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At first I wasn't even going to watch it. Neither the idea nor the All-Star game appeal to me very much.

But I taped it on a whim, just in case, and then I was on Twitter and people were saying all sorts of hilarious things, so I ended up watching it.

I thought it was great.

Off-ice, I think the NHL takes a lot of heat for being boring or regressive - hockey players aren't typically the most interesting athletes. "Down to earth" is about the most common description of a hockey player.

The NHL has never really had a Dion Sanders or a Bo Jackson - Ovechkin is hilarious, but he's no Dennis Rodman - you get the point.

The All-Star game generally sucks, the novelty of outdoor game long since worn off. The new World Cup seems gimmicky (although I kind of like the ideas they're implementing) and while the league generally is well-run and professional, it often seems - at least to me - to be a little lame and out of style - the Old Navy of professional sports leagues, if you will.

I mean, who can forget the Awards show that featured Chaka Khan? What about Def Leppard rocking out with the Stanley Cup, not in the eighties, but the frigging 2000's? Clearly when it comes to off-ice entertainment, the NHL is like your friend-from-high-school's mom trying to adopt hip-hop catch-phrases to relate to son.

But this was different. This was a bunch of players having fun - and perhaps a few drinks - and it was probably the best off-ice thing involving the NHL I've seen. The order of the players chosen was irrelevant, but just seeing them having a good time was great.

For a league where most players aren't recognizable in street clothes - due to helmets and visors - this was a, I think, a great thing.

I dismiss completely anyone who thinks it was unprofessional or "an embarrassment" to the league. It was a blast.

Jonathan Toews has a sense of humour. Who knew? This is breaking news people. Drafting Kessel first overall, saying that he's "the most coachable" and then trading him for Tyler Seguin is just about the greatest thing I have seen in my life.

How can you not love eventual Billionaire Alex Ovechkin pretending he really really wants a Kia?

Anyways, I thought it was awesome and I just hope the NHL has enough sense not to run it into the ground like they did with outdoor games. Maybe have it every three or four years and keep it fresh.


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10 Best Records of All-Time

For no good reason at all I have been counting down my favorite albums of all time.
10. Was the Smiths The Queen is Dead and 9. was Warren Zevon Excitable Boy

8. Guns N Roses Use Your Illusion 1991



A lot of serious music critics would scoff at including Axl and the boys in any list of the greatest albums of all time, but I do not. First of all, it's one of the most ambitious works of art of the 20th Century. It has 30 songs, 29 of which are classics (and there is still something to be said about Axl's rap song that ends it).

What is most impressive is the different kinds of music this album encompasses - insane seven minute ballads, punk songs, metal songs and the whole thing is sequenced perfectly. No double album comes close to topping it - and that includes the White Album No single album approaches it's arrogance, reach or ambition. No album ever crystallized the exact idea and ethos of rock and roll like this one.

Not to mention it is superior to everything ever done by their heroes: Elton John, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith or Sabbath. I've played it constantly for over the last twenty years - it never gets boring.

7. R.E.M Document 1987



R.E.M are, for my money, the greatest band to ever walk the earth. This isn't even their greatest record, but it's close. It does contain "its the end of the world" but the real deep cuts are what makes this such a good record. "Fireplace," "King of Birds," and "Oddfellows Local 151" among the greatest songs in history not to become hit songs.

This is one record that never makes it onto my shelf - it has a permanent home next to my stereo and I keep thinking I should by a second copy so there's always one in the car.


Thanks for reading.

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