Monday, December 31, 2007

Odds and Ends on an Off Day

With rumors of Marv Levy's impending resignation, let me just take this opportunity to offer my fellow bloggers a friendly reminder that "resign" and "re-sign" are not the same thing. They mean pretty much the opposite really and are therefore not interchangeable.

Well, our Ice Bowl tickets have officially changed hands. Today Kate dropped by to snatch them up and it was a picture of agony. Initially I refused to let go and she finally had to pry my fingers away one by one while the sound of my sobbing echoed across the Southtowns. Unfortunately there is no medication that can heal this particular brand of pain. Okay, I'm kidding. We whined and moaned about how the Sabres have been playing, said a prayer that Soupy doesn't end up overpaid, giggled over the big story in the paper about the musical career of Drew Stafford (complete with awesome photos), and assured each other that Ryan Miller loves playing in Buffalo and will be here forever and ever and ever. And then the tickets were happily and proudly passed on to what I'm sure will be a loving and appreciative home. Plus she brought delicious cookies!

And now, the very first Top Shelf Book Review! Rayzor's Edge: Rob Ray's Tough Life on the Ice by Rob Ray and Budd Bailey

I received Rayzor's Edge for Christmas which turned out to be very helpful since reading is, thankfully, not a weight-bearing activity. I read this during my first couple of days home from the hospital. I didn't really expect much of out of it which is probably a good thing because I would've been disappointed. It's not bad, there's just not much to it. I ended up a little sorry that I read all the excerpts featured in the Buffalo News at the time of the book's release because they were some of the most interesting parts of the book. Again, what's here isn't boring but it just feels incomplete, like huge chunks of Rob Ray's career were skipped over. I give Rob credit for being completely upfront about how he feels about people - if he likes them he says so, if he doesn't he says that too. I was disappointed that we didn't get more on the whole John Muckler/Ted Nolan/Dominik Hasek dynamic. Rob says the players were being told different things from different sides and none of them really knew what was going on and while that's probably true, it didn't make for very exciting reading.

Still, despite what may sound like a lukewarm review, it was a good, quick read and I think anyone who was a fan of Rob or the team during his playing years will find something to enjoy. If nothing else, the book definitely gives you the feeling that Rob is sincere in his love for Buffalo and the people here and that's worth something. I might have gotten a little teary-eyed while reading the last page. Then again, that could've been the wooziness from the pain killers.

My favorite story from the book:

After a particularly lackluster game, Ted Nolan canceled the scheduled day off and told the players to show up for practice the next day. He had everyone skate in circles for twenty minutes and then shoot on the goalies for ten minutes. They went through that rotation a few times, skating, shooting, skating, shooting, no one quite sure what was going on. Then Ted stopped them all, screamed, "You wasted everyone's time last night and today I wasted yours!" and turned around and left. Wonder if the fellas had a similar practice this morning...

A few Rob Ray YouTube moments (Pay attention, Andrew Peters. This is how you fight in the NHL):





3 comments:

M.J. said...

Seriously, that article on Staffy and Ryan made my life. I will forever have the image of Staffy and Toni rocking out by themselves in a hot tub to death metal, but still.

So much win right there.

Anonymous said...

The Rob Ray videos are awesome Heather. Sweet jebus that man was tough.

Anonymous said...

Are you going to do an article on Jaro as captain? I really can't wait to hear your take on it. Personally, I think he's deserved it. And it means more interviews with him this month.