MEET THE GM:  This Weeks Featured GM - the Arsenal's
Chris Bailey
(ED NOTE:  This is another new feature of GHL News.  Each week I will choose a GM to answer a few questions.)

• How old are you?  27 years old.
• Where do you live?  LaGrange, Georgia (30 miles southwest of Atlanta).  Originally from just outside Charlotte, North Carolina
• What is your marital status? Single
• Kids? Not that I am aware of.  LOL.
• What are your hobbies?  Hockey, Computer Stuff, Flying, Used to Golf but don't have the time....
• Name of School Completed or Currently Attending?  LaGrange College, Batchelors in History.
• Do you work? Where? What do you do? I work for 2 radio stations in LaGrange.  I work as News and Sports Director and Morning Show Host.  (ED NOTE:  Chris is probably the closest thing to a celebrity in the GHL)
• If your life was made into a movie what actor would play you? Hummm.....it would have to be a guy that looks like David Schwimmer of Friends (ED NOTE: for those who don't watch Friends, he is the sensitive one with the slick hair), with the Quiet, Dry personality of Harrison Ford.
• Favorite Movie? I really am not a BIG movie guy.....I guess I would say....Empire Records.  I could watch that movie over and over.
• Favorite TV Show? Sports Night, best show on television, closely followed by The Practice. (ED NOTE: I am a loser...I have never seen either!)
• Favorite Book? Wind from the Carolinas, by Robert Wilder, the story of a southern american family that moves to the Carribean following the American Revolution.....Follows the family through about three generations.
• Do you play hockey?  What position? No ice around here....So unfortunately not.
• Favorite NHL Team?   Carolina Hurricanes
• What do you like best about the GHL?  It is a pretty uncomplicated league, and I am thankful for that.  I have my own league, the PBHL, that manages to chew up quite a bit of time.....I like the convenience of not having to worry about Finances and that kind of thing.
• What do you like least about the GHL? nothing stands out to me as being a bad thing.
• If you were Commish, what  would you change about the GHL? As a commish I have to say that there is not a whole lot that can be done here, the league operations here are great
• If all GHL players were available to you for nothing and you could choose only one, who would you choose and why? Likely Paul Kariya, simply because I am not a huge fan of Jagr, and Kariya is a dynamic, YOUNG, goal scorer that will only get better.  (have to add that I would grab Jagr though if he were available for a bargain price.)
• Where are the strengths of your GHL team? My strenght lies in the youth and potential of the team.....The group of kids could produce some real threats and a championship down the road.
• Where are the weakness of your GHL team? Sort of a case of my strength mirroring my weakness.  The youth of the team works against me, in that I am very lacking in Leadership and Experience.
• What are you doing to make your GHL team better?    Waiting.....LOL, and hoping.....

Well it seems that most Gm’s are back from their Christmas Vacations and are renewing the playoff hunt as trade activity picked up from two trades last issue to 10 trades this issue!! The big winner this week had to be the Odyssey GM Paul Lancaster as he acquired Johnson, Carter, Robitaille, Janney, Deadmarsh, McCabe, Rathje, Gilmour and 3 third rounders. 

I had planned this issue to beat up on Jack a little bit for totally demolishing any future hope for the Avs.  However, I changed my mind for two reasons, that are; 1) Jack is a real great guy with the type of personality that makes it fun being in a league, and 2) everyone else has been taking shots at him for his many ill-advised trades (to put it nicely).  Instead, I'm going to quote some of the interesting statements I've recently heard from our fellow GM's.  Here goes . . .

"Well, since I beat you today, I better not make the trade."
    Jessica (HUR) - At the end of 15 hours of trade negotiations where she said she would probably take the deal.  Hurricanes beat the Storm that day.  Join the club.

"dad is atwork and i think he forgotto dogames, so i guess ill have todo hem, its been while,"
    Ryan (EAR) - When asked why the games were late this morning.  I guess I need to learn how to read Canadian.  What does, "todo hem" mean?

"As I stated before Steve, I REALLY don't want to trade him. PLEASE don't make me change my mind! I'm begging you, you know I'm weak."
    Dean (BEA) - Right after I offered him Fleury, Amonte and Langkow for Jagr.  He didn't take it.

"sup"
    Jack (AVS) - Jack's favorite opening line.

"Hello!"
    Magnar (VIK) - Magnar's favorite opening line.

"He is a mamouth ;-) All I wanted for Xmas was a gorilla and landed him.... Although I hated to part with Lidstrom....."
    Big Al (ROY) - When asked about possibly trading Chris Pronger.  That didn't happen.

". . . . . . . . . . . . . ."
    Blaine (ICE) - When asked . . . anything!

"I gotta go to the store for some Ravioli, LOL I am so Broke because of the Holidays...I will talk to you later"
    Chris (ARS) - Planning Christmas dinner for the whole family.

"Steve you cant take me as that dumb can you :)"
    Jon (HUM) - After being offered Grier (73) for Selivanov (67).  Struck out again.

"nevermind that last message. sent to wrong person."
    Matt (WLV) - After accidentally sending me a message meant for Jessica in which he was telling her how I should just shut my trap.  Classic foot-in-mouth maneuver.  Loved it.

"loosen your sphincter. John is online."
    Paul (ODY) - After I told him I was THIS-CLOSE to closing a deal with John and I was waiting for him to come back online for about an hour.  He was scared and didn't make the deal.

"nah actuallly I was swimming in a lake late at night triped over a rock feel forward and there was broken glass almost sliced my thumb right off but now everythign is good just some nerve damage and the movement is comeing back."
    Will (ABY) - The day after Will's big drinking adventure with the boys.

Well....the 4th Annual All Star Game is over and the Winner was......THE CANADIANS.   Yes.....in a hard fought, down to the seventh game series, the Americans were finally defeated in an all star contest.

THE CANADIANS..................
Live from Middleton: "I am here live at GM Banks' Penthouse in downtown Middleton and there's one wild party going on! It's been non-stop since the Canadian Conference completed a much anticipated "thrashing" ingame 7, over the heavily favored American Conference! All the Canadian GM's are here (some of them have had a little too much to drink though, notably Canadian Conference Will Cox!!)"

"Earlier I had a chance to talk with the joyous GM and asked him to name the three stars for the American Conference." Well" Banks said " The number one star had to be Eric Lindros. I felt that he was their best player and was a real force in their wins! Number two would be John Leclair, he scored some big goals for them." "Finally  I would say Kariya, as he played superb at both ends of the ice!"

Just then Canadian Pres. Will runs up to the camera and starts yelling "S*CK IT!, soon half the party is chanting the D-X chant. It took police half an hour to haul people away and  get things calmed down! Rumor has it that Cox and Banks woke up in the "CrowBar Hotel" with one hell of a hangover!!
 

THE AMERICANS.................
Winnipeg(AP):  "I am knocking on the door of the Discreet Massage Parlour room number 4, where GM Grienke is rumoured to be in "therapy" recovering from his all-consuming defeat in the All Star Game.  KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.   "Go away" moans someone in the room.   KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.  "What the hell do you want!! I am busy in here!!!", a breathless Grienke screamed.   KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.   The door opens.

"WHAT? says an obviously aroused and enraged Grienke wrapped in only a towel.  "Uh....Keith....sorry for .... uh...interrupting.....but my paper has a deadline and we need to get your words on the game and the three stars."

"Right.....right.......uh.....uh.....well....our goalies sucked and the Canadians didn't.  We outshot them 6 of 7 games.  So first star has to go to Eddie Belfour.  He shutout the best of our conference in the deciding Game 7.  Has to go to him."

"#2 Star.....Selanne....he is extremely extremely quick.....his six goals in the series were the highest of anyone and he was deadly from the slot."

"#3 Star...the one and only Jagr.....12 points.....played more minutes than any other non goalie in the series....the guy is amazing."

Grienke continued, visibly shaking and, how do I say it, "slumping", "There is no way to fall behind a team as great as the Canadians 3 games to 1 and expect to win.  I personally take the blame for this loss.  My choice of coach, Don Cherry, was obviously not a good fit for my American squad.  I apologize for sending him home midway through the series as it really shook up the team and was extremely unprofessional on my part.   I wish that Beezer and Hasek would have played as well as they do during the season and I hope Hasek plays that badly in the playoffs for Big Al. Congrats to GM Banks for his fine win.."

A visibly distressed Grienke finished, "I can't continue here.....you take over..." and with that he left the parlour into the harsh Winnipeg winter clad only in that same towel.

Hello....welcome to issue #6 of the GHL NEWS.  Hope you enjoyed it.    If you did not, make sure you email me. Thanks to GM Cox for coming back to do his Team Report, GM Banks for his work on the trades section, GM Campbell on his weekly Beef which was not really a beef but rather THE FUNNIEST THING THIS PAPER HAS PUT OUT. My hat is off to Steve.  I was laughing so hard when I read his submission.  Wish I wrote that!!!!  I should also thank GM BA for adding all the little icons and graphics and GM Cox for coming back and writing his insightful column.  You may have noticed GM Moreau was not part of this issue.  She was too busy managing the struggling Hurricanes and could not focus on her Femmes section.  Now that I think of it, GM Belanger would have been a great guest writer for the Femmes sections as he manages a bunch of Femmes called the Bearcats. 

I would like to apologize to my American GM cohorts as my managing was disastrous.  Cmon....firing your coach in an All Star game.  I have disgraced our previously unbeaten conference.   My handling of the goalies was ineffective.  I tried to get in their heads to get them to up their games but, clearly, this had no effect.   I am thankful that I will never have the chance to be an All Star GM for a long time as you are not allowed to do it twice.   We should have had that hamster managing our team.

Did anyone see the boxscore of Game 445 - Royals vs Wolverines?   What a boxscore.....First of all, the game was 9-2 for the Royals.  That is a huge blowout.  Secondly, there were FOUR injuries!!!!  Roenick, Zhitnik, McAmmond, and Palffy were all injured.  Yet....there were only 18 minutes in penalties, no Game Misconducts and not even one Major penalty. 

This will be the last issue until playoffs start.  So good luck to all teams in their hunt for a playoff spot or better playoff position.  BA does not have to worry about either - I hope his Royals get fat, lazy, and complacent.  May his #1 line all suffer back injuries.  That may even things.

Well.....Time to end your suffering..

Thanks for reading!!!  Email me with your comments.