Monday Afternoon Meissnervations

It's Monday. Here's what's happening today....

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Today is March 14th, the 72nd day of 2011. There are 292 days left in the year.

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Knuble overtime goal lifts Capitals to eighth straight win.

Staal, Penguins rebound to cruise past Oilers.

Kings top Stars in wild finish.

Sabres move into seventh with win over Sens.

Coyotes move into fifth with win over Ducks.

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Today's Birthdays: Astronaut Frank Borman (Commander of Apollo 8, the first mission to fly around the Moon) is 83; actor Michael Caine (The Prestige, Batman Begins) is 78; astronaut Eugene Cernan (with Apollo 17 Cernan became "the last man on the moon" since he was the last to re-enter the Apollo Lunar Module) is 77; actor/comedian Billy Crystal is 63; Ben & Jerry's co-founder Jerry Greenfield is 60.

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Waterloo Black Hawks top Green Bay Gamblers.

Saints fall in shootout to Sioux City.

Force stumble, fall to Lincoln..

Phantoms increase sixth-place lead to six points, drop Waterloo.

Bucs shut out rival Omaha.

Lumberjacks squander late two-goal lead in loss to Team USA.

Time for a game changer by Terry Martin, father of former Storm forward Jesse Martin.

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It's National Potato Chip Day.

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U.S. National Sled Hockey Team Falls in Overtime, 3-2, to Norway
at 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships

NAGANO CITY, Japan -- Alex Salamone (Grand Island, N.Y.) had a goal and an assist, but the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team fell to Norway in overtime, 3-2, in its second game of the 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships.

Norway's Thomas Jacobsen scored his second goal of the night with just 55 seconds remaining in the extra frame to send Team USA to an 0-0-1-1 overall record.

"We showed tremendous resiliency in the third period tonight," said Ray Maluta, head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. "Unfortunately, we didn't take advantage of our chances in overtime, and Norway did."

Team USA took a 1-0 lead late in the first period. With the U.S. cycling the puck in the near corner, Salamone fed Taylor Lipsett (Richardson, Texas) at the left circle. Lipsett drove to the net and fired a shot over Norway goalie Roger Johansen for his first goal of the season.

Norway scored twice in the second period to take a 2-1 lead into the final frame. But the U.S. evened the score at 6:40 of the third period on the power play. After a shot by Nikko Landeros (Berthoud, Colo.) was blocked in the slot, Salamone picked up the loose puck and fired it past Johansen's glove.

Team USA had multiple scoring chances in the overtime period, but could not find the back of the net before Norway tallied the game-winner.

Team USA will play its final game of the tournament later tonight (March 13) at 10 p.m. EDT (March 14 at 11 a.m. local time) against host Japan. Postgame interviews, photos and a blog can be found here.

NOTES: Alex Salamone was named Team USA's Player of the Game ... The tournament format was changed to a round-robin after a large earthquake off the coast of Japan on March 11 postponed play the following day. Team USA is still expecting an on-time departure on Tuesday (March 15) ... Ray Beck (Stratford, N.J.), Bryan Genovese (Oceanside, N.Y.) and Justin Kreger (Waterford, Wis.), all members of the U.S. National Developmental Sled Hockey Team, will join Team USA for the 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships in the absence of Taylor Chace (Hampton Falls, N.H.), Jimmy Connelly (Galloway, N.J.) and Adam Page (Lancaster, N.Y.). For a complete 2010-11 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team roster, click here ... The 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships is taking place at The Big Hat, which played host to ice hockey games during the 1998 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

GAME SUMMARY

Scoring By Period

NOR 0 - 2 - 0 - 1 - 3
USA 1 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 2

First Period - Scoring: 1, USA, Lipsett (Salamone), 15:00. Penalties: USA, McKee (interference), 5:51; NOR, Jacobsen (roughing), 8:34.

Second Period - Scoring: 2, NOR, Jacobsen (Austevoll, Bjornstad), 7:31; 3, NOR, Svee (Pedersen), 12:58. Penalties: None.

Third Period - Scoring: 4, USA, Salamone (Landeros), 6:40 (pp). Penalties: NOR, Pederson (teeing), 5:19.

Overtime Period - Scoring: 5, NOR, Jacobsen (Svee), 4:05. Penalties: None.

Shots by Period 1 2 3 OT Total
NOR 3 8 2 1 14
USA 2 2 3 2 9

Goaltenders (SH/SV) 1 2 3 OT Total
NOR, Johansen 45:00 2-1 2-2 3-2 2-2 9-7
USA, Cash 44:32 3-3 8-6 2-2 1-0 14-11

Power Play: NOR 0-1; USA 1-2
Penalties: NOR 2-4; USA 1-2

Team USA 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships Schedule
March 11-14 • Nagano, Japan • Big Hat

Date Opponent Time (ET)/Result
Fri., March 11 Canada L, 2-1
Sun., March 13 Norway OTL, 3-2
Mon., March 14 Japan 12 a.m.

U.S. National Sled Hockey Team Tops Japan, 6-0
in Final Game of 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships

McKee Scores Three Times, Salamone Adds Four Assists in Win

NAGANO CITY, Japan -- Kevin McKee (Davenport, Iowa) scored three goals and Alex Salamone (Grand Island, N.Y.) had four assists as the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team topped Japan, 6-0, in its final game of the 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships.

Team USA finished the tournament in third place with a 1-0-1-1 (W-OTW-OTL-L) overall record. The 2010-11 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team will participate in its final International Paralympic Committee tournament this year when it travels to London, Ont., April 18-23 for the 2011 World Sledge Hockey Challenge.

"I'm proud of our guys for the way they finished this tournament," said Ray Maluta, head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. "It's been an interesting experience this week, to say the least. But we took some valuable lessons that should help us next month."

Team USA took a 1-0 lead five minutes into the game. With his team on the power play, McKee received a pass from Josh Pauls (South Plainfield, N.J.) and fired the puck high over Japan goalie Makoto Majima.

McKee gave the U.S. a two-goal advantage three minutes later when he skated to the slot, stopped and slid a shot low inside the far post.

Twelve minutes into the first period, Team USA extended its lead to 3-0. Rico Roman (Portland, Ore.) drove along the far boards and threw a centering pass to the crease, where Greg Shaw (Park City, Utah) tapped the puck over the goal line for his first tally of the tournament. Just 26 seconds later, Taylor Lipsett (Richardson, Texas) received a quick pass from Alex Salamone (Grand Island, N.Y.) at the left circle and lifted a shot past Majima to give the U.S. a 4-0 advantage after one.

McKee potted his third goal of the game and his second power-play tally four minutes into the second period. Then, Shaw connected on a wraparound attempt at 6:29 of the middle frame to complete the scoring.

U.S. goalie Justin Kreger (Waterford, Wis.) replaced Steve Cash (Overland, Mo.) in the third period, turning aside one shot in his Team USA debut. Cash, meanwhile, made seven saves in the victory.

NOTES: Kevin McKee was named Team USA's Player of the Game ... The tournament format was changed to a round-robin after a large earthquake off the coast of Japan on March 11 postponed play the following day. Team USA is still expecting an on-time departure tomorrow (March 15) ... Ray Beck (Stratford, N.J.), Bryan Genovese (Oceanside, N.Y.) and Justin Kreger (Waterford, Wis.), all members of the U.S. National Developmental Sled Hockey Team, will join Team USA for the 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships in the absence of Taylor Chace (Hampton Falls, N.H.), Jimmy Connelly (Galloway, N.J.) and Adam Page (Lancaster, N.Y.). For a complete 2010-11 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team roster, click here ... The 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships is taking place at The Big Hat, which played host to ice hockey games during the 1998 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

GAME SUMMARY

Scoring By Period

JPN 0 - 0 - 0 - 0
USA 4 - 2 - 0 - 6

First Period - Scoring: 1, USA, McKee (Pauls, Salamone), 5:09 (pp); 2, USA, McKee (Salamone, Lipsett), 8:24; 3, USA, Shaw (Roman, McCoy), 12:02; 4, USA, Lipsett (Salamone, Jones), 12:28. Penalties: JPN, Hirose (teeing), 4:35.

Second Period - Scoring: 5, USA, McKee (Salamone), 3:58 (pp); 6, USA, Shaw (Carron), 6:29. Penalties: JPN, Kumagai (teeing), 3:47; JPN, Annaka (hooking), 10:57.

Third Period - Scoring: None. Penalties: JPN, Shiba (teeing), 12:28.

Shots by Period 1 2 3 Total
JPN 5 2 1 8
USA 6 6 8 20

Goaltenders (SH/SV) 1 2 3 Total
JPN, Majima 15:00 6-2 -- -- 6-2
JPN, Fukushima 30:00 -- 6-4 8-8 14-12
USA, Cash 30:00 5-5 2-2 -- 7-7
USA, Kreger 15:00 -- -- 1-1 1-1

Power Play: JPN 0-0; USA 2-4
Penalties: JPN 4-8; USA 0-0

Team USA 2011 Japan Para Ice Sledge Hockey Championships Schedule
March 11-14 • Nagano, Japan • Big Hat

Date Opponent Time (ET)/Result
Fri., March 11 Canada L, 2-1
Sun., March 13 Norway L, 3-2 (ot)
Mon., March 14 Japan W, 6-0

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The iPad 2 is sold out with a 2-3 week backlog. One analyst projects opening weekend sales of around 500,000 of the new iPad.

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Riders evaluate E-camp prospects.

2011 CFL Schedule is here.

Donate to the Tony Proudfoot Fund.

Visit the leagues' official website, http://www.cfl.ca/.

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Jimmy practices writing letters.







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Battle: Los Angeles took the top spot at the box office over the weekend. Bradley Cooper, Matthew McConaughey and an alien are in theaters Friday.

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Today in Elvis History:

1955 - Elvis Presley was interviewed on Jimmy Dean's "Town & Country Jubliee" television show. Elvis did not perform.

1972 - Elvis Presley received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 14th annual Grammy Awards.

2004 - In Las Vegas, NV, the Elvis-A-Rama museum was burglarized. In less than five minutes thieves were able to steal $325,000 worth of Elvis Presley's jewelry and kitsch.

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Ohio State -- the nation's top team -- is No. 1 seed in the East region for the NCAA Men's Basketball tournament. Kansas is a No. 1 seed in the Southwest. Pittsburgh is the No. 1 seed in the Southeast. Duke is the No. 1 seed in the West.

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Today in Beatles History:

1964 - It was reported by "Billboard" that releases by the Beatles represented 60% of the current singles market.

1964 - The Beatles single "Please Please Me" hit #3 in the U.S.

1964 - The Beatles single "My Bonnie" hit #26 in the U.S.

1972 - The Beatles received the NARAS' Trustees Award at the 14th annual Grammy Awards.

2000 - The compilation album "At Home With The Groovebox" was released. The Sean Lennon song "Winged Elephants" was included.

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The Japanese tsunami video set a new record for CNN.com video watching, with more than 60 million worldwide viewers tuning into the dramatic footage on the website.

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Today in Sports History:

1960 - Wilt Chamberlain (Philadelphia Warriors) scored a record 53 points.

1962 - Wilt Chamberlain (Philadelphia Warriors) played every minute of a game for the 47th consecutive time. The streak ended during the Warriors' next game.

1967 - The AFL and the NFL held the first common draft. The two leagues merged in 1970. The first player chosen was Bubba Smith, a defensive lineman from Michigan State.

1972 - The Cincinnati Royals of the National Basketball Association announced that the team's franchise would be moved to Kansas City, Missouri at the end of the season.

1992 - Stacey Augmon (Atlanta Hawks) scored the 6,000,000th point in NBA history.

2005 - Major League Baseball gave a congressional committee about 400 pages of documents related to drug testing. It was also reported that Bud Selig would be willing to testify in hearings planned for March 17.

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On Saturday in Burbank, California, a group of car lovers attempted the Guinness World Record for the World's Largest Hearse Parade. No final word yet on the total number of hearses.

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Coming Up:

Tonight --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Toronto Maple Leafs 7:00pm EDT

Tuesday --

Nothin' Doin'

Wednesday --

Nothin' Doin'

Thursday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Montreal Canadiens 7:30pm EDT

Friday --

Nothin' Doin'

Saturday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Ottawa Senators 7:00pm EDT

Sunday --

Nothin' Doin'

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That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by, see you tomorrow.