DAYTONA HOMES MONDAY MORNING GOALIE

Photo by Keith Hershmiller Photography

10 MONDAY RANDOM THOUGHTS

1 – GO PATS GO:  We are in the dog days of winter and the calendar is ticking down towards March.  That means the Regina Pats have taken centre stage in this town, as predicted.  Their modest two game winning streak has the Queen City Kids close to clinching a playoff berth and it’s comforting to know there will once again be meaningful hockey in the Brandt Centre this spring.

The Pats’ quest continues with a rare Monday matinee in Saskatoon today (11:30 am, 620 CKRM) with a divisonal battle against the Blades.  Why are they playing on a Monday afternoon at SaskTel Centre?  Well as the Voice of the Blades, Les Lazurak, said in a text message on Sunday, “It’s a take-off on the Oil Kings’ Hockey Hooky Day.  Blades calling this Team Up For Respect with over 5,000 school kids in attendance and an educational field trip centred around bullying.”

What a fun novelty this will be!  It will be a pleasure tuning into the game.  The Pats’ next home game is Wednesday versus Kootenay.  On Friday the Pats host the Medicine Hat Tigers and I’ll have the pleasure of calling the game on Access 7.  Can’t wait!

2 – GET YOUR TICKETS HERE!:  However the Pats aren’t on local hockey fans’ lips for all the right reasons.  A number of fans have written into this blog over the past couple of weeks upset over a substantial ticket hike for next season.  Since I’m not a season ticket holder, I’ve only been casually following the situation but it figures to be a hot button topic in the months ahead.

Apparently the Pats have held a couple of Town Hall meetings with their fans, the most-recent being prior to Saturday’s 4-1 home victory over the Red Deer Rebels.  It appears only season ticket holders were invited, as no invitation showed up in my inbox.  I’ve asked a few fans who were in attendance to write an anonymous open letter to Pats ownership for the MMG column but they declined.

So, as I said, I’m a little in the dark over this however the idea of Town Hall meetings isn’t new.  The Weyburn Red Wings held one recently when news broke that the club is $180,000 in debit but I’m told the only thing to come out of the get-together was that the club’s debt is actually around $90,000.

The Arizona Coyotes sent out a news release recently to invite ALL fans to attend a soiree with club ownership to help shape the future of that franchise.  Here’s what it said:

“GLENDALE ARIZONA — The Arizona Coyotes announced today that in an effort to continue strong communication with their fans, the Coyotes will host another Town Hall Meeting on Saturday, March 14 at 3:00 p.m. at Gila River Arena prior to the Coyotes game against the New Jersey Devils (6 p.m. start).  The Town Hall will take place on the east side of the arena, outside of Gate #6. The Q & A session will be open to all Coyotes fans.

The Town Hall meeting will give fans a platform to have their questions answered about the team and provide feedback to the Coyotes organization on ways to improve the overall fan experience. Representing the Coyotes will be Co-Owner, President and CEO Anthony LeBlanc and Executive Vice President and General Manager Don Maloney. LeBlanc and Maloney will respond to issues pertaining to the on-ice direction of the Club and the off-ice business practices and services of the organization. Coyotes’ TV Play-By-Play announcer Matt McConnell will serve as the host of the event.

For Coyotes ticket information, please call 480-563-PUCK (7825) or visit ArizonaCoyotes.com.”

On that topic, tickets are still available for next week’s Riderville Tour in Phoenix when the Arizona Coyotes host the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday, March 3.  There will be more Getzlafs in attendance than you can shake a hockey stick at!  To get your tickets, visit www.arizonacoyotes.com/riderville and enter the promo code RIDERS to get seats around other Rider fans.  From what I’ve been told, the Coyotes have been overwhelmed by the response.  We’ll be on hand broadcasting the SportsCage live from Gila River Arena.

3 – A BIGGER PLAN:  Without having spoken to Pats ownership about the ticket issue, I can only surmise that the hike in ticket and sponsorship prices is all part of a master plan to move this franchise to the next level.  $3-million was invested into the new video scoreboard which immediately gave Pats games an “NHL feel”.  And probably because of that, you’ll have to pay a little extra.  QCSEG has also promised – and committed to – consistent winning on the ice and that too will cost extra to enjoy.  By the time this franchise is back to being a flagship organization, perhaps Regina hockey fans will be used to the higher prices and won’t look back.

It’s really no different than when the new regime took over the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2005.  The cost of sponsorships skyrocketed and ticket prices raised incrementally each year.  There was significant grumbling at the time, but the club delivered on the field and now you don’t hear many complaints anymore.

However are the Regina Pats on a relative scale to the Saskatchewan Roughriders from a business standpoint?  We’re about to find out.

4 – SAN DIEGO, THE HOCKEY TOWN:  As they say down in Mexico – as it pertains to hockey – the only ice down here is in peoples’ drinks.  So there hasn’t been much hockey news to speak of however on Sunday, on the 35th anniversary of the USA’s Miracle On Ice, the new AHL franchise in San Diego drew thousands of hockey fans to the Valley View Casino Center for the unveiling of the club’s new name.  It will be …. the same as the old name.  The Gulls.  The name is a San Diego hockey tradition dating back to 1966.  So with their AHL club called the Gulls and their parent NHL team in Anaheim called the Ducks, can we safely say this organization is for the birds?

“While we initially considered several options, it quickly became clear that the obvious affinity and affection the fans have for the Gulls name,” Anaheim Ducks owners Henry and Susan Samuelli said at Sunday’s rally.  “We enthusiastically embrace the history and tradition in this market and plan on adding to its legacy with a community-first organization and winning product.”

Kevin Glenn with Team Sask

5 – HURRY HARD:  It was a tough ending for Saskatchewan’s Stefanie Lawton at the Scotties in Moose Jaw on Sunday.  She fell 7-5 to Canada’s Rachel Homan in the bronze medal game but she certainly made things interesting during the week and did our province proud.  However TSN’s decision to air the Daytona 500 on the main network while relegating the Scotties bronze medal game to TSN2 was a head-scratcher.  It likely had to do with contractual obligations but it made me feel sorry for the seniors who likely don’t have TSN2 in their basic cable package.  After all, they’re curling’s most diehard fans.  I’d be interested to see the ratings because I’m willing to bet more people watched curling than auto racing.  Our dial even flipped over to the Northern Trust Open for awhile to watch Graham DeLaet’s fortunes but he couldn’t pull it together.

However as far as the event goes, hats off to the City of Moose Jaw and the fine folks at Mosaic Place.  The tournament looked fantastic.  However the estimate that the Scotties infused $12-million into the Moose Jaw economy seems a little inflated.

P.S.: I see where Scruffy is promoting Moose Jaw as the next WHL host of the Memorial Cup (after Red Deer in 2016).  I endorse this move 100 PER CENT!

Photo by Rider Pep Band

6 – ON ROUGHRIDERS:  We are almost two weeks into CFL free agency and one of the top prizes remains on the market.  Linebacker Brian Peters has yet to commit to a return to the Saskatchewan Roughriders and appears to still be sifting through offers from other CFL teams and maybe even some from the NFL.

Although for some inexplicable reason Peters has some detractors around here, it seems his worth has not gone unnoticed in the football world.  After all, Peters became just the fifth player in CFL history to record 70-plus defensive tackles (78) and 20-plus special teams tackles (20) in 2014.

But as far as a Peters update goes, no one I’ve spoken to has any idea which way he’s leaning.

7 – THE WINNERS AND LOSERS:  It’s too early to crown a winner in 2015 CFL free agency but because we get all wrapped up in wins and losses, it’s prudent to look at what’s gone on so far.  Clearly the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Ottawa RedBlacks signed the MOST players and both clubs certainly upgraded their talent.  Not coincidentally both franchises finished at the bottom of their respective divisions in 2014 so they had to do something.

However, to me, the most intriguing free agent on the market was quarterback Kevin Glenn and I pointed that out on the SportsCage prior to the Feb 10 deadline.  So given the fact he signed with Saskatchewan, you’d have to think the Riders are near the top when you’re deciphering a free agency winner.  Plus, they were able to retain all the players they were hoping to while the Calgary Stampeders were ravaged.

It’s also interesting to note that two-time Grey Cup champion with the Stampeders, Nik Lewis, is still floating around in free agent space.  The Roughriders declared weeks ago that they have to interest in Lewis.

8 – THE ARGOS HIT PRIME TIME:  Much was made last week about the Toronto Argonauts making a cameo appearance on the hit animated sitcom Family Guy.  The 22-second piece featured two Argonauts players sitting on grass at training camp discussing their chances of making the team and what they’ll do with their salary.  The players wore #7 and #9 which caused many Argos to chide back-up quarterback Trevor Harris for becoming a TV star since his is #7.  The Argonauts do not have a #9.  As far as the cartoon skit goes, any publicity is good publicity.

It was also interesting to learn late last week that a deal is close to being struck between the Argonauts and BMO Field.  An agreement could be reached prior to this season but a major sticking point is who should be responsible for the $10-million needed for renovations to get the field to CFL standards.

9 – GET YOUR RIDER AUTOGRAPHS:  This Saturday Roughrider linemen Xavier Fulton and Dan Clark will be signing autographs at Indian Head Chrysler from 1:00-3:00 pm.  They are also having a chili lunch to aise funds for the Indian Head Bronc’s football team.  Proceeds help with their travel costs for the 2015 season.

10 – AND THE OSCAR GOES TO.…:  Although the sensational movie Selma was up for top motion picture at last night’s Academy Awards, it was a shame that actor David Oyelowo – who flawlessly played Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. – wasn’t a finalist for top actor.  The final nominees were five white guys, including Bradley Cooper from American Sniper.  The snub of Oyelowo was explained by the fact “Hollywood lacks diversity” by insiders.  Is that what they’re calling racism now?  To his credit, Oyelowo said he’d rather “look forward than backwards”.  Perhaps America hasn’t come as far as they’d like to think.

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THAT’S IT FOR THIS WEEK! THANKS FOR READING…
RP
@sportscage
Instagram: ridervoice