Twas the Night Before Christmas...

Twas the Night before Christmas and all through the league,
The GM’s were all busy with many changes indeed.
There were trades and RFA’s and some UFA’s too,
And just where would Pete Schwadel go, Oh and of course Will Kemp too!

Arenas were redone and jerseys logos with care,
In the hopes a ThunderCup victory would soon happen there!
And Austin under Godoe, and the Cavs they got Ty,
While the Vipers wound up under some drunk goalie guy!

When all through the league there was just all dead silence.
Players took off their skates and kicked back for an hour.
And what to fans wondering eyes should appear,
But a calm, civil Christmas of BHL cheer.

From Austin to Gem City, overseas to Berlin,
And all the way down under with Mad Matt and his kin,
May the season be merry, may the lights all shine on,
May the presents be plentiful and joy wished abroad.
Merry Christimas to all and to all a good night!
May Season 6 get here so we can all go fight!
-Chris Bell

SHABAMBAMKABLAM

Finally, a trade that doesn't involve the Marauders. So here's the shakedown: Cup champs Castlegar sent Chris Walters and Andrew Tarver to the GC Aviators in return for Gem City's first rounder, number 3 overall, Dakota's first rounder, number 6 overall, Rob Tafts, and Matt Ackerman.

I really don't wanna go there, so I won't, but due to all of the drama lately at TBN, a lot of which both Randy and Chris have been wrapped up in, Mr. Walters wanted out. If you would of told me last month that Chris Walters would be traded, I would have laughed at you and walked away. But with the way things have unfolded lately, I expected it.

Let's look at the Castlegar roster as it stands: Walters is a high caliber player, and he will be missed dearly by the Castors, but his loss does not open up any gaping holes in their roster. This is still an extremely deep lineup.

This deal really does solidify the Castors up the middle, Ackerman will most likely be fighting with Paul Korczyk for the number one center job in S6.

Really the singular hole in Castlegar's roster is defense, and this deal makes it slightly worse. Tafts is a downgrade at D from Tarver, and Tarver was a big presence in the Castors locker room. But at the moment, Castlegar doesn't even have enough D guys to fill out a lineup sheet, so look for them to expand on their defensive corps with the draft picks they recently acquired.

As for Gem City, this deal sets up a little better for them than it does for Castlegar. It brings even more star power to the Aviators roster, and it strengthens an already strong defensive corps. Although Gem City was a weak team in S5, the loss of the draft picks is acceptable. Tarver and Walters are proven entities in the BHL, and you never know what you're going to get with draft picks.

Chris Walters had no comment on the situation, but did agree on an interview in the coming days. As for Randy Geralt, he fucking hates me and this is what he said: "john andreson is a piece of shit and the bspn is even moreso." This pisses the hell out of me, but I'm not gonna sit here and bitch and moan. All I'm gonna say is thanks for the show of class man, love you too.

Austin Makes Some More Moves

Is Andres Godoe the new Matt Sherris? Nah...
Well let's just say I'm happy I signed with that NTC. There have been three trades tonight, two of which involve Godoe's Austin Marauders.

The first one involves the New England Brewers. Austin shipped out right winger Trevor Cardinal to the Brewers for Defenseman Ryan Claudill. I just can't see the Brewers logic with this one. Cardinal was about to become a UFA for Christ's sakes! So basically, they traded away a BHL caliber defenseman, for someone who was already going to sign with them anyway. Could this be a sort of "charity" deal? That's the only reason that comes to mind.

In a press release today, NE GM Matt Kinney had this to explain his strange tactics: "As for why we traded for a UFA, we needed to ensure that Trevor came here and signed with us and because of how things worked out, this is what needed to get done. There are also some undisclosed parts of the deal that were agreed to that will help us out in the future making this a winning situation for our team." I guess we'll just to sit and wait to see whether or not Kinney made a good move.

Austin's other deal involves Godoe's former team, the Vancouver Falcons. Godoe sent Austin's second round pick to the Falcs in exchange for centerman James Morgan and D-Man Azdine Treille. This just seems like another steal for Austin, at least in the short term. The second rounder would have probably been a player of the same caliber of Morgan or Treille, so it was traded away for twice its present worth. Although, the potential second round pick could have much more upside than Treille or Morgan. For now though, it looks like Austin won this deal.

And in a much more minor trade, the Dakota Warbirds swapped draft picks with the aforementioned Vancouver Falcons. Dakota sent both the 16th and the 18th overall picks to Vancouver for the 9th overall pick. Seems like a pretty straight up deal. 2 second rounders for a first, both teams come out winners here.

New Look Blog on the Way

Look for a new layout for the BSPN Headlines blog in the future. Tyler Hetherington was kind enough to offer up his services to design a new layout. I know little to nothing about Blogspot so this is kind of a plain layout. Hopefully he can do it up all nice and sexy like :)

Zack Marshall Sex Scandal?

Brisbane Clippers winger Zack Marshall was caught stepping out of a local courthouse yesterday. Sources inside the Brisbane judiciary system say a sex scandal is afoot. Rumor has it that Marshall was caught at a local Brisbane youth party. The party was raided by Brisbane police, and both drugs and alcohol were discovered on the premises.

The point man of the raid, Brisbane police officer Jakob Gibson explained the situation further: "When I kicked in the door, I immediately recognized the boy's face. I have no doubt in my mind that it was Zack Marshall of the Brisbane Clippers. Marshall and a woman who I later discovered to be Sara Moeller, of Sidney, were engaged in a very explicit, and strange, sexual act while simultaneously drinking a large can of Fosters. I'd rather not go into details, but they were engaged in some strange form of sexual intercourse.

Anyways, a background check later revealed that Ms. Foster was 22 years old, which is considered statutory rape in Australia due to the fact that Mr. Marshall is only 15. No word on whether or not charges will be pressed, but Mr. Marshall could be facing some jail time due to the alcohol."

In a press release through his agent Marshall had this to say: "These allegations are ridiculous, especially since I haven't been in Australia in about a month. I've been at my home in Michigan practicing for the upcoming BMHL playoffs. I hope that whoever made these ridiculous allegations will step forward and admit that this is false. It seems like this is some sort of conspiracy against me." I would be shocked if the league did not begin a probe into Marshall's possible illicit activities, he's already been in trouble with the league before. Look for a possible suspension in the near future.

Offseason/Draft Analysis Number 1: Austin Marauders

This is the first of many of our Offseason/Draft Analyses, beginning with the team with the number one draft pick: the Austin Marauders. The draft analysis section will only include first round picks, after we've done a report for every team, there will be a mega post containing analysis for the remaining portion of the draft.

Offseason Analysis
The Marauders have many holes to fill, I'll start out by naming them all off: Center, they need 3 more. Left wing, 2 more. Right wing, 1 more. Defense, 4 more. And they need a backup goaltender.

As you can see, as of now, the Marauders' lineup is holier than swiss cheese, and I'm not sure if they will have a chance to fill all of those holes by the beginning of the regular season. First up will be center. With an absentee GM in Dan Schaaf, Eric Harmon stepped up and took the initiative and made a few trades, namely sending out Pete Schwadel for...who? The 'Rauders were already shallow up the middle, and this deal with virtually no return didn't exactly help. Although they have number one center Jon Anderson locked up through S8, that's just about all they have. Look for a few minor trades or free agent signings to bring in a 70-75 rated center, but past that, there could quite possibly being some 65s starting at center in S6.

Left wing is another hole, but this one could be filled much easier. There will be two open slots, if both Lari Lahtela and Trevor Cardinal are lost to free agency. I think that at least one of those two will sign with Austin, leaving left wing in much better shape than just about anywhere else on this team.

Right wing is a relatively strong spot as well. The depth chart shakes down like this: Kuehn, Stoll, and Sillanpa. This really just leaves one extra starting spot. The worst case scenario would be to give it to a young Chris DeSouza, although they could potentially pick up another mid level free-agent.

Now is time for the big supermassive blackhole on this team: defense. The Marauders only have one starting caliber defensive pairing; Matt Danson, and J.L. Pinsent. This pairing would usually be 3rd string at best. Look for them to draft 1 or 2 defensemen, but that still won't solve the issues on the back end.


With the acquisition of Andres Godoe, goaltender is a strong point for the Marauders. This is unconfirmed, but sources tell me that Godoe has signed FA Robert Jeppson to be his back up. This would give the 'Rauders an extremely strong goaltending unit.

Draft Analysis
The Marauders decision got a helluva lot easier when defenseman Gerard Pastorius seemingly pulled out of the draft. It was a close competition between Englander Jon Rowson, and the elder statesman of TBN, Pastorius. Look for Rowson to inject some exciting youthfulness into this fairly dead Marauders squad, which is fairly unexciting other than a few active players. Rowson will put asses in the stands, and that's what this team plans right now, especially if the new arena deal with the city of Austin goes through.

Schwadel to KHL

Pete Schwadel to the KHL E5. Doesn't this make perfect sense? It's Pete Fucking Schwadel we're talking about here. This man has conquered the continent of North America, he's pimped all that is pimpable. Once a man has conquered all of his known surroundings, what is he to do? Why get new surroundings!

Couple that with the fact that his good friend, and resident BHL douche bag, Jonathan DeSouza has also voiced interest in moving to the KHL. Although, in the KHL there is no fighting, so DeSouza could quite easily be cut due to the fact that he really only plays a one dimensional game.

I could see this happening, for a short period of time. After a few weeks in the real Russia, DeSouza and Schwadel will bring their lilly white New Jersey asses back home. No, DeSouza is still not black.

Interview With Thunder Cup Champ Chris Bell

BSPN: Well thanks for being the first interview for the new and improved BSPN.
Chris: Quite welcome! The new BSPN is great and I think really is going to thrive
BSPN: Aw shucks, well thanks. I'll just jump right into it right now, why did you want out of Castlegar? You guys had just won the coveted Thunder Cup and you were definitely not going to take the ratings hit that others inevitably did. You had a guaranteed winner.
Chris: Well I had things I didn't like how they happened and it was an accumulative thing. I guess the simplest way to put it is each team has their own personality, and each player on there has their own too. Sometimes those personalities clash and when that happens something just has to give. It was great winning a championship but when you are not having as much fun doing so as you should then you have to really look at that and make a decision that is it just all about winning a title or what is more important to you
BSPN: Did your decision to leave have anything to do with playing time? We all knew that Castlegar is a stacked team, to Randy's credit he's done a great job building that team. But you guys were so deep at one point you basically just randomized the lines. It's probably one of the only teams where an 80 could end up on the fourth line.
Chris: Some might think that but no I never had any issue with being on whatever line, hell sometimes its easier to match up to have a break out game if you are on the fourth line, that can sometimes lead to big games! It's never been about anything like that, you do what is best for the team, and I don't think anyone on there really had too much issue with that knowing we were so stacked
BSPN: I understand where your coming from, I never really pegged you as a selfish guy in the first place. So how did it feel, walking out of that rink after what was quite possibly the greatest game in your life, and one of the best individual finals performances in BHL history? Did you have any second thoughts about whether or not you wanted to remain in Castlegar?
Chris: That game was incredible, I couldn't have ever expected such in game 7 to win it ya know? And it sort of was almost surreal that it was over with that performance. That said I had no regrets with making a decision to want to move on. I wasn't going to be happy staying and that would have affected me and the team in the long run. You look back and remember what you enjoyed and what you took from being part of history, the first year of the team and one of their first picks in the draft, I mean I had great teammates, and we had great success, thats not something you just brush off and say it doesn't matter, but in the end I think the decision was really the best for me and I think for the Castors in the long run
BSPN: What's it like going from one side of the ice to another? You started out one week playing for one team in the championship, the next you're playing for the team you just fought hard to beat.
Chris: Oh yeah that's sorta a bit strange! I mean damn, I think I better get some body armor and maybe find Kevin Costner's number to be my bodyguard cause getting over there you never know how the fans are gonna take that one! I'm sure hoping there's a no bottle policy in the arena!
BSPN: Oh and those Toronto guys are brutal. You better start wearin' a mask when you go out on the streets! Random question, but what do you plan on doing with that chunk of ice? Put it in your freezer and then chop it up and put it in your champagne the next time you win the cup? Granted you'll gonna have to make it past Austin if you get that far, and I doubt that will happen.
Chris: Well I dunno I had Godoe's number in season 4, he had mine and I kept falling over him in season 5, so season 6 should be mine again! Be afraid! And well I think it should be a good season and I had thought I'd just keep it as a memento but I rather like that idea! Then again maybe slip it into Austin's water bottle since it was from near the bench with all the spit and crap on it, see if I can't give Austin's bench Montezuma revenge. Lets see Godoe bail you guys out in net with the trots!

*Phone Rings*

BSPN: Mind if I take this? It's an important call.
Chris: No worries.
BSPN: Sorry 'bout that.
Chris: No probs! See thats what I like about BSPN they always know to answer... makes it easier to make shit up!
BSPN: That's my job! Back to the interview.
Chris: Okay
BSPN: So what's you opinion with the whole GM situation in Toronto? I know you've only been there for a very short period of time, but what do you think about it?
Chris: I think its a bit of a mess, but thing is I know both guys are class acts and really are both capable too. I hope it gets sorted out in the end here and then things can get focused on because I really think the Vipers are going to shape up to be really really good this coming season.
BSPN: Ah Season 6. The season of salvage. The season of revenge. The season of...Ah sorry was busy imagining my self scoring on Toronto there. So what's your outlook for next season? Do you think Toronto can make it back to the Cup Finals, and potentially bring it on home?
Chris: Ha ha yeah no kidding though thinking anything is better than the season of 90210!
BSPN: Oh god you can tell me that much.
Chris: As for Toronto making it back I think its possible, I mean there's a few things I am sure management is gonna work on and get going right, and we're shaping up so far to be pretty good, I think it will be tough as the Wilen seems to be getting some good teams built up but its going to be sure as hell fun to make that the goal and go for it
BSPN: Always set high goals, 'cause if you set low ones, you've got no where to go. Well I guess that about wraps this up. Got anything extra you'd like to add?
Chris: Just that I think I will practice shooting more and passing less, makes it easier to score! I think I figured that one out in game 7! I'd offer you a beer but guessing you can only have a glass of milk too
BSPN: Fuck off. I've got one more thing, what's it gonna be like playing against your girl if Toronto doesn't draft her. You still gonna hit her?
Chris: Oh hell yeah! I'll not pull up if I catch her with her head down! She won't either I can tell ya, in fact I think she'll likely be looking to do that. And I know she'll just be happy to get drafted and play so if she did come to Toronto cool, if not well just makes that game all the more fun if she is up! Besides if I injure her well I have to take care of her and vice versa so its all good
BSPN: Kinky. Well on that bombshell it is now time for me to go. Thanks for reading, and Drezz is the classiest man on the face of the earth.
Chris: Agreed! And thanks for the interview. Any time!

BHL Outdoor Game Announced

Another BHL outdoor game will be played this year in S6. One of the Dakota Warbirds' home games will be played outdoor, at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, MN. This game is intended to celebrate the 5th season of the Dakota Warbirds.

This will be the stadium's inaugural game. Ground broke for this new Minnesota Golden Gophers stadium in the year 2006. It has a capacity of slightly over 50,000 people, which would be the biggest audience ever for a BHL game.

This is a much larger undertaking than the S4 Winter Classic, which was located in a comparatively small area in Whistler, BC. Some may believe that this could go wrong for the league, resulting in an empty stadium. I think they're dead wrong. Putting an outdoor game in hockey-crazed Minnesota is one of the league's best ideas in some time.

The away team for this game is yet to be announced, it is speculated to be one of the other teams who are having their 5th season in S6, namely the Montreal Cavaliers or the Austin Marauders. This is pure speculation on my part, and has no basis on official information from either the league, or the Warbirds organization.

My Analysis On The Brisbane-Toronto Deal

In my first posting, I'll examine the Drezz/Rawnsley trade.

Looking at this deal:
to Tor: Andres "Drezz" Rodriguez (85)
to BRI: Alex "Joey" Rawnsley (90)

From the standpoint of ratings and activity, this deal looks fairly balanced. Drezz brings class, experience and dedication, while Alex brings the voice of the BHL, youth and a fresh face.

However, one has to question if Alex is ready to start a full year. In S5, he split time with Karding, playing roughly 240 more minutes than Chad did. Begging the question, is Alex ready to handle a tougher work load? Many a players have fallen into sophomore slumps, but Alex may not be that type of player. Then again, Brisbane does have the best back-up in the league, Olivier "The Lego Wall" Turcotte, so it shouldn't be too hard on Alex if he stumbles once or twice.

With this in mind, I believe that Toronto received the better end of the deal because Drezz is a proven team player, apparently ageless, and will once again go into a managerial role with Toronto. Drezz is also without a Thundercup, something that is sure to keep him hungry for years to come.



As this is my first post, I realize I may not have delved to deep. I'll tread lightly until I feel comfortable about expressing more of my thoughts on league issues. Hopefully, our readers will have patience with me.

Well do ya, do ya, do ya wanna?

Do ya, do ya, do ya wanna have a mock draft? I think it'd be pretty fun. I've already got me down for Austin, and Jess down for Brisbane. If there's anyone else either PM me or hit me up on MSN. Thanks guys.

Is This Finally True?

John O'Callahan to the Berlin Guards for a 1st rounder. I don't know if I believe what my source is telling me. Although he did tell me there was a third team involved, so they might be adding in a bigger player. Just doesn't seem even to me.

EDIT: Looks like the league made it official. There was no third team involved as earlier speculated.

Montreal Pursuing...Me?

Apparently Ty wants me in bed with him, or at least on the ice with him. Quit trying to trade for me you faggot :p I love Jordan Kasper and Norton but not enough to leave my beloved Austin. I love this place!

Big Deal Falls Through In Austin

The Austin Marauders had agreed, in principle, with a big time deal that would be made with Matt Sherris's Brisbane Clippers. Here's the big surpise: it fell through! Not at liberty to discuss details, but this deal would help begin to solidify an already weak Austin roster.

IT'S OFFICIAL

It's official, and I knew it all along: The Austin Marauders have a new goaltender, and a new GM. The deal went down some time ago, bringing Andres Godoe, and a 3rd round pick in this year's draft to Austin for goaltender Eric Harmon and defenseman Blaine Muzyka. Since I play for Austin, I'm gonna go off on a tangent here and give my opinion: This is a great deal. Now don't get me wrong, I love Harmon to death. He's one of my favorite guys out there. Granted, the trades he made weren't the best, but at least he did something, which is a lot more what we were gonna get from anybody else. He did his best for this team, and that's all we could ask. And Blaine, I'll miss you too man. You really anchored our defensive corps. last season, hopefully we can find someone to fill your void via the draft.

But now it's on to Andres, and since he's stepped in as assistant or co or gm or whatever he's done a lot. First off, he's shown a big time dedication to this team, along with a winning attitude. He's taking this rebuilding phase very seriously. He's already made one big time trade, which I will discuss later, when it becomes official. Let's just say I won't be the only one gunning for number one center next season. This is a big step in the right direction for this team. Here's what Harmon had to say: "You'll see what I have to say when the team releases their own story." I know lame right?

And Andres was not available for comment, he was probably making out with some blonde Norwegian chick as shown in the photo included in this article. Keep your eyes open for more big news out of Austin, and hopefully Andres is better at making deals than making out.

Castlegarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

The Castlegar Castors are at it again, no they did not magically make the best trade in BHL history, the Raj Toor trade, again, but they did move some guys around. Castlegar upper management, along with Wyatt Galagher of the San Francisco Seals, have been involved in a series of talks about moving one Alex Borghese. Here's the shakedown: Borghese and a first rounder to Castlegar for Chris Bell and Kyle Kujawa. Apparently, my earlier reports have been proven wrong, and Chris Bell is not a RFA. So trading away the guy in the clown skates, along with the man who brought you the win in game seven in the finals is how they roll up in Castlegar. I'm not gonna argue, they seem to know what they are doing in that hellhole.

Trade Rumors Ahoy!

Earlier today, a Montreal Cavaliers' star defenseman was contacted by an unknown GM about whether or not he'd be willing to play somewhere other than Montreal. In exchange, the unknown team would send a player to Montreal who would then take the vacant coaching position.

Chad Karding

Obviously, with Alex Rawnsley in Toronto, Chad Karding is out. But where too? So far both Dakota and Austin have made offers. In my opinion, I don't see Karding going to either. Both already have established goaltenders in Albert and Harmon, although both took ratings hits at backup.

3rd Team In The Schwadel Sweepstakes

Today, I gained knowledge of a 3rd team gunning for big-time free agent Pete Schwadel. This should be no surprise: it's the Montreal Cavaliers. The Cavaliers have already snapped up arguably the number 1 available defenseman in Zach Alexander, and now they look to solidify themselves up the middle.

From what I hear, Montreal is actually in front of the New England Brewers in the competition for Mr. Schwadel. So the two main teams are now San Fran, and Montreal, with an outside chance of Pete re-signing with New England. Looks like the rumors of Pete being a rental player and re-signing with Austin that were flying around at the deadline have not materialized.

OC Update

My source tells me that John O'Callahan is headed to the Berlin Guards. Should become official tonight. No word on the other 2 teams involved, and who else is being swapped.

Free Agency Roundup

As you know this is the BHL's first stab at free agency. So far, it's been going fairly well. Other than the few "I signed you for two years" "No you didn't you fucker!" type of situations.

Most of the high profile free-agents have resigned with their teams. And since that's no fun to just rattle of a list like this "Rob Grundy, Berlin, re-signed. Luke Huebner, Brisbane, re-signed..." and so on, I'll let you guys figure out about those guys by process of elimination.

My sources in BHL upper management have told me a few things about free-agent signings, and through this and other info, I give you some of my picks for the top free-agents who remain on the market:

1.Pete Schwadel
Pete "motherfucking" Schwadel has been at the center of most of the free-agent discussions. There are two teams who are having an all-out Pete Schwadel war. Quite frankly, I find it quite homoerotic. Especially with a team like San Francisco running around touting that "you know it's hot Pete". The new brotherly love? Or could that possibly be somewhere else in the lower United States? God only knows.

2. Will Kemp
Will did not like it in Brisbane, that is for certain. He is one of the more "mysterious" free-agents out there. There is no open campaign as their is with one Pete Schwadel, so it's much more difficult for me to comment on this situation. Mainly, I believe Kemp is a wild-card, and he will go to whoever dangles the biggest carrot in front of his cave.

Just an FYI these aren't the only high-profile free-agents I'll be writing about, I'm just too lazy to keep writing, so I'll talk about some other guys in my next post. Adios!

Official Statement From Ty Duperron

"Originally Danne was just flying in so we could go over the new sweaters, DS Hockey was providing for the Cavaliers for S6, hence the photos of him skating with some of our players.

Now it's not secret that Danne and I are old friends and we go way back, I had been trying to get him in Cavs uniform since the moment I was named GM, these negotiations had been going on for a long time between Matt and myself, and we even had a bit of last minute adjusting to do. But we got it done and I think we are both happy with the assets we got.

I couldn't be happier to bring in a proven veteran like Svensson to this group, and hopefully that's the first of many moves for our organization this off-season.

Thanks"

O'CALLAHAN TRADED

An unnamed source has informed me that John O'Callahan has been traded to the Vancouver Falcons in a 3-team deal. It is a "done deal". No reason why anyone would want to be traded to Vancouver was given.

Trade Post

We'll start off with Jay Kosier. Kosier has been moved to San Fran in return for Rob Felizardo and San Fran's first rounder, which is seventh overall in the upcoming draft. Kosier had this to say: "I've moved to a proven winner, and hope that I fit the role they were looking to fill. Wyatt said he was looking for a 3rd line grinder, but I hope I can add some goals in addition to my grit. I think I've shown in Brisbane that I have the ability to score some goals, and hope that trend continues." And here's some comments from trade-fetish bastard Matt Sherris ;) ""I'm slightly disappointed in the lead-up to this trade, but I am very excited in the return I received. Rob is a great player, and I'm excited to see him play and grow in Brisbane. The first rounder is very important, since I had traded mine away in the Kemp deal. It's sad to see Jay go, as I was hoping for him to be one of our key players moving forward, but sometimes things don't go as planned, and I'm glad I could find a deal that works out for all parties involved." Felizardo has been rerated at an 80, which is up from last year, and Kosier has been rerated at an 80, same as last season. For this season, I believe this is better for Brisbane, but in the long run San Fran will come out on top due to the fact that I believe Jay has a slightly brighter future than Felizardo. Oh and Jay is awesome. And I didn't make that shit up.

Second trade up is the Daniel Svensson deal, Brisbane sent Svensson to Montreal for Josh Bailie, and the 5th overall pick in this year's draft. This is a deal that I believe Montreal came on top. I don't think Sherris got all he could for Danne, although it was fairly well known that he did not want to remain in Brisbane. I wouldn't either that place is a shit hole. "Well it feels great to finally be on a team I know I'm gonna get recognition from. All the behind the scene work I do never makes it to the surface.", said Svensson. Look for an interview with him in the coming days. And I'll end it with more comments from Sherris: "This is another deal that needed to be done, since danne was very excited to play for Ty. Again, a first rounder was a very important addition to me as well as Josh Bailie, who I think will be a very important role player as we try to rebuild our defense."

Castors Win :(

OK you already know, Castors won the cup. Now it's time for the good stuff:

First off here's a comment from cup-winner John O'Callahan: "I happy that the Castors won the cup. I really love Randy and he deserves all the credit for putting a team together that overcame adversity. With the Front Office changes, I just feel it in the best interest for me to move on to another team. They have a coach that I can not play for. I understand that I might go cheap and that is fine with me, but if I do not move, I will just retire. It is that simple. I will be happy and honored to play for anyone else in the league. From top to bottom." Basically OC wants out. He's said to me earlier that Castlegar is willing to accommodate and will trade him.

Secondly there's some big news out of Austin. The Marauders have made two HUGE trades, bringing in two big time players and shipping one out. I am not at liberty to discuss details, but trust me, this is some big shit.

Third is the beginning of the free agent chaos. Numerous guys, including FA defense man Zach Alexander have agreed in principle to deals. As many of you know, Alexander is headed to Montreal.

Fourth, I know this is a lot of stuff, is the Chris Bell situation in Castlegar. It's a clusterfuck if I've ever seen one. It hasn't been confirmed that he is a restricted free agent. I believe there are two teams who are big players, one of which I think is the Austin Marauders. But the bottom line is this: Bell is done in C-Gar.

That's just about it for now. And to paraphrase Top Gear, "On that bomb-shell it's time for me to go."

I Called It

I'm gonna gloat here and say I so called the fact that the finals are going to seven games. "I think this is going seven games." Let's get this over with and let the offseason begin! SIM SIM SIM SIM SIM.

OK here's a teaser: I know of 2 huge trades, both involving a team in the Mack. And a big time player out of a small-time city wants out. More on this later.

There Is News To Report!

But guess what? I'm not gonna do it! I could report on some big trades, free-agent signings, and other information that I have knowledge of, but that would be classless. The Castlegar Castors and the Toronto Vipers have waited all year for this; this is their time. We all just need to sit back and realize the off-season hasn't begun yet, and that these two teams deserve our utmost attention. I'm guilty of this too, but quit making announcements about declaring free-agency, discussing next seasons changes, etc. and watch these last few games of Season 5. The off-season will be plenty long.

Austin Moving?

Obviously you've all heard of the turmoil going on in Austin. We're in dire shape. I have a source who says there's a possible move in the works. This move, if carried out, would bring the team to the northwestern United States. More details to come.

Well, Here It Is

OK so the magazine didn't turn out so well. That was just really, really time consuming, and since I've started High School, I haven't had too much time. Hopefully, this blog will be a lot easier to keep going. If there's anyone else who would like to be able to post on this blog, post a comment, email me, or PM me at TBN.

So here's the good stuff. After many delays, the Thunder Cup finals are finally here. Lemme just come right out and say it, I hate Castlegar. I really don't know why, because they have a lot of good guys on their team. So obviously, after the first two games, I was very disappointed. But then Toronto came back and played like I knew they could, winning 2 straight games, and tying up the series.
And then earlier tonight, Castlegar had another home victory, bringing the series to 3-2 Castors. Personally, I think this is going seven games. Especially if Rawnsley plays like he did in game 4. But really it doesn't matter what I think, it's what you-all think. So vote in the fucking poll!

Aight, so that's about it for now. I should be able to update this fairly regularly. As always if you have anything to report, contact me and I'll either let you post it yourself, or turn it into a fancy article. I can't elaborate much, but there's been some pretty big trades going down during these finals, so look for some great off season action once they're over.