Cammalleri debauchery

**image from nhlsnipers.com



I get it. The Canadiens needed to get bigger up front. They did. The Flames needed that number one centre. They got one. But why does this trade still seem so fishy?

Perhaps it's because Canadiens GM Pierre Gauthier pulled the trigger on the deal half-way through the Habs game against their rivals, the Bruins, and did so the day after Cammalleri says some less than flattering remarks about his team/teammates.

“I can’t accept that we will display a losing attitude as we’re doing this year. We prepare for our games like losers. We play like losers. So it’s no wonder why we lose.” Cammalleri told TSN but a day ago.

It's funny because to me it doesn't sound like he's ripping his team a new one and that he wants out. He's a veteran who is sick of losing and he needed to speak up. I personally welcomed his comments as a breath of fresh air.

But apparently Gauthier did not.

Despite Gautheir asserting that Cammalleri's comments had nothing to do with the trade and the comments by Flames GM stating that "It's been percolating for quite some time, we've been having a lot of conversations."

The fact is, of course it had to! You traded the guy mid-game against your teams most hated rival (outside of the Leafs).

Other GM's are stepping up and saying they never knew Cammalleri was available or else they would have made an offer. NO- DUH!

But the hilarious part - the part that fills me with joy even - is that the Habs aren't the ones who come out of this trade on the losing end. The Flames gave up a much cheaper Rene Bourque - who may not be playing his best this season (13 goals, 16 points) but is still a former two-time 27-goal scorer - Peter Holland and a 2nd round pick in 2013!

Jay Feaster gets and the Flames get back a former Flame in Cammalleri who has less goals than Bourque (9 goals, 22 points) and is a full two million more expensive!

• Rene Bourque - $4 million 11/12 season - $3 million 12/13 season - $4 million 13/14 season - $2.5 million 14/15 season- $2.5 million 15/16 season(all with a $3.3 million cap hit)
  
• Mike Cammalleri - $6 million 11/12 season - $7 million ($6 mill cap hit) 12/13 season - $7 million ($6 mill cap hit) 13/14 season

So who do you think wins this deal? For me I can't look at either team as a 'winner'. Montreal comes off classless dumping a player mid-game after he spoke the TRUTH (IMO) and Calgary clearly over-paid by sending a 2nd round pick from a team who desperately needs to get younger. But as we all know, time will tell.

UFC 141: Lesnar vs. Overeem: LESNAR RETIRES!

Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem
(7:15 p.m. MT) Let's face it, Brock Lesnar did not look good in his title defense against Cain Valasquez. His battles outside of the octagon with diverticulitis raises even more doubt in his ability to come away with the win over a guy the size of Alistair Overeem. PREDICTION: Overeem makes good on his prediction and knocks out Lesnar in the second.

ANALYSIS: Brock cuts Overeem with a jab to start the first round. Overeem lands a strong kick to the ribs that sends Brock to the canvass. Overeem continuously lands blows as Brock turtles. Yamasaki calls the fight. Overeem wins via first round TKO. Lesnar looks terrible. LESNAR RETIRES!

Brock Lesnar did great things for the heavyweight division but this is a good decision for him. Unfortunately Brock just doesn't have the standing game to compete with Dos Santos, Valasquez, or Overeem. Speculation is already looming that he may return to the WWE but who knows. All the best to Brock in the future. Can't wait to see Overeem vs. Dos Santos!

Donald Cerrone vs. Nate Diaz
(7:20 p.m. MT) Really excited for this fight. Going to be a slug fest the whole way. Tough to say who wins as both Cerrone and Diaz have proved that they both can finish fights but where as Diaz has the attitude, Cerrone has the overall skill. PREDICTION: Cerrone wins unanimous decision, both fighters leave battered and bruised.

ANALYSIS: Both fighters come out swinging hard. Cerrones swinging wildly while Diaz is dialing his strikes in and landing nearly all of his punches. Cerrone is just eating shots over, and over and over again. Joe Rogan claims that Cerrone's jaw is broken as it bleeds. Second round starts off with Cerronne knocking down Diaz twice and landing some pretty good shots.Cerrone repeatedly sends Diaz down with sweeping leg kicks. Diaz gives Cerrone the double middle finger before the third round begins. Diaz continues to land shots over and over again. Cerrone sweeps his legs twice but doesn't mount. Both fighters trade blows as the round comes to a close. Both fighters look exhausted but Cerrone looks hurt. Diaz wins via unanimous decision.

Jon Fitch vs. Johny Hendricks
(7:35 p.m. MT) Haven't watched Fitch or Hendricks fight in a long time but going off of what I know, this should be a be a great fight. Look to see Fitch taking this fight to the ground and trying to control Hendricks along the cage while Hendricks looks to counter quickly with strikes. If Hendricks catches Fitch it could be over quick. PREDICTION: Still, I think Fitch's ground game is too good. Fitch wins via submition.

ANALYSIS: WOW!! Hendricks nails Fitch with a hook that sends him to the ground. Mazzagatti jumps on Fitch to call the fight at 12 seconds!!

Alexander Gustafsson vs. Vladimir Matyushenko
(7:40 p.m. MT) I really like Gustafsson in this one. Matyushenko is good but Gustafsson is better, younger and stronger. Should be quick. PREDICTION: Gustafsson wins via first-round knock-out.

ANALYSIS: Nailed it. Gustafsson knocks out Matyushenko in the first round (2:13 TKO). Looks in control the entire time throwing numerous headkicks before catching Matyushenko with a stiff jab coming in. Gustafsson gets on top swinging and the ref forced to call it off.

Jim Hettes vs. Nam Phan
(7:45 p.m. MT) I like Nam Phan, his name alone gives me enough confidence to pick him. I know nothing about Jimmy 'The Kid' but I know he's unbeaten and who am I to pick against him now? PREDICTION: 'The Kid' wins via split decision.

ANALYSIS: The Kid starts off strong, sweeping Nam Phan to the ground, pounding on his face and going for countless submitions. An ambar attempt turned ground and pound left Nam Phan bloodied as the round ends. Second round is much of the same as Hettes controls Nam Phan on the ground and drops bombs from and goes for numerous submitions, The Kid is relentless. In the third Nam Phan begins to land some shots from the standing position but again Hettes takes the fight to the ground and beats Nam Phan relentlessly. Very impressive.
Jimmy 'The Kid' Hettes wins via unanimous decision... I was close.

Nailing Hemmer to the cross

Despite being known as one of the leagues most dynamic offensive players it looks as if Ales Hemsky's injury-prone history, poor start to the seaosn and seemingly poor attitude towards media will see him shipped out of Edmonton come trade deadline day (Monday, Feb. 27).

Earlier this week Hemsky abruptly cut short a media scrum involving the Edmonton Journal's and Hall of Fame sports writer, Jim Matheson. Matheson has always been a stark supporter of Hemsky but like the fans, his attitudes towards Hemmer have soured.

In his latest column/blog, Matheson is spot on in saying that Hemsky "absolutely has to be a leader at a time when the Oilers are teetering on being a playoff possibility or falling out."

SEE: (http://blogs.edmontonjournal.com/2011/12/28/hemsky-is-doing-himself-no-favours/)

Ales says his shoulders are fine. I doubt that. I doubt they ever will be. And it's this injury speculation that further drives trade speculations in the media.

It's about selling papers

I understand Hemsky COULD be traded and that he MIGHT not sign a favourable contract with the Oilers upon seasons end, but it's not our job to speculate and it's certainly not our job to bring up speculations with players.

But somewhere along the line this is what sports reporting has become. More of a tabloid, celebrity-style of news telling.

Will Ales Hemsky get traded? Most likely, but the trade deadline is two months away. What if he puts up 20 points in 15 games? What if he turns the page? What if, what if, what if.

We could speculate what the return on his trade would be but do we know? No. We could speculate whether he will or will not re-sign at the end of the year for less than what he's making now (surely he can't demand more), but we don't know.

Let him play his game

I look at Hemsky and I see (a less strong) Marian Hossa in Chicago. Once a first line star turned second-liner but still an integral piece to the Blackhawks winning the cup behind Toews, Kane and Sharp (or in Edmonton's case RNH, Eberle, Hall.)

If Hemsky were to train his body this summer (I hear Gary Roberts has a fantastic training program, wink, wink), build some muscle and return to putting up 60-70 points a year alongside the kids than this Oilers team has a legitimate shot at going places.

The Oilers need some help on the back-end before that will ever become a reality but unless a trade with Hemsky can warrant a strong d-man in return (which most would agree he wouldn't) than why trade him?

There's no way Tambellini gets a Dustin Penner-style return and the Oilers really have no one to replace Hemsky (Omark, maybe). Perhaps a package of picks and Sam Gagner could warrant a stronger return? But who knows?

Again, it's all speculation.

Trading Hemsky seems like the right thing to do and for all I know it is. But mark my words, if he moves onto another team and lights it up the following season or even in the latter stages of this season, Oilers fans will cry foul, and it will do nothing but turn that scrutinizing speculation to Tambellini or Renney or maybe, God forbid, the media for pushing out another otherwise talented player to succeed elsewhere.

Now where have we heard that story?

All aboard the concussion train

It's disconcerting. The amount of concussions being reported in wake of improved diagnosis and increased awareness is exactly what is needed to keep professional athletes from seriously damaging their lives upon retiring from playing the game they love.

It's a tough balancing act for a fan. Nobody wants to see their favourite stars turned into vegetables but it's getting to the point where players are dropping left, right and centre.

SEE: (USA TODAY: Concussion tracker: http://travel.usatoday.com/gallery/NHL+concussion+tracker/G2848)

Fans are witnessing the berth of a new era in NHL history where iron-man streaks like Martin St. Louis's 499 straight games will become a thing of the past.

It's not as if players are being knocked out and put on the shelf for as long as Sidney Crosby has. Ottawa's Milan Michalek returned to action last night against the Montreal Canadiens after missing only five games with a a concussion.

Same thing goes for Claude Giroux who missed four games with a concussion before returning to the Flyers' lineup in star-studded fashion netting four points in a 4-1 win over the Dallas Stars.

God knows how long Shea Weber will be out for but the question I ask is how long will concussion related injuries be front-page, top headline news before it becomes accepted as just another part of the game?

An unfortunate part, of course, but given the amount of concussions we've seen and the talks I've had and read with former NHLers who admit to having an upwards of 10 concussions in their career, it seems as if this injury has been and always will be commonplace.

According to NextGen Journal: "In the NHL only 17% of concussions result from illegal hits to the head. In fact, most of the concussions in the NHL, about 70%, result from either legal hits or accidents."

(SEE: http://nextgenjournal.com/2011/12/toughness-vs-the-brain-concussions-in-professional-sports/)

The players need to be protected to ensure that they live fulfilling lives after hockey but the risk of injury is the exact reason why they're compensated so much salary-wise. Face it, there is no reason why an athlete should be making millions of dollars other than the threat to their health.

So let them make up their minds. Let them govern themselves on the ice. The NHL will do what they can to limit the amount of dirty hits but eliminating concussions is impossible. Simply impossible.

Oilers Trade Talks

Ohhhh trade deadline day. This day single handily employs hockey analysts for the year. The amount of banter kicked back and forth between pundits and so-called experts could fill far more than the three hour slot that TSN gives its TradeCentre segment. Hell why not start up a NHL 24 hour all-speculation channel.

I have no intention on joining those men but the trade deadline is part of the NHL season and it's an extremely important day for general managers. In the case of Oilers GM Steve Tambellini the choice of being a buyer or a seller is a difficult one. Is it right to unload Hemsky and Penner now or can they be integral veterans involved in the rebuild process? Unless moving one of them means getting back a top five pick or an impact player then it's simply not worth it.

Let's address the teams needs.

• Defense
• bottom 6 forwards
• Centre with face-off skills

Defense

First off, how much is this team missing Ryan Whitney right now? I will argue A LOT! Without Whitney this defense is considerably worse. But what about the rest? Gilbert, Smid, Vandermeer, Petry, Peckham, Strudwick, and Foster; out of the seven Petry and Peckham are the lone two untouchables. As far as I'm concerned Gilbert and Smid are too soft with not enough offensive upside, if you can move them for another veteran than do it! Vandermeer and Strudwick are two veterans that could be useful to a cup contender. Foster is not untouchable but has not done enough offensively to get a decent return, he has not met expectations. Souray is useless and I could care less what happens to him, nuff said.

Bottom six forwards/Centre

Speaking of not meeting expectations Colin Fraser has not panned out. I doubt he will be moved but most certainly replaced in the offseason. Untouchables include Jones, Omark and Pajaarvi. Because gritty bottom six forwards are hard to trade for I expect the Oilers to excersice patience and instead rely on the progression of young players like Lander, O'Marra, Hamilton, Vande Velde and Hartikainen. Again Oiler fans, patience is key.

To be honest I have no clue what the Oilers will do, nobody in the media really knows anything concrete about what Tambo will do. I only hope that he doesn't give in to the ramblings of harsh critics like Robert Tychkowski, who has already lost his patience after 3/4's of a season (see THIS), and trades away Hemsky and Penner in a Ryan Smyth type deal. I understand what your saying but at the same time, calm down Robert. Not everyone is saying 'Oh well', maybe you are but I assure you Oiler management is not. I have tons of confidence in Tambo and his ability to build a winning team in the future. Again, patience is the key, however, if the Oilers at the bottom of the league this time next season, my patience may run thin.

Blake Griffin is a Beast

Blake Griffin has single handily turned me into a Clippers fan. The guy is straight-up one of the most entertaining players in the league right now. Kobe, Lebron/Wade/Bosh (HA! he wishes), Durant, and Griffin. These guys get fans out of their seats in a hurry and they do it on a nightly basis.

I'm always astounded at how a man at 6'10, 251 lb can run and spin like Griffin does. The majority of power forwards aren't of that athletic calibre. This guy is fast! Watch how quickly the man moves up and down the court before slamming a dunk on some poor defenders face! I'm not calling out other PF's in the league but come on, admit it, this guy is boss.

After his injury last season I admit I thought he was going to be a bust. But man oh man was I proved wrong. With Baron Davis making a comeback and fresh off a 16 assist game against the Knicks the Clippers are gaining notoriety across the league despite their current 20-32 record. Can't wait to see how many other defenders get "posterized" by Griffin this season and hopefully next year into the playoffs. Go Clippers!

Cooke v. Tyutin

Upon seeing this hit two different and opposing thoughts surfaced in the vacant space I call my brain.

1. Matt Cooke just may be the dirtiest player in the NHL. Why the hell didn't he let up? He saw nothing but numbers and a nameplate but he went for it anyways. What a goof!
2. And, why didn't Fedor Tyutin press his body against the boards like any and every hockey player has been taught to do? If you're against the boards with your back turned, you can NOT leave that much room between you and the boards.

In no way am I blaming Tyutin for this hit, Cooke should have let up, but it's been said that the players must do more to protect themselves. This is a textbook case.

So Cooke gets four games, good. At the same time players must take note that leaving yourself in a vulnerable position is there own responsibility.

NFL Wildcards; NHL Suspensions/Extensions

Eagles vs. Packers
As I am writing this Michael Vick just threw what will be his most forgettable play of the year. Down by five. Forty-five seconds left, clocks running. Ball at 30 yard line, the ball is thrown, INTERCEPTION. Brutal.

With tons of time for the Eagles to get two or maybe even three plays off Vick sees a man in the end-zone and he's covered man-to-man. It's tempting, tempting enough for Vick to gamble the game away. Can you blame him? The man wants to win and in those types of situations its all or nothing. You either make the pass and become the hero or screw it up, throw the INT and become the goat.

Vick's season has been a great story and I commend the man for his play on field and his attitude off the field. It's a bad end to a great season. Good job to the Packers and to Aaron Rodgers, who didn't throw for more than 200 yards but his three TD passes make up for that and then some. To go into Philly and silence the crowd is huge. Really starting to like Rodgers, classy guy. Great game.

Chiefs vs. Ravens

When the Chiefs came out of the first quarter in the lead I thought that we could have ourselves another upset here. But the Ravens are proving they are no joke, specifically Joe Flacco. Flacco finished the game 25/34, with 265 yards and two TD passes.

What a game for Flacco and what a disappointment for Matt Cassel. In his first playoff start Cassel was unable to get anything done against arguably the best defense in the league. Its never easy to move the ball against Ray Lewis and co. but after Jamaal Charles ran for the games first TD I honestly thought that maybe an established running game could open things up for Cassel. 9/18, 70 yards, and three INT's later and Cassel's first playoff game quickly goes from hopeful to disappointing.

All credit has to be given to the Ravens offense who controlled the ball and therefore controlled the game. Ravens time of possession: 41:44 minutes, Chiefs time of possession: 18:16. The Ravens never gave the Chiefs defense a moments rest, they looked tired and defeated. Watch out Steel Town, the Ravens mean business.

Seahawks/Saints; Jets/Colts
As for the previous two games I was fighting one of the worst snow storms Edmonton has seen in awhile on my way to work when the Seattle/Saints game began. Its hard to comment on a game I never watched but all I can say is WOW. Did not see that coming. Good on Pete Carrol and Matt Hasselbeck, they showed some true character.

I did get to listen to the games on the radio and when the Saints went up 10-0 I figured the Seahawks stood no chance. The crowd fell silent and that's a victory all in itself. Give the Seahawks credit for getting the TD on the following drive and waking everybody up. From there the offense took off. Marshawn Lynch only ran for one touchdown but what a run! Couple that with Hasselbeck's four TD passes and you've got a formula that can take down the champs.

Brees played exceptionally well in the losing effort, throwing the ball 60 times and completing 39 of those attempts for over 400 yards. Not much more he could have done.

The Jets/Colts match-up was hardly the offensive shootout I had expected. The Jets' defense was expecting a heavy dose of Peyton Manning, instead the Colts limited his attempts to under 30 and that resulted in Manning throwing one single touchdown pass. Rather than throwing the ball the Colts were determined to run the ball right at the Jets' defense, rushing the ball for a total of 27 attempts between Joseph Addai and Domenic Rhodes for a combined total of 93 yards.

The Jets did the same. They used their six minutes of added possession time to run the ball 38 times, including one QB scramble by Mark Sanchez and two rushing attempts from WR Brad Smith for a combined total of 169 yards. Sanchez threw one interception and zero touchdown passes. Definitely not his best performance but hey, they got it done, but if the Jets intend to beat the Patriots they're going to need a better performance from Sanchez.

NHL Quick Hits

• Atlanta Thrashers forward and recent Stanley Cup Champion Ben Eager has been suspended four games for his sucker punch on Colby Armstrong. All I got to say is, why? Why did Eager feel the need to first face-wash Armstrong and then when he's not expecting it, cheap shot him with a punch straight to the eye? See it for yourself--->CLICK HERE
• Calgary Flames forward Tom Kostopoulos has been given a six-game suspension for his reckless blindside hit on Red Wings defenseman Brad Stuart. I hate this hit. Stuart doesn't even have the puck and Kostopoulos takes a huge run at him. Again, why? The hit sees Kostopoulos' shoulder hit Stuart's face square on and sends Stuart flying! Almost literally! Reckless, needless play from otherwise tough but good player. See it for yourself---> CLICK HERE
• The Los Angeles Kings have inked defenseman Jack Johnson to a seven-year, 30.5 million dollar contract extension. The dollar amount is reasonable and hopefully this doesn't interfere with getting fellow stud blue liner Drew Doughty signed in the off-season. Most likely won't but weirder things have happened.
  

Both Pictures provided by TSN: Kostopoulos; Rodgers

Canada implodes, Russia wins Gold

The one thing about being involved in the service industry, particularly the bar scene, is that you're almost guaranteed to have to work the big ticket events. Last night was one of those nights. There I was along with five other cooks in downtown Edmonton preparing bar grub for a rabid group of Canadian hockey fans. Listening to guys from the FAN 590, Dan Dunleavy and Jack Miller who are by far two of the best hockey announcers going. We were all anticipating the best. Gold, and nothing less.

For the most part the night was great, the food was flying out and the crowd was drinking it up and having a great time watching Canada dominate the Russians through two periods.

Then that all changed.

The third period could not be described better than it was after the game by Canadian defenceman and captain Ryan Ellis.

"We just stopped skating, we stopped working hard and we stopped doing the things that got us there," said Ellis.

Perfectly said. Canada almost literally stopped skating in the defensive zone. Visentin can and will be blamed for the second goal. After surrendering an early goal in a game of this magnitude a team looks to their goaltender for stability and calm. Visentin could not deliver, it's doubtful that Roy would have either given his recent outings so lets not bring up that argument either. But on the third goal from Russian captain Vladimir Tarasenko, the Canadian defence were standing still! Not watching their man but rather following the puck like moths follow the light. You could see the play coming from a mile away.

Not taking anything away from the Russians, they came back against Finland and Sweden to get to the gold medal. They're obviously a good team and I refuse to play the what if game. The Russians are quite the story, an incredible group of resilient and competitive young athletes. The fact is is the Canadians got cocky, they thought they had it in the bag and that they didn't need to work in the final 20 minutes.

Unbelievable, disappointing but above all else deserved.

Hats off to the Russians, hope your hangovers go well. I know getting kicked off a plane and being drunk underage is a bit embarrassing but 21 is too damn old for a legal drinking age anyways. In Canada, you're men but that doesn't mean we like you.

Photo Credit: TSN

Canada defeat Swiss; Russia stuns Finland

Going into every international tournament my favorite underdog team is always the Swiss and occasionally the Germans. Both teams always fair well against the Canadians, they rarely win but they always manage to keep it close. The Swiss program has developed so well over time now sitting seventh in the the world, Germany sits ninth, and they've done this with players that have gone mostly unnoticed, until now.

Jonas Hiller, Martin Gerber, Nino Niederreiter, Mark Streit, Luca Sbisa and Yannick Weber are all playing in North America and with the performance Benjamin Conz has put on in this tournament it may be safe to suggest that another Swiss-born goalie could play over seas as well. Conz is currently the ranked as the fifth best international goaltender but has gone undrafted in both the 2010 and 09 NHL Entry Drafts. Something tells me that won't happen again this year in Minnesota.

On to the game...

After Mark Visentin let in that atrocious looking first goal a cold feeling came up the back of my spine, a feeling I quickly shrugged off. While the Swiss netminder stopped 50 shots against the Russians and another 42 against Slovakia, I was confident in Canada's scoring depth and was sure we would come right back. Canada fired 23 shots at Conz in the first period. It would be almost 14 minutes before the Canadians would respond, it seemed like a lifetime.

Still, I expected the flood gates to open and for Canada to start pouring it on but the Swiss played extremely tight defensively and established a decent forecheck on a battered Canadian defence. It took Canada 17 minutes before they would take the lead and unlike shot-heavy the first period, Canada directed eleven shot on Conz with the Swiss getting nine on Visentin. The Swiss were doing it again! They won't go away! Love these guys...

It wasn't until after Louis Leblanc potted home his third of the tournament that I was able to breathe.

For those unfamiliar with the Swiss program you should familiarize yourself pronto because they're only going to get better and better. Here's hoping they have a strong showing at the World Championships.

Canada is now set to play the United States tomorrow night in the semi-finals and the HSBC Arena is going to be LOUD. Game is scheduled for 7pm et/ 4pm pt. Go Canada!

Russia vs. Finland

The Russians tied it up with a late flurry in the third to produce overtime. I'm actually watching the game right now and I can't help but notice how good this Finland team is. Wouldn't mind seeing a Finland vs. Sweden Semi final.

Unfortunately for Finland, Russia is too strong and just scored the winning goal! Kuznetzov ended it in overtime for the Russians and celebrated the goal by diving stomach first onto the ice! What a comeback for the Russians!

Despite me wanting to see a Scandinavian semifinals, Russia will give Sweden all the they handle and then some. It doesn't matter who wins Canada/USA or Sweden/Russia, the gold and bronze medal games will be outstanding to watch. It's hockey at its best! Stay tuned, I know I will.




photo credit: (Rick Stewart/Getty Images) and CBC

New Year Rundown

It's a new year and All Day Sports is primed and ready to rundown all things sports, 365 days a year. The goal is to make 2010 look damn silly as I roll out the carpet on what is already a very busy first weekend in the sporting world. 2011 will bring another exciting years worth of highlights and controversies. Can't wait to get started, so lets do it.

UFC 125: Edgar vs Maynard

Going into this event I gave UFC Lightweight champion Frankie Edgar no chance of defeating the challenger Gray Maynard in the nights main event. Maynard is the only man to beat Edgar and in the opening round it looked as if he would easily do the same as he landed over 90 punches. Maynard exposed Edgar repeatedly, busting his nose open and sending him spawling all over the canvas.

But Edgar showed why he is the champion.

After somehow escaping the first round Edgar came out in the second and picked Maynard apart with his well-placed jabs and straight-armed shots to Maynard's left eye. Then out of nowhere Edgar was able to pick up the challenger and slam him hard on his back leaving everyone watching asking, where did that come from?

Edgar and Maynard then battled it out for three more solid rounds where I saw Maynard taking the third but not doing enough in the fourth and fifth rounds to earn himself a decision. Maynard had never taken a fight that far and it showed as he looked gassed. The judges scored the bout a draw which unfortunately was fair. I hate draws, they leave everything open for speculation and unleashes the barrage of shoulda, woulda, coulda arguments. But in this case, it was too even to call. Was Maynard's first round flurry evidence of his superior skills or does it highlight Edgar's fighting spirit and unbelievable ability to pick himself up and push the pace for another four rounds?

Two words: re-match. Edgar and Maynard III would be amazing, WEC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis will just have to wait.

NFL schedule wraps up

With the NFL season winding down the playoff picture becomes increasingly clear. The Seahawks/Rams game is going to be the closest thing to an actual playoff game as the winner captures the NFC West division and the loser goes home. Prediction: Sam Bradford lives up to hype, Rams by 6.

In the AFC North the Steelers can lock-down the division title with a win over the 5-10 Cleveland Browns, leaving the Baltimore Ravens in a Wild Card position. Prediction: Sorry Ravens fans but the Steelers won't have any problems here, Steel by 14.

In the AFC South the Colts can get into the postseason with a win over the Titans or a Jacksonville loss to Houston. Prediction: Both teams win, Colts move on.

My favorite race is the three-way race for the last NFC Wild Card spot. The Packers, Bucs and Giants are all 9-6. The Packers are in the driver seat here as a win over the 11-4 Chicago bears will cement them the chance to play the Eagles in the Wild Card round. The Bucs are currently up 10-7 on the Saints in New Orleans. The Bucs are 0-5 versus winning teams and despite the current score I'm not sure they can pull this one out, even though admittedly I want them to. The Giants travel to FedEx field to take on the lowly Redskins and with Eli Manning winning eight of his past nine starts against the 'Skins, there's no reason why they can't win this one either. So how will it all play: Bucs fall, Giants destroy the Redskins, but the Packers get the 'W' at home following a gutsy Aaron Rodgers performance. Packers in, Bucs and Giants sent home.

NHL Hits

• The Bridgestone Winter Classic was postponed from its eleven a.m scheduled start to a six p.m prime-time showdown. I thought the rain added to the overall uniqueness of the outdoor game but at the same time it allowed for some sloppy action. No goals for Ovechkin/Crosby but two for Eric Fehr, a brutal blindside hit by Capitals' Dave Steckel on Penguins captain Sidney Crosby and a terrible play behind the net from Marc-Andre Fleury round out the highlights. It wasn't the greatest Winter Classic game but the NHL did a great job nonetheless, I can't imagine how much work went into putting this one together.
  

• The Oilers barely came to play against the Flames in another bore-fest that used to be known as the "Battle of Alberta". Eberle left the game with an ankle injury as the Oilers managed a paltry 8 shots in the first two periods compared to Calgary's 19 shots in the first period alone! The Oilers brought up defenceman Shawn Belle for some added size. He played over 17 minutes recording zero shots (insert slow-clap). Six losses in a row for the Oilers tells me that this team is nowhere near good enough to make the playoffs, nice try Renney.

• Quick trades. To Anaheim: (C) Maxim Lapierre; to Montreal: (D) Brett Festerling and a 2012 fifth round pick.
  

• To Tampa Bay: (G) Dwayne Roloson; to New York (D) Ty Wishart.

Check in later tonight as I re-cap the IIHF World Junior Quarter finals as Canada faces Switzerland for a chance to play Team U.S.A in the semi finals. In other action Russia faces off with Finland, winner takes on Sweden. Happy New Year!

"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