Over-hyped Young Phenoms

So Sid "the Princess" Crosby refused to appear on the Letterman show earlier this week when the Pens were in town to play the Rangers. "His schedule was full." I can give you several reasons this is a huge load of bs. First, they guy is a liar. That has been proven every time we have seen him take a dive in a game. Secondly, he is a hockey player, he goes to a morning skate, warms up before the game, plays the game, then showers and goes to the hotel. This all takes about eight hours tops. I don't know how it works in Canada, but here in America there are 24 hours in a day. He wasn't asked to be on the show, just to do the top ten. That takes two minutes. And finally, this is the second time he snubbed Letterman. he couldn't find time either trip? Take another dive Sid. Look for some reason Crosby has been grossly over-hyped so he is still a wanted commodity. Most people in America don't know hockey, but were told that the Pens won the Cup most recently. Most people don't know that they did not win it, they in fact robbed it, and it has been proven that they cheated their way to it. But they all want Sid, unfortunately he is too self-absorbed to look out for the good of the game.

If I saw him doing the top ten I would change the channel. Most Americans would not, but would be curious to see if Mr. Ed had some type of secret love child with Wilbur. There are only four guys in the NHL who could do the top ten: Crosby (as the over-hyped Canadian,) Ovechkin (as the best player in the league, who leads the league in goals, points and whose team is on top of the league,) Ryan Miller (an American hero after the Olympic run,) and Patrick Kane (an under-hyped young phenom who happens to be American.) These four need to be ambassadors of the game, especially after 25 million people tuned in to watch Olympic hockey. The NHL needs to turn up the PR machine but they refuse, instead putting all of their hype and marketing into one self-absorbed crybaby. Its almost as smart as putting the games on VS. This all of the eggs in one basket trick was used for Gretzky as well, but Gretzky was good and well-liked. There is no such thing as a hockey fan who doesn't like The Great One, but ask anyone who is not wearing a Pens jersey or comes from Canada their thoughts on Crosby. You would be hard-pressed to find anyone saying anything positive.

And why does the NHL do this? Because the NHL and and the hockey media are controlled by Canadians. Ovechkin has about a good of a chance at getting a fair shake as a conservative does on CNN. It just does not happen. Instead, we hear about Crosby non-stop, the Pens are on NBC every other week (I can't believe they actually gave Ovie and Kane a shot this Sunday,) and the Pens can do no wrong. If you don't believe in the Canadian bias, who did you root for in the Olympics? USA I assume, because you are from here. You threw aside all of the love for the Great 8 in favor of patriotism, rooting for out of all people Ryan Miller, the one guy the Caps don't want to see in the playoffs this year. Look this crybaby doesn't want the mantle of "face of the NHL," nor does he deserve it, he is not even a top five player. I would take Ovechkin, Kane, Miller, Malkin, and Iginla before I would take that piece of trash. Look Princess, just because Letterman is American and won't slurp you up like your Canadian cronies doesn't mean you should snub him twice. Be a man for once, or just do the top ten with your enforcer standing next to you in case somone is a great big meanie.

Now to an over-hyped young phenom I like. Strasburg looked good today, even though it was only two innings. He got himself in a bit of trouble, but got himself right out of it. By his own admission, he said he was so nervous he had to "remember to breathe," so for a 21 year old guy, he gets a pass. Will Nieves is the second Nats catcher I have heard compare the guy to Nolan Ryan. He is going to be up here soon. Of the 30 or so pitchers the Nationals have in camp, 18 of them have an ERA over 8.00. Sean Burnett leads the pack with an even 54.00. That isn't an ERA that is a high over/under for a football game. I'd love to see him soon, but I don't want to see him get hurt. I'm not worried about his confidence, everyone on the team says he is the most poised guy out there. But it doesn't look like the Nats are going anywhere this year. The future is by no means right now, but the future does look bright nonetheless.