Michalek took the opening goal. (Photo: Dinur Blum/flickr)

Just when the playoff tides seem to be flowing in the Ottawa Senators’ favor, the Pittsburgh Penguins swept the carpet out from under the team’s skates in Game Four. Throw in a couple of miscalled penalties and there you have a game fit for the Stanley Cup Playoffs!

The Senators seemed to be carrying the momentum from their last win into Game Four with a beaut of a short-handed goal by Ottawa’s Milan Michalek just two and a half minutes into the game. The Sens held onto the one nothing lead until the fifteen minute mark with a Penguins goal by James Neal.

But Ottawa came back one minute later as Kyle Turris sent a wrister past Pens goalie Vokoun to take the lead heading into the second period. Oh but how the second sent Ottawa spiraling down.

Both blows in the second period came in the first two minutes. Chris Kunitz put the puck home a little over one minute into play with Jarome Iginla putting the Penguins up 3-2 for the remainder of the period.

The third period… well let’s just say that the Senators would probably rather forget that this period ever happened. But it did and now the Senators will have to learn for their mistakes and try to take this series past Game Five if they want to survive the playoffs.

The only moment of merit for Ottawa in the third came from Daniel Alfredsson’s tipped in goal in the last six minutes of play. Prior to this Sens goalie Craig Anderson faced a power play goal from James Neal, a short-handed goal from Pascal Dupuis, and a goal from Sidney Crosby.

Ouch. Anderson was pulled from the game after the Crosby goal, though back goalie Robin Lehner still had to deal with the Pens final goal of the evening from a power play goal off of Jarome Iginla.

Before making the trip to Pittsburgh Friday, both the Ottawa Senators and the referees need to take a hard look at their life choices. The Senators for obvious reasons and the refs for one reason in particular: everyone expects calls to be made on the correct team. The reason I say this: a call in the third was made on Ottawa’s Alfredsson before later revealing video review that showed Pittsburgh’s Orpik was apparently the one in the wrong.

Will the Ottawa Senators be eliminated Friday night in Pittsburgh? We’ll find out at 7:30 pm EST!

Santiago was playing for a spot in the rotation tonight as John Danks is expected to return this weekend. Santiago pitched six innings tonight and gave up just two runs on three hits and four walks. He also struck out nine. Unfortunately he picked up the loss since the bullpen gave up four runs after Santiago was pulled. This outing may have kicked him out of the rotation, and it wasn’t entirely his fault.

Brian Omogrosso came on in the seventh and pitched 1.1 innings. He allowed two runs, one earned, on four hits and a walk. Nate Jones came on for an inning of work, and he gave up two runs on a hit and two walks. Donnie Veal finished the ninth inning without allowing a run.

While Santiago had an OK outing, the offense didn’t do much to help him stay in the rotation. They managed to pick up just two runs on six hits and three walks. Alex Rios now has a 17-game hitting streak, and he batted in a run. Paul Konerko had the best night, going 2-for-4 with a home run in the ninth inning. Alejandro De Aza, Jeff Keppinger and Tyler Flowers each picked up a hit as well.

The Sox are off tomorrow as they prepare to face the Miami Marlins. The Sox have yet to announce who their starter will be, but they will face Tom Koehler. He pitched a career high in innings pitched, strikeouts and pitches in his last start against the Diamondbacks, but it wasn’t enough for a win.

Edit: The White Sox will send John Danks to the mound for his first start of the season on Friday. Danks made his last start on May 19, 2012, before having season-ending shoulder surgery.

The Ravens hope to answer some questions this week. Who will replace wide receiver Anquan Boldin, traded to the San Francisco 49ers this offseason? Torrey Smith and Jacoby Jones are the leading receivers, who will be No. 3? The Ravens have several prospects including LaQuan Williams, Tandon Doss, David Reed, Deonte Thompson and rookie Aaron Mellette. Who will stand out this week?

Baltimore Ravens Start OTAs This Week

They also need to replace linebackers Ray Lewis (retired) and Dannell Ellerbe (Miami Dolphins). They hoped to get a closer look at rookie Arthur Brown this week, but Brown had sports hernia surgery and will be out four to six weeks. He is expected to make a full recovery by the start of training camp in late July.

Two defensive players returned to practice this week after suffering injuries last season. Cornerback Lardarius Webb returned from a torn ACL and linebacker Jameel McClain returned from a spinal cord contusion.

Both were limited in practice, they participated in individual drills, but not full team drills. They are expected to return for training camp.

Head coach John Harbaugh is pleased with their progress:

“Very encouraged with Lardarius and Jameel really throughout [their recoveries],” Head Coach John Harbaugh said. “They’ve both done a great job with their rehab. They’ve had no setbacks, so we’re on schedule.”

The Ravens are encouraged with the new look defense this season. The NFL Network’s “Path to the Draft” asked if the new Ravens defense will be better, the answer was unanimously “Yes”.

Charley Casserly believes the run defense will be improved since they have better depth. Cary Williams replaced Webb while he was out, now Webb is back and he is better than Williams.

Who will play middle linebacker? This question will be answered before their first game on September 5.

The “Path to the Draft” believes that the Ravens will spread the leadership around; veteran players will step up and combine forces to lead the team and serve as role models for the rookies.

While the Ravens underwent many changes since winning the Super Bowl in February, there is a new sense of hope and excitement for the upcoming season. They had a successful draft; now we will get a better look at the new players.

I will miss the players who no longer sport the purple and black, but I am excited about their replacements. Change can be good; we’ll see what it can do for the Super Bowl champions.

I’m still not over Totally 80′s Casino Night to be honest. (Photo: St. Louis Blues/facebook)

In an effort to commemorate the many high points of the St. Louis Blues’ roller coaster of a 2013 season, we here at Backes to the Future have compiled a list of our top 15 favorite things about this past year. To see the other posts featured in this countdown, you can click here.

Though this particular moment in the Blues‘ 2013 season took place off the ice, it would have been crazy to not include Totally 80′s Casino Night among the best points of the year.

I mean, I wasn’t in attendance, but I definitely sat home and giggled to myself all night as I saw more and more pictures of the event via twitter. In addition to being and all-around hilarious and good time, all the proceeds from the event went to a good cause: the Blues 14 Fund.

In celebration, let us review a few of my favorite pictures from that night, shall we?

Louie was looking #BearyFancy! (Photo: St. Louis Blues/facebook)

As if Barret Jackman and Alex Steen in wigs, etc. weren’t enough, then you add Brett Hull and Kelly Chase. (Photo: St. Louis Blues/facebook)

Everything about this picture, right down to TJ Oshie’s highlighter yellow shorts peeking out, makes me laugh. (Photo: St. Louis Blues/facebook)

Steen, Jackman and Bernie Federko re-enact a scene from the movie “Weekend at Bernie’s.” (Photo: St. Louis Blues/flickr)

Harvey has deserved to win so many more games (even if this was his “worst” game of the season giving up 4 runs on 9 hits in 6 1/3 innings/he also struck out 6) and the Mets’ record continues to fall far below .500. In fact, this is the farthest the Mets have fallen this far through a season since May 2001. It just seems like nothing can go right for them.

And once again, Ike Davis takes on the spotlight this game with two plays that pretty much cost us the game. First, Davis made an unsure play in the bottom of the 7th on a ball he could have charged and possibly made a play at home to save a run from scoring. But instead he sat back, let the ball come to him, got the out at first, and let the run score. In his mind, he had no play at home. But when you’re playing for a team that’s as desperate for a win as the Mets are, you need to make a stellar play or at least try. I can understand where his head was at. He was trying to prevent the inning from turning into a potentially bigger inning. But he needed to understand that this was a situation where playing conservative would hurt us.

And then came his even bigger blunder in the 9th. With only one out and runners in scoring position with the game tied, Davis let a soft grounder from Brandon Phillips go past the bag, thinking it was foul. But the first base umpire didn’t hesitate to call it fair and for the Reds to score the go-ahead run. It’s just been that kind of year for Davis and for the Mets. Right now, he’s 1 for his last 38 at the plate and 0 for 25 with runners in scoring position. 

If Davis doesn’t go down to Triple-A this weekend, the Mets shouldn’t even bother playing games anymore. They’re just showing the fan base that they care more about one player’s success rather than that of the team. 

Despite the Mets losing yet another game, Rick Ankiel‘s offense gave fans something to cheer for. He went 3-4 with 2 RBIs, one of which helped tie the game late. He’s been a great asset to the team so far and is making the most of his short time with the Mets. Everyone was skeptical about signing Ankiel, including myself, but maybe bringing in a new player with a positive attitude could help a little. It working so far, so we’ll see what happens as time goes on. Check out his game-tying triple here.

WORKING ON OFFENSE IN MINORS:: Collin Cowgill hit a grand slam today to give Zack Wheeler and the rest of the team a healthy 8-2 lead in a Vegas afternoon game.

NEXT UP:: Mets have an off day tomorrow before they start their series with the Atlanta Braves and then the New York Yankees. Jeremy Hefner will try to win his first game of the season yet again on Friday night at 7:10PM on SNY against Kris Medlen and the Braves. 

Goals: 7

Assist: 7

Plus Minus: 3

Penalties in Minutes: 85

Hits: 75

Well for starters, where did this guy come from. I remember when the Stars first signed Roussel I didn’t think much about it, just looking at scouting reports I saw that Roussel went undrafted and was from France, and I personally hadn’t seen much success from French born hockey players. Roussel was signed on July 2nd the same day the Stars re-signed Toby Petersen. In fact here are my exact words from July 2nd when Roussel was signed by the Stars, “Stars add another piece in left winger Antoine Roussel. Likely depth signings for the AHL Texas Stars, since both contracts are two-way deals. Toby Petersen has been with the Stars since the beginning of the 2007-2008 season and tied a career high in points in the 2009-2010 season with 15 points (6g, 9a). Antoine Roussel is a young grinder who can rack up the penalty minutes in his past two AHL seasons with the Providence Bruins and the Chicago Wolves he racked over 250 penalty minutes.” Due to the NHL Lockout, Roussel started the season in the AHL with the Texas Stars where he was a key part in the teams early success, Roussel played in all situations and even on the top six. In 43 games for the Texas Stars, Roussel registered 19 points (8g, 11a) and 107 penalty minutes. Antoine Roussel made his season and NHL debut on February 1st against the Phoenix Coyotes and made a quick impression on all Stars fans everywhere when on a broken play that turned into a breakaway Roussel scored his first NHL goal on Mike Smith. Roussel was able to work in all situations and found himself a nice home on the Dallas Stars penalty kill. Roussel played all three forward positions for the Stars and was a pretty good faceoff man when the Stars needed him to be at 55%. Roussel’s tough and gritty physical play earned him the hearts of many Stars fans who missed this type of player since Steve Ott was traded in the offseason. Roussel also was tied for the team lead in fighting majors with seven. Roussel’s fight card is pretty impressive too as he didn’t just scrap with fourth liners, he often took on big name players on the other team such as: Jarome Iginla, Shea Weber, Brent Seabrook, Chris Stewart, and Zack Kassian. Even while playing in the AHL during the lockout, Roussel was able to draw Edmonton forward Taylor Hall into a fight. Aside from sometimes the unneccessary minor, Roussel was an effective player in the Stars forward rotation and fans should look to continue to see more of number 60 in the future.

Today I will very proudly eat those words I wrote on July 2nd, as Roussel has earned his stripes in the NHL. Roussel is signed through next season and with a new General Manager and a new head coach on the way, we will see how the gritty young frenchman fits into the Stars lineup next season.

See what I mean?  A League Cup winner with Kilmarnock in 2012, Cammy knows all about the demands and expectations that come with being a Ger but this handsome 26-year-old wants to make history at Ibrox. Having already played in the SPL, Cammy is fully aware that life in Scottish lower leagues is far from easy.

We’re here for the Thighlights really. And this Scotland born hottie definitely has them! Capped only once in 2010 for Scotland’s National Team, he was called once more in 2012 for a friendly against Luxenbourg – a reward for his good work with Kilmarnock.

This photo reminds me of Summer and coral. Let’s just take a moment and meditate with this photo and his dreamy eyes. *sigh*

Here is Cammy rocking a ‘stache with those bedroom eyes of his. And in a locker room no less, be still our hearts. And no, I do not have a verified Twitter account to share as of yet but never fear – I have my chihuahuas investigating.

Here is the six foot goalkeeper signing today with Rangers FC. He was quoted as saying earlier today, “It’s been a long time coming for me. It’s great just to be here at a club of this size and a club I always followed as a youngster. It’s just a dream come true really.” Welcome to the fam, Cameron! xoxo

Ugh. Get well soon Anton! (Photo: Sarah Connors/flickrs)

It’s over twelve hours later and I still don’t feel any remorse for the post I wrote last night. Usually I do by now but that’s how badly I think they played. And to hear Torts say “the effort is there”… I honestly just want the season to be over. Which means I expect them to pull out a couple of wins to prolong our agony. As I said, their motto should be “the hard way”.

As for practice today, a couple of good and bad notes. First off, it was an optional practice. I want an explanation of why. I get it’s late in the season (but let’s be honest, it’s really February for these guys) but after a game like last night and their backs completely against the wall, how do you not have an actual full practice today?

The good news is the three guys who missed yesterday’s game, Marc Staal, Darroll Powe and Ryane Clowe, were all on the ice. Clowe, in particular, is a great sign as I was beginning to wonder if he was still with the team. He only skated briefly but even getting on the ice is a good start. I have no idea if any of them are close to being ready but my guess is it won’t matter too much. Carl Hagelin, who was hurt during the third period last night, also skated so he should be fine to go tomorrow.

However the other players hurt in yesterdays game, Anton Stralman and Chris Kreider, were not on the ice. I know Kreider got hit with a high stick and seemed to be in pain. (To be honest, the way he withered around I thought immediately of Marc Staal. Hopefully it’s nowhere close to the same injury.) I would list him as questionable tomorrow just because no one seemed to think he got hit in the eye so he might have just been resting today. Stralman, on the other hand, is probably out per the beat writers and that is a huge blow. I know he got hit by Lucic so I’m wondering if we are dealing with another injury along the lines of why Clowe and Powe haven’t played in this series. Assuming he doesn’t play tomorrow, our defense looks something like this:

Ryan McDonagh-Dan Girardi
Michael Del Zotto-Steve Eminger/John Moore
Matt Gilroy-Steve Eminger/John Moore

(I would move Moore up but I have a feeling Torts will trust Eminger more.)

How does that defense make you feel Rangers fans? Anyone want to play guess the ice time for McDonagh and Girardi? Maybe it will be a blowout for Boston so we won’t have to wear them down for nothing.

Let’s take a look back at the career that gave Brian 939 tackles, 41.5 sacks, and 22 interceptions.

Urlacher Draft Day (photo via: suntimes.com)

Brian was the Bears’ first round draft pick in the 2000 NFL Draft. Coming from the University of New Mexico, there were a lot of possibilities for him as a professional. The positions he had the talent to play seemed endless.One of the more popular lines from Mel Kiper’s draft report that year said: “I view him as either a mike-man or OLB, with his overall physical ability and toughness ideally suited for the second line of defense.”

Bears chose him to fulfill the LB slot, where he thrived for 14 years.

Chicago fans immediately took a liking to Urlacher’s play style and aggressiveness on the field, and they claimed him as their own. His rookie year he recorded 8 sacks and 123 combined tackles. Not bad for a kid from New Mexico.

Over the next few years Brian had some personal issues, like everyone typically does at some point in their career, but it never really impacted his play and it was never anything serious (which is all fans really care about). This was the transition in which he turned into less of a categorized athlete and more of a “celebrity”.

Urlacher walks off after Super Bowl loss (photo via: Chicago Tribune)

In 2007, Urlacher helped the Bears reach the Superbowl in which they faced the Indianapolis Colts. This was their first Superbowl appearance since 1985. They lost 29-17, in what would be Brian Urlacher’s only appearance in the big game. That season he recorded 123 combined tackles and 5 sacks.More recently, fans everywhere started to see the decline in his play as his health started taking hits. In 2009, he dislocated his wrist in the season opener and missed the rest of the season. And in January 2012, he sprained his MCL.

Summer 2012 was a long one for Bears fans. The media provided conflicting reports on his treatment and his rehab, and they provided no answers regarding his recovery.

Turns out, Brian had blood therapy in Germany before his surgery. He played a few games the beginning of the 2012-13 season, but it wasn’t the same Urlacher we were used to seeing after all these years. He continued to lead on and off the field, he had 1 interception returned for a touchdown and 68 combined tackles, but he lacked the spark that IS Brian Urlacher.

Seeing him go down against the Seahawks in December was tough to watch across the league, but especially in Chicago. When it was announced that he injured his hamstring, most of us knew this would be the end to an era. But deep down we also still had a teeny, tiny glimmer of hope that our great Urlacher would come back stronger than ever.

He didn’t.

The contract discussions were coming. Fans were torn. Some wanted Brian to remain a Bear if the price was right, and to support him to the end of his career. Some didn’t think it was worth it considering his health. An agreement could not be made and Urlacher and the Chicago Bears officially parted ways on March 20th.

I won’t get into the “where will Brian end up?” discussion, because this is about his career. And his career is in a Chicago Bears jersey and in the best city in the world.

Although his health has declined more recently, no one in Chicago will every forget the resilient Brian Urlacher that blessed our organization in 2000. For 14 years, he has given us every ounce of his passion. For 14 years, he has helped make our team stronger. For 14 years, he has provided our guys with leadership on and off the field. For 14 years, he has tried to not only improve, but improve all those around him.

To watch the entire career of a possible Hall of Famer is pretty cool. Especially when that potential Hall of Famer is one of our own.

Thank you for all blood, sweat, and tears, Brian. My only regret is that we didn’t get you the Superbowl ring you deserve.

Brian Urlacher (photo via: nbc Chicago)

Last night’s game shows you exactly this. Jon Niese had one bad inning in the first. He had the bases loaded with 2 outs. And the 3-run inning could have been avoided had it not been for Wright‘s error on a ground ball that should have ended the inning. But Niese put the runners on base and Wright let them score. And the Mets went on to lose the game 4-0. Why? Because Niese and Wright were less than perfect in the first inning and of course, the Mets offense failed to show up again. But Jon Niese did not care. It is evident that it’s harder to pitch when you know your team will not score for you, but Niese shut it down after the first inning- striking out seven! Now that’s respectable to see from a pitcher. He picked himself up and made a competitive effort despite that terrible inning. 

This is obviously not a winning formula. But I can’t blame Terry Collins. He’s trying to mix things up to see if he can get guys going. But it’s clear that the Mets are clueless out there. Even when our rotation makes some improvements (and those were limited) and the bullpen hasn’t been THAT bad, our completely nonexistent offense takes center stage. Ike Davis once again went 0-3 and couldn’t come up with RISP. But it’s not just him anymore. Tejada is struggling, hence the constant rotation of the lineup. I don’t know what happened to that line drive hitting player from last season. And no one is really showing much an offensive burst. Do you know what happens when our offense struggles? David Wright starts getting cold, too. And that’s because he wants to be Captain America. That super hero for the Mets. The one that makes everything better, which is completely admirable, but unrealistic. And that’s when he starts changing his swing and striking out more. But I haven’t seen that happen so far. He told the media that he hasn’t been trying to do too much and that is a positive step for him to realize that. He also needs to realize he’s on the Mets and he can’t save us this season, but that’s another story.

SANDY ALDERSON COMES TO THE BOOTH: Alderson talked with Ron Darling and Gary Cohen last night. He touched on the Davis situation and Matt Harvey. Check it out here.

HARVEY PUTS HIS UNBEATEN RECORD ON THE LINE AGAIN:: 1:10 PM this afternoon. SNY. Set your alarm. Leave work early. Do what you gotta do because Matt Harvey is on the mound (5-0) taking on Reds’ pitcher Mat Latos, who also happens to be undefeated. Thank God for Harvey because he’s the only reason I get excited to watch Met games this season. LET’S GO METS! #HARVEYDAY #LGM

Gotta love Facebook memes!! =)