The Boston Bruins: Brief Notes/Updates

OK. The Boston Bruins. A complete surprise to see them thriving at this point of the year. Let's face it, the Boston Bruins should not have made it this far (second round, and possibly Eastern Conference Finals) with the way they played int he regular season and the never ending list of injuries. In fact, the only this consistent in the Bruins 09-10 season was the injuries. They beat the Buffalo Sabres without 2 of their top 4 D (Seidenberg & Stuart) and their top offensive threat (Savard).

Second round against the Philadelphia Flyers seems to be a complete Bruins domination. However, the Bruins have not been as dominating as the numbers show. The Bruins lead 3-0, but the series could have gone either way. Krejci is gone for the season with a dislocated wrist obtained last night from a Mike Richards (yes, that punk) hit (clean hit, by the way). Adam McQuaid also left last night's game with a lower body injury - he will not play Friday. Mark Stuart may return for game 4, but nothing is certain. As of now, the Bruins need to fill the void in D, and 1 more spot in the offense.

My prediction: Brad Marchand is inserted on the fourth line, while Mark Stuart makes his 2010 playoff debut tomorrow (Friday).

Summertime Rolls

Ah, the beautiful month of May has arrived. The sun shining, flowers begin to bloom, plenty of blue in the sky and playoff hockey. Oh, and lots of rain, too. Splendid. As I am typing this, I cannot emphasize enough how dirty my MacBook keyboard is. Damn, it looks filthy. A good chunk of the keys (and I am talking about 85%) have lost three-quarters of their whiteness. Damn. OK, back to the summertime blues ... errr ... I meant to say, the summertime delight. That sounds corny, but I'll stick to that for now.

At home feeling exuberant and relaxed. Sometimes bored and wishing for the Boston Bruins games to start. Other times, reading novels (well, trying too) and making lists of things to do even though I know I won't do them. Yeah, the summertime is here. Who really wants to sit indoors and do nothing? Look at the ceiling and asking yourself, what if? Staring at your dirty keyboard and yelling out load, what the fuck? Or staring at a book you really want to need, but keep procrastinating and telling yourself, "when the time is right." Well? I've spent most of my days this past week hibernating inside ... OK, well, no. I've watched t.v., stood in-front of a mirror with my eyes closed, rolled on the floor laughing hysterically until I didn't know what I was laughing at anymore, and threw the occasional 60-70 pitches (baseball, people!) in my back yard, using my catcher/home plate/batters as the hockey net. It is a pleasure.

The National: A Must for Music Lovers

I don't normally do this, but at the end of this blog post there is a link to a fantastic New York Times articles on the band The National. The best band I have heard in the twenty-first century, and definitely in my top five. It's an indie-rock band that blends rock, catchy rhythms, inspiring and dazzling lyrics, and a voice that grabs your attention like no other.

This is the New York Times article, "The National Agenda," written by Nicholas Dawidoff. You can find the entire new album, High Violet (comes out May 11, 2010), streaming on the left side of the article.
Read About The National

A Whole Lot of Nothing: Part X

Are you ever in the mood to write, but not sure what to write about? I am in that mood this minute. Rambling about this, rambling about that. Nothing to ramble about that would be anywhere near entertainment. But is this really a blog to entertain or to be entertained? The former. Or can it be the latter? Who knows. This is not some sort of clusterfuck or whatnot. Nor should it seem like one. Hell, I don't even know what I am talking about right now - I'll just keep on writing.

I feel like I should write three to five times a week on this blog, but something else always comes out or stands in the way. Meh. I have debated about writing movie reviews on this blog, but I find it would signify the meaning of this blog. Random. Excitement. Anything Goes. About Nothing. Maybe I should just get drunk and see what I end up writing. What if?

Actually, I should point out (because, you know, I got nothing much more to say) that I have been working a lot on writing lyrics/poems these last few months. Maybe too hard. I barely posted any on my lyrics blog. More raw, heavy and anger. The stuff that brings out the best in me.

The Season Begins

Baseball season has started and that means many more distractions for me. I follow several sports with a deep passion - hockey, soccer and baseball - but none are as deep for opening day baseball. Sure, you think it's boring, stupid and pointless. For some it is, for others it's about statistics, dueling, strategy and intense entertainment. It's also about watching young players develop and make their way into the big club - rotation and starting lineup. Then again, you need to like the sport. However, I hate it when people say "it's boring, stupid and pointless" when they don't try to understand it or even watch it.

I always get excited for baseball's spring training (month of march) even if the Boston Bruins are having a tremendous hockey season - e.g. last season. I am a Boston Red Sox fan. Surprised? Unlike the many morons who wear the red sox caps and say they're fans, I have followed the sox for a good 14 years. These fans I call "morons" only wear the cap and "follow" the team because they won their first World Series in 86 years (2004).

Will Justice Be Served Tonight? *Update* [My Response Is In The Comment Section]

The Boston Bruins vs. The Pittsburgh Penguins

Everyone knows what happened to Marc Savard earlier this month. If not, then let me remind you. Matt Cooke, a dirty Penguin player (has a history of dirty hits), decided to K.O Marc Savard in the late third period. Cooke aimed for Savard's head - blindspot! - and successfully accomplished it. Penguins won the game 2-1.

Marc Savard suffered a grade 2 concussion, which is very similar to the concussion Patrice Bergeron had 2 years ago. It's been eleven (11) days since the hit and Marc Savard is still feeling tired and weak. Many of his teammates have said that Savard is not doing well.

Here are some quotes from Joe Haggerty's article, "Bruins Notes: Wheeler, Wideman and Boychuk Questionable:"

When asked about the possibility of Colin Campbell or an NHL representative talking to the Bruins players in the dressing room prior to the game

"I just found a couple of minutes ago that somebody is going to talk to us," said Krejci. "I'm probably going to play with the soccer ball outside. Just warm up a bit."

The Best Quote

David Krejci on Matt Cooke:

"Tonight If there's a chance to finish that guy. We're not going to hesitate. We're going to do it."

From James Murphy's article, "Colin Campbell Not Welcomed in Bruins' Dressing Room:"

Mark Recchi:

"No, no, no. No interest in having him in our dressing room."

Will the Bruins retaliate tonight and get the justice Marc Savard deserves? Every hockey fan knows that Colin Campbell, Gary Bettman & Co. are full of shit. Complete fucking assholes who continue to make the NHL look like a joke. A mockery!

I do not think there will be a brawl, but I do hope to see the Bruins play with passion tonight. I want to see the fire in their eyes tonight.

Nothing, Absolutely Nothing

It's been way to long since my last blog post. Time to write about something, then again if you've read my blog I tend to ramble on all kinds of things. Most of the time I start writing without having a topic in mind. Just write. Shit happens, stuff may come out on their own. Take this post as example. I have no idea what exactly I'm going to say or do, but I do know something interesting (to say the least) will appear.

No "school or essay" bullshit here. Not the time, nor the place to talk about that. No need to preach either, hell I know I don't. See what I did there? Not really creative or like pulling a rabbit out of my ass ... I mean hat. Words tend to slip, I guess.

OK. I got something. Yeah, I do. Check out a band called Streetlight Manifesto. Awesome punk (some would put it in the ska punk genre) band. Even if you do not like punk, I highly recommend it to you. Trust me. Click HERE to listen to Keasbey Nights by Streetlight Manifesto.

A'ight, I'm out of here.

The Boston Bruins: Trade Deadline Edition

That special time of year for all NHL fans. That zealous feeling. Something sweet in the air. Mysterious - one word to describe the day. That is the Trade Deadline, folks. Sometimes too much clatter and little results. Other times, there is an equal amount of clatter and results (trades). What do fans look for? Sure, every fanbase wants their team to acquire a player - some sort of impact player. Any player, really. OK, maybe not just any player, but someone. This feeling, this need lies within every hockey fan. You cannot hide it and you should not feel guilty to speak about it. This rumor, that rumor. Did you hear (insert team) is interested in (insert player)? That Piece of shit (insert a player from your favorite team) better be traded - overpriced assface! You know how it goes, right? The Trade Deadline.

That being said, let's move on to what I intended to write about - the Boston Bruins. What did they need? Well, there were two things they needed: 1) (high priority) scoring, 2) puck-moving defenseman. Boston is dead last in scoring - these offensive players cannot buy a freaking goal. Seriously, quite pathetic. The offensive players on the Bruins team should be scoring. There shouldn't be any struggle for scoring. Really, there should not be. However, the fact is Boston lack scoring. Marco Sturm leads the team with 19 goals in 55 games, second is Michael Ryder with 15 in 61 games. Marc Savard doesn't have a winger that can put the puck in the net. In fact, Savard has played with Dan Paille, Miroslav Satan, Michael Ryder, Blake Wheeler, Marco Sturm and Byron Bitz on the right wing. Nothing, nothing worked. Trade Deadline came and went. Boston did not get a scorer. Quite surprising considering how awful the Bruins offense has been this year. Should the fans be upset? Damn right they should be. I am definitely angry (though I cannot say I am surprised considering Peter Chiarelli's record on Trade Deadline day). Before I write about that let's look at what the Bruins did do.

Derek Morris was dealt to Phoenix. Yup, I was very shocked at that. I cannot say I was surprised about where he is going (quite ironic though), but I was surprised that he was dealt. His number were fine in Boston: 58 GP 3G 22A 25PTS -2 26PIM and 12 PPP. Responsible in his own end and one of the very few defenseman who actually played well so far. The other good defenseman so far is Mark Stuart (only 40 games) and Johnny Boychuk (only 31 games). Not good when you have Zdeno Chara and Dennis Wideman. Morris signed with the Boston Bruins this off-season: 1 year at 3.3 million. I thought that was a fair deal, and like I said he played pretty well with the Bruins. It was confirmed by Peter Chiarelli that the trade sending Derek Morris to Phoenix for a 4th round pick was made for the purpose to dump salary. Ok, fine. Boston were very tight against the salary cap and at that time I thought "maybe they will make a stronger push for Danny Hamhuis." However, what bothered me the most was the little return Boston got for Derek Morris. Now, that 4th round pick will turn into a 3rd round pick if Phoenix re-signs Morris. That is good, but considering Islanders got a 2nd round pick for Andy Sutton and Carolina got a 3rd round pick for Andrew Alberts, Derek Morris should have easily gotten a 2nd round pick. Easily. Terrible.

The Derek Morris deal means that Boston were going to make another trade - they needed to fill the empty spot in defense. Who did they get? Dennis Seidenberg and a prospect D for Byron Bitz, a prospect and a 2nd round pick (Tampa Bay's). Seidenberg is a good solid defenseman, but he is also an unrestricted free agent who gets a 1.25 million dollar bonus on June 30. Yes, you read that right. Boston could very well lose him. If they do, then they have just given away a 2nd round pick for 20 games of Seidenberg. Not good. Is Seidenberg an upgrade over Morris? I cannot say it is. Sure, Seidenberg is cheaper but he doesn't have Morris' passing and vision. If the Bruins wanted Seidenberg that bad (and Peter Chiarelli said he did) why didn't they sign him instead of Derek Morris? They would have easily saved money. Eh, it's called Bruins.

The Seidenberg deal was made at noon. Now, I'm thinking that the Bruins are not done - hell they should not be - and would acquire a scorer. Who would be gone from the Bruins roster? Well, top of the list would be Michael Ryder and his 4 million dollars. I have stuck behind him since the day he was signed, not many Bruins fans did. Ryder was great last year, but so was every other Bruin. He had 27 goals in the regular season and he manhandled the Montreal Canadiens in the playoffs. This year? 15G 10A 25PTS. Not the numbers you're sniper should have by the 61st game of the season. Oh, and did I mention he gets paid 4 million dollars? Ouch. I have stuck by him and continued to stick by Michael Ryder. But if someone has to be dealt to improve this offense, it's Michael Ryder. That's what happens when you have a GM that gives out an ample amount of bad contracts (I will get to that shortly). Scoring is an issue. Did the Bruins fix it? Did they acquire a scorer? The answer is no. Plain and simple, and it says a lot. Peter Chiarelli said in his press conference today at 4:30pm that the price for the forwards he was interested in were too high. But how high? Raffi Torres went to Buffalo for a 2nd round pick and defenseman Paetch. And you are telling me the Bruins couldn't give Columbus a similar offer? That is bullshit. By the way, there is a high possibility that Raffi Torres was one of the 8 players Chiarelli was interested. I say 8 because Chiarelli stated so during the press conference, but he did not say who. The rumored players he was interested were: Keith Tkachuck, Erik Cole, Ray Whitney and Raffi Torres. Oh yeah, we need more older players (Tkachuck and Ray Whitney). Come on. Erik Cole would have been nice.

Chiarelli failed to get a scorer. Tomorrow nights Boston Bruins will be the same as those of last night. Pathetic. The Bruins rarely score more than 2 goals. Hell, it seems like it's a miracle for them to score 3 freaking goals. It's really sad. But, you see, the Bruins would have never been in this situation had Peter Chiarelli not given bad contracts. Here is what I am talking about:

Milan Lucic: 3 years 12 million dollars (4 million dollar cap hit). Great potential, but not worth that much right not. Could have easily been signed in the 2-3 million dollar range.

David Krejci: almost identical contract as Milan Lucic. Sure, Krejci will be an awesome center, but after having one good year that is a huge raise.

Tim Thomas: 4 years 20 million (5 million dollar cap hit) with No Movement Clause. Terrible, just terrible. 5 million dollars for this aging goalie. Really? Tim Thomas could have easily agreed to 3-3.5 million dollars. Over-payed.

Matt Hunwick: 2 years 3.5 million (1.75 cap hit). Too much for a defenseman that played his first full year in the NHL. Oh, how awful he has been this year.

Marco Sturm: 2 years left (including this year) 7 million (3.5 million dollar cap hit) with No Trade Clause. Not worth the NTC. Nope.

How much will Peter Chiarelli pay Blake Wheeler, who is set to be a restricted free agent this year? 5 million? Ya, why not. Oh, and don't forget the tradition No Trade Clause attached to the contract. Sign on the dotted line, alright?

That Time Of Year

Well, it's that time of year again. The following month may very well be one of my favorite months of the year (October a close second). March is something sweet and oh-so fulfilling. It's not the "March Madness" (not a fan of basketball) or even spring that compels me the most. No, it's baseball's spring training. Yes, you read that right. Baseball. One of my favorite sports along with hockey and soccer. It doesn't take a genius to know that I am a Boston Red Sox fan, and have been for a dozen years. I'm not one of those fucking bandwagon jumpers who began to call themselves "Red Sox fans" once they won their first World Series in over 86 years in 2004. They piss me off. I am not only a Red Sox fan; I also follow Atlanta Braves and the Florida Marlins.

Instead of rambling on and on about baseball, I will only say a few things about it. If there are any questions or if you want to carry on the discussion, then please feel free to leave a comment. For the entire month of March a surplus of players (40 or so) of every baseball team (MLB, 30 teams) head south of the USA to practice, play exhibition games, while some will try to make the team. It's similar to hockey's pre-season, but with more sunshine, more positions to fill and more exhibition games (25-30). I am pretty sure a lot of people, especially non-Americans, hate the sport simply because they deem it "long" and "boring." The one thing I hate about that opinion/arguement is that baseball is not the only sport that can be "long" and/or boring. Hockey can be very boring if you watch to teams playing the trap. Soccer can be very boring (and long!) if both teams play defensively or don't have enough talent to score goals. However, the length of each baseball game (nine innings minimum, extra innings if game is tied) averages close to three hours. That may be very long to some, but to others time is not important. Personally, I don't look at how long a game is or how long it may be. I don't watch games thinking about it. Sure, there are some games that feel long, but what sport doesn't have that? I am more interested in the technique of the sport. The pitching. I love pitching. That is one of the reasons why I am a huge Red Sox fan, and also follow the Braves and Marlins.

I am not a die hard fan of the Braves or the Marlins - far from it - but I would like to think of myself as a real (die hard) fan of the Boston Red Sox. Sure, Boston's payroll is around 130 million (top 5 in the league, but far from New York yankees #1 with 200+ million) but they do develop a lot of good prospects. The reason I like the Florida Marlins is because of their ample young players with massive potential - not many teams have this. The ironic part is that the Marlins have the lowest payroll (if not lowest, then certainly very very close). They cannot afford to buy star players, but they do develop many of their players into stars. As soon as a Marlin player begins to get near star status the Marlins trade him for younger prospects. The reason? Money. They simply cannot afford to sign them to long deals worth a lot of money. That, or they just don't want to. Then again, hardly anyone comes to watch their games.

To give you an idea of what the Marlins produced before shipping away to other teams: Miguel Cabrera (3B, traded to Detroit), Josh Beckett (SP traded to Boston), Brad Penny (SP traded to LA - he isn't good now, but he certainly was in 2004), Jeremy Hermida (OF traded to Boston - not a star, but a pretty good young player), etc etc.

That said, I am very excited for the Red Sox this year. Arguably the best rotation (Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, John Lackey, Daisuke Matsuzaka & Clay Buckholtz) and defense entering this season. However, our offense is a question mark. Oh, and I love the addition of John Lackey - a real fucking bulldog on the mound.

The Olympics: Men's Ice Hockey

This is not going to be about how well/awful a country is doing in the men's ice competition, but more-so about the roster each country has. Now, let me say this: I do not assume everyone will agree with me. Also, I would like to add that it is also hard to imagine Canada's Men's Ice Hockey team without so many bloody NHL star players.

For the purpose of whatever argument I bring up, I will focus on Canada's team. Their roster is pretty damn disgusting and terrifying. Their team is built to win Gold and nothing less - hell, a silver or bronze would seem like the greatest disappointment in Canadian sports history. Believe me, it would be to Canadians. As I said, Canada's roster is disgusting and terrifying. Every player on that roster is a star (to a certain extent) for their NHL team. The thing about Canada is that they lack real role players like they used to with Draper and Maltby (I cannot remember others at this point). No matter how much offense a team has, no matter how big and strong the defense is, every team needs role players (hard workers who simply finish their check, create motivation, may play better two-way hockey, etc etc). Canada doesn't really have that. Correct me if I am wrong, but they don't really have forwards that play good two-way hockey other than Patrice Bergeron and somewhat Jonathan Toews; no real role players. Sure they're powerful and should score plenty of goals, but they can't just rely on that because it will hurt them badly when they play countries like the US, Russia, Sweden and Finland.

The next thing I wanted to mention is Canada's roster compared to other countries. They're stacked everywhere, but I already briefly touched upon that. They have everything. As for other countries such as Germany, Latvia (what are they doing there, seriously?), Norway and Belarus .... well, they really cannot compete. They can't. Each of those countries has maybe a handful of NHL players, while the rest of the roster is more european and somewhat lesser talented. Now, don't get me wrong. I am NOT trying to say that the NHL is better and far superior than any other league (well, maybe it is), but talented players do come from other national leagues. What I am saying is that it seems that when Canada, Russia, United States (even though they are not as good) play Germany, Latvia, Norway and Belarus the viewers are watching the NHL players vs. AHL players; experienced players vs. inexperienced players. You get my point. You start feeling bad for these countries when they play Canada, Russia and the USA. It's more unfair then them being a terrible team. It's like having a baseball team like the New York Yankees (payroll ++ 200 million dollars) against the Florida Marlins (practically tied for lowest budget, 30-45 million.

I saved this point for last because it's about Patrice Bergeron. There was this article by John Grigg of The Hockey News. I think it just speaks for itself on how fucking stupid John Grigg is. The Ironic part, this is a guy that vowed for Alexander Burrows to be on the team. I encourage you to read it.
Link

Hopefully I made myself clear on these points. As I have mentioned within this blog, I am not trying to bash countries other than Canada, USA and Russia. What I am saying is that it's unfair

Just around the corner

Honey, I can feel it. I can feel it. Right around the corner! Itching for a break. For some relaxation. Itching, just itching. Spring break. Soon. Begins Thursday afternoon for me. I can feel it. Damn. Not the right moment for me to sound all poetic. You know what makes this feeling even better? A music band with a specific name. Do you know who I am talking about? No, not Guns N' Roses or Rage Against the Machine. Bruce "The Boss" Springsteen, that's who. Such great music for this time of year.

Anyone going to watch the Olympics? Hockey (not the NHL)? I guess I should blog about the pros and cons about hockey (with NHL players) in the Olympics. Maybe later this week when I have ample time.

The Usual Shit: Fuck, I Need A Cigar!

This is not about hockey. There, happy? However, as usual, I don't fucking know what I will be writing about. Again. Don't worry, nothing pornographic. A chuckle here, a chuckle there. Nothing school related since I do not believe this blog should be a tool for it. I'm sure I mentioned something related to school way back when, but that was then. This is now. So, no school related shit.

I guess I can write something briefly about my lyric/poem blog, which is limited to a handful of people. I think 2010 will be a quite year for the blog only because I won't blog just about anything I write - not that I have in the past, but I tend to notice some lyrics/poem don't belong in the blog yet. The last one I blogged, Start of Something, is probably one of my worst ones I have written in a while. Not because of a friend's "critique" of the poem/lyric, but more due to the fact that despite the message being clear, it doesn't give me much of a vibe. Hard to explain, I know. That said, I will not take it out. You got to take the bad with the good.

Moving along. I cannot wait until spring break arrives. February 18th being my last class of the month. Feels like it is just around the corner. I plan to keep busy; other than writing fucking essays and studying for an exam, which takes place the first day back, I plan to go skating, relax, hang out with friends/cousins, sleep more and I'm sure other stuff will come to mind.

Oh, and just like the title says. I haven't had one since last September. Cuban cigars are amazing. Soon, soon.

The Boston Bruins (and Ilya Kovalchuk trade): Season Down the Drain (Part faux Deux)

OK, I said I would have a part two concerning my frustrations on the Boston Bruins, who lost for the ninth (9) straight time last night. But I decided to back off and bury my frustrations on the team for now. Yes, it took a lot in me to keep away for a while. That's all I wanted to say.
Well, since I'm on the subject I guess I'll briefly talk about the Ilya Kovalchuk trade that took place last night. He is, of course, one of the few players in the league along with Alexander Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby and (yes, him too) Evgeny Malkin that can be called a superstar. Ilya Kovalchuk. Yup. Sniper. Yup. Well, he was dealt to the New Jersey Devils. Who would have thought the Devils of all teams would trade for him? I certainly didn't. Not many did. In my opinion, Don Waddel (Atlanta's GM) once again failed to achieve a substantial return for Kovalchuk - just as he failed to get anything for Hossa two years ago.
New Jersey sent Atlanta the following: this years first round pick, Niclas Bergfors (FW), Johnny Oduya (D) and Patrice Cormier (NJs second round pick last year). Bergfors has potential to be a second liner at best; Johnny Oduya is a solid defenseman who is having a tough season; Patrice Cormier could be a bust like Angelo Esposito (part of the return from Pittsburgh for Hossa two years ago) and the first round pick (looks like it will be somewhere between 25-30) can be a toss up. Now, I understand that Kovalchuk is considered a rental player as far as anyone is concerned. And I can also understand Waddel desperation to trade Kovalchuk now before the Olympics to avoid any possibility that Kovalchuk gets hurt (if that were to happen than it is safe to assume Atlanta was fucked), however, Waddel did not get any player that would generate any excitement from Atlanta fans to attend home games. Lets face it, a good chunk of Atlanta fans, or any hockey fan attending a Trashers game, went because they wanted to see Ilya Kovalchuk. Now who do they go watch? Certainly none of the New Jersey players coming to Atlanta. That's a safe bet. Rich Peverley? Hmm, OK. Good hands, but who will he pass to? Maxim Afinigenov? That's a charm *sarcasm*. Nik Antropov? lol.
Not much there. That's not to say Atlanta will suck for the next couple of years. Oh, no. They won't be great or as entertaining, but they will be an OK team in the mist of developing their D and offense. What puzzles me is that Waddel stated that New Jersey's offer was the best. Why didn't Waddel pry Travis Zajac from New Jersey. I know I would have. Maybe he tried, and he most certainly failed. Despite all of this, Don Waddel is still one of the worst active GMs in the league. Oh, yes he is.

The Boston Bruins: Season Down The Drain (Part One of Two)

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Guns N' Roses Concert: Axl Leaves a Longlasting Memory

Going to make this short and sweet. The Guns N' Roses concert was electrifying and an additional boost of adrenaline throughout the body. The two opening bands (Danko Jones & Sebastian Bach) provided energy (as if there really needed to be with Guns N' Roses playing later that night) and an extra dose of anxiousness (if that is even possible) for Guns N' Roses. By the time both musicians finished it was almost 9:30pm. If there was any flaw that came with Guns N' Roses it was waiting. Then again, waiting/delaying the concert has been part of Axl Rose since he began thrashing and rocking the music business in the early 1980s.
The concert was indeed electrifying; numerous explosions and effects. Fire! You name it. One song after another for 2 hours and 40 minutes. Well, of courses in between some songs Axl Rose spoke to the audience (you can read some of his quotes in the previous blog post. Right under this one). And for those who called (and still do!) Axl fat, let me just say that he was running (as usual) around the stage throughout the concert. Sure he has gained weight. Fuck, he's 48 years old!! He's bound to put on some weight. However, I would not say he is "fat." I would say he is bigger, but more in shape than "fat," if you know what I mean. As for his voice, it was remarkable. Almost as good as he sounded in the early 90s - and that is saying a lot. Sure he is older and his voice is different, which is common. But he still sounds phenomenal and breathtaking. If there truly is a heaven, then this was it. The best night of my life.
A scarf was thrown at him at the beginning of the concert, followed by a bra in the latter part, and finally a Quebec flag during the last song of the concert (Paradise City). Yes, he did take the Quebec flag and wrapped it around himself while singing the last part of Paradise City. He ended the concert with a bang (no, not by having sex on stage). He tossed his beloved microphone into the crowd (those on the floor), was encountered by two lovely women who brought a handful of shots (not sure what alcohol); he then shared the shots to several people in the crowd, the women and himself ... and well, you guessed it - he saluted the fans, the city and drank. His last words were:

"You deserve the truth, but not tonight."

-referring to the decade-long controversy with former GNR member, Slash.

*Keep in mind that I might write more on this in the future.*

A Small Preview: Review of GNR Concert Underway (posted later this week)

I think I recognize some of you ... That's right!!!

- Axl Rose referring to the riot 17 years ago - the last time GNR were in Montreal.

I remember a few years back we did the MTV awards and people said I was out of breath!"

- Axl proceeds to tell the story of how he ran from the cops to be on stage for the VMA's (MTV).

They thought I was Kid Rock!

- Axl Rose referring to the people he "ran" by while being "chased" by the cops.

January 27, 2010

I am debating if I should write some sort of review next week on the upcoming Guns N' Roses concert. The reason I am debating is based on time, which I may not have in the next few weeks, lack of memory of the songs played (yes! It is important if I am going to be expressing vocals/riffs of certain songs, and so on.), etc. Editing, too. But I guess I can list some songs I wish to hear next week.
The songs that will certainly be sung are: Welcome to the Jungle, Paradise City, November Rain, Chinese Democracy, Better and You Could Be Mine. 100% certain. However, these are the songs (not always sung, if ever) I would like to hear as well:
Estranged (it would leave me breathless!)
Prostitute (from new album, but only played 2-3 times live during this tour)
There Was A Time (same as Prostitute)
Locomotive (would be fucking intense)
Garden Of Eden (I HIGHLY doubt this will ever be played live again. Hard to imagine Axl pulling it off live anyways)
Breakdown (same as Estranged)

I shall see ...

Fuck You Kovalev! (hahahaha)

Not sure what to say really. This isn't some sort of diary where I keep secrets. Therefore, do not think I will reveal anything spicy. Or will I. Hmmm. Nothing adventurous today folks. Well, tonight I will be seeing the Habs take on the Senators.

FUCK YOU Kovalev, you better do NOTHING tonight because you no longer belong to me in the hockey fantasy pool!!

Anyways, as I was saying. My friend invited me to go watch the game. Hopefully this time I give the habs some bad luck. There was one condition for coming to the game: my friend asked me not to wear anything Boston Bruins related. Sadness. How can I support my team when I enter the Hab land? Sad. That said, I will cheer on the Sens!

And seriously, Kovalev you better do NOTHING. NOTHING. Plain and simple. Actually, it shouldn't even be hard for Kovalev since he shows up to play 10% of the year. What a lazy bum.

Two More Weeks

Two weeks until I lose most of my voice. Yup. Guns N' Roses is coming to the city !!! And I will be singing all night loooooooong. I have been filled with adrenaline and excitement ever since I got my tickets early November. I have been listening nothing but Guns N' Roses lately. To those who I haven't bugged yet (about GNR), you're about to be bugged and hear nothing but Guns N' Roses. :P

Winter Classic Game

First and foremost, happy new year to everyone. May 2010 be better than 2009. For me it was an OK year, but that is to be discussed another time. Well, now that I got your attention let me direct you to the Winter Classic Game that is taking place today - right now as I type this.

Well, I had forgotten to continue this blog post yesterday. I guess I was too excited watching Marco Sturm (Boston LW) score the game winner in OT. woooooooo. And now I have a headache.