The Grey Cup was not green last night - It took a lucky break on the final play of the game, but the Montreal Alouettes' run of Grey Cup futility is over. Entertaining game last night - but I'm not sure it was good for the CFL. That was an embarrassing way to lose a game.
Derek Jeter named sportsman of the year by Sports Illustrated - Derek Jeter has been selected Sports Illustrated's sportsman of the year, becoming the first member of the New York Yankees to win the award. Given the Yankee pedigree, its surprising that Jeter is the first Yankee to win. However I will say that he probably didn't deserve it.
Was Elin the cause of Tiger's injuries? - New reports suggest a domestic dispute was at the cause of Friday's car accident. 'Yes officer, my swim-suit model wife attacked me and made me run away.' OR 'Yes officer, I really wanted to go work on my short game at 3 in the morning and didn't see the fire hydrant there'.
Cooke suspended for hit to the head - Pittsburgh Penguins left-winger Matt Cooke was suspended for two games without pay by the NHL on Sunday for a deliberate check to the head area of New York Rangers centre Artem Anisimov on Saturday night. Not the nastiest hit to the head I've seen, it is pretty clear the NHL is about to start throwing suspensions around to try and stop all these dangerous head-shots.
Serena Williams fined at least $82,500 for US Open tirade - Serena Williams was fined at least a record $82,500 for her U.S. Open
tirade and could be suspended from that tournament if she has another
"major offence" at any Grand Slam in the next two years, Grand Slam
administrator Bill Babcock told The Associated Press on Monday. I dunno about you, but this really makes me wonder what she really said...
Tiger Woods -- golf legend, million-dollar commercial spokesman, less-than talented residential driver -- is at the top of the sports AND celebrity gossip pages this week over a lil' fender bender he had over the weekend. (Insert obvious "Best Drive" contest joke here)
The facts so far? Woods had an early morning car accident -- he hit a tree and a fire hydrant at 2 a.m. -- in his exclusive Florida neighbourhood on Friday. From there, things get a bit dicey. Some say he was fleeing his wife, Elin Nordegren, after she reacted to a National Enquirer story about his alleged philandering by grabbing a golf club and trying to treat Woods like a small, dimpled white ball. Others, including Woods via an official statement on his website, say it was simply a little accident and Nordegren actually came to Tiger's aid.
THEN there's the small matter of Woods still not speaking to the Florida Highway Patrol about the accident, his injuries or his wife's involvement. Lots of conflicting reports and general dodginess here. Now, whether that's because of the media gossip storm or Woods' own elusive behaviour, remains to be seen. But, no one is asking the biggest question of all -- why wasn't Tiger driving a Buick?
Well, this is probably as good a time as any for him to start lobbying to be the next Caddy pitchman. Or not. Also, based on past behaviour, is it only a matter of time before Roger Federer and Thierry Henry swoop in for the inevitable Gillette Power Trio of Justice and Smooth Shaves rescue mission?
Kings beat Oilers 3-1 -- Matt Greene scored the game-winner as the Los Angeles Kings halted a
two-game losing streak with a 3-1 win over the slumping Edmonton Oilers
on Wednesday. Wayne Simmonds had a goal and an assist and Alexander
Frolov added an empty-netter for the Kings (14-9-2).
Charlotte Bobcats demolish Toronto Raptors 116-81 -- Gerald Wallace broke out of his shooting slump Wednesday night to score 31
points and grab 13 rebounds and Jackson added 23 points as the Bobcats
routed the Toronto Raptors 116-81 for the most lopsided victory in
franchise history. Charlotte's previous largest margin of victory was 32 points against Indiana on Nov. 16, 2005.
Wednesday Night NHL Roundup -- Leafs beats Tampa 4-3, Pens top Habs 3-1, Devils down Sens 3-1, Calgary dumps Phoenix 2-1 ...
It's times like these that I start to re-evaluate my choice to type sports-related gibberish and wonder aloud why I didn't pursue a career in law. Because, gentle reader, it is in the court room where the lifeblood of a nation flows, where decisions are made that dictate societal behaviour for countless generations. Important stuff. For example, a Nova Scotia Supreme Court judge has deemed the Happy Gilmore golf swing illegal.
The Christian Science-Monitor reports on the case that started when a few buddies went out for a pre-wedding round of golf, added a slew of booze and a pinch of weed, someone got hurt, that someone sued his buddy and all of a sudden I'm not allowed to take a running start at my tee shots anywhere near "Canada's Ocean Playground."
Justice Arthur J. LeBlanc said: "“I am convinced that the 'Happy Gilmore' shot would have been less controllable than a normal tee
shot, both because it involved a run-up to the ball (rather than an
aimed shot from a stationary position) and because the defendant had
been drinking throughout the day," and that the swing "breached the standard of care owed to other players on the course.”
Don Cherry biopic doesn't pull any punches -- "There's no lying about it. I guess I was a selfish guy. ... I only
thought of myself, I never thought of the family a lot - that's the way
it comes out (in the film). It's tough to see yourself like that, but
that's the way it was." Airs on CBC in March, kids.
Bergeron nets two, Habs down Blue Jackets -- Marc-Andre Bergeron's second of the night was the winner Tuesday as the
Canadiens scored three times in the third period for a 5-3 comeback win
over the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Canadiens (12-11-1) were missing
eight regulars to either injury or suspension, but have claimed seven
out of a possible eight points over their last four games.
Calderon leads Raptors in win over Pacers -- Jose Calderon had a season-high 21 points as Toronto erupted for 74
first-half points, then held off repeated Indiana comeback attempts in
a 123-112 victory.
Shootout Be Gone! -- Bob McCown gets his knickers in a bunch over ending hockey games with a "circus sideshow." Pundits can wax all day on this, but lets see an anonymous player's poll on the shootout.
So you're an enterprising real estate developer, or hell, just a guy with an extra half mil laying around. Sure, you could blow it on a two-bedroom condo in downtown Toronto or Vancouver but why not buy a piece of sports history?
Toronto developer Andreas Apostolopoulos thought the same thing, took his money to the third-world city of Detroit and bought the freakin' Silverdome. For $583,000. It cost over $55 million (U.S.) to build, so you know, it's a bit of a bargain these days. Now, for you kids counting at home, this is a place that housed the Detroit Pistons of the late 80s, the Detroit Lions, Wrestlemania, and the Pope! It seats 80, 311 and, obviously, features SUPER high ceilings and plenty of parking.
Giguere gets first win as Ducks down Flames -- Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 41 saves in his first victory of the season despite
allowing Jarome Iginla's tying goal with 18 seconds left in regulation,
and Teemu Selanne scored the only shootout goal in the Ducks' 3-2
victory over the Calgary Flames last night. Does this means Jiggy is no longer a flight risk for the Ducks?
Monday Night NBA Roundup -- Tim Duncan had 24 points and 12 rebounds and the Spurs halted the Milwaukee
Bucks' three-game winning streak with a 112-98 victory last night,
getting their second blow out in as many games after an unusually
lacklustre start to the season.
Field goal by Bironas gives Titans 20-17 win over Texans -- Vince Young
remained undefeated as a starter for the Tennessee Titans this season
thanks to Rob Bironas and his knack for making big kicks against the
Houston Texans. Every time I read a kicker story, all I can hear is "Einhorn is a man!"
Monday Night NHL Roundup -- Forty-year-old Dwayne Roloson turned aside 58 shots to help the New York
Islanders beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-3 Monday on Josh Bailey's goal
at 4:18 of overtime. The last goalie to reach that total was Ron
Tugnutt, who stopped 70 shots in the Quebec Nordiques' 3-3 tie at
Boston on March 21, 1991, according to STATS. Leafs lose? In other news, water still wet.
Italian cyclist Gianni Da Ros banned for 20 years -- Cyclist Gianni Da
Ros was banned for 20 years Monday for doping in one of the heaviest
sanctions ever imposed by the Italian Olympic Committee. Cycling? Doping? That's crazy.
Nico Rosberg to drive F1 for Mercedes -- Mercedes last week acquired a majority stake in Brawn GP, which won the
championship last season, and will race under its brand name for the
first time since 1955. Don't hold your breath for a Michael Schumacher comeback.
Michael Phelps looks ahead to high-tech suit ban -- Michael Phelps is
ready to put an up-and-down post-Olympic year behind him and focus on
the challenges that await in 2010, including adjusting to a ban on the
high-performance suits that rocked his sport. Nope, no bong hit joke here.
Chicago Blackhawks beats Vancouver Canucks 1-0 -- Bryan Bickell scored the game's lone goal, his first of the season, and
rookie backup goaltender Antti Niemi made 30 saves Sunday as the
Blackhawks blanked the Canucks 1-0 before a sellout crowd of 18,818 at
General Motors Place. For the kids counting at home, that's seven in a row for Chitown.
Tennis legend and World No. 1 Roger Federer took time out of his busy schedule getting ready for the ATP World Finals in London to give his... uh, much-anticipated opinion on the France-Ireland handball debacle. Surprisingly, given his checkered past with tennis judging technology, Federer thinks it's high time the Beautiful Game stepped into the 21st Century.
“I think it needs it more than tennis,” the stone-faced Swiss told Reuters. “You can't stop play
and analyze everything but you can do a few things so things like this
don't happen and then Thierry Henry would not be in the position he is
in.”
Obviously this was an attempt by a world champion and high-profile athlete to help deflect criticism of a friend -- Federer and Henry are, obviously, two-thirds of the Super Trio (with Tiger Woods) that is dedicated to fighting unruly facial hair and world injustice. Sure, tennis and soccer are completely unrelated. And yeah, Federer's homeland of Switzerland isn't exactly a futbol powerhouse, but dammit, the man is a winner! Of course his opinion matters, he appears in private jet commercials! He's the best a man can get (or something)!
Hoo, boy. So, France qualified for the 2010 World Cup yesterday... thanks to a 2-1 aggregate win over Ireland and a blatant, nay, OBSCENE handball by Frenchman Thierry Henry. The three Swedish refs managed to miss two offside French players, THEN failed to notice Henry palm the ball to keep it in-bounds and set up the goal. Even their own countrymen are miffed. Now the Irish Justice Minister is getting involved, demanding FIFA set a rematch.
It's not just national pride at stake here, but let's be honest, the revenue a World Cup berth can bring a national program. But hey, at least Henry's admitted his "mistake," a big consolation for the Irish team and its fans, I'm sure.
October 2009
