Who pulls a goalie on a three-game winning streak?

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 18/10/2017 (2373 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Steve Lyons:  Hello. How’s it going? Gorgeous day out there today. And tomorrow is going to be a high of 24C — bet you wish you had taken this week off for your latest vacation rather than last week.

Anyways, welcome back — lots going on in the sports world. As usual, October is a busy month. I once wrote a column for The Manitoban — way back in the 80s — about how October is the best month in sports. The NHL is just starting; the CFL is in its stretch drive; the NFL is underway; the NBA tips off; and of course, there’s October baseball.

I also have an affinity for the month — because the best people were born in it ha ha

So, interesting decision by Jets coach Paul Maurice this week to start Steve Mason in net after Connor Hellebuyck had reeled off three straight wins and stopped 95 of 100 shots in those games. I get the team has a light schedule over the next 10 days, but wins early in the season are uber-important and going away from the hot hand so the other guy doesn’t gather rust might sound logical, but at what cost? I’m not sure Hellebuyck would have helped considering how the team didn’t skate a lick in the 5-2 loss to the Blue Jackets, but momentum is so huge in sports, so why mess with it?

Paul Wiecek: That was a baffling decision by Maurice. After years of waiting, he finally has a hot goaltender putting up elite performances for him — and so he banishes him to the bench so he can cool off. Who does that?

And I’m tired of people giving Mason a free pass in this town. Yes, the Jets were lousy defensively in all three games Mason started and lost. But so was Mason. All three times. At least two of those five goals against Columbus were softies.

I’m old school on starting goaltenders — you ride the hot hand for as long as the hand stays hot. Why start Bunny Larocque if you’ve got Ken Dryden standing on his head. Dryden started 64 game for the Habs one season back in the 70’s, 62 games another season and never less than 47 games in a full season. Didn’t seem to hurt him or his performance any.

But everyone gets coddled these days. And not just goalies. Look at baseball and the way starting pitchers are handled nowadays. Justin Verlander threw a complete game for the Astros the other day and everyone was treating it like the Resurrection. Starting pitchers are supposed to go deep into games in the playoffs — or at least they used to be. Now, a guy throws five complete innings and everyone is talking about him like he’s the second coming of Koufax.

The modern athlete is soft. And grossly overpaid.

Steve: Hellebuyck clearly looks stronger, calmer and better-positioned this season. And I’m with you — Devan Dubnyk played 65 games last year and 67 the year before. Go ahead, tell me the name of Minnesota’s backup goalie. Who cares?

They paid to get Mason and likely made him some promises to get him here. Hope they don’t feel they need to give him a chance even if he continues to play lousy — and, the guy you thought would be your long-term No. 1 last season is actually turning into the guy you hoped he would.

So far, Mason reminds me of Ondrej Pavelec — making the most acrobatic saves at times but then being wildly out of position other times. We all know how that roller-coaster ride goes.

Big game early here Friday night against the Wild. Don’t wanna head to Pittsburgh and Columbus next week with a 3-4 record.

I was shocked to hear Verlander had pitched a complete game — like, when does that happen these days? Although starters for all the remaining teams have been a lot better than earlier this post-season.

How about Masahiro Tanaka? Man, has he shown up for the playoffs. And it’s been the starters — not the vaunted bullpen — that has your Yankees one win away from the World Series.

Paul: Look, I’m on the record in this space that I don’t think either Mason or Hellebuyck is the elite goaltender the Jets need to become a legitimate Stanley Cup contender right now. Hellebuyck has looked great early, so I stand to be corrected and hope — for the sake of Jets fans — that I will be. But I still think Hellebuyck needs to mature — as a goaltender and as a man — and his best hockey is in front of him in seasons to come.

And Mason? His best hockey — it’s becoming increasingly clear — is behind him. I thought that when they signed him last summer and I think that even more now. That .908 save percentage he posted with the Flyers last season is starting to look like it flattered him.

As for the Yankees, I’m stunned, like most people, by what they’ve accomplished this post-season. I didn’t think their starting pitching was nearly good enough to make a playoff run. And I was almost proven right in a debacle of a wild card game that saw Luis Severino — the supposed Yankees ace — last the grand total of one out before he was yanked in the first inning with New York down 3-0 to the Twins.

But there’s nothing like a near-death experience to focus the mind and New York has been at its best this entire post-season when they’ve had their backs to the wall. It’s been a great ride no matter how it turns out — that’s just a really entertaining team to watch. That team has so much fun playing the game, I don’t think they realize they’re in wildly over their heads.

Steve: So, are you ready to admit Brian Cashman might know what he’s doing? Btw, he knows his belts if nothing else — I noticed he was sporting a Ferragamo gancini last night.

Heck, even I’m having fun watching the Yankees.

But, I’m having more fun watching Joe Maddon and the Cubs lose. Maddon lost it in Game 1 of his team’s series against the Dodgers when a long video review didn’t go his way. This was a game after a long video replay in Game 5 of his team’s series with the Nationals went his way. You can’t have it both ways Joe.

Personally, I continue to hate video review in all sports — too often it goes against the spirit of the play and the game. The call at first base in the Nats-Cubs series was ridiculous. But hey, I picked the Nationals to win it all this season, so perhaps I’m just whining like Maddon.

Paul: I concede nothing on Brian Cashman. The Yankees are winning despite the efforts of the GM, not because of them. They need to dig up The Boss and put him back in charge.

I think it’s adorable you thought a professional sports team based in D.C. was going to win a championship. You must be disappointed every year when the Easter Bunny doesn’t leave you any chocolates. Nothing good is ever going to happen for teams in that town. The rot in D.C. runs deep — and it starts at the top.

Joe Maddon puts on a pretty good show. And it’s hard to argue with the World Series he took down last year and the adversity the Cubs had to overcome this year to get back to an LCS. He’s exactly the right man at the right time for that team. But I get he’s not everyone’s cup of tea.

Steve: Something else I noticed watching the ball game last night — on that news ticker they have scrolling at the bottom of the screen with scores and news. Gord Downie dies at the age of 53. Huh? Here’s a news flash: Gord Downie was the lead singer of The Tragically Hip — one of the greatest bands in Canadian history. He did not play for the Leafs; or the Habs. He was not even a part-owner of a team. He mentioned hockey in a song once. How did his death on Wednesday become a big sports story?

I get an advisory from The Canadian Press every morning letting me know what stories they will be working on. Top of the list on Wednesday was this: Reaction from sports world to death of Gord Downie. Say What?! Meantime, Ron McLean’s take on Downie was top news all day on Sportsnet; Bob McKenzie’s story on Downie was top news on TSN; media types at Mike O’Shea’s post-practice press conference asked him about Downie; they did the same thing during player availability after Jets practice. In my 31 years of working in sports, I have never seen the death of a rock singer become top news for the sports section. Am I missing something?

Paul: Yeah, we’re on the same page. But that’s how it goes in the age of social media when a celebrity dies — everyone wants to tell you how it affects them and latch on to some tiny piece of reflected glory. It’s gross.

I’ve got more Hip stories than most guys because I was in Kingston in the mid-80’s when they were still a bar band. But in no world would I have the hubris to think the country was dying to hear my thoughts on the band this week. Who cares what I think about the Hip and Downie’s passing? I barely care what I think most days.

We deify the dead in this country, now more than ever, and it does a disservice to the living.

Steve: Oh by the way more breaking news: Gordon Hayward is still alive. No, he didn’t die on the basketball court — he broke his leg. The hyperbole surrounding the ‘gruesome’ injury the Celtics forward suffered the other night was way over the top. Listen, it wasn’t a pretty sight when an athlete falls to the ground and his foot is pointing sideways instead of forward. But, there’s a lot of ‘gruesome’ things going on in the world these days — I’m not sure this was one of them. And how about Skip Bayless using it to take a shot at Lebron James? I am not a fan of Bayless (speaking of hyperbolic), but how about the reaction to his Tweet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALnS-awK1jI

Oh, and Jeremy Lin fell by the hoop last night and hurt his knee — this kind of things happens. He’s also gone for the season. Too bad. Wildest hair in sports along with that guy for the Astros — Yulieski Gurriel. Yes, I’m envious!

Paul: Gordon Hayward will earn $32 million this season to not play basketball while he recovers from a broken leg. I’m pretty sure he’s going to be okay. But the reaction afterward was like we were all supposed to lower flags to half-mast in honour of this heroic man.

Good Lord — there’s probably 25 people who will break their leg in Winnipeg today — and I’d venture at least half of them will do it on the job too. Where’s their national day of mourning and eight-figure paycheques?

What I found most nauseating this week wasn’t the sight of Hayward’s leg pointing in the wrong direction — it was the Twitter mob going after Bayless for joking that the loss of Hayward for the Celtics was going to make it easier for Lebron to lose his sixth NBA final with Cleveland this season. That’s actually a pretty funny line, I thought. But what’s funnier is that in the Wild West of Twitter — an absolute cesspool of casual racism, misogyny and intolerance — the mob decided that this was the line that couldn’t be crossed.

Bayless is a troll and an idiot, but this is the line? A broken leg is the line on a social media platform where women routinely get threatened with rape?

Don’t make me laugh.

Steve: You didn’t see all this on Twitter did you? Because I recall a column..

Injuries have been a topic of conversation in this town, but nobody is waving a white flag or feeling sorry for themselves — especially down at the Bombers.

Man, losing Maurice Leggett AND Darvin Adams in the same game last week is a tough blow (no, not gruesome or tragic), but the team seems to constantly hold on to the ‘Next Man Up’ theme.

As much as I think Leggett is a great player, I think the loss of Adams is going to be tougher to get past. His speed and size had been a big part of the Bombers gameplan this season. And with Timothy Flanders also on the sidelines, the offence is going to need someone to come out of nowhere. I’m hearing this Chris Givens could be the guy. Lots of NFL experience — played 60 games and made 107 receptions. It’s going to need to be someone like him, because the return of Weston Dressler this week will not be the total answer.

Paul: I wouldn’t overlook what the return of Dressler means to this team. He’s been very, very good and a huge part of the Bombers offense when he’s been healthy. And I think over and over again this season, offensive coordinator Paul LaPolice has surprised me with his ability to improvise and match Winnipeg’s strengths on offence to their opponent’s weaknesses on defence. Plus, they’ve got the Argos this week and a lousy B.C. team next week. Those should be a couple soft touches for even an injury depleted Winnipeg team heading into the final game of season in Calgary and what sure looks to me like a preview of the West Final.

Leggett was the bigger loss this past week. He’s been an impact player on the field all season long and a legitimate contender for defensive player of the year. But I also remember from my time covering the team as the beat guy that he is also a leader in the locker room. He plays the game right, goes about his business right and set a tone for the rest of that team. That’s going to be a big void I think and it’s made worse by the fact the defence was already this team’s weak link.

Steve: I tend to think Leggett is put in a position to make those plays because of the position he plays and the scheme the team deploys — and the guy who steps into that position will also make plays. Dressler will be helpful if he makes it through the first half.

I agree with you on Lapo — and I also think this will be a big test for Matt Nichols and Andrew Harris. A lot rides on them now.

Hey, Bob Picken called last week to remind me I have to make the presentation on Nov. 4 when you are inducted into the Sportswriters and Sportscasters Media Roll of Honor at the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame dinner.

He cautioned me not to go more than 10 minutes or so. I laughed — he wants me to say nice things about you for 10 minutes?! Got any suggestions? Could you write them out in advance?

Also, I hear you helped a friend catch a five-pound bass while you were on vacation — Dustin Byfuglien wasn’t there was he?

Paul: I’d like to take credit for a very big small-mouth — rather than a very big big mouth — but the lady hauled that bass in all on her own. Her skills at fishing are much better than her taste in men. Sadly for her — but great for me — good men, just like Buff’s sturgeon, are going extinct.

You’re on your own with that speech. The truth is, I’ve been using smoke and mirrors for almost 30 years now. I faked my way through my original job interview at the Free Press and I’ve been faking it every day since. Basically, the whole operation has been a scam.

Steve: I won’t tell on you if you don’t tell on me. It takes some talent to pull that off by the way.

Back to work — or whatever.

Paul: They can’t make us pay the money back. I checked.

steve.lyons@freepress.mb.ca

paul.wiecek@freepress.mb.ca