31 July 2007

Addition

REAL LIVE ACTUAL NEWS! I can't even stand it!

First of all, the BIGGEST news of all is that tDogs have brought in Camrose Kodiak Evan Oberg a year early. This is gigantor news, as Oberg is an outstanding defenceman with some offensive power. Oberg joins forwards Rob Bordson, Cody Danberg, Kyle Schmidt, Mike Montgomery, and Justin Fontaine, defenceman Chad Huttel, and goalie Kenny Reiter as the incoming Bulldogs. Did I or did I not predict tDogs would bring in another player? I am a genuis! (Although it was pretty obvs.)

Secondly, UND Blogger and RWD friend Goon has adopted a human child to go along with his dog child Dakota. No word on how Dakota is handling the usurping of his position.

Thirdly, you can read a little profile of Drew Akins over at INCH's A-Z feature. Though he is not one of my guys, I am a huge Drew A. fan. Note that the "B" profile guy is a faux-Dog.

Okay, that's about it. I don't know what else to post until Money gets bored and starts another topic on tPB.

26 July 2007

The State of Hockey

(In this case, state meaning mode or condition of being, not one of the constituent units of a nation having a federal government.)

What's going on in Duluth?

Seriously.

3 years ago, the Bulldogs went to the Frozen Four. Now, the broadcast has been dumped by WDIO-TV. (See the DNT article here.) I know we sucked hardcore the past few years, but I didn't think it was that hardcore. Of course, it's not like ticket sales were any better than the TV ratings.

The WDIO-TV station manager, Dave Poirer, says "Advertisers aren’t interested in supporting UMD hockey broadcasts." Wow. That's a powerful statement. That shows that the community businesses in Duluth are seeing that Bulldog hockey isn't reaching enough of an audience to warrant their money. (I should point out that the article says that advertisers are turning to the internet instead. I think the idea that internet advertising is more effective than television or radio advertising is a fallacy. I understand that it's much cheaper to have some robot Photoshop you a print ad than it is to hire actual humans to record a commercial. However, as a consumer of the internet, television, and to a lesser extent, radio, I have never clicked on a banner ad in my freaking life, except by accident, but I am occasionally swayed by actual commercials, mostly because they are much less avoidable, and then I suddenly find myself wanting a DQ Blizzard RIGHT FREAKING NOW. I mean, Rhino Lining gets free advertising from me(!) from my stat counter at the bottom of this page, and they haven't sponsored great hockey hits in like two years, but I remember Kerry Rodd saying "Beau Geisler with a Rhino Lining hit!" etc. And who among us did not dream of owning an ARGO after seeing the UAA broadcast? But no one asked me, did they? I'm only a CONSUMER!) In other words, less people care about Bulldog hockey, and it shows. Evidently, the station lost money on the broadcasts, although I don't know if that's in comparison with what they would have made if they had shown reruns of Walker: Texas Ranger or if it costs more to produce the broadcast than they were making in actual dollars. (REMEMBER, I am your consumer advocate! Always on the lookout for faux-Dogs and television station propaganda!)

The bright spot is that a deal is in the works for the games to be shown on Charter Cable instead. Charter already shows games from other WCHA teams, and seriously, even the fat cats like the Gophers, Badgers, and Fighting Sioux are on cable. And really, only trolls under bridges don't have cable, and they can always listen to Bruce Ciskie if they can get reception. I'm sure that the RWD team will probably be disheartened to hear this, as they always enjoy watching tDogs during their deer-hunting pilgrimage, but after last year's Gopher debacle, I think it's probably better for the health of the RWD correspondents if they don't see those games when they are deep into their brandy slushes or whatever the heck they are drinking up there. (tDogs are actually off on deer hunting opener this year, anyway.)

A forum on the DNT website shows public opinion on WDIO's move, as does tPenalty Box forum. (It should be noted that the first posted on the DNT site, "Donna C." is NOT me, but I was totally creeped out by this faux-me and for a moment thought I might have posted in my sleep, then thought someone was impersonating me, but then I became rational again.) Fans on tPB seem cautiously optimistic about the Charter Cable deal, but disheartened by the greater implication of waning support in the community. Over at the DNT, it's a different story, with people preferring college football, hating Duluth, hating Sandelin, hating the President, calling tDogs terrorists, reminding us there is "parody" in the league (ALIVE AND WELL ON RWD!!!!!!!!!), insulting the student section, reminding us we haven't had a winning season since 1992 (????), complaining about oil prices, calling the Gophers worthless (superb!), and supporting the Dogs. It's kind of all over the map, with no real consensus.

My personal opinion on the matter (WHICH YOU WERE ALL DYING FOR, I KNOW, YOU'RE JUST SITTING THERE BITING YOUR NAILS IN SUSPENSE) is that the TV situation isn't the problem. It's sad they got dumped by WDIO, but it seems like Charter will come in and work things out. The real issue is what troubles me: support in the community is waning, and that is sad. And I don't understand it, either. It's not like the Bulldogs have gone from perennial contenders to bottom-feeders. The true Bulldog understands there's more ebb than flow to the Bulldogs's season. Hello, the true Minnesota sports fan IN GENERAL understands this, as we have suffered through the same woes throughout the years with the Twins, the Vikings, the North Stars, the Wild, those basketball teams, etc. It's just how we are brought up. We endure the chill of the winters and the agony of defeat. Sure, you could say Gopher hockey is consistently successful, but really, that's a very small part of Minnesota sports. And then I'd counter with GOPHER FOOTBALL and GOPHER BASKETBALL and then you would be very quiet.

This also brings back the DECC issue. The community supported the projected, and the legislature killed it. That's pretty depressing. But let's pretend that tDECC actually gets built in the near future. Is it going to revitalize the community, bringing people back to the Bulldogs games, bringing more top recruits to the team, and bringing us a NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP? Or is it going to be a novelty that wears off after a season or two, leaving the city and the team back at square one, with a huge bill to pay? Yikes. Now I'm starting to sound like a Doomsday prophet. That's not going to happen. The Dogs will rebound from these past few seasons, we'll be back at the Final Five and back in the NCAA tournament within a few years. DECC or no DECC, TV or no TV, hell or highwater. And THAT is the end of the story.

Take care of yourselves, and each other.

23 July 2007

I Love The Internet

One of the great things about having my Rhino-Lining Hits counter (since the counter doesn't make sense anymore, since Rhino Lining evidently doesn't sponsor the bone-crushing hits tDogs dish out anymore) is seeing how people get to this lovely site. Most of the time, they're coming here from SiouxSports or USCHO or one of the other blogs, or for searching for something like "Bulldog Hockey" or "Runnin' with the Dogs." You know, things that make sense.

And then... well, RWD is a crossroads for many, many different searches on the internet that have nothing to do with hockey, or something to do with hockey, or something strange to do with hockey. Here are some examples:

Player-related
crazy canucks gorsalitz
robbie earl handsome
jordan parise hot
pictures of hothead naked ice borer
mike curry baseball
russ romaniuk game worn jerseys
jason garrisoncute
matt niskanen engineer
jason garrisonsexy
drew stafford shirtless
ryan berry shirtless photos
jonathan toews beer bong
josh meyers dimples
matt mcknight's cfl history
travis gawryletz do girls like him?
travis gawryletz hot or not

Semi-hockey-related
anthony lapanta hair
stearns county syndrome
glen sonmor punch fan bench pic
troy jutting facebook

What the???
liquor dont drink because it isnt heatly
words puzzle the wild dingo

i didn't even know where west

double leather sole mukluks

jack daniel golfing caps

fosters home for imaginary friends big fat awesome house party

david james elliott blog
john mitchell sonmor
david james elliott shirtless photos
picture of a egg getting sucked into a bottle
capeway bulldogs, ma
if i'm the only one i'll shut up
guffers animals pictures
carly ward sammy's wood fired pizza
kyle lohse gay
computer screeens for dogs
hooray huzzah etymology
hillion box dog


Are you scratching your head in confusion yet? There are some weird people out there.

********EDIT*********
DEAR GOD, WHAT SICK PERSON IS SEARCHING FOR "JASON GIAMBI SHIRTLESS"?????????????????

16 July 2007

Vintage RWD

You may have forgotten that RWD exists. You may have forgotten the laughter, the tears, the unchecked rage. But, because I am not above the cheesy "clip show" style post, here are

The Top Ten RWD Posts Of All Time Until Better Ones Come Along

10. UMD Announces New Assistant Coach
9. No Joy in Mudville
8. The Gauntlet: Public Servant Edition
7. Diamonds and Pucks
6. The Teddy Bear Affair
5. 100 Years Behind the Mask
4. When You Say Wisconsin, You've Said Too Much
3. The Gauntlet: Denver Edition
2. Save the Children
1. Fearing the Reaper

You know you love it.

06 July 2007

...And The Horse You Rode In On

We interrupt your regularly scheduled non-update with an actual entry. Sorry for the convenience.

Via my dear friend Goon's blog, I discovered this article by Fighting Sioux beat writer Brad Schlossman (also known as That Rat Bastard That Doesn't Link To Me) discussing Brian Lee's departure from the Fighting Sioux.

Okay, I may not exactly have my finger on the pulse of college hockey, but seriously, what the mother is going on over in Grand Forks?

Let me give you an example of what some lovely folks are saying about Brian (spelling and grammar are the authors's own):
"hes a fugly dude and see yaaaaaaaaaaa" (Okay, in the photo on Goon's site, he does look like he's wearing purple lipstick and yellow eyeliner, but jeez.)
"he peaked very early around 15/16 and has been the same player since, maybe the ahl will help him more but he will get his ass kicked for sure if he prances around the ice like he did sometimes"
"he isnt ready for the next level, he just wanted to get out of school for sure, he wasnt well liked in the locker room, that happens sometimes, he had a HUGE ego and head around grand forks so that didnt help him at all which is his fault for being a jackass to regular old fans"
"I wish Brian well, but am not sorry to see him go. I would not characterize Brian as a UND standout. Ever since he was chosen to participate in the first World Juniors, people's perceptions of Brian's abilities exceeded his subsequent play - his performance seldom justified his 'reputation'. Brian too often coasts (skate-coast, skate-coast) - doesn't seem to have the fire/drive/passion required to be REALLY successful at the D1 (not to mention NHL) level. Part of Brian's legacy at UND will forever be the 'Blake Wheeler goal.'"
"A few years in the minors and a few fights will be good for Brian, who was one of the softest players ever to wear the kelly green."
"I'm sure he is a nice guy, however I fealt like he was a liability to the team when he was on the ice. To be fair I had felt the same about Finley at one point and time, but Finley has shown improvement throughout his career at UND. The first half of the year we had a better record with Foyt playing D then we did with Lee."
"Lee played like a poke-checking prima donna on more shifts than not for 2 years. He rarely went into the corner first, but was happy to 'punish' a braver forward if he thought he could get away with it...usually followed by a boarding/elbowing/roughing call."
"Lee is going to get lit up like a real life version of 'Youngblood' without the triumphant return to the team after his 2 years." (This person actually wrote a series of short stories entitled The Chronicles of Lee and posted the entire thing on Brad's site.)


All right, then. To be fair, there were certainly posts defending Brian and wishing him well, and there were some that were at least constructive in their criticism, but I have been a member of the SiouxSports board for a long time, and I'm pretty shocked at some of the things people would say about the poor guy (and about Joe Finley). I guess as long as there are players, there will be critics, but there is a line that people have crossed, that I have only crossed in discussion of 1. Those horrible people from St. Cloud 2. The New York Yankees 3. Troy Riddle and Ryan Potulny. I've been critical of my 'Dogs from time to time, but never to the point where I have wished someone would go away and then publicly repeated that over and over again. And really, after the past 2 seasons we've had, I could probably be more critical, if not for two reasons: I'm not close enough to the game to comment on a day-in, day-out basis, and I just don't want to say anything really mean about any of those guys. I mean, the HSWCHA does exist, but I haven't put anyone in it in a long time. I didn't even get mad when Nisky scored on Johnson down in Mankato. I just felt bad for him.

I think Goon is right when he says we've lost our civility. I mean, it's one thing to scream "You m-fing something or other" at a hockey game where everyone can see you (because really, I'm not above doing that), but it's another thing to go on the internet under some silly made-up name and take your frustration with the world out on some guy who made a mistake. Come on, people. Get a grip.