Paranoia. Anxiety. Panic. Dread. Fright. Any other weekend that might read like a Psych 101 checklist. But this weekend, with Halloween scaring up the fear of Freddy Krueger in everyone, the real villains visit Denver.
The Monsters are due on Blake Street, and “boo” takes on multiple meanings.
At the Pepsi Center on Saturday, big, bad Todd Bertuzzi and the Vancouver Canucks take on the Avalanche for the second leg of a back-to-back boo-filled series. Bertuzzi, who was ready to continue his attack on Steve Moore until players pulled him away that night on March 8, 2004, is back collecting a check from the Canucks. Meanwhile, Moore still is recovering from fractured neck vertebrae and a concussion and has not returned to the NHL.
At Invesco Field, Terrell Owens will scare up the Broncos’ secondary when the Philadelphia Eagles take on Denver at 2:15 p.m. Owens, who is tied for the lead in the NFL with 44 catches, has paced the Eagles to a 4-2 record with 609 yards and five touchdowns. Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey, limp hamstring and all, will be assigned to keep T.O. in check.
WEAK IN REVIEW
1. As reported in Wednesday’s Denver Post, officials with the Metropolitan Football Stadium District have discussed a possible name change for Invesco Field at Mile High. Invesco Funds Group, the stadium’s namesake, doesn’t exist anymore after the name was phased out last year. And the stadium clings to the cumbersome, clinical name simply because the former Invesco company still holds the rights. In other words, it’s kind of like the Broncos still wearing those vertical socks from 30 years ago just because someone forgot to do the laundry.
2. Former Colorado Rockies’ shortstop Juan Uribe, traded in 2004 because the team grew impatient with his inconsistent play in the field, made the final two outs – including a diving play into the stands to catch a foul ball – in Chicago’s sweep of Houston to win the World Series. Meanwhile, the Rockies perpetual “five-year plan” has no end in sight.
WHAT WE’D LIKE TO SEE
Theo Fleury, one of the more colorful Avalanche players, continues to wow fans of the small team in Belfast, Northern Ireland, for whom he plays. He scored three goals and four assists in his first game.
THE COUCH
On: Let it never be said Sonny Lubick doesn’t have a flair for the dramatic. The coach gave ESPN2 the perfect story line for its national broadcast of the Colorado State-New Mexico game at 6 p.m. today. Lubick, who led the Rams to a 39-31 win over Wyoming last week in Fort Collins, will be going for his 100th school victory at University Stadium in Albuquerque. He could become the second coach in CSU history to pass the century mark after Harry Hughes, who went 125-93-18 from 1911-41. The Rams (4-3, 3-1) could get a leg up on the Lobos (5-3, 3-2) for second place in the Mountain West Conference.
Off: Freak out at full speed with three Halloween-themed races. Friday’s Scream Scram, a costumed 5K run/walk and 100-meter sneak for kids at 6 p.m. at Washington Park in Denver will benefit the National Multiple Sclerosis Society; the 23rd annual Eerie Erie, a 10K/5K, will meet at Erie Middle School at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, then race around town; Sunday’s Transylvalley Trot caps off the weekend with a 5K run/walk that begins at the Spring Valley campus of Colorado Mountain College in Glenwood Springs, then climbs County Road 114, with aid stations along the way for water and bobbing for apples. Check www.active.com for more details.
AROUND THE STATE
Picking on your younger brother is part of the job description for any older sibling. But the tables might be turned for Air Force hockey coach Frank Serratore. His younger brother, Tom Serratore, is the head coach at Bemidji State, whom Air Force hosts this weekend. Frank is in his ninth season with the Falcons and a 1982 graduate of Bemidji State, while Tom, a 1987 Bemidji grad, is in his fifth season with the Beavers. Air Force (1-5) is the only team in the country to play three top-10 teams the first three weeks of the season, and the road doesn’t get any easier with No. 15 Bemidji State (4-0). Tom is 15-0-1 against his older brother. Tonight’s game is the College Hockey America Conference opener for both. Tonight and Saturday, 7 p.m., Cadet Ice Arena.
