UMFan83

I know what you mean about just knowing something is done before it's over. Besides that, I just knew it was over when Loney hit the grand slam in game 1 in 08. I know I'm a pessimist and in the heat of the action I jump the gun on things, but this just felt different. If I had any doubt I knew it was over, the Cubs kicking the ball all over the IF the next night finished me off. I think I took the 2008 playoffs harder than 2003. I was in a funk for over a month after that series.

Assuming this rumor is true, I didn't realize they needed to unload so much salary for this summer. Without Kirk or Salmons, their committed money in 2010-11 is: Deng $11.3 million Rose $7 million Noah $3.1 million Johnson $1.7 million Gibson $1.1 million That's it. $24.2 million only. I just read somewhere that the salary cap is projected to drop to $50-$54 million next year. I wonder if that would allow 2 free agents. The luxury tax threshold is $70 million, which is where the Bulls salary is now. The cap is projected to be between 50-55 million next year, which is the important number. Also, a max FA will make $15 million per season, so you need $30 million to get 2 max FAs. You also are not including cap holds in your analysis of the Bulls cap situation in the offseason, which will push things up a bit. The Bulls can get rid of these cap holds by renouncing the player, although they can no longer resign that player if they do that.

Did anyone catch the Team Canada game? I was looking at the projected lines and saw that Toews was on the 2nd line and Keith and Seabrook were on the 2nd defensive line. Did Toews Keith and Seabrook get extended time on the ice at the same time? That's pretty cool that 50% of the team on the ice is Blackhawks for part of the game.

I was surfing around Baseball-reference and just happened to be looking at the schedule of the 1970 Cubs. I didn't realize how close this team came to making the playoffs. In fact, they were actually closer to finishing in first than the 1969 Cubs were (in terms of being closer to first place later in the season). Were they better than the 69 Cubs? Probably not. Did they ever hold a 9 game lead in August? No. But the 1970 Cubs were just 1 game out of first place on September 15th, with 16 games left in the season. They were 2 games out of first place on September 20th, with just 10 games left in the season. In typical Cubs fashion, they swooned at the end, winning just 4 of their last 11 games and finishing 5 games out of first, at 84-78. Obviously the 69 Cubs, due to their epic collapse will always hold the title as the most memorable team in the dark years between 1945 and 1984, but I am interested in learning a little more about this team that time forgot. Any old timers have some recollections to share like what the mood of Cubs fans was to start the season, at the middle of the season and at the end when they were still contending. Did the fans believe the Cubs could actually finish it off this time around and make the playoffs? Just curious because I couldn't find much on the internet on the 1970 Cubs, and there aren't an awful lot of Cubs teams between 45 and 84 that contended for the division.

http://www.tsn.ca/mlb/story/?id=310388 Interesting move for him. 1-4 is now Wang, Marquis, Lannan, Olsen. Obviously not good but better than before. Nats might have been good enough to get out of last place had they been in a different division than the NL East. I can't see them finishing ahead of the Phillies, Mets, Braves or Marlins.

Don't forget, they only have a limited number of tickets available with this presale. The rest go on sale like usual on Friday.

It's $8 a ticket for the highest tier games, I believe. Combine that with the amusment tax which was previously included in the price and is now separate (12% on the price of the 120% ticket), and it's a pretty big jump in price.

this is the same premium offer posted on the first page, right? yep. Whoops...guess I didn't read the whole first page. My bad.

Yep. I pulled up 4 tickets to Opening Day on there Upper Deck Reserved (cheapest tickets in the stadium). They were $26.50 each, with an addition $9 per ticket in fees (amusment tax, sales tax, and oder processing) brining the total for 4 tickets to $141. I'm just going to wait until Friday and take my chances.

It's funny that you say that....I just got this email. The gist is that you can buy tickets to all Cubs home games TODAY starting in 30 minutes....for 20% over face value.

He is one of if not the most efficent scorer in the league. The knocks against him continue to be his low rebound rate for a player of his size and the fact that his defense is considered something worse than below average. He doesn't seem to have any interest in playing defense.

Guess they aren't playing mediocre on the road anymore :)

You don't? He's definitely been beyond a disappointment (although I didn't expect much), but it's starting to become too glaring to overlook.

Hawks win! Awesome. Still waiting for the convincing win but I'll take a 4 game win streak before the Olympic Break. Remember last year when we were absolutely horrible in shootouts?

Dammit...now Columbus has a chance to win it in this round :(

SOB...first one given up in the last 10 SOA's

One more save for the win Niemi!

Don't jinx him!

4th crapshoot in our last 5 games. Geez. Cmon lets beat the last place team in our division!

I cannot believe they haven't scored yet. Unbelievable. We fail in so many awesome opportunities, it makes me cry.

I thought that went in. See what im talking about, a pass to a wide open and centered seabrook and he can't get it cleanly and the possession ends.

I hate watching good opportunities wasted by the Hawks being unable to field a pass cleanly. Happens too much.

TO wasted

I just keep waiting for the Hawks to all put their hands up in the air to celebrate, but it never comes. C'mon guys.

4 of our last 5 games have gone into OT. So far the other 3 went into a shootout, and we've won 2 of them. At worst, we're looking at 3 points behind SJ and 4 points behind Washington, with a game in hand on both of them.