Faxes from Uncle Dale

Recent Posts

  • Pens-Hawks Wrap and Weekend Music Pick

    Pens-Hawks Wrap and Weekend Music Pick

    Bit of a mini-wrap today for last night’s exhibition, and one of us will do the same for tonight’s tilt in DC (speaking of which, the Hawks aren’t doing the White House visit today, but you know that McDonough isn’t going to miss the chance to do so. The Hawks aren’t back in Washington until April, which is going to look awfully stupid when the playoffs are days away. If you can’t get to the White House within months of winning, don’t go at all).

    So my thoughts:

    -On to the main question of camp, and I’m obviously biased but I didn’t see anything that makes me think this Saad-at-center experiment makes any more sense than I thought it did to begin with. He had one nice set up to Kane on the power play, which came from the wing. He got drilled on faceoffs, but as we know the Hawks don’t really care about that. But other than that, I didn’t really notice anything. Which tells you something, because last year hardly a game, or a shift, went by where you didn’t notice The General.

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  • Morning Links 9/20/13

    Morning Links 9/20/13

    I imagine parts of this matter but whatever: Blackhawks

    4 games for Pulkkinen: PHT

    Knock McD all you want for “cubbying” the Hawks, but $ matters: SI

    ummmm why the Cell? I mean really?: ESPN Chicago

    Bowman is the man: ESPNIN (sorry)

     

  • Preseason Pens v. Hawks Gamethread

    It’s preseason for all of us, too.  So let’s work out some of our kinks, experiment with new styles, make new friends, and all the rest tonight in our sandbox. Have at it.

  • Fireside Chat

    Here’s a new feature for the upcoming season. Every Thursday, I’ll be throwing together a wide array of thoughts for your viewing (dis) pleasure. So where do we start this? Wherever I want…

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  • Notes From The Exhibition Opener

    Notes From The Exhibition Opener

    They hate it when you say “Exhibition.” Or is that the NFL? They definitely hate it when you say that. Though the NFL knows they’re perpetrating an even bigger scam with their preseason than the NHL does. I mean, the NFL preseason is 25% of the regular season, whereas both the NHL and NBA are less than 10%. Whatever, I’m getting off the rails again.

    Anyway, let’s discuss some talking points from last night. Or at least the ones I gathered as I wasn’t there. Though it didn’t take long for the beaters to start complaining through Twitter, did it? Hey guys, you didn’t miss much. The baseball was pretty dreadful. You’re not in Edmonton in February yet.

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  • Morning Links 9/18/13

    Morning Links 9/18/13

    Hawks win: Blackhawks

    Earn you $ Bicks: PHT

    9 cuts: ESPN Chicago

    See the Cup today: Trib

    Side note, if you’re in MN and want to watch junior hockey/meet me: NAHL

  • Blow Up The Outside World – The Metropolitan/Megalopolis Division

    Blow Up The Outside World – The Metropolitan/Megalopolis Division

    Staying out east, it’s now time to take a look at the other half of the realignment mess that is that conference with the Metropolitan Division, which consists of all of the Mid Atlantic teams, and somehow Columbus and Carolina, which is the first time either place has been referred to even remotely as metropolitan. Most of the punditry will tell you this will be the best division in the new alignment. But just because it’ll be competitive doesn’t mean it’ll be well played.

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  • Morning Links 9/17/13

    Morning Links 9/17/13

    Toews still out: ESPN Chicago

    Bollig is aware there is more to hockey than fighting (and turnovers): CSN (autoplay)

    Roster spot battles really begin: Daily Herald

    I don’t care that it didn’t count enjoyed watching an Evanston boy beat them: TSN

    Despite this: PHT

    We may see this: SI

  • Blow Up The Outside World – C.I.'s Preview Of The Rest Of The NHL: The Northe….The Atla…..Oh Whatever

    Blow Up The Outside World – C.I.'s Preview Of The Rest Of The NHL: The Northe….The Atla…..Oh Whatever

    We’ve been looking inward for a bit now, and you know what happens when you look inward for too long. You start thinking you have complexes and shortcomings that aren’t there, and deciding this or that is the reason you can’t love or can only get off by being spanked with a cricket bat and then you dump all your money to some therapist before you end up sitting on the floor in your apartment with a bucket of chicken wearing nothing more than your underwear as you smear the grease on your chest and….oh, wait, this was just my Saturday night. Ok then…

    But sometimes, it’s best to look at everyone else and point out their faults. Well, maybe not best but it sure is a hell of a lot more fun. And it’s easier to blame others for your problems than yourself (unless you’re Catholic). So let’s start that process today by examining what should be the Adams Division or maybe the Northeast except for that thing where the two Florida teams are involved because Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa fans love to go to Florida in the winter if they don’t live there already. Seriously, have you been to that stretch between Ft. Lauderdale and Miami in January? It’s lousy with French-Canadians. They’re everywhere, interspersed with the old Jewish men who constantly looked bewildered. Probably because they are. Oh, and Scum. Because Detroit is so far Northeast.

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  • Blow Up The Outside World – C.I.’s Preview Of The Rest Of The NHL: The Northe….The Atla…..Oh Whatever

    Blow Up The Outside World – C.I.’s Preview Of The Rest Of The NHL: The Northe….The Atla…..Oh Whatever

    We’ve been looking inward for a bit now, and you know what happens when you look inward for too long. You start thinking you have complexes and shortcomings that aren’t there, and deciding this or that is the reason you can’t love or can only get off by being spanked with a cricket bat and then you dump all your money to some therapist before you end up sitting on the floor in your apartment with a bucket of chicken wearing nothing more than your underwear as you smear the grease on your chest and….oh, wait, this was just my Saturday night. Ok then…

    But sometimes, it’s best to look at everyone else and point out their faults. Well, maybe not best but it sure is a hell of a lot more fun. And it’s easier to blame others for your problems than yourself (unless you’re Catholic). So let’s start that process today by examining what should be the Adams Division or maybe the Northeast except for that thing where the two Florida teams are involved because Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa fans love to go to Florida in the winter if they don’t live there already. Seriously, have you been to that stretch between Ft. Lauderdale and Miami in January? It’s lousy with French-Canadians. They’re everywhere, interspersed with the old Jewish men who constantly looked bewildered. Probably because they are. Oh, and Scum. Because Detroit is so far Northeast.

    (more…)