KarateKen

My preseason pick was Dallas over Carolina, and since that is still possible, I will stick with it. Though if I were to update my picks, I would change it. Here are my guesses as to who will win the opening round. East: Washington, Carolina, Toronto, Tampa Bay West: Winnipeg, Vegas, Dallas, Los Angeles They are worth the same what you paid for it, or less, which is nothing. I feel most confident about Vegas winning, and least confident about Toronto, because of their history of messing things up. The Leafs are really good though and played well late in the season. I think they will beat the Senators, though I did almost pick Ottawa. I also picked LA to beat Edmonton. Imo LA has been to most underrated team in the league this year. They have a tough defense and goaltending and can stifle their opponents. It is not the most exciting type of hockey, but it works. There are several series in this round that are very interesting. The battle of Florida between the Panthers and Lightning, and who will win between the struggling Hurricanes and equally struggling Devils? Will the Blues late season surge continue against a Jets team that has yet to prove itself in the playoffs? Don't overlook Dallas vs Colorado, two division rivals and both are excellent teams. Just a few hours until the puck drops for the playoffs. LET'S GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Absolutely. We trained with a cane in Hapkido. Not only can it be an effective weapon you can bring it just about anywhere, including aircraft.

Well done @Wado Heretic

OK...but what if you get attacked from behind and someone has you in a choke hold or a bear hug? If all you know is body punches, you are going to be defenseless.

I carry a Sharpie everywhere I go but never put a lot of thought into using it as a self-defense weapon. In this video it looks like it can be used in ways similar to a Kubaton for some techniques.

We had hanging heavy bags where I trained Krav Maga, but I was not there only a semester, and it was during college. We shared the room with a TKD class, and I wonder if maybe it was for those students? We never used them.

Remember in the old days when Dojos would advertise in the phone book? No fake reviews there, back then you earned your reputation through your students, not some bogus review online.

We have several but I can't remember them right now.

yeah

The following teams got a W in the final night of the 2024-25 regular season. Sabers, Leafs, Penguins, Senators, Rangers, Blue Jackets. and Flames. The playoff matchups are set. In the east its Washington vs Montreal, Tampa Bay vs Florida, Toronto vs Ottawa, and New Jersey vs Carolina. In the west: Winnipeg vs St. Louis, Vegas vs Minnesota, LA vs Edmonton, and Dallas vs Colorado. Fun facts: Every team to win the cup since 2018 is in the playoffs. Washington 2018, St. Louis 2019, Tampa Bay 2020 and 21, Colorado 2022, Vegas 2023, Florida 2024 There are three teams in this year's playoffs that have never won the Cup. Minnesota, Winnipeg, and Ottawa. Will we see a team win the Cup for their first time like we did the previous two seasons? We shall see. They Stanley Cup playoffs are no longer approaching, they are here! PLAYOFF HOCKEY IS BACK AND I AM HERE FOR IT AND SO ARE YOU!!!!!!!!

Have you read The Stranger by Albert Camus?

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I've taken multiple extended breaks spanning from several months to many years. Life happens. Things get busy, priorities change, etc.

Why don't they work?

Josh Allen had an MVP season and was rewarded by the Bills with a six year 330-million-dollar contract extension, 250 million guaranteed. While that sounds like a large payday, Allen could have gotten more money but did not want to further tie up the salary cap, saying that he would rather give the team the best chance to win than make a few million more dollars. His current salary takes up about 20% of the Bills cap. The Bills have been knocking on the door of the Super Bowl in recent years due primarily to the play of Josh Allen. He also has 117 consecutive starts, the longest active streak of any QB and second longest active streak in the league. Looks like Josh Allen will be winning games in the NFL for a long time to come.

The Aaron Rodgers saga continues. In a Pat MacAfee interview on Thursday Rodgers said he is undecided on his future and is not ruling out retirement. Rodgers says that he has been focused on his personal life and has been expressing that in conversations with teams that he spoke with, including the Steelers. Rodgers also was critical of how the Jets handled the ending, explaining he flew from California to New York to have a meeting with the organization, only to be told what they could have told him over the phone, which is they are moving on.

A few of the playoff games that will interest some members here have been scheduled. The Jets and Blue series will start on Saturday, game 1 will be played at 6pm eastern and air on TNT, TruTV, and MAX. Following that the Stars and Avalanche play game one on the same networks. Listed start is 8:30 eastern. Knights and Wild will start Sunday at 10pm eastern and air on ESPN. Devils Hurricanes and Senators Maple Leafs also play on Sunday. Kings and Oilers play game 1 on Monday, at 10pm eastern, on ESPN 2.

Canadians win on Wednesday and are now in the playoffs. They will play Washington in the opening round. All the playoff teams are set. The schedule has not been released yet, but we know the first games are on Saturday. See ya then!

The Wild and Blues both won on Tuesday, and both clinched. Vegas will play Minnesota in the first round. I am not sure how much playing time Fleury will get, but he could be facing his former team in Vegas for his final game in the NHL. It is believed that Fleury will retire after the season. Vegas and Minnesota have developed a little bit of a rivalry over the years. These teams met in the opening round in 2021 where Vegas won in 7 games. I think Vegas should win this series, but the NHL playoffs are possibly the toughest to predict of any major pro sport. I am not going to make any predictions right now. The Blues will play against the Winnipeg Jets, Oilers will play the Kings, and Stars will face the Avalanche. Blue Jackets win again and that seemingly comfortable lead for the Canadians to get the eight spot is now down to only two points. Whoever gets it will play Washington. Maple Leafs won the Atlantic and are the two seed in the east.

It kind of sounds like you are looking to do power slap but with body blows.

We are down to the final few days of the regular season. The Kings and Oilers will meet in the first round for the fourth consecutive year. That is become an annual event. The Oilers have won all three of the previous matchups, maybe this year the Kings will advance. The Kings have had five consecutive first round exits and have not won a playoff series since the won the Cup back in 2014. The teams are actually facing each other right now in Edmonton with the Kings up 4-0 in the second period. Canadians lost 4/3 in a shootout, getting one standings point but missing a chance to clinch. One more point and the Canadians are in. The Blue Jackets slim playoff hopes could be extended if they win Tuesday against the Flyers. All three teams still in the hunt for the final spot out west are in action on Tuesday, and all of them are at home. St. Louis against Utah, Calgary against Vegas, and Minnesota against Anaheim. Austin Matthews and Leon Draisaitl are both at 399 goals, tied for the most goals by any active player under 30, though Matthews is two years younger. Will we see one of them hit 400 before the end of the season? Hockey mood tonight: Cautiously optimistic.

Wild, Blues, and Flames still fighting it out. Wild at 95 points, Blues at 94, Flames at 92. In the east the final spot is now between the Canadians and the Blue Jackets, with the Canadians lead down to only three points. They are still in a strong position though, if they win one of the final two games they are in. Toronto is trying to hold off Tampa to win the Atlantic division. Vegas has won the Pacific and will be the two seed in the west, Winnipeg has locked up the #1 seed overall and wins the President's trophy.

Just a terrible loss for the Wild tonight. A chance to clinch a playoff spot and the completely laid an egg. A 4-2 loss to the Flames, so now Calgary is still in it. Three games left for the Flames, they are three points back of the Wild and Blues, but Minnesota and St. Louis have only two games left. The Wild need to get healthy and fast. Eriksson Ek and Kaprizov both returned from injury this week and they need to get back into their stride quick, same with the whole Wild team. Even if the get in, they won't get out of the first round if this is the best they can muster up. Ugh. Wild goes to Vancouver on Saturday for the second of a back-to-back, Blues are in Seattle. Flames next play on Sunday, hosting San Jose. Not a great night for the Canadians either, they took the L 5-2 against the Senators, and Detroit wins so now the gap is a little closer. Montreal with 88 points, Detroit. Columbus, and the NY Rangers with 81. Canadians still in good shape, but a regulation win tonight would have got them a playoff spot. Habs play in Toronto on Saturday. So who did have a good night? The Oilers. Edmonton beats San Jose 4-2 and is now going to the playoffs.

Should I order a Karate Forums black belt and put my screenname on it, or would that be taking it too far?

Steel Panther - Death to All but Metal