6am Bar ClosingsYour partner just left you for your best friend and took the cat. You lost your job. Your folks are getting a divorce. You drive a 93 Hyundai Elantra. You like Coldplays new album. Life could not get much worse. This is what it feels like when your teams season ends prematurely. This is how we feel in Montreal, and our new Mayor, Denis Coderre, has pushed through legislation that will allow some bars to call last call at 5:45am. Bars will close at 6am. Corderre wanted David Desharnais benched or traded or lynched in November, so Im not sure why hes allowed to make laws, but either way three extra hours of drinking do not bode well for a city of broken hearts already adept at drowning its sorrows until the wee hours.Reliving the PastIn the quiet aftermath of a series lost, one can be driven to madness through contemplation and consideration of responsibility and complicity. Im not talking about the players, or management, or coaching staff. Im talking about each fan, individually, wrapped in the curious superstitions of sport; adults who believe their habits and regiments supernaturally affect those of their team. For example, during game two of the Bruins-Habs series I had a cocktail with a woman who has no interest in hockey but may have interest in me. Did my shunning of the 1st period adversely affect the balance of the Habs universe? The other day, in anticipation of seeing my mother, I very discreetly and almost unnoticeably trimmed my beard. Did I bring on some bad juju? Ive watched the last two games on CBC. Had I watched RDS, would Price be okay? Would the Habs be up two games? Would Henrik Lundqvist be mortal? Well never know…No Nos AmoursAt no time is it more apparent that the Expos are gone than right after the Habs disappoint. And this summer, the cut runs a little deeper, a little more steeped in vinegar and salt, after a weekend in April of Expos nostalgia and games at the Big O. Sure it was just the Blue Jays and Mets, but it was as close to Major League Baseball as weve seen on the Island of Montreal in a decade. The tricolore hats were everywhere, and not just on Brooklynites in town for Osheaga. Larry Walker, Marquis Grissom, Felipe Alou, and the 94 team spent the weekend. We were reminded of what once was, and for a moment gleaned hope that it could be again. But then the playoffs started, and we forgot all about it. Now on the precipice of an abrupt end to the postseason, what are we to do? Cheer for the Blue Jays? That kind of talk will get you kicked out of the bar at 4:45.TouristsTheres a brief respite in the Montreal calendar in May and June. Its right after the students have left to their parents basements in Mississauga, a convoy of minivans heading west, Ikea skeletons ominously freckling the McGill ghetto, and the arrival of tourists. Its a peaceful time. A time for quiet contemplation, for being able to find a seat at Starbucks, for going through alleys looking for a new couch. But then the tourists settle in. Unwanted aliens in your favourite haunts, fratish bachelor party weekends, and F1 fans, who make Bruins fans look quaint. That late spring void is best when filled with Habs reverie, double overtimes, Boston-hate, and large crowds in early evening bars yelling at Glenn Healy. We had that for a while this spring. Not long enough.ResponsibilityEverything is forgotten during a Habs playoff run. Debts are excused. Infidelities are forgiven. Commitments are eschewed. As Montrealers we are focused on the mirth and minutiae of Les Glorieux. We live in the echoing resonance of Ginette Renos final notes. We are oblivious to all else. But, in the absence of that distraction, we are left to tend to the discard and detritus that is our lives. Have I filed my taxes? How long has that stain been on my pants? Have I paid my rent? Did Aunt Wreatha pass away? Are these evenmy pants? Was it Mothers Day recently? When the last time I showered? Did laundry? Ate a vegetable? The humbling truth of reality sets in, and it can be early August before weve trimmed our playoff beards, made amends for our indiscretions, and recovered from our revelry.Im still hopeful for a miracle. AsBarDowns Twitter feed noted, I am a glass half-full type of guy. Game three in New York could very well be where a legend is born, where a Humboldt, Saskatchewan native becomes this generations Ken Dryden, or Steve Penney, or Patrick Roy. And maybe Carey Prices knee recovers, and all of this worry, this fretting over what might have been returns to the hope of what just might be. And maybe spring stretches out a few more weeks. Until then there is only Dustin Tokarski and prayer. Or Peter Budaj. Frankly, I dont care who it is as long as they hold off summer just a little bit longer. .Fiji striker Roy Krishna scored in the 14th minute to give Wellington its fourth win, along with a draw, from its past five matches, putting the Phoenix fourth but only a point behind third-placed Adelaide. . 22. Wade averaged 26.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.0 steals while leading the Heat to a 3-0 record. The 31-year-old shot 60 percent from the field and 50 percent from 3-point range en route to his 17th weekly honor.
http://www.cheapairjordanonline.com/. -- EJ Manuel followed the worst game of his career with the best. . - Whether its because of her improved play or the reason for it, Michelle Wie appears as comfortable on and off the golf course as at any time in her career. . -- Rookie Victor Oladipo came off the bench to score 20 points and Glen Davis had 18, leading the Orlando Magic to a 112-98 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night.SALT LAKE CITY -- Luol Deng better be ready to run because Kyrie Irving thinks the Cleveland Cavaliers play best when they play fast. Irving shines in the open court and says the Cavaliers can win if they can run. They got out on the break Friday night, and Irving had 25 points and eight assists in a 113-102 victory over the Utah Jazz. "We were just feeding off of one anothers energy. We picked up our pace on both ends of the floor. We got multiple stops and that led out to our fast-break points," Irving said. In Dengs first game with the Cavaliers, Irving scored 17 points in the third quarter to turn a three-point deficit into a 15-point lead as Cleveland snapped Utahs season-high four-game home winning streak. Deng had 10 points in his Cleveland debut. "He may have tried to press too much, but we want him to get in his rhythm with the rest of us," Irving said. The rest of the Cavs were certainly in a rhythm against Utah, one game after scoring 111 points against Philadelphia. The NBAs worst-shooting team hit 54 per cent against the Jazz, including 63 per cent in the second half. "We kept preaching to our guys to push the pace, push the pace, push the pace," Cleveland coach Mike Brown said after his players set a season high with 39 third-quarter points. Tristan Thompson had 18 points and 15 rebounds, while C.J. Miles and Dion Waiters each scored 17 to help the Cavs win their first road game since a 109-100 victory in Orlando on Dec. 13. Playing without leading scorer Gordon Hayward, sidelined by a strained hip, the Jazz were paced by Richard Jeffersons 18 points. Trey Burke had 17 points and six assists, but picked up his fourth foul in the third quarter right before Irving sparked Clevelands key surge. "I started being more aggressive and taking advantage of what they were giving me," said Irving, who missed three games with a bruised knee but has returned with extra energy and a sharp touch. Shooting 43 per cent on the season, he was 6 of 9 in the win Tuesday against Philadelphia and then made all three of his 3-point attempts against the Jazz. After a root canal Thursday, Irving showed no ill effects as he scored from a variety of spots on the floor and pushed the Cavaliers to 21 fast-break points. "In the first half, I was just too slow. Playing fast not only helps me, it helps the team. Everybody wass running the lane, everybodys running for easy baskets and thats what we need," Irving said.dddddddddddd Deng played more than nine seasons with the Chicago Bulls and was an All-Star the past two before he was acquired Tuesday for Andrew Bynum and three future draft picks. Averaging 19 points and 6.9 rebounds in Chicago, Deng appeared to be searching to find his place in the Cleveland offence as he played only 21 minutes and had four turnovers. "Its been so strange. Even coming in today and getting the jersey on and seeing it say Cavaliers, it hit me again. But I looked in the mirror and checked the colours out and it looked pretty good," Deng said. Hayward, coming off a career-high 37 points, missed his first game this season because of a muscle strain in his left hip flexor. He will be a game-time decision Monday against Denver. This one was back and forth with 14 lead changes and 11 ties until Irving and the Cavaliers took charge in the third quarter. "He got his rhythm and hes that kind of player. He decided to take it upon himself to pick it up there and we didnt match his intensity," Utah coach Ty Corbin said. Trailing 49-46 at halftime, the Cavaliers started the third with a 10-2 run to take a 56-51 lead. When Burke was whistled for his fourth foul and headed to the bench, the Jazz were down 65-62. Irving took full advantage and scored 17 points, including consecutive 3-pointers, in the third quarter to spark another Cleveland run. Jarrett Jack, who has been bothered by back spasms, capped a 15-2 surge with a 3-pointer and a jumper to make it 87-70. "Obviously, Kyrie Irving got going. His team feeds off of him, and once he hit a couple of 3s and got to the line, thats when they went on a run," Burke said. Miles, after scoring a season-high 34 points and setting a Cavaliers record for 3s in a game with 10, kept up his strong shooting by going 6 of 7. Miles played his first seven years in Utah and greeted Corbin with a warm embrace just before the opening tip. NOTES: The Cavaliers had lost six in a row at Utah before winning the last two. ... After starting 1 of 6 from the field, Utah F Marvin Williams took off the face mask hes been wearing since he broke his nose in November and played without it. ... Anderson Varejao had two points and 14 rebounds for the Cavs, who outrebounded the Jazz 45-34. ' ' '
