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02/11/2008: "Quick Sports Rant"

Slow sports weekend = short sports rant ...

- Let's hear it for the ER staff at Buffalo General Hospital who, along with the quick thinking training staff of the Florida Panthers, saved forward Richard Zednik's life when an errant skate slashed his carotic artery. The gruesome injury, which occured when a teammate was upended and the razor-sharp skate blade grazed his neck, caused Zednik to lose half a gallon of blood and could easily have killed him. Zednik left a bloody trail on the ice as he raced to the team bench, where trainers worked to stop the bleeding with a towel and hustled him to the always-waiting ambulance for a ride to the hospital. After emergency surgery, his prognosis looks good. Frankly, it's amazing you don't see more injuries like this in as physical a sport like ice hockey ... throat guards, anyone?

- Apparently one-time NBA'er Latrelle Sprewell - who will always be remembered for choking his coach at practice far more than he will for anything he ever did on the court - is having a little financial trouble.

Former NBA star Latrell Sprewell's home is up for foreclosure and his yacht sold at auction to help pay off the $1.3 million he owes on the boat, according to court filings.

Sprewell, who once turned down a three-year,$21 million contract extension saying, "I've got my family to feed," has apparently fallen on tough times.

He walked away from over $20 million because he was feeling "disrespected" ... I wonder how seeing his house up for auction will make him feel. Dumbass ...

- How geeked do you think Dale Earnhardt Jr. felt Saturday night when he won the Bud Shootout - the first event he's run with his new car and team? He wouldn't say it last year, but the pundits did - if he'd had a decent car (or an engine that would last 50 miles) he'd have made the Chase for the Cup. Now he's with Hendrick Motorsports, has the best cars out there and - surprise! - dominates the first event. Teresa Earnhardt and the folks running Jr's old squad at DEI must be growling, but I'll bet somewhere Dale Sr. is grinning ...

- Remember when the AT&T National Pro-Am (Pebble Beach, to most of us; "The Crosby Clambake" to the real oldschoolers) was a preeminant golf tourney? It's fallen to the point where Sunday it came down to a playoff between old guy (46) Vijay Singh and his untested new swing and even older guy (47) Steve Lowery. That Singh had to drop 3 shots on the back nine to force the playoff made it all the worse. No Tiger, no interest, apparently, as many of the top golfers opted to skip the event. That wasn't enough to help defending champ Phil Mickelson, whose 11 on the par 14th sealed his fate. I've said it before - Tiger does more damage by winning than just denying others the trophy. He also denies them the experience of winning, and of competing down the stretch for a real prize. He's the ultimate closer, and the others just keep falling further behind - and when they have the chance to step out of the shadow, they simply blink and cower.