Sunday, January 17, 2010

The Leafs offend my eyes, ears and steal my time...

Why do I bother? I mean seriously? I tune in and within minutes they are getting pumped 3-0. Friday night was a prime example...I went to pick up dinner at the local pub...4 minute walk...left before the opening face-off, and when I arrived it was 1-0. I sat down and was told that our order had not yet been placed. No problem, Ill order a beer. I turned around to see the game again, 2-0. You have got to be kidding me...

I turned to talk to the gentleman sitting next to me, which I have to be honest, I rarely do, and no sooner had we started chatting about fun things (football, baseball, basketball), 3-0...we both simultaneously took a large swig of our respective beers...this was getting ugly. The conversation then turned to how I had to put my Phil Kessel jersey away as maybe I was cursing his performance by supporting him, much like I do with TV shows I like and bands I openly praise. By the time my food arrived, it was 4-0. I said good-bye to Ross, and made way home (4 minutes)...5-1. My reaction was, "hey, at least they scored" Is this really a way to enjoy hockey? Just being thankful when my team actually scores, no matter how many they have given up? I actually am getting so upset right now that I need to switch gears and complain about football....

Did the Cardinals or the Ravens realize they were A) playing the number 1 seeds in their respective conference and B) that if they lose, they go home? I have to answer a resounding no to both as yet again, I sat through a torturously boring afternoon of football...neither game as close and in both cases the team I bet on didn't even bother to show up. Instead they sent a bunch of guys wearing their uniforms who clearly had no idea what they were doing. The Cardinals didn't upset me as much as they are traditionally a very hit or miss team. Like Bill Simmons said, it would be great to be able to watch the first series of a Cardinals game before deciding who to bet on. Sadly this is not the case.

The Ravens however made my blood boil in a way normally reserved for the Leafs. They took some ridiculous penalties, that cost them two interception returns, a fantastic kickoff return and a beautiful rush, all of which should have lead to scores. This was easily the difference between winning and losing. Again, it begs the question, Why do I even bother? There were so many other productive things could have been doing instead of wasting my evening watching those debacles.

One positive though to take from my experience last night: At least the Leafs did not play last night!