March is an extremely busy time for me. From covering the start of the Junior hockey playoffs and all of the minor hockey title races I have time for, there is the NHL Trade Deadline, NFL Free Agency, college basketball's postseason, MLB Spring Training and even the Champions League for soccer. There is a lot of ground to cover for a sports fan which is why the rapid fire rants make a triumphant return after an Olympics break. Here we go..
Goalie trades save NHL Trade Deadline
The two trades that saved the 2014 NHL Trade Deadline from being just another boring year of meaningless trade action actually happened before the actual daylong trade deadline that has been beaten to death by TSN and Sportsnet as they try to pass of nearly 16 hours of studio coverage as a marquee event.
The St. Louis Blues move to bring in Buffalo Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller to improve their goaltending and make the Blues title chances even more likely was the biggest move of the deadline as the already defensively sound Blues may have just found the elite goalie they need to get them over the hump while Miller will finally get to leave the purgatory of Buffalo and have a chance to win for the first time in a long while after once being one of the NHL's bright young stars while Buffalo was still respectable.
Meanwhile in Vancouver the Canucks decided to offload highly paid goalie Roberto Luongo to Florida in an attempt to shed cap space for a much needed rebuild. Many have ridiculed the Canucks for offloading Roberto Luongo and Cory Schneider in a short span for low returns, but the moves at the NHL Trade Deadline speak to the new era of the NHL where highly priced goaltending may be a thing of the past.
The best goaltender in the NHL rarely lifts the Stanley Cup at the end of the season and in the salary cap era every million counts. If the Canucks didn't want to overpay for a goaltender during their process of rebuilding Luongo had to go. Canucks fans everywhere will just hope that youngster Eddie Lack can answer the bell until the end of what is turning out to be a nightmare season in Vancouver.
Blue Jays back to boring heading into 2014
Spring training is alive and well, but you might not know it based on the lack of excitement surrounding Canada's team as the Toronto Blue Jays hype train from their owners Rogers has been set to a more reasonable volume this March.
After splashing on big name free agents and failing in 2013, the Jays aren't expected to do much of anything in the 2014 season other than the typical Jays performance. They have some solid players, but lack the depth of the teams that will be vyying for the AL East playoff spots come the fall.
That doesn't mean you still shouldn't be excited for the Blue Jays season. Jose Bautista is still one of the best hitters in baseball, and you never know what might happen along the way. Having no expectations almost might be better for the average Jays fan who will just be glad that this year nobody is getting their hopes up with the promises of playoffs and contending for the World Series. After last year's debacle many simply just want to enjoy baseball again. Being the underdog will help that cause.
NFL Free Agency sees Broncos load up for redemption
Day One of NFL Free Agency has came and went with the Denver Broncos surprisingly affording the best haul as the seemingly cash strapped Broncos found the salary cap flexibility to afford two of the best defensive backs available in TJ Ward and Aqib Talib.
With rumblings that the Broncos will also land a defensive end it is clear that veteran NFL players are willing to take a slight paycut to win a Super Bowl with Peyton Manning before his championship window closes.
The Broncos are also very willing to mortgage the next few years on the ability to win a title before Manning needs to retire. The last quarterback of Manning's age to win the Super Bowl was current Broncos front office executive John Elway and that was nearly 20 years ago. Denver is playing a risky game bankrolling their salary cap future on the next two years. Expect a mass exodus of players when Manning does retire in Denver, so my advice to Broncos fans is enjoy the ride while it lasts.
Canada basketball talent again ready to invade March Madness
It is becoming a new tradition to talk about the amount of Canadians that will be key figures in March's marquee spoting event when the NCAA Tournament tips off next Thursday for another year. As fans fill their brackets they will be having trouble finding a bandwagon to jump on as there is a massive list of schools that will have Canadian content to enjoy in the tournament.
From Big Ten champions Michigan who have guard Nik Stauskas, Kansas' Andrew Wiggins, Iowa State's Melvin Ejim, Arizona State's Jordan Bachynski and many many more there is no shortage of new heroes from the Great White North for fans of the game to follow as they look to reach the Final Four and advance through the most entertaining playoff format in sports as the 64 best schools in the NCAA play in a one game knockout bracket.
Last year there were well over 20 Canadians in the tournament, that number will increase this year as will the quality of talent. With Canada having the number one draft pick in the 2013 NBA Draft in Anthony Bennett and many more stars in the making still in the college ranks things are looking good for Team Canada to be one of the major players in the 2016 Olympics should the NBA send its players.
For a generation of basketball fans who grew up on Vince Carter and the Toronto Raptors or the Vancouver Grizzlies for the older crowd, seeing the growth of the game explode with more Canadian talent out there is a testament to how the sport has been received here.
No longer is Steve Nash the only Canadian icon for basketball. March Madness is ready to be enjoyed and Canada will be apart of the storyline.
