9/11: Lest We Forget

It's hard to believe that it's been six years since two planes crashed into what was the Twin Towers in NYC. Since that time, I've taken two international flights one in 2002 as part of a Sring Break trip with the schools in Burnaby to Japan, China and Hong Kong and the other to Newark, NJ to visit my aunt in Maplewood, NJ with my mother. I don't remember much of the experience in dealing with security from the 2002 trip, however I definitely remember the experience I had back in the end of March. Going through the airport security in Canada was fine, but what I experienced in Seattle was humiliating and very laughable. My mom has epilepsy and must wear a helmet at all times as a safety precaution and I'm missing my right arm up to the shoulder and wear an artificial limb. Anyway, our flight was cancelled that day to a snow storm back east. The next day, my mom and I caught a flight and had to be at the airport at 6 AM. When we went to security, the security personnel made both my mom and I sit on designated chairs where they though my mom's hands were going to explode. That's right, you read it right HER HANDS WERE GOING TO EXPLODE. AAAAH SHE'S A TERRORIST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The security was overly paranoid and they should have used common sense. First of all, my mom had put nothing on her hands that day, not even moisteurizer or any kind of powder. As for me, on the way back home, they put my real hand under a machine to check for exploding powders. I just want to end this posting by sending my condolences to those who lost a loved one in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Some Random Thoughts

At the end of this week I'll officially be at the halfway point of my ninety-day probation period as a Call Taker for Yellow Cab. Overall, the experience has been mostly positive. I am blessed with some great colleagues who have been very helpful and insightful in guiding me through and helping me to be the best I can be. I have found customers to be very understanding when I mention that I am new if I feel there has been too much time taken with the calls. The only real concern I have up to this point is the hours I'm being asked to work. Hopefully I'll be able to get more day shifts as my senority increases. For now, my main focus is to minimize mistakes as best I can and to take this experience call-to-call. I am 90% sure I'll be going back to school in about a year to complete what I started at Langara College (Arts and Sciences Associate degree). I'm also considering maybe taking some administrative assistant courses to perhaps try being a secretary in the future. . .

Last night marked the end of the so-called Canada-Russia Super Series. This hockey tournament was supposed to be a modern day version of the same eight-game series that took place in 1972. Our junior men just completely dominated Russia from the opening face-off in game 1 to the final horn in game eight. By far, Russia's best game the whole series took place in Game Seven when they managed their one and only point in the whole series by drawing Canada 4-4. Canada was superior in all aspects of the game from the goalie to the defensemen to the forwards to Special teams. If this performance is any indication of team Canada in the World Juniors in December, Look Out! . . .

Another little note is about head coach Brent Sutter. If he manages the New Jersey Devils they way he coached Team Canada in the Super-Series the Devils may just be a dark horse in the Eastern Conference. . .


After a dreadful summer weather-wise, we, here in Vancouver, are experiencing a nice Indian Summer. Interestingly enough, we've been right on average with rainfall and temperture. The question is, where was this beautiful weather a month or so ago? . . .

On Thursday I will be renewing my level C CPR. I feel First Aid is a very good skill to have, whether or not a situation ever arises where you are the lone person who knows CPR. A perfect example of the importance occurred yesterday in the complex next to mine. I was walking my dog when I saw this girl sitting on the ground surrounded by three or four concerned parents/neighbours. It turned out that she had been going down a hill too fast and slammed into a parked car hard enough to knock off the back license plate. Luckily, at the time her injuries appeared to be nothing more serious than a few scrapes and a bad bruise on her back. Her step-father showed up and presumably took her to the doctor to insure that she didn't have any internal bleeding or injuries that one couldn't see on the outside. The point is, that by knowing First Aid, I knew not to move her. Note, I arrived on the scene after the accident and did not see what happened. The girl was already being tended to and had a blue cloth on her left elbow. I encourage anyone reading this blog to take a First Aid course, especially if you have kids or work with kids on a regular basis. . .

On the note of encouraging people to do things, I also encourage people to donate blood. Our province is in a crisis mode with the blood supply and we need all the donors we can get. The whole donation process takes about an hour and at the end, on top of feeling good about potentially saving three lives, you get free cookies and juice or coffee or tea. I have been a regular blood donor for five years, since I was 18. I have always felt okay after, so if anyone is concerned about how they'll feel after donating blood, you should be able to continue on with your day after leaving the clinic, minus doing anything overly strenuous for the rest of the day. .

It has been seven weeks since the Vancouver Civic's strike began and it's time to end it. It has gone beyond the point of finger-pointing and one side blaming the other. Both sides need to come to the table and hammer out a deal that will satisfy everyone. For the most part, the Vancouverites should be commended for keeping our streets clean. As much as I would like to see this strike be a lesson in the three R's (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), I know it's just wishful thinking to think that we won't go back to the massive piles of garbage we piled up before the strike began. I think it's sickening that there are a few schools without access to books or gyms. Vince Ready, Mayor Sullivan if your reading this, please contact each other about mediation to end this dispute. Oh, by the way, the Union has no grounds to complain about those who are mowing the lawns about taking away jobs. If they feel that way, the brothers and sisters of the union should put down their pickets and return to work where they belong.

Another dispute that's had minimal air time is the forest workers strike. I grew up learning in Social Studies in Elementary school and High School that forestry is a huge natural resource in BC. we should be protecting our Identity as BCer's and end the dispute so that our beautiful trees can be maintained and there for future generations to enjoy. When I think of BC, I think of oxygen-giving trees.

NHL Season Preview: NW Divsion

In the NW Division, four of the five teams, perhaps with the exception of the Edmonton Oilers have a legitimate shot of contending for a playoff spot.

Colorado Avalanche

After failing to make the playoffs by a hair, the Avalanche set out to rectifying that blunder in the off-season, by signing the highly touted Ryan Smyth and Scott Hannan. After being the heart and soul of the Oilers for the past eleven seasons, Smyth will face his former team for the first time in his career. No doubt the first time he steps on the ice at Rexall Place for the first time as an opponent it will be an emotional night for Smyth. For the first half of the season last year, the Avs looked like they were going to be mathematically eliminated early, then they caught fire with the help of veterans Joe Sakic, Milan Hejduk and Marek Svatos, as well as youngsters Paul Stastny and Wojtek Wolski. As a result of the magnificent second half, they finished just a point behind the Calgary Flames for the eighth and final playoff spot. I believe their season will lie on how the goaltending of Jose Theodore holds up. However, I believe the team learned a lot from the experience of last season from having to fight tooth and nail to do as well as they did last year. Look for the Avs to challenge for a playoff spot this year.

Minnesota Wild

The Wild had a pretty quiet off-season, with their biggest pick-up in Sean Hill being unavailble until early November when his 19-game suspension will end for substance abise. Once again, the Wild will be relying on a defense-first system, and heavily on superstar Marion Gabrik. Should Gabrik get injured and first-time starting 'keeper Nikolas Backstrom falter, this team is is for a looong year. Their neutral zone trap should win them a number of games, but only time will tell whether it will be enough.

Edmonton Oilers.

GM Craig McTavish ticked off at least two GM's when he went after first restricted free agent Tomas Vanek, who eventually was overpayed by the Buffalo Sabres, then he turned his attention to Dustin Penner, who GM Brian Burke declined to match the offer sheet. These were te actions of a man desparate to turn things around after a dysmal season. Just 2 years ago, there was a lot of optimism after the Oilers came within a game of winning the Stanley Cup for the first time in twenty years. However, just days after Game Seven of the Stanley Cup last season, star defenseman Chris Pronger demanded a trade stating family reasons. Soon after, Michael Peca jumped ship to sign with the Maple Leafs. These events were the start of a long 06-07 season. Goalie Dwayne Roloson wasn't nearly as good in 06-07 as he was in the '06 cup run. Also, many of the players, such as Rafael Torres, Fernando Pisani and Zack Stortini, had career years during the cup run, and were unable to play the same way the following season. At the trade deadline last January, the Oilers traded away Ryan Smyth, who had been with the team since the 95-96 season. This off-season, they traded Jason Smith, another long-serving member of the team. Besides picking up Penner, the Oilers also picked up PP specialist Sheldon Souray. However, Souray's weakness is in defending his own end. Look for MacTavish to be on a very short leash this season.

Calgary Flames

After a very disappointing first round defeat last year, the Flames shook things up, firing head coach Jim Playfair and replacing him with Mike Keenan. The biggest problem for the flames last season was that they played differently on the road than they did at home. They were nearly unbeatable at times when playing at the Saddledome, whereas they were very beatable at times when playing in an unfamiliar setting, that is on the road. The Flames inked a solid defenseman in Cory Sarich, took a chance on aging veteran Owen Nolan, signed Anders Eriksson, and acquired solid d-man Adrian Aucoin. This years version of the Flames should be about speed, grit, out-working the other team and minding the defensive side of center ice first. A little word of advice to GM Darryl Sutter, be careful about how long you keep Keenan on as head coach. Eventually he'll turn your locker room against him and maybe themselves.

Vancouver Canucks

And now we come to the team I support and grew up supporting since their playoff run in 1994. Unfortunately, their biggest off-season move was changing their logo and jerseys. They also signed Aaron Miller, who will replace Brent Sopel as a depth player. Byron Ritchie was added for grit, and Jeff Cowan was re-signed along with rising star Kevin Bieksa. The back-up 'keeper for the year will be previous-Canuck-killer Curtis Sandford The Canucks will be relying heavily on superstar goalie Roberto Luongo to keep them in games and play often. Last year's biggest challenge is this year's biggest challenge: scoring enough goals. Prospect-wise, it'll be interesting to see how well Luc Bourdon, who struggled through nine regular season games last year before being sent back to juniors, fares. Bourdon will be battling Alex Edler for the seventh and final defense position available. Basically, the Canucks roster is set heading into training camp with one or two forward positions available and maybe one on defense.

How these teams will finish in the standings at the end of the 07-08 season

1. Vancouver Canucks
2. Calgary Flames
3. Colorado Avalanche
4. Minnesota Wild
5. Edmonton Oilers

NHL Season Preview: Central Division

Detroit Red Wings

The Red Wings are by far the strongest team in the Central Division. Led by aging goalie Dominik Hasek, the Wings boast a team full of veterans and youngsters who know how to win. They added solid D-man Brian Rafalski, checking forward Dallas Drake. Rafalski will be replacing Matthew Schneider who inked a deal with the Ducks. Essentially, the Red WIngs will ice the same team as last season, save for the loss of Kyle Calder who was replaced by Drake and Schenider whose spot will be taken by Rafalski. Perhaps the one question mark lies in the goaltending department with Hasek aging and back-up Chris Osgood prone to inconsistency.

Nashville Predators

With the prospect of a new ownership, and the uncertainty of the future of this once feared franchise, the Predators were in the selling mode instead of the buying mode. Thus, they lost speedster Paul Kariya, all-star goalie Tomas Vokoun, who was traded at the draft, tough guy Sheldon Brookbank. The moves they made this off-season, included signing 3rd liner Jed Ortmeyer, Greg De Vries, Radek Bonk, among others. Youth, inexperience and the goaltending will cause this team to have a long season this year.

Columbus Blue Jackets

Here's another team that lacks serious depth. Perhaps their biggest move this off-season was changing their logo, and when that's the biggest thing you do after a bad season, you know your in for a long year. With Ken Hitchcock taking over full-time behind the bench, it can be assumed that the Blue Jackets will be a defense-first team. Up front, beyond all-star Rick Nash, the forwards on this team won't instill a lot of fear into the hearts of opposing goalies. It hasn't helped that the Blue Jackets are drafting players like Gilbert Brule who need a few years in the minors before being NHL-ready. On defense, the Blue Jackets can rely on aging veteran Adam Foote, but the rest of the kids are going to have their growing pains. In goal, iot could get ugly, as none of the goalies in camp have ever been handed a #1 keeper's job. In summary, don't expect much from this team for the next 3 seasons at least.

Chicago Blachawks

Over the past few seasons and this one, the Blackhawks have taken baby steps towards improving by drafting promising players like Jonathon Toews, trading for Sergei Samsanov was certainly a step in the right direction. As was signing players like Robert Lang and Yanic Perrault. While this team has improved significantly from the team that was iced last season, more drastic changes are needed to contend, including adding scoring depth up front and either having their young defensemen develop quickly, or signing veteran defenders. Goaltending will halso be a question mark, as Mike Brodeur won't be mistaken for Martin Brodeur any time soon.

St Louis Blues

The Blues are a completely different team from last season, and the signing of Paul Kariya will go a long way to helping this team be a success on the ice. Under the guidance of Andy Murray and with the help of a good mix of veterans and youngsters like Erik Johnson, look for the Blues to enter the playoffs once again, for the first time since the lockout.

How these teams will finish in the standings at the end of the 07-08 season:

1. Detroit Red Wings
2. St Louis Blues
3. Nashville Predators
4. Columbus Blue Jackets
5. Chicago Blackhawks

NHL Season Preview: Pacific Division

This is a division with 2 very strong teams, 1 decent team and 2 very weak teams

Phoenix Coyotes:

This will be the Great One's third season as a head coach and at best thus far he's been adequate in running the Coyotes. At the end of last season, Gretzky vowed things would be different and there would be no country-club atmosphere. A good example of the types of players brought in in recent years is Jeremy Roenik. During a visit to Vancouver in the middle of the season, he was deemed a healthy scratch and instead of being up in the press box supporting the team, Roenik chose to eat dinner at a local restaurant, I believe it was the Keg. I believe Shane Doan should have a decent season, and Ed Jovanovski and Derek Morris are solid on the back end. Beyond that, the Coyotes have a whole lot of youth and experience and are thus a few years from contention at least.

LA Kings

Goaltending is going to be what makes or breaks this team. Dan Cloutier must recover from his hip surgery and perform like he can. The Kings made a big splash in the free agent pool, inking Brad Stuart, Tom Preissing, Ladislav Nagy, Kyle Calder and Michael Hanzuis. They have a solid core up front with three lines that are a threat to hurt you. They have superb youngsters including Alexander Frolov, Anze Kopitar, Dustin Brown, Mike Cammelleri and Jack Johnson. Defensively, they have a solid six defensemen. The Kings are going to be part of a three-team race for the Division title.

Dallas Stars

Arguably, the Stars are the most boring team in hockey. They are extremely defensive-minded and generally struggle to score on a regular basis. They are also one of the stingier teams in the league led by star goalie Marty Turco, who proved that he can go head-to-head with the best goalies in the league, when he battled and almost defeated Roberto Luongo in the first round of the playoffs last season. During the off-season, they made a few minor pick-ups that can be attributed to helping with depth. Up front, they are led by Mike Modano, who is aging and past his prime. The Stars also have Brendan Morrow. They essentially have two dangrous lines and a defensive 6 that lacks depth. I believe that Dallas will mirror the Canucks once again this season, winning games by scores of 1-0 and 2-1. They should be solid in the shootout with Jussi Jokinen having a great move.

Anaheim Ducks

The defending Stanley Cup Champs are once again legitimate contenders signing Forward Todd Bertuzzi, who showed promise in Florida before having back surgery and missing most of the season. They also inked Defenseman Matthew Schneider, who on any other team would be in the top 2 pairings, but on the Ducks he'll be the fifth D-man, unless Neidermeyer decides not to return and retire. The Ducks lost a few players this off-season with the assumed retire of Teemu Selanne and Ryan Shannon being traded to the Canucks and Dustin Penner signing a restricted free agent deal with the Oilers. However, their depth both up front and on the back end is so great that it will have minimal effect in the standings. Look for the Ducks to go deep in the post-season once again this year.

San Jose Sharks

The Sharks enter the season boasting the best 1-2 punch up the middle, sending Joe Thorton as the #1 line centerman and Patrick Marleau, who would be first on the depth chart on most any other team, as centering the second line. This Sharks team is dangerous and will be a tough team to beat most nights. Look for them to battle Anaheim for the Division title all year long. The one question mark is who will be the back-up goalie to Evgeni Nabakov and their defense isn't as deep as Anaheim's.

How these teams will finish in the 07-08 standings:

1. Anaheim Ducks
2. San Jose Sharks
3. LA Kings
4. Dallas Stars
5. Phoenix Coyotes

NHL Season Preview: Atlantic Division

Philadelphia Flyers

The Flyers were simply dreadful in 06-07. They made a huge splash into the Free Agent Pool inking Daniel Briere, Scott Hartnel. New goalie Martin Biron, acquired at last years trade deadline, is expected to be the answer to the inconsistent goaltending that has cost some very good Flyer teams recently a chance to go far. Their top two lines consist of the likes of Briere, Scotty Upshall, Simon Gagne, Mike Richards, Hartnell, and youngster Ryan Parent. However, the Flyers have depth issues and still have large amounts of money tied to sub-par, over-the-hill performers like D Derian Hatcher, who should think of hanging them up, as his best days are behind him. I think the Flyers are going to be better than they were last season, but that's not saying a lot. Don't expect this team to make the playoffs this season.

Pittsburgh Penguins

The Penguins, just a few years ago being a basement dweller, now is a contending team built around four great young superstars in Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby and Jordan Staal. They also have a great goalie in Marc-Andre Fluery, although he still has to develop. Fluery is prone to giving up the huge rebound and that's going to cost his team more than a few times this season. To protect their prized possessions, the Penguins have a few players who's primary role is to protect Crosby, Malkin and Staal in Georges Laraque and superpest Jaarko Ruutu. The Penguins also have aging veterans Gary Roberts and Mark Reechi. Expect this team to be exciting to watch and to wreck havoc in the NHL this season.

New Jersey Devils

The Devils of 2006 are pretty much the Devils of 2007: a team built around star netminder Martin Brodeur and a defensive system designed to stifle the other team and allow a minimal number of shots. This team may not be the most glamorous to watch but they are effective at what they do. Patrick Elias and Bryan Gionta will be relied upon to provide the offense. This is a basically a one-line team offensively filled with many solid checking forwards and defenders, although they have declined since winning three cups. They'll contend because of Brodeur. Schedule-wise it's going to be very difficult in the first month with the first nine games of the regular season spent on the road.

New York Islanders

The team from long island just squeaked into the playoffs by a toe save by back-up Wade Dubielewicz. This was another team hit hard by the free agent market losing Ryan Smyth, Jason Blake, Victor Kozlov and Richard Zednik. They overpayed for Billy Guerin. This is a team that will struggle defensively and will struggle to fill the void of losing 5 of its top 7 scorers from last season. The Islanders will be on the outside looking in come the end of this season and will be at or near the bottom of the NHL standings. At least they know their starting goalie for the next fifteen years.

New York Rangers.

The team that plays under the bright lights of NYC made a mega-splash in the free agent market picking up Scott Gomez and Chris Drury. Both these players know what it takes to be successful with Gomez having won the Stanley cup with NJ and Drury reaping the benefits of playing for a powerful Buffalo team. Perhaps one player in Shean Avery may be poison to the locker room, depending on if he shoots his mouth off on or off the ice with childish antics. Up front the Rangers are strong, same as between the pipes with superstar Henrik Lundquist. The one area where the Rangers may struggle is defensively. I believe they will challenge for the division title, but fall short by a hair.

How these teams will finish in the2007-08 divisional standings:

1. Pittsburgh Penguins
2. NY Rangers
3. New Jersey Devils
4. Philadelphia Flyers
5. NY Islanders

NHL Season Preview: NE Divsion

Boston Bruins

The biggest off-season move made by the Bruins was acquiring goalie Manny Fernandez at the Draft for a 3rd round pick and defenseman Brad Lukowicz in the same deal. Beyond that move, the Bruins stayed pat except for the trade for Peter Schaefer. Defense was a huge problem last season and the Bruins will be hoping Zdeno Chara has a better season than 06-07. Youngsters Marc-Andre Bergeron, Phil Kessel and Marc Savard will all have to have solid seasons, otherwise this team and its fans are in for a long year.

Toronto Maple Leafs

The Maple Leafs made a big splash in the free agent pool by signing the much-sought-after Jason Blake. They also added insurance between the pipes by signing back-up Vesa Toskala. Toskala will provide a Plan B should starter Andrew Raycroft falter this season. A third goalie who will be battling for the back-up job is Scott Clemmson who inked a deal with the Leafs. There was an embarrassing signing this off-season when Mark Bell got into legal trouble. Don't look for him to be playing any time soon. Mats Sundin should be hungry to win the Cup this year, as time is running out on his career. Super pest Darcy Tucker will once again be in the faces of the opposition. The leafs basically boast three lines that are a threat to score on a nightly basis. The question mark will be on the blueline where Pavel Kubina needs to step it up and be better than he was last season. Bryan McCabe should be a threat to anyone blocking his bullet of a shot, but he can be prone to defensive lapses now and again. Hal Gill is slow, Ian White and Wade Belak should be a solid unit. Also, in goal, both goalies need to be solid, especially Raycroft, who struggled with shots to his glove hand at some points last season. I expect the Leafs to challenge for a playoff spot. In fact, look for them to nab the eighth and final playoff spot in the east.

Ottawa Senators

Goalie Ray Emery has a tough task ahead of him this season: proving 2006-07 was no fluke. The Senators primarily got as far as they did last season because of the Heatley-Aflredsson-Spezza line absolutely lighting it up in the playoffs. It wasn't until the Stanley Cup Finals when they finally met a defense that could shut them down. Once again, these three players will create headaches for the opposition. Combine that with a stingy, scary-good defense that doesn't allow many goals and you are in for a long night most nights if you're playing Ottawa. The big question for the Senators heading into the season is whether they can get some secondary scoring. I believe the team is strong enough in goal and on defense to parlay a significant drop in production after the top line or two. However, that is depending on if this team stays healthy.

Montreal Canadiens

The Canadiens chose to part ways with PP specialist Sheldon Souray and add the more defensively reponsible Roman Hamrlik. This is a move that will surely help them down the road. Up front, they inked Bryan Smolinski to a deal. The former Canuck did okay after being acquired at the trade deadline last season. The Habs better hope he's a better pick-up than the moody Sergei Samsanov was. In goal, they should be solid with rising star Christobal Huet making the bulk of the starts and relable back-up David Aebischer therewhen needed. The biggest reason for their down fall towards the end of last season was their inability to score five-on-five, something every successful team needs to do most of the time.

Buffalo Sabres

The Sabres were one of the harder hit teams this off-season, saying goodbye to superstar Daniel Briere (now a Philadelphia Flyer) and Chris Drury (now with the NY Rangers). Danius Zubrus also left town to join the NJ Devils. In goal, the Sabres will have starter Ryan Miller making the bulk of the saves once again, as well as new back-up Jocelyn Thibault, looking to prove himself a solid back-up. Overall, this is a team that has size, speed, and agility. The Sabres are a deep team with three lines that are a threat to score and 3 solid defensive pairings. I believe that while losing co-captains Briere and Drury will hurt, this team should have the depth to challenge in the East once again.

How these teams will finish in 2007-08

1. Buffalo Sabres
2. Ottawa Senators
3. Toronto Maple Leafs
4. Montreal Canadiens
5. Boston Bruins