LATE NIGHT THOUGHTS

TOP TEN RANDOM THOUGHTS ON A LATE SUMMER'S NIGHT

Time is short, hence the late night blog posting, but here are some quick hit thoughts from a variety of subjects, covering a variety of sports.

1. Finally...Ice Dog training camp opens tomorrow.  The team is only playing three exhibition games because Marty Williamson has been frank about his ability to field a quality squad considering that there are nine players who will be at NHL camps.   Should all nine return, and there is a very good chance that will happen, call the Ice Dogs one of the early favourites this year.

2. Not a huge CFL fan, though I do love my Tiger Cats. While I was rooting hard for the Cats vs. Winnipeg on Friday, a small part of me was happy that the newly dubbed "Swaggerville" got the W.  Love the fact that this team has success and personality! Also, love the fact that Montreal and Calgary spent a good portion of the week yapping at each other and then backed it up with a great game narrowly won by Calgary.  Its been a fun year in the CFL, unless of course you are an Argo fan or a Roughrider fan.  Sad thing is that one of those teams could very well make the playoffs!

3. No secret that I am a huge Miami Dolphin fan and no secret that this team causes no end of frustration for all of its fans.  Its bad enough having to root for a team that has dreadful aqua marine uniforms, but the mediocre football is too much. Last year ended with my Dolphin hat getting thrown in the recycling bin in disgust!  Here's hoping Reggie Bush can revitalize a stagnant offense led by the redoubtable Chad Henne who somehow managed to find one of the best receivers in the NHL in Brandon Marshall for only 3 TD passes last year.   No problem with the D, but the O better step up the game, else a "Seahawk-esque" 7-9 is very likely.  My goal for the year is to be the special guest of Jennifer Lopez, who now has a spot open in her suite after she dropped the vampire like Marc Anthony.

4. Spent the latter part of summer digging into some Fantasy Hockey magazines, which might seem strange as I don't play Fantasy Hockey, but I love the stats.  Predicted the Leafs, by the way, another one of my teams that causes me premature aging, to make the playoffs the last two years.  We know how that went.   No predictions this year, but I've been with my wife for over five years now and she has yet to see me watch a Leaf playoff game, while I have dutifully and reluctantly, I might add, have celebrated her Red Wings winning one cup and making the playoffs every year.

5. NBA update?   Nothing, unless you count Gilbert Arenas co-hort/foil Javaris Crittendon getting accused of murder.   Methinks some of these fellows need some hoops to keep them out of trouble.  At least Ron Artest is rumoured to be doing Dancing With The Stars. Wearing sparkly tuxes should keep him away from trouble.

6. With the NBA, this will give the fledgling NBL of Canada a running start in terms of focus and gaining a following.  Here's hoping hoop fans discover that there is great ball in their back yards with the new pro loop and university and college basketball.

7. Congrats go out to John Bartlett, who goes from the Marlies to the Canadiens.  While I did apply for the Habs gig, I'm happy to see a guy like John go from the OHL to the AHL to the show.

8. Congrats also to Dennis Beyak who leaves his part-time radio gig with the Leafs and returns home to Winnipeg to call games for TSN regionally and also on the radio at 1290. He will be supported by ex-Manitoba Moose voice Brian Munz.

9. The Blues Jays are officially in "play out the string" or "garbage time" mode.  I hope that that they don't mail in the last part of the season.   Three straight dismal losses to T-Bay were on the heels of losing 2/3 to the sad-sack Royals.  The only games the Jays have won the last two series, were the ones started by Ricky Romero who has been rock solid. 

10. Personally, I know that I will be back as the voice of the Niagara Ice Dogs on TV Cogeco next year along with fine broadcasters and good friends Ed Burkholder and Al Galloway.  There might be more to announce in the next couple of weeks, or nothing at all.   Ed, Al and I are in our 5th OHL season together and other 150 telecasts.  Where has the time gone?  Home opener is September 29th vs the dastardly Mississauga Majors!

Finally, can't believe I have to mention another sad passing for the second consecutive blog. Longtime McMaster Marauder basketball fan, Hamilton Tiger Cat season ticket holder and all around good guy John Millar passed away suddenly late Sunday evening at the age of 62.  There was no bigger dedicated supporter than John.  He rarely missed a Marauder basketball game, often travelling great distances on the road to support the Maroon and Grey.  He will be sadly missed.

Steve Clark
www.twitter.com/SteveClarkMedia
http://steveclarksportsbroadcaster.blogspot.com/

AFTER AN ABSENCE.....A BLOG!

I took a brief somewhat unscheduled close to three-week hiatus away from the bloggosphere .  A little cottage time, and other fatherly responsibilities involving a now three month old kept me away from the computer.  Got a variety of topics to cover, so lets get to it!

THE NBL of Canada DRAFT

Congratulations to the NBL of Canada on the staging of their inaugural draft, which from the buzz that I've read was a complete and utter success. Many major media outlets covered the story.  The Toronto Sun, Star, TSN among others all offered up varying reports.  The cynicism remains, but there remains more of positive spin than other failed ventures. CEO Andre Levingston made an appearance on Prime Time Sports on Sportsnet Radio The Fan 590 on Monday and calmly laid out his vision and business plan. He was quick to point that the lure of the league is opportunity, rather than wealth as the salary cap is $150 000 per team. The challenge now is to make the players something of household names.  I'll admit I've never heard of 1st overall pick Morgan Lewis, 6'4 out of the University of Findlay, and in fact had not heard of any player until the University of Windsor's Isaac Kuon got drafted in the 2nd round by London.  Best names of the draft?  Got to be Akeem Sween, drafted by Moncton out of Humber College, followed closely by Halifax's Papa Oppong, out of Western Kentucky.  Also, the PA Announcer for Saint John will have fun with Kevin Massiah from Wisconsin when he finds bottom of the net.  The first game goes October 29th when Moncton visits Quebec City.   I think a lot of people are rooting for the league to succeed, so go buy a ticket.  There will be no question that the basketball will be of premium quality.

ICE DOGS OPEN CAMP

Magic words for all OHL fans around Niagara with the announcement of training camp beginning August 30th at the Gatorade Garden City Complex, running through  until the first exhibition game on September 3rd vs Erie.  There should be no shortage of intriguing story lines for Niagara this year as the squad has a chance to build on last years success and really be amongst the elite not just in Ontario , but in all of Canada.  Questions remain as to how long 1st rounders Ryan Strome, Dougie Hamilton and Mark Visentin will last at their respective NHL camps. Also, the aforementioned trio plus Freddie Hamilton are all gunning for Team Canada and the World Jr's.  How much time those fine players miss, may go aways in dictating the fortunes of the Dogs this year.  Also, the question of whether or not the Niagara region gets a new arena may dominate the headlines and casting a looming shadow over the year.  Here's hoping that gets settled so we can also focus on hockey!

MEDIA NOTES

All is silent on the hockey media vacancies at this point in time.  Phoenix, Winnipeg, and Montreal all have voids to fill on either the TV or radio end.  Montreal is looking for a radio play by play man, as is Winnipeg. While Phoenix and Winnipeg are still looking at play by play on the TV end of things.  

Personally, I'm hoping to have a couple of new projects on the go come the fall, on top of this blog and my play by play duties with the Ice Dogs.  A busy fall awaits, and you'll be the first to know if something breaks personally.  

IN MEMORIAM

As has been heavily documented in many media outlets, we mourn the passing of both Rick Rypien of the Winnipeg Jets organization and NDP leader Jack Layton. Many have spoken of both men and their many tremendous attributes, and both leave a lasting legacy. 

Jack Layton sudden passing at the age of 61 opened up a staggering number of tributes or respect to the affable and outgoing NDP leader.  His tireless devotion to this party and cause lead the NDP to their highest standing in the country.  More importantly Layton defied the traditional and conventional politician and truly was a man of the people.  A fighter to the end, he will be missed.

With the passing of Rick Rypien tragically at the age of 27 it is hoped that the conversation about mental illness will continue and that there can be open dialogue. Rick Rypien fought his illness for many years and still carved out a niche in an extremely competitive line of work.    Remember to everyone out there suffering from an emotional or mental illness:  There are open and non-judgmental set of ears and caring hearts if you want to talk.

Steve Clark

SCATTTERED INSIGHTS ON A FRIDAY MORNING

BRETT LAWRIE: THE SECOND COMING?

Great lyricists Public Enemy warned us to not believe the hype, and perhaps this should be a caution for all those expecting Brett Lawrie to be the second coming of Brooks Robinson and Mike Schmidt all rolled into one.  Make no mistake about it, the young man has tremendous talent and unlimited potential, but he's still a rookie trying to find his way in the league.  Sad thing is that another hyped youngster in Travis Snyder got sent down again to make room for Lawrie and Snyder is in danger of being tabbed with the "unfulfilled potential" label.

OHL NEWS: NIAGARA ICE DOGS
 
Gotta slip in a little OHL news for the team that I cover, the Niagara Ice Dogs.  Assistant Coach Mike Van Ryn, who did an admirable job with a defense led by first rounder Dougie Hamilton, is off to Houston of the AHL to fulfill a similar role.  Former Guelph Storm bench boss and general manager Jason Brooks takes over the affable Van Ryn.  Brooks did some scouting for the Ice Dogs toward the latter part of last year.

Good luck to Ice Dogs Freddie and Dougie Hamilton, Ryan Strome and Mark Visentin who are attending Team Canada orientation camp. Visentin is a lock to be the #1 goaltender for the team this year, while the Hamilton brothers and Strome will make strong bids for the team.   Former Ice Dog D-Man Matt Petgrave is also plying his trade as a hopeful.

I was a little disappointed to see Jesse Graham not crack the U-18 squad competing in the Ivan Hlinka Tournament.  Reports had seemed to indicate that he was having a good camp.  I have no doubt that Graham will channel that disappointment into positive energy and he'll have a big sophomore campaign for the Ice Dogs.

NFL

The players just ratified a 10 year agreement, which will include testing for HGH.  Simply put the NFL is a league that simply gets it.  This is a league that has a license to print money. Their preseason generates 800M per week for goodness sake.  It served no purpose to have the league shut down for any length of time, and to their credit they got the job done.   The early player transactions made NHL's free agent frenzy pale in comparison as guys like Reggie Bush, Kevin Kolb, Plaxico Burress, Matt Hasselback all changed addresses.

On a personal note, hoping to have some new projects on the go for the fall.  Its not easy to fit in media projects with my gig as a high school teacher, a full season of Ice Dog broadcasts and my most important job of all as a father to a 10 week old daughter.  It is sure to be a busy fall and winter!

LAZY SUNDAY THOUGHTS

ROBERTO ALOMAR: HALL OF FAMER

Last Sunday Roberto Alomar was a deserving inductee into the Hall of Fame.  A .300 career average, 210 Home Runs, 474 Stolen Bases, 10 Gold Gloves and a dazzling array of highlight reel defensive gems are more than worthy Hall credentials.  This past Sunday Alomar was properly recognized by the Blue Jays in a well put together pre-game ceremony that featured Blue Jays luminaries past and present. Though I did wonder if Kelly Gruber could have least got rid of the gum while he was being recognized by the sell-out Rogers Centre throng in attendance.  As Alomar had gone into the Hall wearing a Blue Jays cap, a first for the franchise by the way, the Jays saw fit to retire Alomar's number 12.   There is no doubt that Alomar was one of the cities elite athletes during a time when Toronto had its fair share of studs.  Alomar was the spring, summer and fall answer to Doug Gilmour, two athletes who  had Toronto in the palms of their hands during the early to mid 1990's.  Few could deny Alomar's allure on and off the field and he was as popular with the female set who saw his boyish good looks and wide grin as tantalizing as his on-field magic that drew the admiration of the casual and hard-core fan.   He had the biggest hit in Blue Jay history with his timely home run off of  Dennis Eckersley in the 1992 ALCS, a shot right in the face of the arrogant A's and their taunting closer.  Despite a powerful and star studded offense around him, undoubtedly Alomar was the centrepiece of the World Series winning Blue Jays.  Yet in the long haul, his star was fleeting.   He loafed his way out of town, protecting his .300 average in 1995, rather than playing and engaging in a well-publicized spitting incident with umpire John Hirschbeck.  No doubt about Alomar's impact but his best years, ironically, were with the Cleveland Indians in 1999-2001 when he lead the league in runs in '99 with 138 and topped 100 RBI's twice, something he never did with the Blue Jays.

Call me nostalgic for the early heady days of the franchise, but for my money the first number retired should have been the #37 adorned by  Dave Stieb.  Stieb's tenure with the Blue Jays was from 1979-1992 and his excellence spanned the contending period of the early 80's to the first pennant won in 1985, and subsequent pennants in 1989 and 1991. Stieb, injured for much of 1991-1992, played only a bit part in the inaugural World Series win. Stieb's surly demeanour with teammates, umpires and media may have hindered him in the eyes of the public relations battle, but he remained a Blue Jay through and through and looked strangely out of place in a White Sox uniform when he moved on from the Blue Jays. Stieb would return to Toronto in 1998, a fitting closure for a great career.  

Today was Robby Alomar's day, and it was a beautiful ceremony, but I'd much rather than Dave Stieb's #37 would never be worn again by a Blue Jay.

SCATTERED THOUGHTS ON A HEAT WAVE-Y DAY

We had a unique experience yesterday as we took our 8 week old to "Strollers and Stars". In other words the chance to watch a movie with other parents and their infants.  Quite a surreal experience watching a movie while children are crying, crawling around and being walked around the theatre by their parents.  All in all, a great experience and the movie of choice, which was Horrible Bosses, was laugh out loud funny.  Here's hoping the babes in arms don't retain some of the blue language in the movie.  One thing that I could do without was the previews of movies like Fright Night and Final Destination 5.   Pretty scary visuals for adults, let alone infants.

SPORTS INSIGHTS
THE DOME IS CLOSED!

It was a good move by the Blue Jays to close the Rogers Centre for Thursday's matinee game against Seattle.  I've sat in the 100 level during warm sunny days and it can get quite uncomfortable.   I can't imagine what it would be like in the oppressive heat that we are currently experiencing.  Now, sitting in the dome atmosphere for a day like this is no day at the picnic, but hopefully the air conditioning can make things somewhat palatable.  We also can't forget the players.  Temperatures at field level tend to soar beyond what we are experiencing. It is even worse for catchers and home plate umpires who have to don the protective gear.  At least Edwin Encarnacion has an excuse not to run out a ground ball today!

BASEBALL'S TRADE DEADLINE APPROACHES

The non-waiver trade deadline is on July 31st and the Blue Jays are likely going to be sellers rather than buyers.  Teams have been sniffing around the Jays relief corps, though for the life of me I can't figure out why.  One name that has cropped up in trade talks has been Jason Frasor, which would be sad for the all-time Blue Jays leader in appearances.  Frasor, a  Jay for all of his career has roots in the Toronto area as he  also married a Canadian girl.  The Jays, currently at 49-49 and a distant 9.5 games back of the Wild-Card race would be better served to stay the course and only make a couple of cosmetic moves.  Brett Lawrie will be called up soon, mercifully pushing Edwin Encarnacion to the DH and hopefully returning Jose Bautista to the outfield full-time.  If that  happens, the Jays will have a surplus of outfielders.  An outfield of Travis Snyder, Eric Thames and Bautista holds a lot of potential, but that leaves Rajai Davis and Corey Patterson on the periphery. Then again, watching the duo in the outfield is a tad painful, especially Patterson who is so uncertain that he needs five opinions on whether its ok to go to the bathroom.

RYAN STROME WITH ANOTHER YOU TUBE MOMENT

I was able to bask in the reflected glory of Ryan Strome's YouTube moment as seen here:

The exciting rookie did it again with this beauty during the Islanders rookie camp.

All highlights aside, Strome is one exciting, creative hockey player and what does not get stated nearly enough is the fact that he does have an edge to his game, and is willing to engage physically, even to the point of dropping the gloves.  He's got NHL star written all over him.

SPORTS MEDIA MOVEMENT

What an off-season it has been for hockey sports media as Buffalo, Calgary, Washington, Phoenix,  and Montreal will have different voices on either the TV or radio side of things.  Winnipeg's TV and radio deal announcement is also imminent.  I can't remember an off-season like this for in a while. 

Stay cool my friends!
Steve
http://steveclarksportsbroadcaster.blogspot.com

A WELL THOUGHT OUT RESPONSE TO SPORTSNET'S SCOTT WOODGATE

Compounding the problem is the shortage of available sports TV talent. Hence the hiring of newspaper veterans such as Mark Spector and Grange. “A lot of the talent we have and that our counterparts (TSN) have comes out of the West, because the local stations there are still doing sports and junior hockey. Ontario's not. ... The new talent is harder to find in the East.”

Scott Woodgate- Vice President News and Information Sportsnet

Globe and Mail Wednesday July 13th 2011

The following quote got me thinking about broadcasting and my place in it right now.  You see broadcasting has always been a passion of mine and I've been privileged to indulge in that passion on a part-time basis as the lead play by play commentator for the Niagara Ice Dogs. Funny thing is that passion can turn to reality.  As the years have passed, I've come to realize and start dreaming about the NHL, just like any young player.   My goals have changed over the years and it is now to broadcast at the highest level, the gold standard so to speak.  Seeing that quote took me aback a bit and gave me pause for thought.  Maybe I'm not as close to the NHL, the holy grail as I would like to think.   If Mr. Woodgate sees Ontario and the East as a barren wasteland for talent in the sports media, then it is pretty clear to me that I'm not anybody's radar.  Now my ego is pretty much in check.  I see myself doing a good job with our Niagara broadcasts and would stack up our crew with anyone in the Ontario Hockey League and comparable to a regional or network broadcast.  Our guys, from the producer on down are just that good and I know that I have to bring my A-game to each and every broadcast to maintain the high standard that producer Darren Sawyer sets. I also know that there are many at a higher standard than I am.  Mr. Woodgate might be suprised to know that many of them call Ontario home.

I will say that there is a plenty of broadcasting talent dotted all over Ontario.  17 teams in the Ontario Hockey League produce live telecasts of  games, so I dispute Mr. Woodgate when he says that there is no junior coverage in Ontario.  No, its not on any commercial or network station, but the OHL Action Pak produces over 700 games of live coverage and in some markets would outdraw NBA broadcasts on the same Action Pack.  Rogers TV, TV Cogeco   and Shaw Cable is local cable, but its not the Mom and Pop coverage from year's past.  Ours, and many other crews have been evaluated by John Shannon, legendary former producer over at Hockey Night in Canada, overseer of NHL broadcasts and Leafs/Raptors TV and currently gainfully employed at Mr. Woodgate's Sportsnet.  His response to ours and other crews was rather favourable.

 I urge Mr. Woodgate to cast his eye over to Ontario where there are hungry and talented broadcasters ready to make their mark at Sportsnet, TSN, CBC,  and The Score .  I happen to be one of them, and I know that I have to keep up with the broadcasting Joneses, so to speak so that I can attempt to differentiate and distance myself from the pack.

Ontario sports broadcasters are just that good.

Steve Clark

http://steveclarksportsbroadcaster.blogspot.com/

TAKING A DEEP BREATH

The following quote came from Scott Woodgate, the Vice President of News and Information at Sportsnet:

Compounding the problem is the shortage of available sports TV talent. Hence the hiring of newspaper veterans such as Mark Spector and Grange. “A lot of the talent we have and that our counterparts (TSN) have comes out of the West, because the local stations there are still doing sports and junior hockey. Ontario's not. ... The new talent is harder to find in the East.”

My initial reaction was to come out swinging with the pen with the intensity of a Hulk Hogan comeback (Note to self: Early wrestling analogies in a blog may damage your credibility.  However, as a freelance broadcaster who would love to work at said aforementioned network, perhaps not the best idea to throw yourself under the bus whilst burning a bridge.  Therefore a good night sleep, which with our 7 week old means six hours.  A well-informed opinion will appear tomorrow!

We will talk to you tomorrow when the mind is sound and the vocabulary cup runneth over!

Steve