My $port$Center highlight would be them actually showing today's game
live, but hey, its the Davis Cup...hell, it could be the Timber Cup for
Best Lumberjack and they'd pre-empt the game...
 
Anyhoo, that was the single-most exciting game I have ever witnessed,
finally a game that could top the 1989 Providence-Maine Quarterfinal that
went 2OT before Martin Robitaille sent Maine to the Phinal Phour.
I was really ticked off because I started my VCR at 12:55 and went to eat
lunch with my grandmother, returned at 1:45 and saw that I had just taped
almost an hour of TENNIS!  Of course, the footage of Aranxta twisting
her ankle was almost as gruesome as watching Mike Grier's demolition
of a poor BC defenseman in the Beanpot.
 
I had forgotten how annoying Bob Norton's habit of naming every single
player's high school, home town, former team as well as every living
relative whenever he mentioned a player really was.  At least I got to
turn him down and listen to a pair of Joes: Carr and Clark (former asst.
coach at UMaine) do the game on radio, this also allowed me to sit in
agony as I listened to Maine score the winning goal while Lee Trevino was
putting.  E$PN and the NC$$ will definitely be getting some hate mail
from me...and I used to be their biggest fan, too... :(
 
UMaine was able to exorcise a demon with their victory: It was in that
building that Michigan State beat us my freshman year to eliminate the
Bears in the quarterfinals.  Everything about that trip was bad, and my
most vivid memory isn't even of the game itself...
 
While I'm mentioning that season of 1991-92, I recall that the folks
out west spent most of that spring and summer talking about the All-West
Phinal Phour, and the "superiority" of Western College Hockey,now that
its an All-East (ahem, all Hockey East) Title Game, should we
Easterners start claiming "superiority"?  I don't intend to, but it is
food for thought.
 
Did anyone notice that Tom Mees kept talking about the "storied traditions"
surrounding all four teams at the Frozen Four?  Forgive me, but Maine's
"tradition" runs about eight years, when Maine went to BU and swept them
in a weekend set at Walter Brown.  On the other hand, Maine is the only
member of the foursome to have won a title since the days of Disco,
Fanta and 8-tracks.
 
I have a great idea to save Maine and BU money, whoever wins this NC$$
title also gets to win the Hockey East banner, none of this "Co-Champs"
that we've been hearing about. Or we could just call the game a tie and
declare Maine and BU co-champs of the NC$$...somehow though, I don't think
either Walsh or Parker are high on sharing with each other.
There was a good piece in today's PPH (yes, I know, odd that they'd print
something worthwhile) but its a great idea by Pat Borzi for a REAL contest:
"Smilin' Jackie Parker" vs. Shawn (The Executioner) Walsh.  Steel Cage.
Vince McMahon handling the pre-fight interview.  I think that would almost
be as interesting as the hockey game...
 
Once again Grant Standbrook picked the cream of the goaltending crop.
I remember when he was recruiting Allison he called and Karen Fielder,
the head secretary at the time, said that she had never heard him get
excited over a goalie (and when you think about the last few netminders
he had brought to Orono that's hard to imagine) but he was excited about
Blair Allison, and now we see why.
 
Well, its about time for me to head home and tune in the Davis Cup, I mean
the Championship Game.  Good luck to Maine...I'd wish BU luck but since
Jack Parker ignored my attempts in 92 and again in 93, (and Walsh's in 91)
I figure it'd be a waste of time and bandwidth.
 
John Forsyth
 
"We stayed with the (tennis) match based on the philosophy that you stay
with a live event until its conclusion."   - John Krulewitz, a publicist
for E$PN
 
-Its just a shame they forgot their philosophy four hours later...
 
Maine 5, BU 4  OT  (but will it be one, two, three...?)