Thursday . . .

The subject of concussions and their impact on young athletes isn’t going to go away anytime soon.
In fact, it has become a story with legs, as they say.
On Wednesday, USA TODAY ran an editorial that carried this headline:
Who needs concussion laws? 1.2 million young football players
That editorial is right here.
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On Thursday, USA TODAY, on its op-ed page, carried a piece headlined:
Risk a child’s brain for football?
This piece was written by Katherine Chretien, who is an associate professor of medicine at George Washington University. She touches on the questions and the unknowns involving young people and concussions.
Her essay is right here.
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Keep in mind that USA TODAY has a daily circulation of 1.83 million, which translates to something like 6 million daily readers.
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THE COACHING GAME: The QMJHL’s Rouyn-Noranda Huskies have signed GM/head coach Andre Tourigny to a three-year deal. . . .
Rob Vanstone of the Regina Leader-Post takes a look at the Regina Pats’ coaching situation, after the team swept two assistant coaches out the door on Wednesday. That piece is right here. . . .
Might Craig Hartsburg be the next head coach of the NHL’s Minnesota Wild? Hartsburg, the head coach of the Everett Silvertips, says he hasn’t heard from the Wild. Fox Sports has that story right here.
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The Portland Winterhawks will celebrate a milestone Saturday night as they play host to the Spokane Chiefs in Game 5 of the Western Conference final. Prior to the game, the Winterhawks will welcome the one millionth fan in team playoff history. . . . At present, they are 2,108 fans shy of reaching 1,000,000. . . . According to a news release from the Winterhawks, “The lucky fan . . . will receive season tickets to the Winterhawks’ 2011-12 season, a team autographed jersey and will present the three stars at the conclusion of Saturday’s Game 5.” . . . The Winterhawks take a 2-1 lead into Game 4 tonight in Spokane.
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The winner of the Western Conference final will meet the Kootenay Ice in the WHL championship series. The Ice completed a sweep of the Medicine Hat Tigers on Wednesday night. . . . The Ice played that game without F Steele Boomer and F Drew Czerwonka. Boomer suffered a concussion in Game 1 and sat out the last three games. Czerwonka got a stretcher ride off the ice in Game 3 after falling awkwardly into the boards. He was cleared to play in Game 4 but general soreness kept him out. . . . Ice GM Jeff Chynoweth told me Thursday “both Steele and Drew should be ready for Games 1 and 2 and there also is a possibility that Brock Montgomery also will be back. We miss all three of them.” Montgomery has been out with mononucleosis. . . . The WHL final could start May 6 in Portland or Spokane, with Games 3 and 4 in Cranbrook on May 10 and 11. That is strictly tentative, however.
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The ECHL’s Victoria Salmon Kings, who are a dead team skating, head home from Anchorage trailing the Aces 2-0 after dropping a 4-3 overtime decision on Thursday night. . . . F Wes Goldie, who left the Salmon Kings over the summer despite being one of their most popular players, scored the winner at 2:15 of OT. . . . The Aces opened the Western Conference final Wednesday with a 2-1 victory, scoring the winner with nine seconds left in the third period. . . . The series resumes in Victoria with games on Saturday, Monday and, if necessary, Wednesday. . . . The Salmon Kings' fate has yet to be announced, but their owner, Vancouver-based RG Properties, has purchased the Chilliwack Bruins and is moving the WHL team to the B.C. capital.
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Doug McConachie, a former sports editor of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, died Wednesday morning after what ended up being a one-sided scrap with pancreatic cancer. McConachie was one of the last of the old breed of newspapermen. There aren’t too many of us left who remember what a typewriter sounded like, never mind what hot metal means (or used to mean). . . . Kevin Mitchell, today the sports editor at The StarPhoenix, remembers McConachie — or McDoug, as some of us called him — right here. . . . And why do I think McDoug is somewhere skiing or fishing right now?

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca
     
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