Steve Simmons, in the Toronto Sun: “We wait and we wonder, not knowing if the best player in hockey will ever be the best player again. He probably wonders the same thing himself. This is a most uneasy summer for the NHL and the face of its game.” . . . One more from Simmons: “Watched an old CFL game with Doug Flutie quarterbacking the B.C. Lions on ESPN Classic Canada the other night. Forgot how much better he was than anyone else on the field. Sometimes you need an old tape to remind you that he played quarterback in the CFL at a level beyond anyone before him or since.” . . . By the way, Flutie’s daughter, Alexa, has cracked the lineup of the New England Patriots’ cheerleading squad. She obviously has some of her father’s spunk, as it took her five tries to earn her spot. . . .
Dwight Perry, in the Seattle Times: “An Argentine sports writer has named his twin daughters 'Mara' and 'Dona' in honor of his country's legendary soccer star. Hey, it's better than having twin girls in Brazil and naming them both Ka.” . . . The New York Yankees hit three grand slams in a game last week, the first time any team had done that in major league history. As Perry noted: “Or as the feat is now known among seamheads, a quadruple-triple.” . . . Seattle Times reader Bill Littlejohn, however, claims it happened at least once before: "The morning David Wells ate breakfast at Denny's." . . .
There is nothing in all of sports quite like tuning into a Chicago White Sox game and hearing play-by-play goof Ken Harrelson cheering for the good guys. . . . On March 9, Tie Domi said: “I played junior but Leanne and I want our kid to go to college.” The plan, Domi said, was for son Max to play in the USHL for two seasons and then go to school. And everybody laughed and said, “Yeah, right!” On Tuesday, the OHL’s London Knights acquired forward Max Domi from the Kingston Frontenacs. . . . Tie Domi attended the news conference in London on Tuesday but left without answering any questions. . . .
Ron Judd, in the Seattle Times: “The fan-boy adulation was flying a bit fast and thick with the announced retirement of Apple CEO Steve Jobs, whose notable contributions to humanity include the invention of a handheld phone that works best when not held in hand, and allowing man to fulfill his ultimate destiny by taking ‘Angry Birds’ into an office restroom stall.” . . . Judd, again: “The name for the eagerly awaited new Katie Couric talk show will be — wait for it — ‘Katie.’ Apparently network lawyers opined that Couric's first choice, ‘Oprah,’ might present legal problems.” . . . Every time you watch A.J. Burnett pitch for the New York Yankees, you wonder whose decision it was to sign him to a contract worth US$82.5 million. . . .
Forward Troy Ofukany of Kamloops, who is entering his fourth professional season, has signed with the ECHL’s Colorado Eagles. He played his first three seasons in the Centreal league with the Wichita Thunder and Odessa Jackalopes. . . . That must have been some kind of cross-country race at Kenna Cartwright Park on Sunday. Apparently, a whole lot of runners finished with road rash and one of the male finishers ended up at RIH getting a stitch or three to close a gash. And let’s not forget the competitor who showed up late, realized he had forgotten his running shoes and went ahead and ran the race in Birkenstocks. . . .
Hours after the death of former WHL and NHL enforcer Wade Belak on Wednesday, former Kamloops Blazers pest Tyson Nash tweeted: “Depression and heartache doesn't discriminate! Money doesn't = happiness. Job loss is terrible but I'm just airing an athletes view.” . . . I spent a couple of hours Wednesday watching fire crews tame a blaze in the Campbell Creek/Del Oro area. You can’t watch that stuff without marvelling at the skill of the pilots. It really is ballet in the sky. . . . Hey, Brittney and Ben, if the wedding party is over you may want to pick up your signs. Unless you want folks to vote for you in the next election, in which case just leave them where they are. . . .
I spent 17 years in Regina and can remember when the Saskatchewan Roughriders couldn’t afford to fire anyone, never mind a head coach with more than two seasons left on his contract, and an offensive co-ordinator. . . . Now they’ve got money and are just another big business. . . . No doubt you heard about the Philadelphia Eagles signing quarterback Michael Vick to a US$100-million deal the other day. As someone pointed out, based on an eight-hour work day during the NFL season, that translates to $17,077 an hour. When Vick was in jail, he earned 12 cents an hour. . . . If you want some incredible reading, track down some of Lester Munson’s ESPN.com work on Vick’s troubled financial affairs. And try not to roll your eyes in amazement while you’re reading. . . . Serena Williams has added incentive to win the U.S.Open. "It's right before football season,” she explains, “so you want to get on that SI cover before they start only putting football players on there."
gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
gdrinnan.blogspot.com
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