It's Saturday

It's Saturday. Here's what's happening....

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Today is December 31st, the 365th day of 2011. This is the final day of the year.

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NHL announces new 3 P.M. ET start time for Molson Canadian 2012 NHL Alumni game on Dec. 31.

Preliminaries past, Rangers ready for Winter Classic.

'Life is good' as Flyers throughout history reunite.

Visit the official league website, http://www.nhl.com.

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Today is New Year's Eve.

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Tampa FL. -- The Tampa Bay Lightning host the Carolina Hurricanes this afternoon at 5:00pm EST.

Read the preview right here.

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Today is Make Up Your Mind Day.

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IOA Joins USA Hockey Family as Official Sponsor

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- USA Hockey announced today that Insurance Office of America (IOA) -- one of the largest commercial insurance brokers in America -- has signed on as an official sponsor of the organization.

"We're excited to welcome IOA to our growing list of sponsors," said Dave Ogrean, executive director of USA Hockey, "It's a relationship we look forward to continuing for a long time to come."

"We're delighted to partner with USA Hockey," said John Ritenour, IOA founder and chairman. "There's a lot to like about USA Hockey. IOA has a national presence in professional hockey and we believe that marketing partnerships help grow the game of hockey at all levels across the nation."

About USA Hockey: USA Hockey Inc., founded on October 29, 1937, and headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colo., provides the foundation for the sport of ice hockey in America; helps young people become leaders, sometimes even Olympic heroes; and connects the game at every level while promoting a lifelong love of the sport. With a membership of nearly 600,000 players, coaches, officials and volunteers that span all 50 states, USA Hockey is one of the nation's most prominennt National Governing Bodies. For more information, visit usahockey.com.

About IOA: IOA is a privately held, full-service insurance agency founded in 1988 and is one of the fastest-growing independent agencies in the U.S. It is Florida’s largest privately-held agency; 8th largest privately held agency by Insurance Journal-National. With 28 branch offices from California to Florida, IOA covers the nation. IOA’s Sports & Entertainment Practice Group has marketing partnerships with various sports & entertainment entities such as: the American Hockey League, various NHL, NFL, NBA, NASCAR franchises and most recently with Six Flags. For more information about Insurance Office of America , please call: John Ritenour, Chairman, 1-407-998-4101 or visit www.ioausa.com.

U.S. National Under-17 Team Tripped Up by Russia, 3-2,
in 2012 World Under-17 Challenge

Allen and Fasching Tally One Goal Each in Team USA Loss

WINDSOR, Ont. - Evan Allen (Sterling Heights, Mich.) and Hudson Fasching (Burnsville, Minn.) tallied one goal each, but the U.S. National Under-17 Team was tripped up by Russia, 3-2, at the 2012 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge here this afternoon at the WFCU Centre.

"Any loss is tough in a tournament like this," said Don Granato, head coach of the U.S. National Under-17 Team. "We had our chances against a tough Russian team and our focus now turns to Canada West, as every game is important to us."

A quick tally by Russia put the U.S. down by one goal 43 seconds into the first frame. After the goal, Team USA allowed just five shots on net for the rest of the period. The U.S. searched for the equalizer, firing 24 shot on Russian goaltender Nikita Serebryakov in the period. Serebryakov turned aside each shot he faced, however, and Team USA trailed Russia 1-0 heading into the first intermission.

Russia doubled its lead at 4:19 of the middle frame when a loose puck bounced over goaltender Hunter Miska's (North Branch, Minn.) stick while he was outside of the crease looking to make a pass. The puck trickled in front of the vacant net and was tapped in for the lone tally of the second period.

Team USA cut the lead in half on a quick wrist shot by Allen at 1:33 of the final stanza. Michael McCarron (Macomb, Mich.) and Scott Savage (San Clemente, Calif.) collected assists on the play. Russia responded with a goal on a two-on-one odd-man rush to regain its two-goal advantage at 5:42. Fasching made it a one-goal game when he jammed the puck into the goal at 9:32 of the third period with an assist credited to J.T. Compher (Northbrook, Ill.).

Down one score, Allen tore down the ice and clanked the puck of the post with just over five minutes remaining in the game. Still trailing by one, Team USA pulled Miska in favor of the extra attacker. The ensuing attack resulted in another hit post, this time by Anthony Louis (Winfield, Ill.), but the U.S. could not find the tying goal and fell to Russia, 3-2.

Miska stopped 19 shots in the loss for Team USA, while Serebryakov turned aside 51 of 53 shots in the victory for Russia.

The U.S. National Under-17 Team will continue tournament play against Canada West on Sunday (Jan. 1, 2012) at 7 p.m. EST. The game will be held at the Tecumseh Arena in Tecumseh, Ont. A full schedule is below.

NOTES: Hudson Fasching was named Team USA's Player of the Game ... The U.S. went 0-for-8 on the power play, while Russia went 0-for-4 with the man advantage ... Team USA recorded 53 shots on goal, while Russia had 22 ... For Team USA's full roster, click here ... The 2012 World Under-17 Challenge includes two pools of five teams. Pool A consists of teams from Canada Atlantic, Germany, Canada Quebec, Canada Ontario and Sweden. Pool B consists of teams from the Czech Republic, Canada Pacific, Russia, Canada West and the United States ... Exclusive videos will be posted on the USA Hockey YouTube channel under the World Under-17 Challenge playlist ... Follow @USAHockeyScores on Twitter for live scoring updates during the tournament. Scores will be designated with #U17CHAL ... All games during the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge will be available via live webcast at FASTHockey.com ... For additional coverage, visit USA Hockey's National Team Development Program Facebook page ... The U.S. National Under-17 and Under-18 Teams train with The Hockey IntelliGym, a revolutionary new software program released on October 1, 2010 that trains hockey sense. To learn more, visit USAHockeyIntelliGym.com.

GAME SUMMARY

Scoring By Period

USA 0 - 0 - 2 - 2
RUS 1 - 1 - 1 - 3

First Period - Scoring: 1, RUS, Tolchinski (Zadorov), 0:43. Penalties: RUS, Cherepanov (interference), 8:27; RUS, Vorobyov (tripping), 10:35; RUS, Zakarlyukin (hooking), 13:22; USA, Santini (cross-checking), 16:05.

Second Period - Scoring: 2, RUS, Fishchenko (unassisted), 4:19. Penalties: USA, Chatham (slashing), 11:18; RUS, Vorobyov, (roughing-after-whistle), 11:18; USA, Labanc (holding), 14:59; RUS, Serebryakov, (tripping), 15:29; RUS, Barbashev (tripping), 18:09; USA, Thompson (tripping), 18:41.

Third Period - Scoring: 3, USA, Allen (McCarron, Savage), 1:33; 4, RUS, Dikushin (Lysenko), 5:42; 5, USA, Fasching (Compher), 9:32. Penalties: RUS, Lysenko (kneeing), 3:29; RUS, Trubkin (slashing), 14:38; USA, Butcher (tripping), 15:45; RUS, Zadorov (tripping), 18:07.

Shots by Period
1 2 3 Total
USA 24 11 18 53
RUS 6 9 7 22

Goaltenders (SH/SV) 1 2 3 Total
USA, Miska, 59:19 6/5 8/7 7/6 22/19
RUS, Serebryakov, 60:00 24/24 11/11 18/16 53/51

Power Play: USA 0-8; RUS 0-4
Penalties: USA 5-10; RUS 9-18

Team USA 2012 World Under-17 Challenge Schedule
Dec. 28, 2011 - Jan. 4, 2012 • Windsor, Ont.

Date Opponent Location
Time (ET)/Result

Wed., Dec. 28* Canada Atlantic (exh.) Vollmer Culture & Rec Complex W, 6-1
Thurs., Dec 29 Czech Republic Vollmer Culture & Rec Complex W, 5-1
Fri., Dec. 30 Russia WFCU Centre L, 2-3
Sun., Jan. 1 Canada West Tecumseh Arena 7:00 p.m.
Mon., Jan. 2 Canada Pacific Tecumseh Arena 7:00 p.m.
Tues., Jan. 3 Semi-Final WFCU Centre 2:00 p.m./7:00 p.m.
Weds., Jan. 4 Bronze Medal Game WFCU Centre 2:00 p.m.
Weds., Jan. 4 Gold Medal Game WFCU Centre 7:00 p.m.
*Pre-tournament game in LaSalle, Ontario.

U.S. National Junior Team Drops 5-2 Decision to the Czech Republic
at IIHF World Junior Championship

Team USA Scores Twice on Power Play in Loss

EDMONTON, Alta. -- The U.S. National Junior Team scored twice on the power play and fired 54 total shots on net, but eventually fell to the Czech Republic, 5-2, this afternoon at Rexall Place.

With the loss, Team USA falls to 1-0-0-2 (W-OTW-OTL-L) overall at the International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship. The U.S. will face Canada tomorrow (Dec. 31) in its final preliminary-round game of the tournament. The game, to be televised on NHL Network U.S., will start at 8:00 p.m. EST.

"I'm extremely disappointed, but am still focused on tomorrow's game," said Dean Blais, head coach of the U.S. National Junior Team. "Our players have a lot of pride, and we will be ready to go tomorrow."

Team USA took a 1-0 lead at 5:14 of the first period on the power play. J.T. Miller (East Palestine, Ohio/Plymouth Whalers) fed a pass from the left circle across the slot to T.J. Tynan (Orland Park, Ill./Univ. of Notre Dame), who tapped the puck into a wide open net for his first goal of the tournament. But the Czech Republic scored to even the score at 1-1 after one period.

Team USA regained a one-goal lead midway through the second when Bill Arnold (Needham, Mass./Boston College) fired home a rebound off of a shot by Jason Zucker (Las Vegas, Nev./Univ. of Denver). The Czech Republic responded once again, however, sending the game into the third period tied, 2-2.

Midway through the third period, Josh Archibald (Brainerd, Minn./Univ. of Nebraska Omaha) earned a penalty shot when he was tripped while driving to the net. Czech Republic goaltender Petr Mrazek made a save on Archibald's penalty shot attempt, however, keeping the game tied, 2-2.

The Czech Republic went on to score three times, including an empty-net tally late, to secure the victory. Jack Campbell (Port Huron, Mich./Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds) made 24 saves, while Mrazek stopped 52 shots in the win.

NOTES: Bill Arnold was named Team USA's Player of the Game ... Team USA finished 2-for-7 on the power play, while the Czech Republic was 0-for-3 with the man advantage ... In other tournament action later today, Sweden will take on Slovakia, Finland will face off against Denmark, and Switzerland will play Latvia. Should Finland defeat Denmark in regulation, the U.S. would finish in fourth place in Group B regardless of tomorrow's outcome against Canada ... Dean Blais, head men's ice hockey coach at the University of Nebraska Omaha, is serving as head coach of the 2012 U.S. National Junior Team. He is assisted by Scott Sandelin, head men's ice hockey coach at the University of Minnesota Duluth; Tom Ward, head ice hockey coach of the Shattuck-St. Mary's School's boys' prep team; and Joe Exter, assistant men's ice hockey coach at Ohio State University ... Jim Johannson, USA Hockey's assistant executive director of hockey operations, is serving as the general manager of Team USA for the third consecutive year. Tim Taylor (Guilford, Conn.), former U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team head coach and longtime Yale University men's ice hockey team head coach, is also serving his third straight year as Team USA's director of player personnel ... The U.S. National Junior Team blog will provide daily updates with game recaps, photos and multimedia content. The blog can be found here ... Use the hashtag #USAWJC to join the conversation on Twitter.

GAME SUMMARY

Scoring By Period

CZE 1 - 1 - 3 - 5
USA 1 - 1 - 0 - 2

First Period - Scoring: 1, USA, Tynan (Miller, Arnold), 5:14 (pp), 2, CZE, Filippi (Pribyl, Riha), 12:05. Penalties: CZE, Straka (boarding, game misconduct), 2:21; CZE, Hyka (hooking), 9:08; CZE, Zamorsky (high-sticking, double minor), 18:02.

Second Period - Scoring: 3, USA, Arnold (Zucker, Merrill), 11:50 (pp); 4, CZE, Hertl (unassisted), 14:51. Penalties: USA, Clendening (boarding), 6:07; CZE, Team (too-many-men), 10:50; CZE, Riha (high-sticking), 15:35; USA, Merrill (tripping), 16:26; CZE, Hrbas (interference), 18:11.

Third Period - Scoring: 5, CZE, Holik (Sekac, Krejci), 12:26; 6, CZE, Filippi (Nosek), 17:19; 7, CZE, Holik (unassisted), 18:34 (en). Penalties: USA, Rau (slashing), 4:56; CZE, Riha (tripping, penalty shot), 11:27.

Shots by Period
1 2 3
Total
CZE 6 13 10 29
USA 18 15 21 54

Goaltenders (SH/SV) 1 2 3 Total
CZE, Mrazek 60:00 18-17 15-14 21-21 54-52
USA, Campbell 59:16 6-5 13-12 10-8 29-25

Power Play: CZE 0-3; USA 2-7
Penalties: CZE 9-37; USA 3-6
Officials: Referees - Brent Reiber (SUI), Jyri Petteri Ronn (FIN); Linesmen: Kiel Murchison (CAN), Dmitry Sivov (RUS)
Attendance: 14,733

Team USA 2012 IIHF World Junior Championship Schedule
Dec. 26 - Jan. 5 • Alberta, Canada

Date Opponent Location*
Time (MST)/Result

Tues., Dec. 20 Russia^ Red Deer L, 3-6
Wed., Dec. 21 Switzerland^ Camrose W, 7-3
Fri., Dec. 23 Slovakia^ Three Hills W, 5-0
Mon., Dec. 26 Denmark Edmonton W, 11-3
Wed., Dec. 28 Finland Edmonton L, 1-4
Fri., Dec. 30 Czech Republic Edmonton L, 2-5
Sat., Dec. 31 Canada Edmonton 6 p.m.
Mon., Jan. 2 Quarterfinals Calgary TBD
Tues., Jan. 3 Semifinals Calgary TBD
Thurs., Jan. 5 Bronze-Medal Game Calgary 1:30 p.m.
Gold-Medal Game Calgary 6 p.m.
*All games in Edmonton will be played at Rexall Place. All games in Calgary will be played at Scotiabank Saddledome.
^Pre-tournament game

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This is No Interruptions Day.

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Blue Bombers re-sign Logan.

Take a tour of Investors Group Field.

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

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The Universal Hour of Peace is today..

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The 2011 NFL season is underway. Here's the week sixteen results:

Week 16

Thursday, December 22nd

At Indianapolis 19, Houston 16

Saturday, December 24th

Oakland 16 at Kansas City 13
At Tennessee 23, Jacksonville 17
At New England 27, Miami 24
At Cincinnati 23, Arizona 16
At Buffalo 40, Denver 14
At Pittsburgh 27, St. Louis 0
NY Giants 29 at NY Jets 14
Minnesota 33 at Washington 26
At Carolina 48, Tampa Bay 14
At Baltimore 20, Cleveland 14
At Detroit 38, San Diego 10
Philadelphia 20 at Dallas 7
San Francisco 19 at Seattle 17

Sunday, December 25th

At Green Bay 35, Chicago 21

Monday, December 26th

At New Orleans 45, Atlanta 16

Week 17 (Final week of regular season)

All times Eastern

Sunday, January 1st

Carolina at New Orleans 1:00 PM
Buffalo at New England 1:00 PM
Chicago at Minnesota 1:00 PM
NY Jets at Miami 1:00 PM
San Francisco at St. Louis 1:00 PM
Detroit at Green Bay 1:00 PM
Tampa Bay at Atlanta 1:00 PM
Baltimore at Cincinnati 1:00 PM
Pittsburgh at Cleveland 1:00 PM
Dallas at NY Giants 1:00 PM
Washington at Philadelphia 1:00 PM
Indianapolis at Jacksonville 1:00 PM
Tennessee at Houston 1:00 PM
Seattle at Arizona 4:15 PM
Kansas City at Denver 4:15 PM
San Diego at Oakland 4:15 PM

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World zPeace Meditation Day is today.

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So, just how do I rock out on this thing?

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The window tax was imposed in Britain on this date in 1695, which resulted in many windows being bricked up.

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Today in Elvis History:

1955 - Elvis Presley's single "I Forgot To Remember" hit #1 on the U.S. Country chart.

1960 - The album "Elvis' Christmas Album" re-charted at #33 in the U.S.

1966 - Elvis Presley's song "If Every Day Was Christmas" hit #9 in the U.K.

1968 - In the U.K., the TV special "Elvis" aired on BBC2-TV.

1975 - Elvis Presley grossed $816,000 for a single performance in Pontiac, MI.

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The State of Alabama enacted the first dental legislation in the U.S. on this date in 1841.

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Today in Beatles History:

1970 -Paul McCartney filed a suit to dissolve the Beatles.

1971 - The Beatles broke up.

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On this date in 1879, Thomas Edison gave his first public demonstration of incandescent lighting to an audience in Menlo Park, New Jersey.

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Today in Sports History:

1967 - The Green Bay Packers won the National Football League championship game by defeating the Dallas Cowboys 21-17. The game is known as the Ice Bowl since it was played with a wind chill of 40 degrees below zero.

1971 - The NHL announced that it had awarded a franchise to the New York Islanders.

1972 - Roberto Clemente (Pittsburgh Pirates) was killed in a plane crash near Puerto Rico while flying relief supplies to Nicaraguan earthquake victims.

1984 - ESPN debuted in Hawaii, making it available in all 50 states.

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On this date in 1929, Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians played "Auld Lang Syne" as a New Year's Eve song for the first time.

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Coming up:

Tonight --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning vs Carolina Hurricanes 5:00pm EST

Sunday --

NFL Football -- Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Atlanta Falcons 1:00pm EST (Final game of regular season)

Monday --

Nothin' Doin'

Tuesday --

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

Wednesday --

Nothin' Doin'

Thursday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Ottawa Senators 7:30pm EST

Friday --

Nothin' Doin'

Saturday --

Junior Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors Empire South and EJHL South teams at EJHL Showcase at N.E.S.C., Marlborough, Massachusetts.

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Montreal Canadiens 7:00pm EST

Sunday --

Junior Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors Empire South and EJHL South teams at EJHL Showcase at N.E.S.C., Marlborough, Massachusetts.

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That's it for today. Thanks for stopping by, I hope that you'll do so tomorrow too. Thanks again!