Finally the playoffs have begun!! Tonight, April 9, 2008 the first games will be played. The Flames finished in 7th position and are up against the San Jose Sharks, ranked 2nd in the Western Conference.  So now that the Flames are in the playoffs….how long will it last?? I am hoping, knock on wood that it will go all the way, but being realistic, I think that they will be lucky to make it to round two.

Here is the schedule for all of tonights games:

I’ll be watching…. will you?

At the 2008 World Figure Skating Championships held in Gothenburg, Sweden, Canada sent 10 Canadians to take place in the competition. In total, Canada took home 3 medals, and all ten of the Canadian participants finished in the top ten in each event. Way to go Canada!!

Jeffrey Buttle, the first Canadian in the Mens to win since Elvis Stoyko in 1997, won the men’s World title by a 14-point spread. This was Buttle’s sixth trip to Worlds; his previous best finish at was a silver medal at the 2005 ISU (International Skating Union) World Figure Skating Championships.

The pairs dominated the top 10. Jessica Dubé and Bryce Davison skated two strong programs to land them nicely on the podium with a World bronze medal.

New to the World Ice Dance stage are Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir are now second best in the world. After competing in only their second senior World Championships, the ice dance team won the World silver medal.

In addition to the three medals that these Canadians took home, some Canadians also broke three different records. Jeff Buttle set a new record in points scored for the international record for Canadian Men. Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir broke a Canadian record for highest mark in ice dance at an international competition. Jessica Dubé and Bryce Davison won the bronze, and with the points score they received set a new record for a Canadian pair at an international event.

On April 1, 2008, the Calgary Flames played the Edmonton Oilers for the last time before the Playoff season begins….AND THEY WON!!!!! (3-2) Finally!!! It felt like it has been forever since the Flames have won a game and it might be a rather short season for the Flames if they do make the Playoffs.

A few weeks ago they were doing so well, sitting in a third position.. and now they have dropped to seventh… not sure if they are going to be able to pull is out of their hat for this year….knock on wood. I don’t know about Mike Keenan, he has his moments that’s for sure…but I just get the feeling that he hasn’t been on top of his game this year. The Flames have been up and down so many times…and it feels as if when they are down he isn’t the one that picks them back up. Oh well, can only say so much, I will get off my soap box and just wait and see what happens.

The Flames next game is on Thursday April 3 against Minnesota Wild.

2008 Canadian Senior Synchronized Skating Champion NEXXICE Senior captured the bronze medal with a final score of 198.81 points at the 2008 ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships held March 28-29, 2008 in Budapest, Hungary. This is NEXXICE Senior’s second consecutive bronze medal at the ISU World Synchronized Skating Championships. This international medal adds to the team’s already impressive season.

Congratulations Nexxice!!! Hopefully the next medal you have the chance of competing for is an Olympic medal.

Nexxice Short Program:

Nexxice Long Program:

The Calgary Flames are sitting in a good position, they are in third place as it stands right now heading into the final stretch before the playoffs begin…but will they be able to hang on and stay high in the standings?

The Flames have five more games before the playoffs begin- the Oilers x2, Canucks x2, and Wild. The Oilers are currently out of the playoff running, the Canucks are sitting in 7th position, and finally the Wild are in 6th. So these games could change where the Flames will stand when heading into the Playoffs, and that could determine a Stanley Cup or not. I’m not getting my hopes up at all, just saying that where you start will affect where you are going to finish.

After the next two weeks we will know where the Flames are going to stand. All that is left to say then is…..

At the 2008 World Figure Skating Championships in Gothenburg, Sweden, Canadian Jeffrey Buttle amazed the world by winning his first world title. He is the first Canadian to win a world title since Elvis Stoyko in 1997.

 Below are videos of his short and long programs….both were amazing to watch. Congradulations Jeff!!! Finally a skater for Canada to be proud of.

 Long Program

Short Program

 For more on the story…click here.

Jeremy Abbot and Evan Lysacek

Evan Lysacek withdrew from the 2008 World Figure Skating Championship, being held in Gothenburg Sweden from March 17-23. Jeremy Abbot will be replacing Lysacek at the competition. He finished fouth at the 2008 US Nationals and fifth  at the Four Contients Championships.

Lysacek fell on Wednesday while training because the blade broke on his right boot while landing a triple axel. “The blade broke at the weld,” Lysacek said. “I’ve been through three blades in the past three days. Obviously, soemthing isn’t right.”

Due to the fall, Evan injured his left forearm, elbow and shoulder. “I went to the emergency room last night. I got a bunch of x-rays and, tahnkfully, nothing’s broken.”  He has to wear a soft cast and will have his arm in a sling for about a week. Doctors have avised him that he refrain from attempting to jump or spin for at least the next two weeks.

March 10, 2008, the Calgary Flames played the St. Louis Blues and won 7-3. Considering the on and off of the flames, this is not too bad, and the fact that they won….seemingly so easily, makes a person wonder if they are going to make the playoffs, and actually be able to do something once they are in it.

Jarome Iginlascored his 365th, passing Theo Fleury atop the team’s all-time list. The Flames’ captain one-timed a pass from Kristian Huseliusand had the puck go in off the backside of Blues defenseman Eric Brewer and behind Manny Legace at 18:27 of the first period. Alex Tanguayhad two goals and Huselius, Matthew Lombardi, Marcus Nilson and Daymond Langkow also scored for the Flames. Brad Boyes scored twice and David Backes added one for St. Louis.

Calgary now heads out on a four-game road trip as the leader in the Northwest Division. A 7-1-2 run has them one point up on Minnesota and two ahead of Colorado.

A few season ago we saw the Flames barely on the cut of making the playoffs. The Flames were playing the Oilers waiting to hear on another game that would tell them if they would have to overcome the Oilers or if they could take one more loss before the Playoffs started. Well, guess what? They didn’t win the Edmonton game, got into the playoffs and didn’t do anything with it. It was practically an embarrassment to Calgary. But every team has its highs and lows.

Next Game: Wednesday March 12, 2008 in Washington, against the Capitals.

Can anyone give an accurate, acceptable definition of what an athlete is?? or what includes a person to be an athlete?? We all think that it is very simple….we all know what an athlete is…right?? But if someone walks up to you on the street and asks you to define it…you won’t be able to. It is much more complicated than it looks, and what is even harder is categorizing who is an athlete and who isn’t.

Dictionary.com defines an athlete as (even though they have 6 different/similar definitions):

“a person trained or gifted in exercises or contests involving physical agility, stamina, or strength; a participant in a sport, exercise, or game requiring physical skill.”

Well this is all well and good….but how do we go and define what each of these is? Is a figure skater an athlete?? are they more of an athlete than a hockey player? if so, why? I think that in a sense, the both are equal. They each have different strengths and weaknesses, but when looking at them overall, they are both sports, and the people who are involved in these are athletes.

And just because a particular sport doesn’t use all the terms that are defined in the definition of an athlete doesn’t make it not a sport. Race car drivers are athletes, figure skaters, ringette players, soccer, runners, football players, and I could go on and on, and yes I’ll even include the ever so boring golf as well.

All I want people to do is just to think about who they consider an athlete, and what they consider a sport…and then try looking up on-line what specifically these ‘athletes’ have to do for them to be where they are today.

Synchronized skating is also as dangerous, if not more so due to the number of people on the ice…

This is more than just ballet on ice…which some people seem to think that it is….is deadly and dangerious….and more so….it is a sport.