Day 2, Ought Nine

It's a start - I remembered to log in again! Whoo! Okay, I'm not really that excited, but starting is important. I think it's three weeks to start a habit - three days will be good for me. First hockey game of 2000 + 9 and I've already scored the best goal of the year. Point shot, high on the short side, off the post, off the far post and in. Very pretty. Not sure what I'm going to do to follow that. Not that it matters - I don't get paid 10 million a season like some Swede who's two years older than me and waltzes in to Vancouver half way through the year. Then my goals would matter. Goals in hockey - that thing I do for fun.

Now's as good a time as any to throw some gasoline on the John Tavares pyre-of-worship. I really enjoyed the World Junior game on New Years Eve between Canada and the US. Looked like trouble in the first 10 mins of the game, with Canada down 3-0. Then Mr. Tavares shows everyone where the net was and away went team Canada. Really open two-way game and very nice to watch. I'm still mooning over Tavares' goal in the pre-tournament game against Solvakia. Enjoy! I think the kind of play that goal epitomises will be the future of hockey. There are generations of players that have increasing hand-eye coordination skills and there will come a time when enough people show that level of skill that a significant portion of the game will be played in the air. Maybe it'll look like lacrosse around the net - little flip to the crease then bat-bat-bat and in. Just a thought I had after watching that Canada-US game. Nothing will beat the certainty and control of smooth on-ice, tape-to-tape play when moving the puck around.