2008 NHL Draft, ABC's new hockey series, and baseball deja vu

Well, this evening, the NHL held its annual draft --- the annual ritual where 18 year old junior hockey players become multi-millionaire adults. This year, the draft took place north of the border in the Canadian capital, Ottawa, Ontario. There were little surprises with those selected. Of note, the Toronto Maple Leafs moved up in the draft selection sequence and picked defenseman Luke Schenn. This is certainly the beginning of a new era in Maple Leafs hockey and it is apparent that General Manager Cliff Fletcher wants to shake things up. Of note even before the draft started was the news that the Leafs have given the Montreal Canadiens exclusive permission to talk with Mats Sundin. This is ironic since Sundin invoked his "no trade" clause prior to the trade deadline this past season when the Habs expressed strong interest in him for the playoff and Stanley Cup run.

In other news from the draft, the Florida Panthers traded their captain, Olli Jokinen to the Phoenix Coyotes. In return, the Panthers received two former first round pick defensemen, Keith Ballard and Nick Boynton. While Jokinen was a fan favourite, he pulled a disappearing act in the last 22 games last season, scoring only 5 goals --- at exactly the time when the Panthers needed him the most! Now, it is time for the rest of the Panthers to step up and lead this team to the playoffs!

Speaking of hockey, what is with ABC's new soap, "MVP"? The show shows hockey players as self-centered, drug addicts or alcoholics. The show is laughable; they don't even show these guys wearing a pair of Bauers!!!! The only thing missing is a stereo-typical Canuck accent and a flurry of "oooots" and sentences ending with "eh".

And, am I stuck in a time warp? Seems the Toronto Blue Jays fired their manager and the entire coaching staff and replaced the former with...wait...yes, Cito Gaston! Yes, you reading correctly. This is the same Cito that took the Jays to the promised land year after year after year and made the Jays one of the most feared teams in baseball history --- THE 1992 AND 1993 WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONS!!!! What's next? I guess the Jays bring Dave Stieb, Jim Clancy, Tom Henke, Duane Ward out of retirement for the pitching staff AND convince Joe Carter, Kelly Gruber, George Bell, Jesse Barfield, John Olerud back to the major leagues! "O.K....Blue Jays!...Let's Play Ball!!!!!"

A Need to Blog --- A Sad Historic Day and Hope for the Future

I have not authored an entry on this blog in some time --- personal reasons and time have been barriers. But, with June 5th ticking away, I felt compelled to express some views about this day --- the 4oth anniversary of Robert F. Kennedy's assassination at the hands of the cold blooded murderer, Sirhan Sirhan. I was not born until a month later in July 1968, but even as a Canadian school student, we were exposed to American history and the impact that RFK had on American politics during JFK's short-lived 1,000 days and his own "maturity" after becoming a Senator for the state of New York. RFK's campaign only lasted 82 days --- minute compared to what we have experienced over the last many months between Obama and Clinton. But, during those 82 days, there was hope --- hope that the United States would finally leave Vietnam; hope that the race divide would end even after MLK's murder in Memphis; hope that the divide between the have's and have not's would be narrowed. This was the hope and dream that vanished after RFK stepped off the podium at the Ambassador Hotel that fateful night. Some would say that this dream has never been rekindled --- and this can be true.



What has followed after RFK? Nixon's escalation in Vietnam and Cambodia and as Gerald Ford so aptly stated, "the long, national nightmare". This was followed by Carter and the humiliation of the Iran hostage taking. Reagan? The great communicator who did not know he was even president during his second term? Yes, he made the United States feel good again, but at what price? Bush Sr.'s presidency was a blip --- forget about reading his lips about taxes and his war for oil that his son has escalated into a quagmire that will leave this country --- the country where dreams are made of --- bankrupted and hated many external forces. Clinton was promise unfulfilled; if only he had kept his $#^&* in his pants.

And, on this day that we mournfully look back 40 years ago, it is ironic...but more so, we are hopeful that RFK's dream has come alive once again in the form of Barack Obama. Obama is packing them in for his speeches that are reminiscent of the crowds that reached out to RFK. His words are inspiring and he is reaching out to all backgrounds to join him to make this country great AGAIN and stresses the potential that this great country has and a need to shed ourselves of the last eight nightmare years of George W. Bush.

So, on this day, we should not forget the passing of RFK and images that have haunted us for 4o years --- the famous picture of the hotel worker holding his near-lifeless body in the Ambassador Hotel's kitchen, the funeral train winding its way from New York to Washington, or Teddy Kennedy's famous eulogy. We should also be looking to the future and hope that RFK's dream for a just American society is channeled through Barack Obama and an historical victory in November!