Today In Sport

For those who came in late, Ilya Kovalchuk was traded during the middle of last season from Atlanta to the New Jersey Devils.  He became a much sought after commodity during the off-season and was actively pursued by many a NHL club, most notably Los Angeles.

But the New Jersey management came up with a brilliant plan.  Offer Ilya the most overblown and convuluted deal in history, $102 million over 17 years.  Now, at 27 years old this would mean his contract would end when he is 44.  Sure there have been the odd player that has been able to go into their 40’s but it is a little ridiculous.

That is until you read the part where his wage is scaled from almost $10million a year down to the base rate in his final 5 years.  This gave the overall contract a lower average yearly salary to help fit into the NHL salary cap.  This is where the NHL stepped in and said we don’t like these shennanigans.

But the NHL Players Association countered with “But why?” and now we are headed to arbitration.  This is usually a quick process but for some reason there was no arbitrator in place at the time (why would there be, it’s only mad trading month).  So, finally tomorrow the decision will be at least discussed.

There are teams hanging on the verdict, again most notably The Kings who are ready to pounce on Ilya should his contract be vetoed and torn up.  It’s not like this is the first lengthy contract though.  I think what the NHL are concerned about is the fact that while The Devils are paying Ilya huge money, they still comfortably fit under the cap.

Then when the final 5 years comes around and he is 39, New Jersey then can cut him and pay out the relatively paltry sum of $2.5m of the rest of his contract and also recover about $7m in their cap space.  You can see both sides.  The club wants to work their contracts as they see fit to help their club and the NHL wants to stop rorting of the system.

Will be interesting to see how this plays out.

Today is my father’s birthday, so Happy Birthday dad.  My love of sport comes from him.  He introduced me to so many different sports and helped give me a overall enjoyment of all sports.

He came from a big family and all of them loved their footy, especially growing up not far from the Footscray football club ground.  Sure, he took me to a few Footscray games but he never pressured me to follow them and I ended up choosing my own team, St Kilda.  As long as the Bulldogs aren’t playing the Saints, he will enjoy them as well just for me.

Dad got me into two other sports in a big way when I was little, Ice Hockey and Soccer.  My dad had played Hockey for a while and I learned to skate soon after I could walk.  I ended up playing in the Ice Mice and because my dad was a goalie, I guess they thought I should be one too.  Turns out I wasn’t very good.  Oh well.

I started playing Soccer in my first year in Primary School.  I loved it and it was the one sport I was pretty good at.  I also loved watching it, either on the telly or going to see Adelaide City play at Hindmarsh Stadium.  We now both go and watch our Adelaide United in the A-League.

We both support Aston Villa but our other teams are pretty different.  I like Inter Milan and he is a Juventus man for one.  I’m Rangers and he is Celtic, now that’s a toughy.  He doesn’t really have an NHL team but I’m a devoted Pittsburgh Penguins fan.

We do differ on some sports.  I really like Basketball but dad is a little noncommittal on it.  We have many a great conversation on different events happening around the world, whether it be Casey Stoner winning another MotoGP race or how much of a prat Ronaldo is.

All I’m really trying to say is thanks dad for introducing me to the wonderful world of sport and all it has to offer.  Happy Birthday.

Throughout the history of the modern Olympic Games many sports have come and gone.  Some events were merged or incorporated with others, but other sports were banished altogether.  There are many sports that were given a go and either through lack of participating countries or just flat out strangeness, they had to be let go.

Here are some of the strangest, including some weird demonstration sports at the Olympics.

TUG OF WAR - This was contested at six Olympics and now at every church picnic.  I am certain there was the most unathletic looking fat guy walking around with a gold medal after he was used as an anchor by the winning team.

ROPE CLIMB - This race to the top starred at five Games.  I wonder if there was a short, stocky guy with a tight shirt and a whistle standing at the base of the rope calling the competitors names for doing it too slow?  Mr Reid, how I miss you… (continue reading…)

As the Chicago Blackhawks were parading their newly won Stanley Cup around the ice after Game 6 in the NHL playoffs, former Hawk Jeremy Roenick was savouring the moment as he expressed his pride at their acheivement to the TV audience.  And that moment was ruined by Mike “The Mouth” Milbury.

As JR choked back tears when he answered the question about why he was so emotional at this win with “It’s the Chicago Blackhawks, man.”, Mike Milbury swooped in with a lame joke and a rambling anecdote that went nowhere.  You can see in Roenick’s eyes that he was angry at Milbury and if it had been about 15 years ago and at center ice, he would have punched the living stuffing out of him.

JR deserved that moment and it was ruined for him.  Way to go Mike Milbury.  Jackass.

Every now and then sport gives you the opportunity to not only prove yourself as an athlete, but as a human being as well.  This week, Detroit Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga took that opportunity.

On Wednesday Galarraga was chasing that most elusive of feats, not just in baseball but in all sports, the perfect game.  Only 20 players in MLB history have ever achieved this.

A perfect pitching game requires you to have successfully retired 27 consecutive batters, three in each of the nine innings without allowing a hit or surrendering a walk.  Gallaraga had 26 outs when history was interrupted. (continue reading…)

The Chicago Blackhawks, the 2nd seed in the Western Conference will this weekend start their quest for the first NHL Stanley Cup title for their franchise since 1961 when they take on the red hot 7th seed in the East, the Philadelphia Flyers in game one of the Stanley Cup Finals series. (continue reading…)

The Pittsburgh Penguins advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs in their quest to defend their title by defeating Ottawa 4-3 in OT after being down 3-0 early on.  After a brilliant comeback by Pittsburgh to take the game into OT, a superstar emerged to take the series.

Sid the Kid?  No.  Geno Malkin?  No.  Pascal Dupuis!  Hey, if you score the winner in OT to seal a playoff series victory for the Pens you are a superstar in my book.  Cheers Dupes, you legend!

The NHL Playoffs are well under way and with playoff hockey comes big hits.  None bigger than Boston Bruins’ Jonny Boychuk’s hit on Buffalo’s Matt Ellis.  Ellis just did not see him coming.

Shawn Michaels - The Icon, The Showstopper, The Main Event, Mr Wrestlemania - call him what you will, he is one of the greatest performers in Professional Wrestling history.  Or should I say was.  At Wrestlemania XXVI up against The Undertaker in a Streak v Career match, his career was ended.  Or was it?

Well, in Pro Wrestling you never can tell.  but if it is his last ever match, what a career it has been.  From his tag team days with Marty Jannetty as The Rockers at the beginning of his WWF/E run, through to winning his first World title.  A back injury which cost him four years of his career but allowed him to find redemption and his return to solidify himself as a true wrestling icon. (continue reading…)

Snowboarding.  A creation for people who could not figure out how to ski.  It was like the Boogie Board is to Surfing.  But somehow they made a go of it and turned it into something interesting.  So interesting that it became an extreme sport, somehow.

But now it has made a break from its Winter X-Games home and ventured out into the big city of mainstream sports.  But why are we so enamoured of this sport?  Is it its many discplines such as the halfpipe (stolen from skateboarding), Big Air (stolen from SuperX) or the races (stolen from….the races).

It is a sport that is full of sick, wicked, gnarly, goofy and full on crazy people with a language all their own.  When the commentator says they just hit a 720 backside indian air stalefish monosodium glutomate with 3 twists that he landed goofy, then you just have to nod and smile politely.

If not for Shaun White, no-one would have any idea who any of these guys are.

TodayInSport Insanity Rating - 8/10.

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