Ok, So I've Had Better First Weekends Than That

I'm guessing when I said last week that this was by far the least research I had ever done before filling out my NCAA bracket that I must not have been lying. The first four days of the Tournament this year were outlandishly exciting, but also, uh, not what I predicted. On the first day alone I lost three teams from my sweet sixteen, one from my Elite Eight and wound up a mediocre 9-7. While that didn't inspire much confidence, at least my Final Four was still intact.

You know, until the second round, when my National Champion spit the bit against Butler on an utterly bizarre series of fouls in the games final seconds. But that's cool -- it's only the second year in a row that my eventual champion was sent packing in the round of 32.

Now don't get me wrong. Butler, obviously, has some experience, so I suppose in general, it's not really that crazy for them to be making another deep run in the NCAAs, but I have to be honest. I thought I'd do a wee bit better than this At this point my bracket is so shot that I have nothing to watch for except pure love of the game, which, really, is utterly silly.

Then again I'm still alive in my survivor pool, so at least there's that.

Of course, that I'm watching basketball at all after Northwestern's utterly bizarre loss in the NIT quarterfinals last night/this morning at Washington State, might just be a testament to my own intestinal fortitude. This was a game that featured a shockingly intense student crowd for an NIT game, the Wildcats doing something they've done maybe once in my life ever by rallying from a double-digit deficit to take a lead in the second half on the road, a potential walk-off foul after a game-tying goal tend in the final ten seconds and then someone missing both of those potential walk-off free throws which prompted this statement from me.

I then realized that if God was a Wildcat, Northwestern would have been to the NCAA Tournament once in the past seven and a half decades, making my statement patently ridiculous.

The Cats would go on to lose in an equally as bizarre overtime that nearly saw them get the ball back down 1 with 20 seconds left simply because the Washington State player lost his handle on the ball, before Alex Marcotullio missed not one but two three-pointers to tie the game at the final buzzer to end what is -- I'm not making this up -- the deepest postseason run Northwestern has ever had.

Seriously, why do I watch college basketball anymore? Or at least why Northwestern?

Oh, and the winning team had a player who had been suspended and had his suspension lifted within 12 hours.

Fun times.

So that's how college basketball has treated me in the past week, but fortunately I get the distraction of Aussie Rules Football finally being back this season after Carlton topped Richmond by 20 points this morning. Of course the season doesn't really start until Geelong has its first bounce tomorrow morning against St. Kilda, which I'm sure you're all waking up at 4:30 a.m. for.

Ok, I can sense that I'm losing all of you at this point. Perhaps it's time to go. Hopefully this weekend's basketball goes better than last.

It's March Madness Time! Apparently.

March Madness, generally, is a hell of a tournament. Often I consider the first two rounds of the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship to be the four best sports days of the year, and usually I can't wait for them. In college the first two rounds always fell during my spring break, and I recall each year that my friend Duane and I would sit down on his couch at 11:50 and not move until midnight, keeping our laptops with our brackets open all the while. In short, it was exciting, amazing, thrilling and for much of March it's almost always been all I can think about.

But not this year.

Don't ask me why, exactly, because I can't quite tell, but for some reason I'm just sort of ambivalent this year. Perhaps it's because I missed the actual selection show while in the U.S. for the first time in years so I could have dinner with my cousin in Georgetown on Sunday, or perhaps it's because a busy schedule at work has kept me from seeing the bracket until this afternoon, or just maybe it's because the only basketball game that really matters this year happens to be Wednesday night and not in the NCAA Tournament at all.

It could be any of those reasons. In all honesty, I really have no idea, but for some reason, I'm just not overly excited, to the point that I filled out my bracket this afternoon as almost more of an obligation than a joy. And it also happens to be a highly unresearched bracket. Just how unresearched it is, you ask? Well, a year ago, I was in Israel, and hastily filled out a bracket on a timed computer terminal in the southern desert city of Eilat, and that bracket performed, er, terribly.

That bracket, filled out in a span of forty seconds because the time purchased by my five shekels was expiring, was more well thought out than this one.

Really!

So yeah, I have no idea who is going to win or if I picked anything even remotely close to what could or will happen, but you can see the uneducated misery to the left yourself. I decided to go with a tried and true method of picking a few upsets early and mostly going with the chalk later. Not that it matters since with the pointlessly expanded bracket this year, the odds of getting the whole shabang right were a tidy 9.25 quintillion to one back in the old format and I don't have nearly the energy required to figure it out in the new one. Apparently, I have a better chance of winning an Olympic gold medal, which I supposed means... I have a chance of winning an Olympic gold medal.

Essentially, as the numerous other brackets to be found on the internet prove, we really have no idea what will happen. You may as well hand in a bracket to your pool where Princeton wins. Or ones that don't bother with basketball, but instead seek to answer the really big questions that plague philosophers.

In my bracket, you'll notice that, among other things, I've picked Pitt to win the whole thing mostly because a) they got a joke of a No. 2 seed in Florida, b) I think they'll be driven by their early exit from the Big East Tournament, c) I didn't want to see Duke win. Not that that matters since I have UNC coming out of the Blue Devils' bracket, but I have the feeling they're going to get picked off somewhere.

And speaking of getting picked off, you better believe I don't have No. 1 Ohio State reaching the Final Four. And how could I pick against a team with the versatile Jared Sullinger, you ask? Well the answer is simple. I don't care how good your record is. No team -- none -- gets taken to the final minute by Northwestern not once, but twice, including once on a neutral floor, and then makes it to the Final Four. Sorry. It ain't happening, and just because I didn't see it, doesn't mean it didn't happen.

And trust me on this. I'm a sportswriter. I interview people and write stories about their impressive rookie campaigns. I know these things. The fact that I may have written stories about two different teams being touted as championship contenders only to see both of them lose their next game is entirely immaterial.

My word is as good as gold here. My bracket is brilliant. My bracket will rule the day. My bracket will almost certainly get every single game right. Just imagine how perfect my bracket would be if I were actually into it this year.

Don't worry, I'm sure I will be come Thursday. Happy basketballing.

When Buses Get In The Way

If you went to Northwestern, and I'm guessing since this is mostly read by my friends then the proportion is higher than usual, you might have noticed that the Wildcats got bounced in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament today by No. 1 Ohio State. What you might not have noticed is that Northwestern had a lead in the final minute that it let slip away before falling in overtime. Not only could this have been the single greatest moment of Northwestern's rather thin basketball history, but it also would have kept the highly faint hopes NU had of reaching the NCAA Tournament for the first time, hopes that it would seem rested solely on claiming the Big Ten's automatic bid by winning the conference tournament.

The Wildcats are likely to get an NIT bid, but that seems small consolation for coming so close to knocking off the No. 1 team in the country, a feat that just might have invigorated what has been a steadily improving but nonetheless fledgling program. What makes the loss all the more frustrating, however, is that this is second time this season Northwestern has taken the No. 1-ranked Buckeyes to the final minute with a chance to pull off the monumental upset. It feels like something greater than the season at large has been lost when two narrow chances to make a bold statement to the world of college basketball both slip through the Wildcats' fingers.

What was most frustrating for me, however, was that being a dedicated alum and a Northwestern fan, you'd think there was no chance I'd miss what could be the greatest moment in the lackluster history of NU basketball. And you'd be wrong. For you see at the exact moment Northwestern had shockingly taken the lead in the waning moments this afternoon, I was somewhere in northern Maryland on a bus bound for D.C. where I will be seeing the Blackhawks and Capitals Sunday afternoon.

This presented a number of issues.

I was hoping to follow the game on my laptop using ESPN3.com, which I have remote streaming set up for. However, when you're on a bus internet can be, diplomatically speaking, "shitty". In the case of the M31 Megabus from New York to Washington D.C. on March 11, 2011, it was utterly nonexistent.

I spent most of the game following on my phone and on twitter, refusing to believe that my Wildcats would actually make a game of it, let alone take the lead late in the game. Then I glanced at my phone and saw it was a one-point game in the second half.

It was time to break out the big guns. I got out of my seat, rifled through my luggage and pulled out my laptop in hopes of connecting to the bus's mobile internet. Connect I did.

And then: Nothing.

Apparently being connected to the internet isn't the same thing as actually getting to use the internet, and despite the comments of the young man next to me that on his bus to New York earlier this week he was able to watch the Big East tournament, I wasn't able to so much as load my homepage. Though when I consider that he also told me Rocky IV was the best of the series, perhaps he wasn't the man to trust.

Either way, the inevitable outcome was clear. I was not going to get to watch the magic or lack thereof happen in live streaming video. Instead I had to resort to painstakingly reloading the score on my iPhone's ESPN app, where I saw that not only did Northwestern let its late lead slip away, but the Wildcats got beat up in overtime in what eventually would be a season-ending 67-61 defeat. Sometimes it just isn't meant to be.

And sometimes you aren't meant to see it, regardless of what it is.

Luckily, the whole reason I'm here is to see the Blackhawks and Capitals this Sunday and cross team No. 39 off the list. While there are still some questions as to whom, exactly, will be seeing the game with me, I do know that at least I'll be there in person. I will actually witness that game.

And no bus is going to stop me.

The Power Of Willie Lives!

A few weeks ago when I was breaking down the likely predictions of who would win the Super Bowl, I noted that Green Bay, of the four final teams had a considerable obstacle in its way that the others didn't. The Packers had no players on their roster with a Northwestern degree. Now, Northwestern hasn't been a noted football powerhouse since, oh, 1929 or so. In fact in many years, it's been quite the opposite. But the last 20 years or so have witnessed an almost shocking football renaissance in Evanston, resulting in several graduates plying their trades in the NFL and an almost incomprehensibly bizarre streak of players winning Super Bowls.

In fact, last year Saints tackle Zach Strief made New Orleans the fifth consecutive Super Bowl champion to have a Wildcat on the field or the sidelines.

So this year, when Green Bay held on to win Super Bowl XLV on Sunday with nary a Cat on their roster, the streak was done, right?

WRONG!

For I missed something truly remarkable in my little-to-no research when I was writing that blog post, and that is that Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy was the Athletic Director at Northwestern University just eight short years ago. That I failed to remember this is almost embarrassing to me since I covered sports at Northwestern as an undergrad and Murphy's tenure there spanned my college years almost exactly, but the important thing is that I remember now, even if I specifically remember Murphy being named the President of the Packers three years ago and thinking, "Him? Really?"

Yes. Really.

Granted, I will admit I've often misjudged the man because a) he hired a women's basketball coach that I did not have a good relationship with when I covered the team and b) he just looks so dang goofy.

I mean, come on. Look at him. He looks pretty goofy. Or at least like he has no idea where he is.

Remarkably this makes him only the second goofiest Mark Murphy in the levels of mild fame, but when he's holding a Lombardi Trophy in his hand or that horrendously ugly new Halas Trophy, well, it's hard to criticize too heavily. Also, I'm pretty sure if he came running at me decked out like he was in his playing days with the Washington Redskins, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't consider him goofy at all. I'd probably pee my pants. But in any event, what Sunday showed is that Murphy, a world champion who despite his gooftacular smile deftly managed the departure of Brett Favre and helped build Green Bay's fourth Super Bowl winner, was able to keep alive the one consistent vein of each NFL champion from the last half decade. He may not have been a player, but make no mistake, Murphy's stewardship of the Packers means that for a sixth straight season, former part of the Northwestern football program is getting a Super Bowl ring.

The Power of Willie is not to be trifled with.

What's more is that Murphy's place as a former NU Athletic Director doesn't simply extend the streak. As a former player he is uniquely positioned to play a key role in what will surely be contentious arguments between the owners and the players association as the NFL attempts to renegotiate its collective bargaining agreement this month. Hopefully Murphy, who was considered among the more radical players in the League in the 1980s can provide a moderate voice to temper the sturm und drang that PA head DeMaurice Smith has worked up after doing nothing but sabre rattling needlessly since taking the position in slightly less than two years ago.

Until then however, we'll just have to watch recaps of this year's Super Bowl ad nauseum and hope it isn't the last football we see for two years. It's bad enough that it's the last football we'll see until August, but if there was a sendoff we had to witness this one wasn't half bad. And while I know I said B.J. Raji would be a force and he was actually somewhat muted throughout the game, my prediction that Clay Matthews would ultimately do in the Steelers was bolstered by his thundering hit on Rashard Mendenhall, which jarred the ball loose as Pittsburgh was driving for a go-ahead score in the fourth quarter. As well, I've been trumpeting the impressive play of Aaron Rodgers all postseason even if the rest of the world recognized the same thing and I completely neglected to so much as mention "Jordy Nelson" in my preview. Basically, I'm a genius. Or at the very least, I'm not an utter failure.

Either way after a pretty entertaining Super Bowl, I'm not ready to deal with seven long days until Pitchers and Catchers report and six long months until people start playing football again. I'm going to have to cope. At the very least I can take some solace in that while that Championship belt seems to fit Rodgers pretty well when he wears it for real, it fits Willie even better.

Just like it has the last five Super Bowls.

Those Bastards At Sports Illustrated Have Done It Again

Well, I'm sorry, Jets fans. Just when you thought your team was cresting at the right time and finally going to break through in their third AFC Championship Game appearance in the last 13 years, Sports Illustrated, for the second straight year, decided to take a big ol' cutlass and slice your dreams to pieces. How'd they pull that off, you say? Well, my worries regarding the Sports Illustrated Cover Jinx are well documented in multiple posts on this here blog, and like any smart, rational person, I immediately assume that must be the reason things have not gone according to plan. If any of you remember, last year's Divisional playoffs spawned two regional covers, which featured both the Jets and the Vikings. In the case of Minnesota, the cover even proclaimed "Favre on Fire" just days before his foolish across the body pass would be intercepted by Terry Porter when the Vikes were driving for a game-winning field goal against New Orleans.

While the Jets also lost, one could easily argue that this was due not just to the editorial decisions in the Time Inc. offices, but also because they tried as hard as possible to jinx themselves. But that doesn't leave much of an excuse for what happened this time around. After publishing regional covers last year that resulted in both cover teams losing their respective conference championship games, you'd think the brilliant minds at SI would remember that unless we're entering a bizarre period of gonzo journalism, they're supposed to stay out of the way and leave the outcome unaffected by their presence.

Well they didn't learn their goddamn lesson.

Much as America must love seeing Tom Brady look like a five-year-old who just saw his prized blankey and teddy bear make like Steve Buscemi in Fargo, and as awesome a photograph as that picture of Jay Cutler approaching the line in snowy Chicago is, something about this just seems plain wrong -- as if Sports Illustrated, knowing its curse-wreaking power, has consciously selected whom it wants to play in Super Bowl XLV. It just ain't right, or at least it won't be if the anticipated effect takes place.

Granted, with four classic franchises like Green Bay, Chicago, New York and Pittsburgh making up the Final Four, we're pretty much guaranteed a great, traditional matchup no matter what happens. And more over, with Green Bay title-less for 14 years now, Chicago in the midst of a 25-year drought and the Jets now a stunning 42 years removed from their last Super Bowl appearance, we've got a 75% chance of seeing a Champion we haven't seen an a long while. All of these things bode well for an end to the season that will seem both classic and refreshing all at once.

But given Sports Illustrated's dirty tricks, we're pretty much guaranteed a Packers-Steelers matchup in Super Bowl XLV, right?


NOT SO FAST.

Yes, the Sports Illustrated curse may be accurate roughly a third of the time, but there is another powerful sports trend that in the last half decade has had a startling 100% accuracy rate, and like the answers to most things, this lies, draped in purple, on the shores of Lake Michigan at Northwestern University. The city of Chicago will be having a particularly big sports day this Sunday, as the Blackhawks will host the Flyers in a rematch of last year's Stanley Cup Final before the major event of the day when the Bears and Packers face off in the postseason for the first time in seven decades and then, of course, Northwestern's men's hoops game against Wisconsin -- a double dip of Chicago-Wisconsin blood feuding. But Chicago's greatest influence in sports may come from its Big Ten team, which has recently provided us with the anticurse of professional football: The Power of Willie.

The Power of Willie

Unbeknownst to most of you, Northwestern has a decent number of players in the NFL, but the quantity is hardly remarkable. What is remarkable, however, is that the last five teams to win the Super Bowl have all had a Northwestern grad on their roster. To wit:

Super Bowl XL: Trai Essex, Pittsburgh Steelers
Super Bowl XLI: Matt Ulrich, Indianapolis Colts
Super Bowl XLII: Barry Coefield, New York Giants
Super Bowl XLIII: Trai Essex, Pittsburgh Steelers
Super Bowl XLIV: Zach Strief, New Orleans Saints

So, obviously, you're thinking, "Gee Dave, since this is clearly an irrefutable rule, who still stands a chance this season?" Well, I'll tell you. Just about everyone. Except for one awfully big green and gold outlier.

Pittsburgh
Trai Essex

New York
Marquice Cole

Chicago
Nick Roach
Corey Wootton

Green Bay
None

So there you have it. The Green Bay Packers, who just might look the best of any of the remaining four teams right now, have virtually no shot to take home their fourth Lombardi Trophy this season. Willie has decreed it.

But don't worry, Packer Backers. While this means you won't win the Super Bowl, it doesn't mean you won't win this week. And frankly, I think you will. So let's get to these picks here.

NFC Championship
(6) Green Bay over (2) Chicago
Yes, the Bears are certainly playing much better right now than I would have anticipated, and of course they are the home team in what will certainly be frigid weather and crummy footing, but frankly, I have a hard time imagining anything cooling down Aaron Rodgers right now. Much as I'd like to see the chance of two Wildcats taking home hardware, I just can't see the Packers, at the level they're currently playing at, not pulling this out either by blowout or nailbiter. But then again, I've been wrong before.

AFC Championship
(6) NY Jets over (2) Pittsburgh
What? Again? I'm taking the Jets again? Well, yeah, I am. I think. I have no real rational reason to believe the Jets are going to beat the Steelers this weekend -- frankly, I'm pretty certain Pittsburgh is the better team -- but there just looks to be something about this team and how it's playing now that makes me think they're going to accomplish some bigger things, particularly with last year's conference title game experience in their memory bank. Besides, I'm still flying high after correctly calling their upset last week, even if some people are too petty to let it go. Why not see the ride continue?

So yes, I know this seems unusual, after all, pitting two six seeds against each other in a Super Bowl is an odd choice considering only one six seed has ever appeared in the NFL's title game, but this doesn't seem like your typical playoff tournament, and these don't seem like your typical six seeds. I feel like I'm on pretty steady ground. And given the Power of Willie and perhaps some additional inspiration, does this mean I think when all is said and done on February 6th that the Jets will have won the Super Bowl?

Well, yes it does. But don't get too excited just yet, Jets nation. I have been wrong before. But hey, my picks are 6-2 so far this postseason. Let's just say I like my chances.

The Playoffs Start This Weekend? Who Knew?

Ok, that's a lie. I knew. Still more than a little bummed about the tragic second annual collapse of my Giants, I've done a fair bit of ignoring the passage of time and the football games it will bring tomorrow afternoon, but who am I kidding. I love football. I love the playoffs. I'm not actually going to miss any of it. That would be silly.

Unfortunately, with the Giants out I'm kind of stuck in a malaise with no team to root for or care about -- an unusual place for me considering that at least one of my teams is usually competitive at any given time. But here we are. The Giants' place is obvious. The Devils are in the midst, unexpectedly, of the worst season they've had in my lifetime. Pitchers and catchers don't report for the Mets for five weeks, and I'm not sure that'll even be a good thing. Northwestern just lost its eighth bowl game in a row in heartbreaking fashion. Northwestern Basketball is slowly starting to fritter away a promising season due to an injury to John Shurna and general ineptitude. And the Knicks are, well, the Knicks.

Wait, what's that? The Knicks are suddenly awesome?

Yes, I was shocked, too, but on Tuesday night I decided to go to my first Knicks game in at least two years, and I experienced something unlike anything I had ever seen before in the Garden. That'll happen with a decade that makes mediocrity seem palatable. But here I was, watching the 'Bockers put up 72 first-half points against the League's premiere defensive team of the past decade and seeing MSG rock in a way I had yet to really experience. It was exciting. It was intense. It was fun.

Apparently, this is what Knicks basketball is supposed to be like.

Now, I obviously don't harbor any silly beliefs that New York is destined to hoist its first Larry O'Brien Trophy in almost 40 years this June, but for the first time in a long time, there's hope that it might at some point in the plausible future before I die. And it's fun to watch along the way. I will say that while I expected Donnie Walsh to help turn the Knicks' fortunes around, I didn't expect them to be competitive this quickly, nor did I have any idea what it would seem like. This is a team that has seemed almost a nonentity for a decade. Now they're worth watching and I don't quite know what to do, but I do know that it's a refreshing distraction from the fact that, sports-wise, nothing else really seems to be going right for me these days.

Of course, while the Knicks may give me some joy it is, of course, foolish to think that I will actually not watch the NFL playoffs when they kick off in Seattle tomorrow afternoon. And even more foolish to think  won't try some ridiculous prediction of the postseason's outcome. I will be honest and admit that, no, I don't actually think the Chiefs and Seahawks will be meeting in the Super Bowl like I predicted last week. Nor will it be the Colts-Packers matchup I predicted in my NFL season preview, though I am proud that those two teams are in the mix considering I only got one of the eight teams playing on Wild Card weekend right and only two of my Wild Card weekend teams made the playoffs at all. Ironically, I got the Giants' record exactly right, though I also had them making the playoffs. I also expect I will get some of these games wrong so I will readjust my picks next week. Some of you might find this to be a cop out.

Oh well. Let's make some predictions.

NFC
(4) Seattle over (5) New Orleans - Saturday, 4:30
Haha, just kidding. Caught you confused for a second didn't I? No, don't worry, the undeserving 7-9 Seahawks are going get waxed pretty thoroughly by the Aints tomorrow afternoon, to the point that it's almost not fair. Frankly, regardless of where the game is being played, I'm kind of shocked New Orleans is only an 11-point favorite.

(6) Green Bay over (3) Philadelphia - Sunday, 4:30
I get the feeling Michael Vick is beat up, the Packers' defense is playing well and that Green Bay is about to crest in a big way. Call it a hunch, or maybe wishful thinking, but Green Bay is a lot better than its No. 6 seed, and I think there will be a lot of disappointed people in Philadelphia at the end of this weekend.

AFC
(5) Baltimore over (4) Kansas City - Sunday, 1:00
I actually think the Chiefs are an underrated team with a fairly decent chance of defending their home field, but when you get down to brass tacks, K.C. is young and inexperienced and Baltimore just might be the best Wild Card team we've seen in a long while. Put this team in any division in the League other than the AFC East and its own and they're probably winning it in a walk.

(6) NY Jets over (3) Indianapolis - Saturday, 8:00
One could fall on the trite idea that there's a revenge factor at play and the the Jets are going to take care of business left unsettled since their loss to the Colts in last season's AFC Championship Game, but that seems silly to me. Really it's a case of the Jets playing well and the Colts being so injured that they're a shell of their defending conference champion selves, even with Peyton Manning.

And now for the resultant later round matchups which are sure to change once this week proves me wrong:

NFC
(1) Atlanta over (6) Green Bay
(5) New Orleans over (2) Chicago

NFC Championship
(1) Atlanta over (5) New Orleans

AFC
(6) NY Jets over (1) New England
(2) Pittsburgh over (5) Baltimore

AFC Championship
(6) NY Jets over (2) Pittsburgh

Super Bowl XLV
(1) Atlanta over (6) NY Jets

And there you have it! I guarantee you 100% no frills that the Falcons will defeat the Jets in Super Bowl XLV. No way is that prediction not coming true. NO WAY.

Get your ass to Vegas. You've got money to win.

NFL Picks Week Sixteen: In Which I Forget Week Fifteen

Let me tell you all, I have had a doozy of a week so far and once you're done reading through that riveting Senators-Predators preview you're reading I'm going to tell you all about it. Ok, good. Yes, I know things could be worse, and in general life is fine, but some of you might have noticed that I didn't write for a whole week, and that is because when some awful, horrifying, unexpected, gut-wrenching things happen you are left speechless.

I am without speech. Still.

Sunday's colossal debacle against the Eagles, which saw the Giants go from likely No. 2 seed to playoff life support in a matter of seven and a half minutes is not something that I have yet been able to comprehend or grasp. In fact, I'm still not able to speak about it out loud with thoughts of anger and depression over what could have been. Granted, the Giants aren't exactly done. If they defeat the Packers this Sunday they'll have clinched a berth and will still have an outside chance of winning the No. 5 seed lottery to face whatever dung pile "wins" the NFC West, but should Big Blue not come through in Green Bay they'll need help on the final day of the season.

And ain't all that just a bit angst-inducing?

Well, yeah. It is. I do like New York's chances since Aaron Rodgers, while he is expected to be under center for the Pack, is still coming off a concussion that one would have to think leaves him a little woozy, no? I guess we'll find out on Sunday.

After the Giants game I was unable to think or comprehend anything. After all, only two other games, the blown 24-point lead against San Francisco in the 2002 playoffs, and Super Bowl XXXV come close to the gut punch this game delivered. But as I always tell myself, I can handle the depression with the greatest upset in football history in my back pocket.

Of course, that was just the start of a week that has quickly entered a downward spiral.

To make the pain worse, my fantasy football team decided to score all of one touchdown in the semifinals which robbed me of a potentially hefty payday. That one, I'm sure, matters to a lot of you.

But I had an ace up my sleeve. After two full years without seeing a Northwestern basketball game in person, the Wildcats were coming to Madison Square Garden this week, giving me the chance to see a squad that was one of eight remaining undefeateds in the country and just might be the one that finally breaks NU's hex of missing the NCAA Tournament. Of course, it was difficult to feel as though Northwestern's place in March was assured given it had played a non-conference schedule that a group of fifth-graders could probably finish at least .500 against. Still, like clockwork, the Cats took out St. Francis on Monday night with me and some 2,000 other of my closest friends watching.

All was well and good. Until Tuesday.

Before I go into the game itself, allow me to warn any of you from ever leaving a ticket at Will Call in Madison Square Garden. I had two unused tickets Tuesday, and after leaving one for my friend Kristen at Will Call, a homeless man asked if he could have any ticket to the game I could spare and feeling as if there were worse crimes in the world than letting a homeless man see a basketball game, I obliged him. This wound up biting me in the ass at halftime when Kristen showed up and called me with the revelation that MSG had lost my ticket. To make matters worse, the supervisor in charge of will call insisted that without a ticket there was nothing he could do. I'm fairly certain that really he just didn't want to help.

He's a big man after all.

After harassing the supervisor long enough, one of the will call employees, realizing that dozens of tickets which would not be used were still sitting on the table, simply handed Kristen one, prompting the supervisor to smugly chirp, "See? Everything works out."

I hope he's never known the touch of a woman without paying for it.

In any event, with Kristen in the building and Northwestern holding a halftime lead against St. John's, everything seemed nice and fine until the Wildcats suddenly forgot how to shoot and Luka Mirkovic forgot out to play defense in the paint. One unexpected loss to a team expected to be a nonfactor later and suddenly Northwestern's perfect record had a blemish that just may keep them from dancing in three months.

So all that was pretty bad. Then last night I got the flu. So everything's going great. Amazingly, the most normal thing that seems to be happening is that the Devils fired coach John MacLean this morning and brought in Jacques Lemaire for a third tour behind the bench. Then again, GM Lou Lamoriello goes through about seven coaches a season anyway.

Alright, time for some picks.

Last week: 6-10-0
Season: 110-105-10

PITTSBURGH (-15) over Carolina
Dallas (-7) over ARIZONA
NY Giants (+3) over GREEN BAY
New England (-9) over BUFFALO
NY Jets (+1) over CHICAGO
Baltimore (-4) over CLEVELAND
KANSAS CITY (-5) over Tennessee
ST. LOUIS (-2) over San Francisco
Detroit (+4) over MIAMI
JACKSONVILLE (-7) over Washington
San Diego (-8) over CINCINNATI
Houston (-3) over DENVER
Indianapolis (-3) over OAKLAND
TAMPA BAY (-6) over Seattle
Minnesota (+14) over PHILADELPHIA
ATLANTA (-3) over New Orleans

There you have it folks. Hopefully next week is better. Oh, and Merry Christmas.

NFL Picks Week Thirteen: In Which We Learn Oil Money Can Buy ANYTHING

One of the great things about this summer's 2010 FIFA World Cup was not just the inspiring and then heartbreaking performance of the U.S. team, but that it was an event uniting a continent and a nation with a history of racial and social tensions so profound, that putting on such a successful show for the world was an accomplishment in and of itself. While South Africa is now experiencing some issues filling its World Cup venues, the tournament itself was a tremendous and uplifting event for any fan of the beautiful game.

So with the decisions to be made for 2018 and 2022 today, it's good to see that FIFA had absolutely no interest whatsoever in maintaining that inspiring storyline. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not going to sit here and tell you that my personal preferences for each event -- that would be England in 2018 and the United States in 2022 -- would have had the same uplifting social impact that the Cup in South Africa did, but at least England is a nation with a soccer history as rich as any could be, as well as one that would be 52 years removed from its last turn as host by the time 2018 rolled around. In the case of the U.S., people can bash soccer fandom in this country all they want, but the blunt fact remains that the United States is still a vibrant, growing melting pot of numerous international cultures that all put a dramatic importance on the game. Include the fact that by 2022, the increasing Hispanic population will no doubt be a potent force in U.S. society, and that for the 2010 World Cup more tickets were bought by Americans than any other nationality, well, the U.S. seems like a pretty reasonable place to bring the World Cup back to.

Instead, however, the 2018 World Cup and the 2022 World Cup will be played in Russia and Qatar, respectively, proving once and for all that you just can't beat oil money. Now, I don't want to come off as bitter here, nor do I want to appear ignorant of the nation Qatar, which, yes, I did know existed, if for no other reason than because Northwestern has a campus there. But, regardless, there's no way around the fact that these are two countries feeding off petroleum, a source of energy the world is supposed to be weening itself off of, and the fact that either nation would otherwise be an unlikely candidate makes it seem almost obvious that some foul play might have been involved. To any impartial observer -- though I admit, I'm not one -- there are a number of concerns and questions to be asked. After all, Qatar is a country of less people than nearly every U.S. state and it happens to be smaller in size than Connecticut. In fact, only Delaware and Rhode Island have it beat on the minimization scale.

While some people might be pleased with the outcome of the vote, there's no avoiding the fact that Russia already has raised suspicions with its successful bid to host the 2014 Winter Olympics in Socchi, dubbed the "Gazprom games", and Qatar's utter lack of size (can it fit 10 world class soccer arenas and still have room for parking lots?), horrific summer temperatures (its average high in July is 115 degrees fahrenheit) and, uh, debatable soccer tradition, bring about several questions as to whether the nation can successfully host the event. The country will get its first measure when it hosts the 2011 AFC Asia Cup, but that seems to surely be on a different level.

Now, let's not get the wrong idea. Qatar is no primitive middle eastern backwater. It is extremely modern, with connections to several U.S. universities and progressive technology. But perhaps the biggest reason why it won is because it is, uh, rich. Really rich. Of course, most of this money comes from, yeah, oil. And as the rest of the country tries desperately to ween itself from what has been a useful, but destructive, source of energy, this raises enormous concerns when one considers the games are 12 years away and 70% of Qatar's government revenues come from petroleum. What happens if the money runs out? And also, how hot can the fans take? Qatar has announced that its stadiums will be outfitted with carbon-neutral solar systems that will lower the temperature inside the buildings by as much as 20 degrees celsius to maintain the comfort of players and fans. But just how viable is that?

Also, on a personal level, it's slightly unnerving that Qatar has announced it is "generous" enough to allow Israel to participate should it qualify, despite not formally recognizing the Israeli government. I suppose there is also the point that Israel could gain a measure of headway towards making peace with Arab nations by appearing in the games, but color me skeptical. It might have been more reasonable to host the games elsewhere.

I'm sure both hosts will pull off the job with little worry, but a host in 2018 such as England, Spain/Portugal or Belgium/Netherlands, or of course the U.S. in 2022, just seems like a more reasonable, and wholesome bet. But at this point, those two candidates are here to stay. We may as well accept it, even if we're so steamed about it that we can't even bring up Northwestern's totally amazing win over Georgia Tech Tuesday night.

And now to the other football. You know, our football. A sport that is not at all corrupt on any level.

I'm not sure how many people out there have gotten the chance to check out what may be the awesomest thing I've ever seen on the internet, but it's this doohickey. ESPN, ever the progressive digital purveyor, has created a simulator that shows you how the NFL playoff picture changes as you select each game's winner over the next five weeks. And it is just about as cool as it sounds. Now, I won't lie and tell you my picks may not have been slightly biased, nor are they particularly consistent since I came with a wholly different slate of teams the first time I did this last night, but regardless, it's a pretty sweet little gizmo. If you like football and have five minutes too much time on your hands, well, it's a sweet way to kill them.

And now that I'm done with all of my screeds, it's time for some picks.

Last week: 9-7-0
Season: 88-79-9

Houston (+9) over PHILADELPHIA
NY GIANTS (-7) over Washington
New Orleans (-7) over CINCINNATI
Chicago (-4) over DETROIT
GREEN BAY (-10) over San Francisco
Jacksonville (even) over TENNESSEE
KANSAS CITY (-9) over Denver
Cleveland (+5) over MIAMI
MINNESOTA (-6) over Buffalo
SAN DIEGO (-13) over Oakland
INDIANAPOLIS (-6) over Dallas
St. Louis (-4) over ARIZONA
SEATTLE (-6) over Carolina
TAMPA BAY (+3) over Atlanta
BALTIMORE (-3) over Pittsburgh
NY Jets (+4) over NEW ENGLAND

That's all for today. I'm about as tired from writing that as you are from reading it. Happy football everyone.

An Overdue Wrigley Wrecap

Surely, y'all noticed that I mentioned on more than one occasion that this past weekend I headed out to Chicago for the first time in three years to catch Northwestern lay a big, fat second-half egg against Illinois at Wrigley Field. The fact that the Wildcats rallied from a rather surprising early 14-point deficit only to turn belly-up after the long break notwithstading, the whole experience was pretty tremendous and unique for a whole host of reasons. Also, the trip had some pretty amusing moments. As a result, I'm here to give you a way-too-long recap of the festivities from start to finish in that discursive way you've all come to expect from me.

Here. We. Go.

I had been looking forward to this trip for several reasons, most notably because I have an awfully large soft spot in my heart for the Windy City and it had been far too long since I had been there -- nearly since I graduated from Northwestern, in fact. To boot, I'd be seeing several good friends in a massive defacto reunion, and the chance to see my college football team play in one of the most legendary venues in American sports only added to the excitement.

The night before jumping my 9 a.m. flight to Chicago, however, I was stuck at work past 1 a.m., which meant I'd be getting very little sleep before booking it to the midwest. This was mitigated by the fact that part of my late stay at the office was the result of some very exciting and potentially life-altering career news. I found 18 hours later that a few of my friends wanted to congratulate me by bringing some balloons by the office, which they then realized would go for naught as I was in the Norris Student Center Bookstore in Evanston, IL at the time. Either way, it was clear by the time I arrived at Laguardia that I was going to be extremely tired and in need of a nap on the plane.

So it's just my luck that I was sitting in front of a loud five-year-old who had a delightful habit of kicking the back of my chair.

The woman next to me seemed far less amused by the absurdity of the situation, declaring to me that "children shouldn't be allowed on shuttles". But I think she was a bit hard-nosed about it. After landing I had a bounce in my step, and a bit of an extreme rush to make my noon o'clock lunch plans at the Giordano's at 135 E Lake Street with the excellent Vawn and Dov. And lucky me, after sitting down on the blue line to downtown I found that the excitable five-year-old and his grandmother were on my train, too, and that they plopped down next to me. For a while I handled the conversation with decent aplomb, talking about transformers and Spider-Man. I did get a bit of a scare when I realized this five-year-old boy was born in 2005, when I was halfway through college, but otherwise it all went amicably until this uncomfortable exchange.

"So what were you doing in New York?"
"I was visiting my mom. I live in Chicago with my dad, but they split up because they had a fight."
"......Oh?"
"Yeah, my dad pushed my mom into a refrigerator, but now they want to be friends again."

This was the moment when his grandmother pulled him over and the conversation ended.

Lunch was delectable as I devoured my long-awaited Giordano's pizza, and I then dropped my things off at my friend Rachel's amazing apartment and headed up to Evanston for some extreme nostalgia. As I trekked around campus and took photos of my freshman year dorm, I headed to the student center to meet up with Lindsay Minnema and explore the almost entirely unchanged Daily Northwestern office. Touring campus is a bizarre experience if for no other reason than that you have no idea you ever left. There are minor changes, but for the most part everything feels the same and you start to wonder what time you have to be at your lecture tomorrow at Tech Auditorium.

After sufficiently snooping around town, I met up with Rachel and went with her to a shabbat dinner at a friend's house, which, I admit, was more religious than I expected, but I good time had by all. I enjoy the periodic resumptions of Jewish observance that I'm generally oblivious to. Also the food was tremendous. After this: the L back downtown, beers and TV, sleep and then waking early for the big event.

After years of rumors that ESPN College Gameday would be in Evanston for a Northwestern game, the show finally decided to show up for the Wrigley affair, and students began to make their presence felt by leaving campus on buses at 4:30 a.m. I did not wake up that early, though I did arrive by 9:30, and it took not more than three minutes before I made the first of several awkward run-ins with NU '07ers I hadn't seen since college nor expected to. Some run-ins were actually quite nice because they were people I was friendly with and occasionally still talk to, but some came extremely out of left field -- literally, I suppose, since we were at a baseball stadium.

I scarfed down the two leftover slices of pizza I had brought with me for lunch not knowing no food would be allowed in the Gameday pit, and then made my way in to meet up with Alan, who had the unfortunate luck of living next to me during the 2004-05 academic year. Poor sap. After watching a series of ridiculous signs, singing Take Me Out to the Ballgame with Ernie Banks and watching Mike Ditka make guest celebrity picks, we met up with Nomaan, Sean and the rest of my cadre, which involved finally getting my hands on my totally awesome looking tickets, watching the players enter the stadium through the alumni tent, and then heading to the young alumni tailgate, which involved an impressive amount of alcohol.

Game time.

Sean and I left the tailgate earlier to ensure that we'd be in our seats by kickoff, and after walking under the great marquee, which had been painted purple for the occasion, we arrived at our totally awesome seats to find the rest of our crew had somehow beaten us there. No matter. We were sitting in the first row of the stadium's top section right behind the West end zone, which provided not only a phenomenal view of the skyline, but also proved amazing fortune considering safety concerns regarding the East end zone had prompted a rule change that all play would go from east to west.

Though I wasn't sober, I could surmise these things: the atmosphere was fucking awesome. The whole crowd, whether in Purple or orange, was absolutely electric. There is something about seeing a college football game in chilly weather that brings out excitement regardless of venue, but doing so in what was such a special and history building created an extra sense of novelty and grandeur not found at your typical Northwestern game. The stadium was fitted with all the trimmings, with Northwestern's usual field painted down, banners of Northwestern football greats hanging along the concourses, Big Ten scores on the famous Wrigley scoreboard, purple and white Northwestern flags dotting the top of the stadium and the foul poles and even some very clever billboards. Though I was somewhat dismayed that Northwestern chose to come out in alternate black jerseys after I had bought a brand new purple one for the occasion.

The game was made somewhat more interesting by the fact that I was sitting in front of a curmudgeonly old Illini fan -- whom I later found out didn't even attend Illinois -- who seemed intent on proving to all of us that we were spoiled rich kids who didn't actually pay attention to football and were only here because it was the social thing to do. This brought on a series of quizzes as to whether or not I knew who such obscure characters as Dick Butkis or Ray Nitschke were. Evidently he didn't expect to be sitting behind someone who covers sports for a living, or who slept with NFL history books under his pillow for five years as a boy.

Eventually, I proved our worth as real sports fans to him, but the problem with convincing an old man that you know the sports of his time is that he proceeds to try to talk to you about them, and what it was like back in those days, for the rest of the game, which wasn't exactly what I was aiming for. Nomaan was less pleasant to him, but that related to an understandable and deeply-seated distaste for the arrogance of some Illini fans. As the game would wind down, the old man wished me the best and then confided that, "I actually wanted to go to Northwestern."

Zing.

Either way, I had forgotten how much fun it was to watch an NU game jam-packed with other alums or students. Every touchdown, in particular an exciting pick-six in the first half, led to an almost absurd amount of screaming, high-fiving, and hugging amongst hordes of people across all different ages who didn't actually know each other.

That's what college sports are all about.

Of course, following a disappointing defeat in which Illinois wracked up an absurd 500 yards on the ground alone, the details of the game itself are probably better left undiscussed, but the atmosphere of the game itself was amazing. Once it ended, however, I was quickly reminded of the worst part of games at Wrigley: the outlandish logjam at the Addison L stop. Sean and I decided to avoid this by heading off to Belmont instead, where we head downtown and I grabbed some dinner before heading out for a night of drinking with Rachel and my friend Amit, another Chicagoan I hadn't seen in years.

After quickly passing out on the inflatable mattress and battling a headache most of the next morning it was off to brunch with Rachel and then O'Hare for my flight home. In a bizarre moment of coming full-circle, the woman who sat next to me on my way to Chicago was on my flight back home. I approached her in the airport to tell her about my second run-in with the five-year-old and she was profoundly unamused.

Some people just don't have a sense of humor. Either way, the flight took off and I was on my way home. I left with a few drawn conclusions. The Wrigley experiment was excellent, and should probably be a regular thing for the Cats. Few things are better than a long fall day comprised of friends, beer and college football. And finally, I need to come back to Chicago more often.

That last one is hard to argue.

NFL Picks Week Eleven: In Which I Go Back to Chicago

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, this weekend I will be making my first visit to Chicago in more than three years, which, to put it mildly, is far too long. New York is my home and the greatest city in the world, but my four years in Evanston, Illinois and in close proximity of the City of Broad Shoulders will always give Chicago a fond place in my heart. This week it will likely cost me the chance to see most of this weekend's NFL action -- though don't worry, my flight lands in time for me to comfortable catch kickoff of Giants-Eagles --but it's a worthwhile endeavor.

And why, you ask?

Well, as you can see the marquee on Chicago's Wrigley Field was painstakingly painted Northwestern Purple for this Saturday's Northwestern-Illinois game, which will be the first college football game played in the friendly confines in more than 70 years. Squeezing a regulation football field inside has proved something of a challenge, and in some cases, like the distance from the end of the east end zone to the right field bleachers, it is almost laughable as to how tight the game will be played. Since the last college and professional football games were played in Wrigley club seats have been added to the field level which have squeezed the area a bit. The orientation Northwestern seems to be going with is a bit odd considering that the field ran north to south when the Bears played in Wrigley, rather than west to east. Looking at artists' renditions, however, it seems clear officials anticipated this considering they didn't bother drawing uprights in the east end zone in their early depictions.

Clearly it was much easier to build a hockey rink there, even if they had to come up with ice.

Either way, the field is finally starting to come into shape and I can't help but be outlandishly excited about it. Or at least buy all the crap merchandise that's being churned out for the occasion. Personally, I opted not for the ephemeral, but for the eminently reusable Northwestern football jersey. I chose Dan Persa even though I know he will be out with a torn achilles after spearheading last week's stunning upset of No. 13 Iowa, but he'll be back in full force next season to lead NU to its inevitable 2011 BCS National Championship. It's totally gonna happen. Just wait for it.

All around the excitement seems to be building. Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald, a uniquely social-media savvy leader, has been tweeting pictures of the field, Northwestern's practices there, and the cramped locker room as the game reaches kickoff. A plan to have the players ride the Chicago El from Evanston to the Addison stop on the Red Line has been nixed unfortunately, but the blow of losing that novelty has been softened by the presence of a much bigger one. ESPN Game Day has been rumored to be coming to Northwestern several times in the past few years, but each time was just that. A rumor.

This weekend, ESPN just couldn't help itself with the prospect of having that Wrigley Field marquee in the background of its shots for four hours, however, so at long last Game Day is here. I won't be joining the legions of students that are busing down from campus at 4 a.m., but I will be making my way there sometime in the morning to scope out the scene and pretend I'm in college again. After that, Northwestern has set up several areas to tailgate with fellow alumni or buy food around Wrigley, and I will be checking out the whole place.

Hopefully I will be sober and energized enough by the time kickoff comes around at 2:30 p.m. CT that I'm not completely out of it, but something tells me the opportunity to be a part of a once in a lifetime event like this will make it easy to keep myself alert. I've been tremendously excited about this game for months since it became official. And as the clock finally starts to wind down before my 9 a.m. flight to O'Hare tomorrow, I can hardly contain the excitement of a purple-drenched football weekend in Chicago with a host of college friends who live there or are flocking in to town. It's almost enough to forget that there are professional games the next day.

Almost.

And with that, here are this week's almost certain to be incorrect picks. On a side note, if some of you are wondering why I haven't mentioned the Giants' loss to Dallas last week, it's because I've convinced myself it didn't happen. On with the show.

Last week: 5-9-0
Season: 68-68-8

Chicago (+1) over MIAMI
NY Giants (+2.5) over PHILADELPHIA
Buffalo (+6) over CINCINNATI
DALLAS (-7) over Detroit
TENNESSEE (-7) over Washington
KANSAS CITY (-8) over Arizona
Green Bay (-3) over MINNESOTA
NY JETS (-7) over Houston
PITTSBURGH (-8) over Oakland
Baltimore (-10) over CAROLINA
JACKSONVILLE (-2) over Cleveland
ST. LOUIS (+3) over Atlanta
NEW ORLEANS (-12) over Seattle
Tampa Bay (+3) over SAN FRANCISCO
NEW ENGLAND (-3) over Indianapolis
SAN DIEGO (-10) over Denver

There you have it. Enjoy the games. I'm off to college.

Sometimes You Just Want To Hit Your Head

Friends, enemies, acquaintances, I am no stranger to heartbreak. Both in real life and as a sports fan I have taken my fair share of difficult metaphorical stomach punches -- though fortunately far more in the sports department. Over the years just about all of my teams have had at least one utterly frustrating, deflating brutal defeat that has thrown me into emotional disrepair. To wit:

The Mets -- This team is a special breed with numerous tough losses to swallow since I started paying diligent attention, but the Kenny Rogers Ball Four in Game 6 of the 1999 NLCS, Armando Benitez's inability to strike out Paul O'Neill in Game 1 of the 2000 World Series, the final games of the 2007 and 2008 regular seasons and Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS all bring a special kind of pain with them.

The Giants -- At long last in February 2008, I was rewarded with the greatest upset in football history, but prior to that, a tough beating in Super Bowl XXXV, an almost absurd Trey Junkin-capped collapse in the 2002 postseason against San Francisco, Jay Feely's three missed field goals in Seattle in 2005 and the blown 21-point lead in 10 minutes at Tennessee in 2006 had left me wondering if glory would ever come.

The Devils -- Even a team with 16 consecutive playoff appearances and three Stanley Cups has had its share of tough setbacks, with Game 7 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals and Game 7 of the 2001 Stanley Cup Final chief among them. Oh yeah, and this gut punch which I still wince while watching.

The Knicks -- The entire decade of the 2000s. Isiah Thomas.

Northwestern -- This season alone has been a bitter pill with a blown 21-point lead to Penn State just last week to go with collapses at home against No. 7 Michigan State and a broken, battered Purdue team. But just for good measure, let's throw Michigan State's 35-point comeback in 2006, last year's Outback Bowl and the 2008 Alamo Bowl in there for good measure. And don't forget that Northwestern is the only school in the BCS conferences to never make the NCAA Tournament.

Hell, even Southampton FC, with its Inigo Idiakez botched PK against Derby County in 2007's flirtation with Premier League Promotion, and Geelong FC, with this year's painful Qualifying Final loss to St. Kilda and the departing of Gary Ablett have gotten in on the act.

But given all of that pain, what happened to the New Jersey Devils and Ilya Kovalchuk last night was something else entirely.

No, I'm not going to be silly enough to suggest that a regular season shootout loss in November in a season quite possibly already down the tubes was enough to top this prodigious list. But it just may be the most embarrassing loss I've ever seen one of my teams suffer.



Yes, you watched that correctly. Ilya Kovalchuk, with the game on the line in the fourth round of a shootout against the equally disappointing Buffalo Sabres, simply had the puck hop over his stick and drift away, costing New Jersey another potential point in the standings. For a team that, with its new $102 million man in tow and several other major offseason additions to boot (Jason Arnott, Henrik Tallinder, Anton Volchenkov), was expected by many not just to be competitive, but to take aim at a Stanley Cup this moment has represented everything that has gone wrong in about three seconds of non-action.

This muffed shootout attempt has epitomized a tremendously disappointing year in downright comical fashion. Now, of course, the season is not over. In fact, it's not even a quarter of the way over. But the Devils, tied with Edmonton and the NY Islanders for the lowest mark in the League have quite a bit of work to do to make their way back in the playoff discussion. And they're doing so without their best all around player for three months.

Now, to say this is not what I had expected is a dramatic understatement, and as I watched last night in the office, I simply dropped my head into my hands in a way I hadn't done since Carlos Beltran let strike three for Adam Wainright go by without a swing in 2006, but there is plenty of time for New Jersey to make a move and salvage a playoff run. After all, in the NHL all you need to do is make the postseason. Once there all bets are off. But the disenchanting thing is not that the Devils are in this almost inexplicable funk, but that they show very few signs of actually breaking out of it.

I won't lose hope yet, but to put it mildly, reasons for excitement are starting to fade away as the season progresses. The only thing that truly reassures me is that with the Devils' 15 games behind them, they still have 66 left to play. And that looks like an awfully large number at first glance. For now, I'll cling to that.