• Players to Chevy: keep us along for the ride

  The Winnipeg Jets have sent their leader a message with their play of late and they don't want to be broken up and sold for parts. Points in four straight games including three wins and the Jets have climbed to within a breath of the playoffs. Not too long ago it looked like they were fading and prime for a yard sale but today the little picture is beginning to cloud the big picture where the Winnipeg Jets and their suddenly real playoff hopes are concerned.

  View Full Column | 02/22/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Cal Murphy 1932-2012: Hard-nosed and tough, with a heart of gold

  Lyle Bauer can still remember the first few days of Cal Murphy’s storied time in Winnipeg.  “I had previously played for Ray Jauch and then Cal came in and all hell broke loose,” said Bauer, from his Calgary home on Monday morning.

  View Full Column | 02/21/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Hard-nosed and tough, with a heart of gold

  Lyle Bauer can still remember the first few days of Cal Murphy's storied time in Winnipeg. "I had previously played for Ray Jauch and then Cal came in and all hell broke loose," said Bauer, from his Calgary home on Monday morning. "It didn't matter who you were or what you'd done, you had to prove yourself to Cal. A lot of people ended up leaving that team, getting traded or getting cut but it was Cal's way or the highway."

  View Full Column | 02/21/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• It is the winter of our content

  Maybe they get in and maybe they don't, but whatever happens in the next 22 games can't change the fact this has been one helluva ride. These Winnipeg Jets won't win the Stanley Cup. They're not that good.

  View Full Column | 02/18/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Time for Mack to take control

  Fleeing free agents, players popping off at the GM and a stadium that won't be ready for opening day. It's enough to leave a person with the impression the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a franchise in turmoil.

  View Full Column | 02/17/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Mack doesn't like taste of his own medicine

  Joe Mack is worried about losing Brendon LaBatte and he should be. It's a loss that could haunt the Bombers. The Bombers GM tipped his hand on Tuesday when he commented on the faltering negotiations between the club and the offensive lineman and subtly began to shift the blame to the player -- a sure sign he's feeling heat from his superiors, his coaching staff or his inner self for being unable to sign the pending free agent.

  View Full Column | 02/15/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Kane growing up in the NHL

  There's something different about Evander Kane these days that even he isn't quite ready to admit or share his thoughts on the subject with the rest of the world. There have been some tweaks in Kane's outward appearance, a repackaging, if you will, of the Winnipeg Jets leading goal scorer and public lightning rod.

  View Full Column | 02/14/2012 3:01 PM | 0

• Bombers would be smart to up the ante for LaBatte

  For a team that went to the Grey Cup last year and presumably wants to again this season, losing three starting offensive linemen should be worrisome. That's the situation the Winnipeg Blue Bombers could be facing Wednesday.

  View Full Column | 02/11/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Kane needs to avoid smoke, start creating fire on ice

  Evander Kane has made a lot of noise since arriving in Winnipeg. Some good and some bad. It's time for him to roar again now that he's back in action but there's no more room for the chatter that seems to follow his every off-ice move. No more low-end cash-for-tweet deals, no more unpaid bills gossip and no more bar fight rumours. Headlines? We got 'em. But Kane needs to force us to save them for on-ice exploits. Hat-tricks and game-winning goals, not TMZ trash.

  View Full Column | 02/8/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Hey Quebec, build it and NHL might come

  If and when Quebec City finds itself on the outside looking in following the NHL's next inevitable spin of the relocation wheel, they will have no one but themselves to blame. Once the clearcut favourite to land the Phoenix Coyotes when the NHL finally ends its interminable stay in Arizona, Quebec City's inability to act on a new building has let another player into the race.

  View Full Column | 02/7/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Manning irony not lost on Indy fans

  INDIANAPOLIS -- The people of Indianapolis will likely never see a Manning do great things wearing their colours again, but they can take solace that they were able to watch one win a Super Bowl on their field. Little brother Eli Manning took his brother's town for a ride Sunday night, driving his New York Giants to a 21-17 win over the New England Patriots at Lucas Oil Stadium. Peyton Manning sat high up away from the field and watched his brother pull off another fourth-quarter world championship win.

  View Full Column | 02/6/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Hoosiers throw a hootenanny

  INDIANAPOLIS -- It's over but for the game -- nearing the end of the biggest week on the North American sporting calendar -- as the hype and beer cans are swept out of downtown Indy to make way for the Giants and Patriots on centre stage. The city and citizens of Indianapolis have been the stars this week, putting on a down-home Super Bowl with lots of Hoosier hospitality.

  View Full Column | 02/5/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• This one promises to truly be Super

  INDIANAPOLIS -- All is set for this to be a Super Bowl classic, one that will be remembered for the actual game, not just the pricey ads that run between plays. Two all-time quarterbacks, two all-time coaches, injury intrigue and a rematch of two of the NFL's most fabled franchises.

  View Full Column | 02/4/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Tom, Eli give no quarter

  INDIANAPOLIS -- Tom Terrific against Opie the Assassin. It should be one of the best quarterback matchups in Super Bowl history -- and probably the greatest quarterback rematch in Super Bowl history. On Super Sunday Tom Brady and his New England Patriots will face Eli Manning and the New York Giants in what will be only the third QB rematch in the contest's history.

  View Full Column | 02/3/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Hitting rock-bottom

  INDIANAPOLIS -- Sean Salisbury made a mistake and then doubled down with a lie. When the cards were dealt his career was pushed across the felt and soon he was broke, divorced, unemployable and drifting deep into depression. Salisbury was a pro football championship quarterback and then a top flight broadcaster with ESPN. Fame, money and all the trappings of big time American success that were flushed down the toilet of life when he got a little into the bag and made a mistake with his cellphone.

  View Full Column | 02/2/2012 3:21 AM | 0

• Media Day madness no biggie for Brady

  INDIANAPOLIS -- It is safe to say Johnny Unitas and Otto Graham never faced the scene that awaited Tom Brady on Media Day at Super Bowl 46. Same goes for Bart Starr, Terry Bradshaw, Dan Marino and Joe Montana.

  View Full Column | 02/1/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Verdict is in: Jets, fans love Big Buff

  INDIANAPOLIS -- Before we even met him he was in trouble. Busted for boating while intoxicated and reportedly bloated beyond playing condition. Dustin Byfuglien did not make the best impression on fans of the new Winnipeg Jets. Since then, Byfuglien, whose lawyer will appear at a settlement conference on Thursday to either reach an agreement or set a trial date, has ingrained himself in the Jets organization and with Winnipeg hockey fans.

  View Full Column | 01/31/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• How about an all-star game at MTS Centre?

  OTTAWA -- The actual game might be a bit of a dud and the skills competition is beyond silly but the entire all-star weekend package with its mix of star power and hockey's newsmakers has its cachet and Winnipeg could and should have its crack at hosting. How Winnipeg would respond to an all-star game isn't really in question as the city has an impeccable record when it comes to hosting big events like world championships, Grey Cups and Briers. Winnipeg knows how to throw a party and make its guests feel like the centre of attention. An NHL All-Star Game in Winnipeg would go over like free rye at a social. We'd drink it all up and then ask for more.

  View Full Column | 01/30/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Doing a little pre-negs dance

  Ottawa -- Like a couple of gunfighters sizing each other up, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive directer Don Fehr are circling and getting closer and closer. On Saturday afternoon, they were actually in the same room, although not at the same time. Bettman addressed the media and, poof, just minutes after the commissioner slipped out of the Drawing Room at Ottawa's swank Chateau Laurier hotel, in walked Fehr.

  View Full Column | 01/29/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• The thrill is gone

  OTTAWA -- Gordie Howe walked through the media hotel lobby on Friday, still thinking enough of the NHL All-Star Game to make an appearance, even if today's most popular player doesn't see it that way. It's hard to imagine Howe standing up in front of reporters back in the day and telling them he was taking a pass on the all-star game. Players in Howe's era, to a fault, did what the league asked of them and that included promoting hockey.

  View Full Column | 01/28/2012 9:58 AM | 0

• 'That blond is unbelievable'

  GATINEAU, Que. -- From the Book of Matthew: "So the last will be first, and the first will be last." If that's the case, look for Logan Couture to have a whale of a game Sunday afternoon at the NHL's 2012 All-Star Game. Couture was taken last in the All-Star Game Fantasy Draft and while there might be a mild tinge of embarrassment attached to this, the fact Couture has 21 goals and 15 assists through 47 games with the hot-running San Jose Sharks removes any doubt he's one of hockey's best players.

  View Full Column | 01/27/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Punchless Jets need infusion of elite talent

  There will be no representative of the Winnipeg Jets at the NHL all-star game this weekend and while that's a result of injury, it is also indicative of the club's talent level today. The Jets have no elite level players in their lineup and it's unknown whether any of their current prospects will grow into that status.

  View Full Column | 01/25/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Kane entitled to rights as a citizen

  Just to be clear, there's no love lost between Evander Kane and myself. In fact, he's made it very apparent he doesn't have much use for me and my work. And while I think he's a helluva hockey player I also think he has a lot of growing up to do.

  View Full Column | 01/22/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Can't fault Hainsey for not being dumb

  There's been lots of talk about Jets defenceman Ron Hainsey and whether he's worth his salary cap hit of $4.5 million. That debate really begins with whether any hockey player is worth that kind of dough.

  View Full Column | 01/21/2012 1:00 AM | 0

• Bonds yield dividends

  Kris KING will tell anyone listening his favourite days in the NHL were spent in Winnipeg and the current group of Jets is coming around to the same conclusion. King was a captain and fan favourite with the Jets in the late '90s and had stints under the bright lights of both New York and Toronto but found his time in Winnipeg the best, citing a team togetherness that spread beyond the locker-room.

  View Full Column | 01/20/2012 1:00 AM | 0

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