inCommunicado - eric eggertson

Sports writers are sometimes underestimated. How hard can it be to write up a game?

David Shoalts found a good way to measure the impact of the three-day suspension of New Jersey Devils’ Cam Janssen.  Calling it a 12 minute, 36 second suspension, Shoalts multiplies the player’s average ice time per game, multiplies it by three games, and voila.

You  can fill a book and still not make a strong, clear point like that.

Stu Cowan of the Montreal Gazette wrote a similarly strong column recently.  He pointed out that Ryan Smith, the tearful Edmonton Oiler who found himself traded at the last minute, had turned down a $27 million offer, because it was short of the $27.5 million he was asking for.

Smyth tried to make the trade look like a betrayal of his status as a home-town hero.  If he was that worried about it, Cowan writes, he could have taken the deal.

Both writers cut through the crap and make their points economically.  We should all do as well.

Tags: sports, new jersey devils, montreal gazette, edmonton oilers, david shoalts, stu cowan