Rawk the Puck! Conference semifinals

It's playoff time. New and unlikely faces pop up to play hero, old ones trip over the blueline and fall by the wayside. Second lines are clambering over the boards, and depth matters.

This Fire rages, but will it last?

So here they are, your first round results and conference semifinalists in Rawk the PUCK! And as in the first round -- east and west, and for the judges' verdicts go here -- it's a mix of the old, the new, the borrowed and the cheezy. As we move on, saying goodbye to the likes of the White Stripes, Bootsy and high school Hustle lessons, and hello to the stirring comeback of Spinal Tap, think of this as a matchup of old-timey singles now and cast your votes, with bobbleheads and CDs up for grabs (first-round prize winners at bottom):

First round results

CAPITAL Radio (The Clash) over Ride the LIGHTNING (Metallica) 13-1

Like a HURRICANE (Neil Young) over MONTREAL (Blue Rodeo) 11-3

DEVIL to Pay (Johnny Cash) over NEW YORK CITY (Demics) 11-3

BUFFALO Stance (Neneh Cherry) over T.S.O.P. (MFSB) 9-5

SLIPPERY PEOPLE (Talking Heads) over HOTEL YORBA (White Stripes) 9-5

STAR Sign (Teenage Fanclub) over MILE HIGH Club (Adam and the Ants) 7-6

Streets of FIRE (New Pornographers) over Rubber DUCKIE (Bootsy Collins) 9-5

SHARK Sandwich (Spinal Tap) over TENNESSEE Plates (John Hiatt) 8-6

CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS

EAST CLASSIC RAWK CONFERENCE

Rock the HOUSE (Gorillaz) (b-w CAPITAL Radio, The Clash) -- Ottawa
vs.
BUFFALO Soldier (Bob Marley) (b-w BUFFALO Stance, Neneh Cherry) -- Buffalo

HURRICANE (The Roots) (b-w Like a HURRICANE, Neil Young) -- Carolina
vs.
Handsome DEVIL (The Smiths) (b-w DEVIL to Pay, Johnny Cash) -- New Jersey

WEST INDIE RAWK CONFERENCE

STARMAN (David Bowie) (b-w STAR Sign, Teenage Fanclub) -- Dallas
vs.
OIL 1 (Moby) (b-w SLIPPERY PEOPLE, Talking Heads) -- Edmonton

This FIRE (Franz Ferdinand) (b-w Streets of FIRE, New Pornographers) -- Calgary
vs.
MANEATER (Hall & Oates) (b-w SHARK Sandwich, Spinal Tap) -- San Jose

First-round winners: Congratulations and a bobblehead apiece to Dan Monti and Ken. And a hearty handshake and a CD each to Kent MacDonald and Big Dawg (Please email me, folks, to claim your prizes, as I expunge the email addresses before publishing in an effort to repel the spambots).

The Hot Cockles Playoff Report

These are trying times for a general sports blog, but the solution to attempting to keep track of 16 playoff series over two sports: stay focussed, read the blogs, and keep a healthy remote with a spare set of batteries always on hand.

You'll notice the blogroll just grew this morning with a set of places where the puck stopping is quite good, especially at playoff time -- do have a look at them. As for hoops, it is coming soon.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Vince fall down.

In the meantime, here's a number of items and observations from watching and surfing that have warmed the cockles of my heart:

Vince Carter. Nothing says schadenfreude better than VC going Vinceoverteakettle and putting up one of those 31 points on 33 shots nights. Old pal Dave D'Alessandro's Nets Blast has been a blast all this season, and reading Lawrence Frank's smooching up to VC after his opening night airballs is good for a chuckle and even hotter cockles.

The Flyers. Still on the schadenfreude beat, Philly getting creamed show can only get more ornery. James Mirtle figures that the eggheads going all hard-boiled is worth a mention -- "Vegas is taking odds on Ruff vs. Hitchcock" -- but really, coaches getting into each other's mugs and planting seeds for later is standard playoff theatre. What's going on the ice is full-out drama and a quick (though oversimplified) shorthand for what the new NHL is supposed to be about -- the Sabres' youth, open-ice quickness and thrift hammering the expensive, slow, along-the-boards Flyers (Disclaimer: I'm rooting hard -- hard! - for the Sabres, having wagered $10 in the office pool for a San Jose-Buffalo final).

LeBron James. So here's this 21-year-old's playoff debut: 48 minutes, 32 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists (he even got to the line 11 times, making this a quad double in my book). James might or might not be able to take the Cavs much further than the second round -- he's 21 years old, with nowhere near the supporting cast that the same-aged Kobe had in winning it all with the Lakers six years ago -- and surely the Wizards aren't about to be blown away. But he's the closest thing to must-watch material in the NBA as long as Cleveland lasts.

Chicago Bulls. It's taken them this long to climb out from under the shadow of the Jordan era, but they're finally on the way back and giving the Heat a mild scare. A good team to keep your eye on -- next year -- and not bad for a look-in now and then while they're still breathing.

Sidney Crosby. No, he's not here. But this latest Crosby, Inc. advertisement is, or at least will be -- thanks to J-Rich for sending it along -- filmed in beautiful downtown Mimico.

Darcy Tucker: Goals up, annoying down

At least the year wasn't a total loss for the Leafs and Darcy Tucker.
After all, Tucker scored a career high 28 goals. And over at amiannoying.com, Tucker's annoying quotient (His A rating, as it were) has actually decreased in 2006 -- and indeed, it's gone down for each of the past three years:

2006, as of last week, Out of 1094 Votes: 38.85% Annoying
In 2005, Out of 2778 Votes: 42.01% Annoying
In 2004, Out of 1447 Votes: 42.43% Annoying
In 2003, Out of 168 Votes: 71.43% Annoying

Kicking the Leafs when they're down

David Singer's The Ice Block caught this one, and I picked it up from the inexhaustible Eric McErlain, now it's making the rounds: In any language, the message comes through.

Rawk the Puck! The Judges Speak

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Cash: Has his hands full against the surprising Demics.

Still time to vote in Rawk the Puck!, where this year's Stanley Cup tournament mashes with a well-loaded iPod. Balloting closes tomorrow afternoon and they've been just pouring in, I tell ya.

Okay, they've actually been barely trickling in, so pick it up please, i've added a SECOND BOBBLEHEAD to the opening-round list of prizes, along with a couple of R the P! mix discs, to be chosen at random from the avalanche/gathering/light smattering of voters. If you need to refresh yourself on what this is all about and listen to some clips, check out the introductory post  and its links from last week.
First-round results and second-round matchups will be posted on Wednesday, as we take it down to the Rawk the Puck' final hootenanny.
To find out how the crack panel of hipster bloggers (and JABS, which by virtue of referencing the Hustle has officially been stricken from the hipster category) voted on the opening-round matchups, take the jump.

Kickaround for the ages

Normally I don't like linking to commercials unless there's something really different about them, but before getting to the business at hand, here's a link sent along via the World Cup Blog to one ad we likely won't see here: a couple of kids, picking sides for a kickaround for the ages.

I didn't realize Beckenbauer and Platini had chosen this side in the battle of the football boots.

Weekend surprise III

Pet Tricks movie -- takes a while to load, but not bad.

And oh, I missed it earlier in the week, and it actually is sports, so the category isn't quite right this time: it's the Sportblog Roundup from Ken Owen.

Hands Across the Country

Time to wrap up an eventful week around here. If you haven't been to Rawk the Puck!, check it out and get yourself eligible for a Marty Brodeur bobblehead or a CD -- we don't scrimp on the swag here. But before heading into the usual Friday stuff, some thoughts of the think-you-got-it-bad?/misery-loves-company variety from e-mailer Paul Smith of Delta, B.C.:

MLSE, like Orca Bay here, know they have some of us by the gonads, so who cares what the product on the ice or court looks like? The joints are full every night!
At least in Toronto you have the Jays and Argos a couple of blocks away, and the Rock in the ACC. Here, we have the B.C. Lions after the Canucks, and that's it folks.
The only time an owner gets the message is when the stadium is half full, and concession sales are 'way down. Hit them in the pocketbook, and they pay attention.
Go Jays Go!

One last suggestion. Over at Off Wing Opinion, Eric McErlain imagines a new Stanley Cup ritual that's about the best idea I've heard since at least this morning:

GORDIE HOWE, heretofore obscured underneath the stands, shuffles onto the red carpet to sustained and adoring applause before taking his place beside BETTMAN.
BETTMAN: Steve Yzerman, come and get the Stanley Cup!
STEVE YZERMAN steps onto the red carpet and mugs for the cameras as HOWE hands him the Cup.

One last read. Dave Feschuk's column from this morning's Star was pretty good end-of-season stuff, especially this part:

If you want defence, Mitchell has said more than once, you must acquire some defenders. And to the coach's way of thinking, that's the end of the story.
(snip)
Said Colangelo, questioned on the club's biggest weakness: "You could argue that defence is a mindset."

Now there's a faultline that Raptor seismologists will be keeping an eye on.

One last view. Well, it opened today, so take note: The Rocket, the new movie about Maurice Richard. Having avoided the CBC miniseries about the '72 Summit Series a couple weeks back, I'm really looking forward to this one, so this time I'm avoiding the reviews, as I always do with films I plan to see.

Okay, really one last view, and a read. This Guardian article immediately made me think of this gem.

One thing we missed. At the end of the NHL bloggers roundtable, James Mirtle actually took a day off from work and was away from his computer (that's his story, anyway). Here's James' playoff predictions, and they're well worth a look 'cause, like the rest of the roundtable, this guy knows his stuff.

Breaking news. Not exactly, but you'll notice that JABS has finally begun work (haltingly) on a blogroll. It's sort of like the road construction season around here, which brings us to ...

Sports around town. The Gardner is closed this weekend, so it's more like 'gridlock around town'. Now here's breaking news: It's not going to be closed after all, roadwork called on account of rain.

Miguel Angel Jimenez. JABS' official golfer and common man is playing in the Asian Open this week, but top Jimeneth story of the week has to be the Mechanic's Cuban cigars being confiscated by U.S. Customs: "It's an outrage. An affront to my civil liberties."

Watching. Flyers at Sabres, Saturday, 7 p.m., TSN. When these two teams play, they ought to be given something to go with those dry-ice intros -- a bat flying around, maybe. And Jim Lorentz.

Rawk the Puck! West Indie Conference

As promised, here's the other side of your grid as the puck drops on Rawk the Puck! For the Eastern Classic Conference pairings, or if you need a primer on what's going on, go here.

STEVE RUSSELL/TORONTO STAR

Jack 'n Meg: Top seed.

WESTERN INDIE RAWK CONFERENCE

1 “Hotel Yorba”, the White Stripes vs. 8 “Slippery People”, Talking Heads

2 “Star Sign”, Teenage Fanclub vs. 7 “Mile High Club”, Adam and the Ants

3 “Streets of Fire”, the New Pornographers vs. 6 “Rubber Duckie”, Bootsy Collins

4 “Tennessee Plates”, John Hiatt vs. 5 “Shark Sandwich”, Spinal Tap

Send along your picks for each matchup in the comments below -- the 1 vs. 8 here in the WRIC is a doozy -- to be eligible to win a prize.

Rawk the Puck! East Classic Conference

For the past couple days here, we’ve been pretty serious about these Stanley Cup playoffs with the NHL bloggers roundtable.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Clash: No. 1 seed.

Now it’s time to rock out with Rawk the Puck!, a mashup of Idol, rate-a-record, blazing pun-ditry, all those years of listening from radio to mp3's and finally, Lord Stanley's hallowed beaker with a bobblehead cherry on top.

Here’s the plan: I’ve put together a grid, but instead of this year’s playoff teams, it matches up classic tunes, eg, for Red Wings vs. Edmonton, it’s the White Stripes (“Hotel Yorba”, a Detroit flophouse) against Talking Heads (“Slippery People”, because that’s what Oilers are, isn’t it?).

The JABS panel of hipster bloggers and me will weigh in with our thoughts yay or nay, and so will you with your votes, with prizes (bobbleheads 'r' us, CD's are us) up for grabs. The winning songs move on, and a new song echoing the same team/name goes up in its place next round, while the losers are out.

It’s sing or go home, right up to the final two playing off in the Rawk the Puck! Championship hootenanny.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Young: All CanCon matchup.

Here’s the panel:

The Acid Queen, a ‘Canes fan who rants with the best of ‘em at her eponymous blog, up since 2005 (Fave band of the moment: Tyr).

Alanah and Jeff, better known as the merry pranksters of Vancouver Canucks OpEd since October 2003 (Faves: Tragically Hip, Ben Folds Five, Abba Van Morrison).

Mike Chen, who since September '05 regularly blogs at the intersection of pop and pucks (Faves: Tanya Donelly, U2, Morrissey, Pulp).

Mark Freedman, JABS regular, website pioneer and all-round hipster responsible for the inspired “Slippery People” inclusion (Fave: Wilco).

Carla MacDonald, new blogger, JABS/Hockey Page original and recent escapee from Bush’s America (Fave: X).

Tassos Melas and J.E. Skeets, whose Basketball Jones podcasts combine Pynchonesque hoops talk with the latest hepcat sounds (Faves: Melas – The Killers; Skeets -- The Roots; Skeets’ fave karaoke song: Bohemian Rhapsody).

Then there’s me (Fave: Stars).

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Cash: Draws the Demics.

Here's your first four matchups -- for the other four, go here (and from here, the judges' comments and verdicts will go up on Monday, voting will be closed and results announced Tuesday afternoon and we start the conference semifinals on Wednesday.)

EASTERN CLASSIC RAWK CONFERENCE

1 “Capital Radio”, the Clash vs. 8 “Ride the Lightning”, Metallica

2 “Like a Hurricane”, Neil Young vs. 7 “Montreal”, Blue Rodeo

3 “Devil to Pay”, Johnny Cash vs. 6 “(I Wanna Go To) New York City,” the Demics

4 “Buffalo Stance”, Neneh Cherry, vs. 5 “T.S.O.P.”, MFSB

Don't forget to vote your picks, and post smart remarks in the comments below, to be eligible for the first-round prizes (a Marty Brodeur Team Canada bobblehead; a couple of CDs) to be drawn at random. I'll post the Western Indy Rawk Conference later this morning.