Keeping Score

A couple of notes from Chris Stevenson of the Ottawa Sun, as he watches an NHL game in Atlanta: “The 14 rows of section 303 here at the Philips Arena are holding 25 people. . . . The ice workers (The Blue Crew) here are made up of several very athletic young women who take care of picking up the pucks and moving the nets around. Their costumes are interesting with skirts shorter than a Senators’ winning streak.” . . . Steve Simmons, in the Toronto Sun: “By the time the Olympics in Vancouver begin, I will be very tired of the commercials that drone on about the fact that no Canadian has ever won a gold medal on Canadian soil.” . . . Ain’t that the truth. . . . According to the Chongqing Evening Post, a Chinese couple is searching feverishly for help for a daughter who has been laughing nonstop for 12 years. As Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times noted: “No truth to the rumour she’s a Detroit Lions fan.”
There isn’t a better story in the WHL this season than that of centre Casey Pierro-Zabotel, the Kamloops product who is burning it up on behalf of the Vancouver Giants. When Pierro-Zabotel, whose NHL rights belong to the Pittsburgh Penguins, joined the Giants from the BCHL’s Merritt Centennials in the middle of last season, he brought with him a reputation as a player with poor work habits and a poor understanding of the defensive side of the game. Now it’s said he is one of the hardest-working Giants and his defensive game has improved by leaps and bounds. Oh, and he is leading the WHL in scoring. He also got married over Christmas, taking as his bride Levi Gottfriedson, the daughter of Shane Gottfriedson, the KIB chief.
You may have noticed that Mark McGwire got barely a notice from Baseball Hall of Fame voters earlier this month. It was the third straight year in which that has happened. Here’s veteran writer George Vecsey of The New York Times: “McGwire has become the canary in the coal mine for Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa and Roger Clemens, all of whom are set to become eligible in 2013.” . . . In case you missed it, Jay McGwire, Mark’s estranged younger brother, is trying to find a publisher for a tell-all book titled The McGwire Family Secret: The Truth about Steroids, a Slugger, and Ultimate Redemption. . . . “Forget about friends and enemies,” writes John Ryan of the San Jose Mercury News. “With a brother like this, who needs Jose Canseco?” . . . The magic number for Mark Recchi would appear to be 1,425. Recchi, the pride of Kamloops who is into the twilight of his NHL career, goes into the all-star break with 1,412 points, good for 17th place on the all-time list. Before this season is over, he should pass Doug Gilmour (1,414), Adam Oates (1,420) and Bryan Trottier (1,425). . . . Trottier holds down 14th place on the career list. Trottier and every player ahead of him are in the Hockey Hall of Fame or, like Jaromir Jagr and Joe Sakic, are sure bets to be there.
Mike Lupica, in the New York Daily News: “Mark Cuban was a lot more interesting when he had a contending team. Now you just want to do what Commissioner Stern often does, which means tell him to sit down and shut up.” . . . One more from Lupica: “It is kind of fun listening to the outgoing President talk about how mean some people were to him, in light of the fact that he turned someone like Karl Rove loose on the country.” . . . The Super Bowl goes Feb. 1 in Tampa and Greg Cote of the Miami Herald reports that preparations are well underway. “I don’t mean preparations by the city or NFL,” he scribbles. “I mean preparations by (coincidentally) the 43 strip clubs that make Tampa the undisputed pole-dancing mecca of America. Clubs are holding daily auditions for extra dancers, some are touting being open 24 hours during Super Bowl Week, and one is adding a 2,400-square-foot tent for expanded operations. It’s no wonder Tampa sometimes dubiously is called the Lap Dance Capital of the World.” . . . Cote added: “The city has a second, lesser-known nickname: Pacman Jones’ Idea of Heaven.”
OK, who plays Chesley B. (Sully) Sullenberger III in the movie? . . . Speaking of movies. . . . The Dark Knight not nominated as best picture? No Springsteen? . . . Obviously, like Mark McGwire, the Academy’s best days are behind it. . . . Cam Hutchinson, in the Saskatoon StarPhoenix: “I have wondered why ESPN is based in Bristol, Conn., where there are no major sports teams. Then I remembered TSN is headquartered in Toronto.” . . . Mike Bianchi, in the Orlando Sentinel: “Let’s face it, the three biggest one-hit wonders in history are in reverse order: (3) Play that Funky Music, Wild Cherry, 1976. (2) Who Let the Dogs Out, Baha Men, 2000. (1) Vince Lombardi Trophy, Jon Gruden, 2003.” . . . Larry Wilson, who was an all-pro safety with the then-St. Louis Cardinals, to the Arizona Republic after the Cardinals won a Super Bowl berth on Sunday: “It’s a cold, cold day in hell.” . . . Watch for the gang that is working to get KIBIHT back on track to make some announcements involving sponsorship and registration, among other things, perhaps next week. So far, 21 teams have signed up for the new-look bantam hockey tournament.
Former Kamloops Blazers centre Jarret Lukin had a goal and an assist Wednesday as his American Conference beat the National Conference 11-5 in the ECHL all-star game in Reading, Pa. Lukin, with the Dayton Bombers, has 35 points, including 16 goals, in 40 games. . . . John Gagliardi, the long-time football coach at St. John’s University in Minnesota, as he accepted the Stagg Award at the American Football Coaches Association convention: “There are three stages of life: youth, middle age and ‘Boy, you’re looking great.’ I think ‘Boy, you’re looking great’ means people probably thought you were dead, but you’re still here. When I was young, I never heard that phrase. Now that I’m old, all I hear is, ‘Boy, you’re looking great.’ ” . . . Gagliardi, 82, is college football’s leader in career coaching victories, with 461. . . . Scott Ostler, in the San Francisco Chronicle: “The Raiders fired James Lofton, letting go not only their wide receivers coach, but their best wide receiver.”

Gregg Drinnan is sports editor of The Daily News. He is at gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca and gdrinnan.blogspot.com. Keeping Score appears Saturdays.