THE MacBETH REPORT:
F Gasper Kopitar (Portland, 2009-11) has been released at his own request by Mora (Sweden, Allsvenskan). He was pointless in 13 games.
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1. In his weekly Slap Shots column, Larry Brooks of the New York Post touches on the return of Rick DiPietro and then delves into NHL commissioner Gary Bettman's ruling on the appeal filed by Patrick Kaleta of the Buffalo Sabres over his 10-game suspension for a shot to the head of Jack Johnson of the Columbus Blue Jackets. It is the Bettman part that makes for intriguing reading. That column is right here. . . . The DiPietro signing with the AHL's Charlotte Checkers is interesting because the parent club, the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes, has lost starting goaltender Cam Ward to injury.
2. A terrific piece by Dan Barry of The New York Times begins: "The Protestant minister and the Roman Catholic priest had a $10 bet riding on the 1946 World Series. The minister, a Lutheran from Missouri, went with the St. Louis Cardinals, naturally. The priest, a Franciscan from upstate New York, was a Brooklyn Dodgers fan, but he went with the Boston Red Sox to make things interesting." . . . Both men were involved in the Nuremberg trials at the time. . . . This is amazing stuff and it's right here.
3. One of the biggest stories of the week didn't receive a whole lot of play in some places, including here. And you know that the Sunday's NFL pregame shows didn't touch on it. Former NFL quarterback Brett Favre, who has admitted to having suffered "a lot" of concussions during his career, has said that he has some memory loss. In fact, he can't remember whether one daughter played soccer one season. . . . There's more on that right here.
4. This brain injury thing isn't going away. I know that a lot of people are tired of hearing and reading about it -- or maybe they can't be bothered to listen or read. But it is only going to get bigger and bigger. If you don't believe it, check out the Monday Morning Quarterback website and see some of the work they did in recent days. There are some horrific stories there.
5. Mike Fraser, who scouts out of Edmonton for the Brandon Wheat Kings and is a veteran of the scouting circuit, offered up this gem after Saturday's sporting action (I was still laughing as I went to bed):
"Rider fans, I introduce you to Red Sox fans. You both whine and complain more than any other fans on the planet, you both believe there are ridiculous conspiracy theories against your teams and you both feel you are better than everyone else because you are Rider/Red Sox fans. You are perfect for each other. A match made in heaven. You're welcome. And to think...people call me a poor match-maker...."
6. It is World Series time, which means baseball is under the microscope. That includes the uniforms, especially the baggy pants. "What was once a stylish game has gotten depressingly schlubby,” Tyler Thoreson, the vice president for men’s editorial and creative at Gilt, the flash-sale site, tells Alex Williams of The New York Times. “Those baggy, ill-fitting pants are a sign of just how out of touch the M.L.B. is from the average American male, who has spent the last five years rediscovering the power of clothes that actually fit.” . . . There's more right here.
7. There were some police officials waiting for Miami Dolphins centre Mike Pouncey shortly after his side lost 27-17 to the host New England Patriots on Sunday afternoon. He was served with a grand jury subpoena, and it's all tied up with the Aaron Hernandez case. There's more from si.com right here.
8. The Red Deer Rebels, have lost four in a row and eight of 11, had one of those stickless practices on Sunday. “We had a tough practice today, but we have to get our work ethic back to where it needs to be,” Brent Sutter, the Rebels' general manager and head coach, told sports editor Greg Meachem of the Red Deer Advocate. “If we want to get back into the win column, we have to earn wins. You have to earn what you get and right now we’re not earning anything.” . . . The Rebels wrap up a seven-game homestand against the Kootenay Ice on Wednesday. . . . Meachem also reports that Rebels G Patrick Bartosak didn't suffer a brain injury when he took a hit from F Collin Valcourt of the Saskatoon Blades on Friday. Still, Barosak is questionable for Wednesday, so Rylan Toth of the midget AAA team from North Battleford, Sask., will back up Taz Burman.
9. The last two World Series games have ended on an obstruction call and a pickoff play at first base. Too bad that Fox-TV was showing us a fan as Sunday's game-ending play began. Check it out right here.
SUNDAY:
In Kamloops, the Blazers scored six seconds after the opening faceoff but didn't score again as they dropped a 4-1 decision to the Vancouver Giants. . . . Kamloops F Aspen Sterzer opened the scoring six seconds into the game, which is one second off the WHL record for fastest goal to start a game. F Dean Sexsmith of the host Seattle Thunderbirds scored five seconds into a 7-6 victory over the Victoria Cougars on Jan. 31, 1987. . . . Sterzer is the seventh player to score six seconds into a game, and the first since F Darren Kwiatkowski did it for the host Regina Pats in a 9-2 victory over, yes, the Victoria Cougars on Nov. 2, 1987. . . . The Cougars also gave up goals six seconds into games on two other occasions, on Jan. 29, 1983 (F Harry Mahood of the Nanaimo Islanders) and Nov. 5, 1977 (F Bll Derlago of the Brandon Wheat Kings). . . . Vancouver F Carter Popoff scored once, giving him three goals in his last two games. . . . The Giants were playing their third game in three nights, having lost the previous two. . . . The Blazers have lost three straight. . . . The Giants (4-9-2) vacated the Western Conference; they lead the Blazers (4-10-1) by one point.
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From Thom Beuning (@ThomBeuning), the radio voice of the Seattle Thunderbirds: "Last season @SeattleTbirds finished with 24 wins in 72 games, this season @SeattleTbirds already with 10 wins in 15 games."
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