Kyle Keefe

“CHEMISTRY WINS BATTLE OVER TALENT”

I said this Tuesday night in the Post Game show when the Avalanche beat the LA Kings 3-1 at Pepsi Center, chemistry will outweigh talent the majority of the time. I am certainly not suggesting any lack of talent on the side of the burgundy and blue, but what I am saying is that a strong bond on any given line, is stronger than the best hands or most creative player on the other line. Matt Duchene centers a line with Captain Gabriel Landeskog and P.A. Parenteau. The top line will always go toe to toe with the opponents top line. Last night it was Anze Kopitar and company. Kopitar is a beast and a lot to handle defensively when he’s on his game. He scored 76 points last season and is poised to have similar numbers this year by dominating in the offensive zone with his 225 pound frame. However, last night, if you didn’t know better, you might have thought they were healthy scratches. Duchene’s line, alongside Landeskog and Parenteau, showed  more chemistry, more willingness to sacrifice the body to make the big play. Landeskog got the Avalanche on the board after a gutsy play in the corner by line-mate Matt Duchene. From there, it was a feeding frenzy. Things changed. The ice tilted and the Avs dominated the entire 3^rd period. Colorado scored a couple minutes later on the power play when David Jones went top shelf on goaltender Jonathan Quick to raise the temperature once again inside the walls of Pepsi Center. Newly acquired right winger, P.A. Parenteau followed with a grinding goal near the crease moments later. It was like a switch went off inside the minds of the Avalanche and the goals came in bunches. I believe that kind of play is all chemistry, buying into a system, seeing the effort put forth by the top line, and inspiring those around them. The Avs have a ton of talent, but on Tuesday night, they beat the defending Stanley Cup Champions with something much more important. Chemistry.

The Perfect Vacation

 

I was laying sideways on the couch next to the fireplace, sipping a glass of red wine late Friday night when my younger brother Casey came up with the ultimate vacation idea.

Now, let me preface this first by saying, like any good vacation, you must be willing to fork over a little dough. This is not a weekend at Bernie’s, or a 24-hour slop-fest in Vegas. This is the real deal. But, I will offer two different versions in hopes that the bait will be attractive enough to get the most frugal of fish, as well as the man-eaters.

Option 1 will cost you $1500, 3 days, and 3 friends.
Option 2 is the same format, just a bit more costly. Gather up $5000 and plan on taking a week from the grind.

Both options are simple. The only difference in the two, are travel. The first trip is domestic, the second….anywhere your little heart desires.

So here is the scoop. Gather your 3 friends and stay together on a Thursday night. Share stories, play pool, drink a few cocktails, but don’t get out of hand. You have a big day in less than 6 hours, so save your energy. At 4am on a Friday, you and your posse get to the airport. Everyone is required to have $1500 cash, one credit card, and only a backpack to be carried on the plane. No one is allowed to check baggage, because if you do that, that is exactly what you become: baggage.

With an open mind, you start wandering the halls of the check in counters, looking for destinations and available tickets. From what I understand, there are many discounted fares just before departure so hopefully you can find three or four destinations that will allow you to have some sort of option. After you have found four destination cities, throw the names in a hat and pick one. The idea here is not to pick Las Vegas, New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles. This idea is not ordinary, so don’t make it one. Pick cities like Manchester New Hampshire, Nashville Tennessee, Boise Idaho, and Coral Springs Florida. I know I may have lost a few of you here, but why come back from vacation and tell people you were in New York when you can tell them you were in Boise? Ok, that argument didn’t work, but the vacation will. It feels good to do something else, to see somewhere you’d probably never see unless you had to attend a funeral or go to a cousin’s wedding.

The second option, my favorite, can really get out of hand. Don’t forget your passports for this trip to no man’s land, better yet, don’t lose it while you are there either. You may be calling Bangladesh your new home if you do. Option number two is anywhere in the world. Get to the airport early and really do your homework, talking with the agents, scanning the web, and digging deep to find two or three optimal locations. Again, I advise not doing the standard Scotland golf trip, or the Hawaii get-away. Try something different! How about London to go party with Prince Harry, Sydney Australia, Prague, or a small town in Switzerland? I’m not saying you have to stay in one location either…after all, you only have what’s on your back. Find a few destinations that reek of mystery, throw them in a hat and go!

It’s an idea that has stuck with me for the past few days, and I hope it sticks with you as well.

Of course, if you are anything like me, you’ll probably talk about this for two years with your friends…….and end up taking your wife to Hawaii.

Count Your Blessings

 
It’s not fun to watch the news anymore. Seriously, I find myself not blinking, mouth wide open, absolutely shocked with what’s going on in the world. The first fifteen minutes of every newscast is brutal. Fiscal cliffs, murder-suicides, the crisis in the middle east, lockouts, massive storms, and heartbreaking stories about abducted children. It makes it difficult for me to lay my head on the pillow, close my eyes, and fall asleep with all of these horrific things happening around us.

So what are we to do? How do we change this world? Let’s be honest, we can’t change the economic crisis here in our own backyard. We can’t! That’s for the lobbyists, senators, and elected officials to sort out. How can we convince the people in the middle east that war is not the answer? How can we stop people from carrying weapons into shopping centers and unleashing  horrible attacks? Certainly we can raise awareness and try and prevent these kinds of events from happening through education…but we can’t stop tonight’s news from happening! What will it be tonight? I am sure there won’t be much to smile at before the first set of commercials, let’s put it that way, and the frustrating part, we can’t do anything to stop it. That’s life.

So here is what I have decided to do. Starting today, I am not going to turn my cheek or ignore the news, I am going to accept it for what it is, and then create my own headlines in life by sharing something positive. I am going to smile more, compliment my friends, open doors for strangers, tip an extra buck or two, whatever it takes to make “my world” a little better.

Too many times we leave the house without kissing our kids or hugging our partners, not knowing what lies out there for us on that particular day. What if something should happen? There would certainly be regrets. Let’s not allow that to happen. Let’s remind ourselves to love our family and friends by showing affection and telling them what they mean to us. Let’s pick up the phone and mend a broken friendship instead of ignoring it for another day.

I have a beautiful little girl named Quincy and the most amazing wife in Dana. My little cubicle here at work is covered with pictures of both of them. Often I sit here and stare at the photos and ask myself, “Where has the time gone?” A picture of my wife from 3 years past at the Race for the Cure, just one year after she was diagnosed with breast cancer. My little angel sitting on Santa’s lap, unable to move because she’s just 5 months old…now almost 3, and is an unstoppable force running around the backyard moments before I take her to school. A picture of my old dog Maddie, who died 2 years ago. This little space is more than just a cubicle filled with pictures, these are my stories and my memories.

So instead of buying into the news, I am going to make my own. I am going to appreciate what I have right now.  Every person is different, situations and lifestyles are all unique. Some people have fancy cars and houses, while others struggle to afford groceries. Some people have a lot of friends, and others have none. But there is one thing that we all have in common: how we treat our own lives.

Let’s be grateful today. Count your blessings…you might be surprised by all that you have~

Phillip Rivers took his own medicine

Did you see what I just saw? Up 24 points, laughing, high-fiving security guards, raising his arms in triumph. Not So Fast PHIL! Remember who is on the other side of the field.

In the first half, yeah, you kicked our butts. Gloat all you want in the locker room at halftime, but don’t forget about the eye in the sky, the 20 million people also watching the football game.

Who’s laughing now?

As the new host of The All Sports Summit, I want to bring the fan perspective into the sports we care about. I know what you were doing when the Broncos fumbled for the second time in the first 10 minutes of the first quarter. I know what you were screaming at the television. I know that you switched over in disgust to watch the MLB Playoffs….for a moment, but I know you switched back, glued to every play that followed. Why? Because I am you.

Watch the All Sports Summit every Wednesday at 6:00pm and 10:30pm to see our reaction to what the Broncos did on Monday Night Football. Plus we cover the CU/CSU debacle in college football, Role Play as Norv Turner and John Harbaugh, and Moser wears a Pink Pony T-shirt because he can’t pick a fantasy team to save his life.

Go to your DVR and start recording The All Sports Summit. It’s worth it.

In This Photo: Takeo Spike, Demaryius Thomas

Demaryius Thomas #88 of the Denver Broncos runs the ball against Takeo Spikes #51 of the San Diego Chargers in the first quarter during the NFL game at Qualcomm Stadium on October 15, 2012 in San Diego, California.

( October 14, 2012 - Source: Harry How/Getty Images North America)

AVAHOLIC Season ticket package

If you’re looking for the best deal money can buy….look no further….nothing compares to what the Colorado Avalanche have to offer….

Let’s start with the AVAHOLIC Season ticket package….it’s as simple as this…..YOU BUY 2 FULL SEASON TICKETS….YOU’LL RECEIVE 2 MORE TICKETS FOR AS LOW AS $12 BUCKS PER SEAT….PER GAME

12 DOLLARS PEOPLE!!!!     THAT’S LIKE 3 GALLONS OF GAS….YOU KIDDING ME? GET INTO THAT ONE FAST….

NEXT UP….THE 14 GAMER’S….THESE ARE PRETTY SICK TOO….HOW ABOUT THE POWER PLAY PACK?

WHEN YOU BUY THIS BIG DADDY…YOU GET 14 OF THE BIGGEST GAMES OF THE YEAR….INCLUDING…THE TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS……….THE NEW YORK RANGERS…….THE BOSTON BRUINS….THE CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS….OH AND LETS NOT FORGET THE DETROIT REDWINGS….NOT ONCE….EH UH…..TWICE!! YOU HEARD ME…THE DIRTY RIVALRY WITH THE WINGS….TWICE….OH AND WE’LL THROW IN OPENING NIGHT FOR FREE WITH A FREE A-BASIN LIFT TICKET….THAT’S THE POWER PLAY PACK…

 

NOW IF YOU ARE MORE OF A “I GOTTA WORK DURING THE WEEK……KIND OF FAN”…NO SWEAT…HERE COMES THE WEEKEND WARRIOR PACK…KISS REALITY GOODBYE FOR A WHILE…AND SPEND THE WEEKEND AT THE RINK….SAME DEAL AS THE POWER PLAY PACK…OPENING NIGHT….IT’S ON US…AND THEN YOU GET ALL THE ROWDINESS OF THE WEEKEND CROWDS AT PEPSI CENTER WITH GAMES LIKE THE MONTREAL CANADIENS…..THE BUFFALO SABRES….THE NEW YORK RANGERS….THE REDWINGS….AND YES…THE DEFENDING STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONS….THE LA KINGS…14 GAMES ON THE WEEKEND PLUS OPENING NIGHT AND A FREE LIFT TICKET TO A-BASIN….

3 great packages to cool down your hockey cravings….The best Season Ticket package on the planet…or choose from the 14-game packs….The Power Play…or the Weekend Warrior…..the choice is yours!

As always…if you see me at the rink…stop by and talk some hockey~

Did you make your bed today?

Seriously. Did you?

One day at my favorite little watering hole, a place called Extra Innings, I sat next to my friend Joey Chambers. We were talking about the Olympics, golf rounds and sipping on our beers when Joey paused and said without hesitating, “You know Kyle, my mom once told me, Joey, if you don’t do anything all day, just make your bed. That way, you can say, I did something today.” I cackled out loud from the sure randomness of the outburst, but it got me thinking as we continued to chat…Did I make my bed today? The answer is no.

When you’re little, your parents warn you to make your bed, or else! Seems like I did it every day growing up until I hit puberty and had much bigger issues on my plate, like why did my voice sound like a wounded duck, and what was all this stuff growing under my armpits, but until then, I always made my bed. So, why did I stop? Think how nice is it to climb into a warm bed, where the pillows are all fluffed up and you have to kick the corner of the sheets out from your ankles before you settle in. It’s nice. It makes it easier to sleep. I hate getting into bed when the sheets are as tight as a rope, all wound up, pillows on the floor, the corner of the mattress sheet half off as your face lays exposed on the mattress tag. It’s miserable.

I took a lot from what Joey Chambers said that day. If you do one thing all day, just make your bed. If you think about it, it really gets you off to a good start. It’s like having a bowl of oatmeal instead of biscuits and gravy. It’s like making your 3-foot gimmee putt instead of scooping it away and giving yourself a par. It’s like holding the door open for the guy at the gym that you despise, instead of letting it slam on his face. It’s the little things that get you started off on the right foot, and by making your bed, aren’t you saying to yourself, “I’m going to be better today.”?

It is so cliché to talk about one day at a time, but it’s true. We only are going to have this day, once. It will never come back, it’s in the books. So ask yourself, before you ever get it started, what are you going to make of it? Are you going to slide by, squeeze through the turmoil at work, run the red light, take the last slice of pizza, pretend you don’t hear your wife calling in the laundry room, and steal all the covers before anyone can see? Or will you do the opposite today? Try making your bed, and see how it turns out. After all, you made your bed, sleep in it.

“I’m tired of the real world….bring on Fantasy Football please”

So I bought my first magazine for Fantasy Football on the 4^th of July weekend. Might as well throw that thing away. Since then, there have been about 8 different convictions, suspensions and blown knees. All that studying and reading up on my sleeper picks can be flushed straight down the toilet. So much has changed already and we just only started Training Camp 2012.

You can sit on any bar stool in America and argue that Aaron Rogers should go before Arian Foster. Or maybe your cup of tea is a little slice of “Rice” from Baltimore. Whoever you think should go number 1 overall, chances are, you’re not getting that pick anyway, so start studying. I’d like to give you five pieces of advice for your upcoming draft(s).

Number 5. Read first. Don’t be the guy that takes Maurice Jones Drew with the 5^th pick. He will still be in Montego Bay drinking umbrella drinks with his friends. You’d have better luck taking a free agent kicker.

Number 4. Stay away from Rob Gronkowski. I know he had 18 touchdowns, but he also had 36 drinks in da’ club the night they lost the Super Bowl. He’s a loose cannon with a loose ankle.

Number 3. No dancing. Victor Cruz and Steve Smith, NO SOUP FOR YOU! Yes, Cruz had 9 td’s and over 1,500 yards, but anyone who dances in front of Matt Lauer during the summer is sure to blow a wheel. Steve Smith is 49 years old. Enough said.

Number 2. Pick Peyton. Yes I said it, take number 18. If you are in a situation where Rodgers and Brees are gone, take PFM. John Elway said there is no Plan B. I believe him.

And the Number 1 piece of advice I can give you for your upcoming Fantasy draft…. Don’t start drinking at 3:00 if your draft starts at 7:00. Watch the movie Barfly. It doesn’t end well.

Nuggets in 6

Hey, let’s be honest…I can’t dunk. I can barely touch the rim. I mean, ok, why lie? I can barely touch the net. As Ty Webb said in the locker-room at Bush Wood Country Club, “You’re not a…you’re not good.”

I’m a hockey guy pulling for the Nuggets. We all should be pulling for the Nuggets. We deserve this. I will spare you with all the statistics and matchups between “Bigs” and guards in transition for one reason: You definitely know more about this than I do. But I do have an opinion on us versus them, the people, the fans.

People in L.A. are just too busy to be bothered by all this Playoff stuff. They have shopping to do, friends to meet for coffee, phones to answer, non-stop texting, appointments with their trainer…places to be…places to be seen. I’m biased towards Coloradans. I love us. We work hard, we play hard, and more importantly as sports fans, we cheer hard. People in L.A. just want to go to the game to see who’s in the front row. It’s the place to be, the thing to do. Fans here in Denver go to the game because they bleed baby blue and gold. They have followed this team through thick and thin. A Round 1 upset over the Lakers is on the menu and these people are starving.

Kobe has won 5 Championships. Good for you. Kobe has a gazillion dollars. Good for you. Kobe’s jersey sales are through the roof. Good for you. Kobe is going down. Good for us. The Nuggets are built on character and teamwork. I once heard George Karl say something like this, “Why have one big super star, when you can have six or seven that are top 10 players at their position?” That means a lot and I think people here in Colorado can relate to that kind of unselfish mentality. The Nuggets want to win by committee, not by the standards of one superstar. Don’t you feel like they have earned this opportunity to hammer the Lakers? It very easily could have been the Thunder and maybe even the Spurs, but an 8-2 stretch to finish the season led them to La-La-Land. It’s destiny.

During the regular season the Lakers won 3 of the 4 matchups by an average of 5.5 points in those games. Does it matter? No. Could you believe it when the Green Bay Packers lost to the New York Giants in the Playoffs after going 15-1 in the regular season? What about the Vancouver Canucks getting wiped out in 5 games to the 8^th seeded L.A. Kings this year? Or how about Duke and Missouri losing early during March Madness?

It happens. Upsets, they happen all the time. Ask 10 NBA analysts around the map who they think is going to win the Nuggets-Lakers series and I’ll bet 9 will take Los Angeles. Ask 10 hockey nerds like myself the same question and it’s a landslide for the Nuggets. We want the good guys, the under-dogs, the ones who worked their butts off to get here, not the self absorbing snobs that promote their own brands and count on their fingers every time they win a trophy. My guess is, a much bigger power takes over here in this series and for once, the good guys will finish first. As Clubber Lang said, “Prediction? Pain.”

Nuggets in 6.

Stepping Out of My Comfort Zone

Why did I agree to do this?

My mouth had run dry. Not a sign of spit anywhere. I was completely dizzy sitting in the corner of the ball room next to the other dancers. For weeks, I had rehearsed this dance with my partner Cara Cooper, but for some reason, now I was a drawing a nauseating blank. Restless leg syndrome would be a kind way of describing my lower extremities. Pale with shades of green, on the verge of throwing up, might be more accurate. There were a total of 6 dance routines between partners, we had drawn the 3^rd slot, which seemed advantageous earlier in the night. Let two others dancing duo’s go up on stage and get things warmed up before we shocked them with our rendition of “free-style” dancing to a song from Pitbull. After all, it was a crowd full of people supporting the Colorado Ballet. The only time they’d heard of "Pitbull", might have been on the 10 O’clock news for biting a neighbor’s leg. This was no place for a Rap song, and certainly the wrong time for me to be having a full blown anxiety attack.

So there I was, in front of 250 people, standing with Cara on stage waiting for the music to start. I know pressure. I practically live in front of the camera, but this was different. If you screw up on television, you fall back on instinct and roll with it as a natural progression of conversation. Being “real” on T.V. is allowing yourself to be seen and heard as you are. There is something refreshing about relating to a story-teller. You want your audience to feel your passion, the anger and emotion and if somewhere along the way you stumble, you pick yourself up and continue. When you are dancing, if you fall, you flop. Hard. Everyone in the room feels your embarrassing pain, your overwhelming sense of humiliation. You don’t just pop up and continue, you pull yourself off the stage, and peel your way under the chairs like a tired old slug and grab the first cab that will help you off the cement.

I took one deep breath, smiled and let it rip.

As it turned out, the dance was perfect. We nailed it. The people spoke with their pocket books and Cara and I raised almost $16,000 with our formidable moves and playful style. We won the contest by raising the most money and as I said to her after the fact, “We had the most fun…and it showed.”

Was I overwhelmed by the moment? Maybe. Did it work out? Sure, I guess. At the end of the night, I was proud of what we did for one reason, we didn’t back down. We accepted the fact that failure was an option, it always is when you take risks, but I’d rather fail, than never try at all.

I’ll be back next year.

If Peyton is a hockey fan…he came to the right town

So Peyton, you’re here for the next 5 years, right? 

Ok, well, I know you’ll be busy at the bank for the next day or two, but when you get a chance, you might want to head down to 1000 Chopper Circle.

No, I don’t know much about Tennessee football, or hosting Saturday Night Live, or holding the Lombardi trophy standing next to Jim Nance, but I have seen what one gigantic steel cup can do to a city.  It’s Anarchy P-Money.  Can I call you P-Money?  No?  Ok, well Mr. Manning, will you do me a favor?  Will you go catch a hockey game in the next two weeks?  I think you might enjoy it, after all, you have some fans here in Denver now and I think they’d all like to see you in a burgundy and blue sweater kicking back with a cold one and watching this insane run for the Playoffs unfold.

What’s that? 

You’re kinda busy right now? 

Cool brutha, I get it.  Can I call you brutha?  No?  Ok, well cool Mr. Manning, I get it.  Give me a high five!  No…you don’t like that?  Ok.  Well what do you know about the hockey team here in Denver?  Not much huh…hmmmm, well let me just give you the inside scoop.

We are the youngest team in the NHL.  Gabriel Landeskog is 19 years old, he’ll probably win a trophy called the Calder.  That’s pretty good if you were wondering.  Oh, and he loves to tweet.  Do you tweet?

OKAY…come back here!  I’m not done with you just yet.  Boy, you are a busy guy. 

Ok, I will make this quick.  We are good Peyton, really good.  We’re probably the fastest team in the NHL.  We have two goaltenders that can stop flies from going in the net.  They’re on fire.  We’ve won 10 of our last 14 games.  We’ve got some nastiness on this team as well, guys that can rip your face off and score in the same shift.  I know Jeff Saturday is a big guy, but he wouldn’t stand a chance fighting one of these guys on two skates. 

Is Jeff Saturday a cool guy?  (Crickets)……Ok, so anyway, this team is awesome.  Do I sound like Chris Farley from Saturday Night Live?  You were great on that show…remember when you did that funny commercial with the kids on the football field for United Way? 

That was awesome. (Crickets)……

Yeah, so anyway, this team is stacked with young talent Peyton.  Guys like Matt Duchene, Paul Stastny, Ryan O’Reilly, Jamie McGinn, Steve Downie and David Jones.  There is only a handful of games left and the team is in a dog fight for one of the final playoff spots in the Western Conference. 

There are only 4 games left here at home too, so if you need tickets let me know.  I bet you could probably……yeah never mind, you can get tickets.

So, anyway, if you have a chance, go see a hockey game.

Hey, one other thing….(Mile Hi Salute).

You might want to learn that.

Landeskoging!

Look out Tim Tebow…(and not for #16) Gabriel Landeskog is taking Denver by storm.

Have you ever had the flu? It’s horrible. Your body hurts, your stomach is flipping, and your best friend is a porcelain mirror. Most people choose to lay in bed and watch “The Price is Right” followed by endless of hours of bad re-runs like “The Goonies” or “Fletch Lives”. Not #92. Nope. You know what he did? He put on the sweater, literally decided to sweat it out, and scored the game-winner in Overtime against the Anaheim Ducks on Monday Night.

No big deal. Just another day in the life of a rookie in the NHL. Or is it? Is it a Calder-“esque” type of year for Landeskog? I think so.

The trophy is named in honor of Frank Calder, the former President of the National Hockey League from its inception in 1917 to his death in 1943. After Calder's death in 1943 the trophy was re-named the Calder Memorial Trophy. It’s given to the rookie of the year, the player that has the biggest impact on his team and in the National Hockey League. Some of the former winners of this trophy include Ray Bourque, Peter Stastny, Mario Lemieux, Martin Brodeur, Peter Forsberg, Alexander Ovechkin, and Evgeni Malkin. Last time I checked, they all turned out to be pretty good players in the NHL.

“Tebowing” was fun. I admit it, I did it on the streets of Las Vegas for an entire weekend until Tom Brady drove 80 yards in the first two minutes of their Playoff game. It wasn’t quite as funny after that. However, people from all over the world were doing it, because of the heroics that Tim Tebow provided as the quarterback for the Denver Broncos.

Don’t look now, but Gabriel Landeskog is doing the same thing. He’s tied for the rookie lead with 19 goals. He leads all rookies with 235 shots on goal, his +20 rating keeps him on the ice in all situations (power play or penalty kill) and he now has 4 game winning goals.

So next time you’re on the streets of downtown Denver, in the Pepsi Center concourse, in your living room watching the game, or grabbing some coffee in the office, join me, and do some Landeskoging!