Five Thoughts for Friday
Are you thinking what I'm thinking?
This week I seem to be thinking a lot about technology and the future of broadcast. Oh, and Mika Zibanejad. He's just so handsome on TV.
1. Is there a funnier Senators-related website on this internet or any other than Bonk's Mullet? Probably not. Additionally, is there a funnier Senator right now than Robin Lehner? No chance. And that's a Lehner Fact.
2. While doing a Robin Lehner winky face twist on the current Senators logo today, I noticed something very awkward about this logo. Has anyone looked at the chin on the centurion? That thing is crazy. How jutted out would this man's chin be? It's so big you could club a baby seal with it.
3. Anyone who knows me knows I'm a video technology nut. I've been thinking this week about screen sizes and watching hockey on them. Brian Burke had a quote recently about watching games on a phone (via Justin Bourne): "Watching hockey on a 2.5 inch screen is simply imbicilic." Do you agree? Personally I can't do smaller than 5", the size of my own phone. That the resolution on my phone is the same as my TV certainly helps make it nicer, but watching on a small screen just isn't as comfortable. I can do it in a pinch, though. I've maybe spent a night at the in-laws' recently watching Lehner make a handful of saves.
4. Further, what's more important to you: HD quality or widescreen? For me it's widescreen. My eyes are trained to follow the puck based on body language, so seeing more of the ice and watching plays develop is huge for me. I personally think current HD quality is good enough for sports, although I'm curious to see it in 4k or above. For those who don't know, 4k is double the detail in each direction for four times the pixels as current 1080p TVs. I've worked a lot with 4k already for movies and it's nice, but is it overkill for sports? Will most people be able to tell the difference? I doubt it.
5. Moving away from my technology obsessions, let's talk about Mika Zibanejad. I know he's struggled a little, but what will it take for this guy to get some decent minutes? Is the team trying to piss him off with fewer shifts so he gets angry and plays with fire? Or are they trying to piss him off with a terrible linemate in Matt Kassian? Because either way, he's pissed off. Hopefully his agent isn't J.P. Barry or Igor Larionov.
Meanwhile, a young Jean-Gabriel Pageau lies waiting in the AHL.