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Grant Marshall is upset with the reaction from Owen Nolan and the San Jose Sharks regarding Nolan’s 11 game suspension.

I can’t condone what Nolan did. I can understand him wanting to send Marshall a message for the brutal hit from behind he took earlier, but Owen, it was only the first period. Surely you could’ve found Grant with the puck sometime during the course of the next two frames.

That said, Marshall - more than anyone - should have known better. (the guy broke his neck while playing junior hockey in the OHL, from a similar hit).

“I let up on him when he turned his back,” he said afterward. Not good enough Grant! The hit could’ve been avoided. Hitting someone from behind into the boards should always be avoided. Fortunately for all involved, Owen Nolen didn’t end up in a wheelchair or worse. That is what upset Nolan, and that is why you got your bell rung. Grant, if you hit the other clubs goalie or endanger a players career/LIFE, you will GET - YOUR - BELL - RUNG!!!!!! So suck it up Marshall and be thankful you didn’t kill anybody!

One final note. I don’t disagree with the Nolan’s 11 gamer or the reasons behind it, but Marshall shouldn’t be skating either. Hitting from behind is the games worst offense and NHL Executive Vice President and Director of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell constantly turns the other way to ignore it, but I guess Grant Marshall isn’t behind him.

Tiger Woods is in a slump. That’s ridiculous! Guy has 78 birdies and a pair eagles in 63 rounds. Tiger’s average is 69.79(8th). He has 3 top ten finishes(1st) in four events this year. His only blemish came at Pebble Beach when he finished -8 and tied for 13th place.

That’s an awful slump. He’s obviously past his prime, in the twilight of his career and biding his time until he’s old enough to play in the Senior Tour.

Come on, his putting average is down but, he’s making good puts. They just haven’t been dropping. Blame it on the Golf Gods. Blame it on a run of bad luck. Before long they will lip in rather than out, take a good bounce off a spike mark instead of bad and Tiger will start lapping the field and making the best golfers in the world look like Sunday morning hacks once again.

Mark McGwire is by far MLB’s biggest draw. So it is completely unbelievable that he accepted a thirty million dollar two year contract to stay in St. Louis.

He could have tested the market, could have demanded to be the highest paid player in baseball. He could have asked for all kinds of outrageous irregularities and exceptions. Mark McGwire has a shot at beating the all-time MLB homerun record, the team he rides this out with would cash in big on the media circus and fan frenzy it would cause and there for, justify almost any price Mark names. Instead he quietly decided to try to finish what he started with the Cardinals. It is nice to see a guy say “I can’t spend fifty million a year anyway.” He may as well say ‘the fans pay enough already.’ It is refreshing to see an athlete put his team first.

The fact that Keith Tkachuk ended up with the St. Louis Blues should surprise no one. The Blues made it obvious they were desperate for some power up front when they made a play for Eric Lindros. Can you blame them? Their road to the Stanley Cup playoffs will pass through some tough places.

What is surprising is how much more they were willing to give up for Tkachuk then Lindros. This states a great deal about what GM’s around the league feel about Eric’s heath. It also is a considerable gauge of Bobby Clark’s ability as a GM. He obviously has inflated expectations of what Lindros’ value is and it seems he is making this personal. The Flyers will never go anywhere with Clark at the helm and I wouldn’t let this guy run my fantasy hockey team.

Mar. 19/01

Now that Tiger has won his first event this year maybe people can get off his back. He just finished a slump that about fifty million golfers would love to have. Golf just isn’t the type of game that you can win every week.

Further more, to say so is a slap in the face to all the PGA pros on tour. Ah, sorry Els, Mick, Duval but, Tiger is playing this week, so just try to put on a sporting show for the fans. Get A Grip!!!

March madness is here. Now I’m the first to admit that, I’m not a huge hoops fan, but this is one of the best tournaments there is in sports. Great athletes, great teams, great programs, one game. Sudden death. As an eternal supporter of the under dog, I love the way this format lends itself to upsets. Last man standing at it’s best.

One more thing, Rickey Henderson just signed on with the Padres for his 102nd year in the bigs. I can’t wait to see him take a few more thousand pitches looking for another walk. Would someone throw this guy a strike already. I doubt he could let go of his walker long enough to take the lumber off his shoulder anyway.

I take it back. Rickey is the best story in baseball this year. Just ask him.


	SPORTSMACK \| home Sportsmack's Take \| Message Board \| Top Takes \| Archives \| Affiliates Archives Grant Marshall is upset with the reaction from Owen Nolan and the San Jose Sharks regarding Nolan’s 11 game suspension. I can’t condone what Nolan did. I can understand him wanting to send Marshall a message for the brutal hit from behind he took earlier, but Owen, it was only the first period. Surely you could’ve found Grant with the puck sometime during the course of the next two frames. That said, Marshall - more than anyone - should have known better. (the guy broke his neck while playing junior hockey in the OHL, from a similar hit). “I let up on him when he turned his back,” he said afterward. Not good enough Grant! The hit could’ve been avoided. Hitting someone from behind into the boards should always be avoided. Fortunately for all involved, Owen Nolen didn’t end up in a wheelchair or worse. That is what upset Nolan, and that is why you got your bell rung. Grant, if you hit the other clubs goalie or endanger a players career/LIFE, you will GET - YOUR - BELL - RUNG!!!!!! So suck it up Marshall and be thankful you didn’t kill anybody! One final note. I don’t disagree with the Nolan’s 11 gamer or the reasons behind it, but Marshall shouldn’t be skating either. Hitting from behind is the games worst offense and NHL Executive Vice President and Director of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell constantly turns the other way to ignore it, but I guess Grant Marshall isn’t behind him. Tiger Woods is in a slump. That’s ridiculous! Guy has 78 birdies and a pair eagles in 63 rounds. Tiger’s average is 69.79(8th). He has 3 top ten finishes(1st) in four events this year. His only blemish came at Pebble Beach when he finished -8 and tied for 13th place. That’s an awful slump. He’s obviously past his prime, in the twilight of his career and biding his time until he’s old enough to play in the Senior Tour. Come on, his putting average is down but, he’s making good puts. They just haven’t been dropping. Blame it on the Golf Gods. Blame it on a run of bad luck. Before long they will lip in rather than out, take a good bounce off a spike mark instead of bad and Tiger will start lapping the field and making the best golfers in the world look like Sunday morning hacks once again. Mark McGwire is by far MLB’s biggest draw. So it is completely unbelievable that he accepted a thirty million dollar two year contract to stay in St. Louis. He could have tested the market, could have demanded to be the highest paid player in baseball. He could have asked for all kinds of outrageous irregularities and exceptions. Mark McGwire has a shot at beating the all-time MLB homerun record, the team he rides this out with would cash in big on the media circus and fan frenzy it would cause and there for, justify almost any price Mark names. Instead he quietly decided to try to finish what he started with the Cardinals. It is nice to see a guy say “I can’t spend fifty million a year anyway.” He may as well say ‘the fans pay enough already.’ It is refreshing to see an athlete put his team first. The fact that Keith Tkachuk ended up with the St. Louis Blues should surprise no one. The Blues made it obvious they were desperate for some power up front when they made a play for Eric Lindros. Can you blame them? Their road to the Stanley Cup playoffs will pass through some tough places. What is surprising is how much more they were willing to give up for Tkachuk then Lindros. This states a great deal about what GM’s around the league feel about Eric’s heath. It also is a considerable gauge of Bobby Clark’s ability as a GM. He obviously has inflated expectations of what Lindros’ value is and it seems he is making this personal. The Flyers will never go anywhere with Clark at the helm and I wouldn’t let this guy run my fantasy hockey team. Mar. 19/01 Now that Tiger has won his first event this year maybe people can get off his back. He just finished a slump that about fifty million golfers would love to have. Golf just isn’t the type of game that you can win every week. Further more, to say so is a slap in the face to all the PGA pros on tour. Ah, sorry Els, Mick, Duval but, Tiger is playing this week, so just try to put on a sporting show for the fans. Get A Grip!!! March madness is here. Now I’m the first to admit that, I’m not a huge hoops fan, but this is one of the best tournaments there is in sports. Great athletes, great teams, great programs, one game. Sudden death. As an eternal supporter of the under dog, I love the way this format lends itself to upsets. Last man standing at it’s best. One more thing, Rickey Henderson just signed on with the Padres for his 102nd year in the bigs. I can’t wait to see him take a few more thousand pitches looking for another walk. Would someone throw this guy a strike already. I doubt he could let go of his walker long enough to take the lumber off his shoulder anyway. I take it back. Rickey is the best story in baseball this year. Just ask him.