Hockey? What is a Hockey?

After having never attended a post-season game of any kind (well, aside from the Olympics and the World Cup), I have now had the good fortune of attending two in one month. After seeing my first March Madness game, I was able to procure tickets to the Red Wings-Predators First Round Game 5 matchup. You may be asking yourself, “But wait, aren’t the Red Wings a hockey team?” To answer your question, yes, they are. Over the last five years combined, I am fairly certain that I have watched less than one period of NHL hockey. I did attend a Michigan-Notre Dame hockey game a couple of years ago, but other than that, the only hockey I have seen is what’s come up on SportsCenter before I was able to change the channel.

However, the Red Wings are by far Detroit’s most successful professional franchise. They have ten championships, which is nearly as many as the Lions, Tigers, and Bears, Oh My! Pistons combined. I have attended Tigers and Pistons games, but never made it to a Red Wings game. It seems like the type of activity that should be mandatory for all Detroit area residents, given the fame and fortune of the beloved Red Wings. So what better time to start appreciating Detroit’s hockey than the playoffs?

One of the first things I noticed upon entering Joe Louis Arena is how energized the crowd was. Sure, that is to be expected at a playoff game, but the energy was palpable. Nearly everyone was wearing Red Wings gear, or at least wearing red, and I’m not sure that I saw a Nashville fan the entire night. Our seats were not the greatest, but even our “cheap” seats had a great view of the ice. Once the game kicked off, faced off, started, there wasn’t an empty seat in the house. Unlike NFL, MLB or the NBA, the game was very fluid and there were very few extended stops in play. A 17 minute intermission followed each period, but other than that, the game was constantly in action.

A couple of gripes: The line for the bathrooms was unbelievably long at the first intermission. I’ve never seen lines of such magnitude. I actually abandoned my initial quest, although I was able to successfully return near the end of the second period. Also, what kind of major entertainment venue doesn’t take credit cards? After failing in my initial task of finding a restroom, I decided to buy a beer and hot dog. Alas, upon finding that credit cards were not accepted and that I only had ten dollars, I was forced to decide between the beer and hot dog. Given the pre-existing bathroom situation, I opted for the hot dog. After going back later for a beer, I had to wait in another long line. I spent most of the time trying to figure out what the attendants were doing. One was taking orders at the register, and the other two handed cups to the customer, who then had to fill his own beer! Needless to say, the wait was significantly longer than it should have been.

Anyway, getting back to the game, the Red Wings scored very early in the first period to take a 1-0 lead. However, the rest of the game, despite a domination of play by Detroit, yielded very little in the way of scoring. The tension was high, and multiple scraps broke out between players, although the referees (unfortunately) were able to pull the players apart before any brawls erupted. Another point – Red Wings fans appeared to be very knowledgeable about the sport and cheered at all the right times. Or at least they seemed like they knew what they were doing. I’ve been to plenty of Tigers games and a good percentage of the fans only know what’s going on when someone hits a home run.

As the game wound to a close, Nashville pulled its goalie and attacked Detroit’s goal with reckless abandon. Although Detroit had taken about three times as many shots as Nashville, somehow Nashville finally managed to get past Chris “Ozzie” Osgood with about 30 seconds left to tie it up. Overtime! I took the opportunity to buy another beer (after going to the ATM) but I barely had time to drink it. The Red Wings put one in after about five minutes of overtime play to win the game. And the crowd goes wild! Ahhhhh!! Ahhhhh!!!

So, even though I can in no way be considered a hockey fan, the game was thoroughly enjoyable and it was obvious that Detroiters take their hockey very seriously. After years of watching the Lions and Tigers suck, it really isn’t too surprising.

The Atlanta Braves Suck! (wink, wink)

Since I wrote that the Tigers were “done”, Detroit has reeled off an impressive three game win streak. The Tigers have nearly doubled their season offensive output, averaging ten runs a game over those three wins. The pitching is still a concern (they allowed 16 runs in those three wins) but the city of Detroit is breathing a huge sigh of relief now that the bats have awakened.

So, under the fairly reasonable assumption that it was pointed complaints that triggered Detroit’s good fortune, I would now like to turn my attention to the Atlanta Braves. As a long-time Braves fan, I’ve grown frustrated with their great regular season performances and subsequent playoff flops. Fourteen consecutive division titles and only one World Series win? As of late, they haven’t even been good enough to make the playoffs the last two years.

This year was supposed to be different, though. Numerous ‘experts’ were predicting a turnaround season and possible World Series appearance for the Braves. I was skeptical at first, but after checking out their starting lineup and seeing the return of Tom Glavine, I started to believe. Youngsters Jeff Francoeur and Brian McCann have been impressive over the last two years and will only improve. Last season’s trade deadline acquisition Mark Teixeira could be considered one of the top five first basemen in the league. However, what really had me excited was hearing about the potential of rookie shortstop Yunel Escobar. His progress allowed the Braves to trade away All-Star shortstop Edgar Renteria, and Escobar has looked as good as advertised so far this season.

Unfortunately, the team as a whole has limped along to a 5-9 record, which is only a half game better than the Tigers right now. Despite being in the top ten for both runs scored and runs allowed, the Braves are near the bottom of the NL standings, ahead of only the Nationals. Based on current run production, the Braves should be expected to have an 8-6 record, but have unexpectedly performed much worse than that. Unlike my rant on the Tigers, the Braves have been playing well. Chipper Jones is batting over .400 and three Braves already have double digit RBI totals. Mark Teixeira is struggling a bit, but for the most part, the team is hitting well. Starting pitching has also been positive thus far, with three starters under 3.00 ERA and another with a 3.93 ERA. Unfortunately, injuries to the bullpen have perhaps contributed to the Braves slow start, as closer Rafael Soriano and next-in-line closer Peter Moylan have missed time.

However, the number one reason for the Braves poor start is BOBBY COX! You suck!! Just kidding. But for some reason, the Braves have already played and lost an inordinate amount of one run games. In fact, the Braves are an astonishing 0-7 in one run games this year, including two losses in extra innings. Hopefully that number will even out as the season progresses, but at some point you just have to start winning games. I’m guessing the lack of quality arms at the end of games is hurting Atlanta, but 0-7? I’m hoping that by complaining about the poor start, Atlanta’s luck will turn around. With John Smoltz on the mound tonight, it sounds like a good bet to me.

And give it up for yooouuur.... Detroit Knicks!

Detroit, it’s time to put those World Series dreams on hold. This is starting to get ugly. Widely expected to compete for the division crown and a potential World Series appearance, the Tigers have fallen completely on their face. In fact, they’ve fallen so hard that they probably crushed whatever child/wildlife that had the misfortune of passing in their vicinity. Not only are the Tigers terrible, they’re murderers!

Seriously, with the second highest payroll in all of baseball, no one could have expected this. The 0-7 start was bad, but I assumed that the Tigers would reel off a few wins once they finally got that first win. Nope. They’ve gone 1-3 after getting that “big” win. To make matters worse, they haven’t even been losing close games, which you could attribute to bad luck. Detroit has already been shut our four times, which is more times than all of last season combined. Only two of their ten losses have come by less than three runs. Amazingly, Detroit has scored fewer runs than any team in baseball while also giving up the most runs. Only one team in the American League has failed to score fewer than ten runs more than Detroit - Kansas City, who also happens to lead the majors in fewest runs allowed. Also, Detroit has given up an astonishing 78 runs (6.5/game) while only one other AL team (LA Angels) has given up more than 60.

Detroit was seen as a World Series contender at the start of the season, although many acknowledged that the bullpen could prove to be an issue. The bullpen has hardly been a factor thus far, as the starting pitching has been simply abysmal. The five starting pitchers (Rogers, Verlander, Robertson, Willis, Bonderman) have accounted for ONE quality start. Bonderman is the only starter who has managed to keep his ERA under 6.50.

After last season’s offensive performance, the addition of Miguel Cabrera only fueled expectations. It is fair to say that performance has not quite matched the hype. Only two Tigers starters (Guillen, Inge) have a batting average over .250, while only one starter (Inge) has accounted for more than 3 RBI. On the bright side, the Tigers have yet to be thrown out stealing (8 for 8!)

Such struggles aren’t necessarily uncommon, but it is unsettling when it happens at the start of the season. The Tigers had a 4-14 slide last July and were still in a position to compete for the division title until they let it slip away in late August. With the talent Detroit has, this slide is confounding, but if the Tigers can get back on track, the rest of the league had better not take them lightly.

One Shining Moment

Congratulations to Mario Chalmers and the Kansas Jayhawks. In a fitting end to the tournament, Kansas came from behind and knocked off Memphis in overtime to claim the National Championship. Mario Chalmers will forever be remembered as one of the great Kansas heroes. I had the good fortune of watching the game in a crowded BW3’s, and the bar went absolutely crazy went Chalmers hit that shot. Once the game was tied and went into overtime, everyone knew that Kansas was going to win. Similar to the West Virginia-Xavier Sweet 16 game, where West Virginia’s star missed a free throw in the waning seconds that would have won the game and the Mountaineers ending up losing in overtime, the momentum was completely swung in favor of the Jayhawks.

Kansas showed that they were the most complete and balanced team in the tournament. Despite not having a single player named to the Big 12 First Team All-Conference, their collective depth, talent and perseverance enabled Kansas to overcome star-driven teams like Davidson, UNC and Memphis. While I’m happy for Kansas, I do feel a little bad for Memphis. To lose a game on a tough missed shot is one thing, but to let a game slip away after going 1 of 5 on free throws down the stretch…that will stay with those Memphis players for a long time to come. However, the game should be remembered for Kansas’ clutch shots and valiant comeback, rather than Memphis choking.

On a personal side note, the fact that Kansas won made me feel like a bit of an idiot. You may recall that, at the beginning of the tournament, I bemoaned the discovery that I had actually selected UCLA to win the National Championship, rather than Kansas. While I did correctly predict all of the Final Four teams, the UCLA pick ended up costing me a spot in the all-important top two of my pool. Had I merely selected Kansas to win the final (as I intended), I would have finished tied for first. With a forty plus person pool and a $20 “enjoyment” fee, well you can do the math and perhaps understand my pain. I still managed to finish fourth, but that won’t buy me a new flat-screen TV.

Even Nature Hates Boston!

In this story posted on SI.com, apparently Nature got fed up with annoying Fenway fans and took out its pent-up aggression on a 13 year old girl. It would have made more sense if the victim was a pink-jersey (or hat) wearing, stumbling drunk bandwagoner, but I guess Nature works in mysterious ways.

Top NFL QB Prospects - By the Numbers

Taking a break from college basketball for a moment, let's look at some of the potential first-day NFL quarterback draft prospects. NFL Draft gurus have been moving guys up and bumping guys down since the start of the college season back in August. Even since the last game, players such as Andre Woodson have fluctuated wildly without having played a single down. I have broken down key stats for four individuals, which I'll present first before revealing names.

Looking at last season's stats, I've classified key passing performance stats as "positive" and "negative", for simplicity's sake. By my judgment, the following stats are considered "good", or at least above average, for a single game: 60+% completion rate, 2 or more touchdown passes, no interceptions, and 8.0+ average yards per attempt. I considered the following to be "negative" performances: Under 50% completion rate, 0 TD's, two or more interceptions, and under 6.0 YPA.

Player A
Positive Stats:
60+% Compl – 10 games out of 14
2+ TD’s – 9/14
0 INT – 7/14
8.0+ YPA – 3/14

Negative:
Under 50% Comp – 1/14
0 TD’s – 1/14
2+ INTs – 2/14
Under 6.0 YPA – 5/14

Pro Passer Rating – 94.2

Player B
Positive:
60+% Compl – 5/10
2+ TD’s – 5/10
0 INT – 2/10
8.0+ YPA – 2/10

Negative:
Under 50% Comp – 1/10
0 TD’s – 1/10
2+ INTs – 2/10
Under 6.0 YPA – 1/10

Pro Passer Rating – 86.6

Player C
Positive:
60+% Compl – 8/14
2+ TD’s – 9/14
0 INT – 3/14
8.0+ YPA – 3/14

Negative:
Under 50% Comp – 4/14
0 TD’s – 1/14
2+ INTs – 7/14
Under 6.0 YPA – 6/14

Pro Passer Rating – 83.4

Player D
Positive:
60+% Compl – 8/13
2+ TD’s – 11/13
0 INT – 6/13
8.0+ YPA – 4/13

Negative:
Under 50% Comp – 0/13
0 TD’s – 0/13
2+ INTs – 3/13
Under 6.0 YPA – 2/14

Pro Passer Rating – 101.4

Now that we have some basic stats for each quarterback, let's take a deeper look and make a few comparisons between the group.

Player A - Erik Ainge: This player had the highest percentage out of the group for games with at least a 60% completion rate and no interceptions. This player also had the fewest number of games with two or more interceptions. One drawback is yards per attempt - Ainge has a relatively high number of games with a YPA under 6.0. Given the high completion percentage stats, it is likely that a conservative passing game with an emphasis on safe, short passes would have decreased yards per attempt while increasing completion rates. Ainge's statistics indicate that he makes good decisions and runs an efficient offense.

Player B - Chad Henne: While injuries certainly have to be factored into any analysis of Chad Henne's senior year, the most obvious assumption to be made is that Henne is the most consistently average quarterback out of the group. He failed to exceed a 50% "positive" performance in any of the statistical categories for the season as a whole, but at the same time, had very few "negative" performances. In fact, outside of the Ohio State game, Henne had only two "negative" performances in any category. Nearly all of his games produced stats that fell into the in-between or average range.

Player C - Matt Ryan: Ah, Mr. Ryan, the presumptive number one draft pick. Matt Ryan's "positive" performance counts are roughly similar to Erik Ainge's. However, the noticeable difference is that Matt Ryan only managed to complete three games without throwing an interception. What is more worrisome is Ryan's performance in the "negative" categories. Out of the group, he had the highest number of instances with a sub-50% completion rate, multiple interceptions, and sub-6.0 YPA. In fact, he had as many games with multiple interceptions as the other three quarterbacks combined, and had twice as many games with a completion percentage under 50%. It is also worth noting that Matt Ryan had the lowest passer rating out of the group.

Player D - Andre Woodson: Somewhat surprisingly, Woodson led or was right behind the leader in every "positive" category. He also performed well in the negative categories. Woodson threw two or more touchdowns in 11 of 13 games and never failed to complete a TD pass in any game. He never completed less than 50% of his passes and went without an interception in over half of his games. He also had the highest passer rating out of the group. Woodson was criticized once the Kentucky Wildcats tumbled out of the polls late in the season, but his stats did not deteriorate that greatly. Certainly, the increased level of compeititon contributed to the minor decline, but he only had one true "bad" game, which was the disappointing loss to Mississippi State.

If I was to rank the players purely by their statistical performances last year, it would probably be Woodson, Ainge, Henne, Ryan, which is essentially the reverse order in which they are likely to be drafted. Matt Ryan appears to be a certain first-rounder. Chad Henne will probably go in the third round, while Ainge could fall into the fourth or fifth round. Woodson is the hardest to predict and go anywhere between the second and fifth round.

I'm not trying to say that Matt Ryan will never be a successful NFL quarterback. Certainly, with the likes of the McCown brothers, Damon Huard and Todd Collins garnering significant playing time, there is ample opportunity for new players to step up. I just feel that Matt Ryan is not worthy of the number one overall pick, or should even go in the first round, and that players like Ainge and Woodson should be given more consideration for the success at the college level.

Matt Ryan gets a lot of credit for being a "leader" and winning the tough games, but was Boston College's season really all that much more successful than Tennessee or Michigan's seasons? The 14-10 win over Virginia propelled Matt Ryan into the spotlight, but lost in shine of that winning throw was Virginia Tech's pathetic prevent defense and the fact that Ryan also completed less than half of his passes and threw two interceptions that game.

Granted, the NFL requires a different skill set than the college game, and maybe Ainge doesn't have a strong enough arm, or Woodson has a funky delivery, but shouldn't statistical performance count for something? Scouts may be impressed by Matt Ryan's 4500 yard season, but if you really dig into it, the numbers are not quite as impressive. As financial firms always state, past performance does not guarantee future returns - but at the very least, it gives you an idea of what to expect.