2012 Motorsport Preview: PART 1

It’s that time of the year. Football season is winding to a close, basketball and hockey are reaching the midpoints of their seasons, and pitchers & catchers report in less than a month. That’s right ladies and gentleman, spring is nearly here and racing season is upon us once again.  In the upcoming weeks we will be providing you with all the information you will need to get caught up with the offseason changes of the major classes of motorsport before the kickoffs of the 2012 seasons. And there is a lot to cover, so lets begin.

Sprint Cup/Nationwide

Testing is underway at Daytona and there are a few main story lines to follow. While no major technical changes have been made for the season as a whole, there are a few changes in place for this year’s Daytona 500.  All the changes address the tandem racing we have seen at larger restrictor plate tracks, in which two cars hook up (with the 2^nd car literally pushing the first) and are quicker than any other combination. The teams adjusted last year to having the drivers communicate by radio to each other and having a single spotter between them, both of which are not allowed this season.  A smaller radiator size should ensure that the following car won’t be able to do so for too long before it needs to step out for fresh air without overheating. In addition, the restrictor plate openings have been increased to increase overall speed in hopes to break the car’s dependency on each other. This has resulted in the fastest speeds we have seen in years, with Kurt Busch posting the fastest lap time so far in testing at 206.058 mph average.

Other things to keep an eye out for (and things we will be addressing in future posts) is Tony Stewart’s chance of the repeat, Jimmy Johnson trying to win another title after not being crowned champion for the first time in what seems like forever, and Danica Patrick running a full Nationwide schedule with a limited Sprint Cup schedule.

Formula 1

Testing of Renault's new R30 Chassis

We are going to hold off on getting too in depth on the Formula 1 scene for now for a couple main reasons.  Testing doesn’t begin until February 7 in Jerez, which means we actually only know what a few team’s cars look like and what type of innovations they are carrying. If you aren’t familiar with F1, each team makes their own car from scratch each season.  Renault is one of the few teams that have shown off their car, but nearly all teams will unveil their 2012 machines leading up to the first test, with the exception of McLaren who state they wont release the new car until the 2^nd test at Barcelona, which seems to have become standard procedure for them. So when we know more we’ll let you know, but it should be another extremely interesting season as Sebastian Vettel goes for his 3^rd world title in a row, and Louis Hamilton tries to not crash into everything but the safety car.

 Izod Indycar Series

   

IRL's new 2012 Car

Without question this is probably the most important year of the series existence.  It is never easy for a series to move past the loss of a driver, but it becomes extraordinarily difficult when it is a situation as public, and graphic, as the loss of Dan Weldon at Las Vegas in last seasons final race.  As they move past the loss of one of their most popular drivers, they must also adapt to the loss of Danica Patrick who has left this season to join NASCAR.  Patrick brought in a broader fan base to Indycar, and it remains to be seen whether those fans will stay with the series, or follow Patrick over to stock car racing.  Finally, the series introduces a brand new car this season, a much safer, and drastically different looking car took the track in pre season tests for the first time on January 23, and the overall response from the drivers has been good. Although it is still unclear how they will be on oval tracks.  The Dallara DW12 cars, named after Dan Weldon who helped the manufacturer test the cars last season, has a body designed to prevent the horrific air born wrecks we have seen in recent years.

It should be a great season across all three series, stay tuned as we go more in depth as we approach the first races of the season.

Where's Peyton?

It is all but decided that the Indianapolis Colts will be releasing Peyton Manning rather than paying his roster bonus of $28 millon. With Peyton off the team, the Colts are expected to select Andrew Luck with the #1 pick in the NFL draft. This leads to possibly one of the biggest free agents in NFL history. Very rarely is an elite QB allowed to test the FA waters unless they are at the end of their career, ala Brett Favre. With that said, Peyton is in a very similar situation to Favre in that he holds the power and will look to join a winning team. My apologies to Dolphins, Browns or Redskins fans who had pipe dreams of #18 wearing their colors. He won't be looking to join a rebuilding team as he only has a few years left and just surgically repaired his neck so he might want a decent offensive line to protect him. I also highly doubt that the Raiders or Seahawks will be on his radar either as they don't seem to be sure which direction they are headed. Here are my front runners and a dark horse for Peyton's right arm:

New York Jets- ESPN keeps floating this idea and I'm sure they would love for nothing more than a little drama in the Big Apple. Jets players have already questioned Mark Sanchez and his work ethic so he doesn't look like a long term solution. What better place for a big time QB like Peyton who loves doing commercials and endorsements than the marketing capital of the US? He would be able to handle the pressure without batting an eye. His Tom Brady rivalry would only increase as they'd be battling twice a year and for the division crown. The Jets are a very solid team already with plenty of weapons and a player's coach (Rex Ryan) at the helm. It seems like a very good fit and one in which Peyton would be able to lay out his list of "demands".

Denver Broncos- Yes, I know Tim Tebow plays in Denver, but I can't see John Elway not at least testing the waters to see if Manning would want to come to the Mile High City. As much as I enjoy Tebow Time, he is not the type of QB that will see prolonged success in the NFL. Elway really wants to find a pro-style QB to lead the Broncos, but can't cause a mutiny in Denver by replacing Tebow. With that said, I do believe that bringing in Peyton Manning would pacify the fans as they would be getting a top 5 QB and a future Hall of Famer who could be sold as a "mentor" to Tebow while making the offense a legitimate threat. Only a Peyton Manning type player would not cause a mass riot in the streets of Denver. Peyton would have plenty of talent around him on offense and would love throwing to a receiver like Demaryius Thomas. The Broncos were basically carried by their defense with Tebow at the helm and Manning would help them evolve into a more complete team.

San Francisco 49ers- Here is the dark horse. Alex Smith has led the resurgence of the 49ers under Jim Harbaugh and being a former #1 pick, he obviously has some talent. He has taken them to the NFC Conference Championship and possibly the Super Bowl depending on this weekend. With that said, would Harbaugh be able to pass up coaching a QB of Manning's caliber? He came to the 49ers from Stanford where he helped to develop Andrew Luck into the best QB prospect since some guy named... Peyton Manning. Harbaugh is a former NFL QB himself and would love to run a top flight passing attack, especially against the weak defenses of the NFC West. The 49ers are a team with a great QB legacy with the likes of Joe Montana and Steve Young. Alex Smith's contract is up after this year so they wouldn't have to deal with releasing or trading him. Peyton would help to get the most out of highly talented, but low output players such as Michael Crabtree and Vernon Davis. If the 49ers had a high powered offense to go along with their stifling defense, it would be hard to believe that they wouldn't be a front runner for the Lombardi Trophy for the next couple of years.

A Minnesota Winter Classic

Another holiday season has come and gone, and with it another great NHL winter classic has disappeared as quickly as a rink popped up in the middle of Citizen’s Bank Park in Philadelphia.  So naturally, we decided to think up some scenarios of the Winter Classic coming to the State of Hockey.

Minnesota Wild Owner Craig Leipold says the NHL would, "love to put a Winter Classic in Minnesota. And what I've been told time and time again is, 'Craig, you get marquee players, you become a playoff team, and you've got it.'"

It’s almost impossible to think the NHL wouldn’t want to visit one of the richest hockey markets south of the boarder; but when it comes to the Winter Classic the national ratings rule supreme.  So the Wild will likely need be consistently at the top and get some national recognition before getting the “all go” from the NHL. With the farm system loaded and the Wild currently not looking half bad, all be it not a Stanly Cup contender, the Winter Classic going to Minnesota is likely not as far fetched as some would think.

The possible matchups in no particular order:

Dallas: The old Minnesota North Stars team could come back to town in what is always a good rivalry game. In addition, the AHL affiliate game would be good with the Texas Stars taking on the Houston Aeros. Also, someone would likely be wearing the old North Stars sweaters, which would be nice to see. However, I’m not sure Minnesota fans would react well to seeing the Dallas Stars sporting them.

Detroit: With rumors abound on the high likelihood that Detroit will be rocking next year’s Winter Classic (hopefully to the tune of 100,000+ at the Big House), we probably won’t see this matchup. But Detroit is a big enough name to again draw a large national audience.

Chicago: It makes the most sense, especially after realignment and the renewed rivalry, large market big name squad for national ratings would be enough to please all the big wigs in the NHL front office.

Winnipeg: I included this just as a prediction that Winnipeg will become the Wild’s most hated rival in coming seasons. And if both teams were consistently at the top of the standings for a couple years, if maybe one of them won the cup, if…….yeah lets move on.

Colorado: Good Rivalry again, but likely not enough large market presence for the nation as a whole. However, if the NHL decides to make a huge mistake and do multiple outdoor games in future events, this could be a possibility.

San Jose: Good big name west coast team, also has a good history and a “non traditional” rivalry. But I wouldn’t see it happening unless both teams rise to the top of the league.

The sites:

There are two places the Winter Classic would likely take place, Target Field (home of the Minnesota Twins) or TCF Bank Stadium (on the U of M campus). There is little doubt watching hockey from a seating arrangement set for baseball isn’t the greatest, but Target Field would have a higher capacity. The real decision wouldn’t be made until it was certain the TCF Bank site would be able to serve alcohol, under its current agreement it cannot. Sit outside in a Minnesota Winter with no beer? Blasphemy!

Finally, since the Winter Classic has become a multiple game/day event, it would likely fit well into other large hockey events Minnesota already has on an annual basis. Hockey Day in Minnesota is one day in January where select high school boys and girls teams already play outdoors, in addition to a full lineup of Minnesota Golden Gopher and Wild action.  The Winter Classic would be a fitting main event for the weekend. The Gophers also have a small holiday tournament around the same time, which could have the championship game outdoors, and since it is an invitational they could chose some teams from the same area of the squad the Wild end up playing.

All great options, all sound fun, but remember that in a smaller market the Wild must prove to be “national television” worthy before the NHL will even think about bring the Winter Classic to the State of Hockey.

Coach

I gotta admit that I was never a big believer in coaching making a big difference in professional sports. I always figured it was all about the players. I mean come on, does a 58 year old fat guy really make that much of a difference when there are 20 athletes with supreme physical skills? Unless he is Santa (had to use him at least once considering the season), I used to argue that he made a negligible difference.

Recently I have had to eat my words. Big time. Coaching has become a huge difference in the major sports. I believe it is partially because the athletes have plateaued in terms of physical inequality. They are able to be very similar in terms of strength and speed due to major improvements in training. I'll let a few examples do the talking for me using the 3 sports that I believe coaching makes the biggest difference in. The NBA has recently turned into a superstar's league. The system and decent players can only get you so far.

NFL- Look no further than 2 teams that are playoff bound. Jim Harbaugh has turned the San Francisco 49ers completely around. They haven't had a winning season since 2002 until this year when they already have the NFC West locked up. He has turned former #1 overall bust into a very serviceable QB. The team fights in every game and has a renewed swagger that you haven't seen out of any recent 49er teams. Very impressive work done by Harbaugh on a team with very few personnel changes compared to last year. The other coach making a big difference this season has been Wade Phillips of the Houston Texans. He isn't a head coach, but rather the defensive coordinator. He has taken a defense that was at the bottom of the league last year and now has them at the top. Much like Harbaugh, there are very few personnel differences. He has formed a scheme that fits the athletes that he has at his disposal. The improvement goes entirely to his credit.

MLB- Kirk Gibson was able to pull off a 29 game swing this last summer when he took the Arizona Diamondbacks to the playoffs. Just a year ago they lost 97 games, this season they came away with 94 wins. The change of attitude in the clubhouse was a major factor. As many will remember, Gibson hit one of the best HRs in the history of baseball with his World Series game winner on basically 1 leg. He was a warrior and he took that same philosophy to the Diamondback players this year. He took no excuses and demanded the best out of them everyday.

NHL- 3 young teams made coaching changes this year and all have paid off handsomely. The Minnesota Wild and Florida Panthers each hired new coaches in the offseason and both have almost met last year's results without even being halfway through the season. The St. Louis Blues also made a change early in the season and it has paid off huge with only 2 regulation losses in 20 games thus far. Mike Yeo (MN) & Kevin Dineen (FLA) are first time coaches at the NHL level while Ken Hitchcock (STL) has been around for more than 15 years. All are showing that a new voice and approach in the locker room can push a team to succeed.

Holy Realignment Bettman!!!

By now you surely have heard the news that starting next season the NHL will have a completely re-designed look to the conferences of the league. That’s right, 4 conferences.  Here is a quick look at some of the winners, and “losers” of the new system.

Winners: Everybody, no really I’m not joking, the league as a whole will be much better off just on shear playoff entertainment that this system creates. In addition to the individual rivalries that make the most sense due to the geographic nature of the conferences. 

Biggest winner: My opinion those who make up Conference B, which are the teams that really have been pushing for this now for a couple years. Originally scattered, mostly out west, didn’t really help these centrally (and in some cases pretty eastern) located teams. Also, for the teams with smaller fan bases, having your team play 9pm or 10pm start times out west on a regular basis doesn’t help create regular viewers.  

Losers: The only real argument I have heard in regards to the re-alignment is the increased travel the current Eastern Conference will have. While this statement is technically true, the increased travel is not nearly as great as the travel cut down by having central teams grouped together and not going out west.

Biggest loser: Carolina, whose current division consists of Florida, Tampa Bay, Winnipeg, and Washington. Washington remains, but instead of the old Thrashers and the Florida teams they now are grouped with the Devils, Islanders, Rangers, Flyers, and Pittsburgh….ouch. I predict it may be rough going for Carolina in the near future.

Only thing left to do is hope the NHL gives the Conferences great names, Norris? Campbell? Wales? We can only hope. It is truly amazing a large professional league could manage to do something so unquestionably right for the sport. It pains me to say I might be warming up to Mr. Bettman. 

Who's got 2 thumbs and doesn't care the NBA is back?.......This Guy.

It’s official, the owners and players have finally come to an agreement to end the NBA lockout, and I couldn’t care less.  But honestly, I don’t care regardless, either way, any way, in any form; just feel nothing in regards to it.  There is no big secret that basketball isn’t my favorite sport in the world, probably not even in my top 10, so this shouldn’t be coming as a shock to you.  However, I would be lying if I was not at least a little intrigued at the upcoming NBA season.

Parts I hate:

1. ESPN……….the 4 letter network covers the NBA enough.  It often angers me when I see Lebron charge down the lane uncontested for a dunk make the top 10, when I saw five better goals or saves in a single hockey game in the same night; but then I remember the NHL network exists and quickly change the channel. So I don’t stay bitter.

2.  For some reason I used to believe what all the sports analysts were telling me, that the NBA and the NHL compete, that having no NBA around was a huge gain for the NHL, that both can’t exist in harmony. In a few markets I can believe this is at least a little true, but across the continent I don’t see many die hard basketball fans that were fulfilling their sports needs with tickets to hockey games.

3. Basketball is just….boring. “But there is so much scoring!” Blah, blah, blah.  Wake me up when the playoffs are here, I’ll watch game 7, of the finals.
4.  I’m from the land of ice and snow, the only NBA team in town is the T’Wolves, enough said.

Parts I like:

1. Watching Lebron collapse, again. I think anyone outside of South Beach will enjoy this.

2. The “frantic” preseason. I think this needs to be adopted on a regular basis by all leagues, the off season activity is better if it is more condensed, though I’m not going to say I’m going to follow player moves like after the NFL lockout ended.
3. Ricky Rubio…..again, from the land of ice and snow, it’s the only thing you can really look forward to in T’Wolves country.

4. Metta World Peace. I can just hear the play by play now. “Someone just threw something at Metta. He has charged into the stands!” “World Peace is in the stands trying to fight fans”, “With the look of murder in the eyes, World Peace is throwing haymaker after haymaker at innocent fans”………ahhhh I just can’t wait. A brawl would bring out the best of World Peace.

And again, that’s about it. Don’t hate it, don’t love it.

My “off the top of my head” Top Ten Sports:

Hockey

Football

Baseball

Soccer

Golf

Motor sports

Rugby

Curling

Hurling

Basketball

Yeah, that sounds about right.

Don't Call It A Comeback

In the words of all-time great rapper LL Cool J, "Don't call it a comeback!". Well, maybe the all-time great part wasn't right. And this would probably be a comeback. So just ignore this whole paragraph.

Coming back seems to be all the rage right now, so we figured we'd give it a shot as well. I've lost count how many times Brett Favre has done it. George Foreman proved it can be spectacular, the first time at least. Carson Palmer is giving it a shot and getting some decent results. Michael Jordan, like always, is the standard that all others are measured against.

We aren't here to talk about the past though. Urban Meyer is the latest to decide that hanging it up isn't the way to go. He left Florida due to family and health concerns, can't argue with that logic. He then went to ESPN and was a game analyst which requires travel and hours of preparation during the NCAA football season along with analysis during the off-season. Not quite sure I'm buying what you sold us Urban. Instead I'm going to buy into the conspiracy theory. Florida's cupboard was going bare. He retired following a health scare in 2009 only to return days later. Think that didn't scare away any recruits? Think that opposing coaches didn't mention that on phone calls & visits? I'd have thought twice about going to play for a coach with those kind of things going on. Florida's level of talent was not where it was when he was winning and he got out before the ship started to sink. He comes back to a school that is looking to have sanctions, but the talent level that is currently on the team is anything but mediocre. Look for him to be in the running for a BCS Bowl Game next season, that is if Ohio State is allowed to play in a bowl game...

Moral of this story, consider us the Urban Meyer of blogs. We're back and it's gonna be a great ride. Jump on while there's still room.

Friday AA Preview

Blaine gave Edina a run for their money, and East (as I predicted, pat myself on the back) won in OT over White Bear. Game one tonight should be a darn good one as Edina takes on East. I wish I could come up with who will win and why, but I think this is going to be a tossup. I think Edina has another gear if they need it, they still seem a little lazy, so I will have to give the edge to them.

Ok I’m not spending a lot of time on these games, because they put me to sleep last night, almost literally. EP killed Lakeville, and don’t let the score fool you, Eagan beat down Moorhead.  I will admit Eagan looked a lot better than I saw in the section game, and they will make it a good game tonight. However, EP was by far the best team I saw yesterday, and I don’t think anyone will stop them this year.

Class AA Preview

Well……that was a pretty interesting day one of the State Hockey Tournament. We are here to give you a rundown of the first round of the AA tournament, and hopefully, if the tournament doesn’t wear us down, give you an article tomorrow on a recap of the day and a preview of the day to come.

Game 1: Blaine vs. Edina. I saw both of these section final games, and I know everyone is giddy about Edina, however one term comes to mind when I think of them in that game, LAZY.  Now I am going to chalk up the idea that it was one game, and probably not their best, against a good team.  However, I think that even if Edina comes out lazy again in this game it shouldn’t be too much of a problem as I really didn’t see much from Blaine. Yes I know they beat a good Maple Grove team to get here, but lack of size and speed just isn’t going to match up well against the Hornets. 5-2 EDINA.

Game 2: Duluth East vs. White Bear Lake.  Well…to we get sucked in again, do we believe that maybe the bears are going to get out of the first round, do we believe? The answer is no, but we HOPE so, so we can stop hearing about it. I haven’t seen East in a while, but I did watch WBL take down Hill and they looked pretty darn impressive.  However I am hearing great things about east, and it sounds like it may just be too much in the end for WBL. They could win, but I just don’t know, I will classify this as the game of the day. EAST 4-3 IN OVERTIME.

Game 3: Eden Prairie vs. Lakeville North………………I will probably be coming out of a food coma from dinner time during this game, good thing too. EP 9-Lakeville 1…maybe.

Game 4: Eagan vs. Moorhead. I saw Eagan in that section championship game. And they were meh, so so, just blandish.  So I don’t want to extend myself on a preview of this game, but I think it will be a good one, and a close one. AND in traditional Thursday night action, probably go to 2 OTs. Moorhead 3-2. Just a hunch.

See you at the games! Check back tomorrow for a recap of the day’s action and a full preview of Friday. 

How To Fix The NHL (Part 3)

Back again for Part 3 as the NHL's new commissioner. Here's a recap:
Part 1: Contract Phoenix & Florida
Part 2: Relocate Atlanta to Winnipeg & Carolina to Quebec

As important as it is to get rid of hockey in the south where people don't care much about it and return it to Canada and the passionate fans up there, it is equally important to keep rivalries intact and peak interest in the NHL. With the relocation comes the challenge of realigning the divisions to better reflect the geographic alignment of the league.

Realignment-
Much of the NHL and it's divisions will stay the same, but a few key moves will help to ignite more fan interest in a few areas. The Eastern Conference will see the biggest changes, especially the Southeast Division as 3 of the teams have changed locations or been eliminated. I'll go through each division individually and explain why teams should be placed there. 14 teams in each conference and 7 teams in 2 divisions.

Eastern Conference:
-Northeast Division
Boston
Montreal
New York Islanders
New York Rangers
Ottawa
Quebec
Toronto

This could also be named the Canada Division. Or the Old Tyme Division. Or many other things that have to do with tradition. These are all teams that don't like each other and fan bases that despise people who cheer for another team. Canadians take pride in their city and their team, some of the rivalries up there are legendary. Boston and New York dislike each other with a passion. All cities are close to each other as well providing for a good fan following at away games. Every game in this division will have a playoff atmosphere.

-Atlantic Division
Buffalo
Columbus
New Jersey
Philadelphia
Pittsburgh
Tampa Bay
Washington

While there are a few teams that don't like each other in this division, it will be mostly made up of sprouting rivalries. It will be very competitive and provide for some exciting hockey. This division is currently made up of superstars on their respective teams and with a wide open feel, those players should prosper.

Western Conference:
-Central Division
Chicago
Colorado
Dallas
Detroit
Minnesota
Nashville
St. Louis

The main factor in this division is geography, but along with that comes rivalries from other sports as well. With Colorado being the only team outside of the Central Time Zone, fans won't have much of a problem catching their teams on TV when they are on the road. Most fans in these markets also travel well and will make their presence known on the road. There will be some great hockey played here.

-Pacific Division
Anaheim
Calgary
Edmonton
Los Angeles
San Jose
Vancouver
Winnipeg

As with the Central Division, the teams here will be mostly in the same time zone and this is a huge factor as the teams are spread out along the coast so travel won't be as prevalent. This doesn't mean the atmosphere at the games won't be any less spectacular. Three of the most passionate Canadian fan bases are in this division along with some very good California teams. Basically Canada vs California, teams won't be given any breaks by their fans and will be expected to compete every year.

Now that you are able to see where the teams will be and who they'll play the majority of their games against, there is only 1 part left in this series. Be sure to check back soon to see the finale.