Just Call me Kreskin!

Bob and I got down to the Air Canada Centre at about 6:00pm to meet with Pat and Greg (not Grant) by Gate 2. Greg knew a guy so we were able to get tickets, which are impossible to get for a Leafs/Habs game. The tickets cost us $400 a piece, but we ended up with perfect seats right on the centre red line. (I’m in Canada now and we spell it Centre not Center) Before the game started we decided to make a few fun prop bets. The first one was simply, $100 a man pick the winner and the final score. Greg picked Toronto 4-2, Pat P. picked Toronto 5-3, Bob picked Montreal 4-3… and yours truly picked 4-3 Toronto. Pat and I also made a side bet on penalties, I had Montreal penalties and he took Toronto. That was like stealing, and I won that bet 6-3. Now for the craziness. The four of us also bet on how many total shots there would be in the first period. Bob picked 22, Pat picked 28, Greg picked 25, and I picked 23. With 40 seconds left in the game I was on the number! A few pucks flew by the goal crease, but I ended up picking the exact shot total! Not like that’s impossible, but wait, there’s more. We made the same bet for the second period, and this time I chose 26. With 1:06 left in the second period there was already 26 shots on goal so I wasn’t looking good to win that bet. Somehow, both teams managed zero shots in the last 1:06 and I hit it again!!! People around me couldn’t figure out why I was so excited about the second period ending? They must have thought I was loony! I was crushing Pat in so many side bets that I gave him a shot to get even. First a 50/50 proposition that went like this: who holds the Leafs record for consecutive games with a goal, John Anderson or Bill Derlago? He was going to say Derlago, but then he said that he picked up a tell on me and switched to Anderson- that was the right answer. We then made a bet on the age of the guy in front of us. We asked him to stand up, I checked the back of his hairline to see how much was there, examined his wife for any clues, and then finally made an over/under of 37.5. I felt like I should say 36.5, but something about him seemed mature so I figured he was older. Pat went under in a heartbeat and the guy said he was 34- his wife confirmed. Going into the last period I picked 24 shots but immediately realized I should have said 18. It landed on 19 and nobody hit that one, but Pat won a few more skill less bets from me when he had goals scored on odd seconds to my evens… I knew I should have went odd! So anyway, the Leafs score in overtime so not only did I pick the EXACT shot total in the first and second period, I also picked the EXACT final score of the game! Pretty strong. We then met up with a couple of Greg’s friends, Adam and Avery and headed over to East Side Mario’s for a bite to eat. We got on the subject of pool, and these guys were all pretty good so we decided to head over to Shooter’s, a place I hadn’t been to in maybe 10 years. I walked in with Bob and was telling him that the last time I came here I got hustled by this guy playing 9-Ball. As I’m telling him, the same dude walks up to me and asks me if I want to play! I was thinking to myself, “Does this guy live here!” What are the odds of that? I gladly accept the challenge but explain to him that I’ll need a little spot. Something like 16 points playing 6 red snooker. He quickly agrees, so I further explain to him a few of my “rules.” He can’t use his own cue… oh, and that right hand there, that has to stay behind your back, you can’t place it on the table. What else, oh yeah, he also has to shoot by putting the cue under his leg. It seemed like a fair bet to me, but whaddya know, the guy didn’t go for it. When the rest of the guys got there we played a round robin 6 player tournament for $100 a man. One game of 9-ball where Greg and Avery had to spot the field the 8-ball since there were better than us. In the first set I went 2-3 after Adam made some sick bank against me. Pat P. went on to beat Greg in the final so for the next round both of them would have to spot the field an additional ball. This time I went 3-2 and got in on a tie breaker game where I had to beat Avery and Greg. I made it to the finals against Adam who went 4-1, and we were set to play even. I made the absolute sickest shot on the 8 ball and drained it with perfect shape on the 9. Before I shot the 9 I did a victory lap around the pool room. Slapping hands with complete strangers. Rubbing it in as deeply as I possibly could, lol. Then, justice prevailed. The cocky little punk got what he deserved as karma came back to bite me… I missed it! I might miss that shot about once in 500 attempts. Hey, serves me right and everyone got a good laugh out if it. On the way out the door Adam and I went at it playing Roshambo. Apparently he won some tournament in Toronto and thought he had skillz. I figured I’d school the youngster, but he played it awesome! Opened with rock, what a strong move! He then played scissors, and at that point I knew this kid was for real. I couldn’t get a read and never felt good about any of my throws… kid was in my head, what can I say. I will have revenge though, as I have been practicing my Roshambo skillz all afternoon. I’ll get that kid! All in all it was a great time. Being at a Leafs/Habs game is such an experience. It makes you really feel the Canadian pride in the air. The last time I’d seen a Leaf game, it was the last game played at Maple Leaf Gardens between the Leafs and Habs. I got shivers then, and I got shivers last night.
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