Seeing the Montreal Canadiens for the first time in person on Monday night was a treat, but not in the way you think.  It was awesome to experience the atmosphere in the Saddledome, the duelling crowds, and the back and forth action of the first 40 minutes of play.  However, watching the Habs play wasn’t a privilege.

Montreal enters its 100th year of existence, and without question, this is the most successful franchise in hockey history.  You cannot deny that, and you cannot deny the Canadiens their rich history.  They are part of hockey lore and always will be, and I love them for it.  However, with “destiny on their side”, my appetite for the current incarnation of the Habs isn’t all that high.

I’ll tell you why it gets to me.  It’s because I want to see the Canadiens be successful, I want to see this franchise thrive, because of what they mean to this league.  But Bob Gainey has a LOT of work to do to make this team anymore than an also-ran in the Eastern Conference.  Now, granted, Monday night was only 1 game, but in looking at the recent body of work, this team is not even close to being a Stanley Cup contender.

Starting with Montreal’s second round exit in last years playoffs, it was very clear the Habs were missing a good deal of grit and character.  To me, Mike Komisarek is a top notch NHL defenceman who is capable of being the heartbeat of a team.  Tom Kostopolous and Matt D’Agostini could be put in that mix as well, but it certainly isn’t enough.

In watching the Habs Monday night, I have never seen a team shy away from physical engagement the way they did.  The Kostitsyn’s, Plekanec, Koivu, Kovalev, Lapierre, and more were more than happy to make the wrong play if it meant avoiding “paying the price” of a forechecking Calgary Flame.  Never once in that game did I get the feeling that Montreal was going to take control.  Why?  Because Calgary continually wore down the soft Montreal forwards with a solid, hard skating, physical gameplan.

That’s how Calgary has their success.  That’s how Philly had their success in the playoffs last year.  And it’s how other teams will have success against the Canadiens.  Now don’t get me wrong, I know they are a talented team and have the capability, with the current team assembled, to get back to near the top of the East.  This team can score, it is offensive, with Markov, Komisarek, Price, Koivu, Kovalev and others, they have a great core.  But for this year, I believe they are too soft.

It’s bizarre for a team being helmed by 2 of the best 2 way forwards of all time.  Guy Carbonneau is their Head Coach.  He won Stanley Cups with Montreal and Dallas perfecting a 2 way style, focusing on playing in his own zone.  And General Manager Bob Gainey is the innovator, the benchmark, and the trend setter when it comes to the 2 way forward. 

If Gainey can start to assemble a team that more resembles the way he played, I believe this team will start to become more and more scary.  There is enough talent assembled to keep most of the pieces in place.  To build around those pieces and focus on the important areas of physicality and defensive responsibility is not out of the question.  However, with the team assembled in its current form, I just don’t see the Canadiens doing much when playoff time rolls around.

So, I’m wondering how BJ Penn convinced his team to take him seriously following his UFC 94 loss to Georges St. Pierre in Vegas?  “Guys, I know I couldn’t block a takedown, or keep Georges in my guard, or control his wrists while he was in top position, or even hold my own in the standup game, but I know what happened.  I saw his cornerman accidentally apply Vaseline to his back and chest!  I GOT SCREWED!”

That’s the only way it could have gone down…the delusional ramblings of a guy beaten soundly by a better fighter.  Because any rational human being could not follow the path of events BJ Penn and his team have gone down in the days following 94.  Of course, this story stems from allegations from the Penn camp that St. Pierre gained an unfair advantage in the fight because of the application of Vaseline in between the 2nd and 3rd rounds.  And the bull continues to flow.

St. Pierre stated to MMAWeekly Radio and MMAWeekly.com that he’s moving forwards now.  “George St. Pierre’s successful welterweight title defense at UFC 94 was the direct result of his disciplined preparation and skillful execution of a masterful gameplan. Any implication to the contrary would diminish the significance of what was perhaps the biggest fight in MMA history,” the statement read.  “I have never cheated in my life, and as my fans know, I am deeply committed to upholding the integrity of the sport. My entire camp and I have been completely open about what happened during my fight at UFC 94 – we have nothing to hide.”

So, in an act of good faith, St. Pierre offered a rematch (second rematch that is) to Penn if the UFC wanted to go forward with it.  “To the untrained eye the grease might not look like much, but every grappler knows the effect that it has. Being able to apply your submissions and sweeps or just being able to hold on to your opponent to defend yourself from being hit is absolutely critical! … I hereby accept George St. Pierre and Greg Jackson’s challenge for a fight in the summer 2009. Lets call Dana now and set it up.”

So, am I the only one who can’t understand BJ over all the bitching and moaning?  Seriously!  Not only have we seen him get his ass beat by Montreal’s St. Pierre TWICE, but he’s now using Vaseline to state his case for a 3rd fight!  Now, let me state that I understand the intricacies of the fight game.  I get that St. Pierre had an unfair advantage in that fight with his cornerman’s illegal use of the substance.  I also get that this advantage COULD lead to a diminished capacity to execute correct form in the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu game.  However, go rewatch the fight…I did.  I don’t see any limbs slipping from submission attempts, nor do I see St. Pierre escaping too easily from any precarious situation.

No, what I see is one fighter using his superior wrestling skill to continually take the other fighter to the ground with gradually easier takedowns.  Vaseline certainly didn’t enhance St. Pierre’s explosive strength, nor did it diminish Penn’s ability to sprawl and scamper away from said attempts.  I saw one fighter pass the guard of another fighter (a BJJ black belt, remember) without any trouble at all.  Vaseline was not applied to the legs of St. Pierre, however it were his legs escaping the guard and half-guard of Penn.  Nor was Vaseline applied to the arms of St. Pierre, but it was his arms that were keeping Penn pinned on the mat.  Vaseline did not diminish Penn’s ability to control GSP’s wrists, or to trap his legs in the half guard to prevent a side-control situation.  Finally, I saw one fighter pushing the pace to an extreme degree and the other fighter wearing down far too quickly.  If anyone can tell me how Vaseline screwed with Penn’s cardio, please show me.

Look it, I get the fact that what St. Pierre’s cornerman did was wrong and unethical, and should be punished for it.  In fact, I wouldn’t have had a problem had BJ Penn’s camp pointed it out and filed a complaint.  However, for Penn to cite this as an excuse as to WHY HE WAS COMPLETELY DOMINATED, that’s where I draw the line of acceptance.  BJ is coming off like a sore-ass loser who can’t accept defeat.  He bitched and complained after his first loss to St. Pierre, saying the judges got it wrong.  This time, when St. Pierre made sure the judges had no hand in the decision, Penn found something else to piss and moan about, as an excuse for why he lost.

I respect the hell out of BJ Penn as a fighter, and I still believe he is the best natural talent to ever set foot in The Octagon.  However, his latest act of juvenile behavior makes the UFC look ridiculous, and makes himself look even worse.  So, is Penn one of the greatest figters to set foot in the cage?  100% yes.  Is Penn a great sportsman on top of that?  Hell no.

5 games, and 5 wins for the Calgary Roughnecks in their 2009 National Lacrosse League season.  Not only are the Roughnecks 5-0 for the first time in their history, it’s also the first time this franchise has ever experienced a 5 game winning streak, at any time.  With the Roughnecks being the only unbeaten team remaining in the NLL, the challenge now becomes keeping their foot on the gas pedal.

On Saturday night at the Pengrowth Saddledome, the Riggers walked away with a 13-8 win over the Minnesota Swarm, distancing themselves from the rest of the pack in the West Division.  It was a game that was never really in doubt, to be perfectly honest, as the Roughnecks dominated the first 30 minutes and did more than enough in the second half of the hockey game.  The Riggers lead 5-0 after 1 quarter and 7-1 at half, so it was on the Necks to weather the storm from Minnesota in the second half.  Calgary knew the Swarm were going to put on the full court press in the final 30, which they did.  So the Roughnecks did what they needed, playing solid defensively and limiting mistakes while still scoring enough to keep their lead fairly comfortable.

Heading into the game, I asked Swarm Head Coach Duane Jacobs about his defence…he kinda compared it to Calgary’s, in that they are both pressure based and can be very smothering at times.  Well, the Swarm weren’t terrible defensively at all, however it was Calgary’s defence that did all the smothering on this night.  Head Coach Troy Cordingley told me following the win that we are finally starting to see the vision he and Assistant Terry Sanderson had when they took over this team. 

It’s a pretty scary vision, for opposing teams at least.  It’s a defence that relies very heavily on individual assignments…as soon as an opposing player enters the offensive zone, he’ll have a Calgary jersey in his face immediately.  Because that player has committed so much to the attacking player, it’s on the other 4 players to make sure they pick up the slack.  In hockey, when a defenceman pinches off the point, there has to be a forward taking up his assignment on the blueline to negate the threat of an odd-man rush the other way.  The same is true with Calgary’s defensive system…it’s very easy to get burned if there isn’t a total committment on the floor.  We saw that against the Swarm, and other NLL teams are going to have to find ways to counter what is turning into a very stingy Calgary team.

Offensively, well, it was the same old story.  One player leads the way while everyone chips in timely goals in a depth role.  What’s cool is the rotation of roles in this offence…on Saturday, it was Captain Tracey Kelusky having the monster night, walking away with 9 points (4G, 5A).  On this night, Josh Sanderson, Dane Dobbie (5 points each), and Kaleb Toth (4 points) provided the “secondary scoring”, if you will.  Curt Malawsky, Scott Ranger, and Jeff Shattler picked up the rest of the slack en route to another double digit outing.  Calgary has scored 10 goals or more in each game they’ve played this year.

Congratulations to Sanderson, who passed Philadelphia’s Tom Marachek for 5th all time in NLL scoring on Saturday.  Shooter now sits with 777 career points, trailing only John Tavares (1355), Gary Gait (1115), Colin Doyle (883), and John Grant Jr. (811).  Sanderson continues to lead the Riggers in scoring this year, with 30 points he also sits 9th in league scoring.  Right behind Josh is Kelusky, who sits tied for 10th in league scoring with 29 points, while Kaleb Toth is 3rd in team scoring with 24 points.  Toth reached the 300 assist mark on Saturday night, while Kelusky is only 7 helpers away from the very same milestone.

Next up for the Roughnecks is this Saturday night in Denver when they take on the Colorado Mammoth (7:30 pm, NLL.com).  Calgary’s next home game is Sunday, February 22nd when they welcome the Boston Blazers for the only time this year.  That’s a 3 pm start at the Dome, so make sure you come support Calgary’s most successful team right now…if you can’t make it, the game is live on The FAN 960 (pregame 2 pm, faceoff at 3 pm).

The Calgary Roughnecks look to continue their franchise best start toinght at the Pengrowth Saddledome, as they take on the Minnesota Swarm for the first time this year (7:30 pm, NLL.com).  For the 4-0 Roughnecks, they look to continue their success at home where they have yet to lose this season.  Both the Riggers and the 2-1 Swarm are riding an off weekend in the NLL schedule, so we should see a couple fresh teams Friday.

The hope for the Roughnecks is to just keep things going.  They’re on a very nice roll to start the season, winning their first 4 games for the first time in team history.  What seems to be the trend with this team is how they’ve been able to win games in all different fashions.  They’ve shown they can win very tight, more defensive games (12-10 over San Jose; 10-9 over Edmonton); high scoring shootouts (16-13 over San Jose); and games where they are completely dominant (16-9 over Toronto). 

The most impressive thing to me, however, is Calgary’s timing this season, as they’ve been able to bear down and play their very best lacrosse in the most crucial of moments.  A Scott Ranger goal late in the season opener started the trend, and it’s been followed by stifling defence late in games still in doubt, and some other pretty timely goals as well.  Clearly, offence is not a weakness on this Riggers team, with 4 players in the top 25 of NLL scoring.  Josh Sanderson (8G, 17A, 25P) leads the team; but after an 8 point effort 2 weeks ago, captain Tracey Kelusky joins Kaleb Toth with 20 points.  You can’t forget 22 year old Dane Dobbie, who sits 4th in team scoring with 18 points.

All kinds of things to watch from a Roughnecks storyline perspective heading into tonight at the Dome.  First and foremost, Josh Sanderson is on the milestone watch…again.  With 772 career points, Shooter is just 1 point away from tying Philadelphia forward and NLL Hall of Famer Tom Marachek for 4th on the all time scoring list.  It’s a milestone he’ll probably surpass tonight, which would leave him behind only Buffalo’s John Taveres (1351), Rochester’s Gary Gait (1115), and the injured John Grant Jr. (811).  Sanderson isn’t the only one chasing significant numbers though.  Kaleb Toth, Calgary’s all time offensive leader, sits with 299 career assists.  Defenceman Andrew McBride’s 209 career penalty minutes place him just 1 back of a Roughnecks franchise record, set previously by Jesse Phillips.

The Riggers have no easy task in front of them though, as they get set to take on the West Division’s 2nd best team in the Swarm.  While Minnesota doesn’t light up the scoreboard on a regular basis (their 30 goals for is by far the lowest in the NLL), they do have some offensive talent.  Kevin Ross leads the team with 14 points, and is capable of taking games over by himself; he scored 3 in Minnesota’s week 1 win over Portland.  But the real sparkplug on this team is Sean Pollock.  While he only has 10 points on the season, his game breaking ability cannot be overlooked by Calgary.  Pollock was able to put up 6 points in week 1 before settling down in the following 2 games.

Minnesota’s real strength is on the other side of the ball, however.  No one touches the Swarm when it comes to defensive proficiency, as their 24 goals against is tops in the NLL.  Even taking into consideration they’ve only played 3 games (Portland and Edmonton have played 6 times, many other teams have 5 games played), it still averages out to a very paltry 8 goals against per game.  Calgary ran into a defensively sound Edmonton Rush team back in week 2, so we’ll see what they’re able to do this time around.

Game time tonight is 7:30 pm at the Pengrowth Saddledome, with tickets still available at the Saddledome box office or ticketmaster.ca.  It’s a great way to spend a Friday night, so come on down and check out the Riggers play live.  If you’re not able to take the game in live, the game streams live on the NLL Network at www.NLL.com.

After Georges St. Pierre’s TKO victory over BJ Penn at UFC 94 last weekend, we seemed to have a number of questions answered.  St. Pierre is the best at 170 pounds in the world and that Penn should stay in the Lightweight division instead of trying to hold 2 belts.  But now we have another question…did St. Pierre win the fight cleanly?

Straight up, my answer to that question is a resounding YES, GSP won the fight fair and square.  But, now we have a letter from BJ Penn’s lawyer, Raffi Nahabedian.  “This illegal situation made it impossible for Mr. Penn to defend himself and unfairly exposed Mr. Penn to GSP’s ‘ground and pound’ strategy, which Mr. Penn extensively trained for and was fully prepared to perform against,” the letter states. “More importantly, by neutralizing Mr. Penn’s Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu abilities through the use of illegal and improper means, Mr. Penn was subjected to a life threatening and career ending environment; an environment that the Commission was formed to protect against.”

 So lets clarify a few things.  First of all, the “illegal situation” refers to St. Pierre’s cornerman rubbing Vaseline on his back in between the 2nd and 3rd rounds.  This is against regulations set in place by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (and every other commission on the continent), and there is clear video evidence… 

So as you can see, GSP’s cornerman does rub his back, and still has Vaseline on his hands from applying it to his face.  So, in that respect, there is a clear violation of the rules.  And there should be punishment because of it, as the Commission takes all of these things very seriously.  Many who are new to the sport don’t realize just how regulated MMA is in North America.  It is as heavily regulated as boxing, with as many (or more) rules in place to protect the fighters.  This is one of them, as in theory, it provides a clear advantage.  But if anyone watched the fight, the sheer dominance of St. Pierre over Penn negates any type of complaint calling the result into question. The first 2 rounds don’t even come into the conversation, they happened before “Greasegate” took place.  It was a fairlly even opening round followed by a dominant second round.  Now, the 3rd and 4th rounds were the most dominant for St. Pierre, but not because of any unfair advantage.  He took Penn down at ease, and followed up with vicious elbows and punches from top position.  I’m sorry, Vaseline on the back does not give St. Pierre any help whatsoever in passing the guard of a BJJ master with ease, from pinning an opponent down and keeping top position, and taking an opponent down at will! 

So, to me, in summary, it goes like this…does BJ’s camp have a beef?  Yes, to an extent.  St. Pierre’s corner clearly violated the rules.  Did it have ANY impact on the fight?  Not one bit.  Georges could have been dried off with a blowdrier and STILL would have won this fight with ease.  Sorry BJ!

In a lot of ways, it almost seemed too easy on Saturday night in Las Vegas, as Georges St. Pierre defeated BJ Penn in the most anticipated rematch in UFC history.  UFC 94 was by and large a very good card, with a few questions answered and a few more asked.

Even with the controvery following the fight, it was a dominating effort from St. Pierre, who outclassed Penn for 3 of 4 rounds.  St. Pierre won with a TKO stoppage at the end of the 4th round to push his record to 18-2-0.  I thought the first round was rather evenly contested, with both fighters holding their own in the standup game.  Penn did a great job of blocking St. Pierre takedowns and forced him to abandon attempts on 2 seperate occasions.  And then things started to unravel.

Georges executed the perfect gameplan, which should no longer come as a surprise to fight fans.  He pushed the pace and was able to frustrate BJ in the standup game.  As the fight wore on, St. Pierre found it easier to take Penn down, until eventually it seemed as if it was happening at will.  And it was on the ground that the most damage was done, as Penn had no answer for the relentless pressure put on him.

The short elbows and vicious punches St. Pierre was able to deliver really made an impact.  I’ve never seen anyone pass the guard of a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt like St. Pierre did to Penn.  Again, just like his fights against Fitch and Serra, St. Pierre was able to move seemlessly from guard to half to side, inflicting damage from each position.  Penn’s inablity to move out of these dominant positions was the biggest reason he was dominated in the fashion he was.

So what’s next for both guys?  Well, we know St. Pierre gets set for Thiago Alves, the next man in line for a shot at the UFC Welterweight Championship.  Alves is coming off impressive wins over Matt Hughes and Josh Koschek and is certainly deserving of his shot at the strap.  He’s a very good kick boxer with a deadly clinch and is a fairly skilled grappler as well.  I don’t see him being in St. Pierre’s league at this point, as he has yet to duel the tenacious takedown abilities of a guy like Georges.  As for BJ, it looks like the fight with Kenny Florian will finally happen.  KenFlo has more than earned his shot, and with Penn failing at 170 pounds, it looks clear that 155 is more suited for him.

Other thoughts on the UFC 94 card in Vegas…did anyone else see the 2 Calgary Flames jersey’s in the crowd?  That got a good cheer out of the group in my buddy’s basement.  I thought Lyoto Machida look his most impressive ever, completely out classing and dominating Thiago Silva.  At this point, I don’t know how you deny Machida (14-0) a title fight at Light Heavyweight.  Jon Jones delivered for the 2nd straight fight, he looked great en route to his win over Stephan Bonnar.  I really like the potential of Jones, who’s the youngest guy on the roster at 21.

And get ready, this Saturday free on Spike TV, it’s another UFC Fight Night!