The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
This week in the Sports Experts column, Jeff talks a little curling and Tom remembers the WHA. I didn't get to watch the Brier last weekend. There was enough going on locally that I didn't have time for TV sports. I've come to the realization that if I want to be able to watch sports again, I'm going to have to quit my job as a sports reporter. I am pledging to watch some college hoops this weekend, although I will be in Brandon for the Jazz Festival and it will be tough to sneak in some TV time. Also, Great White is playing in my hotel Saturday night, so I might be tempted to go brush up on my 80's rock trivia. "I thought I'd mention the Brier, and now the Canada Cup as it is on at the moment. I don't think I've ever seen the curling of Canada so diverse. I've been made a fan of Jakabu out of Northern Ontario, and it's nice to see these new faces in the Brier, and how they did. Huge congrats should go out to Randy Dutiaume for how well he played. I think curling has a bright future for years to come in Canada, and should be right up there with hockey for the national pastime." - Jeff K. The WHA is talking about reviving the league with a hockey tournament in the spring. Most of the old NHL guys think it is a great idea. And why wouldn't they? Won't the WHA just be a washed-up version of the NHL? I say take all the 'underpaid' players, stick them in an old-timer league and leave the NHL for the up-and-comers. Get rid of all the guys who clutch and grab all day. Let them play in another league for $20,000 a month, and lets start over with the NHL. That would make the NHL better Ð mandatory old-guy elimination. Anyone who takes a hooking penalty in the first 10 minutes of the game is obviously too slow, and should be demoted. But Tom begs not to run the good name of the WHA through the mud, too. "You know I followed the WHA from its inception and was a Jets fan from day 1 and went to as many games as I could. I was there the night they beat the Russians, the night that Frankie Beaton ripped Bobby Hull's transplanted hair out of his head, the night Bobby Hull set the single season scoring record by beating Ernie Wakely of San Diego Mariners, the first and last games of Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nillson and the final WHA game ever when the Jets beat the Oilers to win the last Avco Cup. Those were great memories as that was a league that was every bit as good as the NHL so why tarnish that by creating a new WHA? Hockey, even the NHL, is bad enough that with all the teams out there. You have so called NHLers who probably really should not be playing at any level above semipro. To water it down even more by recreating the WHA is demeaning. If you think you have to do this PLEASE call it anything BUT the WHA!" - Tom T. It's time for March Madness south of the border. Like a lot of Canadians, I don't watch a lot of basketball during the regular season, but I do try and catch the playoffs, and college hoops is where it's at. "Although I really do not watch college basketball during the season I do follow it in the paper and I definitely will watch it during this tournament. It is extremely exciting and because they play on a regional basis very seldom does any team have a true home court advantage. I really like Illinois' chances but watch out for Gonzaga from the pacific northwest." Tom T. I also like Gonzaga, but only because they have the coolest sounding name in college sports. Who wouldn't want to play for a team called Gonzaga? That is it for this week. The Sports Experts is always looking for new people on the panel. Each week I send you an e-mail, and then you send one back. It's as simple as that. There are also contests and prizes, such as the upcoming baseball pool, free for all who join. If you have an opinion (and I know you do), please send an e-mail to: [email protected]/18/2005
