Sunday Notes: Vegas back in it, Bobby Brink to Flyers and why I might get off Twitter

Good Sunday to all. Another fine day in the Denver area. Let’s get to some NHL notes, and my thoughts on Twitter:

• The Golden Knights are back in it. They tied the Dallas Stars in points with a win last night over Arizona. The Stars still hold a percentage points lead over the Golden Knights, and had two games in hand. Dallas has a very important game in Chicago tonight. Actually, the Golden Knights’ best chance at the playoffs might be in catching the Kings, who entered today just two points up on Vegas – and, as I write – have blown a 3-0 lead to the Minnesota Wild. If Vegas can just finish third in the Pacific, they’re in. More on Vegas’ current hot streak (Vegas Hockey Now)
• Well, that didn’t take long; DU Pioneers forward Bobby Brink has already signed a contract with the Philadelphia Flyers and will play for Philly this week (Philly Hockey Now)
• Boston: One goalie, two goalies? Three potato four. A goalie rotation into the playoffs for the Boston Bruins?
• Florida Hockey Now: Seven in a row. The cream is rising to the top. The Florida Panthers steamrolled Nashville.
• Sportsnet: Auston Matthews is the first player since…Mario Lemieux…in the mid-1990s to 50 goals score goals at this pace. Incredible. Maybe we shouldn’t worry as much about Ovechkin getting to Gretzky as Matthews. Toronto is following the charge and winning big games.
• A good story here by Athletic Avs reporter Peter Baugh on Artturi Lehkonen. I liked it (Athletic)
• People who know me know I’m a very, very competitive SOB and I like to always think what I do is the best. And so, I haven’t always been the warmest or fuzziest guy to my competitors. But I want to say this for Baugh: I probably have never seen anyone, in my long, long time in the biz, who works as hard as this kid (I’m 57, I call everyone “kid” now, take it easy). He’s literally at every practice, every media avail, every game that he’s got a credential to attend. He asks a LOT of questions and seems very eager to learn. So, I respect that very much and this is my tip of the cap to him. I don’t do that a lot, but maybe I should. Maybe it’s better to be gracious than an old curmudgeon. Hmm, maybe I need to think on that more. (Before Baugh, by the way, Ryan S. Clark did an amazing job covering the Avs for the Athletic). Hey, I wish he didn’t work so hard. But he does – and good competition always makes you better. When the Rocky Mountain News went away in 2009, it made everybody a little bit lazier at the Denver Post, myself included. There are a lot of really good Avs media again today, including Baugh, the entire crew at DNVR, the Denver Post, Mile High Sports and Mile High Hockey has been much improved of late. I need to just acknowledge this more and stop thinking everything is a damn race to get things first or stick a flag in the ground and take selfies with it, as being the “best” in some particular thing. Why can’t I just relax and smell the roses more? I’m 57, have been paid for my words every single year since 1988 and have accomplished a lot in this business. I have a great wife and son, with a house only two years from being paid off. Why can’t I just relax more and let others fight it out and be kind of a wise old Yoda to them? That’s my goal from now on, but the path might be bumpy at times.
• Which brings me to this: I’ve finally deduced who Twitter is NOT good for. It’s not good for people with a strong temper, who can be easily provoked and who like to argue a lot. Oh, wait, that’s ME. I’m just not sure Twitter is a good thing for me anymore, which is why I’m seriously considering getting off it for good.
• I know this about myself: I’m a nice guy at heart, who wants to be nice to everyone else. But sometimes I’ll come off like a total jackass on Twitter, either lashing back at some perceived slight or just being too much of a loudmouth know-it-all-jerk. I’ve always been very sarcastic and like to, ahem, “bust chops” of people sometimes. It’s part of being 57 and having grown up in vicious, dog-eat-dog, everyone-makes-fun-of-everyone-else playground settings. But my kind of style just doesn’t do very well on Twitter. Many people don’t like it, and I get it. 99% of the time, I am just trying to bust chops, have some fun and laugh about with you later. But I know it doesn’t come off that way sometimes. Yeah, I know the people actually on Twitter is small (I’ve read that 3% of all Twitter users make 90% of all the comments on it. Wow. And, I believe it. I’ve found that it’s mostly just blue checkmarks talking to other blue checkmarks and/or just as an advertising showcase for their stories),
• So, I’m thinking of getting off Twitter. I would no doubt take a financial hit from that, with the lost revenue from lost clicks. But maybe this is just the best thing for me and my mental health? It really upsets me when I step out of line in saying something. It’s like my own form of masochism. I say something I regret, then stew over it for days. “Why are you so dumb sometimes, Dater?” Honestly, most of the time it’s me wanting to come back at some perceived slight, real or imagined. This is hard for me to say in a way too, but I have a form of Obsessive-Compulsive disorder. It’s the “compulsive” part more than the obsessive part. I can just compulsively blurt things out sometimes before I’ve thought things through. Uh, yeah, so Twitter is probably not the best place for a person like this. I was picked on a LOT as a kid in high school (I was 6-5, 135 pounds as a senior, got called “Twig” and just flat out bullied a lot). When I finally did something about it, lifting weights like a madman starting my freshman year of college and getting quickly to up 6-5, 215 and with a mean streak against my old tormentors) I wasn’t picked on anymore. But when somebody does come at me with something, either in real life or on Twitter, it’s like a switch flips and I become the kid who was picked on and now can fight back. Does this make any sense? I don’t know. I’d love to get readers’ input here. Should I stay on Twitter, or get off? I’m trying my best to just relax more and stop being so combative at times. But it’s hard for someone like me. I would love some advice on how to change my mental focus some. I mean that, I need some help here. Thanks for reading, as always. This site has grown tremendously since I finally got up the courage to go it on my own nearly three years ago. I’m grateful for the support, and want to pay it forward now as best I can.