Quebecois

It was a funny segment, but that had to have been scripted. I mean Jay asked him what he would like to host that he hasn't already hosted, come on. I didn't find it to be that awkward other than the part that Fanpuck mentioned, with Kimmel pointing out that Leno doesn't have any kids. Kimmel has been pretty funny in all of this mess, but it really comes across as a cheap attempt by him to become relevant in the late night scene IMO.

Late Night TV has been tremendous since this whole thing began. First time I've actually watched the shows in a while Letterman was taking some shots at Leno this week and Leno finally fired back with a doozy. Really tired of Letterman poking fun at others, as if he is on some morale high ground or something Get over it, NBC chose Leno instead of you.

Haha just had to point this out after you said lead-ins didn't matter in the other thread.

I do feel bad for his family, but no one has really brought this up, everyone is too busy worrying about how Conan is doing. It's a fair counter-argument. Leno was definitely given some time to find an audience once he took over in 1992. Much more time than Conan has been given. There are two things I would say to that: 1. TV is 10 times more competitive now than it was back then. With more selection than ever, television is tougher than ever and shows are no longer given much time to "find and audience". 2. In the early 90s, even if NBC wanted to replace Leno because of poor ratings, they didn't have anyone who was ready and able to step in on short notice. Conan was just starting in Late Night and Carson wasn't coming back. With few alternatives, Leno was given a much longer leash. Fair or not, that's just how it goes. The funny thing in all of this is Leno's show at 10pm is performing about where most NBC execs would have expected. It is insanely cheap to produce a talk show and even with only 5-6 million viewers a night it would still be turning a nice profit for them. The problem is the affiliates feel their local news is suffering as a result, which to me is surprising since people tend to pick a news channel based on who they like, not who precedes them (as Fanpuck mentioned.)

I'm doubting Leno agreed to retire completely, just that he agreed to give up the Tonight Show, which he did as scheduled. It was clear he still wanted to be on TV, and it became increasingly clear that someone would sign him, be it Fox or a cable station or whatever. NBC didn't like that so they created the 10 oclock show in order to keep him. Conan has every right to leave but he forced NBC's hand, he didn't perform up to expectations once he got the job, and these are the consequences. I don't know if I buy the lead-in excuse either. Not because I don't buy whether a lead-in matters, but because it is not like Leno has had tremendous lead-ins in recent years either. NBC has basically been a graveyard for all shows, but it is particularly dry when it comes to Dramas, which are what air at 10 oclock. Leno didn't have a lot much more to work with than Conan. And I have a tough time feeling sorry for him and his family for having to move from NY to LA. Plenty of people with normal salaries have had this happen to them, Conan probably makes in excess of 20 million dollars a year at this point, he'll survive. Probably just a matter of moving himself back to his NY home at this point, if thats what he wants. Or he can get a show on Fox and stay in LA.

I don't understand this outcry for Conan. He pushed Leno out when Leno was not ready to give up his spot and he hasn't performed well in the ratings since taking over. To me, the only mistake NBC made was promising him the job in the first place.

Pretty crazy game in Arizona. Should be another shootout at the superdome next week. I'm getting tired of hearing about the Cowboys, I really hope my Vikes don't disappoint next week.

Carter is the only one. Looks like we got Dawson (I would be surprised if he wore a Cubs hat.) I think Guerrero should be a HOFer and has a decent chance to go in wearing a Spos hat as well. Tim Raines appears to be getting the shaft.

What are everyone's picks for the weekend? I'm going with: Who dey vs. J-E-T-S: Bengals offense has been putrid for a while now and the Jets D will be able to continue that trend. Sanchez won't have a great day against that secondary but they should be able to win a low scoring affair. 13-10 NYJ. Pats vs Ravens: I don't think much of the Pats this year, but they have been able to dominate at home and they should survive for one more week, despite no Welker (Edelman is a poor man's Wes anyways.) 30-23 NE. Packers (suck) vs. Cards: Despite my hatred for all things Green Bay, I think Rodgers is an excellent QB with some real wepons surrounding him. Woodson should be the DPOY in my opinion (sorry Revis), and I look to him to be a difference maker against a great passing attack. 34-21 GB Cowgirls vs. Eagles: the 'girls certainly looked impressive last week, but I'm not convinced. I've never been a fan of Tony Romo and the Eagles big play ability can only be shutout for so long. I think they lose a close one. 28-27 PHI.

Hopefully he goes in wearing the right Cap!

Ugh Refs...

Am I the only one who thinks the Cap is overrated? We kept hearing about how the Cap was going to go down by several million this season, back to the high 40s range, and look what has happened. It may even got up by a million or two! This is during a recession. Imagine how much it'll be going up in a couple years if the economy turns around. There are just so many ways to get around this salary cap that I don't think it is worth panicking over. Sure it isn't like things used to be, and maybe in a previous time we would still have a guy like Mark Streit on the team, but it isn't a big of a factor as people make it out to be. Sorry if this poops on all your hard work dlbalr, just my two cents

hmmm I figured 3 assists would have been enough for us to avoid the Gomez contract talk for at least one night.

but we're getting outshot

To be fair, it was a pre-tourney game. But I've never been impressed by Calgary crowds, even in the playoffs. I agree the hockey was poor though. I found myself fast-forwarding between Nattinen's shifts...

I thought Simila was cut but maybe I'm wrong. It looks like Ortio has the number one job locked up anyhow. Yes and Yes. Nattinen didn't impress me all that much last night, but it's one game I suppose. He didn't shy away from the physical play which was a positive and created space for himself a couple times, but his skating looked well below average. He wasn't wearing a letter so it looks like I was way off on him being a potential captain.

Thought this was a good place for us to discuss our prospects at the WJCs. Joonas Nattinen and the Fins will be taking on team Canada tonight. Apparently he has a good chance of being named Captain. Danny Kristo and Maxim Trunev are our only other players in the tourney as far as I know, am I missing someone?

With a recovering Markov, a banged up Spacek and Mara, and no Hamrlik, it isn't all that surprising. Obviously not ideal though you're right.

Just got back from Invictus, phenomenal. Would this movie have been made if Morgan Freeman had've declined the role of Mandela? Can't think of anyone else who could realistically play him. Was going to see Avatar but the IMAX was sold out and I'd rather wait to see it in all its glory.

not sure why I bother watching games against the Devils. Always a snoozefest and we never win.

I think you're talking about the play on BGL and yeah, terrible non-call. Its not the penalties that we are getting that is bugging me from a reffing point of view, we are playing dumb hockey. It's the non-calls on our opponents that's killing me.

The Angels weren't an ideal comparison because of the factors that you mentioned. I really just meant a team with good fundamentals, that can steal a few bases, make smart decisions on the base paths, go from 1st to 3rd etc. It isn't the same offense as what they had in the 03-07 era but that doesn't mean it can't be productive. As you mentioned, they get a full season from Vtek, an upgrade with Scutaro (though he won't be near what he was last year). That Cameron tidbit is interesting. I find it hard to believe his defense can make THAT much of a difference, but interesting nonetheless. Still might be a hair behind the Yankees (remains to be seen what they will do this offseason), but I think the Sox will be better than last year.

Apparently we might be trading Michael Taylor to the As for Brett Wallace once this original deal goes through. I liked what I heard about Taylor so I'm not sure how I feel about this. As for the Sox, Lackey, i think, was a nice signing. Certainly the deepest rotation in baseball right now, with three legit number 1 starts in Lackey, Beckett and Lester. I've never liked Dice-K but you can't deny he is an excellent number 4/5. Not sure about Cameron. Is his defense still top notch? Might be a good move if that's the case but offense will be the weakness on that team this season, barring another move. Having said that, it's still not a bad offense. It is a far cry from when Manny and Ortiz were bashing 40+ per season, but theres some good OBP guys in that lineup and they should be able to play a solid, LA Angels-style offense.

My hair stood on end during that final scene. One of the best seasons of television I've ever seen.

a) would likely be true. You have fabricated b and c for the purpose of your argument. How exactly do you know that the Habs were the only team willing to take on Kovalev's 1 million dollar price tag for the stretch run? Teams around the league take on similar price tags every year, even in the capped world, let alone before the cap was in place. But I'm done with this. Believe whatever you want.