Hello everyone, and a happy New Year! I forgot to bring my zoom lens to the game, so I was only shooting with a 55 mm from the press box. The pictures aren't the best because of the distance, but I wanted to try out a photo gallery with animoto.
I picked a jazz song for it, but in the future, I plan on using my WRHU reports with the pictures I take. In the meantime, please enjoy this little test run I put up. All the best--Brian
Friday, January 2, 2009
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Jets Firing of Mangini The First Of Many Changes
Sports: January 2, 2009Jets Firing of Mangini The First Of Many Changes
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ— Eric Mangini stepped to the podium in the cramped interview room that connects to the Jets locker room Sunday night.
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Gang Green was shutout of the postseason for the second consecutive year, yet unlike a 4-12 campaign that marked 2007, the Jets squandered an 8-3 start to finish 9-7 after dropping four of its final five games.
Chad Pennington, who played eight seasons for the Jets before getting cut this summer following the Brett Favre trade, torched his old team for two touchdowns, 200 passing yards and zero interceptions to lead the Dolphins into the postseason. Afterwards, Mangini was asked if he anticipated returning to finish the last year on his four-year contract.
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But owner Woody Johnson and general manager Mike Tannenbaum decided to hold Mangini accountable for the Jets missing the playoffs despite Favre's acquisition and nearly $140 million spent on free agents, firing the coach less than 12 hours after the Jets left the Giants Stadium field for good.
Mangini finished his tenure 23-26, going 13-19 the last two seasons after leading the Jets to an unexpected wild card berth during his inaugural run in 2006. The - year-old coach appeared to find the right formula for success after leading his team to back-toback victories over New England and Tennessee.
Those victories put the Jets five games over .500 and atop the AFC East before Favre's interception totals spiked and the pass defense suffered frequent breakdowns as the Jets lost road games to non-con- tenders like Seattle and San Francisco. No replacement was named.
"This is about the most difficult thing you can do in being a franchise owner and that is making a change in position of perhaps the most important person in the building and that's head coach," Johnson said.
"Eric's been our coach for three years, he's done some amazing things. Nobody's worked harder. He knows his X's and he knows his O's, he's a good teacher. But Mike and I felt in our judgment that it was time now to make a change."
Mangini is out and Favre's future remains uncertain. The three-time MVP tossed just two touchdown passes compared to nine picks in the final five games.
Favre, who Tannenbaum acquired late in the preseason, said he expected to get an MRI on his right throwing shoulder before deciding to retire or come back to New York for a second season. Both Johnson and Tannenbaum said they want Favre to return.
"There is only one team that ends on a high note," said the 39-year-old Favre, who said he will go home and make a decision after consulting with his family." This is not a high note, but I consider this season, when I look back at it, whether I play or not, I'm glad that I made this decision to come here and play. I knew the odds were against us. I knew the expectations were high, but I consider that a huge challenge.
"There wasn't anything that I didn't enjoy about it. I just wish we could have gone a little further."
Mangini released a statement late Monday thanking the owner and GM for hiring him and said he was proud of having a winning record in two of his three seasons.
"The organization has terrific people and I wish the Jets nothing but success," Mangini said. "The time and effort invested by the coaches and players was tremendous and I value that beyond words… I will always appreciate the passion and support of the fans as our focus was trying to build them a championship-caliber foundation and team."
At the team's training facility in Florham Park, N.J., players like Laveranues Coles said the late-season swoon was unfairly pinned on Mangini instead of on the ones with shoulder pads and helmets.
"He doesn't deserve the total blame for the way the season went and I let him know that and I voiced that," Coles said. "He put his best foot forward. I think he put a lot of time and effort in trying to get us prepared to win ball games, but of course we came up short.
"I have a lot of confidence that he will be a head coach again in the NFL. I am sure where ever he lands he will be successful and we will stay in touch."http://www.rockawave.com/news/2009/0102/sports/064.html
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Mangini's Last Stand Ends in a Loss
Mangini's Last Stand Ends in a Loss
by: Brian Bohl | Senior Writer - NY Sports Day | Monday, December 29, 2008
EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ — Help didn’t come for the Jets in the form of either a New England loss or a Baltimore defeat. In the end, it didn’t matter.
After losing four West Coast games to non-playoff contenders, some would argue the Jets didn’t deserve a break. Yet even a late, if undeserved, holiday gift wouldn’t have made a difference since the Jets failed to take care of the only thing in the team’s control in a season-ending 24-17 loss to Miami.
Chad Pennington, who the Jets cut in training camp after acquiring Brett Favre, threw for 200 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions in helping the Dolphins clinch the AFC East title at the Meadowlands. Favre couldn’t match his counterpart, continuing his end-of-season struggles with the Jets losing four of its final five contests.
The three-time MVP was intercepted three times, including one returned for a touchdown and a costly pick to Andre Goodman with five minutes left and the Jets trailing by seven. Pennington basically ended his former team’s season, converting a quarterback sneak on fourth down on the ensuing drive to prevent a comeback.
“The hardest part is the finality of it, especially when you expect to go on,” Favre said. “It was a tough pill to swallow, but I had a blast working with these guys. It was a lot of fun. It’s disappointing where we are now, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
Pennington spent eight seasons with the Jets before getting cut in training camp. Sunday afternoon, the former Comeback Player of the Year out-dueled Favre and extracted revenge in front or the organization that allowed him to join a division rival right before the season started.
Miami took the lead for good midway through the third quarter when Pennington showed plenty of arm strength— a source of criticism from some fans and media members during his time in New York—in finding Anthony Fasano in single coverage in the back-right corner of the end zone. The 20-yard scoring strike put the Dolphins up, 21-17, and sent Pennington to the playoffs for the first time since he led the Jets to a wild card berth in 2006, marking Mangini’s first year on the job.
“It’s not a revenge factor, it’s really not,” Pennington said. “It was strictly about winning the championship and knowing we controlled our own destiny to be AFC East champions.
“It just so happened that it had to come through New York. That’s how it is with sports and athletics, and that is the only way fate would have it. It truly wasn’t about revenge. I have great relationships and friends in New York. The Jets organization was great to me for eight years.”
Mangini said he expects to back for a fourth season, though he also said he has not discussed his future with owner Woody Johnson yet. He has one year remaining on his current contract.
“Yeah, I do,” Mangini said when asked if he expects to return. “Like I said, we don’t discuss that. We have never discussed it throughout the course of the season, but that’s my anticipation.”
Favre extended his NFL record when he notched his 463rd career touchdown pass but once again had his season cut short when he tried forcing a ball into a tight spot. Last season, it was a pick against the Giants in the NFC Championship game. This time, Favre’s last meaningful pass came off a no-huddle screen pass intended for Chansi Stuckey that instead went into Goodman’s arms at the Miami 28-yard line.
Should Favre retire, his last pass officially went for an incompletion to Jerricho Cotchery with the ball at the Jets 1-yard line. But that just might be a footnote to the Jets blowing an 8-3 start to finish 9-7 and out of the playoffs for a second straight season.
As he exited the Giants Stadium tunnel, there is a chance the remaining fans of the announced crowd of 79,454 saw Favre’s last game. The future Hall of Famer did not say if he will return for a second season with the Jets and said he will get a MRI on his throwing shoulder Monday before making any decision on his future.
“It would be easy to sit here and make excuses. I’m sure that during the course of the year that there were some throws that I know I could make, but I didn’t,” Favre said. “Other times, I made some good throws. I hope that it was not a factor in my throws this year. We’ll know more tomorrow.”
Baltimore already beat Jacksonville before the Jets game finished, eliminating Gang Green from postseason contention. But the Jets still had a chance to knock out Miami and send Pennington home.
Instead, Pennington extracted revenge and kept New England out of the playoffs as well. The Jets nearly sent the Patriots into the party, since a win would have handed Bill Belichick and the defending AFC champions the division crown. Favre hit Leon Washington on a shovel pass on third-and-eight and then found Laveranues Coles on a crossing route that allowed the veteran wideout to speed into the end zone, putting the Jets went up 6-0 with 6:47 left in the first.
A bad snap prevented a successful extra point attempt, allowing the Dolphins to take the lead just before the two-minute warning when Pennington found Ted Ginn on a go-route in the left corner of the end zone. Dwight Lowery got in front of Ginn on the coverage but failed to jump in time to deflect Pennington’s on-target toss.
Just 18 seconds later, Favre faked a handoff and tried to find Washington in the flat. Instead, he threw the pass right to defensive end Phillip Merling, who took it in 25 yards for the Miami touchdown. Around the same time, Baltimore’s Ed Reed intercepted Jacksonville’s David Garrard’s pass, preserving the Ravens 10-point lead that ultimately sealed the Jets fate.
Jay Feely drilled a 28-yard field goal with time expiring to cut the deficit to 14-9 at halftime, giving the Jets some life. The team parlayed the late score into another successful offensive series on its first drive in the second half, capped by Washington’s 10-yard touchdown run that put the home team up, 17-14, marking the last time the Meadowlands crowd had a reason to cheer.
“It’s tough and it hurts a lot when you work so hard,” Washington said. “In December, we had the chance to control our own destiny and that’s where you want to be. We didn’t take advantage of the opportunities we had.”
The Jets lost road games to teams with losing records, dropping contests in San Francisco, Seattle and Oakland. Two of those teams made in-season coaching changes and all three were playing for nothing more than pride against the Jets. Some players pointed to the missed opportunities as the reason why the Dolphins were wearing the hats that read “AFC East Champions.”
“We took teams, not lightly, but we went into games and didn’t execute,” Washington said. “It’s hard and we are not making excuses for ourselves. We didn’t come out and play the game we needed to play. We prepared well in practice. We practice really hard but when we get into the game, we can’t translate it. That the most disappointing thing.”
http://www.nysportsday.com/news/combined/Manginis-Last-Stand-Ends-in-a-Loss.php
Monday, December 29, 2008
Guerin Scores 400th
Guerin Scores 400th
by: Brian Bohl | Senior Writer - NY Sports Day | Saturday, December 27, 2008
But Guerin’s game never was about gaudy goal totals. Unlike Bossy, who spent his entire career with one franchise, Guerin has played for seven different franchises. He has brought his dependability—nine straight seasons of at least 20 goals—to nearly every part of the country and became just the 79th player in NHL history to score 400 career goals when he pushed in a shot past Toronto goaltender Vesa Toskala in a 4-1 victory Friday night at Nassau Coliseum.
Bossy and Bryan Trottier are the only other two players to reach the milestone in an Islanders uniform, leaving Guerin in some pretty good company. The right winger now has 13 goals this season on his way towards extending his 20-goal streak to a full decade.
“I’ve been able to stick around in this league for quite some time and had some success, and it’s a big thrill for me,” Guerin said.
The 16-year veteran scored his most goals with the Devils, recording 108 in 380 games with the team that drafted him fifth overall in 1989. Guerin played in New Jersey from 1992-1998, playing on the Stanley Cup-winning squad in 1995.
Guerin twice scored 40 goals in his career. The Worcester, Ma. native’s best season came for his hometown Bruins in 2001-02, when he scored 41 goals. He became a captain for the first time in his career when he joined the Isles before the start of last season and is considered one the veteran leaders on a team that is trying to develop prospects like first-round pick Josh Bailey, who tallied an assist on Guerin’s 399th goal in the second period of the win over the Maple Leafs.
“It’s awesome for Billy,” coach Scott Gordon said. “Everybody on the bench was extremely excited for him. It’s quite an accomplishment.”
Guerin is just the eighth United States-born player to reach the plateau, becoming the first since John LeClair reached the mark in March 2006. He joins Hall-of-Famer Joe Mullen and other All-Stars like Mike Modano, Jeremy Roenick, Keith Tkachuk, Tony Amonte and Pat LaFontaine on the list.
“Looking around the league at some of the Americans coming up, hopefully that will change soon,” said Guerin, who was also a member of Team USA when it won the 1996 World Cup championship. “I’m proud to be a part of the few guys who have done it.”
Guerin recalled his first career NHL goal coming against the Hartford Whalers at what used to be called the Hartford Civic Center (now the XL Center) when he found the net on Oct. 28, 1992.
Drafted fifth overall by New Jersey in 1989, Guerin notched his first career goal with the Devils against the Hartford Whalers on October 28, 1992. The season before, Guerin was called up from the team’s AHL affiliate in Utica and appeared in five regular season games, registering zero goals and one assist.
As an interesting statistical fact, Guerin scored three goals in six games in the playoffs before the Devils were bounced in the first round, giving him goals on his playoff ledger before his first official goal. Only regular season totals are counted as part of his 400 mark.
“You never forget your first one,” Guerin said. “It was a long time ago, but it was at the old mall in Hartford. You cherish every one of them and hope it’s never the last.”
Isles Crush Leafs on DP's Return
Isles Crush Leafs on DP's Return
by: Brian Bohl | Senior Writer - NY Sports Day | Saturday, December 27, 2008
But on the day after Christmas, Isles fans were finally treated to some benefits of the organization’s self-described youth movement augmented by a career milestone from the team’s veteran captain in a 4-1 victory over the Maple Leafs at Nassau Coliseum.
Bill Guerin scored twice, picking up his 400th career NHL goal, in helping his team win for the first time since Nov. 29. First-round picks Kyle Okposo and Josh Bailey each added points and goalie Rick DiPietro made his first start since Oct. 25, earning his first victory of the season as the Isles avoided its longest losing streak in 13 years.
DiPietro, who previous appeared in just three games before undergoing an operation to repair a torn meniscus in his knee, stopped 28 of 29 shots faced. The netminder looked sharp in turning aside all nine Toronto power play shots, leaving the Maple Leafs scoreless on four chances with the man-advantage.
“I felt good,” said DiPietro, who has undergone surgeries to both knees since signing a record 15-year contract in 2006. “Anyone who knows me knows patience isn’t one of my many virtues. It took a lot of growing up and a lot of maturity for me to sit out and wait for the right time.”
Bailey, the Isles first-round draft pick last summer, was originally credited with his first career NHL goal with a shot through traffic 6:25 into the second period. The 19-year-old had to settle for the assist when a scoring change properly awarded Guerin the goal after the veteran winger tipped Bailey’s shot off the post and into the net for a 2-1 Isles lead for what proved to be the game-winner.
Guerin’s tally put him just one goal away from the milestone, and the four-time All-Star became the 79th player in league history to reach the 400-goal mark when he pushed in a rebound to build a 3-1 edge. Toronto goalie Vesa Toskala stopped Chris Campoli’s point-blank shot before Guerin buried home the rebound.
Guerin became the eighth United States-born player to reach the plateau and the third to do it as an Islander, netting his 13th goal this season 2:34 into the final period. Freddy Meyer added the insurance goal nearly six minutes later.
“I’ve been able to stick around in this league for quite some time now and had some success, and it’s a big thrill for me,” Guerin said. “Hopefully this is a win we can build off of. It’s big for us.”
The news wasn’t all good. Andy Hilbert suffered a hairline fracture in his foot. Hilbert was drilled with a shot attempt nearly 14 minutes into the second period, staying on the ice momentarily before getting up and skating slowly to the bench.
Yet DiPietro’s return got the announced crowdof 15,173 into it early, and not because of his puck-stopping skills. DiPietro sprung Okposo for his third goal. After taking the outlet pass off the bench-side boards, Okposo fired a wrist shot from the right circle that went by defenseman Jeff Finger, hit the shaft of Toskala’s stick and bounced into the net for the opening goal just 3:47 into the contest.
DiPietro set a new franchise record on the play, picking up his 14th career assists to pass Bill Smith for most career assists by a goaltender. Smith had 13 assists and a goal, leaving DiPietro one point away from setting the points record as well.
Toronto could only get one shot by DiPietro, who blocked Jaime Sifers’ initial shot from just inside the blue line before Lee Stempniak pushed home the rebound. DiPietro said the victory will hopefully propel the team to its first winning streak since Nov. 22-24, when the club posted back-to-back road wins against Buffalo and Montreal.
“This has been coming,” he said. “We’ve been working towards it each game. The forecheck has gotten better. The offensive-zone puck possession has gotten better. Our ‘D’ has gotten better.
“We’ve been taking strides to get to this point. It was a big win for us tonight and we’re hoping this will turn things around for us.”
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