From Russia, with love. posted by Goon Squad

Did I say love? My bad!

A huge fight that stopped a KHL Championship game just after four minutes of play has led to a criminal investigation being launched into the reasons behind the major brawl at the game between Vityaz Chekhov and Avangard Omsk on January 9th.

Match officials struggled desperately to separate the teams and eject the offending players before the game resumed, but another fight broke out after just seven more seconds of play.

The officials finally scrapped the match, with only seven and eight players, respectively, left on each team.

According to the Moscow Region’s Prosecutor's Office, the teams will be probed for disorderly conduct. "The players of both teams - using hockey sticks as tools to sort out their relationships – disturbed public order and the rules of the game, hurt each other and broke sporting rules. The match was stopped due to the fight and a lack of players in the teams due to penalties. As a result of the fight, ten Avangard players and three Vityaz men were injured, as well as the referee," the statement by the Prosecutor’s Office said.

After interviews with on-ice officials and witnesses to the game, and what the league's press release termed "the review of videotapes," the following sanctions were issued by the KHL: Both teams have forfeited the game and were fined one million rubles. (That's an American equivalent of $33,500.)

Ovechkin Drops Gloves with Downie, But Bradley Does Dirty Work posted by Frederick Barry

There was no shortage of excitement last night when the Washington Capitals took on the Tampa Bay Lightning.  The best moment came late in the game when the gloves were dropped by Alex Ovechkin and Steve Downie.  Interestingly enough, Ovechkin and Downie never got down to business.

Things got heavy between Downie and Ovechkin early in the third period.  As Downie swept in to make a move, Ovie made a move of his own by cruising in to crush the right wing with a hard hit.  However, Downie's teammates contend that the hit was dirty because Ovechkin may have used his knee in the collision.

Tampa's Center Jeff Halpern said of the hit, "Downs makes a move. [Ovechkin] sticks his knee out, leaves his knee out there...it's not the cheapest hit in the world, but it's still a dirty hit."

That said, it was not a penalty and some players never even noticed the controversial knee.  Even though Downie didn't comment after the game regarding whether or not Ovechkin stuck his knee out, he certainly behaved in-game as if that was the case.  After the collision, Downie took a swing at Ovechkin who swung back, clearly ready for a fight to ensue.  At this juncture a fight was not to happen, though, as the ref quickly stepped in and sent both men to the box for roughing - a two minute penalty.

After spending time in the box the penalty was in the past,  but the mens' agitation stayed high.  Ovechkin and Downie shared some words and the intent of the men became clear as Downie threw his gloves to the ice.  Answering the call, Ovechkin followed suit and even removed his helment in preparation for the throw-down. Little did Ovie know he wouldn't have to throw a single punch.

Lightning Sign Mattias Ohlund to 7-Year, $24.5 Million Contract posted by Jeff Ponder

The Lightning have empowered their blue line even more this off-season.

After drafting young defenseman Victor Hedman last Friday in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft, the Lightning have brought in a veteran to further along his progress.  Mattias Ohlund, who has spent his entire 12-year career with the Vancouver Canucks, has moved to the Eastern Conference to play with the young Tampa Bay defense.

Ohlund was expected to receive a lot of offers today, but signed early with a contract he liked.  Being known as the top-guy in Vancouver, Ohlund possesses great foot speed and the ability to move the puck out of his zone.  He has reached the 30-point plateau six times in his career, and has scored 36 career power-play goals.  Adding Ohlund to a power-play that ranked 19th in the league last season will surely improve their chances.

This signing, along with the acquisition of Hedman, will finally make teams fear the Lightning defense on both sides of the ice.Continue reading "Lightning Sign Mattias Ohlund to ..."

Tribute to a giant of a horse posted by Jan Hoadley

Most people, even avid racing fans, have forgotten him. He's the horse Laffit Pincay called "the fastest horse I ever rode, the fastest horse I ever saw." From a man who won the Eclipe award for outstanding jockey four times and was seven times the US leading jockey this is high praise.

The horse? A bay lightning bolt named Chinook Pass. Named after a mountain pass of 5430 feet he made a highway through the sprinter division on the track.

Chinook is 30 years old this month and the bay gelding set speed records at several places, winning an Eclipse for sprinter in the early 1980s (not a misprint there!) before retiring after an injury incurred when he won the Longacres Mile. After some healing time Chinook took on a second career - that of a dressage horse and Thoroughbred ambassador.

http://horseracing.about.com/library/weekly/aa081700b.htm?p=1 is a site that shows Chinook at 21 and now at 30 in the video clip he is perhaps an outstanding example of what the Thoroughbred can be. As the Derby horses head to Kentucky it's easy to get swept up in the excitement and forget those horses from the past still out there who made our hearts pound.

Chinook is a bay son of Native Born out of a *Turn-to mare, a grandson on top of Native Dancer. After sizzling 6 1/2 furlongs in 1:14.3 in the Potrero Grande Handicap at Santa Anita Pincay said "This horse is fast but he does it easy...he's just unreal." The horse initially overlooked as ordinary in a field of foals that included Washington standout Belle of Ranier, Chinook didn't ring any bells until he was gelded. At the track he marked 21 times on the board from 25 starts, with 16 wins that included the Washington Stallion Stakes at 2 and setting a new world record for 5 furlongs at 4 years of 5 furlongs in :55.1 as well as equalling the track record for the distance at Santa Anita with a :56 flat mark.

Inbound link contest winner announced! posted by Earn Money Blogging

A big thanks to everyone who participated in the "Inbound Link Contest".  We have a winner!  A big congratulations go out to Marija.  Thank you for all your hard work on this.  While we had a lot of people participate, Marija was able to win with only 4 links!  So it wouldn't have taken a lot to win this contest!  We'll be having another contest soon so stay tuned.

The whole purpose of this contest was to get our bloggers networking with other webmasters and to start to build up their inbound links which will help their traffic.  Even a few links can help you with the search engines as they will see you as more of an authority on your topic the more inbound links you have.

To learn more about marketing your blog check out this post: http://www.nbabasketballonline.com/sports_content-rev_share_faq.html#my_faq_2971

Marija's blog can be found here.  If you're a Knicks fan, check it out: http://www.newyorkknicksnews.com/marijak

The original post announcing the contest can be found here: http://www.nbabasketballonline.com/bloggers/weblog/2984.html

And if you're not already signed up with Google AdSense and making money from your blog, check out our Revenue Share FAQ page: http://www.nbabasketballonline.com/sports_content-rev_share_faq.html

Inbound link contest - Win $100! posted by Earn Money Blogging

To try and motivate our bloggers to get inbound links we're going to have a contest to see which blogger can get the most inbound links to their blog. The contest begins now and ends July 31st, 2008. To be entered in to the contest all you have to do is go out and get as many websites to link to your blog as you can and at the end of the month send us an email listing all those links. All links must be active from August 1st through August 7th when we'll be judging the entries - a winner will be announced on August 7th. All entry emails must be received by Midnight on July 31st, 2008. You can email them to sportsfan@nbabasketballonline.com

We're going to impose some restrictions on the types of links you can get so please see below for the full list of links that do NOT count.

To get started simply go to Google and find other websites and blog that are about the sports and teams that you write about. Email the website owner and ask them for a link by explaining that you think your blog would be a good resource for their readers. Or offer to write a guest post for them with your by-line and URL at the bottom of the article. Or offer to exchange links with them by writing a quick write up of their site and a reciprocal link back to them. Some webmasters will be happy to add you to their blog roll even if you don't give them a link back (which is ideal) but some may want you to link back to them - you can easily do this with a quick blog entry on your blog about their website.

To learn more about inbound links and marketing your blog in general check out this post:

New Look Rangers in better position for Cup and Future posted by Tony D

The UFA season has largely been completed--aside from a few big names hanging around--and the NHL standings may look very different next season.

This year's make over awards go to the New York Rangers and the Tampa Bay Lightning.  First, the 'ning--as runners up.  For Florida's only relevant franchise, the makeover began weeks ago with the firing of John Tortorella and the hiring of Barry Melrose (aside: here's hoping Pat Burns makes it back to the NHL and squares off against Melrose.  Was there anything better than the barbs the two exchanged in the 93 playoffs?).  They then selected highly touted Steven Stamkos--a likely second line center behind Vinny the Becoming Great.  Those changes alone would make headlines.  But Tampa didn't stop.  They have since added Vaclav Prospal, Gary Roberts, Ryan Malone, Radim Vrbata, Olaf Kolzig, Ryan Hall and Wyatt Smith.  New look, yes.  The result, however, will be determined.  They've certainly added some size up front, but just how well that translates into success is anybody's guess.  If Kolzig has another super year in him, they have solved their constant goaltending woes and may be ready to take another run at a playoff birth and beyond.

Despite the shake up in Tampa, first place in the makeover pagent (once again) goes to the Rangers.  First, the departures: Jagr, Straka, Avery, Malik, Shanahan (most likely), Tutin, Backman.  The bad news of that group?  Avery.  The good?  Malik, Backman.  The even? Jagr (it was time--this wasn't his team as far back as LAST year), Tutin (the fate of this move lies in Zherdev's hands), and Straka (still an effective player when healthy, but he became replaceable).  Now the additions/retentions: Roszival, Mara, Valiquette, Redden, Zherdev, Kalinin, Naslund (and some other less impact players that we'll save for another time).  There are question marks galore among this group.  Can Roszival regain his 2006 playoff form--especially without Jagr?  Can Valiquette give the Rangers enough quality starts to keep Hank fresh?  Can Redden recover from a couple bad seasons in Ottawa?  Ditto for Naslund in Vancouver?  Is Zherdev on his way to being a league superstar?  Or is he Kovalev part deux?  Will Kalinin replace Malik and Backman as the team's tall, rangy, non-physical defensemen?  Is his shoulder healthy enough?  Like I said, plenty to worry about here. 

Euro 2008 Wrap-up posted by Matt Williams

Germany are favorites...or favourites.

Podolski shines.    Dutch are delightful!    Hat trick for Villa.    Turkey win late.    Croatia win group.    Romanians love Mutu! So do Italians.    Early exit for Greece.    Turkey win late.    Ballack blast.    French miss Zidane.    Russia are through!

Germany bests Portugal.    Croatia win late. Turkey win late.    Dutch are done.    Spanish curse gone.

Lightning in Basel.    Spain are convincing.

44 years!

Xavi best player.

South Africa.

It's Time for... Better Know An Even More Obscure Sports Team! posted by Nicholas O'Malley

Today we'll be covering...

The Florida Panthers! 

Yeah, in case you didn't know- there's a hockey team in Florida called the Panthers. I dont' know why they exist. I'm gonna try to do this with no research- let's see how it goes.

I can't name a playe on this team. Ever. Then again, they could've been an expansion team this year and I'd have believed it. I just saw the Boston Bruins play them why I was eating my buffalo chicken chowder bread bowl at the Souper Bowl the otehr night. I've heard of the Tampa Bay Lightning, they won it all a few years back with St. Louis, LeCavalier, and that goalie, Nikolai Havi... Habby, Habi... Holly.. Halibubu? Habubooblin? Habibubu... What? It starts with a K? Screw it I'm looking it up. (Khabibulin).

Holy crap, this team's been around since '93. They're based in Miami (like the Florida Marlins) and are owned by Wayne Huizenga of Miami Dolphins ownership. Their organization includes two hall-of-famers, their first head coach and first GM/president.

Ok, so the Florida Panthers are not interesting or publicized- at all. I guess this is why I (or you) have ever heard of them and is the reason the NHL neeeds less teams.

 Note: Remember that one guy that got his jugular slashed open with a skate and then ran off the ice while leaving a trail of blood. Yeah, he played for the Panthers.

Something's wrong with Tropicana Field? posted by Apryl DeLancey

While attending college at the University of Tampa, I noticed the awesome fact that the area is rich in professional sports! The Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are relatively close to each other and easily accessible. The closest NBA was the Orlando Magic, but I got to catch a pre-season game at the Ice Palace one year. I felt really spoiled since I grew up in a place where everything was much more spread out and harder to get tickets for. To make things even better – there was plenty of golf and tennis around. I only wish the USF Bulls were as good as they are now when I was there. I didn’t complain though, I was able to go to the games free since my school didn’t have football. (They did at one time; John Matuszak is a U Tampa alum!)

The first time watching a game at Tropicana Field I was very impressed. Here was this architecturally interesting dome that had some great modern amenities. Compared to my Chavez Ravine (pre-refurbishing – before the new rows and seats were added), it had the luster of a new car. Comfortable seats, plenty of interesting vendors, and I was pumped to be there. But all of the locals complained! I came to realize that the city had a strange love-hate relationship with the Rays. One fan told me that he didn’t like them because of the timing they released their inaugural season tickets. He felt they somehow were undermining the Bucs when they weren’t very good. Others told me they hated the dome. Huh? How can you hate the dome? I was told baseball should be played outside. I agree – its just that the area has severe thunderstorms in the summer. The thought of a full-time open-air baseball stadium in the area was odd to me. Regardless, almost no one I encountered in the area had a favorable view of Tropicana Field. I thought it was just fine. In fact, I quite enjoyed every game I attended there.

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