Saturday Shocker -

Hey Peeps and anyone else checking in. A special "Hey" goes out to Hazel Mae.

Well, the Cardinals did the unthinkable - at least to my mind - by walking into Detroit coming off a seven game series against the Mets and slapping the favoured Tigers around by a score of 7-2. Everything pointed to a Tigers win:

• they were well rested and fresh after beating up on the A's;
• they had super rookie Justin Verlander going up against relative unknown Anthony Reyes;
  
• the Cards' bullpen was coming in tired and overworked; and
  
• Albert Pujols of the Cards came into the game at considerably less 100%.

Well, that all meant absolutely nothing - the Tigers took the Cards too lightly and got their cans handed to them as a result. No excuses for this game - but expect the Tigers to come back and even the series tonight.

Tough night in the NHL for our girl -

Hazel's Maple Leafs' lost in a shootout to the Rangers; it was a back and forth game all night and the Leafs hung in there with a team that owned them last year. Jeff O'Neill gave Leaf Nation hope by tying the game up with three minutes left in the third, but the Leafs couldn't finish off the comeback. Mats Sundin, Alexei Ponikarovsky and Darcy Tucker were all disappointing the in the shootout - Leaf killer Brendan Shanahan scored the only goal of the shootout to win it for the Rangers.

The Bruins took it on the chin from the Sabres last night - no word on whether or not Hazel was at the game...I'll check to see if anyone from the yahoo group spotted her at the game. From all reports, the B's couldn't keep up with Buffalo's team speed - but then again, there are only a handful to teams that can keep up with the 8-0 Sabres. The lone bright spot for the B's was that rookie Phil Kessel scored his first NHL goal...Hazel Karma? You be the judge...remember, Hazel did a feature on Kessel on the premiere edition of The Buzz.

The SenaTards scored 5 second period goals on their way to an 8-1 pasting of the Devils.

An all around bad NHL Saturday night for our girl Hazel...

HAZEL'S THREE STARS
Anthony Reyes of the Cardinals shocked the baseball world by shutting down the Tigers last night. The rookie held the potent Tigers' offence to two runs over eight innings on four hits and two walks. A shocker to say the least.

Sheldon Souray scored two goals and added two assists in leading the Montreal Canadiens to a 8-5 victory over the Colorado Avalanche in Jose Theodore's homecoming. My man Johnny will be happy that a Hab got a star...don't count on too many Johnny.

Alexei Yashin, the invisible man of the New York Islanders, had assists on all four goals in a surprising 4-3 overtime win over the Carolina Hurricanes. For those of you wondering, with Zdeno Chara going to Boston this summer - the deal between the Islanders and SenaTards a few years back now stands as Yashin for Spezza. So far, it looks like the Isles win the trade...not by much mind you.

Ok, I'm back at it with my NFL picks against the spread this week. Last week was a forgettable one, so I'm hoping to get back to my winning ways today by going with the road warriors.

16) New England -5.5 over BUFFALO - two teams headed in opposite directions. The Bills are spiralling downward, with J.P. Losman looking like the second coming of Rob Johnson; the Patriots are coming off a bye week and seem to be getting back the swagger they have had in the past.

15) Arizona -3.5 over OAKLAND - last week's loss to Chicago, while heartbreaking to the Cards 15+ fans, showed this team is on the rise. Look for the Cards to smoke the Raiders who can't score and can't seem to stop anyone. Leinhart and Boldin have a field day in Oakland and prevent Dennis Green from spazzing out again.

14) Philadelphia -5.5 over TAMPA BAY - the Bucs pulled a shocker last week over the Bengals, but don't expect the same this week. The Eagles defence is going to blitz Tampa all afternoon and make it a long and painful learning experience for rookie QB Gradkowski. That Chunky-soup lovin mama's boy McNabb will have a field day starting off in good position all day.
13) San Diego -5.5 over KANSAS CITY - forgive me Hazel for I have sinned. The Chiefs have some serious problems - they have next to nothing after Larry Johnson. The Chargers defence dictates the game and L.T. scores two TDs in an easy win.

12) INDIANAPOLIS -9.5 over Washington - The Colts are coming off a bye week, the Redskins are coming off of two embarassing losses. Expect Manning to have a field day and Brunnell to be Brunnell. Colts go up big early and coast to a big victory over the Skins'

11) Jacksonville -9.5 over HOUSTON - Jacksonville is coming off a bye week; they have a few injuries, but their defence is good enough to keep the Texans to under 10 points. Expect the Jags to have good field position for most of the day in this one.

10) Denver -5.5 over CLEVELAND - the Broncos aren't giving up any points and the Browns aren't scoring any. Denver took it easy on the Raiders last week - Shanahan will be looking for his team to come out and pound the Browns.

09) NY JETS -3.5 over Detroit - The Jets killed me last week by only winning by 3 over the Dolphins; expect last week's scare against to instill a killer instinct in the Jets. The Lions beat a struggling Bills team in the Dome - the Jets are a different story.

08) SEATTLE -6.5 over Minnesota - I can't see Minnesota staying close in this one - they can't score and the crowd noise in Seattle is only going to make things tougher on them. Seattle pulled one out against St. Louis last week...expect the momentum to continue today.

07) Carolina +3.5 over CINCINNATI - the Bengals aren't looking like the team that could have went to the Super Bowl last year. Could it be that all the off-field trouble is starting to have an effect on the Bengals? Carolina's defence will keep this one very close and give Steve Smith a chance to make a game breaking play.

06) DALLAS -3.5 over NY Giants - all is quiet on the Cowboys' front, and that can only mean the Tuna has his team focused on this all important division game. The Giants can score - but they also give up a lot of points; if they go down early, expect Dallas to grind it out and step on their throat. Dallas keeps pace with the Eagles with a Monday night win.

05) ATLANTA +1.5 over Pittsburgh - I don't understand this one. The Steelers have been awful this year, one good game against a struggling Chiefs team starting their backup (sorry Hazel) and suddenly they are road favourites? Ron Mexico and Warrick Dunn control the clock in this one against a banged up Steelers' D.

04) Green Bay +4.5 over MIAMI - the Ugly Bowl. Both teams are bad, neither is going anywhere - in a game this ugly, I'll take Favre over Harrington. Unfortunately, you have to pick EVERY game in a pool.

There you have it...I'm sure we'll disagree on a few picks - but I like mine this week.

SUNDAY'S THREE PLAY
Ok, lets try something new here. I'm not advocating that you lay money on these picks...they are for entertainment purposes only - but we'll start with hypothetical wagers. I'll keep track and see where we end up.

Detroit Tigers over St. Louis - there is no way the Tigers go down 0-2 starting off a series with two home losses. I don't know what the money line is...I don't have to, Tigers win big today. I'd go $50.

New England -5.5 over Buffalo - I love the Patriots today. They blow out the Bills and win this one easily. I'd go $50 again.

Arizona -3.5 over Oakland. I like it, but not as much as the first two. I'd go $25.

That's about it for this morning...have a great one peeps!

HAZEL'S SUNDAY HOROSCOPE
Put your money where your mouth is if you believe in what you are trying to do. A great idea can turn into a financial plus if your timing is right. Prepare to do whatever you must to accomplish your goals. 3 stars

Hazel, I hope things are groovy in your world - enjoy your NFL Sunday, production on the upcoming episode of the Buzz can wait til Monday...wait, the Cowboys are playing Monday night and we need the Hazel Karma. On second thought - enjoy your work day!

Song of the Day on Hazelspeeps - I found this CD yesterday, don't laugh when you hear who it is by...its a solid effort. Its not the pop crap she became famous for - its an all Spanish effort that go back to her roots. If you can find it, download - it is worth it. There has to be a trace of Latin blood in Hazel's Filapina roots - she'd dig this one after a couple of tequila slammers (or preferrably a couple of glass of Port wine).

La Parranda - Gloria Estafan

Peesth Out...Buh Bye!