COMPETITION NOTES:
Adam Oates' aging body should NOT be ice diving. After his near neck breaking leap across the blue line, don't be looking for Adam to try to "sell" any penalties for the rest of the season.
Todd Rohloff sacrifices himself with abandon....look for a bright future blocking shots from this rookie.
Peter Bondra has STYLE. His slide, the first round winner, was made with only his elbows and toes touching the ice. This strategic body posture allowed Bonzai to produce less "drag". Problem was, he hit the end boards pretty hard with his head! (Ouch!)
Brendan Witt CHEATS! He'd probably call it "pushing the boundaries", though. AC Army called him for two blue line violations, and he had to restart.
White men can't jump.....and fighters can't slide. Peat and Simon were pathetic....but quite entertaining. Peat accomplished something none of the other competitors could produce - a 180 degree spin from a forward launch.
After the first round, a three way tie necessitated a "flop-off" - Witter ended up with the GOLD, Rohloff the SILVER, and Bondra, who abandoned his strategy for the second round, the BRONZE.
Jazzy was advised that, on Thursday, the Caps tried Short Track Skating. However, given the general lack of speed on our team, Jazzy expects it more closely resembled an "All Skate" at the local ice rink, forcing Coach Wilson to try the new, unorthodox sport.
Four on Four hockey followed the Curling, and once again the competitive spirit was evident. When Kono didn't spring over the boards for his line change, allowing a Bondra/Forbes 2 on 1 to form, Olie chided "Take your time off the bench, Kono!" Biller deflected a shot high off his helmet and catching glove, prompting jeers of "Hey, Look! It's Tommy Salo!" from the bench. Biller had his revenge, though, when a Witt goal was DQ'd because it occurred on a two line pass. Witt protested, "Hey, this is the Olympics! There is no two line pass!"
Reekie laps are "slowly" returning....
In case no one has mentioned it recently, Piney Orchard is FREAKIN' FREEZING!!!!!
Saturdays at Piney are way too crowded.
Jazzy must report that she has uncovered an apparent scandal involving at least 3 team members. A "dealer" was observed in the parking lot, distributing product from the back of his SUV. Adam Oates was the first "customer". Emerging from the locker room in a suspiciously good mood, Oates actually smiled at Jazzy. A bit taken aback by this bizarre behavior from the aged one, Jazzy requested an autograph on 2 cards, and Oates replied, (again, smiling!) "Oh, sure. Can you follow me over to my car?" As Jazz waited for #77 to put his gear into his Cadi, the dealer approached. "Hi, Adam!" "Oh, hey! (BIG smile) You got my 'stuff'?" "Yeah, it's in my truck." "That's GREAT! Okay, I'll drive over and pick it up." Adam signed Jazzy's cards, and then drove over and picked up his.......golf balls! About 16 cases of golf balls. After a discussion of the relative merits of West Palm Beach courses, Adam left, and the dealer entered the inner sanctum (locker room). Rob Zettler and Joe Sacco bit on the sales pitch - Zett came out with the dealer, inquiring "what other stuff can you get?" Jazzy hopes this addiction does not spread through the rest of the team. Does Adam Oates think he'll be needing those golf balls anytime soon? Is Oates such a poor player he needs to stockpile balls? Is there another use for......no.....not going there!
The team seems quite happy these days. Dima was all smiles when Jazzy congratulated him on his Olympic appearance. Jazzy admits to being shocked to learn that Dima actually has teeth. Biller was obviously still basking in the satisfaction of back to back winning performances, and expressed his delight that they had coincided with Jazzy's birthday. Olie was his usual friendly self, despite admitting that the knee is still a bit sore. Zubie got a kick out of several young boys, who weren't quite sure who he was when they greeted him with a simple "Hi!" After his returned "Hi, guys!", one of the boys whispered quite loudly, "That's DAINUS ZUBRUS!!!" Duh! Zubie walked on, chuckling and shaking his head.
Olie shaved off his goatee. Jazzy sincerely hopes this was simply for the Olympics, as otherwise, it is a definite mistake. dubs and NAF concurred; "He looks like he's 12 years old!"
Frank Costello on who he's rooting for: "The US!" Jazzy: "Not even a little for your guys (Niko and Gonch)?" "The US ARE my guys! I'm an AMERICAN!"
Ulf Dahlen arrived Friday after practice, his little boy in tow. Jazzy approached him and offered that Caps fans are extremely proud of his Olympic appearance. Ulfie looked at Jazzy sadly, and said: "Belarus." (It could break your heart!!!!!!) Jazzy observed that most of the team didn't even go to the Olympics. At this, Ulf genuinely smiled and said, "You know, you're right." I/O hopes he felt better for a few minutes, anyway.
Peter Bondra continues to be suspicious that autograph seekers are looking to make a fast buck on ebay. I/O speculates that he has been "stung" multiple times.
HONORABLE MENTION: Biller, because he's a Canadian who picked the US Team to beat Canada by one goal.
Kono - because HE'S BACK!!!!!!!!!
HONORABLE MENTION: Jeff Halpern, just because.