Trooper

Interesting comments on Perron. When he was traded here the Edmonton press that came on the local shows said pretty much the opposite, that despite his lack of production this year which they attributed to getting up to speed from his injury, he was one of the few guys that have 100% every night at both ends of the ice and the fans loved him for it.

Ugg, Hanneman. Definitely a metal pioneer.

Nice call Habs21, I'm going to check the rest of their stuff out. Lately I've been listening to Epica and Nightwish (with Tarja).

Yeah, it's pretty bad. I listen to stuff on headphones a majority of the time since I can at work and by the end of the day your ears get fatigued. I like the old Live stuff, totally dynamic in intensity and loudness to great effect.

That's just misuse of a click track. As with anything, it's a tool, and can be abused or used as an asset.

You can still play to a click and swing, groove, whatever you want to call it. The groove of a band is how you are pushing or dragging the beat. The tempo is still consistent, but the subtle push/pull gives it the feel.

There's nothing wrong with click tracks, some guys are good at playing with them some aren't. The groove is how you play around the mathematical beat, that's true with or without a click. If there are any sequenced parts in a recording a click is pretty much a necessity. The one band I've really got into lately is Fang Island, I don't even know how to describe them. Artsy noisy prog or something.

That sucks. Dio still put younger performers to shame. His voice was as strong as ever when I saw him only a couple years ago. \m/ A great read about that BTW: http://www.theonion.com/articles/metal-cou...hand-sign,1832/ Metal Council Convenes To Discuss 'Metal Hand Sign' Abuse VATNAJÖKULL GLACIER, ICELAND—In an emergency session Tuesday, members of the Supreme Metal Council strongly condemned the increasing use of the metal hand sign in lay society, claiming that its meaning has become perverted by overuse. Elders of the Supreme Metal Council examine amateur-video evidence of what they are calling "a worrisome trend." "The metal sign, or 'sign of the goat,' has all but lost its impact as a token of respectful recognition for something truly 'rocking' or 'metal,'" SMC president Terence "Geezer" Butler said. According to Butler, members are upset that their sacred gesture is being used to acknowledge and celebrate "favorable but clearly non-metal events." "We have all heard the reports of people using it to greet their in-laws, or after starting their lawn mowers with a single pull," Butler said. "But recently it was brought to our attention that someone used the gesture in a Texas convenience store after snagging the last box of carrot cakes. This simply won't do." Formed in 1972 and comprising 12 of the most revered leaders of the metal community, the council meets annually in its majestic hall atop Vatnajökull, Iceland's largest glacier, to discuss metal affairs. The SMC convened for a special session after Nikki Sixx, Overlord Of Glam Metal Affairs, was sent hard photographic evidence of metal-sign abuse across the nation. Sixx's fellow high priests said they were "shocked," calling it "one of the most serious affronts to metal's integrity since the rise of rap-metal in the late 1990s." "I remember a time not long ago when the Devil Horns were reserved for only the most righteous of person, deed, or riff," Grand Elder Lemmy Kilmister said. "To see someone throwing the horns to his mate at the launderette because the clothes dryer came to a full stop just as he finished reading his copy of Circus... It breaks my heart." Nodding in silent agreement were council members Adalwolfa, a curvaceous Frank Frazetta-drawn Teutonic she-warrior magically brought to life by the council, and the spirit of slain Pantera guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott. Compounding the problem, Sixx said, is the fact that many people who use the sign are not recognized members of the Metal Roster, the list of true metal acolytes engraved in medieval calligraphy on gleaming pages of steel. "This man here, who invokes the sign merely to indicate his joy that his microwave popcorn is done: He is not metal," Sixx said. "We have it on good authority that he prefers the music of Tim McGraw and that the magic word of 'Zoso' has never passed his lips." The council discussed several harsh punishments to deter further metal-sign abuse. Paulo Pinto, bassist for the Brazilian thrash-metal band Sepultura and Overlord Of International Metal Affairs, suggested that the hand of a suspected signer should be immediately cut off. A contingency of death rockers from Gothenburg, Sweden recommended that any sign abuser, or anyone who is not sufficiently metal, should be forced to eat his severed hand while having his eyeballs burned with a superheated metal crucifix, and then be slowly skinned alive. More charitable members, such as former Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine, suggested that "a helpful list of guidelines could educate others, allowing them to distinguish between metal and non-metal occurrences." "A lot of people who incorrectly make the sign have traces of metal in their hearts and minds, they just need the proper direction," Mustaine said. "Remember that many are outcasts and losers. To punish them further is to destroy the future of metal." Until the council decides what course of action to adopt, Butler said he believes that a simple rule of thumb will help reduce the incidence of metal-sign abuse. "If your head is neither banging nor thrashing, you should not be throwing the sign," Butler said. "It's that simple." Yet, in a later interview in his private, skull-bedecked chambers, Butler expressed the concern that the problem has grown too widespread for even the mighty SMC to solve. He said he worries that metal standards have been on the decline for so long that few have any clear idea as to what is metal and what is not. The SMC has experienced deep ideological rifts in the past that have affected its ability to make strong decisions, most notably during the lengthy trial and eventual sentencing of Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich, who was indicted in 2004 on charges of cutting his hair, pussing out on Napster, and contributing to the original motion-picture soundtrack of Mission: Impossible 2. "To this day, there are many on the council who deeply resent the presence of [Poison guitarist] C.C. DeVille,'" Butler said. "In fact, so do I. Despite our differences, the council still remains the sole arbitrator of all things metal. We must get through to those who wantonly abuse the sign of the goat. They must be informed that watering down the sign's meaning will result in serious consequences." Should the abuse continue, Butler said the council "will defer the matter to Satan."

And add powerplays where the first (and only) unit plays the entire time and you easily accrue the minutes.

Not going. The Pens need to get going, it doesn't matter if they have a playoff spot. They need some confidence and momentum going in. If playing Sid maximizes the chances of that, go for it.

To be honest, wear him out for what? The way the rest of the team is playing at times, they aren't going anywhere. You might as well go with the best you have and see what happens.

Whatever rationalization suits you...

Nonsense. First of all they are two completely different personalities. Cope had the style a craziness but was considered one of the most knowledgeable sources for the 70s era of football. When he passed there was a line of national talents waiting to sing his praises. Lange, even without his catchphrases, was a great announcer. I think he's lost a bit (and that's why they moved him), but he's still good. The way he describes a play, what he doesn't say (on TV especially), his handling of a simulcast, all first rate. Compare that to Steigy when he took over who tried to call every pass, every touch of the puck, it's night and day. Unemployed? Most of the ESPN guys including Chris Bermann shouldn't have jobs. Skip Bayless, Madden, Tim McCarver, Vitale, Bill Walton, they all suck but still have jobs.

Try having to listen to him all the time. I find it hard to believe that a guy who has been in the booth for as long as Steigerwald knows so little about hockey. He'll pick up on a catch phrase, such as Bylsma's use of "zone time" or something like that, and that's all you'll hear about. He really doesn't know what he's talking about. When he did color for Lange he would say something stupid, it would be followed by a second of silence and then Lange would completely ignore him and go on to something else. I think people make too much of people praising Sid, but Steigy has a crazy man-crush on him. "Did you see Sid hop over the wall on that line change?!?!!?!?!?! Amazing athletic ability!!!!" Errey is a homer to an extent, but he's supposed to be, and often will directly contradict what Steigy says. He is also as forthcoming in his praise of opponents as he is of Penguins.

Nice move, the guy's become a very good all around player. It would help if he could net just a couple more goals but maybe that will come with time.

Come on, call it what it is. That and the previous one that was called were both intentional. The reffing was ok by NHL standards, although Cooke should have gotten a high stick in the neutral zone which I thought was the most obvious missed call of the game.

Good game by the Pens for a change. There were missed calls both ways, as always, it is what it is.

Pens did get outworked, but there were some blatant missed calls and the goalie interference was pretty lame. Overall the league has regressed mightily in the officiating department in the last year it seems. The mirror driving when a D is going back to retrieve the puck by his partner or another player is as blatant as I've ever seen it, inconsistency rules the day again on all aspects of officiating, and the disciplinary issues don't require much explanation. They just don't get it, they are mired in this insider hockey mentality. Guess what? If people don't understand your game because officiating sucks, they won't watch. If your "rules" are laughable, you will be a second tier league forever.

Effective, but I don't believe he has the impact anymore Philly was hoping for.

I think tonight is a perfect example of why Letand isn't on the PP. Very unsure of himself, weak passes, takes too long to make a decision. It's like all the smoothness he has even strength is gone as he overthinks every move on the PP.

I make decisions on how to train my players based on scientific rational based on data by people who have studied training, such as Tudor Bompa and Mike Boyle. I was simply pointing out that I make decisions based on rational thought, not people who just claim common sense. If I was unclear that is my mistake. True, it's just a discussion. There is ample evidence in support of active recovery. There are many things which are not measurable and require a qualitative assessment. I think the SC hangover falls under this category. It's probably more mental than anything. But there are plenty of examples of teams that have won championships and continued to play at a high level.

I expected the Pens to get torched tonight. I thought the Caps were going to be more motivated and just take it to them. Good game except for the outcome. I think the officiating was a little looser than I would have liked, but better than erring the other way.

I wasn't comparing the Bulls to hockey, but a team like the Bulls who went to the finals for years should have a higher injury rate than other NBA teams that never made the playoffs. I didn't say being an engineer made me more or less qualified, please do not put words in my mouth and build a strawman, it makes me more inclined to require quantitative data and proof when evaluating an argument, nothing more. As for not having scientific data, that's nonsense. If someone wanted to do it the data is out there. If you had the desire you could easily gather the number of games played per year, cross it with man-days lost to injury, isolate it by sport, age, etc. These data mining techniques are very common and telling given a big enough data set, which we could easily get across all the sports I don't have to present counter data to dispute anecdotal evidence, as my argument wasn't against the premise as much as an argument against drawing conclusions from anecdotal evidence in general.

It's funny that you demand proof yet it's ok for you to throw out speculation that is contrary to popular opinion. If a morning skate is so beneficial, why do coaches often allow players to miss it and cite rest as a reason? Why do so many coaches I know feel that 3-5 mile runs are so beneficial to their players for a sport that consists of 30-40 second shifts of high intensity skating? Why do they still do VO2max tests for an aerobic sport? Popular opinion is worthless. Most coaches, including those in the NHL, are pretty uneducated about such things. Check out Mike Boyle's work and see what he has to say about these things. Actually, when something is a scientific debate, science tends to clarify things. We should be able to look at the Chicago Bulls from their glory years and other dynasties and see a correlation of higher rates of injury, but the data isn't there. Overuse and improper rest DO lead to injury, but a couple playoff runs or some Olympic games aren't that much more volume. Maybe because I'm an engineer, but I use data when I train my players, not popular opinion.

Nothing but pure speculation. Show me a correlation between number of games played over the course of a given time period (several seasons would be best) and injuries. Show me some stats on how much resting has helped. Account for age. I'm sure those numbers aren't out there. These kinds of things are nothing more than armchair quarterbacking. Morning skates? Those probably do more to enhance recovery than sitting around resting.