This And That

Welcome to Friday! Here are the usual weekly thoughts running through my muddled mind, and as always they come in no particular order.


--Has it been a week already since the Durant trade? The week has flown by with many voicing their two cents as to who will be under center for the Riders when the 2017 season opens.  That list is growing long with the names Kevin Glenn, Drew Tate, Travis Lulay, Henry Burris,and Ricky Ray being thrown out there amongst others. The other name is James Franklin.  He is obviously the key cog in this whole equation. The Eskimos would like to keep him, but he doesn't apparently want to sign an extension. One can't blame Eskimos GM Ed Hervey for wanting a succession plan to Mike Reilly, but the Riders at one point were grooming Drew Willy to be Darian's replacement, but he wanted to be a starter and went to Winnipeg. The name Vernon Adams Junior isn't coming up much, but he didn't sound too thrilled with the trade. Montreal didn't want to trade him here hoping he will be the guy after Durant. Adams doesn't sound as if he has that much patience. This story isn't even close to ending. 

--As all of this happens, I can't help but wonder where the Riders would be were it not for the season ending injury Durant suffered in 2014 at the Banjo Bowl. How would the fortunes of this team look had he not suffered that elbow injury. The Riders were 8-2 and on their way to a win that afternoon at Investors Group Field and then the bottom fell out.  Man, did it ever!  Could the Riders have repeated that year? If they did, you know Durant is still here, and I'm guessing Corey Chamblin and Brendan Taman are as well. Oh, how one play can change the history of a football team. Would the New England Patriots have had the success they had if it weren't for the tuck rule? They went on to win their first Super Bowl that year over the Rams and the rest is history. 

--Jose Bautista is going home again.  The 36 year old had no desire to return to Toronto, but other squads had no desire in signing Bautista so he goes back to Toronto. Inexplicably, he gets more money than the qualifying offer he rejected. Amazing!  Who's kidding who, Jose and the Blue Jays was like last call at the bar and we've all been there guys. The quotes GM Ross Atkins had on Thursday were purely laughable. If Bautista was always on their radar as Atkins claimed and if Bautista truly wanted to be a Jay all along as Atkins claimed, this wouldn't have gone until mid January.

--What has happened to Carey Price?  The Habs goalie looks ordinary all of a sudden!

--There are apparently Saskatchewan Rush donuts at the Tim Hortons in Harbour Landing.  Are there Regina Pats donuts anywhere? 

--Where does Tim Raines go down in the list of greatest Montreal Expos? Put me down as having him at number 2 right behind Gary Carter! He was Rickey Henderson before Rickey Henderson was cool. 

--Congratulations to Les Lazaruk! The iconic play-by-play man, and overall all-around good man, called his 1700th game when Medicine Hat paid a visit to Sask-Tel Centre Wednesday night. That's a lot of time in the rink and on the bus.  He's one of the best out there.

--When did the phrase "50-50 puck" start getting used by broadcasters and who made this one up?  I have heard two references to a 50-50 puck this week. It's as annoying as a "good stick". That phrase isn't going away it seems, but let's hope 50-50 puck does. 

--NBC has announced "Will and Grace" is coming back.  Can we get "Married with Children" to return? That would be awesome. There has never been a better TV character than Al Bundy! 

--We find out who is going to the Super Bowl this weekend. I don't know how you can't take New England at home over Pittsburgh, but if the Steelers can get into a time of possession game and keep running Leveon Bell down the Patriots throats, they have a chance. The longer Pittsburgh is in the game, the better chance they have of winning.. As for the NFC game between the Packers and Falcons, the big question is how many yards and points will these two teams have. This game could go either way, but Atlanta has so much depth at receiver and a 1-2 punch in the backfield in Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman that it could be too much for a Green Bay team who is injured in the secondary.  Aaron Rodgers may have to perform a miracle three weeks in a row, and who's kidding who, he probably can.

--Are the four remaining QB's the four best in the game as was suggested this week listening to NFL Radio. No doubt Brady and Rodgers are on the list, but is Matt Ryan there yet? Is Ben Roethlisberger one of the best four in the game? I would think guys like Drew Brees, Russell Wilson, Derek Carr and yes, even Cam Newton even though I'm not a fan would be ahead of Roethlisberger and maybe Ryan too, but that could change if he takes his team to the Super Bowl with a great performance Sunday. 

--How much longer until spring training? The first baseball preview magazines are out which is always a good thing. 

--That's all I got. The Pats are home to Medicine Hat tonight so maybe I'll see ya at the Brandt Centre. Have a good weekend!!

 


 

This Week In Cougar Athletics

Home Schedule – Friday
Women’s Volleyball – vs. Winnipeg, 6:00 p.m. (CKHS)
Men’s Hockey – vs. Mount Royal, 7:00 p.m. (The Co-operators Centre)
Men’s Volleyball – vs. Winnipeg, 8:00 p.m. (CKHS)

Home Schedule – Saturday
Men’s Hockey – vs. Mount Royal, 3:00 p.m. (The Co-operators Centre)
Women’s Volleyball – vs. Winnipeg, 5:00 p.m. (CKHS)
Men’s Volleyball – vs. Winnipeg, 7:00 p.m. (CKHS)

Away Schedule – Wednesday
Men’s Wrestling – vs. Northland College, 5:00 p.m. (Jamestown, N.D.)

Away Schedule – Friday
Women’s Basketball – at Brandon, 6:00 p.m (Brandon, Man.)
Women’s Hockey – at Mount Royal, 7:00 p.m. MST (Calgary, Alta.)
Men’s Basketball – at Brandon, 8:00 p.m. (Brandon, Man.)
Track & Field – at Golden Bear Open, Day 1 (Edmonton, Alta.)

Away Schedule – Saturday
Women’s Hockey – at Mount Royal, 3:00 p.m. MST (Calgary, Alta.)
Women’s Basketball – at Brandon, 5:00 p.m (Brandon, Man.)
Men’s Basketball – at Brandon, 7:00 p.m. (Brandon, Man.)
Track & Field – at Golden Bear Open, Day 2 (Edmonton, Alta.)

Men’s Hockey – The Cougars lost a pair of road games on the weekend against the No. 6 Alberta Golden Bears, dropping 6-2 and 5-2 decisions. Ian McNulty and Kirk Bear had goals on Friday, while Stephen Langford and Logan Harland scored on Saturday. Regina (3-16-1) is home this weekend looking to snap an eight-game losing streak against Mount Royal at The Co-operators Centre on Friday night (7:00) and Saturday afternoon (3:00).

Women’s Volleyball – The Cougars (1-13) return home after suffering a pair of road losses to Brandon last weekend, losing in four sets to the Bobcats on Thursday and in straight sets on Friday. Regina hosts Winnipeg this Friday and Saturday at the CKHS, a team which will come into the weekend series with an identical 1-13 record to the Cougars. First serve is set for 6 p.m. on Friday and 5 p.m. on Saturday.

Men’s Volleyball – The Cougars (0-14) dropped two matches at Brandon last Thursday and Friday and return home this weekend for two of their final four home matches of the season. The U of R will play host to a Winnipeg team that comes in with a 6-8 conference record and sits just one win back of seventh-place Calgary for the seventh and final Canada West playoff berth. Match time is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Friday and 7 p.m. on Saturday.

Women’s Basketball (U SPORTS Ranking: No. 3) – The Cougars improved their conference record to 10-2 with two big home wins over Manitoba, taking down the Bisons by scores of 93-44 and 92-59. Katie Polischuk piled up 45 points over the two games, and on Saturday became just the 11th player in program history to score 1000 career points for the Cougars. The U of R is back in action this weekend with two road games against Brandon (7-7).

Men’s Basketball – The Cougars fell to .500 in conference play after losing twice at the CKHS to Manitoba, falling 93-81 on Friday and having a fourth-quarter comeback come up short in an 84-75 loss on Saturday. Now with a 6-6 Canada West record and tied for eighth place in the 17-team Canada West standings, the Cougars continue the conference schedule at Brandon (5-9) on Friday and Saturday.

Women’s Hockey – The Cougars were swept on home ice against the No. 9-ranked Alberta Pandas last weekend, falling 3-1 and 2-0 at The Co-operators Centre. Emma Waldenberger scored in Friday night's game, which saw Morgan Baker make 24 saves in net. Jane Kish stopped 29 shots on Saturday. Regina (9-9-2-0) sits two points back for fourth-place Saskatchewan, as the Cougars will take to the road this weekend to square off against Mount Royal (7-10-1-2).

Wrestling (Women’s U SPORTS Ranking: No. 4 / Men’s U SPORTS Ranking: No. 7) – The men's wrestling team defeated Minot State University 29-23 in a dual on Thursday, thanks to wins by Daniel Amberson (54 kg), Joshua Zimroz (61 kg), Geraldo Fox (76 kg), Gaelan Malloy (90 kg), Waylon Decoteau (100 kg) and Jordan Tholl (heavyweight). The men’s team wrestles Northland College in a dual on Wednesday night in Jamestown, N.D.

Track & Field – Joy Becker led the Cougars at the Downtown Lions Sled Dog Meet with first-place finishes in both the 60-metre dash (7.61 s) and the long jump (5.97m) as she now ranks third in the nation in the two events. Kaytlyn Criddle (1500-metre run) and Reagan Fedak (weight throw) also placed first, while Alex Eiswerth led the men’s side with a first-place finish in the 600-metre run (1:21.21). The Cougars continue their season this Friday and Saturday at the Golden Bear Open in Edmonton.

Swimming (Women’s U SPORTS Ranking: No. 9) – Five members of the U of R’s swimming teams competed at the Arena Pro Swim Series in Austin, Texas over the weekend. Brian Palaschuk had the highlight at the elite meet with a first-place finish in the C final of the 400-metre individual medley, finishing with a time of 4:33.21. Noah Choboter also qualified for a C final, placing fourth to finish 20th overall in the 100-metre backstroke (58.91 s). The Cougars will continue the 2016-17 season the first weekend of February at the Colleges Cup in Calgary.

( U of R Athletics/Braden Konschuh)

Alouettes Sign Darian Durant To 3 Year Deal

The Montreal Alouettes announced Thursday by coming to an agreement with three seasons of the quarter Darian Durant, whose rights were acquired in an exchange on January 13.

Durant (5'11 ", 214 lbs.) Played eleven seasons in the CFL, who began his career with the Roughriders in 2006. He was the quarterback when the team won the Grey Cup in 2007, so that 'He was in command of the attack when the team got hold of the title in 2013.

"We are extremely pleased to have come to an agreement with Darian and we look forward to seeing him at the helm of our attack in June," said Alouettes chief executive Kavis Reed. Negotiations were the quickest, as we both looked forward to reaching an agreement and getting down to work together to win a championship in Montreal. "

In 155 career games, including 111 as a starting quarterback, the 34-year veteran completed 2186 of the 3519 assists he attempted for 28,136 yards and 149 touchdowns. He is currently 16th in the history of the CFL for the number of passing yards. He also carried the ball 369 times during his career, which allowed him to win 2888 yards and enter 21 majors. It shows a record of 5-1 as a starting quarter in playoffs.

Last season, the athlete from Florence, South Carolina collected 3468 passing yards, completing 290 of his 431 assists, and scoring 14 touchdown passes. He also scored five majors on the ground, who completed 51 races for 274 yards.

The former Tar Heels of the University of North Carolina also drove the Riders to the Gray Cup game in 2009 and 2010, while the Alouettes defeated them each time. He was named to the West Division All-Star team twice, in both 2009 and 2013.

(Montreal Alouettes)

Henry Burris Appears Ready To Retire

Will he or won't he?  That is the question being asked about Henry Burris and his playing future as some feel he should walk away on top after leading the REDBLACKS to the Grey Cup, while others suggest he should keep playing with some thinking he could end up back in Saskatchewan after the Riders traded Darian Durant.

Burris has spoken to the Ottawa Citizen, and it sounds like he has taken his last snap.

The story can be read here

Tim Raines Going To Baseball Hall of Fame

Jeff Bagwell, Tim Raines and Ivan "Pudge'' Rodriguez were elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Wednesday, while Vladimir Guerrero and Trevor Hoffman fell just short of the 75 percent threshold required in voting by the Baseball Writers Association of America.

Bagwell drew 86.2 percent and Raines got 86 percent. Rodriguez had 76 percent -- he received four more votes than the necessary 332 of 442.

Raines, a seven-time All-Star outfielder with the Montreal Expos in the 1980s, is considered by many to be the second greatest leadoff hitter in MLB history behind Rickey Henderson. He ranks fifth in history behind Henderson, Lou Brock, Billy Hamilton and Ty Cobb with 808 stolen bases, and his 84.7 percent success rate is the best ever among players with at least 400 career attempts.

Raines also played for the Chicago White Sox, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Florida Marlins and Baltimore Orioles during a career that spanned 23 seasons.

Raines debuted on the ballot with only 24.3 percent of the vote in 2008, but steadily gained momentum in recent years and made it over the top in his final year on the ballot.

"I can't say it was difficult for the first six years,'' Raines said in an interview with MLB Network. "I didn't really have the votes to consider thinking, 'Next year, I could get in.' The last two years has been the telling time. Each year, as the votes go up, you kind of wonder, 'Am I going to get enough?'

Bagwell won Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player Awards during 15 seasons with the Houston Astros from 1991 through 2005. He made four All-Star teams and won three Silver Slugger Awards and hit 449 home runs before an arthritic right shoulder forced him to retire at age 37.

Rodriguez the only first-timer on this year's ballot to reach Cooperstown, made 14 All-Star teams and won 13 Gold Glove Awards during a 21-year career with the Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers and four other clubs. He is the career leader among catchers with 2,844 hits, 1,354 runs, 572 doubles and 2,543 games played.

The induction ceremonies will be held July 30.

58 WHL Players Including 4 Pats on Central Scouting's Mid-Term List

 The Western Hockey League announced today that 58 WHL players have been listed by NHL Central Scouting in its midterm rankings in advance of the 2017 NHL Draft, scheduled for June 23 to 24 in Chicago.

Heading the list is Nolan Patrick (Winnipeg, MB / Brandon Wheat Kings), ranked first among North American skaters. Michael Rasmussen (sixth – Tri-City Americans), Cody Glass (eighth – Portland Winterhawks) and Jusso Valimaki (ninth – Tri-City Americans) join Patrick in representing the WHL amongst the top 10 North American skaters.

A total of 12 WHL skaters land in the top 31, including Cal Foote (12^th – Kelowna Rockets), Kailer Yamamoto (17^th – Spokane Chiefs), Nikita Popugaev (18^th – Prince George Cougars), Kole Lind (21^st – Kelowna Rockets), Henri Jokiharju (22^nd – Portland Winterhawks), Stelio Mattheos (23^rd – Brandon Wheat Kings), Nick Henry (25^th – Regina Pats) and Jake Leschyshyn (31^st – Regina Pats).

Ian Scott (Prince Albert Raiders) is ranked second amongst North American goaltenders.

The Tri-City Americans lead all WHL clubs with six players ranked, followed by the Spokane Chiefs (five), Regina Pats and Portland Winterhawks (four each).

The WHL leads the entire Canadian Hockey League with 12 skaters ranked in the top 31, followed by the Ontario Hockey League with 11 skaters and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League with two skaters.

Of the 58 WHL players listed in NHL Central Scouting’s midterm rankings, 15 will participate in the 2017 Sherwin-Williams CHL/NHL Top Prospects game, scheduled for January 30 in Quebec City.

At the 2016 NHL Draft, a total of 34 WHL players were selected, including four during the first round.

2017 NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING MIDTERM RANKINGS (NORTH AMERICA) – WHL SKATERS

Rank	Last Name	First Name	Team	League	Height	Weight	Pos
1	PATRICK	NOLAN	BRANDON	WHL	6’2.75″	198	C
6	RASMUSSEN	MICHAEL	TRI-CITY	WHL	6’5.75”	215	C
8	GLASS	CODY	PORTLAND	WHL	6’1.75”	180	C
9	VALIMAKI	JUUSO	TRI-CITY	WHL	6’1.5”	204	D
12	FOOTE	CAL	KELOWNA	WHL	6’3.5”	213	D
17	YAMAMOTO	KAILER	SPOKANE	WHL	5’7.5”	153	RW
18	POPUGAEV	NIKITA	PRINCE GEORGE	WHL	6’5.5”	204	LW
21	LIND	KOLE	KELOWNA	WHL	6’1.0”	176	RW
22	JOKIHARJU	HENRI	PORTLAND	WHL	5’11.75”	176	D
23	MATTHEOS	STELIO	BRANDON	WHL	6’0.75”	190	RW
25	HENRY	NICK	REGINA	WHL	5’10.75”	191	RW
31	LESCHYSHYN	JAKE	REGINA	WHL	5’10.75”	184	C
33	TYSZKA	JARRET	SEATTLE	WHL	6’2.25”	190	D
36	HEPONIEMI	ALEKSI	SWIFT CURRENT	WHL	5’9.75”	147	C
40	ANDERSON-DOLAN	JARET	SPOKANE	WHL	5’11.0”	188	C
49	MINULIN	ARTYOM	SWIFT CURRENT	WHL	6’2.25”	202	D
50	GEEKIE	MORGAN	TRI-CITY	WHL	6’2.25”	178	C
58	OLSON	KYLE	TRI-CITY	WHL	5’10.5”	161	RW
63	SHAW	MASON	MEDICINE HAT	WHL	5’8.5”	180	C
70	ZABLOCKI	LANE	RED DEER	WHL	5’11.5”	190	RW
74	FLEURY	CALE	KOOTENAY	WHL	6’1.25”	203	D
75	BROOK	JOSH	MOOSE JAW	WHL	6’1.0”	182	D
83	PRATT	AUSTIN	RED DEER	WHL	6’2.25”	226	RW
84	COGHLAN	DYLAN	TRI-CITY	WHL	6’2.0”	189	D
87	PECKFORD	RYAN	VICTORIA	WHL	6’0.0”	185	LW
91	BELLERIVE	JORDY	LETHBRIDGE	WHL	5’9.75”	196	C
93	MOILANEN	SAMI	SEATTLE	WHL	5’8.5”	185	RW
98	SMART	JONATHAN	REGINA	WHL	6’0.0”	197	D
105	LEWIS	TY	BRANDON	WHL	5’11.0”	177	LW
109	DE JONG	BRENDAN	PORTLAND	WHL	6’5.25”	192	D
110	PLOUFFE	DYLAN	VANCOUVER	WHL	5’11.75”	184	D
112	BOWEN	RYAN	LETHBRIDGE	WHL	6’1.75”	170	RW
119	RUBINCHIK	MARK	SASKATOON	WHL	5’11.75”	179	D
120	GORDA	BRAYDEN	EDMONTON	WHL	6’1.75”	188	D
130	LEASON	BRETT	TRI-CITY	WHL	6’3.75”	196	C
133	KASTELIC	MARK	CALGARY	WHL	6’3.0”	203	C
134	WEDMAN	MATTHEW	SEATTLE	WHL	6’2.5”	195	C
138	STEENBERGEN	TYLER	SWIFT CURRENT	WHL	5’10.25”	188	C
140	HALBGEWACHS	JAYDEN	MOOSE JAW	WHL	5’7.5”	157	C
141	MCINDOE	ETHAN	SPOKANE	WHL	6’0.75”	171	LW
142	DAVIS	BRETT	KOOTENAY	WHL	6’0.75”	178	RW
152	HAYES	ZACKARY	PRINCE ALBERT	WHL	6’2.0”	215	D
153	WALFORD	SCOTT	VICTORIA	WHL	6’1.5”	193	D
154	WARM	WILL	EDMONTON	WHL	5’11.25”	179	D
163	PATERSON	JOSH	SASKATOOON	WHL	6’1.5”	190	C
167	RUBINS	KRISTIANS	MEDICINE HAT	WHL	6’4.0”	216	D
175	BURKE	BRAYDEN	MOOSE JAW	WHL	5’9.75”	170	LW
177	HUGHES	RYAN	PORTLAND	WHL	5’6.75″	151	C
181	HOLT	DAWSON	VANCOUVER	WHL	5’10.75”	187	C
190	SEMCHUK	BRENDAN	VANCOUVER	WHL	5’11.0”	178	RW
197	GRISHAKOV	ANDREI	CALGARY	WHL	6’0.5”	204	LW
199	YERYOMENKO	VLADISLAV	CALGARY	WHL	5’11.5”	171	D
LV	MCGREW	JACOB	SPOKANE	WHL	5’9.75”	190	RW

2017 NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING MIDTERM RANKINGS (NORTH AMERICA) – WHL GOALTENDERS

Rank	Last Name	First Name	Team	League	Height	Weight	C
2	SCOTT	IAN	PRINCE ALBERT	WHL	6’3.25”	174	L
9	SKINNER	STUART	LETHBRIDGE	WHL	6’3.5”	209	L
11	HOLLETT	JORDAN	REGINA	WHL	6’4.0”	194	L
17	FERGUSON	DYLAN	KAMLOOPS	WHL	6’1.25”	189	L
31	WEATHERILL	DAWSON	SPOKANE	WHL	6’4.5”	189	L

Bombers Sign Matt Nichols To Contract Extension

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are pleased to announce the club has agreed to a multi-year contract with starting quarterback Matt Nichols. The agreement will keep the veteran pivot in Winnipeg through the 2019 season.

“We made it very clear heading into the offseason that getting Matt signed was a top priority for us,” said Blue Bombers General Manager Kyle Walters. “Obviously it was going to take some time on both sides, but we’re ecstatic as an organization to get this finalized today and continue building for 2017 and beyond.”

Nichols, a seven-year CFL veteran, took over the starting reins in Week 6 of 2016, and proceeded to help guide the team to seven consecutive games – the longest club winning streak for a quarterback since Khari Jones in 2001 – and finished the season with a 10-3 record. He concluded 2016 with career highs in touchdowns (18), yards (3,666) and completions (327), while throwing only nine interceptions and being named the club’s Most Outstanding Player. His 3,666 passing yards placed him fifth in the CFL despite starting only 13 regular season games, and he finished the season with four 300 yard passing games.

“I’m grateful for the opportunity Kyle Walters and Coach O’Shea gave me when they acquired me in 2015,” said Nichols. “That was the beginning of a fresh start for me, and I was able to get a full opportunity last season. I truly feel we are on the precipice of great things with this organization from top to bottom, and I’m appreciative that they feel I am the quarterback to lead them there.”

Nichols had one of his best games of 2016 in the Western Semi-Final, where he completed 26 passes for a career-high 390 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.

Nichols was acquired in a trade for a late round draft pick in 2015, and started seven games for the Bombers that season.