The Crashing Toronto Maple Leafs: Is it Really the Coaching?

By Savannah Malnar

The Toronto Maple Leafs have a great history as an Original Six hockey team in the NHL. Unfortunately lately they have had more downs than ups and have not won a Stanley Cup since 1967. With this drought has come a multitude of personnel changes. Toronto fans are used to coaches being temporary, so it was no shock to them when coach Randy Carlyle, coach of only roughly two and a half seasons, was terminated.

His success with the Anaheim Ducks (who he led to a Stanley Cup) did not transfer to the Leafs. Fans and management hoped his defensive mind would bring a new perspective to the Leafs’ locker room, but instead the team only made the playoffs once under his coaching and then in the 2013-2014 season went 2-12 to end the season and fall out of what looked like to be a clinched playoff spot.

This was when management and fans really began to look at Carlyle’s effectiveness. The decision to fire Carlyle followed a barely winning record of 21-16-3 that left the Leafs grasping onto a wild card playoff spot to start the 2014-2015 season; it was most likely heavily influenced by recently hired (as of the end of the 2013-2014 season) President of the team, hall of fame player and previous Director of Player Safety, Brendan Shanahan.

Prominent hockey writer Greg Wyshynski for Yahoo! Sports authored an article titled: “Randy Carlyle fired by Toronto Maple Leafs, finally.” A writer for CBS Sports says this shows the Leafs have “learned from their mistakes.” So it seems the national media agrees with the call. A different view comes from an article from a more local source, the Toronto Star. Rosie DiManno instead goes straight to the top, calling out Brendan Shanahan for not doing enough in his first season as President. She stated she believes General Manager Dave Nonis could be the next piece to go if Shanahan really wants to turn Toronto around. In her words, “And Carlyle, for his sins, was miscast as the old-style coach who could reach deep inside this lineup and come up with a fistful of guts. That’s on management, those who’ve departed and those still here.”

DiManno appears to be among the loyal Toronto fans and media who are desperate for a turnaround for a team with such a strong past. Perhaps Carlyle being sacked will be the beginning of that, or maybe they just have to wait for something bigger.

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Jameis Winston and FSU Need a Timeout

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By Ellen Chlumecky

Jameis Winston has not been doing himself any favors these past couple years at Florida State University. He has stolen, behaved inappropriately in public at the Florida State University student union, and he was accused of sexually assaulting of a woman in December 2012. I understand college students acting in a childish manner at certain points in their career but he clearly exceeded his strikes and now is being punished for it.

On Wednesday, January 7th, attorneys for the women who accused Winston, filed a civil suit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida against FSU. The woman is suing them alleging that the university did not properly protect her Title IX rights. The woman’s attorneys demand a trial by jury and damages from FSU for fostering a “hostile educational environment.” Her attorneys stated that FSU’s athletic department deliberately concealed the rape from the university and did not investigate the allegations as required by federal Title IX laws.

The woman alleged that Winston sexually assaulted her in his apartment on Dec. 7, 2012. Winston and his attorneys contented that the sexual encounter was consensual. Winston was also never charged by either the Tallahassee police or the state attorney’s office.

Last month alone, Winston was cleared of four violations of FSU’s student conduct code hearing after a two-day student judiciary hearing. Why any university would want a student that continue to causes this many problems, no matter how good he may be at football and baseball, is beyond me. While the main violations have been accusations and have not been clearly confirmed or denied, he still has committed several inappropriate acts that are not respectable for any college student.

As any avid sports fan hopes to have is for the best players around for their selective team. However, I would hope most people would not want players who do not have correct moral compasses, especially an athlete who continually disrespects women as often as people have been reporting he does. In Jameis Winston’s actions, he is showing that he clearly does not know wrong from right or just chooses to ignore the rules. His attorneys can only defend Winston for so long until he does something that he cannot take back.

Jameis Winston announced that he intends to enter the NFL Draft inside of returning to Florida State University for his junior season. Since he is three years removed from his high school graduation, he is eligible to enter the NFL Draft as a sophomore. The day he is drafted, the day he becomes the NFL’s problem instead of FSU’s.

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Who Spiked the Kool-Aid?!: SEC shocked, the miracle ride continues and more

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By Kaleb Page

As the final days left in the college football season start to dwindle down, this bowl season gave us all some great moments, players and story lines. Whether it was the Camellia Bowl or the Rose Bowl this season of bowls and the inaugural college football playoff brought a great end to what was (at least for me) a season where almost every Saturday was a great slate of college football games.

As this cap played out over the weeks the theme of how dominant the SEC is took a huge hit. Even though the SEC did go 7-5 overall as a conference, the mystique of the conference left many in the sports world wondering what happened since the conference only went 2-4 against ranked opponents. Even though the piece was full of satire the title of Clay Travis’s piece on Fox Sports was something of interest. The title read “The SEC is Dead, Long live the SEC,” yes it is over the top and it is supposed to be, but there needs to be a discussion on this topic; discussion on is everyone else finally starting to catch-up?

With the introduction of the playoff and new varying bowl match making, is the SEC starting to come back down a bit? I would agree with some analysts who say that the conferences are starting to show parody but to say the SEC is completely terrible now is something I won’t go forth in saying quite yet. It is better in the end to see that more teams are coming into the fold and we aren’t being completely hammered with how the SEC is better than everyone else. Parody no matter what the sport is makes it that much more enjoyable because it makes things more interesting and competitive, instead of seeing the same old same old year after year.

The SEC has their bad teams just like every other conference. For those still over sipping on the SEC kool-aid and notice that nasty taste in your mouth don’t look at me, instead look at the Big Ten and other conferences that crashed the party.

The perception change that happened over the past few weeks to the SEC could really put in full effect by one team slaying the SEC’s biggest giant.

The Ohio State Buckeyes went into New Orleans, LA and faced the big bully on the block from the SEC: Alabama. As big as a nine-point underdog, it looked like the magical run by the buckeyes was doomed to be ended with such force that it might as well not even be played. Isn’t that why we play the game though? You play the game to prove that sentiment that the underdog has no chance wrong and for the buckeyes they did just that. Even though they got down early in the game, the buckeyes showed that they had the heart to win and continue their magical journey. The journey though still has another huge task in the way.

Monday night puts the end to all the talk on who the best team is in college football. Finally with the playoff we all will know that there is a definitive champion. Oregon off its impressive win versus FSU showed how potent their offense is and that the talk of them being “finesse” is something far from the truth. As mentioned above Ohio State looks to cap off an impressive season full of adversity by winning it all and showing what it means to be a complete team. It will be interesting to see these two teams play since both teams are full of great players and coaches. Making this game a battle more than just a physical one on the field, but one that is a mental chess match as well.

For the way this season will come to an end it pushes the old phrase “don’t drink the kool-aid” to the front. For all that we heard that the majority trend for people was to lean one way or the other (mainly on SEC teams), it truly shows at the end of this season that putting your full confidence towards one frame of mind is almost foolish. It also has shown that to essentially “drink the kool-aid or go only off of the thoughts of the majority,” is a habit we all need to break. To say I’ve been insusceptible to this would be foolish too, but I will say for the majority of this season I stayed away from the punch bowl so many others drank out of.

Hopefully next season we all can stay away from the kool-aid and make our own thoughts. Until then don’t drink the kool-aid too much…you’ve been warned.

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The Cavs Make Moves

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By Kaleb Page

In this early stage of the NBA season the Cleveland Cavaliers have had not even close to the start everyone including themselves had expected. With a record of 19-16 this is still a team searching to find what it is and what it wants to hang its hat on night in and night out. As I said it is still very early so things can change and even with injuries to Kyrie Irving and LeBron James this team still is second in their division and fifth in the eastern conference.

For the GM of the Cavaliers David Griffin, managing this team that has so much potential is a huge task. With Irving and James down and the Cavalier faithful starting to wonder what is up with this team in recent weeks; Griffin needed to find something to re-energize not only the team but the fans as well. On Monday night that opportunity presented itself in a trade.

Prior to the game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Cleveland Cavaliers starting shooting guard Dion Waiters was pulled from the line-up. It was then soon broadcast all over the sporting world that a three team deal had been made. This deal would send Waiters to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith to the Cavaliers, and the Knicks get three players who have non-guaranteed contracts they can dump at the end of the season to further open up their cap space. Along with the players in the deal, the Thunder are giving the Cavs a protected future first-round draft pick and they are also sending a 2019 second-round draft pick to the Knicks.

Quite the deal that happened on a Monday night in the NBA. This move for the Cavaliers was dissected by ESPN’s Tim Legler and he made it clear that this trade really benefits everyone involved. In his break down on SportsCenter, Legler mentioned that this trade addresses a need the Cavs have when it comes to team defense, and with a guy like Shumpert who adds length along with a defensive mindset to the starting line-up; the Cavs made a great deal. He also went on to mention that the swap of Smith for Waiters is a slight upgrade even though both players do have similar playing styles.

With that said I would have to agree with Legler on this trade being really beneficial for the Cavaliers. When you can get a young guy like Shumpert, who is a rising player in the league known for his perimeter defense, it helps improve what the team is lacking right now. Even though Smith is somewhat a loose cannon no matter what team he is on, he has proven to be an offensive weapon capable of going off at any time. It will be interesting to see if these two pieces are able to pay dividends for this team that expects to be in the finals when it is all over.

I would add though that this might not be the end for the Cavaliers as far as deals go. Even though the deal is great, it does miss the hole that is still their post defense. It is hard to find anyone on the market to fill the void left when Anderson Varejao went down, but the team does need to find some type of presence to shore up the back-end just like it did with this trade that added help to the perimeter.

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Stuart Scott Dies at Age 49

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By Ellen Chlumecky

On Sunday, January 4th, the sports world lost another talented man: Stuart Scott. Scott died at the age of 49, losing his battle to cancer. Scott went into remission in early 2012, but he was again diagnosed with cancer on January 14, 2013. He was also suffering from liver complications and kidney failure. His death was a huge loss to the sports community. His contributions to the sports world were nothing short of exceptional and dynamic. Scott had such a passion for sports and inspired so many others with his talent, work ethic, and devotion.

One of the reasons Stuart Scott was such an inspiration to so many is because of his overall presentation. While Scott was certainly not the first black sportscasters, he presented himself with the confidence as if he was. He talked about his personal experiences that a white sportscaster might not have had. His fellow colleagues expressed how he brought “soul” to the show and how he brought a different beat to every thing he did. He brought his own stories to the table and it started to cover a bigger demographic that wasn’t always being covered. He related well with many black athletes and a majority of them felt more comfortable because he related to them on many different levels.

Bringing his own personality to the show was just one minor break through Scott made on ESPN. With his clever catchphrases, Scott showed ESPN that he was in it for the long haul. Especially with his catchphrase, “Boo-yah” people were hooked on Scott wondering what he was going to come up with next. His charm beamed from him and all of his colleagues knew he was someone special.

Obviously his colleagues were not the only ones who saw something special in him. As a combination of his long-lasting battle with cancer and his perseverance, he received the Jimmy V Perseverance Award at the ESPYS in July. Scott humbly accepted and made it known to the audience that he was not a hero, he just chose not to live around his cancer.

Twitter this morning was blown up with the mass amount of condolences for Scott and his family. Athletes like Johnny Manziel, Patrick Peterson, Mike Adams, Daniel Meadows, Nick Moody, and many others took to Twitter to express their heartfelt condolences and love of Scott. Even some celebrities such as Carson Daly, Rob Riggle, and Josh Gad talked about his legacy. Even President Obama talked about the tremendous impact Scott had on the sports world and what a loss his death is to so many people. ESPN dedicated their shows tonight to him and his family.

In the words of Stuart Scott: “When you die, it does not mean you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and in the manner in which you live.” While he may be gone, he will continue to be an inspiration for so many anchors and aspiring sportscasters. So many people my age looked up to him and aspire to be as dynamic as him. He presented himself professionally but was so charismatic and enjoyable to watch. In our hearts, he will always be “as cool as the other side of the pillow.”

While I am not the biggest fan of ESPN, Scott was a reporter I truly respected and genuinely enjoyed watching. He spoke with such eloquence that made me see him as more than just someone relaying statistics. The world lost not only an amazing sportscaster, but a powerful writer, which in this day and age is something we need more than ever.

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Did the 2015 Winter Classic Get the Attention it Deserved?

By Savannah Malnar

Outdoor games used to be a rare occurrence in the NHL, which produced only the annual Winter Classic and the occasional Heritage Classic which traditionally showcases Canadian teams only. The 2013-2014 NHL season brought the induction of the Stadium Series, a set of outdoor games meant to be set in varying cities across the league.

Perhaps this new stadium series can explain the lack of hype and attention surrounding the 2015 Winter Classic. The Washington Capitals hosted the Chicago Blackhawks at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., and despite the fact that this was a game between two playoff contenders in our nation’s capital, there was not a lot of attention surrounding it.

The national media lacked enthusiasm leading up to the game. Even local outlets did not cover it as much as previous Winter Classics have been covered. The game itself ended up being a close game, tied until seconds left in the third when Capital’s forward Troy Brouwer scored the game winning goal allowing the Caps to leave the game with a final score of 3-2. Yahoo! Sports published a short summary of the game, but said it was, “maybe the most quality game between two teams in the annual event,” which is interesting to hear about such a low-key “major” event.

There are a few reasons this Winter Classic in specific was not as well publicized. The first may be, as mentioned before, the induction of the Stadium Series. Perhaps the novelty of an outdoor game has run out. Or, it could have been the location and teams playing. In past years the annual game has frequently pitted rival teams together in larger venues. This calls for more attention from both fans of the sport and the media. The Capitals and the Blackhawks are far from rivals; they have never been in the same conference and have ever competed in the playoffs against each other. They only meet twice per season under the new collective bargaining agreement.

While this game may not have been as big of a deal as past Classics, it still was a beautiful day to be a Caps fan. D.C. weather was mild but chilly enough to maintain good ice quality for the teams, and everyone in attendance got to witness a great display of talent and a home team win.

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Dany Heatley Takes One Step Back

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By Ellen Chlumecky

On December 29th, a rumor surfaced that Dany Heatley was currently being placed on waivers. On December 30th, the Anaheim Ducks announced the decision to move veteran Dany Heatley to their AHL affiliate team in Norfolk.  That same day, the Anaheim Ducks had Heatley clear the waivers and the move to the Norfolk Admirals became official. While this was not the only moving they had been done, it was definitely the one that caused a few heads to turn in the NHL world.

Heatley has made his way around the NHL playing for not only the Anaheim Ducks but the Atlanta Thrashers, Ottawa Senators, San Jose Sharks, and the Minnesota Wild. Winning his fair share of awards notably the Calder Memorial Trophy as the top NHL rookie in 2002. Also was one of the Ottawa Senators’ leading scorers during his time with the Senators. With the Senators, Heatley set franchise records for 50 season-single goals which he achieved in not only one, but two back to back seasons. He also scored 105 points during the 2006-2007 season. In 2008, he was Canada’s all-time leader in goals and the all-time leader in points for the World Championships. Heatley has also represented Team Canada in six World Championships, two Olympics, one World Cup of Hockey, and two World Junior Championships. Doesn’t exactly have the criteria of a hockey player who should be sent back down to the AHL, does it?

While some time has passed, Heatley’s reputation has always preceded him for being a tough, go all in player. However, since joining the Anaheim Ducks, Heatley has been scoreless in six games with a minus-3 rating. Heatley has been struggling with a groin problem that required surgery. It’s not like Heatley hasn’t been trying his best though. It’s clear that Heatley has been busting his butt on and off the ice to return to 100%.

Some may wonder why a veteran of his caliber is being sent down to the AHL for a few bad games. Some speculate that the Ducks made the executive decision to send him down so he can work on his rehabilitation. Others suggest that he really hasn’t been clicking with the Ducks as a team. Some people still think that the car accident might have a psychological effect on him and his playing.

Whatever the case may be, this is Heatley’s fifth NHL team. As a veteran, I’m sure he will be able to bounce back from this obstacle in his career.

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Harbaugh Set to Return to Michigan

By Savannah Malnar

University of Michigan has been a powerhouse in college football for ages, so when they fell to 5-7 this season it was a shock to everyone. The fans were upset. Both the Athletic Director, Dave Brandon, and head coach, Brady Hoke, were fired before the season even concluded. The situation interim AD, Kim Hackett, had to take over was abysmal. But what he reportedly managed to do has brought hope into the hearts of many Michigan fans.

According to reports on Monday, Hackett had successfully hired famed coach Jim Harbaugh to take over the head coaching job. Harbaugh boasts an impressive resume: he earned a record of 29-6 in the three years he spent at University of San Diego, he brought back the Stanford football program and coached Heisman candidates Andrew Luck and Toby Gerhart there, and then went on to take a pro coaching job in San Francisco and brought the 49ers to three NFC title games and one Super Bowl (loss), finishing his time with the team with a record of 44-19-1.

While Harbaugh’s numbers look impressive, he has a habit of almost burning out after a few seasons in whatever job he is occupied with. Most recently he ended the season with the 49ers 8-8. There is speculation as to whether he quit, or if he was fired; San Francisco’s management said it was “mutual.”

Whatever the case may be there, Harbaugh appears ready to return to the college game and hopefully revive the Michigan football program. The media is speculating he chose Michigan over other possible NFL jobs because it is his alma mater; he played quarterback there under the prominent coach Bo Schembechler.

Sport media members and Michigan fans in general are convinced Harbaugh is the key to turning their program into a threat once again. Eric Bakhtiari, who played for Harbaugh at both University of San Diego and the 49ers, said this about his coach: “He takes losers and makes them winners. It’s as simple as that.”

That’s something any fan would want to hear. According to the media and an anonymous source, Harbaugh is going to be introduced to the student body as head coach at the U of M basketball game on Tuesday. That game is now sold out and tickets for it have gone up six times the average price online.

I think Harbaugh will like being a Wolverine again.

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Jones vs. Cormier: The fight is finally here

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By Kaleb Page

Lost in the bowl mania, NFL playoffs and the new big hire by the University of Michigan is a fight that could be the biggest fight of the year for the UFC. This fight could be the biggest and it is only the beginning of their fight calendar.

Brewing for years now is the bad blood between UFC light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones” Jones and the rising challenger Daniel Cormier. Stemming as far back as 2010 these two started off on the wrong foot with Jones and Cormier having a backstage disagreement at UFC 121. Jones was meeting Cormier for the first time, and differing reports from both camps laid the interaction differently; Jones saying he was merely joking by telling Cormier (an Olympian wrestler) “I bet you that I could take you down,” while Cormier didn’t understand how insulting someone was a good way to break the ice.

As time moved along and Jones defended his title countless other times, the embers of that exchange cooled substantially until the opportunity presented itself to have these two face off. It also probably helped to stoke the fire back up when at UFC 173 on May 24, 2014 Cormier left a special message for Jones after Cormier won his first fight after moving down from heavyweight to light heavyweight.

Then the ultimate tipping point was reached when Jones and Cormier had a little “presser” before UFC 178 where they would answer some questions in the MGM Grand lobby and then have the stare down at the end. Well it went as planned until the stare down. Jones is 6’4″ and Cormier 5’11” so when they go for the stare down Jones looks down on Cormier. This is where things got interesting as Jones started to place his head on Cormier’s. At this point Cormier shoves at Jones throat and sparks what you will see in the video below.

From that point on the fight was official on to a whole different level, prompting many interesting interviews since then and some candid moments where the fighters didn’t know they were being recorded (since off the air), this video has been circled around the internet as more fuel for promoting that animosity in this match-up (click on this link to the video WARNING the video does contain strong language).

Coverage has been at a minimum for ESPN probably in part to the contract the UFC has with Fox Sports, but I think this fight does deserve to have all the publicity that it deserves. If you can somehow make it to a restaurant/bar showing it or even order the pay-per-view I highly advise it because when you have two world-class athletes that are some of the best in the sport and you add in legitimate hatred it will be an unbelievable main event.

Saturday January 3, 2015 Jon “Bones” Jones vs. Daniel Cormier will be an event I will have to watch and hopefully lives up to the billing. Who do you think will win? Is it Jones the defending champion who has been an unbelievable puzzle to solve or Cormier the former Olympic wrestler who has a lot to prove? Either way the mixed martial arts community wins with a great match-up like this.

Watch the promo below and you will be ready to go for this huge event in the world of mixed martial arts.

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Acy Gets Antsy: Suspended 1 Game

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By Ellen Chlumecky

Nothing says the holidays quite like fighting, right? However this fight was not over who got the last iPad or the last turkey leg. On Christmas Day, New York Knicks forward Quincy Acy and Washington Wizards guard John Wall participated in a shoving match with one another. Quincy Acy is the one who initiated the shove while John Wall had the ball when the Wizards were winning. While Wall retaliated with a shove of his own and a fight erupted from the shoving. There was talk about Acy throwing a punch but rumors have not been confirmed on whether or not that is true. Both players were separated by their respective teams.

Quincy Acy has been suspended one game while his sparing partner was fined $15,000 by the NBA for their roles in the fight. Both seem to be fitting punishments for the two athletes, correct? It didn’t seem like that big of a fight in comparison to certain fights over the past couple years that happened in the NBA or even in the NHL or NFL. However, any fighting in the NBA is frowned upon and needs to be handled with severity no matter how big or small the fight may be.

When so many more impressionable children are watching professional sports nowadays, the NBA needs to have a firmer grasp on keeping the violence to a minimum. While there is more and more attention being drawn to athletes participating in violent acts off the field, court, or ice, people seem to forget that players can be doing the exact same thing on the field, court, or ice. While this may seem to be a simple, almost juvenile, act of violence it is unacceptable none the less.

Acy not only claimed that he did not throw a punch but also expressed shock when he received word about being suspended. He claimed that he was just trying to foul John Wall saying that he was just trying to stop a fast break and was trying to stop the play. Even his coach, Derek Fisher chimed in saying that he shouldn’t be suspended for shoving because there was in fact no punch thrown. He also stated that he was not upset with Acy’s action because there was no intent behind them.

What these athletes and coaches still don’t seem to understand is that there is always consequences to your actions. Whether it is just a shove or a punch thrown, you are being shown on television for everyone to see. You have to take into account what these people will think about you and wonder what kind of organization lets athletes play like childish boys. Whether or not he had intent to hurt him is beyond the point. Quincy Acy wants to play as a professional then he needs to act like one as well.

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