AHL Player Leaves Ice On Stretcher After Fight

((HT: TSN/CSN))

Philadelphia Phantoms forward Garrett Klotz ((pictured, thanks TSN/Comcast Sportsnet)) left the ice on a stretcher Friday after a vicious fight with Kevin Westgarth of Manchester ended with the winger suffering from a seizure. Klotz was immediately taken to a hospital, where it was revealed he suffered lacerations but no fractures to his face. He was fully responsive and alert while being treated.

"It was a scary incident," said Philadelphia Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren. "But we just got word from our doctor that he's clear - there's no facial fracture. They're stitching him up - his jaw is fine and there's no tooth fracture or anything. It's a scary ordeal, but he's going to be fine."

Immediately following the opening faceoff, Klotz and Westgarth dropped the gloves. With their helmets off, the two went toe-to-toe at center ice, exchanging glancing blows. The duel shifted towards the Monarchs' bench and Westgarth steadied before unleashing several haymakers to the head. Klotz was hit with an uppercut that caught him off guard and Westgarth continued with a pair of pin-point rights, the latter sending Klotz to the ice.

On his way down, Klotz appeared to land awkwardly on the boards. Though he did not hit his head on the ice, his knees were shaking uncontrollably and his eyes rolled to the back of his head as the stretcher quickly made its way towards the bloodied player. Westgarth concernedly looked on from the penalty box as several Phantoms helped Klotz onto the stretcher and off to a local hospital.

Both fighters stood at 6-foot-5 with Westgarth weighing in at 247 pounds and Klotz at 235.

Watch the clip by clicking in black...

http://watch.tsn.ca/clip132997#clip132997

Your Friday Tackle Football Update

Herm Edwards ((pictured, thanks David Eulitt/KC Star)) is out in Kansas City, can Mike Shanahan be next in... ((KC Star))

Dan Reeves is interviewing in San Francisco for their OC gig...??? Yup... already has...((SF Chronicle))

Scott Linehan is the new OC in Detroit... ((Detroit Free Press)) and Gunther Cunningham is the new DC. No word yet on whether or not former Denver DC Bob Slowik will be the secondary coach.

More when we know more...
Carry on...

FAU's Mike Jarvis Suspended 1 Game

Florida Atlantic Head Coach Mike Jarvis got a police escort from his home floor the other night after allegedly making contact with a Sun Belt Conference official who then made it rain four technical fouls on the Owls' in their game against Louisiana-Monroe.

From Ted Hutton's piece in the Sun-Sentinel:

"Jarvis was not on the plane that left Friday for Saturday's game at Arkansas State. FAU has yet to release a statement, but the suspension could be more than one game.The incident happened near the end of the first half in a game against Louisiana-Monroe when Jarvis argued an out-of-bounds call that went against the Owls.

It appeared Jarvis may have made contact with an official during the argument, with the first technical called on the bench, followed by three on Jarvis. ULM was awared eight free throws and made seven, and won the game 94-88. FAU is now 4-16 and 0-8 in the conference.The Sun Belt reviewed the official's report and one by Jarvis Friday."

We actually think there was another reason all hell broke loose that night...
A very well-endowed FAU alum showed up...

You Play To Win The Game- Herm Edwards Apparently Didn't

After a 2-14 season, and to no one's surprise, the Kansas City Chiefs fired head coach Herm Edwards. This was, probably, the first act of many by new head honcho Scott Pioli.

Edwards tried to create miracles at QB with Tyler Thigpen and Brody Croyle, had to deal with a moody tailback in Larry Johnson, and tried to keep all-world TE Tony Gonzalez happy.

Now, it's Pioli's issue and there's talk that Pioli wants Arizona OC Todd Haley after the game at the end of the season in Tampa to take over as his new head coach.

But, really, there is only one reason to post this story...
((HT: FSN/the youtube))

Can The Playmaker Be A Star Maker?

Proof again that the Dallas Cowboys oh so badly want to a more of a cult of personality than a football team another Cowboy drama is coming your way.

Michael Irvin, the play maker of the Cowboys' Super Bowl championship teams of the 90's, is becoming a star maker. Irvin will executive produce and host a reality show where 12 contestants will compete for a spot on Dallas' 80 man training camp roster.

Cowboys owner and GM Jerry Jones has given his blessing for the project and will appear on the show. I don't know where Jones will appear on the credits but I'm sure there is a speaking part for him. My suggestion is ring master since he has created a circus in Big "D".

Not to pass up a chance to make love to a camera lens, Deion Sanders will appear on the show to. Former Cowboy coaches will be cast as well. Just don't give former Cowboy assistant coach Joe Avezzano a speaking part, might need sub-titles.

"This is a dream of mine also." Irvin told ESPN.com "This is an opportunity for me to talk to these young men and share some of the wisdom that I've gotten on and off the field."

"I've been waiting to do this since the first time I watched 'American Idol.' 'American Idol' is about singing and dreams. This is about football and dreams."

The show is set to air this spring. Where.... I don't know.

If you interested, go to michaelirvin.com for casting. Good Luck.

The OSG posse will take a pass on this one.

Photo Courtesy: Getty Images

Raise The Champagne Glasses Indiana, No More Unbeatens

Now that Wake Forest lost Wednesday night to Virginia Tech for the Demon Deacons first loss of the year, the 1976 Indiana Hoosiers remain the last NCAA Division one men's basketball team to go through an entire season undefeated.

7 teams have cut the nets at the end of the season with a zero in the loss column, UCLA did it 4 times during the John Wooden era (1964, 1967, 1972, 1973) but the Hoosiers of '76 were the last.

You wonder if it's a big deal to that team like it is every year in the NFL with the 1972 Miami Dolphins. Does Kent Benson, Quinn Buckner, Scott May and the rest raise a glass of champagne?

That '76 Indiana team was awesome. Scott May won National Player of the Year honors. In the National Final against Michigan, May helped in a big way scoring 26 points as the Hoosiers took home the NCAA title. 29 year later May would watch his son Sean win an NCAA Championship with North Carolina.

Kent Benson, the burly 6-11 center, (Picture to right: Thanks AP) found his groove in the title game with 26 points capping off a great year and a great NCAA Tournament. Benson would receive Most Outstanding Player honors. The next year Benson would be the Big 10 player of the year and go on to a serviceable NBA career.

Come to think of it, no one from that Hoosier team became superstars in the NBA. The 1976 Indiana Hoosiers were a collection of great college players that became a great college team. This was before the shot clock and 3 point line came around. Purest will say it was when basketball was real. It was a much different game then.

Will another team run the table in Division I men's college basketball again? UNLV almost did it in 1991 losing to Duke in the '91 National Semifinal for the first time that season but that has been the closest.

With the shot clock and 3 point line, it's almost impossible for teams to protect their lead. Back in '76, a 10 point lead was almost to much to overcome. In today's game a trio of 3's has you down by a single point.

I'm not saying it's impossible but what Indiana did in 1976 won't happen again in my lifetime.

Photo Courtesy: Hoosier Historia

Grizz Fire Iavaroni...

In a move that shocks no one... the Memphis Grizzlies continue to suck while they're also very young. And since the ownership group continues to have very little patience for such things as experience and on-the-job training, the team decided to fire Head Coach Marc Iavaroni.

Which, of course, makes perfect sense...in the Griz universe...
Here's the report from ABC 24/CW 30 in Memphis, and if you're not careful you may end up watching their entire newscast from Thursday night.
That may have been their plan all along, anyway...

Thursday Pitch-And-Catch Wrap-Up

Milwaukee's Prince Fielder agrees to a 2-year, $18-million deal...
No truth that the Inernal Revenue Service was present at the signing...

And what's the biggest ovation Jeff Kent has ever received...?
The teammates he's leaving behind all glad he's finally retiring...
Let the "Hall of Very Good" debate for Kent begin...
((HT: CBS Sports))

Watch CBS Videos Online

Cubs Get A Case Of Ricketts

((HT: yahoosports))

A billionaire family of Chicago Cubs fans—including one who first met his wife in the bleachers at Wrigley Field—is set to purchase the team and ballpark from Tribune Company. The sale would include Wrigley Field and a 25 percent interest in a regional sports network, said Dennis Culloton, a spokesman for group head Tom Ricketts. Culloton said the deal was worth about $900 million.

“My family and I are Cubs fans,” Ricketts said in a statement Thursday night. “We share the goal of Cubs fans everywhere to win a World Series and build the consistent championship tradition that the fans deserve.”

The family, whose bid was picked from among three finalists, also said in the statement that it’s looking forward to working with the Tribune and Major League Baseball to close the transaction promptly. Tribune Company spokesman Gary Weitman declined comment.

The selection of Tom Ricketts, a member of the founding family of TD Ameritrade Holding Corp., and chief executive of InCapital LLC, was first reported by the Chicago Sun-Times’ Web site.

Now more than a century removed from their last World Series title, the Cubs were purchased by Tribune Company from Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. for $20.5 million in June 1981. Tribune put the team on the market on opening day 2007, when real estate mogul Sam Zell agreed to buy the corporation.

Cubs chairman Crane Kenney said last week that the team hopes to have a new owner in place by opening day, April 6, but many steps must happen before a sale can be completed.

“Obviously, these final negotiations are key, but my client is, as the statement indicates, pretty optimistic,” Culloton said.

Ricketts must reach an agreement with Tribune, which filed for bankruptcy protection last month. While the Cubs and Wrigley Field were not included in the bankruptcy filing, a sale likely will have to be approved by the creditors’ committee and possibly a bankruptcy judge.

In addition, a sale must be approved by baseball owners.

Under the structure that had been discussed with baseball officials, Tribune would keep a small percentage of the team for tax reasons, probably around 5 percent, a baseball official said. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because discussions between the team and MLB have not been made public.

Other finalists in the bidding included Hersch Klaff, who owns a Chicago commercial real estate firm, and a partnership between two New Yorkers involved in private equity, Marc Utay of Clarion Capital and Leo Hindery Jr. of InterMedia Partners.

Tom Ricketts grew up watching the Cubs on WGN, once lived in an apartment above a bar across the street from Wrigley Field, and met his wife in the bleachers at a Cubs game. His father, J. Joe Ricketts, founded Ameritrade and became a leading online stockbroker, but Tom never worked for that company. He was a market maker at the Chicago Board Options Exchange and finance executive before starting investment bank Incapital LLC.

“If it’s true that this Tom Ricketts is a real fan, then it should be a good move, but I really wish it had been (Dallas Mavericks owner) Mark Cuban. He was passionate about it, and he really wants them to win,” said Cubs fan Hope Bertram of Chicago.

If the deal is approved, the Ricketts would acquire a team that hasn’t won the World Series since 1908 and hasn’t even made it to the Fall Classic since 1945. While the Cubs won the NL Central in each of the last two seasons, they were swept in the first round of the playoffs both times.

Tribune considered selling the team and the famous ballpark separately but rejected a plan from the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority to purchase the ivy-walled stadium. Kenney said recently the two would be sold together.

Tribune owns the Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, The (Baltimore) Sun, The Hartford Courant and other dailies as well as 23 television stations. It has been smothered by a drop-off in advertising and $13 billion in debt from Zell’s acquisition. The company is selling off assets as it seeks to raise cash to deal with the debt.

AP Business Writer Dave Carpenter contributed to this report.

HS Football Coach Charged With Homicide

In a move that could put every athletic coach in the United States on notice, a Jefferson County ((KY)) grand jury has returned a reckless homicide indictment against a local football coach over the death of one his players in August of 2008.

Jason Stinson ((pictured, thanks WAVE-3)), head coach of Pleasure Ridge Park High School, is charged over the death of a 15-year-old sophomore, Max Gilpin. Gilpin collapsed on a practice field and died at hospital three days later. Gilpin's parents have even gone as far as filing a civil suit against the PRP coaching staff. They released the following statement through their attorney:

We have relied on the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department and the Jefferson County Commonwealth Attorney's Office to determine whether the conduct of those responsible for Max's safety and wellbeing on August 20, 2008 violated criminal statutes. We are hopeful that the police Department's investigation will soon be made available to us. Five months after Max's death, the Jefferson County School Board and PPR (sic) High School still have not provided us with any information regarding their investigation of the events surrounding Max's death, claiming that the investigation is "confidential." But what we have learned about the coaches conduct at the football practice that led to max's collapse and death is inexcusable, as was the lack of urgency and the delay in seeking medical treatment after max collapsed and never regained consciousness. We intend to closely monitor the prosecution and expect anyone responsible for Max's death to be held accountable."

Jeff Gilpin, Michelle Crockett, and Aaron Crockett

Pending the outcome of the investigation, Coach Stinson has been reassigned to the county school system's central office and cannot be in a classroom to teach.If convicted, Stinson faces charges of up to five years in prison. None of Stinson's assistants were brought up on charges and the commonwealth's attorneys are asking Stinson turn himself in by Monday at 3 PM. The commonwealth will not hold Stinson in custody once he does surrender himself.

WDRB Fox-41's coverage is below...


Jason Riley and Antoinette Konz story from the Louisville Courier-Journal is in black...

Oh, JIT! Losing Streak Ends at 51...

((HT: AP))

New Jersey Institute of Technology went nearly two years without a win. No wonder junior center Dan Stonkus soaked up every moment Wednesday night. NJIT ended the longest losing streak in Division I at 51 games, getting a career-high 26 points from Jheryl Wilson ((pictured, thanks NJIT SID)) in a 61-51 victory over Bryant.

“It was obviously frustrating, but we honestly didn’t think too much of the streak,” said Stonkus, the only member of the program to endure all 51 losses. “We just kept trying to think about the next game and then the next one. It never came down to where we thought we’d never get one. This feels great.”

The Highlanders (1-18) won for the first time since February 19, 2007, when they defeated Longwood 78-74. It was NJIT’s first home win since February 8, 2007, against South Dakota State. The school is in its third season as a Division I program, and the Highlanders are 6-71 since making the step up from Division II. They went winless last season after posting a 5-24 record in 2006-07.

NJIT officials said the 51-game drought was the longest for a team playing an NCAA Division I schedule. But because NJIT is in its final reclassifying year and will not be a full member of Division I until 2009-10, its skid does not eclipse Sacramento State’s record of 34 consecutive losses from 1997-99.

The longest NCAA losing streak at any level—117 games—is also held by a New Jersey school. Division III Rutgers-Camden did not win a game from January 22, 1992, to January 9, 1997.

The victory over Bryant (3-16) gave first-year coach Jim Engles, a former Columbia assistant, his first win as a head coach.

“It’s a huge sense of relief,” said Engles, who joked that a friend told him he was “the highest-paid coach in the country per win right now.”

“I told the guys that they just had to keep working hard and good things would come. We deserve this. We deserve to win most of our games, because we work so hard every game. The kids never quit. I’m really happy for them,” he said.

Bryant also is in the process of reclassifying into Division I.

After Bryant went up 3-0, the Highlanders scored the next five points to take the lead for good. They led 31-15 at halftime, thanks to Wilson, a sophomore guard who scored 20 points in the first half.

The closest Bryant got was 48-41 with 3:18 left, but freshman guard Isiah Wilkerson, who had 14 points, nailed two free throws to push the lead back to 50-41 and scored his team’s next six points to seal it.

Gary Garris added 13 points and 10 rebounds for NJIT.
Pete Lambert had 21 points to pace Bryant.

No More Unbeatens...Wake Loses To Va Tech

You know you're in trouble when...
Here's the highlights from last night's game as given to us by our friends at WVIR-TV...
((HT: nbc29.com))


Oh, and J-Dub, you didn't really want to go undefeated for the whole season...
It would be a lot more painful later on in the season than getting it out of the way before tournament time...

It's Saska Man: Super Rider Fan

In honor of the CTV comedy series, "Corner Gas," taking their final bow this season after six successful runs and winning a tank-load of awards along the way...

Here's a clip from this season showing what life in the middle of nowhere can get you...
Brent is showing everyone around who really is the biggest Saskatchewan Roughriders fan...

Bandwagon jumper...

The Green Riders' Matt Dominguez and Gene Majkowski have a cameo.
Matt's first-line alone is Gemini worthy... that's a Canadian Emmy to you and me, kids...
((HT: CFL))

Grecian Starbury...???

It appears the Greek club Olympiakos is looking to the colonies again to fill the void left by the injury to import Josh Childress... and it could be...

Stephon Marbury...???

Yes, before you finish your spit take, apparently the highers-up on the club have contacted New York Knicks President Donnie Walsh and asked what it would take to get Steph ((pictured, thanks/New York daily News)) out of his deal. Childress returned to the states to seek treatment for a sports hernia and is out 6 to 8 weeks.

The four-letter's Chris Sheridan writes the Greek club is looking to fill the roster vacancy in time for the Super 16 phase of Euroleague play which goes from late January to mid-March. Marbury's people know of the team's interest, but haven't pursued the discussions as of yet.

The Knicks are paying the oft-troubled point guard a little over US$20-million to do nothing at the moment. Steph has offered to pay the Knickerbockers one million to let him go somewhere he thinks he's needed ((like Boston, for example)).

Walsh actually thinks that Marbury has some trade value left in his moody sneaks...
Good luck with that one there, dude...

Pac Man Not Making It Rain Enough

I guess it's all about when the paycheck clears...

Adam Jones ((pictured, thanks newsday.com)), apparently, is being chased after by one of his cadre of attorneys for moneys not sent for services rendered- or something official sounding like that...

From DL Bennett's piece in the AJC...

"Manny Arora claims Jones stiffed him for fees “in excess of $10,000” on 18 different cases in which Arora represented either Jones’ family members or friends.

None of the cases mentioned in the lawsuit filed in Fulton State Court involve Jones directly.

The suit lists Deborah Jones, James Jones, Lewis Kueffor and Fleming Daniels as the defendants Arora assisted. The charges against them vary from speeding to kidnapping, simple battery and, in the case of Daniels, murder."

Neither side has come public on this case, yet. But a word to Adam- Manny is not a guy to be screwed with. He holds a nuclear engineering degree from Georgia Tech. He's a Major in the Air Force reserves. And he can, probably, kick your ass in an alley if provoked. He added the "sports agent" title to his dossier recently for Jones.

Here's what he told "Business to Business" Magazine at the time:
"He's an athlete who has a good side that nobody sees," Arora says. "When you spend enough time with these athletes, you see their human side. Pacman doesn't have all those [bad influences] around him anymore. He just has me – one voice. And that will make all the difference."

Those of us here at OSG HQ think that the "Arora" in Arora and LaScala has seen enough of Adam Jones to last him a lifetime. Jones, obviously, didn't listen to Arora's 5-Minute Rule.

Your Weekly Lacrosse Fight

Figured we'd show this to you since it's fighting following a tremendous blind-side hit from the NLL
This is the Boston Blazers and New York Titans... Mitch Belisle laying out Jarrett Park...
Then, off the line change, Paul Dawson and Rory Smith take care of bid-ness...
And, no, there isn't any audio...
((HT: NLL/the youtube/Inside Lacrosse TV))

The Fish Are Off The Market

The Miami Dolphins have a new majority owner and he paid market price at the fish market.

New York real estate billionaire Stephen Ross became majority owner of the Miami Dolphins on Tuesday, completing his purchase of 95 percent of the franchise for $1 billion, with Wayne Huizenga retaining a 5 percent interest. That's right, $1 BILLION, that's some high quality fish.

What's interesting in now Bill Parcells can leave so he so choose. The sale to Ross triggers and clause in Parcells' contract allowing the Tuna to swim away from the Dolphins and still receive the 9-12 million dollars remaining on his 4 year contract. Parcells did commit to another year after the Dolphins exited the playoffs in the wild card round.

Ross wants Parcells to stay.

"I want to assure Dolphin fans that I share Wayne's same passion to win and will do everything I can to support Bill Parcells in his leadership of football operations," Ross said in a statement.

It remains to be seen if Ross will beg or bark like a dog to keep Parcells. Only if the check bounces. Really, how do you write a $1 billion dollar check?

Monday Night Tackle Football Update

While the St. Louis Rams introduced Steve Spagnuolo ((pictured, thanks stltoday.com)) as their new head coach, the word "team" was implored a few thousand times during his press conference.

"I can tell you this," Spagnuolo said. "I was very blessed and humbled that I was able to talk to various teams throughout this process. What I was looking for in terms of a final decision was people. How it would be working with the people? It was a gut (feeling). I knew inside this was the right thing to do."

The rest of Jim Thomas' article from the Post-Dispatch is in black...

While on Long Island...
The New York Jets introduced Rex Ryan as their new head football coach.
The now-former Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator takes over for Eric Mangini who takes over for Romeo Crennel who takes over for no one as of this posting.

Ryan, the son of former NFL coach Buddy Ryan, will be formally introduced at a news conference Wednesday at the Jets' facility in Florham Park, New Jersey.

"It's been a dream of mine to become a head coach in the NFL," Ryan said in a statement. "Coming here to the New York Jets, where my father once coached and was part of the Super Bowl III staff, is fantastic. I look around at the facilities and the people they have in place and see a first-class organization. I'm just proud to be part of it."

The Jets announced the hiring, but released no other details. The contract is for four years, a person with knowledge of the deal. The person spoke on condition of anonymity earlier Monday because the deal had not yet been announced.

The deal was finalized Monday afternoon after Johnson and general manager Mike Tannenbaum flew down to Baltimore in the morning to iron out the details, Jets spokesman Bruce Speight said.

"There is no doubt in my mind that Rex has the expertise and instincts to build on the foundation that we have in place and take this franchise to the ranks of the NFL's elite," Johnson said.

Ryan takes over a team that started 8-3, but missed the playoffs with quarterback Brett Favre after losing four of its last five games.

"I'm very much looking forward to meeting Coach Ryan," wide receiver Chansi Stuckey said in an e-mail to the Associated Press. "His reputation precedes him by the success that Baltimore has had, and I'm very excited to get started."

The Ravens' defensive coordinator the last four seasons is the twin brother of Cleveland defensive coordinator Rob Ryan. His Baltimore defense helped the Ravens to the AFC championship game and has been ranked in the top six in total yardage allowed the last four seasons under Ryan, including second overall this season while leading the NFL with 34 takeaways.

"I think it's a gain for them and a loss for us, but it's well-deserved," Ravens linebacker Bart Scott said. "It was a long time coming."

Pardon us here at OSG HQ if we reserve judgment as long as "4" is on an active roster...

Remembering The 1947 NFL Champion Cardinals

When Arizona Cardinals owner Bill Bidwill held up the George Halas trophy after his team won the NFC Championship, it was the first time in 61 years that the Cardinal franchise (Chicago, St. Louis, Arizona) had hauled home some hardware.

For years this dysfunctional franchise had been an embarrassment what little fan base they had. Now the Arizona Cardinals have become, dare I say, lovable. Almost in a Chicago Cub sort of way. (Cub fans, your franchise has cornered the market on heartbreak and championship droughts. Don't worry, the Cardinals haven't overtaken you in that regard.)

With that said, the Cardinals have the longest dry spell without an NFL Championship. It's been 61 years when the then Chicago Cardinals defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 28-21 for the NFL title.

The 1947 NFL Championship Game was played December 28 on a bitter cold day at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Over 30,000 fans attended

That Cardinal team featured the "Million Dollar Backfield" of Paul Christman at quarterback, Charlie Trippi and Elmer Angsman at tailback and Pat Harder at fullback. That foursome racked up 282 yards with Angsman scoring twice on a pair of 70 yard touchdown runs and Trippi scoring on a 44 yard touchdown and taking a 75 yard punt the distance for a touchdown.

Violet Bidwill accepted the championship trophy. Her husband Charles had passed away before the season began. It was a team he put together but didn't live to see prevail.

After winning the NFL Championship there was no parade down Michigan Avenue and no rings for the players. Times were simpler then. There was a celebration at a South Side Chicago bar and then a formal dinner and dance thrown by the team. As for the rings, 50 years later the surviving members received a championship ring from the team.

Now 61 years and 3 cities later, the Cardinals are playing for an NFL championship, this time it's called the Super Bowl and it's number 43. A lucky number should the Cards prevail in Tampa and Bill Bidwill does what his mother did 61 years ago, accept an NFL championship trophy for the Cardinal franchise.

He's BAAACK! Claude Lemieux Is A Shark...

In more ways than one...

At the age of 43, one of the NHL's all-time pests is back with the San Jose Sharks. The Sharks have recalled forward Claude Lemieux and reassigned forwards Brad Staubitz and Tom Cavanagh to the Worcester Sharks of the American Hockey League.

Lemieux ((pictured in 2002 with Phoenix, thanks Craig Jones/Getty Images/NHLI)) has played in 23 games with Worcester, posting three goals and 11 points, 24 penalty minutes and a +2 rating. He was originally signed by San Jose as a free agent in December.

Montreal Canadiens' head coach Guy Carbonneau, who was a team mate of Lemieux's in the late 1980's was surprised to see Lemieux back in the NHL.

"You see Chris Chelios, who is 46 now, but when you consider the fact that Claude stopped playing for three or four years, it shows the character he has," Carbonneau told the Canadian Press. "I'm happy for him.

"I didn't think at first that it would be possible but now we see that nothing is impossible."

The Sharks also placed defenceman Brad Lukowich on injured reserve, retroactive to January 6.

Staubitz played in 15 games with San Jose this season, posting three points and 42 penalty minutes. In 23 games with Worcester, he has one assist and 58 penalty minutes. Cavanagh spent 12 games with San Jose, adding one assist and two penalty minutes. In 21 games with Worcester, he posted 18 points and 17 penalty minutes.

Just think what a Lemieux, Jeremy Roenick, Jody Shelley line could be worth...

But most of us remember him for this, don't we...???
Red Wings fans sure as hell do...
((HT: the youtube/FSN Detroit))