Bulls have early lead . . . New cause of tennis elbow . . . March of robots begins

Coaches and players love to talk about how “we win as a team and we lose as a team.” That may be true, but on Friday night the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ head coach, Corey Chamblin, lost one for his side. The Roughriders held an 11-point lead over the host B.C. Lions with about two minutes to play in the fourth quarter. Chamblin went with an empty backfield on third-and-short late in the quarter and the QB sneak got stuffed by B.C. Lions linebacker Adam Bighill. Then, on third and short in OT, Chamblin — what was he thinking? — chose to kick a field goal. Three plays later, the Lions scored a touchdown and won the game. . . . It isn’t often you can point the finger at a head coach and say “This one’s on you,” but that’s the case here. . . . Oh, Chamblin also is in charge of the Roughriders’ defence, which was anything but aggressive. . . . They now are 0-3 and the howling of Rider Nation can be heard across the country. . . .

With the U of Texas having OK’d the selling of beer and wine at football games, John Sharp, the chancellor at Texas A and M, has said his school won’t go down that road. As he told TexAgs Radio: “Our athletic program has not reached the point where we require the numbing effects of alcohol.” . . . ZING!!!! . . . Headline at Fark.com: And in Pamplona, the early score is Bulls 11, Idiots 0. . . . One more from the gang at Fark.com: Eugenie Bouchard’s black bra runs afoul of Wimbledon’s dress code / Moaning, grunting, shrieking all still OK. . . .

“Matt Stonie and Joey Chestnut, who combined to down 122 hot dogs in finishing 1-2 at this year’s Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest, also share the same hometown,” writes Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times. “Bet the all-you-can-eat places in San Jose, Calif., just love to see those two walking up.” . . . He’s hardly in the same league as Stonie and Chestnut, but Marcus Hanel, the Milwaukee Brewers’ bullpen catcher, recently ate 23 cheesesteaks during a four-game series in Philadelphia. . . . “Or,” wrote Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle, “as Joey Chestnut calls it, brunch.” . . .

Bill Littlejohn, our South Lake Tahoe, Calif., correspondent, reports: “Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are going to make a movie about the FIFA scandal — Good Will Bribing.” . . . Littlejohn also noted that “international timekeepers added one second recently to compensate for a slightly slower earth rotation — and possibly for David Ortiz' slightly slower bat speed.” . . . One more from Littlejohn: “Matt Bonner of the San Antonio Spurs says that tennis elbow caused by his iPhone led to his poor shooting. Tennis elbow from an iPhone — is that a case of 'server error’?” . . .

There may not have been a NASCAR race with a better name than the Firecracker 400 that always was run on July 4. Except that this year’s race became the Coke Zero 400 and was held on July 5. As Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel put it: “Once again, let’s cue the patriotic music: ‘My country ’tis of thee, sell your soul to network TV.’ ” . . . Comedy writer Jerry Perisho: “Breaking: Golfer Phil Mickelson will never be inducted into Baseball Hall of Fame.” . . .

You may have heard that Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller claims that he was fined for flatulence during team meetings. His defence? According to Brad Dickson of the Omaha World-Herald: “He tried to claim Tom Brady let the air out of him.” . . . Dickson also noted that the World-Herald “published a Q&A with (U of Nebraska Cornhusker) coach Mike Riley. Big surprise: It was only three times as long as our Q&A with the governor.” . . . Dickson, again: “Ohio Gov. John Kasich will reportedly announce on July 21 that he’s seeking the GOP nomination for president. By then he will be the 89th declared GOP candidate for president. Kasich is the third most powerful person in Ohio behind Urban Meyer and LeBron James.” . . . One more from Dickson: “The FCC chairman has proposed bringing high-speed Internet to the poor. According to an informal survey, 99.9 percent of poor people would rather have food.” . . .

The flag of the state of Washington features a photo of George Washington, and Ron Judd of the Seattle Times suggests it’s time for a change: “Keep George W., but redraw him to look more hip, swarthy and ticked off. Sort of like the way marketing geniuses changed the old, friendly Seahawk into the modern, constipated Seahawk.” . . . Failing that, Judd writes, “Cut to the chase and go with an image that more directly reflects our modern governmental process: corporate lobbyists and paid signature gatherers, arm-in-arm on the Capitol steps.” . . . Hey, that being the case, perhaps B.C. and Washington could share a flag. . . . “A 22-year-old worker was thrown up against a wall and killed by a robot in a Volkswagen plant in Germany,” Judd reports. “This is how it begins.”

(Gregg Drinnan is a former sports editor of the Regina Leader-Post and the late Kamloops Daily News. He is at gdrinnan.blogspot.ca and twitter.com/gdrinnan. Keeping Score appears here on weekends, except when it doesn’t.)

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

If cornerback Richard Sherman’s shoulder holds up, the Seattle Seahawks will win the Super Bowl. If not, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots are winners. . . . With the NFL mounting an investigation into Deflategate, Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee tweeted: “If New England was to be DQ’d . . . We’d be their replacements, right?? . . . I should probably lay off these strawberry margs.” . . . “Due to irregularities in the earth’s rotation, an extra second will be added to clocks on June 30,” reports Richmond, B.C., blogger TC Chong. “I hope they don’t add this time onto the end of NBA games.” . . .

Dan Carcillo of the Chicago Blackhawks, one of the NHL’s few remaining slugs, drew a six-game suspension for a brutal cross-check from behind on Winnipeg Jets forward Mathieu Perreault, who had scored four goals in a recent game. Carcillo has been suspended nine times and fined on three other occasions for this kind of stuff. And there, on Monday night, was Sportsnet analyst Brad May telling the world that he didn’t mind the play on which Perreault was injured. Hey, Sportsnet, it’s OK for you to suspend May. He would be missed about as much as the NHL would miss Carcillo. . . .

If you didn’t notice, the Vancouver Canucks’ bandwagon is beginning to fill up again. If you hurry, though, you may be able to get a seat near the back. . . . “Man,” wonders Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle, “why can't we give Bill Belichick credit for finding a way to deal with runaway inflation?” . . . “Good thing,” Ostler adds, “that Belichick isn’t in charge of the Macy’s Parade.” . . . Seattle Times reader Bill Littlejohn has a suggestion for the Super Bowl halftime show: “How about Air Supply?” . . .

On Monday night, as the host Toronto Maple Leafs were losing 4-1 to the Carolina Hurricanes, three fans threw their replica sweaters onto the ACC ice surface. Toronto police charged two of those fans with public mischief; the Leafs were then charged with impersonating an NHL team. . . .

@mirtle @MapleLeafs this is why people are LOSING it. Pay this kind of money to watch these despicable clowns! pic.twitter.com/mHGn9pVODV
— Marko Bernuchi (@MBernuch) January 20, 2015

You may not have been aware that New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon now heads up Major League Baseball’s finance committee. You also may not be aware that Wilpon was taken to the cleaners by Bernie Madoff as part of perhaps the biggest scam of our time. . . . Headline from TheOnion.com: “NFL investigating whether Patriots played game with properly inflated Vince Wilfork.” . . .

Urban Meyer, the head coach of the national champion Ohio State football Buckeyes, appeared on Late Night with David Letterman and, as usual, refused to say ‘Michigan.’ . . . Not speaking the name of his No. 1 rival is an old act for Meyer. As Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel wrote: “Meyer used to do the same thing (during his Florida tenure) when asked about the Gators’ biggest rival — the Gainesville Police Department.” . . .

Here is Seattle Seahawks punter Jon Ryan, on the 19-yard TD pass he threw out of field goal formation last Sunday: “It was a moment I won’t forget, even though I don’t remember it all right now.” . . . Ryan, who is from Regina, was a goaltender in his hockey-playing days. In fact, he says he was cut by three different WHL teams — the Brandon Wheat Kings, Medicine Hat Tigers and Regina Pats. . . . Larry Walker, who had a terrific baseball career, also was a goaltender back in the day. He was cut by the Regina Pats before deciding to focus on baseball. . . .

During the week, Ryan’s fiancee, Sarah Colonna, sent a tweet in the direct of supermodel Gisele Bundchen, who is married to New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady: “My fiancé throws touchdown passes too, so if you wanna hang at the Super Bowl just let me know #twinsies.” . . . “It’s hard to adequately describe just how lurid Victoria Azarenka’s neon-yellow outfit is at the Aussie Open,” writes RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com. “I’ll put it this way: it’s almost as loud as her grunts.” . . . One more from Currie: “I wasn’t surprised to hear ESPN analysts saying Kobe Bryant might pass up the rest of the season. I was surprised to hear ‘Kobe’ and ‘pass’ in the same sentence.” . . .

“(The Twelves) might be a fitting nickname for the collective IQ of the legal team for the Seahawks, who seek trademark protections for various uses of the number 12 and the word ‘boom,’ ” writes Ron Judd of the Seattle Times. “Who do you people think you are, the U.S. Olympic Committee?” . . . One more from Judd, who sums things up nicely: “Deflategate has a touch of evil genius to it, inspired by the very corporate ethic that rules the land. Everyone involved in the Patriots’ blatant cheating scam has built-in, plausible deniability — except the poor, bottom-feeding sap who actually deflated the footballs, who at some point will get canned. God Bless America.”

(Gregg Drinnan is a former sports editor of the Regina Leader-Post and the late Kamloops Daily News. He is at gdrinnan.blogspot.ca and twitter.com/gdrinnan. Keeping Score appears here on weekends, except when it doesn’t.)

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

The gang at SportsPickle.com keeps track of preseason predictions and has recalled three of the best (worst?) that are related to this NFL season. 1. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers would win the Super Bowl (ESPN’s Herman Edwards). 2. Chicago Bears QB Jay Cutler would be league MVP (NFL Network’s Brian Billick). 3. The Dallas Cowboys would finish 3-13 (USA Today’s Nate Davis). . . . Now that’s throwing mud against the wall and hoping something sticks. . . . “This isn’t whining,” says analyst John Garrett on a Vancouver Canucks telecast, and then he proceeds to do just that.. . . It’s enough to make a viewer turn against the Canucks. . . .

If you were watching Green Bay and the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, you had to feel that the football gods would make the Packers pay for the two early field goals. Football is a physical game and when a team gets the opportunity to impose its will on the other side, especially early in the game, shouldn’t it be trying to stuff the ball into the end zone, especially when the line of scrimmage is the one? . . . And, yes, the NFL needs to rework its overtime rule. Each team should get at least one possession, because a game shouldn’t be decided at least in part by a coin flip. . . . Of course, this is the NFL where a catch isn’t always a catch. . . .

“It's minus-7 in Cooperstown,” Mark Whicker of the L.A Daily News reported on Tuesday night. “The Vaseline on Gaylord Perry's plaque froze.” . . . At the risk of repeating myself, how is it that so much unpenalized cross-checking has been allowed to creep back into hockey? . . . Here’s Richmond, B.C. blogger TC Chong, who claims to know a thing or two about shopping: “Target Canada went to throw in the towel, but when it went to the towel section, the shelves were empty.” . . .

“L.A. Police have recovered a duplicate statue of O.J. Simpson’s Heisman Trophy that was stolen from USC’s Heritage Hall 20 years ago,” reports Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times. “But O.J. says that won’t deter his quest to find the real trophy.” . . . Pro rassler Abdullah the Butcher turned 74 on Sunday. As Perry notes: “Just a guess here, but no one gets in his way when he goes to cut the cake.” . . . One more from Perry: “Scientists can gauge the slightest slowing of Earth’s rotation enough to know that we need to add an extra second in 2015, but what is and what isn’t a completed NFL pass still can’t pass the eyeball test?” . . .

Jay Cutler is a bodybuilder who is a four-time Mr. Olympia. Yes, he sometimes is given a tough time because of his name. “It’s been a little tough for me sometimes on Twitter,” he told DNAinfo.com, “especially on Mondays.” . . . If Johnny Gaudreau of the Calgary Flames is Johnny Hockey and Johnny Manziel of the Cleveland Browns is Johnny Football, it must mean that John Morris is Johnny Curling. . . .

You will recall that Florida State, with Jameis Winston at quarterback, got pounded 39 points by Oregon in a national semifinal. After the game, Winston was quoted as saying the game “could have went either way.” Responded RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com: “Sounds like Winston went the other way heading to math class.” . . . Might have missed the odd English class, too. . . . All six of the ‘experts’ on ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown panel picked the Denver Broncos to eliminate the visiting Indianapolis Colts last weekend. After the game, Indy punter Pat McAfee tweeted: “Oh, OK . . . Wrong horse, fellas #Colts.” . . .

ICYMI, NASCAR driver Kurt Busch is involved in a messy court case in which he has claimed his ex-girlfriend, Patricia Driscoll, is a CIA-trained assassin. As Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel wrote: “Gentlemen, start your cuckoo clocks.” . . . The aforementioned Currie chimed in with: “A friend of mine said the same thing of his ex-wife, but only about her cooking.” . . . Here’s Currie, again: “N.Y. Jets RB Chris Johnson was arrested after he ran a stop sign and police found an open firearm in his car. Is that a run-and-shoot offence?” . . .

After Washington State hire Alex Grinch as its new defensive co-ordinator, Seattle Times desk editor Scott Hanson offered: “So I’m guessing he’ll make his players practise on Christmas.” . . . After ESPN’s Ray Lewis made the statement that the ‘Tuck Rule’ is the only reason football fans know who New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is, Vancouver comic Torben Rolfsen pointed out: “The only reason we know who Ray Lewis is? Witness tampering and plea bargaining.” . . . How long until Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh arrive in Cleveland to bail out LeBron and the Cavaliers?

(Gregg Drinnan is a former sports editor of the Regina Leader-Post and the late Kamloops Daily News. He is at gdrinnan.blogspot.ca and twitter.com/gdrinnan. Keeping Score appears here on weekends, except when it doesn’t.)

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

Steve Seibel of Kamloops is in Spain these days. No, he’s not vacationing. A lawyer in real life, he also is an international-calibre basketball referee with an immense amount of experience. Since late August, he has been working at the 2014 FIBA World Cup, the men’s world championship. . . . He was on the floor Tuesday as Lithuania dropped Turkey 73-61 in a quarterfinal matchup and he’ll be back today. Yes, he will work the championship game between Serbia and the United States. . . .

No matter how poorly your week went, it had to be better than the one experienced by Roger Goodell and the NFL. My goodness! Domestic abuse, alleged child abuse and on and on it goes. But all will be forgotten for 10 hours today. . . . In the case of the NFL, you can bet the games can’t get here fast enough. . . . “Two high-school pitchers in Japan went the distance – 50 innings – when it took four days to finally decide a scoreless baseball game,” reports Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times. “Apparently they don’t believe in pitch counts: One threw 709 pitches, the other 689.” . . .

Please don’t spit out your coffee as you learn that Floyd Mayweather, who is not a nice man, made US$888,889 per minute as he punched his way to victory on Saturday night. . . . “Had to laugh when I saw this headline – ‘Bucs will be best NFL team in Florida’ – at OrlandoSentinel.com on (Sept. 5),” writes Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel. “Isn’t being the best NFL team in Florida sort of like being the best surfer in Kansas?” . . . Michael Garcia, a FIFA ethics investigator, was charged with looking into alleged improprieties with the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids. He has filed his report, so . . . “FIFA officials said they'll read the report,” notes Vancouver comic Torben Rolfsen, “just as soon as they return from their month-long vacation at an all-inclusive resort in Qatar.” . . .

Marvin (Bad News) Barnes, who died this week at 62, might be the captain of the He Coulda Been Great team. Barnes died in Providence, R.I., prompting Providence Journal columnist Bill Reynolds to remember the time Barnes asked if cocaine kills brain cells. Reynolds said he provided the experts’ opinion, to which Brnes responded: “Then I must have been a genius when I started out.” . . . RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com wonders: “Is someone who promotes cycling a spokesperson?” . . . A question from Cam Hutchinson of the Saskatoon Express: “Why don’t CFL games start 3.5 hours apart instead of three? We often watch duster time in the first game and miss the start of the other.” . . .

Janice Hough, aka The Left Coast Sports Babe, explains: “More why there is no satire: Hartselle, Alabama, is the largest dry city in the state. And their mayor, Don Hall, has said he opposes the sale of booze within city limits. Last Friday, Hall was arrested, driving back from a neighboring town, for alleged DUI.” . . . One more from Hough: “Apple’s new $349 smart watch acts as a remote control, a mobile payment device and a pulse monitor. But can it tell time?” . . . Hough, again: “So the NFL may soon be looking for a new toady to do the owners’ bidding at all times. ‘I’m available soon,’ said Bud Selig.” . . . Headline at TheOnion.com: NFL announces new zero-tolerance policy on videotaped domestic violence. . . .

Here’s Brad Dickson of the Omaha World-Herald: “A 91-year-old soccer fan left about $636,000 in cash and his house to the Norwegian club FL Fart. I might suggest using $635,000 of that to find a new name.” . . . Wide receiver Josh Gordon of the Cleveland Browns was suspended for the season due to marijuana use and apparently was planning to work as a car salesman. Notes RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com: “Warning to car buyers: tire and brake questions are fine, but don’t ask him about the suspension.” . . . “Actually,” added Ian Hamilton of the Regina Leader-Post, “Gordon’s ban is expected to be reduced when the NFL’s new drug policy is approved. It would appear Gordon – like many of the cars he has been selling – is going to be recalled.” . . .

If you missed it, Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Football, er, Johnny Manziel wants to trademark Johnny Cleveland. Comedy writer Jim Barach says that’s “because a baseball player already has the trademark on the name that reflects where (Manziel) will spend his career, ‘Johnny Bench.’ ” . . . Is there anything on TV that is harder to watch than those TSN promos that feature on-air staff? Especially when they play them over and over and over. . . . Well, OK, the Wendy’s commercials featuring Ms. Ginger are up there, too. . . . And now I notice that the Sportsnet channels are full of staff-filled promos, too. . . . Don’t call me Shirley, but surely the apocalypse must be near. . . .

So, you’re wondering, just how intelligent are baseball players? Here’s Los Angeles Dodgers starter Zack Greinke, in conversation with the Los Angeles Times: “I don’t want to name names, but there were guys I played with that were so stupid that they’re really good because their mind never gets in the way.” . . . Dan Halldorson, a Canadian golfer who had success on the PGA Tour back in the day, lost 20 pounds while instructing for three months in China. As he told Bruce Penton of the Medicine Hat News: “I was using two sticks to eat instead of a shovel.”

(Gregg Drinnan is a former sports editor of the Regina Leader-Post and the late Kamloops Daily News. He is at gdrinnan.blogspot.ca and twitter.com/gdrinnan. Keeping Score appears here on weekends, except when it doesn’t.)


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In case you missed it, and you may have, John Daly -- yes, that John Daly -- has recorded a country tune that is getting some radio time. It’s called Hit It Hard, and part of it goes like this: “No laying up, no holding back, ain’t afraid of nothing, it’s a natural fact.” . . . Here’s Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal with some advice for Daly, the crooner: “Stay away from golf references. Your real life is more of a country song than anything you’ve done on the course.” . . . Going into the weekend, NFL players, through fines and suspensions, had forfeited US$14,063,619 this year. Last season’s total, for the ENTIRE season, was $10,619,855. Do you think whatever message the NFL is trying to deliver isn’t getting through? . . .

It was nice to arrive back in B.C. after a few days in Alberta and be greeted by headlines pertaining to another ICBC rate increase. Nothing like someone taking more money out of your pocket to make you feel at home in B.C. . . . “I am still smiling about B.C. Lions president Dennis Skulsky having to cough up more than 30,000 tickets after his guaranteed win against the Riders failed miserably,” writes Cam Hutchinson of the Saskatoon Express. “Maybe now he will keep his mug away from TV cameras during games.” . . . Hutch shouldn’t hold his breath, should he? . . .

“Suzuki, which stopped selling cars in the U.S., has recalled 19,000 sedans due to a risk of spider webs affecting fuel lines,” claims contributor TC Chong. “As there aren’t any dealers, owners are given a toll-free line to get further instructions from company spokesman Peter Parker.” . . . Having made two return trips over the Coquihalla Highway and a trek on the Yellowhead to Jasper and back in recent weeks, I feel quite safe in saying that B.C. is the first jurisdiction in North America, and maybe all of the world, to have done away with speed limits. Oh, there are posted speed limits on our highways, but it’s quite apparent that the limit really is whatever you want it to be. . . .

“Notre Dame supposedly has sidelined four football players because of academic fraud,” reports Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel. “My question: Is there a bigger oxymoron in college football than “academic fraud”? Don’t kid yourself, all of the big-time programs — by hiding their dozens of scholastically challenged players in gut courses and pointless majors — are academic frauds down to their very core.” . . . If you aren’t aware, there now are five TSN channels available to some of us, meaning, as Vancouver comic Torben Rolfsen puts it, “Ice fishing inches ever closer to a profession.” . . .

The way Mark Waller, the NFL’s chief marketing officer, has it figured, elementary-school students would do better at math if teachers worked fantasy football into the curriculum. “Well,” notes Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times, “that’s one way to truly prepare students for the real-life workforce.” . . . In B.C., elementary-school students ask: “What is a curriculum?” . . . “Apple apparently will unveil iPhones with bigger screens in September,” reports Janice Hough, aka The Left Coast Sports Babe. “So at least when people look at their screens while walking and driving they won’t have to squint as much.” . . . When outfielder Scott Van Slyke of the Los Angeles Dodgers sprained an ankle this week in Arizona, he said it was because “they’ve got bad grass here.” . . . “Dude!” remarked Hough. “You want good grass, sign with the Colorado Rockies.” . . .

You thought Sportsnet’s NHL package was going to be full of new faces and different voices, didn’t you? Well, they sure fooled you, didn’t they? It’s going to be the same old all over again, with the likes of P.J. Stock and Glenn Healy and all of that gang. . . . If you hadn’t already guessed, the Sportsnet NHL telecast theme song will be Hail, Hail, the Gang’s All Here. . . . “The Dolphins continue to talk to Dan Marino about a front-office position that would be more than a figurehead role but have little real authority,” reports Greg Cote of the Miami Herald. “Suggested title: Senior Vice President of Good Old Days.” . . .

There are those who would have you believe that the NHL is about to expand into Las Vegas and Seattle. Get back to me when the Las Vegas franchise has an owner and a venue in which to play. Seattle, meanwhile, has a potential ownership group but nowhere to play. If you are a regular viewer of NHL games, you might also wonder from where the players would come to stock two expansion teams. Think about what two more teams would do to the quality of play and try not to cringe. . . . Dick Bavetta, a long-time NBA referee, has retired at the age of 74. “Bavetta has seen it all in 39 years,” writes Brad Dickson of the Omaha World-Herald. “Well, except for traveling.” . . .

“(The Oakland) Athletics traded (Yoenis) Cespedes and rented (Jon) Lester for post-season,” tweets Mark Whicker of the Orange County Register. “Now they might not make post-season. What's the title of THAT movie?” . . . In Green Bay this NFL season, you will be able to visit a concession stand and spend $12 on something called ‘Bratchos.’ That would be pieces of brat, cheese and fried chips. Heath Barbato, the executive chef at Lambeau Field, told ESPN.com: “It’s basically Wisconsin in a bucket.” . . . “Caroline Wozniacki lost a point at the U.S. Open when her pony tail got caught in her racquet,” reports RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com. “She won the match but may have suffered a tress fracture.”

(Gregg Drinnan is a former sports editor of the Regina Leader-Post and the late Kamloops Daily News. He is at gdrinnan.blogspot.ca and twitter.com/gdrinnan. Keeping Score appears here on weekends, except when it doesn’t.)

There has never been a subscription fee for this blog, but if you enjoy stopping by here, why not consider donating to the cause? Just click HERE. . . and thank you very much.

Jack Finarelli, aka The Sports Curmudgeon, chimed in on the CFL-CFLPA dispute on Friday. “There is even a dispute between the parties here as to what the average salary per player was last year. The Players Association says it was not $82,904 but was only $71,700. Calculating ‘average salary’ is not exactly a mathematical feat comparable to proving Fermat’s Last Theorem. Therefore, when the two sides perform this mathematical operation and come up with numbers that differ by about 14 per cent, my conclusion is that the two sides would probably not agree that the sun came up in the east this morning even after they called their favourite local weatherman to ask.” . . .

“The Ottawa Redblacks held a ceremony Thursday at TD Place, where a 1976 silver dollar was embedded in the asphalt under the field as a tribute to the last Ottawa team to win a Grey Cup,” scribbles Ian Hamilton of the Regina Leader-Post. “Current Redblacks likely paid close attention as the coin was buried. If/when there’s a strike and their source of income dries up, they’re going to need to know where to dig.” . . . “Clay Buchholz recently became the second Red Sox pitcher ever to lose seven pounds in a single appearance,” writes contributor Bill Littlejohn. “The first involved a burglary at Bill Lee's house.” . . .

On Wednesday night, the Los Angeles Kings and host Chicago Blackhawks played what was a terrific Stanley Cup playoff game. If you missed it, and you can bet Bill O’Donovan didn’t, the Blackhawks won 5-4 in double overtime. But it was the first extra period that had fans buzzing. It took only 26 minutes of real time to play the entire 20-minute period. Yes, it was hockey at its best. . . . Meanwhile, the visiting Miami Heat and Indiana Pacers were hooked up in an NBA playoff game. The Pacers won, 93-90. It took eight minutes to play the game’s final 12 seconds. . . . With the NBA draft approaching, Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel has some advice for the Orlando Magic: “Personally, I believe the Magic should package their No. 4 and No. 12 picks and try to move up in the draft to take Johnny Manziel.” . . .

If you have been paying attention to the NBA playoffs, you know that Paul George of the Pacers suffered a concussion in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference final, but was still back on the floor for Game 3. During the regular season, Orlando’s Nik Vucevic sat out 12 games with a concussion. “If you’re tanking, you miss three weeks,” Bianchi wrote in explaining the NBA’s concussion protocol. “If you’re in the conference finals, you miss three days.” . . . “The (Cleveland) Browns supposedly drafted Johnny Manziel after owner Jimmy Haslam heard a homeless man tell him, ‘Draft Manziel,’ ” writes Greg Cote of the Miami Herald. “Cannot confirm the homeless man was a former team sports owner bankrupted by taking personnel advice from homeless men.” . . .

“A clueless French Open reporter congratulated Nicolas Mahut for a match Mahut had just lost,” writes RJ Currie of SportsDeke.com. “He also congratulated the Chicago Cubs on 106 great years.” . . . A Friday night tweet from Ray Ratto of Comcast SportsNet Bay Area: “With apologies to our atheist and agnostic friends, the seventh game is the closest we as a species have come to proving that God exists.” . . . After his Kings lost Game 6, 4-3, to the visiting Blackhawks, forcing a Game 7 on Sunday, head coach Darryl Sutter was asked: “What did you say to the team after the loss?” . . . His response: “We fly at 11.” . . .

If you hadn’t heard, Donald Sterling paid US$12.5 million for the NBA’s Los Angeles Clippers in 1981. On Friday, the franchise was sold, pending NBA approval, for $2 billion, which is four times the selling price for any other team. . . . “Because of an illegally recorded private conversation,” notes syndicated columnist Norman Chad, “an NBA owner is forced to sell his team at a 16,000-per cent profit. Only in America.” . . . Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times put it this way: “We all know how Donald Sterling feels about blacks. Now we’ll find out if he has a higher opinion of green.” . . .

Michael Vick, the newest quarterback with the NFL’s New York Jets, has told the New York Daily News that he can help the team get to the Super Bowl. “Apparently,” added comedy writer Jim Barach, “he has a GPS system and a license to drive the bus.” . . . The premier of Turks and Caicos has said he doesn’t have any problems with joining Canada as our 11th province. “Good news,” says Janice Hough, aka The Left Coast Sports Babe. “It would raise the average temperature of Canada by about 10 degrees.” . . .

After the New York Rangers finished off the visiting Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night, Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun pointed out a couple of things via Twitter: 1. At the Olympic break, the Toronto Maple Leafs had a three-point lead over the Rangers; 2. The Maple Leafs took the first Swedish goalie, Mikael Tellqvist, in the 2000 draft. The Rangers, 135 picks later, selected Henrik Lundqvist. . . . “Dale Weise and Alexei Emelin of the Canadiens both sat out Thursday’s game versus the Rangers,” claims Richmond, B.C., blogger TC Chong, “as they wanted to avoid the post-game handshake in case Milan Lucic of the Boston Bruins showed up again.”

(Gregg Drinnan is a former sports editor of the Regina Leader-Post and the late Kamloops Daily News. He is at gdrinnan.blogspot.ca and twitter.com/gdrinnan. Keeping Score appears here on weekends, except when it doesn’t.)

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