JASTER’S JABBERINGS – Westmanites up for prestigious NCAA hockey award

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 22/01/2019 (2426 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Just a few random thoughts this week:

• A trio of Westman hockey players have been nominated for the Hobey Baker award, which is given to the top men’s hockey player in the NCAA. The nominees include Wyatt Kalynuk of Virden, Tanner Jago of Brandon and Colt Conrad of St. Alphonse. Kalynuk, a sophomore defenceman has seven goals and 16 points in 22 games with the University of Wisconsin, while Jago, a senior blue-liner with the Bentley Falcons, has five goals and 17 points in 22 games this season. Conrad, a forward in his senior year with Western Michigan, has seven goals and 21 points in 22 games. More than 80 people have been nominated for the award. You can vote for any of the players at hobeybaker.com/vote.

• A group of 10 football players from Brandon and Virden will represent Manitoba at the International Pigskin Classic football tournament next month in San Antonio, Texas. Justin Sharp, Aaron Pasaporte, Josh Atchison, Colton Armstrong, Brett Clements and Blake Dunn will be on Manitoba’s under-14 entry in the event, with Carter Moore, Finn Abel and Miles Batherwick on the U12 squad and Carter Hayward on the U10 team. Michael Blatherwick will be an assistant coach on the U12 team. The players were scouted for the teams and have been practising in Winnipeg every week since November. They do need some help as they’re raising money for their trip. They worked at Ag Days on Monday polishing equipment and on Friday they’re hosting a Bud, spud and steak night at Houstons from 5 to 9 p.m. Tickets are $20 and available at the door. If you have the time, go support these athletes who will represent our region and province on the grid iron against teams from the United States and Mexico.

• With the Brandon University Bobcats basketball teams on the road this week and the volleyball squads starting a home-and-home series with the Winnipeg Wesmen in the provincial capital, BU is doing something different with its futsal teams. Friday’s games against the Assiniboine Community College Cougars will be played in the Healthy Living Centre’s main gym. Usually admission for Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference games are free, but there will be a $2 charge on Friday. The women’s game kicks off at 6 p.m., followed by the men at 7:45.

•Meanwhile, check out the Bobcats volleyball match on Saturday at the HLC. The women will be fighting for their playoff lives against a provincial rival while the men are ranked No. 1 in the country.

• The announcement of GM/head coach Chris Jones leaving the Saskatchewan Roughriders surprised many and left me questioning the ethics of sports. Yes, the goal is to get as high up the ladder as you can as a coach, which for Jones would lead him to the NFL. However, it’s the way he went about it that bothers me. One week before signing with the Cleveland Browns to become a defensive specialist, whatever that is, he signed an extension with the Canadian Football League club. He ensured there was an out clause in case an NFL job opportunity came up. Sounds like he built in a nice insurance policy. Granted, nothing should surprise me when it comes to Jones. After all, he came to Saskatchewan in a somewhat sketchy fashion as well, shortly after winning a Grey Cup in Edmonton. I understand wanting to grow and keep moving up in your career path, but there’s something to be said about commitment as well. Regardless, he played the Riders like a fiddle this off-season, or should I say banjo?

• If Sunday’s conference finals don’t cause the NFL to change some of its rules in the off-season, I’m not sure what will. New Orleans Saints fans are fully justified to feel like they were cheated out of a trip to the Super Bowl when two fairly blatant pass interference incidents were not called. The one in the fourth quarter would have given the Saints a first down with less than two minutes left and in chip-shot field-goal range. They could have worked the clock and kicked for the win as time expired. Perhaps it’s time to let coaches challenge for pass interference in that league, like the CFL. But hopefully the rulings happen much quicker and they don’t need the growing pains the CFL did.

• The NFL’s overtime has to change as well. The Kansas City Chiefs have one of the most potent offences in the league and they lost the AFC Championship without them ever taking the field in overtime of that game. It seems unfair that a coin toss essentially determined the winner. Both teams deserve a possession. That being said, the Patriots played a solid game and every Super Bowl they have been in since 2002 has been a tight game down to the wire. Hopefully that trend continues on Feb. 3.

•Canadian Milos Raonic may have had one of the toughest draws at the Australian Open this year, but he’s finding a way to get it done. He beat big-serving Australian Nick Kyrgios, who had the crowd behind him, before topping Switzerland’s Stan Wawrinka — who has won every major in his career except for Wimbledon — in the second round. Raonic finally got an easier test against Pierre Hughes Herbert of France in the third round before facing up-and-comer Alexander Zverev of Germany in the fourth. Zverev, the fourth seed in the tournament, was off his game and Raonic took advantage to advance to the quarter-finals. The Canadian has excelled through, sweeping three of his four matches, and only going four sets against Wawrinka. All four also needed tiebreakers. Raonic faces Lucas Pouille of France today and if he gets by him would likely face top-seed Novak Djokovic in the semifinals. Here’s hoping the Canadian can make a push to the final four, if not the final two.

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