Behind the Bench

Can the NHL recover from another lockout?

When the National Hockey League and the National Hockey League Players’ Association negotiated a new Collective Bargaining Agreement eight years ago, the failure on the part of both parties to reach a new deal resulted in the cancellation of the entire 2004-2005 season. As was well documented, the negative impact[Read More…]

Zamb on it, zamb on it

It’s often said that every Canadian kid grows up with hockey in their veins. We learn to skate before we can walk, have our first near-death experience playing street hockey, and know the (former) theme music to Hockey Night in Canada better than the “real” national anthem (that’s the song[Read More…]

Steroids clouding MLB’s Hall of Fame judgements

Let’s start with the truth about Major League Baseball: 1) We’re still in the “Steroid Era.” 2) We’ve always been in the Steroid Era. This week’s example: a player under suspicion of juicing has been retroactively accused and it may jeopardize his Hall of Fame chances. Stop me if you’ve[Read More…]

What happened to retiring in style?

Nobody wants to be “that guy” on campus. The guy in the seventh year of his undergrad and still trying to fit in. The guy who tirelessly attempts to convince you that the victory lap is, in fact, cool. Allen Iverson has become “that guy.” On October 29, Allen Iverson[Read More…]

Dengue, typhoid, and a lesson learned

By virtually any measure, last month’s 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi were a complete disaster. A small budget wasn’t the issue but rather a large one was. With a cost of 30,000 Crore (300 billion Rupees), or close to $7 billion USD, they were easily the most expensive Commonwealth Games[Read More…]

The stadium mystique

I recently had to do a story on the renovated Molson Stadium, so I went to check it out one day. I was moved to recollection as I wandered through the concourses. “Recollection” is an inadequate word; rather, doors in my subconscious opened, emitting rich nostalgic air. I let it[Read More…]

Bird courses, Boise State, and the BCS

We all know them. Some of us might even be them. Those people who brag about the kind of GPA that you could only dream of. These aren’t necessarily the best and the brightest, but they’re the people who have found perfectly legitimate ways to use the system to their[Read More…]

THIRD MAN IN: Toronto Loud Mouth Needs to Walk the Walk

Dion Phaneuf is a loud guy. You can have endless debates about his abilities, about his paycheque, or about his girlfriend (notorious puck bunny Elisha Cuthbert), but there’s no debating his mouth. And while his brashness may have excited the Toronto Maple Leafs enough for them to name him captain, it has also gotten him into a lot of trouble.

THIRD MAN IN: Expecting the unexpected…and not getting it

Every few years, the stars will align to deliver the hard-core sports fan with an entire summer’s worth of quality entertainment. Of course, there are always specific dates in June, July, and August that are worth marking down, but only in the rarest of years can you justify to your parents, friends, or significant other the necessity of staying glued to a television or computer screen for 60 days straight.

THIRD MAN IN: Holding the court in contempt

To quote the First Amendment to the Bill of Rights: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

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