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This is starting to turn into a bash on Jose blog.

But it sure is fun

Jose Hilton and his girlfriend have asked for an apology and retraction over reports that they have split up, or that she has kicked him out of the house.

So here is the official JAHL apology:

• I’m sorry you drink Jack Daniels
• I’m sorry for whatever you catch from Her Hiltonness (perhaps a cold that will keep you out of action for half a season)
• I’m sorry you can’t catch a puck
• I’m sorry your hair is or isn’t falling out
• I’m sorry you can’t stand on ice in your driveway
• I’m sorry you couldn’t have your mask repainted to reflect your new team, even though you had ample time while recovering from a broken foot

There you have it. I hope the apologies are accepted. And the next time you don’t like the spotlight, perhaps you can do what a lot of players here in Colorado do. Avoid it.

Wanna know why I’m not sold on Jose Hilton?

This is part of it.

I feel a rant about the goalie situation coming on. And I don’t think it’s going to be pretty. I may not even care about the spelling.

Rants….mmm…..

I love calling in to XM Radio. I don’t always agree about what they say, but it’s always a good chat. Today, I think I was on for about 4-5 minutes. And they usually like talking to me, so it’s more fun then the hit-and-go calls you hear on most talk and sports radio.

When I took a road trip, seeing a game in every UHL city (14 at the time), plus half the CHL, XM Radio was a life saver. When I wasn’t listening to hockey, it was the comedy. No comedy, back to hockey. No matter what you think of certain bloggers being taken under their wings, this one likes them.

So it’s true, the St. Louis Blues signed Dan Hinote to a multi-year contract. The only report (unconfirmed) I’ve heard, is for 3 years, at $1 mil a year.

From the St. Louis Blues website:

“Dan is a character player who brings speed and grit to our team,” said
Davidson. “He’s a Stanley Cup champion who should instantly become a fan
favorite.”

For once, I agree with John Davidson. Danny is going to be loved in St. Louis. He brought a lot to this team, and will be sorely missed.

Which brings me to the theme of the weekend, which is what the hell are the Avs doing? What are they waiting for? So far, one forward is all we’ve picked up, and we’ve lost our number one D-man, and our grit and character. Hinote will never be known for his clutch scoring, but that’s just what he did at the end of last season, and in the playoffs (no, not like a real power forward, but still, there he was). There needs to be some serious replacements coming in here. There is no time like the present, because there will be no time very soon.

The salary cap and the bonus money being honored from 2001 contracts will be the excuse we hear for the season. And as I say, the salary cap giveth and the salary cap taketh away. And with the money the Avs have spent over the last ten years, there was no way they would be on the taketh away end of life for a while. The Avs of old are dead, but I have yet to think “Long live the Avs.”

But look at the rest of the division. Vancouver got exactly what they needed, good goaltending and less distractions. Edmonton loses Pronger (to the Ducks), but signed Roloson, and have some fresh salary room to sign some free agents. Calgary gets Tanguay, which addresses who to put with Iginla, and the Wild are addrestheirthier scoring needs, and the only way things don’t get better for them is if Jacques Lamaire out coaches the scoring.

The Avs had better get moving, there is no time to wait. We are losing our players left and right, and not much coming in. Maybe Francois Giguere is spending too much time on the phone with Pierre Lacroix asking for permission. But Giguere seems to think the team is in good shape.

From the Denver Post:

Giguere reiterated his belief the Avs, though suffering a potentially big
loss in Blake, are in good shape for next season. One reason, he said, is the
presence of goalie Jose Theodore.
“This year, we’re going into the season
with a top-flight goal- tender from Day One,” Giguere said.

Really? We’re going to rely on Jose Hilton to get this thing done for us? One 52 save game, and all of a sudden, he’s our guy? He is the guy who makes up for losing BLAKE????? I don’t think so. Having a “top-flight goal-tender” would be nice, but that’s not what we have. He better step it up from last year, or (dare I say it) we ain’t making the playoffs at this point.

Yep, I said it. And I’m not taking it back.

YouTube is the only think keeping me from going nuts right now, as I wait to hear the facts, as to whether or not Dan Hinote is really going to St. Louis. If true, expect a frothing-at-the-mouth rant soon following.

Wow, what a busy day. I hear Blackhawks GM Dale Tallon had a nice nap yesterday. Also, it looks like the Avalanche offices have closed early for the holiday. I mean, who works on Canada Day, really? Gotta have priorities here, folks.

Where are the Avs? OK, we got one guy yesterday, but at an NHL career high of 22 goals and 55 points, is he really a day one priority? I’m sure he would have been available day two, but not some of the blue line help we need now.

I wonder how long it took for talks with Rob Blake to break down, before he signed with LA. I’m sure LA had offers ready, but there couldn’t have been much time. Seriously, good for Blake. He has a big home in LA, and gets some serious bank at what could be the end of his career. I can’t fault him.

But I can fault the Avs. This free agency period is a competition right now. We have some of the same needs as several clubs. Who doesn’t need a defenseman who doesn’t take penalties? But with things as quiet as they are, I’m wondering who is going to be left? As of this writing, the only big D-man left is Brendan Witt, and he won’t last.

Someone tell me when we are going to get a team going, and what the sticking points are. Then, I can go take a nap, just like a GM.

Happy Canada Day! (This statement is required by blogger so as not to offend any Canadians who read this)
Is it coincidence that UFA day and Canada Day are the same day? Why would you want to have such conflicting events happening at the same time. “Yeah, Canada! Boo, Chara’s an LA King.” Strange.

Musing throughout the day about the free agency signings, and whatever else.

Chris Mason – Why it took this long to sign him, I don’t know, maybe it was required of the team. But if I were him, I’d be asking for more playing time. When Vokoun went down with a medical condition, Mason was not ready for duty, due to not playing enough games. I realize it’s the way of the world sometimes, backing up a star goalie, but it was a mistake to keep him on the bench so much (a mistake that wasn’t exclusive it Nashville).

Dwayne Roloson – Resigns with the Oilers. Good for him. Really. Now, let’s see if he gets the long-term-high-dollar-blues that Turco and Giguere and all of them seem to get after a big signing.

Washington Caps resign Brent Johnson – And the world breathed a collective sigh.

Chara – An LA King? Really? weird…

Chara – And now a Bruin? What? How many other reports are going to come out about him? This makes more sense to me than going to LA. Could you see Chara rollerblading down the beach? No. Just stop. Considering how people don’t seem to enjoy being in Boston these days, maybe $7.5 mil for 5 years is just to get him past the bad behavior of the club.

John Grahame to Carolina – I’m just glad he went somewhere. He may not ever be a number 1 for a long time, but at least he’s signed.

Tyler Arnason is an Av - Ok. Don’t know too much about him. Kind of average for a first day pick up. One year deal.

Jovo to Phoenix – Good for Phoenix. They could use someone like him.

Osgood is back with Detroit – Do you think Jose Hilton will fight him?

4:00 PM – Where is the Rob Blake news? What’s the hold up? Worry meter tingling.

Blake talks break off – Damn, the worry meter is going to get a downgrade. From the Denver Post, the issue being the $2.3 mil bonus that counts against the cap, and therefore takes away salary to give him. I’m sure more details will come to light soon, but for now, lets hope they don’t wait too long to look for other D men, or resign Liles. Again, damn.

Gerber goes to Ottawa – Does this mean Hasek is done? Or is that it for Ray Emery? Even though Emery stepped up after Hasek’s injury, I know they weren’t to happy with him as a person sometimes. But my feeling is Gerber as a 1A, Emery as a 1B. Gotta wonder what is going though the minds of Sens fans today. Happy Canada Day!

And just like That, Blake is a King – That didn’t take long. From the time the story came out that Blake was no longer an Av, to the signing with the Kings (2 year, $12 mil), no more than two hours passed. You know the Kings had an offer ready to pounce with. I can’t wait for the Av’s silence to become uncomfortably deafening. As of 6:12 pm MST, his stats are still on the team website. We’ll see how long it takes for them to take them down (ala Tanguay).

Lalime signed by Blackhawks - What is it with the Hawks and goalies? Khabibulin underachives last season, so they hire the guy who couldn’t save in a 401k in St. Louis last year. This just in, Blackhawks have most goals against for 2006-07 season.

Carney to Wild – The funniest thing I have ever heard yelled at a player was at the 2003 SCF Game 7 Ducks at Devils. “Hey, Carney, guess my weight!”

I just got back from pickup. And that, for me, means beginners pickup. Beginners. In other words, I’m a 33 year old who just started skating a few years ago. That means I suck. That means, when I go to beginners pickup, I expect other people who are beginners also. And for the most part, they are.

But, for some reason, there always seams there’s the guy who loves to skate circles around everybody else. The guy who always has the breakaway. The guy who is outskating the rest of his team.

“Hey, you know this is beginners pickup, right?”

“Well, I’m not the
best. If nobody else has a problem with it…”

Hey, F*%khole, if I didn’t have a problem with it, I wouldn’t say anything. It’s beginners, and people are chopping at goalies, taking headhunting slapshots, and pumping fists after scoring on a goalie who is just as beginner as everyone else. Which, if you didn’t know, is just f*#king wrong.

It doesn’t help that I’m icing my knee, because of being knocked down by the F*#khole, so I am biased. Who cares? I’m sick of ringers coming in and ruining things for the rest of us. And by the rest of us, I mean those of us learning to play the game. And it isn’t just playing hockey…

You see the same thing as a fan, people who “know more”, we’re there “back in the day,”scoff at you, make you feel like you are unworthy of being a fan., because, like royalty in England, you weren’t born in to it. It isn’t like it used to be, it never will be, old time hockey, you should have seen, you missed out.

I feel like one of the rare breed of hockey fan, the one who put one skates, and tries every time. The one who learned the rules, learned how to skate, tried like you wouldn’t believe. I’m the one who read the books, talked the talk, then found out how hard it is to walk the walk. I’m the one who found out the hard way.

Those who had the opportunity to start early, and still have a love for the game, you are the lucky ones. I started skating at the ripe age of 30. I saw my first live game at the same age. I wasn’t blessed with the early appreciation that so many Canadians have, or so many from New England, or those with an Original Six team nearby.

But I still care, and I still love the sport, and on the ice, I take short shifts, work hard, and cheer on the other people (guys and “gals”).

I could just do without the ringers.