| So far I've eaten two of the penguins (the chocolate, not the team). Tasty!
Back on the ice tonight for the first time since December 18. Ugh. Typically I play 52 weeks a year, but since this time of year I play on Sundays and Mondays, and we had two consecutive weeks where both Sunday and Monday were holidays (xmas eve, xmas, new years eve, new years day), that meant no hockey for a few weeks. First night back after a layoff that long is always fairly traumatic, everything feels weird and wrong (and since so much of goaltending is psychological, how things feel is a huge part of the game). I would have preferred to "get my feet wet" getting back into the swing of things with a pick-up game, but no, it was the last regular season game for the IBM league. After sucking ass at the start of the season, we'd clawed our way all the way back, and if we won tonight and one other team lost, we'd finish the season in first. Well, tied for first, but since we have a 2-1 record against the other team (and that's the first tiebreaker), that would make us the first place team. Immediately before our game, the other team complied by losing 4-1. So a win and we're in first going into the playoffs. For pretty much the whole first period, I felt like I had two left feet, but I settled in, and ended up getting my second shut-out of the season, 2-0. So from worst to first, we're the #1 seed. And it definitely felt good to get back on the ice. Afterward, everyone was pretty beat in the locker room, they'd all had similar breaks as me, and were all likewise exhausted. Every game, I seem to end up getting a song stuck in my head while I play. Tonight's song: "Kiss Me, I'm Shitfaced" by the Dropkick Murphys. Could be worse, one night it was that damn pina colada song. "If you like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain..."
Got home just in time to see the OT and shootout in the Pens/Bolts game. Sweet move in the shootout by Marty to get the game-winner. And Holmqvist should definitely be elevated to #1 over Denis. Holmqvist's numbers aren't that spectacular, but he's better than Denis.
Luongo just gave up a softie to put Florida up 2-1 early in the third. They'll still find a way to blow it, I suspect.
Ugly, flukey hit on Kolzig. Not much in the way of padding on the back for a goalie, there's a spine pad up the center of the back and a bit at the top of the back, but nothing like the front. Everything a goalie wears is designed assuming you'll face the shot head on, not much padding on the back, the backs of the legs, the backs of the arms (except the elbows), etc. Wouldn't care to take a skate to the back of the ribs like that.
Vancouver just tied it up. Eddie Belfour was a great goalie once upon a time, but he's past his sell-by and playing on a bad team.
Ooooh, cupcakes with sprinkles!
-Ricardo
"2 minutes by yourself and...you feel shame, you know...and then you get free" | 
