I tend to agree with your partner - scene 6

Here's the latest update for Tomb of the Undead - sorry it's been a while, but of course with the holidays there is a lot of traveling and visiting. I've had this week off, so I have had a chance to catch up with this project.

I tend to agree with your partner

I hope you enjoy the next scene - I hope you find the story moves forward fast enough.

Tomb of the Undead - No guts, no glory

After the last scene was so long - this one is tight and brief. It's called "No guts, no glory," and is pretty simple (though, the next scene will be a little longer, too).


So check it out - and if you missed the update of the scene from before - see it first, at this link (The Relics of Lazarus).

Tomb of the Undead - The Relics of Lazarus

It's taken a long, long while - but I've finished the next scene for Tomb of the Undead. So, please, follow the link and check it out.


Check out the new update here. Once again, you can click on the top, right-hand corner to "Follow" along, which just shows me that you're interested - and leave a comment or a thought if you'd like. I'd like that.

All-Draft Teams - 1985

It's been a while since I've done an All-Draft Team entry - so let's move on to 1985! A lot of good players joined in on this draft as well. (I didn't know that Gilmour was drafted two years earlier than Joe Nieuwendyk - didn't realize he was that much older).

Check the draft for yourself!

The first line: Randy McKay, Joe Nieuwendyk, Wendel Clark
2nd: Ulf Dahlen, Igor Larionov, Craig Simpson
3rd: Nelson Emerson, Brent Gilchrist, Benoit Hogue
4th: Randy Burridge, Robert Kron, Kelly Buchburger

D: Calle Johansson, Steve Chaisson
Eric Weinrich, Dana Murzyn
Billy Houlder, Dave Manson

G: Mike Richter
Sean Burke
Billy Randford

After the 1985 draft, it'll be almost impossible to follow it up with something that will surprise you. However, this draft wasn't particularly strong no matter who followed it, if you asked me. I had to take a few players out and put in new ones, mostly because after reviewing a popular name (like Tim Sweeney) I found out they barely played 200 games at the NHL level. So - they come out of the lineup and we put in someone a bit better. A tough draft this time around.

This team has a great first line that had incredible offensive punch, but lacked in consistency of potency throughout their careers - then the talent dwindles in the second line, dwindles significantly more into the third, and tapers into obscurity by the fourth line.

The defense was a consistent bunch of solid, strong and lengthy careers - with some success, but nothing flashy or offensive to help out the forward lines.

The goaltending is solid, though not spectacular, even though Richter was among the league's (if not the world's) best goalie for a season or two. This isn't a powerhouse, but it is definitely a stable contender through and through.

Among forwards: 11,654 games played, 2,773 goals, 3,509 assists, 6,282 points, 10,187 PIM, 812 PP goals, 432 Game Winners in the regular season.
In the playoffs, 1,120 GP, 276 goals, 324 assists, 600 points, 984 PIM and 75 PPG and 42 game-winning goals.

11 Stanley Cups, 2 All-Rookie teams, 1 Conn Smythe Trophy, 8 All-Star appearances and 1 King Clancy Memorial Trophy.

Among defensemen: 5,804 GP, 495 G, 1,670 A, 2,165 PTS, 7,226 PIM, 185, PPG, 70 GWG.
In the playoffs: 473 GP, 55 G, 125 A, 180 PTS, 753 PIM, 22 PPG, 5 GWG.

1 Stanley Cup, 3 All-Rookie Teams, 3 All-Star appearances

Among Goalies:
2,133 GP, 865 wins, 878 losses, 250 ties, 77 Shut outs
Playoffs: 167 GP, 81 W, 81 L, 14 SO

7 All-Star appearances, 3 Stanley Cups, 1 Conn Smythe Trophy.

Total: 18 All-Star appearances, 16 Stanley Cups, 5 All-Rookie teams, 2 Conn Smythes, 1 King Clancy Memorial Trophy.

The first line of Dhalen, Nieundyk and Clark would have been strong, feisty and dangerous, for sure. A lot of heart and determination in those three guys. The next line has some incredible depth with McKay, Larionov and the second overall pick in Simpson on deck. Yet after this, the third and fourth lines are a bit weak and are absent of star-power. This is more of a Brian Burke team, with top six forwards on the first two lines, and then bottom six forwards on the bottom two lines - however, this is supposed to be an 'all-star' team from this particular year's draft - so not too impressive.

The defense was sturdy and long-lived. Lots of games played for long NHL careers in guys like Johansson (1,109) Weinrich (1,157), Manson (1,103) rounding off the top. No, they weren't flashy super-stars, but they were salty tough fellahs on the back end, which is fine.

There is a real surprise deep in this draft, and I'll explain after the jump.

Draft numbers from 1982:

• W. Clark (1)
• C. Simpson (2)
• D. Murzyn (5)
  
• U. Dahlen (7)
• D. Manson (11)
  
• C. Johansson (14)
  
• J. Nieuwendyk (21)
• S. Burke (24)
  
• M. Richter (28)
• E. Weinrich (32)
• B. Hogue (35)
  
• N. Emerson (44)
  
• S. Chaisson (50)
• B. Ranford (52)
  
• B. Gilchrist (79)
• B. Houlder (82)
• R. Kron (88)
  
• R. McKay (113)
• R. Burridge (157)
• K. Buchburger (188)
  
• I. Larionov (214)

So here we've got Igor Larionov (one of the greatest players from the USSR and the Soviet league, drafted near the bottom of the draft. Only Vancouver had the guts to take a chance on him. Now, it would be my guess that North American leagues would be cautious in drafting a Russia because it would be unlikely that the players could transfer away from the USSR, right?

But Larionov had at least five years of pro hockey under his belt - he was a super player who (if he made himself eligible for the NHL draft) was at least interested in joining the NHL. Why wouldn't someone have selected him sooner on the off chance that he MIGHT make it to the NHL and be great? Why should James Jr. Sandlak (4), Brad Dalgarno (6), Craig Duncanson (9) and Dan Gratton (10) be drafted in the first round?

Then again, if you KNEW that such a quality player wouldn't be selected until the 8th round, I guess you can afford to wait a few rounds before picking him. Oh well, another mystery of the league for every team to not use him that could have used him.

I feel like the '84 team is just too unbalanced, but you can't argue with supreme star power of that first line and in net. You just can't. I gotta rank this team higher than '82 and '81.

Rankings:
(1) 1983
(2) 1984
(3) 1982
(4) 1985
(5) 1981

Player of the Draft:
My "Player of the Draft" from 1985 is: Joe Nieuwendyk. What an incredible record: he was named to the all-rookie team in '88, won the King Clancy Memorial Trophy in '95, the Conn Smythe Trophy in '99, had 4 All-Star appearances, and the greatest achievement is winning three Stanley Cups with three different teams (in three different decades, if you can believe it!). All while maintaining a sterling reputation around the league through his whole career (plus 14 game winning goals in the playoffs, pretty awesome).

Honorable mentions go to Igor Larionov, Wendel Clark and Mike Richter.

Notes of Interest from this draft
One of the players on this list, Steve Chaisson, died in a drunk driving collision after the Hurricanes were eliminated from the playoffs. As Wikipedia says:

On May 3, 1999, after the Hurricanes were eliminated from the playoffs in Boston and returned to Raleigh, Chiasson wrecked his pickup truck on the way home from a team party at the home of Gary Roberts and was killed on impact. According to teammate Kevin Dineen, Chiasson refused to call a taxi or accept a ride home, insisting on driving himself despite a blood alcohol content later found to be 0.27, over three times North Carolina's legal limit of 0.08. Chiasson was survived by his wife, Susan, and three young children: Michael, Ryan and Stephanie. There is a small statue and plaque in his memory in Millennium Park, Peterborough, Ontario, the town where he was raised.

I'll have to go check that memorial out some time next time I'm in Peterborough (on Wednesday, believe it or not - I'll try and snag a picture and link to it).

Also, a Maple Leafs connection to this draft that isn't Wendel Clark: Paul Maurice, one time head coach of both the minor league and major league versions of the Maple Leafs, has the dubious distinction of being drafted last by the Flyers in this draft. Cute.

Talking Heads, True Stories

I have updated the next scene for Tomb of the Undead, titled Talking Heads, True Stories - it introduces us to our protagonists (briefly) and we'll certainly get a chance to learn more about them over the next few pages. I hope you like it. Again, once you've gone to visit, it would definitely make me feel awesome if you clicked on "Follow" on the top right hand corner.

I'm beginning to find that hosting the scanned images up on Blogger is taking up quite a bit of my space limits. For example, I think I've already used 9% of my limit, but I've only posted six pages - and haven't barely scratched the surface of the first act. SO - perhaps I'll find another place (like Facebook, perhaps) to host the images and then just link them from there. Who knows.

Anyhow - thanks for reading the blog, and if you're into Tomb of the Undead, thanks for reading that, too.

Down with Amicable - up with Amiable!

It's absolutely ridiculous to have two words that mean the same thing, be spelled differently.

What's the difference between Amicable and Amiable?

Amicable: characterized by or showing goodwill; friendly; peaceable.
Amiable: having or showing pleasant, good-natured personal qualities; affable.
- and you might be able to throw affable into this equation, too.

So, why the extra c? And what does it add to the word. I mean, obviously it adds nothing to the meaning of the word. It's just a waste of letters, if you ask me.

Amiable's origins:

mid-14c., from O.Fr. amiable , from L.L. amicabilis "friendly," from amicus "friend," related to amare "to love" (see Amy). The form confused in O.Fr. with amable "lovable," from L. amare . Reborrowed later in proper L. form as amicable.

Amicable's origins:

1530s, from L.L. amicabilis "friendly," a word in Roman law, from L. amicus "friend," related to amare "to love" (see Amy).

So - you can see that Amicable is from the 1530s, while Amiable is from the 1300s - obviously Amicable is redundant, dated and useless in the bigger scheme of things. I think we should all go out of our way to eliminate this waste of letters.

Honestly - what's the point in having two words sound alike, mean the same thing, and exist at the same time? It's time to kill one of these words.

Down with Amicable - up with Amiable!

All-Draft Teams - 1984

After reviewing the 1983 draft - and seeing some of the very interesting players that came from there, we can move along to 1984.

Check the draft for yourself!

The first line: Brett Hull, Mario Lemieux and Luc Robitaille
2nd: Stephane Richer, Mike Stapleton, Gary Roberts
3rd: Ed Olcyk, Cliff Ronning and Kirk Muller
4th: Scott Mellanby, Tony Hrkac and Shayne Corson

D: Al Iafrate, Todd Gill,
Sylvaine Cote, Kjells Samuelsson
Petr Svoboda, Kevin Hatcher

G: Patrick Roy
Kirk McLean
Craig Billington

There is some incredible star power in that first line for the team, and of course Patrick Roy is an all-time great goalie in the league, but is a HUGE first line and giant star-power in net enough to make this the best team? I'll argue, no. While this team might beat the others on a consistent basis, it still isn't a great all around team, but rather dependent on a giant first line and a giant in net.

After the first two teams, the defense looks kinda weak comparatively, as well. No doubt, the first two drafts developed some incredible defensemen, but the '83 d-corps is below-par, even for the 80s. But, you can judge for yourself.

Among forwards: 13,645 games played, 4,887 goals, 6,324 assists, 11,211 points, 12,410 PIM, 1,620 PP goals, 640 Game Winners in the regular season.
In the playoffs, 1,380 GP, 468 goals, 538 assists, 1,006 points, 1,433 PIM and 153 PPG and 173 game-winning goals.

11 Stanley Cups, 2 All-Rookie teams, 2 Conn Smythe Trophies, 13 First-Team All-Stars, 2 Calder Trophies, 5 Pearson Awards, 1 Lady Byng, 4 Hart Trophies, 6 Art Ross Trophies, 2 Masterton Memorial Trophies, and 1 Patrick Award and 43 All-Star appearances.

Among defensemen: 5,975 GP, 689 G, 1,825 A, 2,514 PTS, 7,282 PIM, 220, PPG, 114 GWG.
In the playoffs: 644 GP, 67 G, 170 A, 237 PTS, 897 PIM, 23 PPG, 6 GWG.

3 Stanley Cups, 14 All-Star appearances

Among Goalies:
1,973 GP, 906 wins, 726 losses, 234 ties, 97 Shut outs
Playoffs: 323 GP, 185 W, 130 L, 29 SO

14 All-Star appearances, 4 Stanley Cups, 1 All-Rookie team, 3 Conn Smythe Trophies, 5 Jennings Trophies, 4 First-Team All-Stars, and 3 Vezinas.

Total: 71 All-Star appearances, 18 Stanley Cups, 3 All-Rookie teams, 5 Conn Smythes, 5 Jennings, 17 First-Team all-Stars, 3 Vezinas, 2 Calders, 5 Pearsons, 1 Lady Byng, 4 Harts, 6 Art Ross Trophies, 2 Masterton Memorial Trophies, and a Patrick Award.

The first line of Hull, Lemieux and Robitaille is unbeatable. I don't think we'll find another threesome in the history of the draft to make a line like that - but the rest of the forwards just aren't fantastic. No doubt, most of the achievements and awards in this draft generate from those three players - and if it doesn't come from them, then Patrick Roy is reeling in the rest.

This foursome makes this an incredible draft for the NHL loaded with talent, successes and Hall of Famers. Pretty awesome. Incredibly awesome - is it better than the '82 draft? The defense is weak, I'd say three of the lines on this team aren't better than the '82 draft.

In this draft, you'll be surprised to see what kinds of stars are loaded toward the end, yet how much talent was identifiable at the top of the draft, as well. This could be the first draft where the top five picks are on the all-draft team.

Draft numbers from 1982:

• M. Lemieux (1)
• K. Muller (2)
• E. Olcyk (3)
• A. Iafrate (4)
• P. Svoboda (5)
  
• S. Corson (8)
• S. Cote (11)
  
• G. Roberts (12)
• K. Hatcher (17)
• C. Billington (23)
  
• T. Gill (25)
  
• S. Mellanby (27)
  
• S. Richer (29)
• T. Hrkac (32)
• P. Roy (51)
• K. McLean (107)
  
• B. Hull (117)
• K. Samuelsson (119)
  
• M. Stapleton (132)
• C. Ronning (134)
• L. Robitaille (171)
  

Once again - lots of strong defensemen selected high in the draft. Lucky Luc gets picked 171st overall? Brett Hull at 117? That's pretty unbelievable - Lemieux was a no brainer at first overall - just like Gretzky would have been if he ever was drafted. I think Roy at 51 was a pretty good steal, as well. That's like almost the third round, I think.

I feel like the '84 team is just too unbalanced, but you can't argue with supreme star power of that first line and in net. You just can't. I gotta rank this team higher than '82 and '81.

Rankings:
(1) 1983
(2) 1984
(3) 1982
(4) 1981

Player of the Draft:
My "Player of the Draft" from 1982 is: Mario Lemieux, of course

Regular season: 915 GP, 690 G, 1,033 A, 1,723 PTS, +115, 834 PIM, 236 PPG, 74 GWG.
Playoffs: 107 GP, 76 G, 96 A, 172 PTS, +20, 87 PIM, 29 PPG, 11 GWG
2 Stanley Cups ('91, '92), All-Rookie Team ('85), Calder Trophy ('85), 4 Pearson Awards ('86, '88, '93, '96), 5 First All-Star Teams ('88, '89, '93, '96, '97), 6 Art Ross Trophies ('88, '89, '92, '93, '96, '97), 3 Hart Trophies ('88, '93, '96), 2 Conn Smythe Trophies ('91, '92), 1 Masterton Memorial Trophy ('93), 1 Patrick Trophy ('00), 10 All-Star appearances.

Honorable mentions go to Patrick Roy, Luc Robitaille and Brett Hull, but Lemieux trumps almost any drafted player in the history of the NHL.