Can Facebook save the Expos?

The answer of course, is no. Facebook cannot save the Expos. That horse left the barn carrying David Samson and Jeffrey Loria some years back. They're gone. Kaput. Defunct. Pining for the fjords, as it were. Montreal ain't getting no MLB team back in the city any time soon.

All that said, a Facebook page is doing its darnedest to keep the memories alive and in technicolour for any and all remaining fans of the team to view.

The page at https://www.facebook.com/ExposNation has a massive (well, for a dead team, at least) fan base of more than 122,000 people and has been posting vintage photos, videos, mash-ups in a balls-put attempt to keep The Expos in the hive-mind of social networking's public consciousness.

Go. Have a look. If you're an Expos fan or a baseball fan in general, some of the imagery is just priceless.

The site is well-constructed, funny, sentimental and even elicits an occasional tear from we die-hard fans of the lost Canadian baseball team (may Bill Lee appear in Bud Selig's dreams as a cross-dressing crack-whore intent on pitching fastballs of hellfire at his nuts for eternity for this travesty!).

Let's all remember the following: Montreal is where Jackie Robinson played before being called up into the majors. Montreal is where Pete Rose was playing when he collected his 4000th hit (yeah, he was way past his prime and in the throes of his whole gambling scandal, but still). Montreal was the first MLB expansion city outside the U.S. Montreal is where "El Presidente" became just the 13th pitcher in baseball history to record a perfect game.

Ah, the memories.

And on a bit of a tangent, but still on Montreal sporting clubs… WTF with the Habs this year?!?! Thoughts/rants/recipes welcome.

The Bigger They Are The Harder They'll Fall

Too tired to rant and rave on the fiasco that is the NHL I begged a pleaded for assistance. And lo, a hero comes. Guest blogger and all round swell guy Joe Bunga to the rescue. My personal take is that since the NHL did not punish Zdeno Chara for his hit on Max Pacioretty, the Canadiens must exact revenge. Here is Bunga's take.

Cheap-Shot Chara by Joe Bunga

Chara

Look, in interviews after the game, Chara said he didn't mean to rub Pacioretty out like an eraser on the end of a lead pencil. However, the not-so-gentle giant made an excuse that Max "jumped" up and therefore insinuated that it was the victim's fault that he smashed noggin' first into the stanchion. Really Zdeno? REALLY?! Hey, tall goon ass, it's that type of "check" that gives hockey a bad name. Forget for the moment that it wasn't a clear "headshot", forget that you didn't try to hipcheck him or just skate with him (and on that note, the puck was nowhere in play, hence the interference penalty... so what the fuck were you doing lining him up for a massive hit along the boards anyway, you big putz?) no, instead you directed him oh-so-gently into a wall. Oh, and if you're going to sit there and tell me from your gigantic head that you didn't know where you were on the ice when you hit Max, then I bet you also believe that the Easter Bunny farts monkeys out of its butt and that Santa Claus is really Muslim.

Y'know, it's cement heads like you that are killing the game. How many parents do you think want to let their kids watch crap like that, let alone consider letting them play competitively knowing their offspring have a good chance of losing a vertebrae or two because some behemoth troll decides it makes sense to play like an idiot?

And to the league officials who decided that neither fine nor suspension were merited for this normal "hockey play", I have one finger for you. it's just a couple down from my pinky. Morons.

Disaster in Montreal

Montreal Downtown Skyline

What can cause all the radio stations in Montreal to halt their regular programming? What can occur that would cause our local TV stations to lead off with the same breaking news story? What can happen that my entire staff stopped working to search the internet for more details on a news story?

Was there a plane crash? Was there a terrorist attack? Did the Olympic Stadium implode? Did the Decarie Expressway collapse? Did the ancient volcano beneath Mount Royal awaken? Did Montreal Island sink?

No. No to all of the above.

The city stopped dead in its tracks because the Montreal Canadiens hockey club made a trade.

Goaltender Jaroslav Halak was traded by the Montreal Canadiens to the St. Louis Blues for two forwards. This event caused the city to stand still.

Is this an unprecedented event? Hell no. Do the Richard Riots ring a bell? Hear about Patrick Roy needing surgery? Or when Roy demanded a trade? What about the numerous times the city cordoned off the downtown core because the Canadiens won a playoff round? Oh, wait, sorry, that was a playoff game.

Montreal is a glorious city. It's cultural and entertainment scene is vibrant. Its sports history is rich and celebrated. Jackie Robinson played for the Montreal Royals. The first non-American based Major League baseball team was created here. Sugar Ray Leonard fought Roberto Duran. The Canadiens have won 24 Stanley Cups. We've won, we have celebrated. Yet the world stops when a goalie gets traded.

Where the hell was this passion when our right to speak our mother-tongue in the work place was taken away from us? What the hell did you do when you were told you could not send your child to an English school? What are you doing about it today?

On trade deadline day earlier this year a colleague of mine left work early telling his boss he wasn't feeling well. In actual fact, he was too upset to work because the Canadiens did not make a trade on deadline day.

How can so many people lose perspective? Our roads are failing. Our hospitals are failing. Only a grandfather clause allows me to send my kids to an English language school. I love hockey. I love my city. But this is fucking ridiculous.