The Virden Oil Capitals had little trouble with the Selkirk Steelers in round one of their MJ playoffs and will now go up against a much tougher opponent in their next series, the Winkler Flyers. The semi finals began Tuesday at TOGP; the Oil Caps will have to continue their fine team play to have a chance to move on down the playoff road. They have the depth, attitude, work ethic and talent to succeed at this level, now they just have to find a way to put it all together.
Great to see Virden's own Tyler Kirkup taking the college route, just like big sister Karissa, as he has accepted a scholarship to play for the Bemidji State Beavers in Division 1 hockey next season in Minnesota. As for Karissa, her U of M Bisons women's hockey team won the national championships (U-Sports) last weekend. Mom and Dad are very proud.
Senators’ fans
To the Ottawa Senators' fans who have taken out five billboard sized signs around town criticizing owner Eugene Melnyk's handling of their team, on and off the ice, I say you're way off base and instead, should be kissing the ground he walks on. Fans have very short memories because they forget that if it wasn't for Geno and his money and dreams, they wouldn't even have a team in the Ottawa Valley. What got them all stirred up was his vocal disappointment of the poor attendance at home games, something that he should be concerned about, it's his business. All he's saying is, use it or lose it, and who could blame him.
World curling
Jennifer Jones and her band of Canadians are dominating the World Curling Championships, along with Sweden, that are being held in North Bay, Ontario. The six-time Canadian champion, former world champion and Olympic gold medallist is currently firing on all cylinders and if she can continue to keep up her high standard of play, the Canucks will be hard to beat. The only part that disturbs me a little is that she now has a tendency to "over think" some of her shots and strategy, like when she threw away BOTH of her shots early in her game vs. Scotland. Her second Jill Officer, who has been with Jones since "forever" and is stepping back from the game after this season, has been particularly sharp, curling over 90 per cent in every game.
CFL
In CFL news, Montreal's loss is Toronto's gain. Former great Alouette QB Anthony Cavillo has accepted the job as the QB's coach for the Argonauts, only because his former head coach, Mark Trestman, is now running the show there. After winning the Grey Cup last season, the Argos want the best offensive coach on their sideline.
NHLrumours
In the not too distant future, Seattle is in line to potentially receive an NHL franchise (new or used) but even before they start down that long and expensive road, there are storm clouds on the horizon. A rumour, accidentally blurted by the Seattle mayor when he was bragging about the upcoming intense rivalry between Vancouver and his city, the team name would probably be the Seattle Totems.
The Totems were a famous team from this NW area of America that won many championships from 1958-1973, but in our current politically correct society the indigenous reference to local First Nations culture, if true, will probably not go over very well, and it hasn't. Some teams have felt the pressure to change their names (U of North Dakota Fighting Sioux to Hawks) but some haven't (Washington Redskins, Cleveland Indians, Atlanta Braves, Edmonton Eskimos, Kansas City Chiefs and Scouts). Trivia question, what is the Kansas City Scouts franchise called now?
There's been a lot of controversy, especially lately, on what is or what is not goaltender interference in the NHL. At the recent GM meetings, there was a strong movement to change who has the final say in this matter, taking it away from the refs on the ice to having NHL HQ in Toronto make the final decision. This is a great idea but because it's still regular season, it would need the unanimous approval from the owners. After all "bitchin" and complaining, one would think it would be a no-brainer, we'll soon see.
Trivia answer: New Jersey Devils (KC to Colorado, then NJ).
Until next time....
