Holy Fuckballs the Leafs won a game!

Alright you fucking amateur comedians, I suppose we need to start planning the parade because the Leafs actually won a game (albeit against the woeful Oilers), man those plan the parade jokes are SO funny and original... is your shitty bar gonna offer free beer during Leafs playoff games too? That one won't get old either.  You might as well be fucking Buzz Killington telling those jokes right before getting to a story about a bridge.  Leafs bashing is as old as the hills, for the love of god come up with some new fucking jokes, screaming about parades and 1967 isn't funny.  I like a good joke as much as the next guy, even if it comes at mine or my teams expense.  My uncle (a Leafs basher) came up with "There is no Reimer reason that guy should be in the NHL" that is actually funny, get creative with photoshops, just any joke about planning a parade is beyond stupid, because let me tell you the parade IS planned, and it will be the grandest parade the world has ever seen and I will be front and center with my shirt off chugging beers.  It's going to be worth all these years of agony once the Leafs finally do win the Stanley Cup.  The next few seasons will be tough in Leafland, I know everyone and their uncle is calling for the Leafs to tank for McDavid, but one pick isn't going to turn things around... look at Edmonton, how many number one picks have they had?  The key is to draft smart in the 2nd, 3rd, 4th rounds and beyond, it's like my fantasy football teams, I always get a good high draft pick, then surround them with assholes and I miss the playoffs every fucking year.  I think Brendan Shanahan has put together the right brain trust to draft smart... and thank fuck that won't include Dave Nonis.  It's high time that squid get shown the door, too bad he can't take David Clarkson's contract with him.  Remember when Nonis signed Clarkson and he said "I am not worried about Year 5" ugh... he must've known he would've been fired after year 2 of that horrific contract.  The Clarkson signing is going to plague this team for years to come. It's gonna be a slow rebuild, but it's something that should've been done years ago.  Ever since they introduced the hard cap the Leafs have been a fucking tire fire because nobody has had a single clue how to run the team properly, it'll take a while to clean up a decade of futility.

The Week Ahead: vs. New York Rangers (2/10), @ New York Islanders (2/12), @ Montreal (2/14).  Believe it or not the Leafs didn't play that horrifically last week, they had horrible luck against Nashville... well I didn't watch the New Jersey game because the Raptors are on (who in their right mind would watch the Leafs over the Raptors these days) and they made short work of the terrible Oilers.  All that good will undoubtedly fly out the window this week as they play 3 playoff teams.  As long as they beat those god forsaken toilet seat logo Habs I will be happy.  The Habs are a fucking joke of a franchise, I wonder if we're going to have to endure a 45 minute pre-game ceremony honouring some plug that played for the team in 1968.  One of these days I hope someone drops that stupid torch and melts a big patch in the ice and the Habs are forced to forfeit.

If you told me last week the Raptors would go 2-2 I would think that sounded about right, considering they played two teams worse than them in the East and then the always tough Clippers and the defending champs.  The exact opposite happened, they played like complete dog shit against the Bucks and the Nets, and in the first quarter against the Clippers... but then James Johnson happened.  James Johnson had a hurt hamstring and missed a few games, and in the games before he was hurt Dwane Casey had him inexplicably nailed to the bench.  James Johnson is the People's Champ.  When he came off the bench to play the Clippers he got a roaring round of applause from the ACC faithful.  He started the game against the Spurs yesterday and delivered the dagger against the Champs denying Pop his 1,000th win.  He does what the rest of the Raptors don't seem to do... drive the ball to the hoop.  Take the game against the Bucks where they looked awful they were 7 for 27 from 3-point range and 32% overall, they keep insisting on throwing up 3's despite if they are hitting them or not (Lou Williams I'm looking in your direction), and taking horribly contested jump shots.  I don't want to dwell on the negative considering those Clippers and Spurs wins were huge but why was my boy Big V nailed to the bench against the Bucks?  He was the only starter who showed up in the first half and got a double double... for that he was awarded 5 minutes of playing time in the entire second half.   Anyways the last 3 quarters of the Clippers game and the Spurs game last night was two of the better games I have seen all year from the Raptors, I was so happy watching that Spurs game, it's always nice to beat the champs!  It's good to have some momentum going into the All-Star break.

The Week Ahead: vs. Washington (2/11).  One fucking game because of the All-Star break and of course it's on Wednesday the night I have trivia.  The NBA is experimenting with a prolonged All-Star break this year, and you know what I don't have a problem with it, I know they're millionaire athletes but an 82 game schedule is a grind, we're in the February doldrums now so it'll be good for players to get away for a bit, heal up some nagging injuries and come back refreshed.  The game itself against the Wizards should be good, they are two similar teams and have played tight games against each other all year, it's potentially a playoff preview too.

MISCELLANEOUS NEWS 

The Blue Jays held their State of the Franchise thing last Thursday.  It's only for season tickets holders and they get free beer and food and a chance to hear answers to screened questions.  Nothing really new came from it, but there is fancy new turf and Paul Beeston is still convinced the SkyDome will have natural grass by 2018... colour me skeptical on that.  We got to hear Buck Martinez' lovely voice again, count me in the minority but I have no problem with Buck or Tabby.  Alex Anthopolous has the tendency of saying a lot of things, without saying anything at all, so if you missed this don't worry, it's just a sign that baseball is just around the corner! That warms the cockles of my cold winters heart.  I am going to write a Spring Training preview separate from my usual Monday ramblings in the next few weeks, so be on the look out for that!

Brandon Banks re-signed with the Ti-Cats! Him and Luke Tasker both made commitments to the Ti-Cats this off-season when they could've gone to an NFL practice squad somewhere, but no they love the Hammer and want to win here.  I can't wait to get back to Tim Hortons Field this summer... look for the "Ti-Cats Game Heckle of the Week" on this blog (and hopefully podcast) once the season gets rolling.

Richie Incognito signed with the Bills... not too sure how I feel about that one, he seems like a gigantic arsehole, but the Bills need an offensive lineman and hopefully he's learned his lesson after being away from the game for a year and a half.

Now it's time for everyone's new favourite segment - C'Mon Bud!! Originally my target was going to be Peter Horachek for putting Jonathan Bernier back in the game against Nashville when Optimus Reim was playing well, and the Leafs had the victory.... only to see it fall apart yet again.  But then I saw this on my Twitter feed this morning...

C'Mon Bud!! This is absolutely fucking ridiculous, no I didn't read the article, it's probably absolute garbage, and up until this morning I didn't even know The Hockey News still existed.  The Hockey Media get all butt-hurt when Phil Kessel doesn't want to talk to them and think that they are idiots, well no fucking wonder, if you see shit like this would you want to talk to the squids?  Oh and how cute making a 1967 reference, go fuck yourselves Hockey News.  I know that Phil hasn't played well lately, but who has on the Leafs?  He is playing with Tyler fucking Bozak, and I am sorry the guy absolutely sucks.  He is not anywhere near a first line centre and he is dragging Kessel down with him.  Phil is not a fucking coach killer any coach in the league would be lucky to have Phil.  It's been a bad go for the Leafs lately and this is piling on.  My buddy and I were thinking the other day, imagine Sundin centering Kessel while both were in their primes?? Jesus Christ that would be a lot of goals... buuuuut the Toronto media would probably still say "duhhhhhh Sundin not leader, he no grinder from Mimico, where grit? Phil score 50 goal but he hurt my feelings bloo bloo bloo".  I am beginning to think Phil will be better off on another team, not because he sucks but the Leafs are in a complete overhaul now, and why would he waste more of his prime years on the hot garbage Leafs.  I would love to see him flourish in anonymity on an American team if only to rub it into Dave Feschuk and the rest of the squids faces.

Official Jack Armstrong Drinking Game!

Just in time for the playoffs!!! It's the official Jack Armstrong Drinking Game... instead of a whole new post I'll just edit this one.  Jack was really fired up about the officiating last year, I don't imagine it'll change this year.

LET'S GO RAPTORS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

TAKE ONE DRINK IF:

Jack says:

"Hellloooooooooooooooooooo!" - Always said during the replay of a massive drunk... take an extra drink if he says "Hellloooooooooooooooo" while being aroused by the Raptors Dance Pak

"Matty D!" - He always refers to Matt Devlin as "Matty D!"

"MGD!!!!" or "BAH-CA-DI!!"- Gotta get those Sponsorship plugs in.

"GET THAT GAH-BAGE OUTTA HERE!!" Extra drink if he says "no, no, no, no, no, no" before GET THAT GAH-BAGE OUTTA HERE!

Describes the Ball as a "Rock"

Gets mad at a call - Jack is a Raptors homer and I have absolutely no problem with that, being an NBA referee is a very difficult job, but that doesn't mean they don't fuck up... A LOT.  Jack doesn't take refereeing bullshit laying down.

Concedes a good call - As much as Jack gets mad at the refs, he'll begrudgingly acknowledge a good call.

Goes off Topic/Non Basketball or Game related - This happens more often than not, he'll go on a tangent about Swiffer Sweepers, or a TV show.  You must drink 2 drinks if he goes off-topic about booze.

Refers to coaching at Niagara or Western New York in general -  Self Explanatory.

Matty D says a 3 pointer is from another city - Chuck Swirsky did this all the time, Matty D pulls it out on special occasions - you must FINISH your drink if he says the city that you are currently in.  (I've tweeted at him to say from Hamilton a bunch of times).

Overstimulated Jack - This is a judgement call for you and your friends.  He usually raises his voice a few octaves, generally leading into a commercial or after a time-out when the Raptors have gone on a run.  *NEW WRINKLE* Just like how there are flagrant 1 and flagrant 2 fouls, there is now overstimulated 1 and overstimulated 2, again it's a judgment call on what a 1 or a 2 would be... obviously a 2 requires 2 drinks.

When the Raptors are losing he says the are STUCK points

JACKSIMILIES - Jacksimilies are when he makes a random reference "sometimes you're the nail, sometimes you're the hammer" "sometimes you're the peacock, sometimes you're the duster" and so on and so forth

Camera cuts to Chuck Hayes on the bench with a pained expression.

TAKE TWO DRINKS IF:

Jack Sings - Now that the holiday season has come and gone, there is less Jack singing (he always sang "Happy Hooooolidaaaays" when Matty D was describing some Christmas ticket deal) but Jack has been known to break into song on other occasions.

Tom Sterner Intense Interview - When assistant coach Tom Sterner does an interview before the start of the second half it feels like he is staring right through the TV and into my soul.

FINISH YOUR DRINK IF:

Jack says "A little pepperoni! A little saus-seech!" - In years past the Raptors had a promotion where if they scored over 100 points and won everyone in the crowd would get a slice of pizza, the crowd started chanting "PI-ZZA!" instead of "DE-FENSE" when it was close.  When they broke 100 Jack ALWAYS said "A little pepperoni! A little saus-seech!".  Earlier in the season he did say that he went off topic (already a drink) talking about pizza, and yes he said "A little pepperoni! A little sau-seech!" I was thrilled.

One of Greg Stiemsma, Lucas "Bebe" Nogueira or Bruno Caboclo enter the game.

Tyler "The White Mamba" Hansbrough hits a 3 pointer - Last week he hit his first 3 in his 6 year career, it's a special occasion if that happens.

If they ever refer to Rod Black's mustache -  Ol' Rod hasn't had a duster in years but he rocked that look back in the day.

If Jack ever refers to the Big V pharmacy when talking about Jonas Valanciunas.  This will likely never happen so not only do you have to finish your drink but you have to open another drink and chug it.

I will add to this as the season goes, if you have any suggestions feel free to add your thought in the comments or tweet me at @HDH2112

A Rare Trifecta, Jack Armstrong Drinking Game and more!!

A rare thing occurred yesterday.  A trifecta of victories amongst my teams - the Bills, Leafs and Raptors all were victorious, I don't think that has ever happened.  Because of the overlap in seasons it isn't very often 3 of my teams play on the same day, a Bills/Leafs/Raptors trifecta is especially rare as the Leafs rarely play on Sundays when the Bills always play (also it's not often the 3 teams would win in recent years).  So needless to say yesterday I was on cloud fuckin' 9.

#BUDSALLDAY

Sweet hollering fuck were the Leafs ever glorious last week.  In this blog post last week I foresaw a tough week for my beloved Maple Leafs, and said that they will need "Nelson" Bernier to be in top form to get through that.  What tough week?? They went 4-0 against those shit-heads and they got excellent goaltending from both Nelson, and James "Optimus Reim" Reimer.  I'm a fan of both Bernier and Reimer, someone accused me of being a Reimer "Nut Hugger" on Facebook last week, and yeah I am a bit of a nut-hugger I like Optimus, and I think he can flourish in a #1 role on another team, and I don't like the way that Randy Carlyle has treated him.  In the meantime I like the idea of Bernier and Reimer being a 1a and 1b... you can never have enough goaltending.  Optimus was especially lights out against the Chicken Wings last Wednesday, he was the main reason we picked up two points against those assholes.

Someone buy this shirt for me for Christmas at http://teespring.com/budsalldaybud

The other thing that I have loved about the Leafs so far this season is they FINALLY have a great puck-possessing 3rd and 4th line.  Last season that piece of shit Randy Carlyle insisted on icing 2 face-punchers a night in Colton Orr and Fraser McClaren, don't get me wrong I am not one of those anti-fighting weasels like Damien Cox, I love a good scrap, but in todays NHL you don't dress 2 goons, it is a waste of a roster spot.  Instead of those cavemen, players like Richard Panik "On the team of Carlyle", Daniel Winnik, Mike Santorelli and Leo Komarov (when healthy) have stepped up, and provided the team with great production, they need this secondary scoring especially when they have streaky players like my beloved Phil Kessel playing on the first line.  Santorelli and Panik especially have had break out years, I give Dave Nonis a lot of (deserved) shit but those were shrewd pick ups.  Buds All Day.  Buds All Fucking Day.

The Week Ahead: vs. Anaheim (12/16), @ Carolina (12/18), vs. Philadelphia (12/20), @ Chicago (12/21).  This is the last gasp of the Leafs big homestand before they're kicked out of the ACC for the World Junior Tournament.  Corey Perry has the fucking mumps so the Ducks are missing their best player, Carolina is shit and so are the Flyers, but the Blackhawks should be a tough test.  The nerds are all saying the Leafs play isn't sustainable and they'll come crashing down to earth but fuck you nerds, what have you ever done for us (besides every scientific and technological advance in history).  The Leafs play again on Sunday, what is with these Sunday games? Sunday is for football, quit trying to make Hometown Hockey a thing Rogers, nobody cares that some Jethro from Moose Jaw grew up playing hockey on an outdoor rink.  I hate that shit.

The Raptors had a good week, their only blemish being the loss to the fucking Cleveland LeBrons, they also nearly lost to the Nuggets last Monday.  The Raptors against Denver and Cleveland were being out-rebounded and out-played late in the game (what happened to We the Fourth??)  and unfortunately that cost them against the LeBrons.  They kicked the shit out of Indiana like they were supposed to, but last night in New York they still won but they looked very sluggish.  The Knicks brought their A game against the Raptors, shitty teams are always going to do that now against the Raptors, and it is up to the Raps not to play down to their level.  I think they were out partying in NYC on the Saturday night, and no I don't think that is a big fucking deal.  These kids have millions of dollars at their disposal, they're in their 20's, of course they are going to go out partying in Manhattan, I would be very disappointed in them if they didn't.  Thankfully it didn't cost them a loss like it did in LA a few weeks ago.

The Jack Armstrong Drinking Game 

I fucking love Jack Armstrong, when the Raptors were shitty and unwatchable, he was the only reason to tune into a game.  My buddy and I have come up with a Jack Armstrong drinking game, when you do this, you'll end up as drunk as he is during the broadcasts.  You must take a drink everytime Jack:

Says Helloooooooooooooo. Usually done when showing a replay of a big dunk.

Says either MGD!! or BACARDI!!!! Gotta get those sponsorship plugs in.

Says Matty D  He always refers to Matt Devlin as Matty D.

Says GET THAT GAHH-BAGE OUTTA HERE!! Always screamed during a replay of a massive block/rejection.

Complains about the Referees:  He was really losing his mind during the playoffs last year, and he was getting really pissed off over LeBron getting calls.  Our Jack does not take refereeing bullshit laying down.

Concedes a good call was made by the refs:  Usually I am up screaming at the refs when a call against the Raptors is made, but often on the replay Jack will calm me down and begrudgingly admit the refs made the correct call, maybe take two drinks when this happens because NBA refs fuck up more often than not.

Jack Sings:  This is especially prevalent during the Holiday Season, he'll sing "Silver Bells" or that bizarre "Happy Holidaaaaaaays" song when Matty D is announcing some Christmas Ticket promotion.  Thankfully he doesn't sing Bon Jovi anymore.

Goes off Topic:  Usually done when Matty D says somthing about one of the sponsors, Jack spent a good two minutes talking Swifter Sweepers a couple of weeks ago.

Mentions coaching at Niagara or being from Brooklyn.  Pretty self explanatory.

Gets Excited:  This is a judgement call for you and your friends, I've generally said this happens when he raises his voice a few octaves, he usually does this going into a commercial, but he will do it throughout the broadcast.

Says "A little pepperoni, a little sauseech" You MUST finish your drink if this happens, as this doesn't happen anymore.  In years past the Raptors would have a promotion where if they scored over 100 points and won everyone in the crowd would get a slice of pizza.  So when the Raptors would break 100 points, Jack would ALWAYS say "A little pepperoni!! A little sauseech!!" He's only said this once this season, he went off topic (so that is already a drink) talking about pizza to Matty D, and yes he did say, "a little pepperoni, a little sauseech!" This drinking game didn't exist then, but if it did I would've shot gun a beer.

The Week Ahead: vs. Orlando (12/15), vs. Brooklyn (12/17), @ Detroit (12/19), vs. New York (12/21).  Another week and another 4 match-ups against Eastern Conference shit bags.  I know this is recurring theme but the Raptors must take advantage of this light schedule, especially with DeMar DeRozan on the mend.  Game of the week for me should be the pay back against Brooklyn on Wednesday, Brooklyn no longer has Paul Pierce, but they still have Kevin Garnett who is one of the most loathsome players in the NBA.  Fuck Brooklyn!.

Perhaps I should write-off my teams more often??  In completely shocking news the Buffalo Bills upset Super Bowl favourite Green Bay.  The funny thing is the Bills offense did all they could to let the Packers back into the game, but that defense... holy fuck that defense is amazing.  For the second week in a row they have made an elite quarterback look rather pedestrian, but unfortunately for the Bills they only have a pedestrian quarterback in Kyle Orton and even shittier offensive play calling.  If it wasn't for the Special Teams (Former Ti-Cat Marcus Thigpen with the punt return TD!!) and the magical boot of Dan Carpenter, they could have well blown that defensive masterpiece.  For the first time in over a decade, heading into Week 16 the Bills are still "in the hunt" for a playoff spot.  The game that will stick out for me if they miss the playoffs was the Week 10 loss against Kansas City, we should've won that game based on the defense, but the atrocious offensive play calling led to a 17-13 defeat.  That game could be the one we'll need to get into the playoffs.

The Week Ahead: @ Oakland (12/21).  When I looked at their December schedule I assumed this was the one game that they'd win, and it is definitely a must-win if they want to still be considered in the hunt for a playoff spot.  Oakland is hot garbage, but they did beat Kansas City and San Francisco, and as the Bills proved yesterday anything is possible.  The Bills have Pittsburgh and Baltimore ahead of them in the standings, and they are tied with Kansas City and San Diego. I am not smart enough to determine what scenarios are best for the Bills, but they are going to need to win out, and it starts against Oakland on Sunday.

Well that's all for this week.  I just realized next Sunday we could see another Trifecta of victories for my team, which would be awesome because it is 12/21... reverse that and you've got 21/12.  As in @HDH2112 and 2112, my lucky number and the one the best albums of all time - Rush 2112.  I am going to try my hardest to have a post up Monday, but I might be in transit to London for the Christmas Holidays (hahaha holidays, I've been on vacation since April!), so if I don't post next week I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!

Buds All Day, AA the Best and more!

We saw two different versions of the Leafs last week, the same team that made short work of the Dallas Stars and the god forsaken Vancouver Canucks and the creepy Sedin twins, lost in extremely boring fashion to the New Jersey Devils.  That Devils game sucked, but such is life in an 82 game season, sometimes you're the dog, sometimes you're the fire hydrant.  What really pissed me off about that Devils game is that some cretin threw his jersey on the ice... really bud?  This jersey tossing thing is so fucking stupid and it needs to end immediately. Yeah the Leafs came out flat and played like shit, but they were playing the Devils who without Jagr and Elias (combined age 114) played typical boring neutral zone trap New Jersey Devil hockey.  The Leafs have been winning a ton lately, and just because you paid half a months salary to go see them does not give you the right to throw your jersey on the ice.  Squid move bud.  By the way, unless you got Craig Jones to order you a jersey from China for $30 they're pretty fucking expensive, so not only did you drop all that money for a ticket and beer you just threw a $200 jersey on the ice to prove some point? Give it up for lent bud, go fuck yourself.

Something is amiss with my beloved Phil Kessel, yes he did score against Dallas and New Jersey, but I think he is hurt, he took a vicious hit against Dallas, and they keep showing him in practice wincing and stretching out his back.  Everytime they show him on the bench he is crunched over in pain (or he is winded: insert lazy fat joke here Toronto media dickheads).  If he is indeed hurt like many are suggesting then he should take a few games off, we'll need him in March and April, not in December.

The Week Ahead: vs. Calgary (12/9), @ Detroit (12/10), vs. Detroit (12/13), vs. Los Angeles (12/14).  This is a tough week for the Buds.  For the first time in years the Calgary Flames are actually a good team, they are solidly in a playoff position and don't seem to be letting it go.  Hopefully the Leafs beat the Flames to make up for the Stampeders beating the Ti-Cats in the Grey Cup. There is a home and home against the pesky fucking Red Wings, and then the defending Stanley Cup champs come in for a bizarre 5 pm game on Sunday.  Jonathan "Nelson Mandela is my Favourite Athlete" Bernier, has been playing really well lately, as the Leafs have started up their old habit of giving up a buttload of shots every game, and we are going to need Bernier to keep it up during this tough stretch next week.  Speaking of Bernier that Nelson Mandela thing is inexcusable, I know that athletes are not the smartest breed, and English isn't Bernier's first language, but come on, how can he possibly say Nelson Mandela was one of his favourite athletes growing up?  When Bernier was growing up Mandela was in his 70's and the President of South Africa.  Jesus Christ Bernier get a fucking clue.

Photo Credit @mattomic 

AA strikes again.  At the end of the regular season I was getting kind of sick of hearing AA's bullshit, talking about "payroll parameters" and the Blue Jays refusal to give out contracts longer than 5 seasons, plus the 2014 season ended on (another) sour note.  Now I am singing his praises again and the 2015 season can not start soon enough.   Last week that Jays dealt JA Happ to Seattle for Left Fielder Michael Saunders.  Considering Melky Cabrera is as good as gone, Saunders is a great pick-up for the team, a good sign that it is a great move is that Seattle Mariner bloggers are very upset about giving up Saunders.  Saunders has been hurt, and the unforgiving SkyDome Rogers Centre turf may not help issues, but I think he'll be as equal as Melky if not better in the coming seasons.  Plus for all you who get Maple Boners... he's Canadian! Despite losing Brett "Spazz" Lawrie they will be fielding 3 Canadians in their starting line-up next season along with Russel Martin, and Dalton "Live At" Pompey.  Ohhhh fuck yah bud.  AA and the Jays still have work to do, their starting line-up is pretty much set, but they still need some bullpen arms, and perhaps another starting pitcher.  There is 3 long months until Spring Training starts, and I don't think they're done tinkering yet! 

Holy Shit Kyle Lowry is a beast, in fact he was just named NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the past week.  When it's all said and done he will end up being the best player in Toronto Raptors history.  He dropped 27 against the Kings and then put up a career high 39 against the Jazz the next night.  We're a quarter of the way through the season now and in my completely biased opinion I would say Lowry is the MVP thus far.  Granted we're only a quarter through the season and Anthony Davis, LeBron James and the other usual suspects might have a thing or two to say about that, but he definitely needs some consideration, and he will be a starter in the All-Star Game in February.  Just for the love of God don't get hurt.  The Raptors really felt that DeRozan injury during the Cleveland game, T-Ross and "Captain" Lou Williams shot like shit, Jonas "Big V" Valaciunas got in foul trouble off the hop, but despite all that it was close most of the game and Cleveland only pulled ahead in the 4th quarter when it was all but over.  They said DeRozan won't need surgery on his groin which is good news, but there is still no time line for his return.

The Week Ahead: vs. Denver (12/8), @ Cleveland (12/9), vs. Indiana (12/12), @ New York (12/14).  The Raptors are playing 3 teams that are under .500 and out of the playoff hunt, once again they need to take advantage of these games, the Raptors have shown a killer instinct against these mediocre teams and must continue to do so.  They play the Cleveland LeBrons once again in what should be a big game, this could well be a 2nd or 3rd round playoff preview, it'll be tough again without DeRozan, but I am confident that it will be close, Kyle Lowry will need to step up and beat those assholes himself.

The Bills are fucking done again, Jesus Christ this team can't do anything right.  That game was ripe for picking too, Peyton had a terrible un-Peyton like game, in fact it's the first time in 4 fucking seasons that he hasn't thrown a touchdown pass.  On the surface a 24-17 loss to Denver with Kyle Orton throwing 355 yards doesn't look too bad, but fuck he sucked.  Untimely interceptions, weak red zone play and some questionable play calling has led us to YET ANOTHER playoff-less season.  They might as well go back to EJ Manuel for the last few weeks of the season, let's see what the kid can do as Kyle Orton is not the QB of the future.  Doug "Moron" Marrone should be axed at the end of this season, and so should that clown offensive coordinator Nathaniel "Can't" Hackett.  Why not have defensive co-coordinator Jim Schwartz take over?  The Bills D has once again been amazing, plus he has NFL head coaching experience.  There are pieces in place for the Bills to be a playoff team but that fucking offense, especially the play calling needs to improve.

The Bills in Toronto Series is as dead as their season!  This was a joke right from the get-go, greedy-assed Rogers expecting people to fork over a ton of their money to watch the shitty Bills play in the SkyDome.  They were giving away tickets for free next to people who dropped $300 bucks for their seats, no wonder people were pissed off.  There is a lot of Bills fans in Southern Ontario, but there is also fans of a shit load of other teams.  Amongst my friends I know Dolphins, Lions, Steelers, Titans, Patriots, Vikings, Giants and 49ers fans.  This should come as no surprise, the Bills have done fuck all to lure new fans since the days of Flutie Flakes, idiots like me only hold out because they were amazing when I was a kid, and I am loyal to a fault.  My point is as a Bills fan in Southern Ontario I would way rather make the 2 hour drive to Orchard Park to watch the Bills play at the Ralph, have the tailgate experience at a true home game then to watch them at the mausoleum known as the SkyDome where everything is over-priced and there is maybe less than half Bills fans there.  When they played the Dolphins shit-heads like my buddys Jeff and Mike showed up because it is a lot easier for them to see their favourite team in Toronto than to fly all the way to Miami, same thing happened when they played Seattle or Atlanta.  Maybe one day Toronto will have their own NFL team (not bloody likely) but until then keep the Bills in Buffalo where they belong.

The Week Ahead.  vs. Green Bay (12/14).  Jeezum Crow this is an ass-kicking waiting to happen.  It is the last home game of the year, so maybe they'll go out in style?? Who am I fucking kidding there is nothing stylish about Buffalo.

As usual you can catch me on the Twitter @HDH2112 you can also leave a comment in the comment section, I do love all feedback good or bad.  See you next week! 

Cats in Grey Cup! Raptors! Saluteghazi! Etc!

In the second time in as many years the Hamilton Tiger-Cats are heading to the Grey Cup!  Despite the best intentions of the most atrocious refereeing I have seen in my entire life (Head Referee Andre Proulx is a Quebecois piece of shit and surprise surprise he was completely biased towards the Alouettes).  Mind you I had a wobbly pop or two and was busy yelling at Duron Carter that his dad Cris Carter didn't love him, so maybe I shouldn't be the best judge?  Seriously though in that first half there was many questionable calls by that shitty refereeing crew, they basically gift-wrapped a Montreal touchdown, and robbed Brandon Banks of a punt return TD.  Speaking of Brandon Banks, what a gem, nothing better than being in the crowd watching someone break 80+ yards for a TD, jumping up and down, screaming, high-fiving and hugging all those around you... well I was in the pisser for one of the TD's and probably shouldn't have hugged the guy next to me.  The Ti-Cats are now a perfect 7-0 at Tim Hortons Field...what a home field advantage we have, it's always loud as fuck in there when they're on defense, mind you it's not Seattle or any other NFL or NCAA stadium, but for 25,000 fans we make a ruckus.  I love how they refused to touch the Eastern Division trophy NHL stylez, the trophy they want to win is the Grey Cup! Unfortunately I won't be on TSN during the Grey Cup like I was for the Eastern Final game!

The Week Ahead: vs. Calgary in the 102nd Grey Cup (11/30). I think the Ti-Cats have a way better shot of winning this game than they did last year.  Last season they had to play the Roughriders in Saskatchewan in front of a massively partisan crowd when it was fucking ice cold and snowy out.  This time they play in a true neutral site under a dome at BC Place in Vancouver.  Calgary has been the best team in the CFL from the jump.  Calgary won both match-ups against us this year 10-7 in July and 30-20 in August.  The Cats have been a much better team since those two games, so it'll be interesting to see how that plays out.  Either way I am pumped to watch this game, Oskee-Wee-Wee!!

Holy Fuck the Raptors are good.  After years (decades?) of mediocrity I've put up with all my teams it feels so good to cheer for a team that has quickly become amongst the NBA elite.  The Raps went a perfect 3-0 last week including an absolutely dominating performance against the surprising Milwaukee Bucks.  That game featured the NBA debut of the Brazilian Kevin Durant and new cult hero Bruno Cabaclo.  His first two points in his NBA career was a thunderous alley-oop dunk which literally had me jump of my seat cheering.  Then they go out and completely embarrass the Cleveland LeBrons on their home court.  This is one unselfish, tight knit group that has really gelled, GM Masai Ujiri pulled off a major coup trading John "Sleepy Lion" Salmons to Atlanta for Sweet Lou "Somali Pirate" Williams, my friend Steve has encyclopedic knowledge of the NBA and he told me in the off season what a great pick up that was, and he has been proven 100% correct.  I typically loathe marketing bullshit, especially if it involves hashtags, but the team and the fans have truly picked up on the whole We The North thing, it was awesome seeing the massive contingent of Raptors fans in Cleveland cheering them on, and players after the game were saying how much that meant to them. As Mike Wilbon said last week on Pardon the Interruption  "The Raptors aren't just under the radar, they're completely off the radar because they're in Toronto."  The players know this, the fans know this and it has created an "Us against the World" mentality with this team.  I think they won't be off the radar for much longer, this team is for real, they likely won't with the NBA Championship this year, but I see a deep playoff run.

The Week Ahead: vs. Phoenix (11/24), @ Atlanta (11/26), vs. Dallas (11/28), @ Los Angeles Lakers (11/30).  As long as the Raptors keep playing like they've been playing they could easily have another great week.  Dallas will be their biggest test, but they shouldn't look past Phoenix and Atlanta, both team have great players, and now with the Raptors being 11-2 they've got a target on their back and teams are going to bring it every night against them.  Fuck the Lakers and Kobe though, I hope they beat those squids 168-30.

If you were to tell me last week that the Leafs would go 2-1 against Nashville, Tampa Bay and Detroit, I would've been very happy with the results.  But the 9-2 drubbing by Nashville and the surrounding bullshit around Saluteghazi (PS I am over calling anything -gate, Watergate happened in 19 fucking 72 it's been over 40 fucking years, time to come up with something new) has left a bad taste in everyone's mouth.  You know what, I do not blame the Leafs players whatsoever for not doing the whack salute after beating Tampa, the constant circus surrounding this team must have finally got to them.  That game against Nashville was unbelievably bad, everything that could have gone wrong went wrong.  If the LA Kings or Boston Bruins were to lose 9-2, you'd see the highlights on TV and go "holy shit" and forget about it, but the Leafs lose 9-2 and on NATIONALLY televised TSN SportsCentre they spend practically the entire hour long show dissecting every aspect of it, panel after panel of fat old retired plugs publicly calling for blood, no wonder the rest of Canada hates Toronto and the Leafs, if I was a Jets fan or whatever and I go to watch the nightly sportscast, and they spend the entire episode talking about the Leafs I would be pissed too.  The non-salute thing was obviously on purpose, and it was emotional 20-somethings thinking they had to prove a point against their "fans" booing, throwing jerseys on the ice, not to mention the absurd amount of vitriol spilled about them on social media and on sports talk radio.  Of course it was handled sloppily, no one bought Dion Phaneuf's excuse that they were trying to change things up, but it is a fucking joke how the media and some fans took it.  A win is a win who gives a flying fuck if they didn't raise their sticks to the 1000 real fans that attend games at the ACC amongst the thousands of corporate suit dummies that are just there to schmooze their potential clients. Lost in all this bullshit is they played really well against both Tampa and Detroit and if the season ended today they'd be in the god damned playoffs.  But because they lost 2 shitty games and they didn't raise their sticks it seems like the sky is fucking falling.

The Week Ahead: @ Pittsburgh (11/26), vs. Washington (11/29).  A pretty light week for the Leafs, which is probably welcome for the team after all the crap that went on in the last week.  Pittsburgh, as usual are really good, and that should be a tough game, but besides Ovi the Crapitals are just that - Crap.

After an absolutely obscene amount of snow fell on the Buffalo area last week, the scheduled home match-up against the Jets had to be moved to tonight in Detroit... well I guess that is one way for the Bills to get on a Monday Night game.  It's currently 17 degrees and sunny in Buffalo, where in the blue hell is all that snow going to melt too... I am sure there is flooding conditions everywhere, and the game on the 30th against Cleveland is in doubt too.  All this certainly does not help the Bill slim playoff chances.

The Week Ahead: vs. New York Jets (11/24), vs. Cleveland (11/30).  The Jets are absolutely awful, but they did beat Pittsburgh recently, Michael Vick seems to have some gas left in his dog murdering tank.  Cleveland has been one of the surprises this season, the Bills really need to win both these games if they want to even think of the Playoffs, as their December schedule (@Den, GB, @Oak, @NE) is going to be very, very tough.

The Jays did fuck all this week, but it is the off season after all.  Of course those Masshole shitting, puking, fucking puke shit Boston Red Sox go out and sign Hanley Ramirez and Pablo Sandoval today....

As usual hit me up on the Twitter @HDH2112 if you want to talk sports with me! Even if you want to tell me this is the worst blog you've ever read, I love feed back!