Signs that Tomas Kaberle may be considering waiving his no-trade clause

Brian Burke surprised observers last week when he emphatically told reporters that he wouldn't ask Tomas Kaberle to waive his no-trade clause. But while Burke initially seemed to close the door on any deal, he did admit that he would consider a trade if Kaberle approached him first.

That seems to put the ball in Kaberle's court. And while the classy defenceman hasn't made any public comment, those closest to him say he's been sending some subtle signals that he may be considering a move.

With the March 4 trade deadline approaching, here are ten signs that Kaberle might be ready to finally waive his NTC:

• Brian Burke asked him for a list of ten teams; he gave Burke a list of 40 teams.
  
  
• He's been heard muttering about not having to put up with Ron Wilson anymore after the first week of March, in contrast to the rest of his teammates who mutter about not having to put up with Ron Wilson anymore after about the third week of March.
  
  
• For reasons nobody is quite clear on, his spot on the first powerplay unit has been given to Jay Leno.
  
  
• Was overheard telling a friend that it might be "an interesting change of pace" to have some teammates who were good at playing hockey.
  
  
• He's already started ignoring Kevin Lowe's phone calls.
  
  
• Has been toying with adding new elements to his game to make himself more attractive to other teams, such as maybe shooting the damn puck every once in a while.
  
  
• His coffee table is littered with change of address cards for various Czech scrapbooking magazines.
  
  
• Concerned younger teammates report that he's constantly talking about participating in some kind of bizarre post-season elimination tournament where the winner gets a giant trophy, as if such a thing actually exists.
  
  
• New postgame ritual: go home, get drunk, fire up NHL 10, trade self to contending team, turn off console, cry.
  
  
• He's already working on his playoff unibrow.

The ten most popular DGB posts of 2009

2009 was the first full year of this site's existence. When the year began, this site was just a tiny niche blog that 99.9% of the hockey world had never heard of. And in just twelve short months, it's become a tiny niche blog that 99.8% of the hockey world has never heard of. I call that progress.

Along the way we introduced Chris Durno to the world, were named "Story of the Year" by Puck Daddy, brought the phrase "Dammit, Pronger" into the hockey lexicon, and were praised by Damien Cox as "prolific" and "local". Oh, and Brian Burke threatened to sue me. Good times all around.

The year featured 150 posts. Some were big hits. Some... not so much. Still, they were all fun to write.

Here's a list of the ten posts that were the most popular over the last twelve months. Have a look if you missed them the first time, want to go back and read them again, or if you're just stuck at work over the New Year and want to waste some company time.

1. The NHL's suspension flowchart - Blogging rule of thumb: When Wil Wheaton tweets about you, you've made the big time.
   
   
2. A review of NHL 10 - This one was especially fun since dozens of angry posters on video game forums didn't realize it was a joke.
   
   
3. The Maple Leafs secret facebook feed - Fun fact: a Google search for "maple leafs facebook" bring back this page as the top result, ahead of the team's real page.
   
   
4. Brian Burke mic'd at the draft - This one turned out to be especially popular with Ranger fans.
   
   
5. The archive of Brian Burke tweets - Although Eklund is now reporting that some of these may not be real.
   
   
6. Etiquette tips for the Jason Spezza wedding - This was funnier five months ago when people remembered who Jason Spezza was.
   
   
7. Dany Heatley meets with Kevin Lowe: The secret transcript - Admit it, you can picture Pat Quinn doing that, can't you?
   
   
8. Fun with Google "Similar Images" - Check out my mad Photoshop skills, yo.
   
   
9. How to fight when you don't want to fight - Despite being over 20 months old, this one is still popular.
   
   
10. An open letter to Kyle Wellwood - After Wellwood appeared to criticize the Leafs for giving up on him, I wrote him a polite and thoughtful note to address his concerns.

A sincere thanks for all your support in 2009, and here's hoping for more fun in 2010.

Signs your hockey player husband might have sixteen mistresses

They look cold.

You may not have heard, but apparently Tiger Woods has had a few affairs. No, really, it's been in the newspaper and everything! And at least count, 16 different women have come forward to admit to relationships with the married golf legend.

I happen to know that a large percentage of my readers are the wives of NHL players, and I'm sure many of them are worried: What if my husband is just like Tiger Woods? How would I know?

I want to help. So I've compiled a list of warning signs that you, the dutiful NHL spouse, should be watching for. Here's how to tell that your hockey player husband may have 16 mistresses:

• You keep overhearing his teammates talking about whether he'll set the all-time scoring record, but he's a goalie.
  
  
• Every time he sees an article in Us Weekly about Sean Avery breaking up with somebody, he circles it with a red magic marker.
  
  
• The fire hydrant at the end of your driveway looks suspiciously like it's been run over by a zamboni.
  
  
• Whenever he gets a penalty and the PA guy announces "two minutes for hitting from behind", the entire crowd chants "That's what she said".
  
  
• He plays in the United States, and yet the media is interested in him.
  
  
• In NHL 10, he has a 99 rating in "infidelity".
  
  
• You've never heard of those 16 girls whose names are on the banners hanging from your bedroom ceiling.
  
  
• Every time he yells out your name in bed, he checks a lineup card first.
  
  
• When Sidney Crosby punched him in the groin, every woman in your section pulled out a cell phone and started making alternate dinner plans.
  
  
• He refers to the local sorority house as "the waiver wire".
  
  
• You keep getting sympathetic text messages from somebody named Lauren P. in Anaheim.
  
  
• The red light and goal horn attached to your bed's headboard seem to need their batteries changed way more often than they should.
  
  
• He's been working with Jim Balsillie on a new web site called makeitseventeen.ca.
  
  
• His latest "lower body injury" is chlamydia.
  
  
• He's a hockey player who plays for a team that has at least 16 road games this year.

NHL 10: An early review

Tuesday is one of the biggest days on an NHL fan's calendar: the release of NHL 10, the latest version of EA Sports' NHL series.

It goes without saying that a blogger as important and popular as I am would be sent an advance reviewer's copy. I had a chance to give it a try over the weekend, and the results were mixed.

Bugs
Let's get the bad news out of the way first. I'm not sure if this game was rushed onto shelves without enough time for testing, but there are a ton of bugs that simply should have been caught.

• Simming ahead several years in franchise mode can lead to unrealistic results. For example, I simmed ahead to 2011, and the game listed one of the teams as playing in "Phoenix".
  
  
• In Front Office mode, the "fire general manager" option is permanently greyed out for the New York Rangers.
  
  
• Somebody at EA needs to seriously prune the roster file to clear out guys who haven't even been in skates for years. This year's game still has guys like Jason Allison and Theo Fleury kicking around.
  
  
• While the post-whistle scrums are a nice addition, they don't feel realistic because announcer Jim Hughson fails to break into an overwrought lecture about how terrible they are.
  
  
• The financial AI is just terrible. Teams like Chicago, Boston and Philadelphia kept signing players to contracts that would clearly ruin their long-term salary cap situation.
  
  
• AI-controlled teams occasionally make roster moves they'd never make in real life. For example, in one sim I noticed the Leafs had signed another team's RFA, which of course is ridiculous since Brian Burke hates when teams do that.
  
  
• While experimenting with the GM mode, I attempted to trade a star player to Edmonton. The deal was accepted, but when I checked the Oilers roster immediately afterwards, the star player was there.

Cheats
What major video game release these days doesn't come with a few cheats and easter eggs? Sure enough, NHL 2010 has its share.

• When you're prompted to enter your name on the opening screen, type in "Jim Balsillie" to unlock an extended slideshow of Gary Bettman giving you the finger.
  
  
• If you manage to win the Stanley Cup, hit "exit" before the handshake line finishes. When you enter the off-season, the game's musical soundtrack will be replaced by the sound of Red Wings fans crying. (Note: there is apparently no undo for this feature.)
  
  
• Enter your name as "Howard Berger" on the opening screen, and then sim a season. All 82 of your games will be scheduled during the month of November.
  
  
• Inspired by the legendary NBA Jam series, NHL 10 includes a hilarious "tiny mode" in which all the regular players on a team are comically shrunk down to a fraction of their normal size. To enable this mode, go to the Team Select screen and choose "Montreal Canadiens".

New features
Now for the good stuff. As fans have come to expect, this year's version comes packed with new and enhanced features.

• The much-hyped "first person fighting" mode is every bit as good as advertised. When you throw a perfectly timed uppercut that connects with your unsuspecting opponent's face, you can actually see the blood splatter onto the cab's dashboard.
  
  
• The game includes an interesting new feature called "Ask Burkie". You can type in any hockey question, and a simulated Brian Burke will provide an answer. Unfortunately, due to an apparent programming error the screen lacks an "exit" button, and Burke just keeps talking and talking non-stop. Even removing the CD and unplugging the system doesn't help. I eventually had to burn my Xbox and bury the ashes in the backyard to get him to be quiet.
  
  
• In a neat bit of crossover promotion, the game will check your hard drive for any Resident Evil saved game files. If it finds any, it will replace the final zombie boss with Chris Chelios.
  
  
• The "Be A Player" mode is super realistic. In my first game against Toronto I lightly nudged one of the Leafs' skill players, and the game immediately cut to a full-motion video montage of my funeral.
  
  
• The all new board play is great fun. You can get a puck to an open teammate by using the new "kick-pass" button. In addition, when controlling Martin Havlat you can also use the "kick-groin" button.
  
  
• Players can now snatch a puck out of the air with their glove hand (note: feature does not apply to Andrew Raycroft).
  
  
• Finally, the game features an intriguing new mode in which two teams can play each other up to seven consecutive times, with the first team to win four games advancing on to play a different team. As a Leaf fan I thought this was really unqiue and creative, and hope the real NHL implements something similar in the future.

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If you liked this post, you might also enjoy:

• The Leafs' secret Facebook feed
  
• Brian Burke mic'd at the draft: What TSN didn't show you
  
• How to fight when you don't want to fight
• And don't forget to follow DGB on twitter