Another Obama freakout is on the way

Here we go again -- some American progressives are freaking out over Obama's announcement about off-shore drilling.
Now, maybe I'm biased here -- I live in one of the few places in North America which was NOT devastated by the recession and it was Saskatchewan's resource development and related economic activity that was a key factor in maintaining employment here over the last two years.
And I grew up on a farm, where we made our living exploiting the land, so to speak.
So I have just never understood why an economic development activity like drilling for oil gets so identified with a right-wing political ideology, while other types of economic development like farming or building a shopping centre or opening up a factory usually doesn't have to carry such political freight.
Just because the Republican useful idiot Sarah Palin led those vacuous "drill, baby, drill" chants last year, Obama's agreement with oil development becomes some kind of profound betrayal of deeply held Democratic values and principles?
Get a grip, folks -- it's just an oil well.
No President, Democrat or Republican, should be expected to write off an economic development opportunity which would not only support American corporations, workers and communities, but would also have the side benefit of promoting American energy independence. If he did, just because the 'other side' is for it, then this would be a classic example of ideology trumping common sense.

Shorter

Shorter John Cole

I have a problem with you people!

President Obama Dithers on Drilling!

We went a bit rogue today and wrote a piece for the National Review Online instead of on Facebook. I love it when we mix it up a bit! It means I get to use a different font!

The Great Opologizer stated today that he was going to expand off-shore drilling. Of course, he is choosing to not drill in parts of Alaska. Hmm...

You know that wasn't going to sit well with Madame. Energy independence is like her 6th child! She went to work highlighting the softy southpaws tactics of trying to garner support for cap and tax due to this decision. However, for the Great Opologizer, his tactics weren't "drill, baby, drill" but "stall, baby, stall"! Stall, baby, stall is a lot like his war strategy--ditherer-in-chief!

Madame also spent some time highlighting her record, which is always awesome. Also, she reminded us that this is about jobs. Less drilling, fewer jobs!

Madame also said that she was going to speak about this next week in New Orleans! Yes, we cajun!

Antler Banter: Volume 22

There are only six games remaining in the Herd's regular season, and we could possibly have two or more weeks of playoff hockey. Antler Banter is back on Wednesday, and the Moose had two big games this week on Monday and Tuesday. We'll look at those two battles against division-rival Abbotsford, and we'll update the standings and what the Moose have to do to ensure a playoff berth. For all of your breaking and current Manitoba Moose news and information, head over to the Moose website. If you're interested in attending a Manitoba Moose game, please click here for seating information, ticket pricing, and availability. Let's get down to business with some Hardcore Hockey!

Points Make The Difference

Manitoba rolled into Abbotsford, BC for a couple of road games against a team ahead of them in the standings in the Heat. Manitoba trailed the Heat by a mere three points with an opportunity for four points in the two-game set, so you know these were big games for both teams. The Monday night tilt saw Cory Schneider start for Manitoba in net, and the Heat responded by sending Leland Irving to their blue paint.

Manitoba found themselves down two men after a penalty to Dusty Collins for slashing at 3:37, followed by a delay-of-game call on Travis Ramsey at 3:57, put the Moose behind the eight-ball early. The Moose were just about to kill off Collins' penalty, but the Heat made them pay for their indiscretions. The Heat worked the perimeter of the powerplay, passing between Latendresse and Delmore before Staffan Kronwall fired a puck from the top of the triangle just over Schneider's left pad at the 4:35 mark to put the home team up early. Kronwall's powerplay goal was his fifth of the season, and the Heat led 1-0.

The two teams battled for the rest of the period, but neither team was able to dent the twine. Newcomer Aaron Volpatti, wearing #11, made his impact felt as he rumbled with Logan MacMillan at 18:23, so the kids were looking to light the fire for the Moose again tonight. Abbotsford led in shots with a 7-5 lead, and had the 1-0 lead on the scoreboard after twenty minutes.

The second period, however, seemed like the Moose were playing at home. The largely pro-Manitoba crowd, thanks to their affiliation with the NHL's Vancouver Canucks, had a lot to cheer about after this period.

Taylor Ellington, who has been playing with the ECHL's Victoria Salmon Kings this season, scored an early goal when he ripped a slapshot past Irving off a great Mario Bliznak flip-pass across the point. Ellington's first of the season came just 1:28 into the second period, and the two teams were tied up again at 1-1.

3:12 later, the visitors took the lead. Mario Bliznak won a battle in front of the net against Mark Mitera, and chipped home a backhanded, cross-crease feed from Guillaume Desbiens at 4:40. The plucky Moose forward has his ninth of the season. More importantly, the Moose led 2-1, and that assist by Desbiens will be important later on in the game.

Moose rookie Jordan Schroeder made it a 3-1 game at 13:22. Tom Galvin fed Yan Stastny at the top of the right face-off circle, and his wrist shot was stopped by Irivng, but the goaltender couldn't control the rebound. The puck landed to his left where Schroeder was standing, and Schroeder stuffed home a backhanded shot for his third of the season.

After forty minutes of play, the Moose had taken a 3-1 lead. More importantly, the Moose won the period in goals and shots, outshooting the Heat 13-6 for an 18-13 lead in the game. There were still twenty minutes to go, and, as seen in some games this season, no lead is safe if you sit back.

The Moose continued to pressure the Heat, and it paid off at 4:59 of the third period. Schroeder carried the puck into the Heat zone on the right wing before finding Matt Pettinger in the high slot. Pettinger made one move before dishing a backhanded pass to the trailing Guillaume Desbiens at the top of the left face-off circle, and the Moose forward made no mistake on the one-timer as he ripped it past Irving. Desbiens' 17th goal of the season made it a 4-1 Moose lead.

The Moose kept the heat on the Heat. Matt Pettinger was sent in on a partial breakaway two minutes later, and his low shot was stopped by Irving's right pad. Again, though, the Heat goalie couldn't control the rebound, and it popped out to his right as Aaron Volpatti crashed the crease with Carter Bancks checking him. The puck bounced off Volpatti and landed in the back of the net, marking the rookie's first professional hockey goal. Volpatti's first career goal at 6:59 gave the Moose a 5-1 lead.

Two seconds after that goal, JD Watt and Guillaume Desbiens dropped their mitts at center ice, and the dance was on. Desbiens assumed the role of politician as he handed out right after right to Watt. Judges score the fight 10-8 in favour of Desbiens, and the Gordie Howe hat trick was complete! More on this below.

The only other goal in this game came at 16:12. Andy Delmore brought the puck in over the Moose line on the right wing. With no one to pass to, the Heat defenceman let a bullet of a wrist shot go to the far post on Schneider. The Moose goalie couldn't get a blocker on it, and the Heat saved a little face on Delmore's sixth goal of the season.

The Moose shut down the Heat the rest of the way, and the 5-2 score was indicative of the Moose's play: aggressive, up-tempo, and lots of shots. Manitoba ended up outshooting the Heat by a 25-19 margin, and their victory pushed their record to 36-31-5-1 on the season. More importantly, the Moose trailed the Heat for third-place in the North Division by only one point!

It was nice to see Desbiens named as the first star in Monday's game. He played a big game all night, and was all over the ice causing problems for the Heat. His Gordie Howe hat trick - a goal, an assist, and a fight in the same game - was highly appropriate as well. Mr. Hockey turned 82 on Wednesday, so it was fitting that a scrappy player like Desbiens would register the Gordie Howe hat trick.

One Step Forward, One Step Back

The Moose were looking to move into third place on Tuesday night in their second game against the Abbotsford Heat. Another big effort would be needed from the Moose if they wanted to move up the North Division. Cory Schneider was back in net for the Moose, but the Heat went to David Shantz for their goaltending duties after Leland Irving suffered the loss the night before.

The two teams alternated in their trips to the penalty box until Taylor Ellington's penalty at 16:27 for holding. Kronwall quarterbacked the powerplay from the point, and found John Rheault along the left wing half-boards. Rheault didn't have a lot of options for passes, so he fired a slapshot from the circle that found its way through the maze of legs in front of Schneider and went past the Moose goalie on the glove side. Rheault's powerplay goal was his fourth of the season, and the Heat had the 1-0 lead at 17:29 of the first period.

I'm pretty sure that Abbotsford head coach Jim Playfair read his team the riot act after rolling over the night before, and it showed through their shot totals. The Heat outshot the Moose 14-6 in the first period, and led 1-0 on the scoreboard because of it. While I'm sure Playfair didn't snap like he did late last week, I'm quite certain he demanded a lot more out of his team after the weak and uninspired 19-shot effort one night earlier.

Powerplays continued to control this game. The Heat bench was whistled for too many men on the ice at 5:31, and the Moose powerplay unit took to the ice. Sergei Shirokov cut through the slot and took a pass from Evan Oberg that he fired on net, but Shantz was there for the save, and the puck ended up off to the left of the net. Shantz, however, had overplayed Shirokov badly, and Shirokov circled behind the net. Marco Rosa, seizing opportunity, called for the puck as he was wide-open at the right side of the net, and Shirokov obliged. Less than a second later, the puck was in the back of the net before Shantz could recover. Rosa's 22nd of the season on the powerplay tied the game at 1-1 at 7:06 of the second period.

The tight checking continued through the rest of the deadlocked period, and the game rolled into the second intermission tied at 1-1. However, Abbotsford continued their onslaught of shots, outshooting the Moose 16-11 in the middle frame for a 30-17 advantage through forty minutes. Could Schneider continue his magic through the third period?

At 13:17, both Guillaume Desbiens and Colin Stuart were sent off. Desbiens was whistled for holding while Stuart earned an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for the dive on the play. During the four-on-four situation, a stretch pass by Keith Seabrook found David Van Der Gulik behind the Moose defencemen at the blueline. Both Evan Oberg and Tom Galvin couldn't catch the speedy Heat forward, and Van Der Gulik slipped a shot between Schneider's pads to put the Heat up 2-1. Van Der Gulik's 14th of the season was a tough goal as the Moose appeared to be running on fumes in the third period.

Unfortunately, the Moose couldn't muster any more offence, and the Heat earned the 2-1 win at the end of regulation time. Cory Schneider put in a magnificent performance, stopping 41 of 43 shots, but the Moose couldn't muster any more offence than one goal on 20 shots. With the loss, the Moose drop to 36-32-5-1, and fall three points behind Abbotsford again.

Honestly, the split wasn't much help as the Moose lost two games to make up points by only winning one of the two games. With six games remaining, the Moose will want to shoot for a 5-1 record to try and salvage third-place, and possibly second-place, in the North Division.

Down The Stretch

The Moose didn't do any favours for themselves by not beating Abbotsford twice, but there is still a chance that they can pull off the impossible and end up in second-place in the North Division. Get out your calculators, kids, because here's today's math assignment.

For Manitoba to end up in second-place in the North Division, they need a pile of help. Rochester has five games remaining and sit with 85 points. Abbotsford has 81 points and has five games remaining. Manitoba has 78 points, but has six games remaining.

Rochester plays the AHL-leading Hershey Bears on Friday, the North Division-leading Hamilton Bulldogs on Saturday, and finish off the season with games against Grand Rapids, the Toronto Marlies, and the Syracuse Crunch. If they go 3-2-0 in those games, they will officially prevent Manitoba from getting into second-place. It's entirely possible that the Amerks could defeat the Griffins, Marlies, and Crunch in the last week of the season, so the Moose will need some help there.

Abbotsford has games remaining against Grand Rapids on Friday and Saturday, before finishing the season with two games in Lake Erie against the Monsters and one game in Toronto against the Marlies. Wins in all five games will assure that the Moose will not move into second-place, and that is entirely possible. Again, the Moose will need help, but if the Heat can go 3-2-0, there's a good chance they should hold on for third-place in the North Division.

Manitoba has two games against the Toronto Marlies this weekend, two against the Hamilton Bulldogs next week, and close out the season at home with a two-game set against the Peoria Rivermen. The Moose have struggled against the Marlies and Rivermen this season, so they'll need to play playoff hockey for the next two weeks if they want to climb the standings. Otherwise, those two games against the Bulldogs will be a first-round playoff preview. I'm guessing that the Moose have to go 4-1-1 at worst to have a shot at third-place.

For a team that has played win-one, lose-one for the second-half of the season, that 4-1-1 record might be a tall order at this point in the season. But I still believe it can be done! DO IT, MOOSE!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Put Sanctions on Imanutjob!

With the unfortunate passage of Obamacare last week, Madame's decided to shift gears this week by focusing on endorsements, holidays, and today, foreign policy!

For those softy southpaws who want to claim that Madame is inciting violence, take a look at this post. Madame is calling for peace, but perhaps much like the Great Communicator, she is calling for peace through strength. In this case, strength means tough sanctions on the Iranian leader, Imanutjob, who is still engaging in nuclear development.

Madame, who truly understand the importance of our ally, Israel, has also called for the Great Opologizer to not concede to the Palestinians while ignoring the Israelis, but instead to stand with our ally. She also calls all of us to pray! What?! The softy southpaws won't like that!

The Palin doctrine is on full display again: stand with our allies; don't sit with our enemies.

ONE DOCTOR'S OPINION

ONE DOCTOR'S OPINION:

Pictured below is a physician by the name of Dr.Starner Jones. His short four-paragraph letter to a Jackson, Miss. newspaper accurately puts the blame on a "Culture Crisis" instead of a "Health Care Crisis". It's worth a quick read:




Dear Mr. President:

During my shift in the Emergency Room last night, I had the pleasure of evaluating a patient whose smile revealed an expensive shiny gold tooth, whose body was adorned with a wide assortment of elaborate and costly tattoos, who wore a very expensive brand of tennis shoes and who chatted on a new cellular telephone equipped with a popular R&B ringtone.

While glancing over her patient chart, I happened to notice that her payer status was listed as "Medicaid"! During my examination of her, the patient informed me that she smokes more than one costly pack of cigarettes every day and somehow still has money to buy pretzels and beer.

And, you and our Congress expect me to pay for this woman's health care? I contend that our nation's "health care crisis" is not the result of a shortage of quality hospitals, doctors or nurses. Rather, it is the result of a "crisis of culture", a culture in which it is perfectly acceptable to spend money on luxuries and vices while refusing to take care of one's self or, heaven forbid, purchase health insurance. It is a culture based in the irresponsible credo that "I can do whatever I want to because someone else will always take care of me".

Once you fix this "culture crisis" that rewards irresponsibility and dependency, you'll be amazed at how quickly our nation's health care difficulties will disappear.

Respectfully,


STARNER JONES, MD

Ahh yeah, I think we have enough oil America!

OIL - you better sit down.

Here's an interesting read, important and verifiable information :

About 6 months ago, the writer was watching a news program on oil and
one of the Forbes Bros. was the guest. The host said to Forbes, "I am going to
ask you a direct question and I would like a direct answer; how much oil
does the U.S. have in the ground?" Forbes did not miss a beat, he said, "more
than all the Middle East put together." Please read below.

The U. S. Geological Service issued a report in April 2008 that only
scientists and oil men knew was coming, but man was it big. It was a
revised report (hadn't been updated since 1995) on how much oil was in
this area of the western 2/3 of North Dakota , western South Dakota , and extreme eastern Montana ......


The Bakken is the largest domestic oil discovery since Alaska 's Prudhoe
Bay, and has the potential to eliminate all American dependence on foreign
oil. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates it at 503 billion
barrels. Even if just 10% of the oil is recoverable... at $107 a barrel,
we're looking at a resource base worth more than $5..3 trillion.

"When I first briefed legislators on this, you could practically see
their jaws hit the floor. They had no idea.." says Terry Johnson, the Montana
Legislature's financial analyst.

"This sizable find is now the highest-producing onshore oil field found
in the past 56 years," reports The Pittsburgh Post Gazette. It's a
formation known as the Williston Basin , but is more commonly referred to as the
'Bakken.' It stretches from Northern Montana, through North Dakota and
into Canada .. For years, U. S. oil exploration has been considered a dead
end. Even the 'Big Oil' companies gave up searching for major oil wells
decades ago. However, a recent technological breakthrough has opened up
the Bakken's massive reserves.... and we now have access of up to 500
billion barrels. And because this is light, sweet oil, those billions of barrels
will cost Americans just $16 PER BARREL!

That's enough crude to fully fuel the American economy for 2041 years
straight. And if THAT didn't throw you on the floor, then this next one
should - because it's from 2006!

U. S. Oil Discovery- Largest Reserve in the World

Stansberry Report Online - 4/20/2006

Hidden 1,000 feet beneath the surface of the Rocky Mountains lies the
largest untapped oil reserve in the world. It is more than 2 TRILLION
barrels. On August 8, 2005 President Bush mandated its extraction. In
three and a half years of high oil prices none has been extracted. With this
motherload of oil why are we still fighting over off-shore drilling?

They reported this stunning news: We have more oil inside our borders,
than all the other proven reserves on earth. Here are the official estimates:

- 8-times as much oil as Saudi Arabia

- 18-times as much oil as Iraq

- 21-times as much oil as Kuwait

- 22-times as much oil as Iran

- 500-times as much oil as Yemen

- and it's all right here in the Western United States .

HOW can this BE? HOW can we NOT BE extracting this? Because the
environmentalists and others have blocked all efforts to help America
become independent of foreign oil! Again, we are letting a small group of
people dictate our lives and our economy.....WHY?

James Bartis, lead researcher with the study says we've got more oil in
this very compact area than the entire Middle East -more than 2 TRILLION
barrels untapped. That's more than all the proven oil reserves of crude oil in
the world today, reports The Denver Post.

Don 't think 'OPEC' will drop its price - even with this find? Think
again!
It's all about the competitive marketplace, - it has to. Think OPEC just
might be funding the environmentalists?

Got your attention yet? Now, while you're thinking about it, do this:

Pass this along. If you don't take a little time to do this, then you
should stifle yourself the next time you complain about gas prices - by
doing NOTHING, you forfeit your right to complain.

--------

Now I just wonder what would happen in this country if every one of you
sent this to every one in your address book.

By the way...this is all true. Check it out at the link below!!!

GOOGLE it, or follow this link. It will blow your mind.
http://bit.ly/bWAwZF

2010 Boy Scouts Centennial Silver Dollar Sales Debut at 214,673

The latest US Mint sales report has just been posted over at Coin Update News. The report includes the opening sales figures for the 2010 Boy Scouts of America Centennial Silver Dollar. As expected, the opening numbers were strong, but there is still some way to go before a sell out.

Through March 29, 2010, the US Mint reported combined sales of 214,673. This total is made up of 144,732 proof coins and 69,941 uncirculated coins. The maximum authorized mintage for the commemorative coin program is set at 350,000 across all ordering options.

To put the opening numbers in perspective, the 2010 American Veterans Disabled for Life Silver Dollar, which went on sale February 28, 2010, recorded opening sales of 98,358. Total sales to date are now 179,052.

From last year's programs, the 2009 Abraham Lincoln Silver Dollar had debut sales figures of 177,722. The 450,000 coins allocated for individual sales had sold out after just over one month. The 2009 Louis Braille Silver Dollar recorded debut sales of 70,274 and eventually sold 167,526 coins across all options.

Using these recent commemorative coin issues as a guideline, it seems fair to say that the Boy Scouts Silver Dollar will sell out within a month at the most. Perhaps sooner, as I think the pace of sales will remain more buoyant as compared to other commemorative coin issues.

Check out the full sales report at Coin Update News.

Huskies Are Top Dogs

It took a little longer than one may have expected, but the Saint Mary's Huskies can finally say they are CIS men's hockey champions. The eighth-ranked team in the CIS defeated the University of Alberta Golden Bears on Sunday night in overtime to win the biggest championship in Canadian University hockey. There were a number of stories that followed the Huskies this season, but everything worked out in the end as the Huskies hoisted the CIS Championship Trophy at the end of the season. Let's take a look at some of the stories that put the Huskies into the news.

The first thing that Saint Mary's University was in headlines for was the admittance of a former NHL player and criminal to their school and hockey program. Mike Danton, the former St. Louis Blues and New Jersey Devils forward, had enrolled into SMU's Arts program, and this caused some minor controversy as Danton had spent time in a US federal prison after having been arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit murder. However, both Danton and university officials stated that they were confident in Danton's rehabilitation after 63 months behind bars, and Mike Danton officially was part of SMU's student population.

Danton's passion for hockey hadn't diminished, and he was interested in playing for SMU's hockey team. Again, there was some concern about Danton playing hockey, but SMU stood behind their student.

"This is a unique opportunity to prove that a university can offer someone a second chance, whether they have been challenged economically, socially or by other circumstances. I am proud to be associated with Saint Mary's University and the role we are playing in this case," said SMU Athletic Director Steve Sarty in November.

"If we say no to Mike Danton, who are we going to say yes to?"

That was the question, and Danton showed that he would be an integral part of the team. The 29 year-old former NHLer scored his team's only goal in his first game, a 4-1 loss to the Acadia Axemen on January 27, 2010. Through to the Atlantic University Sport championship, Mike Danton played in 16 games for the Huskies. He recorded nine goals, four assists, 28 PIMs, 55 shots, and was a +11 in those games. Not bad at all, I'd say.

But the story of the Huskies this season doesn't stop there. Saint Mary's finished the season 16-8-4 to finish third in the AUS Conference. That qualified them for the playoffs, but the biggest test lay before them as they embarked on the quest to win the AUS Conference.

The Huskies knocked the Université de Moncton out in the quarterfinals in two games. They knocked out Acadia University, who had secured a first-round bye by finishing second in the AUS, three games to one. And it was a three-game sweep of St. Francis-Xavier University, the fifth-ranked team, to give the Huskies the AUS Championship.The championship run by Saint Mary's resulted in their qualification to the CIS Championship tournament.

Their first round-robin game on March 26 in Thunder Bay saw the Huskies face the McGill Redmen out of Montreal. Saint Mary's won that hard-fought game by a 4-2 score. March 27 saw Saint Mary's hammer the University of Manitoba Bisons by a 5-0 score. Their 2-0 record in Pool B of the round robin allowed the Huskies to advance to the final as one of the top-two teams.

The final saw the Huskies matched up against the University of Alberta Golden Bears. Alberta was the Canada West Conference Champions, and had a stellar record of 25-5-1 up to that point. The Huskies needed to play an excellent game in order to defeat the Golden Bears.

Alberta got on the board first at 14:21. Tyler Metcalfe scored the only goal in the period as his shot got past goaltender Neil Conway, and the Bears led 1-0. The most telling stat in that period was the shots-on-net. The Golden Bears outshot the Huskies by a 12-5 margin, and turned that into the 1-0 lead after 20 minutes.

Just an aside from the game, check out Alberta goaltender Travis Yonkman's mask. I love the Hanson brothers on it! Excellent paint job on his mask! That might be one of the best masks I've seen this season!

The second period saw the Huskies pull even when Cam Fergus buried a shot past Yonkman at 10:37. However, the real story was the goaltending of Neil Conway in the Huskies' net. Conway stood on his head again as the Bears outshot the Huskies in the second period by an 11-8 margin for a 23-13 advantage through two periods. But the score on the scoreboard is the only one that matters, and the Huskies and Bears were even at 1-1 after 40 minutes.

The third period saw the Huskies pull ahead. Andrew Hotham notched Saint Mary's second goal of the game just 3:46 into the third period, and the Huskies led 2-1. Alberta battled back, though, and finally broke through at 15:17. Derek Ryan tied the game at 2-2 for the Golden Bears, and the two teams were headed for overtime after the final 4:43 played out without any additional goals. Another period of the Bears outshooting the Huskies, this time by an 11-9 margin, saw the shots stand at 34-22 at the end of regulation time.

The CIS Championship was decided 9:13 into overtime. Saint Mary's Marc Rancourt fired a shot on Yonkman from a sharp angle, and Yonkman couldn't control the rebound. Brad Smith was standing on the doorstep, and he whacked the loose puck past Yonkman to give Saint Mary's the 3-2 overtime victory.

Saint Mary's secured their first CIS Championship in school history, and celebrated accordingly. Defenceman Andrew Hotham received the Major W.J. "Danny" McLeod award as the tournament's MVP. He was also named as a tournament all-star, and was joined by Huskies goaltender Neil Conway, forward Cam Fergus, and forward Cody Thornton. Alberta's Ian Barteaux and Chad Klassen rounded out the all-star team.

Congratulations goes out to the Saint Mary's Huskies for their championship victory!

And, for Mike Danton, his return to public life after 63 months away from it is starting out pretty good. He's getting an education, he has won a CIS hockey championship, and he's only 30 years-old. I'd say that his road to redemption might be paved with gold for a while yet!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

2009 Proof Gold Buffalo Sold Out

Yesterday, two things occurred that I would like to report. First, the 2009 Proof Gold Buffalo Coin sold out at the US Mint. Second, my wife and I welcomed our second child!

First the coin related news...

The 2009 Gold Buffalo One Ounce Proof Coin went on sale October 29, 2009, priced at $1,360 each. Later pricing adjustments would bring the offering price as high as $1,460 with the last available price $1,410.

In the first three days of availability, the US Mint reported sales of 19,468 coins. By mid-November, sales had reached 32,271. The pace of sales slowed into the new year, with recent sales around 500 coins per week.

The last reported sales figures for the 2009 Proof Gold Buffalo coin were 49,388. In the past, I had suggested that the US Mint may have produced an even 50,000 coins by the end of 2009 and sales would continue until this entire production run was sold out. It looks like this prediction was close to the mark.

There had been indication of a sell out earlier last week when some readers reported that the US Mint's product page had changed to sold out status. However, the "sold out" was removed, the coins went back on sale and remained available for several more days.

The mintages for the one ounce Proof American Gold Buffalo Coins now stack up as follows:

One Ounce Proof Gold Buffalo Coin Mintages
2006	246,267
2007	58,998
2008	18,863
2009 (last reported sales)	49,388

The US Mint has also now indicated that a 2010 Proof Gold Buffalo one ounce coin will be offered in the future. The release date is not yet known. The pricing would likely follow the US Mint's existing pricing grid for numismatic products.

In personal news, yesterday morning my wife gave birth to our second son, Robert Alexander Zielinski. Even though he was born a few weeks earlier than expected, he weighed in at 8 pounds and 7 ounces. Both Mom and Baby are doing well. Big brother Jason (just turned 2 years old) was very intrigued and kept asking to "see baby."

Great line of the day

The Jurist summarizes the dynamic about the Sask Party's Finance minister Gantefoer sticking its toe into the HST water and then rapidly pulling back:

. . . there's good news in the fact that the Sask Party wants to let big business do the actual work in selling the HST. After all, the Wall government tried the same strategy when it came to nuclear power, and was forced to back down once it realized that it's people rather than dollars who ultimately get their say at the polls.

Emphasis mine.
I heard Brad Wall talk about the Harmonized Sales Tax once on John Gormley Live -- or, rather, I heard John Gormley wax enthusiastic about how great it would be if the Sask Party would think about introducing the HST and Wall saying flatly, over and over, nope, the Sask Party isn't interested, won't discuss it, no no no. Wall knows -as Gantefoer has now discovered -- that even the merest hint of an inclination to even think about the HST would immediately blow up into a big bad news story for the Sask Party.

Endorsements and Holiday Wishes from the Commandress-in-Chief

Madame had another two fold Facebook posting today. First, as Commandress-in-Chief in waiting she announced the endorsements of three American heroes who are running for Congress: Lieutenant Allen West (FL-22), Captain Adam Kinzinger (IL-11), and Major Vaughn Ward (ID-1). You know how much American veterans mean to Madame. After all, she took a lot of heat for endorsing Senator McAnonymous from those who may not understand the virtue of Madame's loyalty, in spite of McAnonymous's RINOish ways.

However, she had another objective with these endorsements, "to remove the gavel from Nancy Pelosi’s grip". I wanted her to type "Pukelosi", but she wouldn't go for it. She's far more charitable than I.

Madame also took the time today to wish the Jewish community a happy Passover. This is especially good since our current President seems to have little regard for Israel.

I say, why can't she be commandress-in-chief now?

More Cherry Tonight... And Stuff

The conclusion of Keep Your Head Up, Kid - The Don Cherry Story was on tonight, and naturally I was glued to the television set as the story transitioned from Don Cherry the player to Don Cherry the coach. I really enjoyed the entire story as produced by the CBC, and I felt that the story was told honestly and openly without raining on anyone's or any team's parades. I'm still working on an answer about when the DVD will be available of Don Cherry's story, but as soon as I know, you'll know. I have received emails from American readers about not having the opportunity to see this story, so my pledge to all my readers is to find out when this film will be released for home viewing. However, let's keep moving onto other hockey stories.

• As much as I was impressed with the debut of Jordan Schroeder in Manitoba this spring, there is another kid who is taking the AHL by storm, and he may not be with his AHL team next season. Jordan Eberle, just 19 years-old, has 17 points in 15 AHL games, and his first goal of the season this year came on his first shift with the Springfield Falcons when he battled past a defender to the slot and ripped home a wrist shot. My guess? Eberle will not be in Oklahoma City next season. He'll be playing in Edmonton with the Oilers.
• It's an interesting development, but the Saint Mary's Huskies are the Canadian Interuniversity Sport champions in men's hockey. Why is it interesting? They have a former NHL player suiting up for them. As you may recall, Mike Danton - he who served prison time for trying to hire a hitman - is slowly putting his life back together. He enrolled at Saint Mary's University in the fall, and was invited to play for the hockey team. Danton was on the ice when Brad Smith scored 9:13 into overtime to give SMU the 3-2 win over the University of Alberta Golden Bears. It may not be a Stanley Cup, but Danton appears to be doing very well as a student! More on Saint Mary's first CIS hockey victory tomorrow!
• About two weeks ago, the Alberta Pandas won the women's hockey title in CIS hockey when they did the unbelievable: the Pandas broke McGill's 86-game winning streak! Let me repeat that: 86-game winning streak. Not an undefeated streak, but a winning streak. The McGill Martlets hadn't lost or tied a game since December 30, 2007 when they were beaten by the Alberta Pandas by a 2-1 score. Alberta defeated the Martlets by a 2-0 score in the CIS Championship game, and won their seventh CIS Championship. Congratulations to the Pandas, and I'll have more on their win later this week!
• The KHL is set for the Eastern and Western Conference Finals as there are only four teams remaining in the Gagarin Cup Playoffs. Second-ranked HC MVD will play fifth-ranked Yaroslavl Lokomotiv in the Western Conference Final, while regular-season champions Salavat Yulaev Ufa takes on defending Gagarin Cup Champions Ak Bars Kazan. Salavat's Alexander Radulov still leads the playoffs in scoring with 15 points, and Kazan's Petri Vehanen leads the KHL in GAA with a sparkling 1.29 GAA. The Western Conference FInal begins on April 1, and the Eastern Conference Final will start on Friday.
• The NCAA's Frozen Four in Detroit, Michigan has been finalized. Miami University will play Boston College while the University of Wisconsin meets Rochester Institute of Technology. Both games will be played on Thursday, and the winners will meet under the lights of Ford Field at 7PM ET on Saturday night. RIT is clearly the underdog out of the remaining teams, but they did knock off hockey powerhouses in Denver and New Hampshire, so Wisconsin may have their hands full. I'm looking forward to the games this week, and I'll be tuning in to watch some great hockey!

You're now up-to-date in regards to all the championships that have happened or are happening across the globe right now in all the major leagues. I'm listening to the Manitoba Moose game right now as they battle division-rival Abbotsford as they attempt to catch the Heat in the North Division. Back to the game!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

1667 Dozen People in Searchlight!

Oops, and I thought we were done for the day, but Madame had other things in mind. She had an awesome time in Searchlight yesterday. She gave a big thumbs up to the event. I think she had a great time tea-ing it up in Harry Reid's backyard!

Madame even shared some pictures from the event:

CNN said that there were dozens of people at the event, but even another LSM outlet, Politico, said there were 20,000 people there. Well, CNN, I guess you're right; there were 1667 dozen people there!

The key line though: "We’re ready for a fundamental transformation of Washington – no need for their desired “fundamental transformation of America.”

Amen, Madame, Amen.

The Don Cherry Story - Part One

Tonight, the CBC featured Part One of Keep Your Head Up, Kid - The Don Cherry Story in prime time. The story, filmed across parts of Canada, highlights the career achievements of Donald S. Cherry from his time as a boy in elementary school right up to his career as a icon on Hockey Night In Canada. The two-part mini-series runs tonight and tomorrow, so we'll look at tonight's episode a little bit as the first half of Don's illustrious career takes to the small screen with all the Hollywood glitz and glamour. The best part? I was lucky enough to see a lot of this part filmed in Selkirk, Manitoba. I probably won't be in any of the scenes, but I was there, I assure you.

The visual photography is excellent in the film. Director Jeff Woolnough does a fantastic job at bringing together the major life moments of Don's life in a very succinct way, and his attention to detail is excellent. It also helps that executive producer Tim Cherry has first-hand knowledge of Don's life being that Tim is Don's son!

The story features an excellent wardrobe as well. The old sweaters seen in the movie are replicas of what was worn on the ice. There are great looks at the old Rochester Americans sweaters, the old Hershey Bears sweaters, and the old Springfield Indians sweaters from the AHL, as well as looks at the old Montreal Canadiens and Bostons Bruins from the NHL.

One of the things that I really appreciated was the attention to detail seen in Don Cherry's injuries. We learn early on in the movie that removing stitches after two or three days, followed by extensive cocoa butter on the wound, will prevent scars. Buckets of hot water followed by ice cold water does wonders for a broken toe. Of course, none of this is recommended by doctors, but it seemed to work for Don Cherry in his life. And there was always room for a Don Cherry scrap on film!

The portrayal of Don Cherry is done wonderfully by Jared Leeso. Mr. Leeso captures the essence of Don Cherry by adopting some of his favorite mannerisms and catchphrases. Eddie Shore, a man who was instrumental in developing Cherry's tough image, is played by Stephen McHattie, and he does an excellent job in showing how tough, and how thrify, Shore was in life.

We learn through the players of Shore's cheap methods when Cherry, sitting in the dressing room, is looking for tape for his shinpads. Cherry is informed by a Springfield teammate that innertubes are better because they can be re-used, meaning Shore can save money on tape.

And perhaps the greatest role is played by Sarah Manninen, who portrays Rose Cherry. Rose would become the most important figure in the Cherry household as she was the yin to Don's yang. As we would see later in life, Rose was not only the strength behind Don, but she was the entire world to Donald S. Cherry, and her passing would have a profound effect on the gruff hockey spokesman. Sarah's portrayal of Mrs. Cherry is outstanding, and she might be the star of the show.

Overall, Part One was very enjoyable, and I am looking forward to Part Two tomorrow evening. I'll try to contact the CBC about getting a possible DVD of the mini-series once it concludes, and, if I can obtain one, I'll toss that into the prizes for the upcoming HBIC Playoff Pool!

Part Two goes Monday night, and it looks like a beauty!

Until then, keep your sticks on the ice!

Will the LSM Even Understand Sarcasm-Laced Sports Analogies?

Madame managed to provided the perfect balance of serious sanctity and snarky sarcasm today. As today is Palm Sunday, Madame and BOTUS provided a nice tweet honoring our Savior. As the media has been all up in arms (pun intended) claiming that Madame is inciting violence, Madame put the proverbial smack down on the media today with a Facebook post using "violence inciting" satire. It's just to good to not do the ol' copy and paste:

March Madness battles rage! My family and I join millions of Americans enjoying college basketball’s finest through March Madness. Underdogs always get my vote as we watch intense competition bring out the best in these accomplished teams.

The Final Four is an intense, contested series (kind of like a heated, competitive primary election), so best of luck to all teams, and watch for this principle lived out: the team that wins is the team that wants it more.

To the teams that desire making it this far next year: Gear up! In the battle, set your sights on next season’s targets! From the shot across the bow – the first second’s tip-off – your leaders will be in the enemy’s crosshairs, so you must execute strong defensive tactics. You won’t win only playing defense, so get on offense! The crossfire is intense, so penetrate through enemy territory by bombing through the press, and use your strong weapons – your Big Guns – to drive to the hole. Shoot with accuracy; aim high and remember it takes blood, sweat and tears to win.

Focus on the goal and fight for it. If the gate is closed, go over the fence. If the fence is too high, pole vault in. If that doesn’t work, parachute in. If the other side tries to push back, your attitude should be “go for it.” Get in their faces and argue with them. (Sound familiar?!) Every possession is a battle; you’ll only win the war if you’ve picked your battles wisely. No matter how tough it gets, never retreat, instead RELOAD!

- Sarah Palin

The sarcasm in this piece had me laughing so hard that I was rolling. It made it very difficult for Madame to type.

Time will tell if the softy southpaws and their pals in the media even understand this post. After all, Madame used sarcasm and political sports analogies, both are things that liberals never seem to get. Right, Anderson Cooper?

However, perhaps they have forgotten that Pukelosi used the pole vaulting/parachuting analogy, and the Great Opologizer told people to get in other people's faces. Hmm....media double standard?

Is It 2008, 2010, or 2012?

Time to catch my breath! Madame has been quite busy the past two days, so let me embed some video for you to see what we've been up to. It was like it 2008 all over again with Madame campaigning for Senator McAnonymous yesterday and today. She shines on the stump and does an especially good job of calling out the hecklers:




Let me say that she also did an excellent job in Senator "I don't" Reid "the bills" backyard, speaking in Nevada today. It almost seemed like she was on the 2012 campaign stump. Hmm. BOTUS chimed in on how well things went.



From my perspective as LOTUS, with all of the work that we have done over the past several months especially using Facebook, let me say that I'm very excited to see that we have reached a milestone. Madame now has more than 1.5 million Facebook friends! Not bad for someone whom the Left deems as an irrelevant quitter.

Picture Time!

I always have a good time sifting through photos of various hockey-related events, especially old historical photos. There's always great stuff to see in the photographs, and there's usually some cool stories associated with the photo. In any case, the collection of photos I have here today come from various sources and will take us back through several decades of hockey. There are some that will look at uniforms, some that have unique equipment, and others than I simply like due to their historical significance. I encourage you to take a look at the photos, and enjoy the history and hockey that is presented here today on HBIC.

• We start first by looking at those New Jersey Devils retro jerseys they wore on March 17 against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Honestly, I really like their retro jerseys, and I think that there isn't enough green in the NHL at this point in time. In comparison to the photo above, here is a picture of Martin Brodeur from 1991-92 when he broke into the league. HBIC is officially calling for more green in hockey, whether it be the old Devils' look or something new altogether.
• Something that really delighted me was this old photo of the Los Angeles Kings in their alternate jerseys. There is something endearing about that old alternate jersey despite its obvious ugliness. If you look closely on the right, Robert Lang is wearing #13, and the alternate captain is #17 Jari Kurri. Classic jerseys!
• If you look closely at the headline of the March 22, 1968 edition of The Hockey News, you'll see that two franchises were threatening to move out of the cities they were located in. Oakland, who had problems as the California Seals, would eventually move in 1976 to Cleveland after renaming themselves a couple of times. The other franchise, surprisingly, was the Philadelphia Flyers. The Flyers were unhappy with their agreement with the City of Philadelphia while playing in the Spectrum, and threatened to move elsewhere unless changes were made. Personally, I couldn't imagine the Flyers playing elsewhere after seeing the history they have racked up. If they had moved, we may never have had the Broad Street Bullies!
• Speaking about the California Seals, here's a look at the first jerseys worn by the Seals in the NHL. That's Bert Marshall in the photo. Compare that jersey to what they wore from 1974-76, modeled by Len Frig, and seen here in colour on Butch Williams, and I think that the first jerseys as the California Seals were the best look they had. Of course, there was this look as modeled by Carol Vadnais from 1970-74, but I believe hockey is a sport where the chest logo should be displayed prominently. Your thoughts? Which Seals jersey do you prefer?
• Something you don't see in today's NHL? Accents on players' names. That's Denis Dupéré of the Colorado Rockies. Rarely do you see one accent, let alone two. For those that don't speak French, Denis' last name would be "do-pay-ray".
• Something else you rarely see in today's game are full names on the back of jerseys. That's Don Maloney of the New York Rangers. The only other players from the modern era that I can think of that had their full names on the back of their jerseys were Rich and Ron Sutter. Anyone know of any others? And do you have pictures?
• Sports are the one place where one had better be careful what one says. If one isn't careful, one could be removing one's foot from one's mouth. Case in point? This article from the February, 27, 1976 edition of The Hockey News shows exactly how that can be done. Harold Ballard, in a Friday interview, stated that he was looking for "a sensational center" to play with wingers Lanny McDonald and Errol Thompson. That spot was occupied at the time by Leafs' great Darryl Sittler. The next night, Sittler went out and scored his famous six goals and ten points against the Boston Bruins, inadvertently showing up his boss by setting a National Hockey League record. In Sittler's defence, though, Ballard was never really a smart owner as proven by the Leafs' records through the 1970s and 1980s.
• March 6, 2010 saw the AHL's Springfield Falcons go pink in support of breast cancer research. I'm all for raising funds to help find a cure for breast cancer as it is a leading cause of death in women, but those jerseys are brutal. I understand that the team may not make any money off these jerseys, but the least they could do is make them look good for those fans who may want to bid on them in the auction process to help make as much money as they can. I'm not impressed with these jerseys at all.

There are some photos I've been holding onto for the last few weeks. Again, I endorse the move to more green in the NHL. I love the way those old Seals jerseys look, and I think the Wild and Stars could do a lot more with the green in their logos. Why does it seem that hockey has a phobia of certain bold colours?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

America Your Fathers Call Out to You!: SHOCKING OR NOT?: WHO IS THE REAL SARA PALIN?

To view the video, please click off the "Ave Maria" music widget on the right hand side of the page.

PAGE 1


America Your Fathers Call Out to You!







PAGE 2

SHOCKING OR NOT?

The average Americans have only themselves to blame for what is happening to our country. For years, Americans have sat back and allowed the far left Liberal progressives (Marxist/Communists) to infiltrate and take over every aspect of our society, starting with our public school system. Then they moved on to our churches, rotting them out from the inside.

They knew how to play with words, twisting and warping meanings, now we have "diversity", "alternate life-styles", etc., even the word "family" has taken on a whole new meaning.

Instead of standing up to the godless left, Conservatives and others on the right, were lead to believe that we must "compromise" with the left, but over the years that compromise has meant that those on the right had to give up more then those on the left. We have NOT learned that one cannot compromise with evil, we will NEVER win.

Now, Barack Obama is performing the coup-de-gras to our nation. Americans are just now beginning to wake up and realize that the day they elected Barack Hussein Obama to be president, was the day they signed America's "Death Warrant". As I have stated many times, during the campaign, people heard Obama talking, but they did NOT "LISTEN" to what he was saying. If they had, they would have known that he spelled out very clearly what his plans were and what he was going to do. Even his wife, Michelle, was right up front.

While campaigning for her husband, Michelle stated, "When my husband is elected, he will MAKE people do things they don't want to do." She also said, "We MUST change our history and our traditions." When Barack was campaigning, he told 'Joe the Plumber' that he wanted to "redistribute the wealth". I guess most people didn't seem to know that redistribute the wealth means taking it from those who worked hard and earned it and giving it to those who didn't. And how many remember during one of the debates, he looked right into the camera and said, "If you want to know how I will govern the country, look at the people I surround myself with." His entire administration is now composed of Liars, tax cheats, perverts, etc.

He told America of his plans about "Cap and Trade", an energy bill that he plans to push through. He came right out and said, "It will make peoples energy bills go through the roof." What was there about that statement that people did not under stand? Yet they went ahead and elected him.

So many people are shocked at Obama's disrespect for the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, but it should come as no surprise because in one of his books, Obama clearly stated that "If the political winds take an ugly turn, I will side with the Palestinians." He bowed before the King of Saudi Arabia and has been sucking up to Muslims right from day one that he came into office.

So, at least to me, what is befalling America is far from being a shocker. Anyone who has at least two brain cells to rub together could have seen this coming. However, this is nothing, I honestly believe that there is worse to come. Remember Obama's "Civilian Defense Force?" He said, "It will be just as big, just as well armed and just as well funded as the military." As I write this, that force is being put together, the funds for it were approved by the liberal Congress in 2009. What do you suppose is the purpose of this 'private army' that will be answerable ONLY to the President? Use your imaginations.



PAGE 3:

WHO IS THE REAL SARA PALIN?

I hate to say it, but I am beginning to lose my respect for Sara Palin. The MSM, including the FOX NEWS CHANNEL, are calling Sara Palin the unofficial head of the TEA PARTY movement, then why in God's name is backing John McCain in his bid for re-election to the Senate instead of supporting Hayworth? Something stinks on ice here.

Last night, she was even praising Mrs. McCain. Apparently, she either doesn't know, or doesn't care that Sen. McCain supports "Comprehensive Immigration", and both his wife and his daughter are huge supporters of Gay Rights.

Obama and politics

Jonathan Bernstein analyzes Obama's recent speeches and draws some conclusions:

What Obama is saying here is that politics, rightly understood, is the very core of what makes this nation a nation. Not individualism, not religiosity, and certainly not ethnicity or the land itself, but politics. . . . We, in the United States, do not accept history, or live through history -- we have the capacity, Obama (and Biden) say, to make history, through collective action, whether it is in the Revolution, the Constitution, the Civil War, the civil rights revolution, or now, in tackling the challenges that face us in the 21st century. America, therefore, is self-created, and continues to be self-creating, by political action.

Two years ago, I felt that the difference between the three democratic frontrunners could be summed up like this: John Edwards wanted to reform the economy, Hillary Clinton wanted to reform society, and Barak Obama wanted to reform politics. I am still not sure whether people who voted for Obama necessarily understood or supported what he wanted to do -- I'm not sure if changing US politics is actually possible, either -- but Obama took his election as a mandate and I believe he is doing it. He sincerely believes that Americans can do anything they want to do -- "Yes, we can" is the essence of his being. In the end, if he CAN reform American politics, then society and the economy will follow.
The Teabaggers who are so opposed to him call him names like fascist and communist because they don't know WHAT to call him, but in some visceral way they recognize what many progressives so far have not -- that Obama actually is aiming to change the way politics is being practiced in America, creating a significant, non-partisan, forward-looking change in how American democracy functions. This is terribly threatening to some on both the right and the left, who are too comfortable with the existing system.

Friday Thoughts

I had a ridiculously busy day at work today, but the weekend is finally here. It seemed to take forever to get here, but the weekend is finally here. There's lots of of hockey being played this weekend as playoff races in the NHL and AHL are determining who is going to the big dance. The KHL Playoffs are into their semi-finals. The NCAA men's hockey tournament started today and continues over the next couple of weeks. This is one of the better times of the year for hockey fans because no matter what level of hockey you follow, there are playoffs or tournaments happening. And out of that, there are always news stories and pictures to check out. Here are HBIC's thoughts as this week closes.

• The Los Angeles Kings made an interesting announcement this week. According to this news article, the Kings are planning to wear their alternate jerseys throughout the playoffs when playing at home. The "Back In Black" theme will be in place throughout the playoffs for as long as the Kings are in the playoffs. If you're interested in picking up a Kings alternate jersey, the Team LA store has them at a reduced price!
• A couple of affiliation switches were the big news from the AHL this week. The Springfield Falcons were informed by the Edmonton Oilers that they would not renew their affiliation with the Falcons, leaving the Massachusetts team without an NHL affiliation. Enter the Columbus Blue Jackets who signed a one-year deal with the Falcons with an option for 2011-12. The Falcons jerseys go from this design to this design under the new affiliation next season. As you can see, Columbus' primary logo is on the shoulder, and a star has been added on the forearm area. The colours are also reflective of Columbus' colour scheme.
• The second switch involved the Anaheim Ducks. The Ducks don't have an affiliate as it stands, and were looking for an AHL partner. With Columbus moving their affiliation to Springfield, the Syracuse Crunch ended up with no affiliation next season. The Anaheim Ducks filled that void with the announcement that they will partner with the Crunch next season. There have been no announcements on changes to jerseys or anything, so we'll see if this Ducks-Crunch affiliation makes any changes to the Crunch's uniforms.
• Great story out of Quebec where it was announced today that former NHL head coach Pat Burns would have a new arena named after him at Stanstead College. It was tough to watch footage of the now-frail Burns at the press conference. Burns is suffering from lung cancer, and has decided to opt out of chemotherapy and treatment for the terminal illness. The only three-time Jack Adams Award winner in the NHL, Burns guided the 2003 New Jersey Devils to a Stanley Cup Championship, and compiled a 501-350-175 coaching record after serving as a police officer before he began coaching full-time. HBIC wishes all the best to Pat Burns and his family, and I hope that he stays with us for a lot longer than what he has been told. He deserves that much, and probably a lot more.
• I said I wouldn't talk about the rumours of NHL teams to Winnipeg, but it says a lot when a media outlet like The Hockey News starts to light fires. According to Ken Campbell, if the Ice Edge bid for the Coyotes falls through (which is looking more and more likely), it appears that billionaire John Thomson gets the first shot at owning the Coyotes. And if that happens, apparently the Coyotes are returning home. I'm going to stick with this mantra: until it happens, it's all just fantasy and speculation. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

Those are the stories that caught my attention from earlier in the week. Lots of photos coming up in tomorrow's article, so make sure you check out some of the images I've collected over the last few weeks. There are some great pieces!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Presidential Dollar Coin & First Spouse Medal Set - Millard & Abigail Fillmore

Today March 26, 2010, the United States Mint began sales of the Millard and Abigail Fillmore Presidential $1 Coin and First Spouse Medal Set.

This is the first release of the year for the product type, which includes an uncirculated Presidential Dollar and First Spouse Bronze Medal. The sets are priced at $11.95, up from last year's price of $8.95. The sets had been priced at just $7.95 each from 2007 to 2008.

The Millard Fillmore Dollar and Abigail Fillmore Medal are mounted on a durable plastic card. The front is illustrated with an image of the President and First Spouse and the back contains issuance information. These have been nicely presented, compact products to represent each Presidential couple, but the increased prices might have some collectors reconsidering whether it is still worth the price.

Sets from the prior year featuring John & Julia Tyler, James K. & Sarah Polk, and Zachary & Margaret Taylor remain available for sale at the Mint. These sets still remain priced at $8.95 each. The last available sales figures for the sets are 9,037 (Tyler), 8,549 (Polk), and 6,549 (Taylor).



Today, also marked the start of sales for the Women Airforce Service Pilots Bronze Medals. The 3 inch medals are priced at $42.00 and the 1-1/2 inch medals are priced at $6.00. Since I really like the design of this medal, I will be picking up one of the smaller sized ones.

New Coingrader Capsule: PCGS Secure Plus Grading

Just because you have a PhD doesn't mean you're not a jerk

I am opposed to the war in Afghanistan but it is mean-spirited and self-aggrandizing to express that opinion on the backs of orphaned children.

Explaining the priests

Andrew Sullivan writes a perceptive piece about the Catholic church pedophilia scandals and the perception within the priesthood that sexually abusing children was a a sin not a crime.

imagine you are a young gay Catholic teen coming into his sexuality and utterly convinced that it's vile and evil. . .
If this is the 1950s and 1960s, it's into the Church you go. You think it will cure you. In fact, it only makes you sicker . . .
They have never had a sexual or intimate relationship with any other human being. Sex for them is an abstraction, a sin, not an interaction with an equal. . .
They barely see these children as young and vulnerable human beings, incapable of true consent. Because they have never had a real sexual relationship, have never had to deal with the core issue of human equality and dignity in sex, they don't see the children as victims. Like the tortured gay man, Michael Jackson, they see them as friends. . .
In this self-protective environment, these priests do not even see the children as fellow humans. They remain like those solitary abstract images in their heads. So they cannot fully grasp the enormity of the crime they are committing and see it merely as another part of the vortex of their sexual sin.

Sullivan thinks the Pope is going to have to resign.

To view the video, please click off the "Ave Maria" music widget on the right hand side of the page.

Obama Goes Out Of His Way to Humiliate Netanyahu:

Once again, that address is:

His Excellency Ambassador Michael Oren
Ambassador of Israel to The United States
c/o Embassy of Israel

3514 International Dr. N.W.
Washington DC 20008

Attack of the Arctic "Cross Hare"

An Arctic "Cross Hare"

Well, the LSM and softy southpaws is all up in arms (pun intended) about Madame's Facebook post from yesterday where she put crosshairs on Congressional districts that she was targeting for conservatives to win back from Softy Southpaws who voted for Obamacare. These people are getting wee-weed up for no reason. She was simply saying that she was aiming, completely non-violently, at districts to help conservatives take back Congress. However, they claimed she was inciting violence. I've dug up a JPEG for your consideration as to whether or not they are inciting violence:

The President is shooting a basketball.
Is he inciting violence?

Also, Mittens Pomade's book made the top of the best sellers' list. However, if you check out the link, you can see that his book title has a dagger next to it because he sold his book in bulk; Madame didn't need to do this to make her book reach number one. Was Mittens inciting violence because of the daggers?

I don't get what's up with the LSM. Madame would never incite or condone violence, as you can see on her appearance on Uncle Glenn's show last week. Madame said violence is not the answer, voting is. Gee, and what was she asking people to do when targeting these districts? Vote!

Antler Banter: Volume 21

It's Thursday, and you don't usually find Antler Banter on your doorstep on this day, but here we are thanks to a couple of midweek games this week. Manitoba tangled with the Grand Rapids Griffins on the weekend before welcoming the Hamilton Bulldogs to Winnipeg for a couple of games. The Moose got some help courtesy of Mike Gillis' signings this week, and released a couple of players to get these new bodies into the lineup. We'll look at all of these developments coming up, as well as the push to the Calder Cup Playoffs! For all of your current Manitoba Moose news and information, hit up the Moose website. If you're interested in attending a Manitoba Moose game, please click here for seating information, ticket pricing, and availability. Let's look at Thursday's recap of Hardcore Hockey!

Familiarity Breeds Contempt

The Moose met up with the Grand Rapids Griffins for the second time in two weeks, and there was a definite feeling of two teams battling for their playoff lives. The Moose and Griffins had split their two-game set earlier this month in Michigan, so the Moose were looking for a season series win at home. Cory Schneider started for Manitoba while Daniel Larsson got the call for Grand Rapids.

The visitors opened the scoring when Brad May notched his fourth of the season. Nathan McIver won a battle behind the net for the puck, and the Moose defenceman kicked the puck towards the left corner. Brad May grabbed the puck near the bottom of the circle and fired it on net. The puck went high blocker side and found some room between Schneider and the crossbar. Certainly not a highlight reel goal, but they all count, and Grand Rapids had the 1-0 lead at 4:14.

Less than two minutes later, Riley Armstrong centered the puck from behind the net past two Moose defenders, and Francis Paré was standing on the doorstep all alone. He fired the puck past Schneider, and the Griffins went up 2-0 on Paré's 14th goal of the season at 6:01.

The Moose powerplay got a chance to stretch their legs when Logan Pyett was sent off for holding at 13:57. A face-off win in the offensive zone by Peter Olvecky sent the puck back to Evan Oberg on the right point. He centered the puck to Brian Salcido who ripped a one-timer high on the glove side that Larsson couldn't grab. Slacido's eighth goal of the season came at 15:36 on the powerplay, and the Moose were on the board, trailing 2-1.

The real story in the first period was Daniel Larsson. The Moose came out guns a-blazing in this game, outshooting the Griffins by a 19-6 advantage! Larsson was incredible in denying the Moose again and again, and he was the entire reason the Griffins were leading after 20 minutes.

Some rough stuff occurred in this period as Tommy Maxwell and Paul Crosty rumbled at 9:18. The scrum was eventually broken up, but there would be more to come.

Sergei Shirokov evened the game up after he found himself on a breakaway. The speedy Russian went backhand-forehand, opening up Larsson as he pushed from right to left in his crease. That movement gave Shirokov just enough room through the five-hole for his 21st goal of the season, and the game was tied at 2-2 at 14:59.

However, the Griffins jumped back in front just 21 seconds later. Jeremy Williams snapped a high wrist shot from the right face-off dot over Schneider's glove as Schneider went down, and the Griffins' sniper had his 24th of the year. More importantly, the Griffins led 3-2 at 15:20.

3:10 later, and all hell broke loose. Daniel Larsson earned a ten-minute misconduct under Rule 75.4. I didn't quite catch what he did, but it appeared he threw a punch with his blocker, earning him the misconduct. Nathan McIver and Jamie Tardif squared off in an old-fashioned bout of fisticuffs, and they sat for five minutes each. Tommy Maxwell and Ole-Kristian Tollefsen took double-minors for roughing, and each were given a ten-minute misconduct for their battle.

The teams saw these penalties roll into the third period, but none of them resulted in a powerplay. Nathan McIver did come off worse for wear, however, and I'll discuss him a little more below.

Evan Oberg, coming down the right wing, made a nice move to get past Crosty as he chipped the puck deep into the Griffins zone. Oberg won the race for the puck, and centered it as he crossed behind the net. His centering pass found Mario Bliznak in the slot, and Bliznak whacked the puck underneath Larsson and into the net. Bliznak's eighth goal of the season at 9:00 tied the game at 3-3.

The Griffins came back, though. The Moose looked to clear the puck down the ice as they went for a change, but they turned the puck over at their blueline, and Francis Paré brought the puck back into the zone. Mike Keane couldn't check Paré, and he fed a backhander across the slot to an open John Vigilante who one-timed the puck past Schneider's outstretched glove. Vigilante's 11th goal of the season made it 4-3 for the Griffins with just 4:08 remaining.

The Moose battled hard, but couldn't get another puck past Larsson. At the final horn, Grand Rapids had secured the 4-3 victory, dropping the Moose's record to 33-30-5-1 on the season. Perhaps a bigger loss was the loss of defenceman Nathan McIver. McIver broke his hand in the fight against Jamie Tardif, and is scheduled to be gone for approximately eight weeks. For a team already light on blueline help, this kind of news stings.

Schneider Stands Tall

If the weaker goal that Brad May scored on Schneider on Friday night sparked the Moose goaltender, it showed nicely in the only afternoon home game this season. The Moose and Griffins met for the fourth and final time on Sunday afternoon, and the Moose were looking for the win. Cory Schneider started for the Moose while the Griffins responded with Daniel Larsson in net.

Grand Rapids' Justin Abdelkader took a foolish goaltender interference penalty just 37 seconds into the game, and the new-look Moose powerplay took to the ice. Jordan Schroeder, playing his first pro game for the Moose, was sent out on the man-advantage. Matt Pettinger's pass from the right half-boards to Lawrence Nycholat at the point opened up a shooting lane. Nycholat teed up the puck, and Schroeder, wearing #23, scored his first professional goal by tipping the puck on its way to the net, and it got past Larsson. Schroeder's first goal of his career put Manitoba up 1-0 just 1:52 into the game.

Another newcomer from the collegiate ranks gave Manitoba a bigger lead. Dusty Collins threw the puck at the net, and Larsson made the save. Tommy Maxwell picked up the puck as he circled out from behind the net, but Larsson didn't give him any space to shoot. As the Griffins crowded the crease, Kevin Clark joined the crowd in the blue paint. Maxwell finally shot after skating across the crease to the right side, and the puck hit a defender in front. Clark whacked at the loose puck, and his shot knocked the puck into the net. Clark's first career goal at 6:25 gave the Moose a 2-0 lead.

Penalties rounded out the first period, including a scrap between Tommy Maxwell and Paul Crosty, but the Moose held their two-goal lead. Schneider was excellent in the first period, turning away all ten shots he faced. This will be a common theme in today's game. The second period had no scoring, but the vacations in the sin bin continued. Guillaume Desbiens and Brad May spent the most time there in the middle frame after their scrap got them five minutes each.

Lawrence Nycholat added to the Moose lead midway through the third period on the powerplay. His slapshot from just above the right face-off circle beat Larsson on the glove side with Yan Stastny providing an excellent screen. Nycholat's fourth of the season at 11:23 put Manitoba up 3-0.

With 32 seconds left, Jordan Schroeder capped off a great day. Schroeder was battling with Sergei Kolosov in front of Larsson, and managed to create a little room for himself. Matt Pettinger fed the puck from the right face-off circle to where Schroeder was standing, and that space he created allow him to chip the puck past Larsson for his second powerplay goal of the game, his season, and his career. Manitoba took a 4-0 lead.

Grand Rapids would mount no more offence in the game, and Cory Schneider recorded his fourth shutout of the season as Manitoba skated to the 4-0 win. With the victory, Manitoba improves to 34-30-5-1 on the season. It was a spectacular debut for the two youngsters as Clark and Schroeder combine for three goals including two powerplay markers, six shots on net, and a +1 rating.

Don't Wake A Sleeping Dog

Hamilton entered the Tuesday contest against the Moose with nothing on the line. They had secured a playoff spot, and had a large lead over the rest of the North Division, so there was little for which they had to compete. However, the games still have to be played. Cory Schneider got the call for the Moose against former teammate Curtis Sanford.

The first period was relatively quiet. No goals, only three minor penalties, and not a lot of scoring chances at either end. Schneider stopped all eight shots while Sanford kept the nine shots he saw out of the Bulldogs' net.

The first goal was scored by the visitors. Alex Henry's point shot through traffic ricocheted off the crossbar behind Schneider and ended up in the slot. Schneider couldn't find the puck, and Mike Glumac had no problem chipping the puck into the net. Glumac's 18th of the season made it 1-0 for the Bulldogs just 5:39 into the second period.

Less than a minute later with Alex Henry in the penalty box for roughing, the Moose responded. Brian Salcido made a nice move around a sprawling JT Wyman at the blueline, and fed a cross-ice pass to Marco Rosa at the top of the right face-off circle. Rosa took one step and fired a high wrist shot to the near corner past Sanford's glove. The powerplay marker was Rosa's 21st goal of the season, and the Moose evened the game at 1-1 at 6:27.

The fast and furious scoring continued. Mike Glumac and David Desharnais broke in on Tom Galvin on a two-on-one. Glumac pass the puck from the middle of the ice to Desharnais, forcing Galvin to cut off Desharnais as Lawrence Nycholat back-checked hard. However, Desharnais feathered a pass back to Glumac to went forehand-backhand on Schneider before roofing it behind the Moose goalie. Glumac's 19th goal of the season came at 7:03, and the Bulldogs were back on top by a 2-1 score.

It took ten minutes for the next goal to be scored. Nycholat broke out of his zone with a pass to Marco Rosa who was gaining speed at the Moose blueline. With Glumac pestering him from behind, Rosa brought the puck in across the Bulldogs' blueline. Rosa sidestepped a check from Brock Trotter and fed a pass across to Guillaume Desbiens at the top of the face-off circle. Desbiens wasted no time in getting a wrist shot on net, and Sanford made the save. Or so it was thought. The puck squirted under his arm and slid into the net. Desbiens' 16th goal of the season came at 17:28, and the Moose pulled even again at 2-2.

After two periods, the Moose and Bulldogs were all even at 2-2, and they had both registered 17 shots. Both teams appeared to be sitting back, waiting for the other team to make a mistake, but the game was square after 40 minutes.

10:27 into the third period saw the home team finally grab the lead. Jordan Schroeder didn't have much room to work with after Yan Stastny had centered a pass from the corner, so the Moose rookie dropped the puck back to Evan Oberg in the high slot. Oberg's low shot found a seam through Sanford's five-hole, and the Moose were out to a 3-2 lead on Oberg's fourth goal of the campaign.

While both teams continued their sit-back-and-wait approach, the Bulldogs did pressure with time winding down. The Moose held strong, though, and picked up the victory against their potential opening round opponent in the upcoming Calder Cup Playoffs. With the 3-2 victory, the Moose move to 35-30-5-1 on the season.

Bloodthirsty Killing Machine

Wednesday night's game featured the back end of the two-game set against the Bulldogs, and all I'll say is that this one was ugly. Hamilton didn't just beat the Moose, they thrashed, trounced, and destroyed them. This one will be short simply because there's no need to re-open a nasty wound. Cory Schneider started for the Moose, and Cedric Desjardins got the call for the Bulldogs.

Brock Trotter scored his 32nd goal of the season just 56 seconds in. Lawrence Nycholat tied the game with his fifth goal of the season after he cashed in a Jordan Schroeder rebound at 3:49. Trotter added his second of the game at 7:32 for 33 goals on the season, and Hamilton was up 2-1. They made it 3-1 on Aaron Palushaj's seventh goal of the season.

12:44 into the second, Yannick Weber ripped a slapshot through Schneider for his fifth of the season, and Hamilton had the 4-1 lead. Ryan Russell made it 5-1 on his 18th goal of the season at 17:07 of the second. Hamilton led 5-1 after two periods, and head coach Scott Arniel decided to give Cory Schneider the rest of the night off.

With Daren Machesney in net, things didn't get any better for the Moose. Dany Masse added a powerplay goal at 13:43 for his second goal of the season, and Hamilton was up 6-1. Andrew Conboy notched his seventh of the season at 17:11 on the powerplay, and the Bulldogs skated to a 7-1 victory.

An ugly loss for sure for the Moose, but it was much worse than what the boxscore read. Geoff Waugh and Andrew Conboy got into a scrap at 17:15 of the second period, and it looked as though the two were evenly matched. However, Conboy decided to tackle Waugh into the ice, slamming the Moose defenceman's head into the ice. Waugh was escorted off the ice and didn't return, and it was almost obvious that he had suffered a concussion.

Don't get me wrong: I appreciate a good tussle when they develop. But what Conboy did was not only cowardly, but it was extremely dangerous. I'm not sure if the Moose will be sending tape to the AHL Offices, but you can bet that if these two teams meet in the Calder Cup Playoffs, that move on Waugh won't be forgotten.

Scoring Youngsters In, Others Out

The Moose are benefiting from Mike Gillis' signings in Vancouver. Clearly, as seen in the Sunday game against the Griffins, the new kids are bringing some scoring ability to the Moose, and that will help tremendously. Here are the latest moves.

• Jordan Schroeder - assigned by Vancouver. Schroeder jumped from the University of Minnesota to the Canucks by signing his first pro contract, and was assigned to the Moose for some training in the professional game. In three AHL games, Schroeder has two goals, two assists, and seven shots.
• Kevin Clark - signed by Manitoba. The Winnipeg native was plying his trade at the University of Alaska-Anchorage when he decided to make the jump to the pro ranks. The Moose signed Clark to an amateur tryout contract, and the former Winnipeg South Blues star responded with one goal in three games with a +1 ranking.
• Andy Brandt - released from PTO. Brandt was officially released from his professional tryout contract. The numbers game saw him sitting, and the Moose simply had too many hands on the farm.
  
• Nikita Kashirsky - released from PTO. Kashirsky was in the same boat as Brandt, so the Moose had to release him as they brought in the youngsters.
• Aaron Volpatti - signed by Manitoba. Volpatti was Brown University's captain, and leaves the school as the career leader in PIMs. Volpatti played with the Vernon Vipers of the BCHL before making the jump to the NCAA. He can score and likes to hit, so the Moose can definitely use his tenacity.

Coming Up

The Moose head out on a six-game roadtrip where they'll face North Division opponents in every game.

They'll battle the Abbotsford Heat on Monday and Tuesday, and the Moose currently trail the Heat by four points in the standings. They need to win both games to cause a major pile-up in the middle of the North Division standings.

Following those games, the Moose battle the Toronto Marlies and the Hamilton Bulldogs, two teams that the Moose have to beat at least once. If the Moose can win four of six games, they'll certainly guarantee themselves a playoff spot. They may also achieve their goal of hosting a playoff series as second place in the North Division is still quite attainable.

However, it starts with winning. The Moose have eight games remaining, and I'm going out on a branch in saying they have to go 6-2-0 to secure second place. It starts on Monday and Tuesday, though. Wins over Abbotsford are paramount if they want second place. DO IT!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!