Goodbye #5

This post probably won't be read very much outside of St. Louis and then only by the ice hockey fans in the area.

#5 was worn by longtime St. Louis Blues favorite Bobby Plager.  Plager joined the club in its expansion year in 1967 and played at the old barn on Oakland Avenue for eleven years.  He was a defenseman best known for his hard hitting defense and an occasional  goal or assist.  After retiring from the team Plager worked in the front office in a host of capacities until his retirement in 1992.

Mr. Plager died on Wednesday on an interstate highway in the city of St. Louis.  Initial reports blamed his death on an automobile accident, but medical officials now believe the accident was the result of a coronary event which caused his death.  He was 78 years old.  Plager was preceded in death by his brothers Barclay and Billy, who also played for the Blues.

I was fortunate to see Mr. Plager and his brothers play for the Blues when I was in  high school and college.  He never backed down from a fight and took on some of the toughest enforcers in the National Hockey League.  He wasn't the best player on those teams by any means, but he was always a huge fan favorite because of his hustle and hard hitting style.

Rest in Peace Mr. Plager.

Stanley Cup Champions

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia and NHL

It's been 24 hours since the Saint Louis Blues won the Stanley Cup four games to three over the Boston Bruins.  It is the first time in the 52 year history of the Blues franchise they have won ice hockey's "Holy Grail".

I didn't know if the Blues would win one in my lifetime.  But, last night they pulled it off.  And for a long suffering fan I have to say it feels great to be a Blues fan.  In fact I have never been more proud of the team.  I would compare the warm and fuzzy feeling I had last night to that of any of the five World Series championships won by my beloved St. Louis Cardinals.  And the feeling is similar to when the SAINT LOUIS Rams beat the Tennessee Titans in January 2000 to win Super Bowl 34.

To me the Blues won by taking the game directly to the Bruins and outhitting them over the seven games.  The Blues fore-checked, fore-checked and fore-checked some more.  I don't think Boston was intimidated by any means but they knew the Blues meant business.  Once the Blues got up in each of their victories they played defense that robbed the Bruins of numerous opportunities.  When Boston did get good scoring chances Blues Goalie Jordan Binnington was acrobatic in the net and stopped shot after shot in frustrating Boston.

This is the most rewarding season I can remember watching as the Blues came from last place in the first week of January to go on and win ten games in a row and then beat the Jets, Stars, Sharks and Bruins to win the NHL's Holy Grail.

Some of the boorish fans in Boston won't agree but the better team won this series.

#LGB  #PlayGloria

LGB!

The title of this post is not a reference to any social issue.  It is instead the phrase St. Louis Blues fans are saying and writing to express their support of the ice hockey team; "Let's Go Blues!"  The Blues are in a battle with the Boston Bruins for the 2018-2019 Stanley Cup.  At this point the series is tied at two games with game five of seven scheduled for Thursday night in Boston.
I am a casual fan of the Blues and haven't been to a game in person since early January of 2016 at the Enterprise Center, formerly known as the Scottrade Center in downtown St. Louis.  But, the playoff games this year have been exciting.  So exciting I get to the point where I have to turn off the TV because they make me too nervous.St. Louis and Boston have a long history of playing championships against each other.  The Cardinals and Red Sox have met four times in the World Series with each team winning twice, the St. Louis Rams and New England Patriots played each other in Super Bowl 36.  During the late 1950's and early 60's the Hawks and Celtics played for the NBA Championship four times with Boston winning three times.The Blues have always had a loyal core following but have never had as many fans as they do now.  Many of the fans cheering for the hockey club have jumped on the bandwagon and that number continues to grow.  And as it grows so do the number of people saying or shouting LGB!

Pitiful

What's pitiful you ask?  The St. Louis Blues ice hockey team.  As I write this the team trails the Vancouver Canucks 5-0 after two periods.

I enjoy the game but don't pretend to be too knowledgeable of it.  But, I do know St. Louis doesn't play much defense and at times they seem to have trouble putting the puck in the net.  That's not a good formula for success.  Coming into this game the team was 10-13-4.  The team can be impressive one night (as they were on Friday night when they beat the Winnipeg Jets 1-0) or look like crap as they do right now.

It's a long season since the National Hockey League plays 82 games before the playoffs.  But, if the Blues don't turn it around soon there won't be any playoffs come April.

Quick Thoughts in Late March

Greetings friends, my life seems to get busier the older I get. So, here are some quick thoughts on what is happening in my world.

-I was angered to see Mizzou head coach Kim Anderson get fired by my Alma Mater; Missouri.  Anderson showed improvement as he was asked and the team is clean.  By, that I mean no recruiting or NCAA violations and the players are graduating.  Cuonzo Martin has had success at Southwest Missouri State, Tennessee and California.  But, I don't think he is the guy to take Mizzou to a Final Four.  Time will tell.  I just hope Missouri doesn't get in that rut of firing and hiring coaches every three to five years.  Mizzou tried that in football for 25 years and it didn't work very well.

-I voted for Donald Trump.  Actually I voted against Hilary Clinton.  But, the more Trump governs as President of this country the more frustrated I become.  Trump just doesn't seem to know when to shut the hell up.  Maybe he will mature the longer  he is president of the USA.

-The St. Louis Blues are like a Pogo stick.  They are up and down.  They win four or five in a row and then go on a six game losing streak.   But, beware NHL teams.  They have the players to take this team deep into the playoffs if not win the Stanley Cup.

Finally, I have no clue who will win the NCAA tournament.  Of the remaining teams it could be one of about five in the tournament.  If I were to pick a team at this point I would go with Kansas.  You know I'm a Missouri Tiger fan, but Kansas is playing as well if not better than any other team still alive in the big dance.  If Kansas doesn't win it beware the Tarheels.

Happy New Year...Even If it's a Few Days Late

I am writing this on January 3rd because frankly I was too busy to write it on January first.  I didn't see the New Year in and fell asleep in front of this computer, where I am writing now, about 11 p.m. on New Year's Eve.

I have enjoyed the New Year thus far because I have not yet gone back to work.  That will happen tomorrow and may I say with tongue firmly planted in cheek I can hardly wait to get back to the office and working with a bunch of "unique" individuals.

I guess the most fun I have had in the first three days of 2017 was watching the St. Louis Blues beat up on the Chicago Blackhawks in the NHL's "Winter Classic" played yesterday at Busch Stadium. The Hawks scored first, but the Blues came back with four unanswered goals to win the game 4-1.  I didn't score tickets to the game but enjoyed it with family and friends in front of my television.  The Blues were the better team yesterday, but the Blackhawks are still ahead of the Blues in the division standings.

I also took joy in watching my newly adopted Green Bay Packers beat up on the Detroit Lions on New Year's night.  I will write when I get some time about what the Packers front office did for me this past summer so that they are now my favorite NFL team since the Rams bolted St. Louis for Los Angeles.  And let me thank my friends L&J for a great day watching NFL Sunday Ticket while feeding me dinner.  You guys rock!

One thing about being on vacation is the chance to stay up late each night and to sleep in each morning.  I have enjoyed a number of fine craft beers in the past two weeks, some that have made me sleep like a baby.  But, now it is time to return to reality.  So, with reality in mind let me wish you a Happy and Healthy 2017!  May it be your best year yet and may you find it happy, health and prosperous!  Happy New Year and "Go Pack Go"!

Random Thoughts on a Mid May Day

With apologies to Todd Rundgren..."Hello, yeah its been a while".  It's been over a month since I last posted and I am doing just fine.  I hope you are too.

My last post was that North Carolina would win the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.  They didn't and Villanova did.  Congratulations Villanova.  You were good.

Now onto something I care about...baseball.  My beloved Cardinals have been mediocre thus far this season.  As I write this they are two games over .500 and 7 1/2 games behind their rivals the Chicago Cubs.  The Cardinals don't seem to have the hitting this year to win the National League Central or earn a wildcard spot.  I hope I'm wrong but at the end of the year I suspect they will be right at the .500 level.

Speaking of the Cardinals the Birds seem to have some power this year but so do a lot of other teams.  I think the ball is juiced and this article in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch might make you think the same thing.

Let's Go Blues!  Congratulations to the St. Louis Blues on advancing to the NHL Western Conference Finals.  The Blues eliminated the Dallas Starts four games to three last night with a 6-1 win in Dallas.  Prior to that they knocked off the Chicago Black Hawks in 7.  Up next its either the Nashville Predators or San Jose Sharks.  LGB (Lets Go Blues!)

I will write again when I have some time and will try to make it before another month passes.  Thanks for your patience and thanks for reading.

Another Good Sports Weekend

My beloved Missouri Tigers picked up win number ten this weekend as they defeated the Ole Miss Rebels 24-17.  Up next for Mizzou is "Johnny Football" and his Texas A&M Aggies.  The Tigers are now ranked #5 in the latest Associated Press poll.

The St. Louis Rams continued on their winning ways too.  They clobbered the Chicago Bears yesterday afternoon 42-21.  The Rams are now 5-6 and will fly to San Francisco this weekend to play the 49ers.

And if the football wins weren't enough, the Blues continued their winning ways with an easy 6-1 win over Dallas on Saturday night and Mizzou's basketball team improved to 5-0 Saturday afternoon with a 72-63 win over Gardner-Webb.

Wait 'Til Next Year

The title of this post is applicable not only the Saint Louis Cardinal baseball team,  but it may be applied to three other teams I follow on a regular basis.

Wait 'til next year could be the cry for my beloved Mizzou Tigers football team (3-4),  the Saint Louis Rams football team (3-4) and the Saint Louis Blues hockey club (0-0).  Oh wait, the Blues aren't playing you say.  You know what?  You're right;  they're on extended vacation because of the NHL owners lockout of players.

Blues Fire Murray

The St. Louis Blues have canned their head coach Bruce Murray after a four year run. The Blues have named 39 year old Davis Payne to take over the team on an interim basis.

Murray had a 118-102-38 record during his tenure and took the team to the playoffs for the first time in four years last spring. They were quickly eliminated by Vancouver in four straight games.

Apparently, the Blues front office decided a change was needed because the team was 6-13-3 at home this season, a league worst. The topper may have been the team blowing a 3-1 lead after two periods on New Year's Eve and losing 4-3.

Let's Go Blues

Three Stanley Cup playoff games are behind us and the Blues are in some deep trouble. The Vancouver Canucks could clinch the best of seven series tonight. I would have to say honestly that the Canucks have been the better team on the ice in all three games.

But, here's hoping the Blues can salvage the game at home tonight and worry about future games one at a time as they are played.

How 'Bout Them Blues!

The St. Louis Blues beat the Columbus Blue Jackets tonight 3-1 and guaranteed themselves an NHL playoff berth for the first time since 2005. The crowd at the Scottrade Center went crazy. Am I jumping on the bandwagon? You bet ya!

LETS GO BLUES!!!

Tough Night for The Good Guys

I spent much of this evening watching local teams take it on the chin. Up in Ames the Iowa State Cyclones downed my beloved Mizzou Tigers 72-67. The Tigers got beat at the free throw line hitting only 53 percent. That's not good enough to win at any level.

After the Tigers game I flipped over to the Blues game just in time to see them get beat up in Chicago by the Blackhawks. The game wasn't close with Chicago winning 6-1. The Hawks outshot the Blues badly.