JUST WONDERING...

The Mighty Ducks have dropped 'Mighty' from their moniker and starting next season will be known merely as The Anaheim Ducks. Is the next move by Anaheim to drop 'Ducks' for the more widely encompassing, and politically correct 'Water Fowl'? (That way mergansers and geese won't feel slighted)

Trying to come up with a name for Jussi Jokinen's 2 shootout moves...What do you think of, "The Jussi Juke" and "The Joki Dope"?

Is there a better sound than the deafening silence that emits from the sea of clowns in Red Wing jerseys when their beloved Winged Wheel lose?

I bet you noticed that the "Thank You Fans" has been removed from American Airlines Center ice. Why? I guess it was time? Actually most teams removed theirs long ago. The Stars thanked you long time. My only real question is where did they get the patching snow/ice?...Just inside both bluelines now looks like the early spring snow melt in my home town of Prince George, complete with "yellow snow", doggie doo and gook. Paint it!!! (Bush!)

Will the NHL ever get it through their thick, screw television, skulls that it might benefit the fan who is watching at home to hold the game from re-commencing for another 10 or 15 seconds after a goal is scored? I don't know of any other league that would spend as much time and energy finding ways to increase scoring and then treat the scoring of goals as a nuisance. A hard 45 seconds, that's all we ask.

And Finally...The Stars are now 8 for 8 in the shootout. I'll get into the pros and cons of this Skills Competition in a future blog but for now, know this;

1. The key for shooters is 'Stick Language' (those little fake shots and stick feigns that freeze goalies just for a second, and thus give the shooter the hammer) It's the wand-wielding equivalent of "Boo!"

2. Craig Miller of The Musers on 1310 The Ticket (aka The Final Word on Hockey) has accurately dubbed the 2005-06 Dallas Stars "The Greatest Shootout Team in NHL History"...I concur. Never in the nearly 90-year history of the league has there been a team as fatiferous in the shootout as these Dallas Stars. (Strong Comment!)