I'm gonna try to see how good a spin doctor I am.
The National Hockey League's trade deadline was a couple days ago, and regrettably, I couldn't catch all the action live because of class, studying, and more studying. Now, out of all my friends, I can think of about... five that may be interested in reading a blog about that. Now, I like it when people read these, so I don't want to drive people away. So, here's the point...
I get to write for fun about hockey. Two of my favorite things together! Meanwhile, anyone who reads this gets to see me analyze the trades, how the current situations of the players, teams, or general managers affected or will be affected by the trades, as well as some takeaways and Bible passages that go along with those takeaways.
This idea came to me partially from some friends who see important biblical messages in movies. It also came to me probably because I'm tired as heck from the week and the semester, yet it's a tiredness that sleep doesn't fix... and weird things come to my mind when I'm that kind of tired. Seeing as I had no real reason, I thought it'd be funny if I went for this.
Okay, here we go...
Pittsburgh Penguins get: Brenden Morrow, F
Dallas Stars get: A minor league guy and a pick in the upcoming draft
Spin: Brenden Morrow has been a physical presence on the ice for all the years he's been playing. That's led to him becoming very popular in Dallas, but it's also led to his career taking an early downswing. The guy's 34 and he may retire soon because of the taxing his body's taken. And, oh, yeah, the Stars kinda stink. Moving to championship contender Pittsburgh gives him a new lease on life, showing that although his team struggled, Morrow made a name for himself as a valuable individual player and new opportunities came up for him.
Takeaway: When the situation you're in sucks, you can try to improve it, but don't forget that there may be something better down the road. Don't think you'll get something better in the future by mailing it in now, though.
Passages: Genesis 12:1-8, Genesis 21:1-7
Pittsburgh Penguins get: Douglas Murray, D
San Jose Sharks get: A couple picks in the upcoming draft
Spin: The Sharks are a good team that usually finishes with a top record. This year, that seems to have led to some of the players getting comfortable and mailing it in somewhat. To wake the team up, the general manager showed that he wasn't afraid to rock the players' worlds by trading away one of their favorite teammates, Murray, to Pittsburgh.
Takeaway: I believe that God gives and takes away, and can do it at any time. Whether you believe in God or not, know that life may shake your own little world up and it'll be up to you how you respond. The Sharks went on a long winning streak after Murray left. Can we respond that way?
Passages: Job 1, Mark 10:17-22
Pittsburgh Penguins get: Jarome Iginla, F
Calgary Flames get: The contract rights to a couple players nobody has heard of, and a pick
Spin: I swear, not all of these involve the Penguins. Anyway, Iginla was a world-class player who has been on a decline. The Calgary Flames have been terrible since the middle of the last decade, and if they wanted the most value on their future Hall of Famer to rebuild the team, they should have traded him a long, long time ago. Now, they get a couple of C-level prospects and a pick in return for a guy who can still make Pittsburgh a serious Stanley Cup threat.
Takeaway: Be able to let go. It's very easy to get clingy with things, people, and comfortable situations. I struggle a lot with this myself.
Passages: Mark 10:17-22, Matthew 6:19-24
Los Angeles Kings get: Robyn Regehr, D
Buffalo Sabres get: A couple picks in the upcoming draft
Spin: Sabres general manager Darcy Regier's plan to make the Sabres huge failed miserably. His shopping spree, which included big money to players such as Regehr, did not yield results that met his expectations. As a result, the Sabres are a miserable team. That being said, props to the GM for being able to trade some of his big-name players away and look toward the future, even if his future with the team looks bleak (i.e., he might get fired soon).
Takeaway: If you made a mistake, own it, confess it (this is tough, but making a pact with yourself to not do it again never works), learn from it, and improve from it. Don't be a blockhead and refuse to admit your errors - in Regier's case, plenty of Sabres fans could have angrily pointed them out to him.
Passages: James 5:13-20, Proverbs 28:10-14
Vancouver Canucks get: Derek Roy, F
Dallas Stars get: Some guy I've never heard of and a pick
Spin: Roy is an oft-injured forward who never established himself as a great player in Buffalo or in Dallas, yet he kept turning contract offers from Dallas because of money issues. Yikes. So, Dallas traded him to Vancouver, where Roy will get more playing time and a chance to play on a playoff-caliber team (remember, the Stars kinda stink).
Takeaway: If people whine enough, they might get what they want. Seriously. It's easy to see that happen to somebody else and think about how unfair that is. But, if you ever feel that others are getting an unfair break, think of the times in life you've gotten an unfair break.
Passages: Luke 15:22-32, Matthew 27:50-54
Columbus Blue Jackets get: Marian Gaborik, F and a couple other guys that never make the lineup
New York Rangers get: Derek Dorsett, F; John Moore, D; Derick Brassard, F; and a pick
Spin: The trade is pretty fair, I think; Gaborik is easily the best player in this trade. However, with the Rangers, Gaborik could never find his identity. He was just a misfit - an offensive player with a coach that wanted him to focus on defense. Meanwhile, Dorsett, Moore, and Brassard were with the Blue Jackets through years of failure, and although the Jackets have been playing well this year, years of failure is hard to mentally overcome. You think a change helps? Well, Dorsett is currently injured, but the other three guys scored goals in their first game with their new teams.
Takeaway: Don't be egocentric. Not everybody thinks the same way as you. I'm not saying that everybody's opinion is right - I hate that mentality. I'm actually saying that you might be wrong, so meet people where they're at.
Passages: Luke 10:38-42... and I can't think of any else. I would think that some passages on discipleship would work well here.
Toronto Maple Leafs get: Ryan O'Byrne, D
Colorado Avalanche get: A pick in the upcoming draft
Spin: O'Byrne with the Avalanche was slow, took dumb penalties, and was slow. Like, really slow. Like, forwards could get around him like a traffic cone slow. Thank goodness the Avs traded him away (remember, I'm an Avs fan), and they actually got a decent pick for him.
Takeaway: Sometimes, miracles do hap- ehh, actually, I think I'm taking this one a little too far.
Passages: Okay, this one was a joke all the way. Miracles certainly happen in the Bible, though.
Washington Capitals get: Martin Erat, F and some other guy I've never heard of
Nashville Predators get: A minor league forward who has the potential to be really, really, really good
Spin: Some people sacrifice the present for a happier long-term. Others sacrifice the future for a happier today. Capitals GM George McPhee is evidently in the latter group, shown by him trading his top young prospect for Erat, who has been a longtime Predator and is starting to decline at 31 years old. McPhee is sending the message that he intends to make the playoffs this year by grabbing Erat and not trading Mike Ribiero, who could have gotten him a lot of value back as a valuable center. Meanwhile, Nashville could have a big-name forward in a few years.
Takeaway: I can't say that putting all your energy and resources toward the present or the future is right or wrong. I have no idea how the Capitals are going to do here. Maybe the right answer is not to completely eschew one for the other.
Passages: I'm going to use Matthew 6:19-24 again. I never came to a conclusion for this particular takeaway because I couldn't find much biblical evidence for this one.
Minnesota Wild get: Jason Pominville, F
Buffalo Sabres get: A minor-league goalie, a prospect forward, and a couple picks
Spin: Minnesota paid a lot to grab Pominville, who's a very good forward and can help the team immensely. Lots of fans say they overpaid, even though by the numbers, I think this trade is fair. Here's why fans say they overpaid - Pominville was a horrible captain for the Sabres. He could score, play defense, everything, but he just didn't lead his team well, and that was an stain on his and the team's identity. And the Sabres need a leader badly - they haven't had a good captain since Chris Drury left in 2007. The Wild don't care about that, because they have a great captain.
Takeaway: Whether you think somebody's a "born leader" or not, leadership of anything is hard. Appreciate a good leader when you have one - not everyone is that lucky. If your leader struggles, consider either gently confronting him/her; of course, meeting him/her where (s)he's at.
Passages: Exodus 4, 1 Samuel 8-10, 1 Samuel 13, 1 Samuel 16, probably both 1 Kings and 2 Kings, and that is totally not an exhaustive list.
And to finish this, a non-trade...
Vancouver Canucks don't trade Roberto Luongo, G
Spin: A couple years ago, Luongo was the starting goaltender in Canada's heartbreaking gold medal win in the Olympics. He had also just gotten started with a 12-year contract paying him an average of $5.33 million a year. Just think about that - job security for 12 years as well as making millions. Yet, Luongo wanted to be traded because he struggled last year and this year and has lost his starting job to the Canucks' other goalie. The problem is, no other team would take that massive contract upon themselves, so Luongo ended up going nowhere. Luongo's response? The very contract that gave him a high-paying, secure job is now an albatross - he said himself that the contract sucks and that he'd rip it up if he could. He's got nine years left on it.
Takeaway: Money, job security, job quality... all of those have their limits and shortcomings. If you get them, you'll want something else that those things can't give you. If you truly want your desires fulfilled, you'll have to pursue something ultimate.
Passages: Galatians 5:16-24, Romans 7:1-6
Three Really Little Notes At The End
- This brunt of this took me about an hour to write, and a couple five-minute looks at it to edit. Once I get going on hockey, I can go fast and for a long time.
- The idea of finding Bible passages came later. That took me about half an hour.
- I got some big news - I was accepted on a Summer Project to San Diego, CA, and guess what - my one page support letter seriously took me longer to write than this blog post. I am dead serious about that. But anyway, I'm thinking about doing some Facebook stuff and what not, and if we can blog during the project, I'll probably do it here. More details to follow!
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