nfreeman

Interesting list. Most of the teams seem logical enough (that may admittedly be a bit generous to the Sabres), but why are Edmonton and Ottawa doing there (he's from just outside Toronto)? Does he think he's going to get a spot on McDavid's line?

No disagreement on Rob -- I wasn't commenting on him. I will say that bringing him on looks to me like another debacle predictor. Good call on the cap space -- that is DW's baby. Bottom line is that the Bills have a mediocre team and aren't spending any money on the QB position -- and they're still capped out. That is poor GMing.

I agree -- good call on Gus. As for Chuck, he certainly didn't cover himself in glory last night. I can understand the tape recorder trick, because he did want to clear his name (although I did think it was kinda predictable), but lying to Jimmy about their mom's last words was petty and inexcusable.

I should also say that I find Rex quite endearing, that I'd be happy to see him succeed and that I think it's not at all unlikely that he gets this team back into the playoffs (in large part because I think TT can take a big step next season). But the storm clouds are unmistakable.

I think Aud and I (and I would guess many others) are feeling a growing concern that the game has passed Rex by, that the wheels are reasonably likely to come off this season and that it will be the last time anyone gives Rex a HC job.

I am pretty close to declaring that not only will Leggy not be back with the Sabres, I don't think he'll be in the NHL next season.

How is Schaller a UFA already? No thanks on Leggy.

Who do we think put the note on Mike's car? And was that the truck driver that met his demise in the desert?

Please make sure you buy extra tickets with the intention of re-selling them so we can discuss the pros and cons of your strategy. It's been too long since that topic has been examined.

Well, I don't see how you can call the examples I gave (minor arrest, fight, etc.) hyperbolic, especially when you consider what he actually did -- cost his dad and the rest of his family the store -- and what you and I both think is going to happen with Kim.

I could see a one-year flyer on Bouwmeester, although I don't think he's GMTM's kinda player. But I am solidly NFW on signing up for 3 years of him. That would be like doubling down on Moulson's deal.

Regarding the Rock -- I'm not a fan of Michael Bay's, although as I mentioned above his movies certainly include some good action scenes. Aliens was good. I just think it's a bit overrated. And I really liked Prometheus. But it's a close call IMHO. As for T2 -- also good, but too long and corny in parts (e.g. Arnold going "Now I understand why you cry"), whereas T1 was pretty much perfect IMHO.

I am a NFW on Bouwmeester.

I didn't like the Rock or Face off (which was also directed by John Woo, so I was kinda disappointed), although both had some good scenes. Another excellent under the radar action movie was Ronin (the one with De Niro) and a notch below but still enjoyable was Predator. I liked it but didn't love it. I think I liked Prometheus better. Maybe avatar too, although that was kinda corny.

I should also say that, having listened to GMTM's & DDB's end-of-year presser last night, GMTM sounded pretty happy with his group of forwards, and indicated a couple of times that he really wants a QB-type defenseman. So, since the prior attempt at Stamkos was last summer -- i.e. before GMTM got a look at ROR, Eichel, Reino and Kaner in Sabres uniforms, plus Bailey, Rodrigues (whom GMTM also praised), Schaller, etc. -- it's quite possible that GMTM's ardor for Stammer has cooled and that he'll allocate resources elsewhere this summer.

And starring a shortly-after-Pulp-Fiction John Travolta in a great villain role, plus Christian Slater, and directed by John Woo. It was really good.

If you like Wes Anderson, I recommend "Royal Tenenbaums." I was one of the Mad-Max-was-just-OK group (there were only a few of us, IIRC). My top 4 action movies of all time: 1. The Terminator (the first one) 2. Speed 3. Broken Arrow 4. Total Recall (the one with Arnold) Of course, YMMV.

FWIW, Ken Campbell of The Hockey News was on Hockey Hotline (no longer with Kevin Sylvester) today and reported that GMTM tried to trade for Stamkos last summer. He also said that it's pretty certain that Stamkos is leaving TB, and that he didn't think Stamkos would go to Toronto. Campbell said the most likely destination is Detroit. If true (and I think Campbell is OK, but just OK), I think that means it's pretty likely that GMTM takes a respectable swing at Stammer this summer in free agency. Boom!

WC -- How long is the internship for? And is it full-time? If it's full-time and for an appreciable period of time (6 months or more) I would recommend taking the internship unless you have a better offer elsewhere. The internship is a great opportunity to get in front of the people you want to work for and show them that you can be an asset to the company if and when they're ready to hire an entry-level person for a regular position.

MODO -- very glad you're here, and very sorry about your team. These things tend to go in cycles, though -- they'll be back.

We've all got our issues. For example, I am no longer capable of walking anywhere alone for more than 2 minutes unless I am listening to a podcast.

Speaking of the Surface: I just pulled the trigger on a Surface Pro 3. I should be receiving it tomorrow. I'm pretty psyched -- a friend of mine has one and loves it. My primary needs are (i) having a tablet to use around the house for email, internet, netflix, etc. and (ii) having the tablet "flex" into a laptop when I travel and want to work while traveling (which is pretty frequently during the summer). I wanted a Windows product because my work system is 100% windows-based, and my understanding is that the Surface will integrate very well with my work system. I sprung for the i7 CPU, which comes with 8 GB of RAM, so I'm cautiously optimistic that I'll get 3-5 years out of it before it ages out. I saved a good bit of cash by getting it on ebay, which carries its own special set of risks. I've had good luck buying tablets and laptops on ebay previously, so I'm not that concerned, but of course anything can happen. I'll report back once I've gotten it set up.

Definitely. Borderline nutcase. And I think you're right that the audience is meant to like Jimmy more than Chuck. I just take issue with the "Jimmy's good/Chuck is bad" theme that has sprung up around here. I agree that Chuck doesn't think Jimmy should be practicing law, but not that he's taken steps designed to retard his progress. Although keeping Jimmy out of HHM undoubtedly had the effect of retarding his progress, that, IMHO, was not Chuck's purpose in doing so -- his purpose was to protect HHM. What other affirmative steps has Chuck taken to retard Jimmy's progress? Let's just say what happens in the NF casino...

Chuck may have acted in a two-faced manner with Jimmy, but that isn't "sabotaging" Jimmy's legal career. Jimmy was at all times free to build a legal career -- just not at Chuck's firm. (OTOH, Jimmy forging documents to harm Chuck's client and cause Chuck to lose the client absolutely was "sabotage.") Jimmy's working hard to get his law degree and Kim's exile have nothing to do with any alleged sabotage -- not sure how those are relevant. Is Chuck a tight-ass? Should he treat Jimmy with more kindness and familial affection? Absolutely. But protecting HHR from his destructive little brother, isn't the same as "sabotaging" Jimmy -- even if the effects of protecting HHR were detrimental to Jimmy. We all know guys like Jimmy -- i.e. guys who are loyal and whose hearts are usually in the right place, but who continually screw things up for themselves AND for the people around them. They are the guys who crack wise to the cop who's pulled over the car with everyone out for a night on the town, resulting in everyone getting arrested, or the guys who shoplift, also resulting in everyone getting arrested, or the guys who start a fight at a party held by a rival school, resulting in beatdowns/arrests, etc. They're fun, and they'll get out of bed in the middle of a snowy night to pick you up if your car breaks down -- but they'll also keep taking risks with your assets, and you'll end up worse off, and they never learn.

How, exactly, did Chuck try to sabotage Jimmy's legal career? By not wanting Jimmy to practice law at HHM? Am I forgetting something? As for being willing to send Jimmy to jail, we don't know that he would've taken it that far, although it's certainly possible.