Damn, here I was hoping for some fireworks to liven up a pretty bland Sunday evening. So, instead of watching the Red Sox kick the living snot out of the Rockies once again, I turned on the Oilers-Ducks game in the hopes of seeing, well, Brian Burke kick the living snot out of Kevin Lowe.
Boy, was I let down.
You see, this had all the makings off a good ol' fashioned donnybrook between a pair of general managers who can't stand to be in the same room — hell, the same country — as each other.
Of course, in their infinite wisdom, the NHL sent extra security to the Honda Center, thereby effectively ruining my evening. Evidently, a clampdown on senseless violence applies to the league's front offices, as well.
I say let them go. Let the hatred show.
All in the name of ratings, of course.
I mean, this is the Oilers and Ducks on a Sunday night, not exactly the type of must-see TV that leads to families tossing elbows for spots on the couch. It's safe to say reruns of Full House torpedoed this game out of the water in the Sunday night ratings war.
About the only drama of the evening came when Burke had to present ex-Duck Dustin Penner, the center of this little tit-for-tat, with his Stanley Cup ring.
No truth to the rumor that Penner got the ring and Lowe got the finger.
In all fairness, Burke is right: Lowe's reckless off-season spending just drove up the market value for middle-of-the-road players, something that the Oilers seem to have an abundance of. It's no wonder Burke is ready to choke Lowe on national television, and I am pretty sure 28 other general managers feel the same.
Last night, Burke had his stage.
It was made for TV. Right hands and F-bombs with the cameras rolling.
Instead, nothing.
Right around what those TV ratings will be.