A Weekend of Spankings

No, not that kind of spanking, get your mind out of the gutter wil ya?

No, all the "New York" teams in hockey, basketball and football were involved in spankings this past weekend. Let's review the carnage, dished out and received, shall we?

Hockey
1. Friday night, the Islanders were strafed by Sidney Crosby and the Penguins (Eric Mangini's favorite team?), losing 7-4. Rick DiPietro gave up 5 goals in 2 periods, and was replaced at the start of the third period by Mike Dunham. The Isles tried to make it interesting in the third, scoring 2, but to no avail. How would they rebound on Saturday?

2. Saturday night, at the Coliseum, Alexei Yashin made his longed for return to the ice (wow, still trying to wrap my mind around the fact the Isles need Yashin). Rick DiPietro was in the net, and the boys rebounded big against the first place Atlanta Thrasher, winning 6-0. Yashin had a goal, so did Satan. Shawn Bates remembered where the back of the net was as well. Prior to the game, the Isles traded Alexei Zhitnick to the Flyers for a young defenseman, freeing up $3 million in cap room.

3. At the same time, the Rangers were getting pounded by the Leafs, to the tune of 9-2. This of course, made Ed happy, as nothing is more pleasing than seeing "King Henrik" get the Patrick Roy treatment from his coach. Henrik gave up 8 goals on 24 shots.

4. Last night, the Rangers were strafed by the Devils, 6-1. Another beating. This did not make Ed as happy, since the Rangers will be pissed of coming into Tuesday's game against the Isles at MSG.

Football
1. The Jets. Ah, this made Ed very happy. Ed likes it when the game plan calls for lots of balls for Coles. Ed likes it when Chad can bounce back from an early fumble to march the team down the field for a tying touchdown. Ed likes it when Mangini says "I got your vaunted run defense right here!" and has Cedric Houston run it in from 6 yards out for that TD. Ed likes it when Mike Nugent kicks a 52 yard field goal. Ed does not like seeing Coles hurt on a hit to the back. Ed likes that if not for a garbage time TD for the Vikes, the Jets gave a beating to the Vikings. Ed is going to stop talking in the third person now. He spent too much time listening to Coles in the post game interview room.

2. The (notso) Giants, penned as resurrected after last weekend's victory, returned to earth, getting spanked in the 4th quarter yesterday, to l0se to the Jeff Garcia led Eagles. Jeromymemine was tlaking after the game about how they just need to win the next couple. The coach of course blamed Eli for the late INT returned for a TD. Perhaps he should tell his O-Line to block better. So now toady, we will read about how the (notso) Giants are done.

Basketball
Now, I normally do not talk about hoops, as I am not much of a fan, but this weekend deserves some coverage.

1. What can I say about the Knicks, except they are the biggest suck that ever sucked. Friday night, they get the snot kicked out of them by the Pacers, 112-96, and Mardy Collins gave a preview of what would happen on Saturday with a late game flagrant foul.

Saturday, December 16, is a date that should go down in infamy. It should also mark the end of the reign of terrible that is Isiah in charge of the Knicks. Down by 23 to the Nuggets, Zeke could be seen telling Carmelo Anthony to stay out of the paint. A couple of minutes later, Collins gave a clothesline worthy of the WWE to JR Smith. Then, Napoleon got involved, as Nate the Grate got in Smith's face, and challenged him to t fight. Smith obligned, and they went tumbling into the stands. This being a Knicks game, the seats were not very full, and thankfully no fans tried to get in any cheap shots (this is NY, not Detroit after all). After this was broken up, 'Melo sucker punched Collins, sending him down. So I guess 'Melo has a message for those who snitch, and for those who clothesline.

What David Stern has to do now is quite simple, all involved need to be suspended. Big time. Not one game, I'm talking multiples. Not just the players, but the coaches as well. Karl had not business keeping his starters in the game with a minute + left. Give him a game just for being an ass. Thomas on the other hand should be banned for a minumum of 10 games. He TOLD 'Melo something was coming. He sent Collins out there. And after the game, he was unapologetic. This is hoops, not hickey you idiot. Hockey, you send a goon out to go after another goon to send a message, and it is an accepted part of the game. In hoops, you take your beating, and you try to administer one the next time you face the beater. Of course, this being the Knicks, who knows when that will be. The point is that this is unacceptable. Zeke is one of the original "Bad Boys", and still thinks like he is a player, when in reality he is nothing more than a punk. Dolan should can his ass for the ridicule he has brought upon the team in the past couple of years, and for this disgace on Saturday. You don't like getting the snot kicked out of you, try manning up early in the game, not with 1 minute left. As for Nate the Grate, suspend his ass for 15 games. He escalated it. Plays the tough guy, coins his own nickname, has a little blog of his own on MSNBC (he guys, you think maybe you should cancel that now?). The guy has energy, but he is a detriment to the team.

So, we closed a weekend of spankings for the NY teams. Some I loved, some, not so much. Entertaining most were.

Coming tomorrow, unless the Mets sign Zito, is my list of favorite Holiday songs.