Kronwall - Ejected For Clean Hit

I've been saying all along through these 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs that the officiating has been the worst I've ever seen.

Inconsistency has been my biggest complaint and the choices between what should be called and what shouldn't has been atrocious. Missed calls and phantom penalties this playoff season has been the worst I've ever witnessed.

A prime example of this happened in game three of the Detroit / Chicago series last night when Niklas Kronwall was given a major penalty and a game misconduct for finishing one of the nicest and cleanest hits I've seen in a while.

Watch the video below which shows Kronwall laying the shoulder to Martin Havlat of the Blackhawks. It's clear that the puck was between his legs, he was bent over and lookng the wrong way as he came together with Kronwall. It's unfortunate that Havlat was knocked unconcious but that is not a reason to penalize a great hockey check.

Now I don't have an official rulebook to look at but the only argument to be made might be that Havlat hadn't actually touched the puck yet and therefore any contact would be called interference. What are you supposed to do then? Stop skating and wait for him to decide if he wants to touch the puck? If the puck is along the boards and a player is protecting it but hasn't touched the puck, does that mean you can't touch the player to move him off the puck? I think it's fair to assume that if the puck is between your skates, you should be fair game.

Regardless, I think Kronwall had no choice but to hit him and Havlat should have known it was coming. I also think these officials have been spending too much time watching their kids playing Timbits Hockey at their local arenas. This is the NHL and if you don't like the hitting then go judge figure skating.

Track & Field Fun

I haven't attended the Bay of Quinte High School Track & Field Championships since I last participated in them as a student in 1987...the same year I finished school.

Earlier today I was lucky enough to have the day off work and I knew this year's event was taking place. It was a nice sunny day, so I grabbed my camera equipment and decided to head down the highway to check it out.

I had a fun day as I ran into an old friend who coaches one of the local teams. I also chatted with my high school principal who is retired and was acting as the race starter and I ran into my Senior Football coach who was also volunteering.

I was there long enough to get a nice sunburn on my shaved head and to watch several races and events. If you'd like, you can see the photos I took from the event by clicking here.

10-thousand Visitors & Counting

I just wanted to take a brief moment to thank all of you who have taken the time over the last few years to visit my blog, read my thoughts and basically give me a reason to continue doing this.

It started out as a way to help me through a difficult time in my life, allowing me an outlet for my creativity and my thoughts after my previous method was taken from me unexpectedly.

I don't update every day but I try to keep it as fresh as possible and as topical as I can. I like to discuss a little bit of everything.

Thank you to the now 10-thousand plus visitors who have helped me reach this milestone and if I don't get tired of doing this and you don't grow bored visiting my blog, perhaps one day down the road I can celebrate the 20-thousand mark.

I'm All A Twitter

The latest internet fad sweeping the social scene among nerds, techies, geeks and the curious is a thing called Twitter.

Twitter, according to the website itself, is a service for friends, family, and co–workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing?

It's an extremely fast growing social media network with currently over 1 million members but this is expected to explode! The premise is to log on and leave a quick message of 140 characters or less that conveys what you're doing at that moment or what's on your mind.

I got sucked into the whole Facebook phenomenon when it started and still check into it at least once a day. I swore I wouldn't let the same thing happen to me with Twitter but low and behold, I'm now checking it a few times a day and leaving my own comments and thoughts.

I've even gone so far as to add a Twitter program to my computer that will monitor my "tweets" and the messages left by other friends and contacts that also take part. The program I use is called twhirl.

So why do I use Twitter? To be honest...I don't have the foggiest idea other than I'm a gadget and tech junkie and always have to try new things. It is used by celebrities as a way to promote themselves in a way they couldn't before and to connect with their fans. It's used by media outlets as an instant way to communicate with viewers for opinions on various subjects. If fact, just recently City TV in Toronto started to use it for their Breakfast Television program. They posted a question about a change with a recent Ontario law and I replied and they read my reply on air. It was kind of cool.

Twitter isn't for everyone but it's growing bigger every day so if you decide to give it a try, feel free to follow me. I go by bundyman.

Dom DeLuise Passes Away

I was saddened to learn of the passing of comedy legend Dom DeLuise on Monday night. He was a star in some of my favourite movies growing up.

DeLuise brought his characters to life in such movies as "Blazing Saddles" and "The Cannonball Run" with his comedic delivery and happy-go-lucky persona.

In 1974's "Saddles" -- he played a flamboyant musical director who led dancers in a number called "The French Mistake" and was "Captain Chaos" in the Cannonball Run movies with Burt Reynolds and members of the famous "Rat Pack" including Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr.

I also remember his appearances on The Muppet Show and Johnny Carson which always left me laughing.

DeLuise was 75.

Here are couple of videos featuring DeLuise in action.

New Favourite Commercial

This is a real commercial! I can't stress that enough.

The Red House, a furniture store in the High Point, North Carolina area, likely wouldn't have made a television commercial if they hadn't been approached to have one made free of charge.

According to the producers of the ad, they "knew this video was going to be controversial." They go on to add that the commercial is "racial" and not "racist".

I don't care what it is. All I know is that it's poorly done, badly acted and so bad it's funny...which is probably exactly what they were hoping for. Mission accomplished.

Check it out!