1. Hey, CBC, the Pan Am Games are in Canada. You are the host broadcaster. You are funded by taxpayers. When the Canadian men’s baseball team is in the championship game, you have an obligation to televise the game. When the Canadian women’s basketball team is in the championship game, you have an obligation to televise the game. . . . You didn’t. Therefore, you get a fail. . . . The fact that both Canadian teams won gold medals means you get a big, big fail. . . . And please don’t give me any of that junk about streaming. . . . It is decisions like these — and who knows the people or the reasoning behind them — that make you such an easy target.
2. There have been a lot of people complaining about all the flags in CFL games this season, and there have been a lot of them. But shouldn’t fingers be pointing at players and not the on-field officials?
3. The NHL’s TV ratings in Canada were down from last season, both in the regular season and playoffs. Might the length of the season have had anything to do with it? The NBA regular-season started 20 days later than the NHL’s, but ended just one day later.
4. Of course, it could be that the NHL has found the saturation point among viewers, what with so many games available on TV.
5. After the Cleveland Cavaliers lost 105-91 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, LeBron James told reporters: “I'm confident because I'm the best player in the world. It's that simple.” . . . Question: Does the best player in the world have to tell the world? Or does he let his actions define him?
6. Earlier this summer, when Washington passed a law that exempts the state’s four WHL teams from minimum wage legislation, who spoke on behalf of the players?
7. The WHL hasn’t announced it yet, but you can bet it will be going to 3-on-3 overtime in the upcoming season. Why? Because it mirrors the NHL, that’s why.
8. I just wish at least one hockey league would give three points for a regulation victory, two points for an OT victory and one point for a shootout victory, with zero points for losing at any point. Just try it for one season and see what happens. Please.
9. There apparently is no truth to the rumour that former Edmonton Oilers general manager Craig MacTavish will be the next head coach of the Kelowna Rockets. MacTavish is still with the Oilers; he’s now the senior vice-president, hockey operations.
10. Putting Oilers and Rockets in the same sentence brings back memories of this tweet:
Email convo with Kelowna Rockets' owner Bruce Hamilton...on Draisaitl's WHL rights being traded "Nothing going on. All talk. No action."
— John Shannon (@JSportsnet) December 24, 2014
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