If you haven’t seen it yet check out Andrei Kirilenko’s back tattoo. Apparently its some sort of warrior riding a dragon which happens to cover more or less the entire length of his back. Seems like a bit much. Guess Birdman of the Nuggets has some new competition. I have nothing against tattoo’s but this one isn’t exactly my style. Would you ever rock it?

After this bum of a Red Sox fan decided to run on the field, this future draft pick for the Buffalo Bills crushes him. Obviously he’s not really going to get drafted but maybe someone should try and pick this guy up.

One of the best hits of 2011. Definitely should be seeing this on ESPN’s Top 10 segment. If not, thats a travesty. Just saying.

Truthfully we must give props to the guy who jumped the fence. Takes some big coconuts to do that. So to you sir we clap our hands.

The likes of Apple TV and its biggest competitor Google TV will most likely alter the way we watch our television sometime in the near future. With these set top boxes, similar to connecting a Xbox to your big screen you now have a combination of applications such as twitter, netflix, facebook etc right on your television. In addition you can fully browse the web and watch online content. The user experience once all the kinks get ironed out will probably be more similar to using an iPad or Droid Tablet rather than flicking through channels on your TV. Many broadcasting companies are releasing content to be shown on these game changers as well.

Now Apple TV will stream both MLB.TV and NBA League Pass. Woohoo. So basically what this means is you can watch live Baseball or Basketball using your sweet little gadget all thanks to the iOS 4.3 update.

For MLB.TV you’ll need to be a current or new subscriber which starts at $100 dollars for the season, which gives the ability to stream any game, any time. The same applies for NBA League Pass subscribers. If i’m not mistake it’ll be $65 for the rest of the season. You can follows stats and game news for free though.

Of course you can expect the likes of NHL GameCenter to be added at a later date. As for the NFL they’ve been extremely apprehensive to broadcast or stream any of their games online. I mean hey for all practical purposes they already own “regular tv” and do not need to disrupt how they’re making money. At some point applications like Pandora and Hulu Plus will continue to grow Apple’s content and create yet another dominating product. Although as previously mentioned Google is always breathing down their backs.

The Apple TV set top box runs for $99.

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Dirty Spin o Rama goal by Martin St. Louis against the Chicago Blackhawks in a shootout.  Some are claiming the goal should have been disallowed because the puck wasn’t consistently moving forward. But the way I interpret the rule is the player must maintain forward movement with an allowed stop. The player is not allowed to back track. I see no reason the puck is not allowed to be dangled any way Mr. St. Louis pleases as long as he follows the law above.

So siiiiick.

Montreal Canadiens winger Max Pacioretty was carted off Tuesday on a stretcher after taking a hit from the monster that is Zdeno Chara in which he was knocked unconscious.  Pacioretty was thrown into the stanchions that hold the glass together in between the teams benches. This section of the glass isn’t what your used to seeing around the boards. It’s facing the other way and when moving full speed its like driving your car into a brick wall.

The hit was a cheap shot by Chara and was given a 5 minute major for interference and a game misconduct. Take a look at the brutal video below.

Hits like these are enough to scare anyone. Luckily Pacioretty seems to be okay and is able to move all of his extremities. You have to wonder if Chara will be suspended after this hit. Absolutely brutal.

The “history will be made” Stanley Cup Playoffs commercials which started last season from the NHL are amazing.  As a die hard hockey fan I can’t get enough. They’re creating more for 2011 playoffs as well. This one with Jonathan Toews absolutely hits a soft spot and reminds me of my youth. Gotta love hockey. A true brotherhood.

From the looks of things there’s a good chance either the NFL or NBA will end up in a lockout for their upcoming season. And that can only mean good things for the NHL.

The NFL at this point appears to be very likely to actually end discussions with a lockout due to the complete lack of synergy on either side. The owners want more money. Simply put they’re greedy. So how do they plan to extend their cashflow? It’ simple, add two more regular season games to make it 18 rather than 16. Hmmm, makes a lot of sense… Let’s put our athletes whom we pay millions of dollars to get their heads bashed in on a weekly basis and are in a constant struggle to stay healthy and injury free on the field for a couple more game. Screw the players and the rest of their lives. WE NEED MONEY.

Sure there are other issues such as profit sharing between the owners and players but the 18 games sees opposition from every fan, coach and player.

The lockout for the NBA almost seems certain at this point. It may only be for a day, or it could last the entire season. The major issue is whether or not the current salary structure needs to be completely overhauled (owners opinions) or just tweaked (players opinions). Commissioner Stern has claimed the NBA is due to lose $350 million this season and lost nearly $400 million last season, which is why the owners feel so strongly on restructuring. The league according to Stern isn’t profitable. Truly the NBA is a business and being such they expect to make a profit.

“We would like to get profitable, have a return on investment,” Stern said. “There’s a swing of somewhere in the neighborhood of $750 to $800 million that we would like to change.’’

Obviously that $800 million dollar swing isn’t gonna sit too well with the players. So what does all this mean for the NHL?

If both of the mentioned leagues do result in a lockout the NHL will finally have an opportunity to capitalize on some much needed attention. For starters the league lacks a true national broadcast in the United States (The state of hockey in Canada is well, perfect). The majority of the nationally televised games can be seen on Versus. Yes, versus is a growing network but not everyone with cable or satellite tv even have it. For most, its an additional fee and with today’s economy people aren’t splurging.  Versus spent $130 million on a 2-year deal to show 54 regular season games, the all-star game and post game/season coverage (ESPN likely pays the NBA 8-10 times that). Honestly I think versus does a good job and the NHL is its main focus. NBC does do a Sunday game which is great but, yet again its once a week for only part of the season.

With the NBA and NFL out of the picture you know ESPN may finally take the plunge and bring back the NHL. There was a time you’d see hockey all over the big E. Consider ESPN probably the most important and necessary step to growing the popularity and viewer ship of the league to the common sports fan. But, if you run to ESPN it may get overshadowed by the other leagues once they return from lockout. Hardcore fans may be a bit disappointed.

With guys like LeBron, Kobe, Brady and Manning out of the picture the true superstars of the NHL will have the world’s full attention. There are some extremely marketable athletes in the NHL just waiting to burst. Obviously Sidney Crosby is the leagues golden boy and has the largest spectrum of broad appeal. Alexander Ovechkin has that spark every one is looking for. He’s flashy, physical and probably the most talented offensive player in the league. Not to mention O.V. seems to live this Rock Star lifestyle off the ice. Of course the list continues with the likes of Jonathan Toews, Steven Stamkos and Patrick Kane.

In the past Gary Bettman and the NHL have really missed great opportunities to market the league. For example after the 2010 winter Olympics where Canada beat the US to win the gold in one of the most memorable and exciting games in recent history, the sport was thriving. But of course the attention brought on by the Olympics in the US was short lived due to the lack of marketing and effort to keep the momentum. Or how about every time Crosby and Ovechkin play, the leagues two biggest stars, there always seems to be a LeBron Kobe match up or a Lakers vs. Celtics game on. I think they need to do their research and plan ahead.

Lastly I think the NHL strongly needs to consider either contraction or moving some of the franchises around. Lets take a look at struggling Phoenix. What is a team located in Arizona really doing? Are they making money? No. Are they winning games? No. Do they have legitimate owners? No.  The only thing they have going for them is the idea that by adding teams in markets where hockey isn’t popular, it’ll help spread the sport in the United States. Thats great, but I don’t honestly believe its really doing that much to help the growth. Let’s look to moving a team like Phoenix to Winnepeg, the former home of the Jets. Hockey is huge in Canada and ultimately will drive league revenues and higher attendance rates.  Placing teams in areas that have a higher volume of hockey fans can really only benefit both the league and players. How about contracting the Atlanta Thrashers, Nashville Predators or Florida Panthers? The level of play will rise and create for a better environment for fans.

What do you guys think? If either the NBA, NFL or possibly both lockout, does this give the NHL a fighting chance to gain some ground and grow the sports popularity? Let me know below in the comments.

This is a video by 5’11” senior basketball player Jacob Tucker from Illinois College. The video was an attempt to get Jacob into the 2011 NCAA dunk contest. Apparently he’s got a 50 inch vertical and from the looks of the dunks this kid is pulling off, I believe it. Unreal. He could “maybe” give Blake Griffin a run for his money. We’ll probably see him at the AND 1 Tour this summer…Wait, is AND 1 still around???

We all have imagined ourselves hitting that big shot with time running down or scoring the game winning goal in overtime. Now imagine that dream coming true, your body encompassed with chills and an uncontrollable excitement as your team comes running towards you as the crowd stands in joy.

That’s exactly what happened to Wes Leonard of Fennville High School. With less than 30 seconds left in the game Wes hit the games final shot to put his team ahead 57-55, win the game and secure the teams perfect season at 20-0. Sadly an ultimate sporting moment such as this turned into a horrible tragedy. The 16 year old hero collapsed just before the team photo. The paramedics rushed him to a nearby hospital where he was later pronounced dead.  This great kid died of cardiac arrest due to an enlarged heart.

“Live everyday as if it’ll be your last. Because one day, it will be.”

That quote is sadly so true. Whether we fail to appreciate a beautiful sunny day, a kiss from our lover, a hug from a family member we far too often take for granted each and everyday. We’ve all taken parts of life for granted and stories such as this can sometimes be a wake up call for us all.

A young kid who had his entire life ahead of him to fail and succeed over and over to grow and experience life will never have that opportunity. We never know when our time in this world will be over. We are alive, we have the chance to chase our dreams, we have the chance to live in the now and make the most out of each moment.

From the sounds of it Wes Leonard was a great athlete, but an even better kid. The Fennville team is scheduled to play in the District Playoffs but thats yet to be seen if they will compete or not. Whatever the team decides we wish, Wes’s family and friends the best with our condolences.

Previously we featured the RunKeeper Pro App which used GPS to track your run among other activities. Now check out SkyDroid – Golf GPS. SkyDroid is an application which turns your iPhone or Android smartphone into a golf GPS range finder . With this app you can get your distance to every green on the course, plus distances to many bunkers, water hazards, trees, and target points. Many of us are either bad or really want to just get better at golf. You know what they say, golf and sex are two things you don’t have to be good at to enjoy. SkyDroid can certainly help you achieve the lower scores you’ve dreamed of and even get a little better.

Features
- GPS Distance to every green
- Distances to water hazards, bunkers, etc
- Satellite view of every course!
- Distance to ANY point on the map!
- Shot Tracking!
- Download unlimited courses
- Map ANY course online!

Honestly I can’ tell you how many times I’ve been on the course and done my best to guess how many yards to the flag. So I just bang away and hope for the best. Now I’m not a good golfer by any means but this application has helped me to improve my overall game. I feel more confident hitting the ball having a better idea of what kind of power I need to have behind it.

The app is very accurate so you don’t have to worry about receiving false information. The majority of courses are available to download and use. If your course isn’t there you can simply map the course on the http://www.skydroid.net website and play from there!

Most range finders such as the SkyCaddie can cost hundreds of dollars. As for the SkyDroid application it only costs a $1.99. You can’t beat it. Truth is GPS devices are becoming outdated. Everything can be done right on your smartphone. SkyDroid is keeping up with the trends and is doing really well because of it.

This is a highly recommended app for those of you golfers out there.

Our Rating 4 1/2 Stars