Pool Report: Facing Sudden Death

We need to talk about me for a minute…

Despite the impression this blog might give, I’m quite a shy and retiring guy often described as “quiet and not taking up much room”.

I’m just another face in the crowd. Like those tens of thousands who stood outside the Air Canada Centre last night as our beloved Toronto Maple Leafs faced sudden death at the hands of the Boston Bruins.

We all understand being a fan. But being a Leafs fan is something different. We haven’t been in a Stanley Cup Final since 1967. It’s been 9 years since we’ve even been in the playoffs. Nobody said we had a chance facing the beastly black and gold bear.

But last night, we prevailed. We staved off the humiliation and humility of defeat for at least another 24 hours. You cannot imagine the joy of even that brief reprieve.

Round One of the Playoffs is not yet over for us or the fans of New York and Washington –- and okay, Boston (*spit*).

But Tonight two of those nations will fall –- and all of us who dwell therein will have to find a way to move on, because from here on, it’s one long war of attrition.

Which once again, brings us back to –- me.

Y’see, here’s how I make my pool picks…

I input the entries as they arrive, awaiting the last legal moment to make my own. I do this for two strategic reasons: to get an idea of where other players are going so I don’t choose the multiple picked favorites and, as well, to find the gems everybody else seems to be overlooking.

Thus, I didn’t load up with Chicago because I knew Barry Kiefl had whatever points they were going to garner more than covered. I also stayed away from Pittsburgh because that’s where all the smart money was going and you seldom make any pool money following the smart money as it usually leads to a logjam where nobody has an advantage.

Continuing to pursue such apparent logic, I noted that few players were being chosen from the Western conference, in which I’d seen some pretty awesome games this season.

So I bet heavily on St. Louis, which (besides what’s in our Boxer shorts) is about all Jon Hamm and I have in common.

And then, not wanting to go with Chicago and knowing Vancouver was toast) I figured Anaheim would easily handle an aging Detroit. I mean, that Corey Perry is one focussed hockey player!

But Anaheim suffered its own sudden death moment last night. So here we are at the end of round one and I’m down to the three Leafs I picked to show solidarity with my homies even though I doubted they’d last more than six games.

Come tonight, I could be out of my own pool! In the first round!

Or…

I could be one of the few still standing if the Leafs phenomenal run continues cause nobody else believed in them.

No wonder cheating sudden death is so much fun!

The standings as we enter Week Three of the Infamous Writers Hockey Pool are as follows: