"Quebec Cup"

On November 12th Hockey Canada gave the province of Quebec the go-ahead to field a national hockey team to compete in a four team tournament in August, 2011. The competing teams will consist of players from Switzerland, France and Italy as well as Quebec.

It’s not known at this juncture whether or not NHL (National Hockey League) players will be involved in this tournament but Hockey Quebec has stated that if NHL players are not available they will recruit players playing over seas in Europe, so long as they’re born in Quebec.

If NHL players are indeed allowed to play in this proposed “Quebec Cup” countries like France and Italy will be no competition for the likes of a Quebec team or even the Swiss team, providing the Swiss bring over their full national team.

The IIHF (International Ice Hockey Federation) currently has Switzerland ranked seventh in the world just behind the United States and ahead of Slovakia and Germany, two nations whose hockey programs are not to be taken lightly. Canada sits ten points behind Russia in second place.

France and Italy sit 15th and 16th, respectively. There is a real possibility for embarrassment for these two teams if Quebec is able to recruit players the likes of Vincent Lecavalier, Simon Gagne, Danny Briere, Kris Letang, Maxim Lapierre, Pierre-Marc Bouchard, David Perron, Jason Pominville, Stephane Robidas, Martin St. Louis, Alexandre Burrows, and goaltenders Martin Brodeur, Roberto Luongo, Marc-Andre Fleury and Jonathan Bernier.

The list is seemingly endless. Quebec could field a team that could rival the recent Canadian gold medal winning Olympic team, especially since all three of Canada’s starting goaltenders were indeed from Quebec.

But what does this have to say about the Quebec Cup? How are the other three teams going to look if Quebec is loaded with NHL All-Stars. That’s not fair. Nor is it a fair representation of what Quebec could bring to the national level if it were invited to the World Hockey Championships, for example.

One Time Opportunity

Hockey Canada has only granted Hockey Quebec permission to do this one tournament, as of now there are no deals made to give Quebec its own national team at the World Championship or at the Olympic level. But if this Quebec Cup is to be a measuring stick for future Quebec involvement in these international tournaments than I say that it falls short.

No offense to the Italian and French hockey programs but they do not have one player from their nations playing in the NHL, other than Italian born and current Anaheim Duck Luca Sbisa who recently played for Switzerland in the Vancouver Olympics. If Quebec wants real competition and aims to prove to Canada and to the world that it deserves its own national hockey team why not bring over a Czech team or have Finland come on down. Now we’re talking about some actual competition.

It all come down to whether or not NHL players will be invited. The NHL season is long and the possibility that players invited could opt out and choose to rest, or train over the summer to avoid injury, is very real. Players opt out of the World Hockey Championships for the very same reason.

But come on, honestly, France and Italy? This isn’t soccer- if it were they would kick our ass! Either Quebec should not be allowed to recruit NHL players making the tournament unnoticeable to the average hockey fan and thus making it un-marketable or Quebec can invite other nations listed higher on the IIHF rankings and turn the Quebec Cup into a legitimate tournament.

Then we can open the doors to Canada vs. Quebec, I would actually sit down and watch that.

Election Day sports quick hits

On the day of Alberta's municipal elections, politics isn't the only hot topic of discussion amongst Edmontonian's as both the Oilers and the Eskimos, as well as week six in the NFL, all have story lines worth noting.

First, after starting the season with two wins the Oilers have lost their last two and have looked like the young, inexperienced team everyone expected. Despite the past two games, both of which were games where the Oil led but managed to lose, there is still lots of room for optimism. In past seasons fans and media pundits would jump all over the Oilers after losing two straight games in such a fashion but this year has proven to be quite the different story. It's safe to say that both the media and the fans have bought into what general manager Steve Tambellini has been selling; that this season is just step one of the rebuild process.

Rather than criticizing every mistake, fans have come to accept the fact that while this team might not be good now, they have the potential to be great later. This goes to show just how strong and loyal the Edmonton fan base truly is. Selling a rebuild to fans in markets like Florida and Carolina is much harder than it is in markets like Edmonton and Toronto and thanks to the faithful followers of their franchises teams like Edmonton and Toronto should be given the necessary time to successfully build their team into contenders.

This isn't to say that the Oilers won't be great this season. While the start has not been ideal it's tough to say how long it will take for the team to gel and mold itself into an ultra-competitive team. This could take place after 25 games, 50 games or after an entire season, the point is is that while the coaching staff and the players work out the kinks, fans have shown their willingness to be patient and support their team entirely. This makes the Oilers one of the truly lucky franchises in the NHL; not many teams have the continuous support that they do and that should make Tambellini's job that much easier.

Eskimos are still in it

It's hard to believe how, after such a disastrous season, the Edmonton Eskimos are still tied for the final playoff spot in the west division. Three wins in the past four games have given the Eskimos a sense of belief that maybe, just maybe, they still might play in the Grey Cup, live in front of their home crowd.

While this may still be a very unlikely scenario, the fact that it still exists astounds me. In a league of only eight teams the playoff window is always left wide open and that has allowed the otherwise hapless Eskimos a chance to play for the top prize. As Edmonton is set to host the nations largest football event in the nations largest outdoor stadium the team itself can't help but imagine how great it would be to play in that game in front 60,000+ screaming fans. But with three games left to play, two of which are against the Saskatchewan Roughriders- not the easiest of opponents-the Eskimos face a seemingly un-climbable uphill challenge but sometimes it's that adversity that brings the best out in football teams.

Time will tell how the Eskimos will respond to this challenge but with Ricky Ray playing his best football and with the CFL being a quarterback driven league, the Eskimos stand a chance on beating out the B.C Lions in the standings. With the Lions opting to cut veteran Casey Printers and going with rookie QB Travis Lulay as the starter, it will be interesting to see if he can outplay Ray down the stretch because ultimately that's what it will come down to.


NFL Week six

With week six almost done the NFL has built up quite the amount of story-lines, too many to follow extensively in one blog, but a couple highlights must be discussed.

• The Cowboys have now fallen to 1-4. What an unbelievably unpredictable start to the season for the Cowboys. While their recent loss to the Vikings wasn't a blow-out, it still exposed the teams lack of offensive execution. While boasting the leagues third highest yards per game average with 400 yards, the Cowboys are ranked 17th in average points per game with 20.4. It's simple, a team averaging that many yards per game has to score more points. Romo needs to get it done because in five games he has only ten touchdowns, and with Witten, Williams and Austin as targets this is simply not good enough.

• The 49ers finally won in one of the weeks ugliest games against the Oakland Raiders. Raiders QB Jason Campbell went 8/21 and threw for 83 yards and two int's . Campbell managed to throw for zero yards in both the second and third quarter yet the Niners weren't able to get the games first TD until the final play of the third quarter when Niners QB Alex Smith threw a bomb to receiver Michael Crabtree who leaped straight up and landed hard in the end-zone for the touchdown.

• The Seahawks and the Rams won again, proving that they are both much better teams than their last season counter-parts. Time will tell if these teams can continue their impressive performances.

• Ben Roethlisberger showed that he carries little to no rust after his five game suspension was lifted. While it was against the Cleveland Browns, arguably one of the worst teams in the league, Big Ben was able to throw for three touchdowns. The Steelers have surprised many by going 3-1 in Roethlisberger's absence but they still desperately need his skills as the team currently sits 28th in the league in passing yards per game with 160.2.

• Are the Jets the real deal? Not only is Mark Sanchez playing well but now LaDainian Tomlinson is back on the scene scoring two touchdowns in the Jets' win over the Denver Broncos. Rex Ryan has his team proving that last season was no fluke. The possibility of a sophomore slump is starting to seem less and less likely as each week passes.

**Don't forget to VOTE! Polls close at 8 pm.**


Photo credit: Dub Architects and Justin Edmonds

Oilers/Panthers recap and 49ers 0-5

The Edmonton Oilers had no business beating the Florida Panthers last night. The Oilers barely managed a paltry 13 shots on net-minder Tomas Vokoun. Yet with some brilliant re-directions from forwards Dustin Penner and Ryan Jones, coupled with some outstanding goal tending from Nikolai Khabibulin, the Oilers were able to steal one.

The win goes to show two things, one, that the Oilers are still a work in progress and two, that the Oilers desperately missed Khabibulin last season. Watching the young Oilers falter under an intense Panthers forecheck wasn't all that surprising to me, I expected this would happen a lot this season, but what I did not expect was Khabibulin standing on his head. It's too early in the season to be making bold predictions, although this never seems to stop analysts from dumping their Nostradamus-like revelations on us, but if the Oilers can continue to get this level of goal tending you can expect to see them make a serious push for the playoffs.

The Oilers continually get compared to the likes of the Coyotes and the Avalanche of last season. Both those teams made surprising runs to the playoffs and they did so on the backs of great coaching and great goaltending. I love the combination of Renney and Krueger behind the bench and if one of Dubnyk or Deslauriers can provide decent back-up goaltending, and they will need at least 20-25 games from them, then the Oilers could very well emulate the Avalanche' season. ( I say the Avalanche more-so than the Coyotes for the simple reason that I doubt the Oilers will cruise to 50 wins and 107 points.)

Judging from last nights stagnant offensive output its safe to suggest that some line-up changes will be expected. Penner finished last season on a line with Cogliano and Brule so it wouldn't surprise me to see that line reunited. This would bump Paajarvi up to the top line with Gagner and Hemsky. I really have liked the chemistry from the Hall-Horcoff-Eberle line and I don't see any reason to split that one up just yet. The fourth line has been the most impressive for me. Fraser and Jones look very comfortable together and whether it's Zach or Big Mac attacking on the right, you know this line will bring it every shift.

For the time being the Oilers are undefeated! As a fan I will relish this moment, as a skeptic I laugh in my own face. The Oilers will have some time off to work on some of their shortcomings before playing the Wild on Thursday. If they can come out strong like they did against the Flames then the they should be fine but if they come out flat like last night, much like the Eskimos, the streak will end at two.

49ers are 0-5

I cannot understand how and why Mike Singletary still has a job. It doesn't make sense. The 49ers came into the season with high expectations, whether this is the cause of the teams downfall is not really known- some teams can't handle the pressure I suppose- but high expectations or not this team should be better than this. The 49ers join the Carolina Panthers and the Buffalo Bills as teams who still have yet to win a game. At the moment it looks as if big changes are needed, so why are the 49ers brass so gun shy?

I'm not in the locker rooms or on the sidelines or at practices but it looks to me like this team is not responding to what the coaches are preaching. They continually make mistakes and not just the turnover ratio, which by the way sits at a glaring -10, but penalties on both offense and defense have hurt this team more than anything else. Which leads to the conclusion that the firing of offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye wasn't the only move needed in order for the team to respond on the field.

The finger must also be pointed to the players themselves, they must be held accountable. While the defense hasn't been stellar they're not the ones losing games for their team. Quaterback Alex Smith has thrown nine interceptions and only six touchdowns in five games. While Frank Gore has only one rushing touchdown and averaging only 3.5 yards per carry it is important to point out that he is number two in receiving behind tight end Vernon Davis, with 284 yards and two Td's. Other than Davis and Gore the 49ers have no clear offensive weapons and wide receivers Crabtree and Morgan barely get the ball enough to criticize. Either the offensive line needs to give Smith more time or Smith needs to be smarter with the ball. I'd say he needs to get his receivers more involved with the game but I fear that will just lead to more int's.

It's easy to criticize a team that has yet to win a game. Either this team is not as good as everyone thought they were or the team is just as good but have chosen to shut down and ignore the flamboyant ramblings of Singletary (seriously that "we will stop Drew Brees" rant was ridiculous.) I liked Singletary, the guy has that no B.S , old school mentality but clearly it's not working (Personally I like the look of Pete Carroll on the Seahawks' sidelines.) Either you make personel changes on the field or on the sidelines, either way changes are clearly needed sooner rather than later.



Khabibulin Photo Credit: John Ulan
Singletary Photo Credit: siliconangle.com

Down and Out

Although the Eskimos might not be mathematically out of the playoffs judging from last nights performance at Ivor Wynne the playoffs look like nothing but a distant dream. After their 36-11 beat-down at the hands of the Hamilton Tiger Cats the Eskimos are two points behind of the B.C Lions for the final playoff spot in the West. If the Lions pull out a victory over the Bombers on Thanksgiving day, the Eskimos might as well start clearing out their lockers.

Going in to last nights game the Eskimos had to have known that the Ti-Cats were hungry. Everybody talked about how defensive coordinator Greg Marshall ripped his defense a new one after the Eskies squeaked out a 37-35 win last week. It obviously worked as the Hamilton defense held the Ricky Ray and the Eskimos to zero passing touchdowns and forced two interceptions. Not to mention Mathieu Bertrand fumbling the ball two times.

My question is is as a coaching staff why wouldn't Kevin Strasser elect to maybe run the ball for a change. All in all the Eskimos offense attempted a total of ten rushing plays. Ten! How one dimensional do you want to look? Ricky threw the ball 34 times, completing 25 of those passes for 198 yards and an interception. Not impressive numbers for a quarterback who received ample amounts of time in the pocket. The highly criticized offensive line only allowed two sacks in the game, nothing overly glaring there considering their disastrous start to the season.

So why don't the Eskimos run the ball? You're on the road, control the clock! I can understand if you've given the running game an honest look and nothing's opening up and the argument could be made in that case when you look at McCarty's negative three yards on three attempts stat. But he only got three attempts! I guess McCarty is the Eskies new top receiver because he caught the ball seven times, a game high amongst receivers.


The Eskimos defense and special teams didn't fare much better. Despite the seemingly reinvigorated effort the defense has shown since the arrival of new linebackers coach Mark Nelson, the Eskimos looked lost out there last night allowing Glenn to throw for 339 yards and three touchdowns. With the exception of the one touchdown the rushing defense did their job against a dangerous DeAndra' Cobb, holding him to only 49 yards on the ground in 16 attempts. Watching that fumble and recovery by Stevie Baggs on the Eskimos kick return was just painful. That single handily killed any momentum the Eskimos had.

Stopping Cobb could be the only positive in an otherwise brutal performance by the Eskimos. Now its up to the Bombers to help out the Eskimos. If the Bombers pull out a victory that will set up a great match-up for the Eskies and Lions next week in a possible playoff showdown. Of course if the Eskimos actually showed up to play last night they could have controlled their own playoff destiny instead of watching it unfold on television.

Quick NHL hits

• Watching Ondrej Pavelec hit the ice on his own was purely frightening. I'm not a praying man but my thoughts go out to him and I hope he makes a speedy recovery.
• Pavel Datsyuk shocked us all when he pulled off the Gordie Howe hat-trick last night after dropping the gloves with Corey Perry. The Detroit-Anaheim rivalry has established itself as being one of the best rivalries in the West.
  
• The Europe experiment looks like it's going well but man oh man do I hate listening to American announcers. Not all of them of course but for the most part these guys treat the game as if its baseball and do more story telling than actual play-by-play. Where's Jim Hughson when you need him?
• And finally I love that Zdeno Chara signed a seven year extension with the Bruins. Not only is he the face and captain of that franchise but he has become the sole reason why teams hate to play the Bruins. The signing also gives me peace of mind knowing that my Chara jersey is safe and sound. Nothing worse than getting a name on the back and then having that player get moved the next season. ( Talk to Oilers fans about the number 44)

Photo Credit- Edmonton Journal

MMA strikes hard in Alberta

Corey Lautischer has waited two and a half months for this night. After weeks of rigorous training; Monday to Friday, day in and day out, coupled with a steady diet of plain rice, oats, chicken, broccoli, eggs and almonds, he will get his chance to prove why in the end it should be his hand raised victorious. The 25-year-old fighter sits in a small changing room behind a large curtain, underneath the arenas bleachers. He is not alone. With him are several other fighters who, like himself, have something to prove.

Outside the stands are slowly filling, drinks are being served. Ringside dinner tables are being privately catered by chefs who cook behind the scenes on the arena floor with portable steam tables, grills and convection ovens. Another group of fighters sit in a very similar room across the arena floor behind the opposite set of bleachers. But Lautischer, along with the others, are not only fighting an opponent, they’re also fighting a mentality. A mentality that doesn't escape even some of the fans inside the building itself. They do so because although Edmonton might be home to the second highest concentration of sanctioned MMA fights, second only to Vegas, there is a lingering mentality that he and those like him, are not respectable athletes. It’s a battle Lautischer is more than happy to fight.

Hayabusa MMA

Luke Harris, 33, is a professional MMA fighter as well as the owner of the well-known Hayabusa gym located in St. Albert, Alberta- a community west of Edmonton. The gym hosts some of Alberta’s best up and coming mixed martial artists, including Lautischer, and offers training to those seeking skills in a variety of mixed martial arts: karate, wrestling, judo, jiu jitsu, boxing, and muai thai.

While the gym seeks to attract professional fighters from all across Canada it also offers classes to regular martial arts seekers as well as children. As a former professional Judo competitor Harris teaches Judo to young children, the youngest being three years old, but also through the sport, discipline and respect. Children learning judo and karate at a young age is nothing new, but learning from professional MMA fighters in a professional MMA gym is and while the parents of the children are not worried, some taking part in classes themselves, stereotypes continue to linger.

“That’s the misconception about MMA and the aggressiveness being any different than all the other martial arts; it’s the same,” explained Harris when asked whether MMA training can lead to violence.

“The people fighting in MMA, who have passed their medicals, are the fittest people out there,” said Harris. “We fight at a professional level, like professional hockey, not everyone will reach this level.”



Common misconception

The professional sport of MMA has been taking a beating amongst traditional sports analysts and fans who have dismissed the sport as nothing more than senseless violence. Some still do not recognize MMA as a legitimate sport despite the impressive knowledge and technique involved. This mentality is supported at the government level as major states and provinces like New York and Ontario are still on the fence in regards to legalizing the sport. Commissions are set in each state/province to help regulate the sport and keep it as safe as possible. These commissions control who fights whom, making sure that no one fighter is stacked up unfairly against another. That would be dangerous.

Mike Froese, 39, has been training in mixed martial arts for six years, now training at the Hayabusa gym. Froese scoffs at the criticism saying that MMA is a dangerous sport and that it attracts only the uneducated and blood thirsty.

“What would be dangerous is taking an unskilled fighter and putting him up against a skilled fighter,” said Froese in a post-training interview. “That’s where the commissions get involved.”

“Fighters are responsible for selling tickets, on a local level we’re the ones who bring the crowd in,” said Froese. “We’re all athletes of the sport so we respect each other, the respect level is huge, it’s just business in the ring.”

Froese, Lautischer and Harris have all fought and lost in their professional careers. Losing changes a man, it humbles them. While MMA and boxing have been compared at exhaustive lengths it is important to point out that while boxing has been legalized and featured in movies and T.V shows for decades, MMA is just earning the same notoriety. The exact number of fighters who have died as a result of boxing is unclear (sherdog.net puts the number at 70 between 1998-2006), but what is clear is that only two MMA fighters have died during the entire history of sanctioned MMA.

Another point to be made is that all three Hayabusa fighters have won their matches as a result of submission, offering the major difference between the two sports.

“When you look at boxing the majority of the hits are head shots,” said Froese. “In MMA, head shots are just a small part of the game.”

Fight Night

Back at the Expo Centre in Edmonton, Aggression MMA 5 is well underway. Patrolling the area are five policeman accompanied by an upwards of 15 security guards. Lautishcer is featured in the second bout, dispatching his opponent in 25 seconds, choking him to the point of unconsciousness. This is where the safety of the sport gets called into question.

However at ringside there are three trained physicians on scene who respond admirably and quickly revive the fallen fighter. Behind the giant curtain that divides the ring from the backstage, away from the eyes of the fighters and the fans, stands an ambulance and two EMS paramedics. Ryan, one of the paramedics who asked only to use his first name, has worked well over 20 MMA fights as well as the CFR (Canadian Finals Rodeo). Never once has he been needed during an MMA event.

“No one has got to the point where the physicians have needed an ambulance,” explained Ryan. “We stay backstage and away from the action. Just like cowboys at a rodeo they [fighters] don’t want to see us.”

The safety measures undertaken by the physicians, paramedics and even the fighters themselves ensure that while the sport may be violent in nature, it is not just an excuse to go out and hurt another man.

“It’s mostly misconceptions through the media,” explains Lautischer. “It’s like any other sport, there’s camaraderie amongst the guys and there’s a lot of personal growth involved.”

When asked what it will take to convince traditional sports fans that MMA is indeed a legitimate sport Lautischer, Harris and Froese all agreed on the same single word: time. The only question left is how much time it will take.




Luke Harris celebrates his victory at the Expo Centre in Edmonton, AB for Aggression MMA 5

Mukai Maromo focuses on his opponent Kurt Southern at Aggression MMA 5 at the Expo Centre in Edmonton, AB. Southern earned a submission victory (triangle choke) over Maromo in the first round.
Tim Hague grapples with Travis Wiuff at the Edmonoton Expo Center at Aggression MMA 5. Hague knocked out Wiuff in the second round.

Luke Harris takes a punch from Siarhei Misialik at Aggression MMA 5 at the Expo Centre in Edmonton, AB. Harris won the fight in the second round via submission (arm triangle choke)

Corey Lautischer waits backstage at Aggression MMA 5 before his bout versus Adam Bodwell at the Expo Centre in Edmonton, AB. Lautischer (guillotine) choked out Bodwell in 25 seconds.

Corey Lautischer focuses in on his Aggression MMA 5 bout versus Adam Bodwell at the Expo Centre in Edmonton, AB. Lautischer (guillotine) choked out Bodwell in 25 seconds.

Travis Wiuff gets rubbed down before stepping into the ring with Tim Hague at Aggression MMA 5 in Edmonton, AB.

Tim Hague squares off with Travis Wiuff at the Edmonoton Expo Center at Aggression MMA 5. Hague knocked out Wiuff in the second round

All photos taken by:Trevor Robb

Tillman Saga Put to Rest

Ever since Eric Tillman was hired on as the new general manager of the Edmonton Eskimos people won’t stop talking trash about the franchise and where it’s headed. What can be said that hasn’t already been? Fans have come out in droves and have vocalized their opinions, some for, some against. We have all heard the stories of the long standing season ticket holders who have vowed not to renew their seats. Backlash is at an all-time high. It seems like a major blow has been dealt to the Eskimos image.

But this isn’t anything new. The Edmonton Eskimos have been a faltering, destabilized, unsustainable group of so-called “athletes” and “professionals” and they have been that way for five straight seasons under former general manager and former head coach Danny Maciocia. Fans have called in to the Team 1260 or 630 CHED after every game and have done nothing but bitch and complain about their team, of which, had every right to. What happened? The Eskimos were once a force in the West, making a losing appearance in the 2002 Grey Cup and then winning the Grey Cup in both 2003 and 2005. They were not just consistently competing, they were consistently winning.

Five years of disappointment

The past five years has been a much different story. The Eskimos, under the guiding eye of Maciocia, have managed zero Grey Cup appearances. Their home record over the past five seasons, including this year, stands at a mere 22-19-1. Commonwealth Stadium used to be one of the most difficult and intimidating stadiums to play in. Now we play on turf. What’s worse is the teams record away from Commonwealth, an impressing 11-30. My Lord, looking at that stat just hurts.

When a team holds records like these there is bound to be plenty of blame to go around, and rightly so. On July 31st that blame came crumbling down on Maciocia’s shoulders, and rightly so. Maciocia’s past and current record was so bad that CEO Rick LeLacheur fired his general manager, one of the most key important position in all of football, minus the coach, at the mid-season mark. He couldn’t wait any longer and neither could the fans, who were also very vocal in their support in the decision to fire Maciocia. It seemed like there was a little light cracking through a tunnel the Eskimos have barely traveled down. This franchise and it’s fan base, is not accustomed to losing.

The fans want a team that wins just like the good ol’ days. Eric Tillman can bring those days back. He has three Grey Cup rings to prove that he can. Unfortunately those rings come linked to charges stemming from the much publicized sexual assault case involving Tillman and a 16-year old babysitter. What he did was wrong, no one will argue that, but some people have skewed the issue to the point where they have lumped Tillman into the same categories as rapists and child molesters, which is going too far. I’m not going to delve deep into this but what I will say is that if those closest to the situation can move on, why can’t you?

Moving on

As a society here in Alberta we have agreed, legally, that 16 years old is around the time when a person can have consensual sex. Now while what Tillman did was not consensual it certainly wasn’t sex. It was barely first and a half base. I don’t mean to marginalize the severity of sexual assault and the possible repercussions it can cause a victim but this case doesn’t involve a screaming family and a battered victim. Just a man who has to live with his actions and an unforgiving public that had no problem hiring Craig MacTavish, a man who plead guilty to vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence on February 9th, 1984. Both men were and still are extremely apologetic.

I understand the initial backlash to the hiring of Tillman, it was expected. What I hope is that the men and women who initially vowed not renew season tickets next season take a step back and understand that from a football point of view this move makes sense. There is a ton of work to be done to make this team a winner again and Tillman is the most qualified man for the job. The challenge now will rest on the community to show the same class it showed when fans in San Jose booed the Canadian national anthem during the second round of the 06’ Stanley Cup run. We didn’t boo back, that’s not our style. Fans don’t forget, but they move on and it’s a lot easier for them to move on if the Eskimos start winning. Everybody loves a winner.

While basketball fans across North America might not like Kobe Bryant, the fans of Los Angeles sure love him now that he helped them win back-to-back championships. I suggest taking a closer look at Eagles fans and how well Michael Vick plays. If Vick wins, dollars to doughnuts says Philly fans will be dawning more and more Vick jerseys. While Eskie fans most likely won’t be dawning Tillman jerseys any time soon, they might just take the paper bags off their heads.




Photo credit: CBC

UFC 117 results

UFC 117 went live from Oakland, California on Saturday and it did not disappoint. The UFC and Dana White put together a fantastic card and I will break down the five main bouts of the evening.


Roy Nelson vs. Junior Dos Santos
Decision: Dos Santos-Unanimous decision

Roy Nelson is one tough S.O.B. Nelson has never had the physique that the other UFC fighters do, but who needs that when you got a black belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu, right? Not only is he technically sound but he proved on Saturday that he can take a punch like no one else in this buisness.

Unfortunately for Nelson, Dos Santos also proved something on Saturday night. He proved that he is the number one contender for the heavyweight championship and he proved that by soundly picking apart Nelsons striking defense with an onslaught of never ending fists to the face!

This fight showed me two things: That Roy 'Big Country' Nelson should never be taken lightly and that Junior Dos Santos just might be the real deal. At 6' 4 and 240 lbs, Dos Santos looks primed and ready at the age of 25 to take a shot at either Cain Velasquez or Brock Lesnar. I don't think Dos Santos' age is a detriment at all to his "game", in fact, I believe he can use it to his advantage, as his conditioning and stamina look flawless. For a guy his size he threw punch after punch for three rounds and he looked like he could go another two, no problem. The winner between Lesnar and Velasquez beware, Dos Santos looks scary.

Matt Hughes vs Ricardo Almeida
Decision: Hughes-Submission

Matt Hughes looked extremely impressive when he choked out Brazilian black belt Ricardo Almeida and from a standing position no less. It wasn't just amazing to see a man of Almeida's stature get choked out but it was especially amazing because it came at the hands of a man who some had given up on. Matt Hughes showed that he is back and he is ready to challenge and I really hope he gets one last shot.

With the win Hughes improves to 46-7. Talk about a legend.

Clay Guida vs Rafael Dos Anjos
Decision: Guida-Submission

Clay Guida is flat-out one of the most entertaining fighters in the UFC. Watching him let out a giant belch in the corner in-between rounds was priceless. His handling of another Brazilian ( they really could have called the event UFC 117- USA vs Brazil), in Rafael Dos Anjos, was just as impressive as it was fun to watch. Guida caught Dos Anjos with a vicious strike that reportedly broke the Brazilians jaw. But give Dos Anjos credit, he continued to fight. Unfortunately for Dos Anjos, Guida got him on the ground and in a position that saw Guida's shoulder digging into Dos Anjos' broken jaw. Dos Anjos had no choice but to tap. Still, what a tough guy, and what a great fight!

Thiago Alves vs Jon Fitch
Decision: Fitch- Unanimous Decision

Thiago Alves disappointed me. He couldn't cut down his weight in time and it showed. Alves was handled easily by Jon Fitch, who looked great in pulling out a grinding victory. But that's how Fitch fights. It's not flashy but he gets the job done, granted his opponent did not look like he was even in it to begin with. Fitch controlled Alves both along the cage and on the ground and he did it by grabbing onto Alves and not letting go. It's not an exciting win for Fitch but it's not important. He dominated.

Alves' conditioning was terrible. He looked jacked and cut but he was just too slow. He needs to either move up a weight class or cut down on the bench press. Fitch won the first fight between the two and you would think this fight would have more animosity or something but this fight turned out to be the dud of the night.

Main Event: Chael Sonnen vs. Anderson Silva
Decision: Silva-Submission

Chael Sonnen talked a big game before this fight and most fans and MMA experts gave this guy no chance. But wow did he shut us up! Or should I say got us out of our seats! I was in shock when Sonnen first caught Silva with a straight arm shot that sent Silva down, but when he controlled the fight for the following four rounds, I found myself cheering for the guy. I wanted to see the biggest upset in recent MMA history. But Silva is better than that.

Silva, at times, looked uninterested in even trying to avoid Sonnen's onslaught. At times Sonnen would get eight to ten uncontested hits to Silva's face and Silva wouldn't even try to put his hands up and block. But by the end of the fifth round it was Sonnen who was cut and bleeding. While Silva was on his back defending, he caught Sonnen with a tight elbow strike to the eye. And then in the fifth, seemingly out of nowhere, Silva woke up. He managed to get Sonnen in a triangle choke but that failed. He then grabbed a hold of Sonnen's arm and before you know it, it's over! At first I didn't think Sonnen tapped, it happened so quickly. Even Sonnen looked confused by the referee's decision but he did not argue one iota in the post game interview.

Sonnen may not have got the win but he proved he's not just all talk. I look forward to seeing him fight again and soon. Silva narrowly escaped this fight with a win but the great ones always find a way to win, don't they? It might not have been pretty, and he did admit in a post fight interview that he broke a rib four weeks before the fight during training, but Silva still got the victory. Last time I checked, that's all that matters. Bring on Belfort!



Next Blog I'll look more into the Hamilton Tiger Cats situation and if you're not watching the Rogers Cup right now, you missed out! Go Canada!


Picture credit: Google

Going, going, gone?

I don't think I have ever watched a superstar struggle so mightily to reach a milestone then A-Rod has this past week. Scratch that, we're now running onto the second week now. July 22nd was the last time Rodriguez hit a home run and after tonight's 0-3 at bat performance, he has since gone 9 for 46.

Talk about a slump, eh?

Yankees manager Joe Girardi doesn't seem to be bothered by A-Rod's lack of performance.

"It's hard to tell if a guy is pressing," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "Right now, he's in a little funk. Like I've said, sometimes these milestones are hard."

Girardi is being nice here and it shows his class as manager, but the truth is that his team just got taken over as the top team in the AL East and believe me, he needs Rodriguez to get going and he needs that much more than he's letting on. This milestone isn't just about Rodriguez making it to 600, it's about kick-starting the Yankees back in the win column and back into the division lead. The Yankees have gone 5-5 in their last ten and are riding a three game losing streak. You would think that the team's troubles don't squarely rest on Rodriguez's shoulders but at the same time you would have to think that once A -Rod hits that 600th home run, and he will, the momentum and overall good feeling in the locker room could give this team that serious momentum boost that they're lacking and we could just as easily be talking about this team riding a five game winning streak in a week.

Once again it all comes back to Rodriguez.

The Tampa Bay Rays got a home run from their own Rodriguez, Sean Rodriguez, in the first inning of their game versus an injured Minnesota Twins team, who I'm sure were very happy to see a returning Mauer get an RBI single in the ninth. This win puts more and more heat on the Yankees' Rodriguez to hit that elusive 600th home run and move this team past this terrible mess.

But could this be viewed as a plus? We all know how athletes love competition, especially competition that carries the same name. Two Rodriguez's, only one can hit the long ball. But, tomorrow's a different day and you got to wonder how long the Blue Jays can hold off this powerful Yankee offense. I suspect Rodriguez and the Yankees won't have to wait too much longer.


Switching sports!

In the hockey world the Chicago Blackhawks are the champions! At least they were. Some say this is the result of the salary cap system ruining a teams chance to sign and keep key marquee players and form the dynasty teams people remember from the past. All of which is complete bullshit. The Blackhawks signed all their key marquee players: Toews, Kane, Seabrook, Keith, and unfortunately Cristobal Huet. This is where the big flaw of the Hawks was exposed, but instead of playing Niemi and hoping the progression of Byfuglien, Ladd, Vertseeg and Bolland goes along as planned, they went and signed Marian Hossa.

Now why the hell would you do that?

It's hard to criticize a team that won the cup, but with Hossa's terrible playoff performance combined with the Hawks' present situation, I'd say it's fair game.

Seriously though, this move was completely unnecessary. Some say that Hossa gave the Hawks the four lines needed to win and I say that Radek Dvorak could have suited that role just as well. You didn't need a 68 million dollar player to win the cup! You had all the right pieces in place you just simply needed to bury Huet just like they're going to do this season. Hossa was straight-up not an impact player. The Hawks spent, what is now precious, cap space on a guy who scored three total playoff goals!

Former GM Dale Tallon has to take the blame rather than the man appointed to fix the mess, Stan Bowman. Not only did Tallon sign Hossa but he also made Brian Campbell the seven-million dollar man he is today. I like Campbell, he's a great defenseman, but he's overpaid.

Couple with these two bad signings with Tallon's inability to meet the RFA deadline, costing the team millions, and you've got the reason why this team is currently dismantling it's roster and this: bad management. It has nothing to do with the cap system. This is an example of poor management and a teams attempt to fix mistakes while still remaining competitive. Here's hoping Turco, Hossa and Campbell find their games together because I still think this team will make the playoffs and ultimately compete. I know it looks bad now, but they've still got four of the best young players in the game.



Tomorrow I chat a little Favre. I refuse to comment today because I still want to hear him say it himself. But this is getting ridiculous, ridiculously hilarious that is! Cheers.




Quote from: Sportsnet
Picture from: Google

Kovalchuk, and the Toronto Blue Jays

After 19 days of deliberation and indecision, today, Ilya Kovalchuk decided to resign with the New Jersey Devils. For 17 seasons. Well at least he made it interesting.

The good part about this is Ilya didn't need a one hour long televised special to inform the public of this monumental moment in history. But much like the Lebron decision, this reeks.

The deal works out to 102 million over 17 seasons but the balk of the deal is paid over nine seasons. 99 million dollars will be paid out in the first nine seasons, while Kovalchuk will be earning a whopping 550k in the last five seasons.

Something tells me he won't be finishing out this contract.

Kovalchuk will be making six million in the first two seasons but then in the 2012/13 season it spikes to a shocking eleven and half million over the next five seasons! This puts the pressure to perform on not only Kovalchuk but the entire Devils franchise. If they get ousted in the first two rounds in the next two seasons and Kovalchuk no shows, like he always does, then this may be the biggest over payment in the NHL right now.( Yes Oiler fans, even bigger than Horcoff. He's gonna have a comeback season, just you watch.)

Back to Kovalchuk. Nobody has scored more goals since the lockout than Ilya Kovalchuk. The man is a true sniper. His snap shot is deadly and his size and speed make it so tough for opposing d-men to stop him. Unfortunately none of these skills have been seen in the playoffs yet. The Devils have a new building and a new superstar to fill those seats. throw in Volchenkov with Parise, Zajac, Arnott, and Elias and you're doing alright.

One more thing though. The Devil's cap hit sits at 61,941,666 (as per cap geek), a good 1.8 million dollars over. So somebody needs to be moved. Look for the Devils to unload some bodies here in the future. I know it sounds crazy but if Elias is willing to move and the Devils, who badly need a puck moving D-man, can package and coerce Brian Burke into a deal with Toronto for Kaberle, then Lamoriello will look like a genius. (if not, take Souray, Omark and Cogliano and we'll take Elias and Langenbrunner off your hands. Hemsky and Elias could make a good duo and Langenbrunner would be a UFA after one season. Just saying.)

Switching Sports!

The Toronto Blue Jays swapped shortstops with the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday, sending Alex Gonzalez along with two minor leaguers to the Braves for reportedly disgruntled shortstop Yanel Escobar and 25-year-old pitcher Jo-Jo Reyes. At first I thought the Jays were getting hosed and hey with Gregg choking in the 10th inning tonight against the Royals, it looks like nothing has changed for the Jays. Well more so for Gregg

Escobar, on the other hand, hit a grand-slam yesterday and went 2-4 with two RBI's and hitting an average of .471 tonight in the Jays' loss to the Royals.

So far so good.

I like the Jays, I always have. We all remember watching Joe Carter jump around the bases that night, even out here in Alberta, we remember that. It was a classic moment and it makes me glad that my father forced me to watch sports as a child. I'm off topic, the point is, is I want to see the Jays return to the playoffs! It seems impossible when the Red Sox , Yankees and Rays are sharing your division, i know, but the Rays used to be terrible and now they're led by an excellent group of young talent and look how good they have become.

I hope Alex Anthropoulos understands that the only way you can beat the Yankees and the Red Sox is by building up the farm and developing your talent. I like bringing in guys like Escobar and Reyes at ages of 27 and 26. That's prefect! If Escobar can play the way he did last season with Braves then the deal is a steal. But that's a big if. I don't know a lot about the prospects they sent away but if you're Anthropoulus, you kind of hope they turn out to be duds. Nobody wants to see someone fail, well some people do, but in this case it would be nice to see the Jays be on the winning side of a trade for a change. Take no prisoners! This is baseball! And there's no crying in baseball!

What's wrong with the Eskimos?

0-3. The Edmonton Eskimos have started the 2010 campaign, a season in which they will host the Grey Cup in November, at 0-3. Tough start. It's especially frustrating as a fan when you see a team playing hard and making plays, only to screw it all up when it counts and shoot themselves in the foot. Turnovers mixed with a terrible red zone percentage have given the City of Edmonton deja vu all over again. We've seen this before but this just seems so much worse.

The same mistakes made in the first two games were repeated again today in the Eskimos recent loss to the Saskatchewan Roughriders. 24-20. A game in which the Eskimos fumbled the ball two times, one, on a stereotypical "Yes, yes,yes! No, No, No", 42 yard catch and fumble by Fred Stamps.

D'oh!

Stamps had 12 catches for 213 yards on the day. Those numbers are unreal! So is another one: Zero touchdowns. Stamps had a fantastic game but having that ball ripped from his hands is all most people are going to remember about it. If it wasn't for that dropped pass against the Alouettes I don't think there would be any reason to doubt his reliability. The guy seems to be open a lot. Either he's a great route runner with suspect hands or he's just average and is the beneficiary of a good quaterback. For the most part Stamps appears to have game, but in key situations your key players have to make the plays. 213 yards is a good stat but if none of those catches are in the end zone, who cares?

Quarterback Ricky Ray's stats are surprisingly similar to Stamps'. Going 22/31, passing for 319 yards, and committing zero interceptions is an impressive game but none of that matters when the TD column reads zero. Ricky Ray is an elite quarterback in the CFL. His arm strength is fine, it's just being wasted on 90 degree, 15 yard dump passes to slotbacks who either aren't talented enough( *cough Kamau cough*) to make plays in open field or just unable to get any blocking up field. Either way, it's not working and something needs to change.

Maybe Ray needs a little friendly competition and today we saw just that when Jared Zabransky got into the game. Once. It was a 14 yard play for a first down. He then handed off for a reverse play that went nowhere fast. I like Zabransky. The guy was on the cover of NCAA Football 08! Maybe there's a curse there too, cause I'm not sure if this guy is ever going to get an honest look. Which is too bad cause Zabransky won Eastern Oregon's Male Athlete of the Year award his senior year in 2002 and passed for 1,600 yards and 15 touchdowns as team captain that season. I mean the guy was ranked number eleven in the US among quarterbacks and in his 2006 college season he was named to the second-team All-WAC. (Seriously check this guy out.)

Running back Arkee Whitlock was used sparingly in this game. After running for 116 yards against the Lions, and 99 yards against the Alouettes, you would think that Arkee is a top go-to guy for this offense. Instead he saw the ball just 13 times and ran for a season low, 49 yards. Arkee has the dynamic ability to make plays in the open field, something this team is lacking. So why so few touches?

The defense looked alright though. Mo Lloyd is playing up to his ability after a not so stellar debut season last year with the Eskies. He was all over the backfield and sacked Durant two times. Lloyd is the leader this team needs on defense and for the most part the defense has been alright. It would be nice to see the defensive linemen get more pressure on the QB and force him into throwing interceptions or throwing it away more often. The team currently sits tied for last place in the league in sacks with four.

But back again to the original question: What's wrong with this team? How do we go from a proud, successful franchise to one that gets out worked on home field and gets over looked by every other team in the West to make the playoffs. This franchise holds the North American pro sports record for most consecutive playoff appearances at 34 straight years. Some say General Manager Danny Maciocia inherited Tom Higgins' team in 05 and that's the only reason why a third placed, 11-7 team won that year ( I think Jason Maas won that one.) Since Maciocia has taken over, the Eskimos have finished last in the West for three straight years, narrowly making the playoffs last season cashing in on the playoff crossover opportunity.

If the Eskimos continue to play the way they have for the past four seasons you would think that some heads are gonna roll but ultimately will it be the right ones? Will it be Hall and Strasser that get canned or will changes be made at the top, where I beleive they should be. Sorry Danny, But how many times do you got to turn over a roster? Honestly how many guys have played one season for the Eskimos and then got cut: Omarr Morgan and Davis Sanchez come to mind. How is a team supposed to build any identity or chemistry?

Ultimately the players on the field need to play the game. It all comes down to them. They need to man-up and make some plays and they need to do it in the red zone. There is still a ton of football to be played and while Maciocia isn't taking the snaps or rushing on the end to pickup a sack right now, at the GM level, he has done a terrible job. Players can't be held accountable for that.



photo credit: Ryan Jackson

Oilers news, Koivu resigns in Minny and Kovy still not signed...

Let's start with some hometown news:

The Oilers have made a couple of moves lately by formally signing forward J.F Jacques to a one year deal and both defencemen Theo Peckham and Shawn Belle as well. All three guys bring size to the team, but questions still remain.

Can Jacques play a full season and stay healthy? Is Shawn Belle ready to make the jump to the NHL and if so, does he really have a spot in the Oilers top 6? It would have to be won over the likes of a Theo Peckham, who showed that he can deliver some punishing hits and hold his own in a scrap, no problem. But his defensive play needs to improve.

A little competition never hurt anyone and that's exactly what this is. Good ol' fashion competition amongst teammates. You've got to earn that job. That's the message Tambellini is sending.

In other NHL news, Mikko Koivu signed a seven-year, 47.25 million dollar contract extension with the Minnesota Wild on Thursday. Wow. Let me say that I'm a Koivu fan. I love his game. But that's a lot of money. Granted he is the teams captain and he had 71 points last season. That being said, 22 goals doesn't really wow me. He's a great 2-way player though and it's good to see him re-sign but he needs to score more goals. That whole team needs to score more goals!

Guess What!?

Kovalchuk still remains unsigned. Does anyone care? Honestly though, this stupid back and forth, the "negotiations have broken down" crap we've all been hearing has become just boring. Get it over with. Or go to the KHL, I don't care.

What's unfortunate is that Kovalchuk has been an amazing player stuck on a mediocre team. His playoff experience is limited, so to expect a ton of money is risky but when you have the regular season stats that Kovalchuk does, the arguement doesn't sound nearly as crazy. The man can score.

What's funny about it is that Atlanta isn't looking too bad. Take young guys like Bogosian, Little, Kane, Bergfors, with veterans like Antropov and Hainsey, and then add Byfuglien, Ladd and Mason, and you've got a decent team. If I'm a Thrasher fan, I've already looked past Kovalchuk. I would be pretty excited.