From The Branches

I was watching Adventureland last night and in between humming along to some great tunes and realizing that Kristin Stewart was that same gal from Twilight, I drifted to thoughts of hockey.  Suffice to say, the movie was not all that great (the soundtrack was pretty killer though...) The summer&

Not much in the way of links gang.  I stayed up late last night watching Fifth Element ("Leeloo Dallas, multi-pass") waiting for more Leafs link manna to fall from the ether...net.  To no avail.  So, in honor of me watching one of my favorite movies last night,

I spit mad lyrics: Burkie Burkie Burkie/Can't you see?/Sometimes your words just hypnotize me/And I just love your truculent ways/I guess its why they're broke and you're still paid I'm still working on it. Links, yes? I have

While your princess was in another castle, an election was called for. Such dirty tactics to oust royalty...I return from Oregon having feasted upon a maple bar with bacon, taken in a midnight viewing of Inglourious Basterds, furiously shoved delicious cupcakes in my face from a fancy bakery with

Remember when this guy wasn't a filthy comic? Yeah, it's true. He was once on a kid's show with Valeri Bure's wife. Now he negotiates sexual escapades with Pizza Man. Strange how things went. I wonder what sick things he said to

The good news is that both bids would keep the Coyotes in Phoenix. The bad news is that they can only guarantee the short-term. The NHL is willing to sell to an owner that would relocate the team and Ice Edge wants at least five games a year in Canada.

Oh what a tangled web Bettman weaves. What is this latest twist in the Coyotes saga? Is the NHL trying to outmaneouvre the bankruptcy court? And is there any tangible benefit? MC79Hockey assures me that there is not but it's hard to see this move as anything else.

Turns out, I have some pretty good friends. I am only halfway to the guy pictured but tonight a friend got me to the hospital, got me ice and a tensor bandage, bought me dinner, while two others drove my car home. Thank God for friends. And toss a hearty

Editor's Note: Our good friend Blurr1974 is taking a hiatus until the season starts in the interim I will be ever present once again. If you have a blog or any links e-mail them to me by 11pm for inclusion in the next day's FTB and

Presented without gilding the lily: * Why the death of the general sports columnist is great for hockey fans. * A double dose of Dr. Steve: New Marlies coaches and a little Our Luke and Saviour love. * Leave a man's family to put him to rest in peace and quiet

via images.starpulse.com This is not a test, this is your morning FTB! It's 0900 hours. What does that stand for? Oh my God it's early (for a Saturday). Here are your links: * The Maple Leafs Annual has arrived and frankly, Junior's face

The last day of the week has arrived.  I love how the unlimited potential of my weekends ultimately winds up looking something like the pic below. Immediately after this shot, the cat lit me up on COD 4 At least it did, before my x-box finally died.  Now it'

It's the Thursday FTB! * Clawson imagines a sadomasochistic pineapple serenading Grabovski. * MLHS takes a deeper dive in to the Leaf Prospect rankings. Thankfully, it's no longer a shallow pool. * ...and TML Nation likes the deep prospect pool themselves. * TSM has the price of Marleau, even more

via ihasahotdog.files.wordpress.com Sometimes, new things can be scary.  Yesterday, PPP graciously reached out to our lurkers.  You, kind lurkers, are the dog in the picture above, metaphorically speaking.  I guess that makes the regulars that water bottle.  Or maybe we're the water that is surrounding

As resident Nik Hagman super fan, I have found some Leaf fan's lack of faith disturbing.  A gentle nudge for those who have wandered from the path of St. Nik. Player Tribute: Niklas Hagman (via Ibanucciani) And, just in case you needed a reminder, the candidate for goal

via i8.photobucket.com Links after the jump... For whatever reason I felt compelled to stick the links below the jump today.  That pic with some of the 08/09 Leafs autographs just seems too important to share space with links.  No offense to the good soldiers who posted great

There is a serious dearth of postings this fine morning so I'll leave it up to you fine folks to ferret out some more. Toss them in the comments and I'll update them after I have watched Liverpool kick off their 20th pursuit of number 19.

This is what happens when you spend the entire day trying to crack Project Mayhem's code. You forget to get someone to write the weekend FTBs so I am back on duty for a limited engagement. If you have any links this weekend e-mail them to me. If

Sometimes it takes an issue of epic importance to reach across generations and unite a large group in to action.  Be it a war, a social issue or sometimes, it's something even worse. History, being made... * The Truthulence wants everyone to do their part to ensure the Leafs

...to get your morning started right. Mike Richards becomes erased. * Discussed in some detail in yesterday's FTB, Steve takes a deeper dive into the back ups vs. starters argument. * The Old Guys in Blue and White are back with something to think about before your next jersey purchase.

As a few of us discussed yesterday, there are a few"dark horse" teams in the East this season.  Why can't the Leafs be one of them?  How much better is the rest of the conference that we should resign ourselves to another season of losing?

Sleepy.  So sleepy... * TML Nation kicks off he day with Nazdaq.  He's smooth, a born leader, insanely talented.  Shall we add role model to his growing list of superlatives? TSM asks the question we all forgot about.  Kaberle: Should he stay or should he go now?  Tick tock

The man, the myth, the legend; these are the things you may be reading about Justin Pogge in the main stream media. None of them are true. Today's collection of links looks at every aspect of the Pogge deal, ad nauseum.  Enjoy the final farewell. Fans telegraph Justin

I can't believe what a bunch of nerds we are. We're looking up "money laundering" in the dictionary. Your links. Short and sweet, buttercup; * Please welcome to the Barlikosphere TML Nation. And now for some thoughts on The Vesa. * Jared of London with Stempnisquatch.

Such a busy week. Twitter crashed and Facebook went down as well. Uncle Bill got the journalists sprung free. And Obama shared cupcakes with the press. John Hughes died. Oh. AND IT WAS SHARK WEEK. As for hockey? Still not a whole lot on the hockey front. Let's