Off Topic IV

[SWedd523]

I guess I'm the only one who uses a bookmarks bar....

[Diop]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5rRZdiu1UE[/youtube]

[captaincrunk]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5rRZdiu1UE[/youtube]

RIP MCA

[dmutombo321]

make no mistake and switch up my channel - I'm buddy rich when i fly off the handle

[LamarMatic7]

The Bismack Biyombo season mix is up in the youtube thread.

[captaincrunk]

I guess I'm the only one who uses a bookmarks bar....

i do too

[fatlever]

http://london2012.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe ... ticle.html

herrmann has decided to come out of national team retirement in time for the olympics. could be argentina's last shot to medal with the manu, scola, noicioni, herrmann, delfino core.

[LamarMatic7]

I suppose, there isn't anyone on this board following the ice hockey world championship, right? Maybe you Doc?

[floppymoose]

My Sharks got punked early. I think there may finally be a big shake up on that squad.

[Battery]

I suppose, there isn't anyone on this board following the ice hockey world championship, right? Maybe you Doc?

I don't know what that is but I've been watching my Rangers tip toe through the playoffs.

[floppymoose]

I looked up ice hockey world championship on the series of tubes, and found this:
http://www.iihf.com/

[BigSlam]

I suppose, there isn't anyone on this board following the ice hockey world championship, right? Maybe you Doc?

Canada has their B team there.

[doc.end]

I suppose, there isn't anyone on this board following the ice hockey world championship, right? Maybe you Doc?

Not really, not closely, I just check the result once in a while, I usually start to care around second stage groups - those are gone, so before play offs I guess. After matches against Danes, Norwegians adn other Latvians Just kidding, how you doing this year? The top division got pretty competitive with almost no weak teams lately.

I am bomabrd by newspaper headlines though, so the evergoing tirades, about how the coach deals with calling NHL players and how players don't want to play for this particular coach (I don't blame them), are here again.

I hope Bryzgalov will join Russians I am glad that Radulov knucklehead won't bother anyone this year.

[LamarMatic7]

I suppose, there isn't anyone on this board following the ice hockey world championship, right? Maybe you Doc?

Not really, not closely, I just check the result once in a while, I usually start to care around second stage groups - those are gone, so before play offs I guess. After matches against Danes, Norwegians adn other Latvians Just kidding, how you doing this year? The top division got pretty competitive with almost no weak teams lately.

I am bomabrd by newspaper headlines though, so the evergoing tirades, about how the coach deals with calling NHL players and how players don't want to play for this particular coach (I don't blame them), are here again.

I hope Bryzgalov will join Russians I am glad that Radulov knucklehead won't bother anyone this year.

Well, we are off to a good start (2 wins and a decent showing against Russia in an L), so everybody is hoping to make the quarter finals. As you may know we are usually between the 9th and 12th place and once in about four years we manage to make the final eight. The game against Norway will probably decide our fate, although people have heard about your team not being that good this year, so we silently hope for a surprise tomorrow (yes, Latvia - Czech Republic at 9pm tomorrow night, I think that means it's 8 pm for you).

I definitely agree with the top division being more competitive. In the early 2000's the first seven places (usa, can, swe, fin, rus, cze, svk) were pretty much taken and Switzlerland, Latvia and Belarus were competing for the eight spot, while Norway, Denmark, Austria, France etc. battled not to get relegated. Now, it's scary to see that the Danes actually have seven NHL players. I mean, we, Latvians, have always considered ourselves way better than those teams, but we ain't got nearly as much players in the NHL.

But with that being said, this championship kind of seems weaker than usual. Some of the top teams are having problems (Russians and the Finns look kind of average, per example), the rosters aren't the best and I have a feeling that we should use this opportunity for a big surprise.

As we're one weird nation (probably the only country in the world besides Canada in which hockey is the most popular sport) we love that hockey is every spring, but they should change the format so the tournaments would occur every two years or something. It definitely affects the level of the play as most teams seem to assemble a good team every two or three years, you know, when their the host or when a lot of good players from the NHL are available. Some championships seem better than others.

Definitely taking up large amounts of beer and screaming my voice off tomorrow night at this fan tent they have in Riga. Good luck to your national team.

[doc.end]

I didn't even know our nations face each other tomorrow. Good luck. Have you qualified to olympics already or what do you need to do to qualify?

Hockey is the number one in Slovakia too, always been. They got better in soccer lately but anything could change it. That being said, they are panicking with their big names getting older and fewer as supposedly their next generation is not that good or better there is a lack of next generation. That's despite them having an U-21(?) team plaing in regular season of their top league (just playing once a week) to give their prospect enough playing time on top domestic level. We may be facing something similar in near future.

I remember Arturs Irbe causing favorits shaking their heads in close games, I miss that. It was top 7 with USA kind of on the bottom and Switzerland looking in and then your tier. Now Scandinavians are on the rise, anybody can surprise anybody (that's may be a good thing that one game is not that crucial in group stage, sending some underpforming team into relegation group) like Germans last year. Surely anyone from (former) top 7, Switzerland, Belarus, Latvia, Germany, Denmark can make play offs and it wouldn't be that much of a surprise and we can see Norway or other team who can manage to stay in top division make it in next years. I kind of miss Japanese as a token asian team though.

[fatlever]

http://dontevenreply.com/index.php

the latest one is classic - glorious master translator

[LamarMatic7]

I didn't even know our nations face each other tomorrow. Good luck. Have you qualified to olympics already or what do you need to do to qualify?

Hockey is the number one in Slovakia too, always been. They got better in soccer lately but anything could change it. That being said, they are panicking with their big names getting older and fewer as supposedly their next generation is not that good or better there is a lack of next generation. That's despite them having an U-21(?) team plaing in regular season of their top league (just playing once a week) to give their prospect enough playing time on top domestic level. We may be facing something similar in near future.

I remember Arturs Irbe causing favorits shaking their heads in close games, I miss that. It was top 7 with USA kind of on the bottom and Switzerland looking in and then your tier. Now Scandinavians are on the rise, anybody can surprise anybody (that's may be a good thing that one game is not that crucial in group stage, sending some underpforming team into relegation group) like Germans last year. Surely anyone from (former) top 7, Switzerland, Belarus, Latvia, Germany, Denmark can make play offs and it wouldn't be that much of a surprise and we can see Norway or other team who can manage to stay in top division make it in next years. I kind of miss Japanese as a token asian team though.

Yes, I'd even say that Switzerland has taken Slovakia's place these last years, their new guys are nothing compared to their generation of players born in the 70s. I just loved that team, Finland and Slovakia always have been my favorite teams (besides Latvia, of course).

Arturs Irbe - now, he was really something. The perfect role model. A teetotaler, the hardest working guy ever, a huge patriot etc. Not a single bad thing can be said about him.

Japan I remember them always finishing 15th or 16th and staying in the Elite Division no matter what. That was a weird rule, they played in some sort of Asian qualification round and the first place had a guaranteed spot in the WC.

[doc.end]

Lamar, Russians are actually calling Brygalov!!! The funny part is, their coach stated, he is not going to call Bobrovskij (Bryz's back-up) because he doesn't know his current form - he apparently knows Bryzgalov's one, lol.

[doc.end]

I forgot to mention Nashville's Erat will join czech team. No Jágr, none of St.Louis' guys, Voráček says he is pretty beat up and is yet to undergo exit health check.

Jágr I think is the hockey model figure here simillar to what is Irbe up there in Latvia, he really matured well, he is a very spiritual guy, his interviews provides food for thought rather than just the right answer one would expect to hear. Pens' fans will never get him, but once you try to find a reason in his quotes he makes a lot of sense.

I tend to enjoy games dominated by exceptional goalie playing for the weaker side (when we are not the favorites in that game). On top of tend to like team excelling in technique rather than force. So I was really hoping Latvia lead by Irbe would cause upset one year and surely was rooting for you making the top 8 over Suisse, Germans or other tier 2 teams. Later I was rooting for Belarus with their strong goalies for the same reasons - you have to have players good enough to score at least one goal and be able to defend a bit for goalie to have an impact on otherwise lopsided game. I never found Suisse games fun somehow, plus Fasel is generally hated here, so nobody here roots for Switzerland hockey teams. I always root against Russians. Finns and Slovaks I usually root for, although Czechs and Slovaks still mock each other for their losses, so it is good either way:) Bot those weren't always the top teams, are not that big countries, so it is stored somewhere to consider them to be rather dark horses than powershouses. Canadiens it depends on of which players their teams are consist of - they have knuckleheads losing it in some years nad then things can get ugly and any respect for their game is lost instantly. I don't really care about the rest. Sweden I respect and I like their ability to analayze the game and to bring something new although it is not always good for attractivity of the game.

[ohara]

Oden to miss the entire 2012-2013 season. Alcohol issues along with the knee problems. Honestly feel bad for the kid. Hope he heals us enough to at least play some decent ball for someone.