just 2 years removed from a trip to the finals. To a man like Kevin Lowe, who bleeds copper and blue, that was untenable.

After failing to secure a top line forward via trade or UFA market, Lowe made the choice to try to lure Thomas Vanek from the Buffalo Sabres. Vanek, a restricted free agent, was the top forward on the Sabres, and an asset that Buffalo needed to keep, as they had lost some valuable assets to free agency already. Lowe made an offer sheet of $7Million that Vanek accepted. Buffalo matched and the insults began. But Lowe made such a high offer because he knew it would make the choice difficult in Buffalo. Buffalo's GM took it personally, saying that he had advised Lowe in advance that he would match. Lowe called his bluff in hopes that he could get a player of Vanek's calibre. Unforunately for Lowe, Buffalo still matched, and cried about it to anyone who would listen. Rarely had such vitroil been spewn over a perfectly legitimate move.

It is interesting to note that with Buffalo securing Vanek at $7Million, it took no time for New Jersey to lock up their highly coveted restricted free agent Parise. That also took New Jersey out of the running financially for defenseman Sheldon Souray, who ended up signing in Edmonton. Not a bad bit of business by Lowe, even if he didn't intend it that way.

Once Buffalo matched, Lowe had to find another alternative for his problem at the forward position. He settled on Dustin Penner, a young left winger on the Anaheim Ducks. Penner had just completed his 1st full NHL season and had scored 29 goals. His last year in the AHL he had put up impressive numbers. In 59 games he had scored 39 goals and 84 points with a ridiculous +41 rating. At 6'4 and 250 pounds, Penner seemed like an ideal solution for Lowe. He was big, tough, durable, young and could score goals. A nice fit for a line with Ales Hemsky.

So, Lowe made his offer to Penner: 5 years at $4.25Million per season. Brian Burke, who is a man who knows full well that making RFA offer sheets is within the rules, acted furious.

At first, Burke stated that he agreed that RFA offers were a legitimate way of trying to secure players, but that Lowe had acted in a "classless" manner because the day Lowe made his offer sheet was also the day that Burke was being honoured by the BC Hockey Hall of Fame. So, the offer was fine, but Lowe should have called Burke to check his schedule first. At least, that's what Burke was saying. That only sounds ridiculous because it is.

Next, Burke stated that Lowe had done a disservice to the entire NHL by once again offering "a grossly inflated" salary offer to a young player. The insults grew with each new interview, and continue to this day. Eventually, Burke decided not to match the offer, and he received Edmonton's 1st, 2nd and 3rd round draft picks as compensation. Burke publicly stated that he expected those picks would be very high in the draft.

Lowe has been called virtually every name in the book by Burke, with the most frequent damnation being "stupid". Now, history tells us that Brian Burke is not a stupid man himself, so he surely sees the reality of the situation. The Edmonton Oilers are far better off with Dustin Penner than they are with those draft picks. Penner is a player the Oilers desperately needed, even if he alone is not enough to get them into the playoffs. Also, the Oilers are so loaded with young talent such as Gagner, Cogliano, Smid, Gilbert, Grebeshkov, Nilsson and O'Marra that those draft picks were easily expendable. Also, Lowe had received draft picks back in other trades so he still gets a 1st round pick in the draft anyway. So, getting Penner for those picks was certainly not a "stupid" thing to do.

From a financial standpoint, Burke must surely see the reality as well. Penner, about to enter his second full NHL season, is being paid for what the Oilers believe he can do, not for what he has done already. While we can't know until the games are played, Penner has shown every indication that he isn't a flash in the pan. He will play with Ales Hemsky, who is arguably better than Penner's linemates in Anaheim, Getzlaf and Perry. And at $4.25 per year, in an NHL that continues to grow, the Oilers may overpay in year 1, and get a smashing deal by year 4. As the NHL grows, so does the salary cap. And in an era when top players are being paid more than 6 Million dollars, Lowe certainly wasn't "grossly inflating' anything with his $4.25Million offer to a guy who scored 29 in his first full year. Make no mistake, Burke knows that this is true. He demonstrated it by signing Todd Bertuzzi to a $4Million contract. Bertuzzi is even more of a gamble than Penner is, since Bertuzzi hasn't played a regular shift in the NHL in 3 years. Last year his back gave out. The year before he was suspended, then hurt. And if Penner really isn't worth much, then why get so upset considering that you're getting 3 picks back?

So, since Lowe's move for Penner was a beneficial one for the Edmonton Oilers, and the salary he offered was, by comparision, not excessive, then what is Burke on about? As I stated before, Burke is not a stupid man. He knows all of this. The logical conclusion is that Burke is play-acting. Why?

Several reasons are obvious. Ryan Carter, Ryan Getzlaf, and Corey Perry are all restricted free agents next year. All are still unsigned. Burke wants to scare away anyone from ever touching his free agents again. If Burke loses Getzlaf or Perry, he loses a significant investment of time and money in youth. He cannot afford for that to happen if he wishes to keep the Ducks near the top of the standings and in the race for the Stanley Cup.

He also has another problem that gets conveniently overshadowed by making Lowe the villain: Scott Neidermayer can't make up his mind regarding retirement, and has yet to show up for the Ducks. The Ducks also did not re-sign Selanne. Including Penner, that's 3 important pieces of a Stanley Cup winning puzzle. That makes repeating very difficult.

Besides, Burke has a bombastic public persona to maintain. The "how dare he????" attitude is what's expected of Burke. He can't leave the audience dry, now can he? After all, Burke himself has carefully crafted the character he plays in front of the cameras and microphones.

As for Kevin Lowe and the Edmonton Oilers, they may just spoil Burke's hopes for high picks with those draft choices. Gone from last year's team are passengers like Lupul and Nedved, medoicre talent like Petersen and Markkanen, misused one dimensional talent like Sykora, and captain Jason Smith, who had, with all due respect to him, just had his worst year as a pro. Insert, point man Sheldon Souray, who last year broke the NHL record for powerplay goals by a defenseman, along with Joni Pitkanen, Mathieu Garon, Dick Tarnstrom, a healthy Jarrett Stoll and our man of the hour Dustin Penner. The Oilers can safely assume that their powerplay will not be second last in the NHL, and they certainly will not finish last in scoring. That may not mean a playoff spot, but it certainly means a mid table draft pick for Brian Burke at best.

So, when you see Burke's act on TV, you should never forget that it's exactly that. An act, meant to intimidate other GMs and deflect attention away from his own problems. Thankfully for Oilers fans, Kevin Lowe can't be intimidated. Like Burke, Lowe is a man who means business. He just doesn't need the attention starved act that goes along with Brian Burke.

Battling From Your Couch, 2008 Edition

EA vs. 2k Football and Hockey Executive Summary


Electronic Arts typically sells more sports videogames than some countries' entire exports. This, however, does not mean that EA puts out a great product every year. In the football realm, 2K had done an admirable job at it's NFL 2k franchise, and had arguably made a better game of football than EA had. Then the NFL made the unforgiveable move of granting EA the exclusive rights to NFL football for videogames. Well, 3 years later, 2k is back with a new football game that uses an imaginary league, but with Hall of Fame NFL legends. On the hockey side, 2k had also made a game that was arguably better than EA's only to have EA close the gap last year on the 360. Now we have full on competition, which is good for gamers. But which is better? Allow me to inform you of which next gen games are worth your money.

There are many gamers around who believe that EA is a lazy developer that puts out buggy games that have multiple flaws and issues. I share in that sentiment wholeheartedly. While there is no doubt that EA takes the crown this year in both football and hockey, that is not to say that there aren't certain issues with the games EA has released. It seems that when EA takes 2 steps forward they always take an additional step backwards.

Madden NFL 08 on the 360/PS3 is easily a better game than All Pro Football 2k8. It looks better, plays better and has more substance. The time off from being in the football game race shows on 2k. APF has a season mode....and that's it. No franchise. No dynasty. Just one season. You can, of course, play with a host of NFL legends like Elway, Payton and Montana. But you're playing on imaginary teams in an imaginary league. To top it off, the gameplay is just not as polished as EA's product is. Madden 08 looks magnificent, plays smooth and has a ridiculously deep franchise mode. If you own a Nintendo Wii, Madden is your only choice, of course. But while that game doesn't have the polish and features of it's 360/PS3 cousins, it does once again make great use of the Wii's unique controller. But Madden Wii does have a few "last gen" issues and bugs and it's online play is very choppy. But for those with a 360 or PS3, there really isn't much of a choice, in this gamer's opinion. Madden is a far superior game.

On the hockey side, 2k has out and out stolen the "skill stick" from EA and called it the "pro stick". Basically you control the puck with the right analog stick. In EA's game you also use the right stick to shoot, whereas in 2k you use one of the trigger buttons to shoot, which ends up being a bit awkward. Basically, EA has overhauled the AI in the game to make it very, very difficult to score, where you will score bunches in 2k's game. The hitting is toned down in EA's game, while the hitting is much more bombastic in 2k. It used to be that EA had the arcade syle game, while 2K was more of a sim. That has now switched entirely. 2k's game is now much more arcadey, while EA's game is a very good sim. EA's game has what EA called "adaptive AI" where the opponent adapts to your moves. It makes defense very difficult for the human player, and also makes offense more challenging because the CPU player will adapt if you keep doing the same things. The CPU goalies are also very difficult to score on. Almost too difficult. You'll play a lot of 2-1 games, and lose many of them for the first while. Even when you get good at it, you still won't score a ton. Your goals look and feel organic, as the physics engine is far superior to what 2k has to offer. But you score so infrequently that it almost seems random when you do. You can set up the box, cycle the puck and make a great play, only to have the goalie make a save that no human could possibly make in real life.

Both hockey games have deep and rewarding franchise modes. 2k's game actually has more depth than EA, but it's menus sometimes are achaic and don't make sense. 2k also has a host of really fun mini games and content that EA doesn't have. The pond hockey in 2k is a lot of fun again this year. But the full-on NHL experience is found in EA's game. The game just feels like real hockey.

One final note is that many of EA's NHL 08 disks for the 360 and PS3 have had an issue with the burning process and the reult is that the game will freeze a lot or you will get "Disk Read Errors". So if you can actually get a disk that works, EA's game is the better one this year.