Notes about nothing

Wild Olympic connections

Our Minnesota Wild, although not represented in big numbers in the Olympic Games, are making an impact for their respective teams. Mikko Koivu leads the way, as his 3 assists helped Finland defeat Belarus 5-1. Martin Havlat & Marek Zidlicky, representing the Czech Republic, both netted assists in their 3-1 win over Slovakia. Finally, the teams last Olympian, Niklas Backstrom, expects to get the start for his Finish teams' second game tomorrow night.

New sports radio station in town

Finally, a little bit of competition for KFAN, the areas only all-sports radio station. Now on the Fan, there are several enjoyable shows that are hosted by entertaining personalities. However, there is one show in particular that has absolutely tanked, leading back to the days when one of it's co-hosts was taken off the air. The only problem is that what is offered under the new all-sports format at AM 1500 KSTP is not any better during this same time slot. The Colin Cowherd show is no show at all, but instead a non-stop rant of what the host likes and dislikes. It is similar to our own 9 to noon show in that the host pretends to know more than they do and comes off sounding more uniformed than if they were to simply admit to what they did not know. The one thing that gives hope however is that KSTP's new programming is a work in progress and will hopefully improve with time...as down the dial, it seems that the 'voice' will remain stagnant as long as he is the voice. As for the 'local' programming provided by KSTP, it is just OK. Mr. Phunn has hooked up with the station, as he was a former side-kick to HiFi at the Fan, and he is a good one to listen to. Other than that, it is much of the same from Reusse and Soucheray, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. The form a good team and listeners now can listen to their weekend sports talk show during the week.

It is obvious that things are not set yet with KSTP...but it is already a nice alternative to the 'leader'.

Why the NBA is a joke

I heard former Wolves coach and VP Kevin McHale today and he matter-of-factly stated during his interview that all NBA teams pace themselves during the season until the all-star break. Really, they don't always play hard? Or to win either. It is coming down to that time of year when teams will literally play to lose. That draft pick is much more important than integrity and self respect. And the fans don't condemn this idea but instead promote it. Only in the NBA, a league that is disguised as a 'team' sport.