What a boring week

Wow, when there is nothing happening, there is really nothing happening...

Michigan's basketball team took it's first loss of the season against NC State, a 74-67 deficit. Michigan took a 16-4 lead early on, but then fell behind by 20 with about 12 minutes to play, and that proved to be too big of a hole to climb out of. I did not know how this game would turn out, but it seems to me that the bigger the game, the smaller the performance from Courtney Sims. Sims, who had feasted on the lesser teams, was invisible during the game against the Wolfpack. He had 7 points, on 7 shot attempts, and 8 total boards. If the Wolverines are going to do anything on the hardwood, they will need C.Sims to step up big against the big opponents. G Dion Harris will do his bit, but we really need Sims to be the beast in the middle. Well, another cupcake coming on Saturday (Wofford), so we won't know much about this team until the UCLA game on Dec. 23.

The Wings finally got back into the 'W' column with a 2-1 win over the Dallas Stars, but it came at a price, as F Jason Williams had to leave the game with a thigh injury, which will keep him out of at least Friday's game against Minnesota. But the pain is temporary, the win is the important thing, as the Wings stayed out of the penalty box for the most part, and while they were shorthanded, that's when they got their two goals. Kris Draper, who loves nothing better than to score shorthanded, and Mathieu Schneider (odd for a D man to get a shorty) were the goal scorers, as the Wings only took 5 penalties, and gave up 0 goals off of them. 2 tough games to end the week, @ Minnesota tomorrow, home to San Jose on Saturday. We'll see if we can get another 9 game win streak going.

And finally, the Gunners are not firing on all cylindars, if you will,as they fell victim to Fulham @ Craven Cottege, 2-1. They were down 2-0 before 20 minutes, as goals from American Brian McBride, and Canadian Tomasz Radzinski basically sealed the 3 points for the Cottagers. Holland's Robin van Persie got Arsenal on the board before 1/2 time, but the Gunners could not get the equalizer they wanted, and worse off Swiss CB Philippe Senderos was sent off in the 66th minute, pretty much dooming the Gunners from that point on. Arsenal will face hated rivals T*****ham Hotspur on Saturday, and nothing less than a victory will suffice for Arsenal fans worldwide (I really, really, really, don't like spurs).

That's all for now, 'Stones update tomorrow.

One team soaring, one slumping

Saturday night continued two different trends for two different teams.

The Pistons just keep winning, this time with a thrilling 115-111 victory over the Washington Wizards. And although the 'D's for both teams seem to have been MIA last night, the 'Stones were able to get the job done, lead by Chauncey Billups' 29 pts, 7 assists. Tayshaun Prince chipped in 21, and 'Rip' Hamilton added 18 for Detroit, who have won their 6th game in a row. Detroit gets a much-needed break after 4 games in 5 nights, and they return to action on Thursday, when they will face the Miami Heat in South Florida.

The Wings, who were soring, are now slumping, after getting throttled 6-2 by Nashville last night. The death knell for the Wings were the 5 second period goals given up by the Wings, which gave them no chance to win. The loss drops Detroit to 0-2-3 in the last 5 games, and has them searching for their special teams units (both power play and penalty kill), which seem to be gone. 3 of the 6 goals scored by Nashville were on the power play, while neither of the Detroit goals were on their own man-advantage, with the Wings going 0-3 on the night with said advantage. They get to try again tomorrow, as they welcome the Dallas Stars to the Joe Louis Arena.

One other note, with USC's 20 point victory over Notre Dame last night, they have leapt past Michigan in both the AP and the BCS polls, and barring a loss next week to UCLA, will play Ohio St. for the National Championship, and not Michigan. While I find this disheartening, because Michigan is the only team in the Country who will give Ohio State a run for its money, the only thing that's left to do is become the biggest UCLA fan for the next 6 days, and hope for the best. And I *GUESS* the Rose Bowl will have to do in that case.

No games of note today, and not a busy week in general. Michigan BBall @ NC State Monday, v Wofford on Saturday. Wings v Dallas on Monday, @ Minnesota on Friday, v San Jose on Saturday. Stones @ Miami on Thursday, v New York on Friday. Next update maybe Tuesday, but probably (as it's been going lately) will be Thursday.

On a roll

Well, win number 5 was the order of the night last night for the Pistons, as they took care of the Charlotte Bobcats, 104-95. It wasn't all that easy, though, as it was a close game throughout, with the 'Stones pulling ahead for good towards the end of the game. Why was the game so close, you ask? Matt freaking Carroll, that's why. Who's that, you ask? Good question, I'm sure the Pistons were asking the same thing after he dropped 18 on them last night. And with Chauncey Billups mis-firing for most of the night, winning was a chore instead of a breeze. But, nonetheless, mission accomplished, and the Pistons can look forward to tonights game at Washington, as they go for win #6 in a row.

The Wings were not so lucky last night, however, falling to the St. Louis Blues in a shootout, 3-2. The Wings fought back to even tie the game last night, with D Nicklas Lidstrom blasting a power play talley 1/2 way through the 3rd period, but it was not to be. Ex-Wings G Manny Legace stopped shots from Pavel Datsyuk and Jason Williams in the shootout to secure the win for the Blues. The Wings are now 0-1-3 in their last 4 games (after their 9 game winning streak), and hope to turn it around against Nashville tonight.

The basketball Wolverines kept their streak going this afternoon, winning their 7th in a row, 66-52 against Maryland-Baltimore County. C Courtney Sims led the way for the Wolverines, going for 18pts, 12 boards against the Retrievers. Not a huge win against UMBC, but after shooting 9-24 in the 1st half, it was lucky we escaped with a win at all, but Michigan is starting to be known for its stout defense, and got the key stops when needed to come away with the victory. However, the first test of the season comes up on Monday, when Michigan goes on its first road trip to NC State to take on the Wolfpack in the ACC/Big 10 challenge. The Big 10 has never won the challenge, and hopefully they can change that this year, and also hopefully the Wolverines can do their part.

And finally, Arsenal cannot win at the Reebok, falling to Bolton Wanderers 3-1 this afternoon. Former gunner Nicolas Anelka struck twice for the Wanderers, who in the past 3 years in all competitions have won 1-0, 1-0, this 3-1 victory, and drew 2-2 back in 2003 against Arsenal. Gilberto had a thunderous header before the half to see the Gunners just down 1, but Arsenal could not make up the difference, and Anelka added to the misery in the 76th minute, sealing the points for Bolton. Arsenal always seemed short of scoring options without the services of Thierry Henry, Tomas Rosicky (both to injury), and Robin van Persie (suspension). Lots of passes, no shots, and it seems to be a pattern (well that, and falling behind 1-nil early on and having to claw back into matches, also a disheartening fact). Arsenal will try to change all of that on Wednesday, when they face inter-city rivals Fulham at Craven Cottege, usually a place of good luck for the Gunners, unlike the hell-hole that the Reebok stadium seems to be.

Wings, Stones, and more tomorrow

Boy, am I lazy

Sorry for the long absence, but I've had some sleep to catch up on (and some work, and other events as well, but sleep was the most important). Here comes the weekly recap, hold on to you hats!

We'll start off with Michigan, who came up on the short end of the stick against the hated Ohio State Buckeyes, 42-39. The game was a fairly even one, and it was hard fought throughout, but two long runs by Buckeye tailbacks sealed the Wolverines' fate. 'Beanie' Wells had a 52 yard run, and Antonio Pittman had a 56 yarder, and a late 15 yard personal foul on Shawn Crable for a helmet-to-helmit hit on OSU QB Troy Smith, which sustained a late drive for the deciding touchdown, were the differences in the game. That being said, I think that Michigan played a pretty darn good game, and they may get a DESERVED rematch in the BCS title game, pending the result of the ND-USC game tomorrow (Notre Dame wins, I believe that Michigan will get the rematch). But, until that time, we will have to see.

Michigan's basketball team kept their perfect record intact with at 65-56 win over Youngstown State. Courtney Sims had 18 points to lead the way, and Brent Petway had 13 and 10 boards for the Wolverines, who will face the powerhouse that is Maryland-Baltimore County on Saturday. Oooohhh.

The Lions suck. I mean they are just terrible at this point, and they have losing down to an artform. First of all, they go to Arizona on Sunday, and decide not to score any points until the 2nd half, almost ensuring the 17-10 win that Arizona got, then we decide not to score any points for the last 3 quarters, and end up losing 27-10 to the Miami Dolphins, after we had taken a 10-0 lead in that game. If the offense plays well, the defense doesn't show up, if the defense plays well, the offense doesn't show up. Sickening. Now we have to try really really hard not to end up with the 1st pick in the draft because A)we don't NEED Troy Smith, who in my opinion will be the No. 1 draft pick B)I don't see Matt Millen being suave enough to trade the pick for multiple good offensive linemen (or 1 good o-lineman even) and C) we can't afford another top 10 pick salary on our roster. So, here's hoping on that front...

The Red Wings have had a tough time of things, losing their last three games, including the loss to Calgary on Friday. On Saturday night, they lost to Edmonton in a shoot-out, 4-3; and on Wednesday night, they fell to Vancouver, 4-3 in overtime. In addition to both of those losses, the Wings have been hit by the injury bug as of late, as well, losing backup G Chris Osgood for a month, Johan Franzen is out with a concussion, and Nik Cronwall pulled his groin, and is out. Hopefully the Wings can get back to their winning ways, starting tonight against the Blues of St. Louis.

The Pistons, however, have been on a winning streak as of late, taking care of Washington, Houston, Philly (sans Iverson, but a win is a win) and Atlanta in the past week. Finally the Pistons are flexing a bit of their muscle, and it's paying off in some big wins. Detroit is now in 2nd place in the central, just one game short of Cleveland, and I think that when it's all said and done, the 'Stones will be right near the top of the Conference again. Tonight they host the Charlotte Bobcats, and it should be a doozy.

And finally, the Arsenal drew with Newcastle 1-1 on Saturday, which is a horrible home result, as we still are 12 points adrift of the leaders Manchester United (with a game in hand). The magpies took a 1-0 lead in the 14th minute off of a counter from an Arsenal corner, and Newcastle M Kieren Dyer was not closed out in time, beating Arsenal G Jens Lehmann. Thierry Henry answered for Arsenal in the 70th minute with a beautiful free kick, but Arsenal could do no more, and the game ended in a draw. On Tuesday, Arsenal welcomed Hamburg SV into the Emirates Stadium, and sent them home with 3-1 defeat. It never looked to be easy, though, as the visitors once again took the lead. This time it was the wonderful strike from Rafael van der Vaart, curling it in off the upright, and beyond the outstretched hands of Jens Lehmann, to give Hamburg the very early 1-0 lead. Robin van Persie equalized in the 52nd minute off a great feed from Cesc Fabregas. RB Emmanual Eboue put the Gunners in the lead in the 82nd, and Julio Baptista scored his first goal for Arsenal in the 88th minute, to secure all three points for the Gunners. Arsenal face Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok stadium on saturday, a place where 1-0 defeats are traditionally in order. Hopefully Arsenal can break this current streak of tragedy, and escape with a 'W'.

And you're up to date. Sorry for the delay.

2 out of 3 ain't bad

Last night wasn't a great night to host sporting events in Michigan, but 'the show must go on'.

The Pistons were able to take a step in the right direction, taking care of the Washington Wizards 100-91. Rebounding still seems to be a problem, as we gave up 12 more offensive rebounds, but we got 16 of our own, and turned the ball over 7 less times, to help our cause. Rip Hamilton had 27 for the 'Stones, and Rasheed Wallace and Tayshaun Prince both poured in 20 points to lead the way for us. The 4-5 'Stones will welcome the 6-3 Houston Rockets tonight at the Palace, and we will probably need to play our best game of the season to come away with the victory.

As expected the Michigan Men's Basketball team took care of Harvard last night, 82-50. F Ron Coleman led 5 Wolverines with 20 points, and C Courtney Sims added 12 for the 5-0 Wolverines. Freshman C Ekpe Udoh had 11 points off the bench, including 5-5 from the field, and G Lester Abram and G Dion Harris each added 10. The Wolverines get a nice 4-day break before taking on another huge collegiate powerhouse, Youngstown St. Should be a barn burner.

And finally, the win streak is over for the Red Wings, who fell to the Calgary Flames 4-1 last night. Calgary tallied 3 times on the power play, which still seems to be the Wings' shortcoming this season. Daniel Cleary netted a powerplay goal of his own with 41 seconds remaining in the game. Here's hoping a new win streak starts tonight against the Edmonton Oilers.

That's the news! Arsenal, U-M football, Wings, 'Stones tonight, Lions tomorrow.

"Those who stay will be Champions"

Today, the University of Michigan, and the entire college football world, lost one of the best coaches to ever teach the game. Glen E. "Bo" Schembechler passed away this morning at the age of 77. Bo was probably known best for his intense rivalry with then Ohio State head coach Woody Hayes, and the "10-year war" between the two schools when they coached their respective teams. I never met the man, but according to all of the stories that I've heard today, Bo was an inspiration to a lot of people, and a friend to a lot more people. He genuinely cared for people, and he had a passion for the game he taught for so many years. It is one of the reasons that his legacy in the sport, and the shadow he casted at the University of Michigan, will never be forgotten. Best wishes to the Schembechler family.

Wanted: Tough, physical rebounder

The Pistons took another game on the chin, this time falling 100-99 to the New Orleans/Oklahoma City/Tulsa/Topeka Hornets of Louisiana. The problem the Pistons seem to be having this season is rebounding. It wouldn't seem like there would be that big of a drop off in rebounding, even with Ben Wallace in Chicago, but it seems that every loss is due to either a huge post game explosion of points, or a huge advantage in rebounding (especially offensive rebounding). Case in point: I watched about 10 minutes of this game, towards the latter stages, and I was watching Bobby Jackson grab MULTIPLE offensive rebounds (had 5 total in the game). Yup, all of 6'1" Bobby Jackson. And it wasn't 'long carom' offensive rebounds, it was 'in the land of the trees' offensive rebounds. And being 'vertically challenged' myself, that's what you try and do, go in there grab some boards, and frustrate the other team. But if you're the 'Stones, you cannot let point guards grab O-rebounds. It just kills the team, and it gives up too many 2nd chance points. By the way, the Hornets ended up with 19 offensive rebounds, compared to 8 for the Pistons. That, folks was the difference in the game. Next up for the 3-5 'Stones is a struggling Washington team that we need to come out aggresive, and get the 'W'

Speaking of 'W''s, there was a lot of that going on this week. First off, rookie RHP Justin Verlander won the AP Rookie of the Year on Tuesday, by gaining a staggering 28 of 30 first place votes. That was followed up by Manager Jim Leyland winning the AP manager of the year. Congratulations to both of them, as they definately were deserving (especially Leyland, who changed the entire thinking of the club, and made them contenders almost through mindset alone. Also, the Tigers resigned their MVP of the World Series, Sean Casey to a 1-year deal. This was a great move, in my opinion, because he's a Lefty, plays 1st base, and came at a reasonable price, as opposed to other 1st basemen on the market. The only negative going on as far as the Tigers are concerned is that we look to be losing LHP Jamie Walker, who is on the verge of signing a 3-year deal with the Baltimore Orioles. That kinda sucks, but the Tigers were not willing to give Walker a 3-year deal, so hopefully Dombrowski has a replacement lined up.

In other news, the Wings will not lose, defeating the Vancouver Canucks, 3-2 for their ninth win in a row. Zetterberg, Franzen, and rookie Valtteri Filppula all netted for the Wings, who tied a franchise record for consecutive victories. This is great news from a team that was looking for an identity early on, and hopefully they can keep this fantastic record going.

And finally, the U-M basketball team kept on its hot streak to begin the season, beating Wisconsin-Milwaukee 66-59 at Crisler Arena yesterday to complete the John Thompson challenge. Courtney Sims was the man of the night, as he poured in 26 points on 10-13 shooting (of course, UW-M's tallest guy was 6'7, and Sims is 6'11, but that's besides the point). G Dion Harris chipped in 17 points, and F Brent Petway added 13 for the 4-0 Wolverines, who welcome the Ivy League powerhouse Harvard to Ann Arbor tomorrow. Of course, it's nice to have your first 7 games at home against cupcake opponents. The first real test for Michigan (on Mon., 11/27), will be when they play at NC State as part of the Big 10/ACC challenge. Until then, I'm gonna take a nap through the rest of these games, which also include Youngstown St., U-Maryland-Baltimore County, and Wofford. *yawn*

No games today, Friday brings the above mentioned U-M v Harvard game, 'Stones v Wizards, and Wings v Flames; Saturday brings such games as 'Stones v Rockets, Wings v Oilers and Arsenal v Newcastle United. Oh, and there's some other game...something about greatest college football rivalry in all the land, national title hopes at stake, something something...oh, well, I'm sure it's not that important.

GO BLUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And its Aaarrrseeeenaaal...

*singing*
...Arsenal FC
and we'll always be
the world's most famous team
*singing*

Today Arsenal took care of Liverpool, 3-0 on the strength of three very unlikely goal scorers, Mathieu Flamini, Kolo Toure, and William Gallas (pictured). This is a huge lift for the Arsenal, as they had dominated games, but gotten nothing out of it, and now they get a big break with goals from three players who don't usually score goals. With Newcastle United on Saturday, and Hamburg next Tuesday, this was a game that Arsenal needed to dominate, which they did. They now sit 3rd in the table, with 20+ games remaining, and 10 points shy of 1st place Manchester United, so there is still plenty of time to overtake ManUre, and win us a championship.

The U-M baskeball team stayed undefeated in the "John Thompson challenge" with a 3rd consecutive win, a 80-51 victory over Eastern Michigan. Courtney Sims led the way for the Wolverines with 17 points, and Junior Bret Petway had 10. Michigan played 14 players, and 12 of them had at least 2 points, as it was a very well rounded attack for the Wolverines. Dion Harris, named the 'John Thompson challange MVP', had 5 points, 5 assists, 3 rebounds, 3 steals and a block in 18 minutes, before letting the reserves takeover. Freshman F Deshawn Sims led the reserves with 9 points in 14 minutes. Next up for the 3-0 Wolverines is University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Wednesday, the 4th of 7 straight home games to begin the season.

and now for the bad news of the weekend...

Yesterday, the Pistons showed how much they missed Rip Hamilton, getting a beat-down at the hands of Golden State, 111-79. How bad was it, you ask? Our leading scorer was Lindsey Hunter, with 14. Fourteen fricken points. I could eat 14 points worth of toast. Anyway, it was bad. The 'Stones will be back to work on Wednesday, as they welcome in the New Orleans Hornets to the Palace, hopefully with a healthy Rip Hamilton to boot.

And, of course, those lovable losers, the Detroit Lions, leaving another steaming pile on the field. This time, it was the San Francisco 49ers that were the benefactors of the Detroit Lions charities, winning 19-13. San Francisco got it's lone touchdown on a 61 yard run by Frank Gore, which should've been a 12 yard gain and a punting situation, but sloppy tackling found Mr. Gore in the endzone celebrating instead. The Lions tried to comeback and snatch the 'W', but, as usual, fell just short. Next week has the Arizona Cardinals coming to town, and hopefully the ball bounces our way.

No games 'til Tuesday, so next update may be Wednesday, but probably Thursday (unless something major happens). Until then...

Daily updates

We'll start off with yesterday's games...

The Red Wings have won their 8th straight game, defeating Nashville 3-0. The Wings, it seems, have finally settled into a groove, taking less penalties, converting more on the power play, and getting better goaltending from The Dominator. They don't have 1 guy dominating on offense, but they seem to be getting contributions from everyone, and that has been the Wings' story when they go far into the playoffs. We still need to get more from Pavel Datsyuk, though, as he has been kind of quiet so far this year, but the rest of the team is picking up the slack, and I'm sure he'll come around.

The Pistons were able to defeat the LA Lakers last night, 97-83. Tayshaun Prince was on fire, going for 31 points, which was what the Pistons needed, as they were without the services of Richard 'Rip' Haaaaaaaamiltonnnnnnnn. And it seems Prince did a fine job on defense as well, holding Kobe Bryant to 19 points, and having his own fans boo him around halftime. We'll see if we can finally start a win streak, and get out of this yo-yo season we've started out to, as we play at Golden State tonight (again, minus Hamilton).

And The U-M basketball team started off the season on a good note on Friday, beating Central Connecticut 60-40 at Crisler Arena. Michgan started off cold, and had some turnovers, but were able to overcome their early mistakes, and take care of business. On Saturday, it was seniors Dion Harris and Courtney Sims making the difference, as Michigan defeated Davidson 78-68. Harris had 23 points, and Sims chipped in 21 of his own to help the Wolverines stay undefeated in the early goings. Tomorrow will see the hoopsters going up against Eastern Michigan. Should be a win, but that's why the game isn't played on paper. More on that tomorrow.

Speaking of undefeated, the Wolverines' football team's record stayed unblemished, as they beat Indiana 34-3. This game was a rout from the word go, and it enabled the Wolverines to rest some players late in the game, and keep them healthy for next week's battle at #1 Ohio State. Should be a great one, and I cannot wait.

Well, that's all for now, 'Stones update, Arsenal update, Lions update, U-M hoops update coming tomorrow...

"Why, hello there children"

And the Tigers respond with "Hey, Sheff"...

Today Detroit has officially traded for Gary Sheffield, the power hitting outfielder (and a bit of a headcase as well). In exchange for him, the Tigers have dealt minor league pitchers Humberto Sanchez, Kevin Whelan and Anthony Claggett to the New York Yankees. Personally, I am not a huge fan of this trade, as A) I think that Humberto Sanchez will probably be an excellent pitcher, B) I think Sheff may hurt the clubhouse morale, and C) The numbers on the other two pitchers that we gave up were pretty good, though they were still in the low minors, so it's hard to say how they would pan out. I guess only time will tell if this is the trade that takes us to the playoffs, or sets us back a couple of years. The only thing to look for now is how soon we trade Craig Monroe/Marcus Thames, and what to do about our lack of a 1st baseman (unless we move Sheff to 1st base....hmmm....kind of intriguing), and finding another bullpen arm. Plus, we should probably start looking for replacements at SS and C in the near future. Oh, well, hope Sheff can cook us up a winner come next October.

I'm lazy....sue me

Yeah, Yeah, I know 'you should post more often' blah blah blah....I was busy this week, and by busy, I mean lazy, but let me catch you up to speed real quick...

Tigers: Hitting coach Don Slaught retired to spend more time with his kids in California. His position was filled by last years bullpen coach Lloyd McClendon, who's position was filled by AAA Toledo's pitching coach, Jeff Jones. Everybody in the Detroit organization seems to be getting promotions, which is a good thing. A West Michigan manager Matt Walbeck is now AA Erie manager Matt Walbeck, and Tom Brookens gets a bump from A Lakeland to A West Michigan, as manager. And finally, RHP Justin Verlander was voted in as the AL rookie of the year by his peers. Hopefully MLB will recognize him in the same fashion in a couple of weeks.

Wings: Cannot stop winning (which is a good thing). First, they take care of Chicago, 2-1, last Thursday; next was Columbus, going down 4-1 to the Wings on Saturday; and finally it was Edmonton, the last team to beat the Wings, but not this time as they got shut out 3-0. I'm not exactly sure why the Wings are starting to dominate again, but I really don't care, as long as they keep churning out the 'W''s.

Pistons: Have not had the greatest of starts. They beat Boston on Friday, 101-88 and then took care of Memphis 95-86, but then they ran into the Utah buzz saw (103-101), and also have fallen to Sacramento (99-86). Part of the early season problems with the Pistons have been the new techincal foul rules for arguing with officials (although it is a bit ridiculous when Rasheed gets teed up for making the 'and 1' gesture), but that will change. The bench has played very well to start the season, but the starting frontcourt has been off and on (case in point: Prince, Mohammed and Wallace combined for 8 points in the loss to Sacramento). At this point, it's difficult seeing the Pistons as anything but a middle of the road team, but as we've seen with the Wings, there's plenty of season left, and you can always get hot and string together a bunch of wins.

Lions: Won AGAIN! Defeating Atlanta 30-14. And they actually looked like a complete football team, even though they had a bunch of starters out with Injuries/suspension. Jon Kitna looks like the best signing in the history of the Lions (if you don't count signing Barry Sanders shortly after drafting him). Roy Williams is starting to play like the star everyone thought he would be, and Kevin Jones just ate up yards on the ground. There is still plenty of room for improvement on this team, but with the next three games being San Francisco, Arizona, and Miami, we could be looking at a 5-6 record going to New England (yikes). But, one game at a time (fingers crossed)...

Michigan hung onto its undefeated season (barely) beating Ball State 34-26, having to do so by stopping Ball State 7 times inside the 10 yardline, and surviving a last-gasp hail mary. Ugly, ugly, fugly game. But a win is a win, and they are still on a collision course with Ohio State at the end of the season. Hopefully we put in a better effort against Indiana this weekend.

(James can stop reading here---------------------------------------------------)

And finally, Arsenal have had a mixed bag of a week, losing to West Ham United 1-0 on Sunday (a game they fully should've won, or at least drew) and beating Everton in the Carling Cup 1-0 on a very late goal from Emmanual Adebayor (just like the Man U. game - apparently this guy can only score late on). With a big clash this Sunday vs. Liverpool, we'll see if we can move up the table, and contend for the Premiership title (currently 5th).

I'm really trying to do this more often...no, really, I am...

Flying High

Well, the Red Wings are starting to act like the Red Wings again, defeating the Blues 3-2 on Saturday night, and then taking care of Calgary last night, 3-2. All of a sudden, we are not wearing a path to the penalty box, and we are starting to win games...wow, what a coincidence... Anyway, we go up against Chicago tonight, and look to make it 5 wins in a row. We still have tons of room for improvement, as we are currently ranked 27th in both power play and penalty kill categories, when we are usually in the top 5 for both, but as long as we keep improving throughout the year, we will be in good shape.

The Pistons opened up their season last night with a 105-97 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks at home. This loss included giving up 70 points in the paint, which is a ridiculous amount. I guess we may miss Ben Wallace a little bit this year, eh? (just in case you haven't been keeping up, Big Ben now chimes for the Chicago Bulls. Well, we were not about to pay him 60 mil for 5 years. That's ludicrous.)

Arsenal drew 0-0 with CSKA Moskva yesterday in the Champions' League. How did they draw? By missing loads of chances to put the ball in the net, that's how. A terrible shooting display. We were missing the ocean from the dock. Absolutely horrible. Ugh. And we were lucky not to lose this one on one of the fluke forays that CSKA had into Arsenal territory. But as it stands, we win out, we will still make it into the last 16 of the Champions' League, and then the fun REALLY begins.

And finally, we end with the Tigers. President andGM Dave Dombrowski has just agreed to a 4-year extension on his contract, which will see him in those roles until 2011 for the team. This had to be done, and ASAP, and I'm glad that Dombrowski and Tigers owner Mike Ilitch could work this out.

Also, the gold gloves were handed out today, marking the best fielders in their position for the American League, and two Tigers have won the prestigious award. C Ivan Rodriguez has won his 12 gold glove, setting a record for most gold gloves won by an individual. He was joined by P Kenny Rogers, who won his 5th. I personally think that 3B Brandon Inge should've won a gold glove as well, but there are some people who disagree with me (mainly because of his 20+ errors, but the way I look at it is if you have the most attempts, you will have the most errors, but whatever). Eric Chavez of the Oakland A's won the award for 3rd basemen. And that's it.