It's Friday

It's Friday. Here's what's happening....

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Today is February 24th, the 55th day of 2012. There are 311 days left in the year. (This is a leap year.)

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Kings land Jeff Carter in deal with Jackets.

No contact, but Crosby joins Pens for practice.

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

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Today's Birthdays: Actor Abe Vigoda (Barney Miller, Fish) is 91; Rocker George Thorogood is 62; Actor Billy Zane (Titanic) is 46; Tennis player Lleyton Hewitt is 31.

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Winnipeg, MB. -- A furious rally by the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night was reminiscent of a similar surge that in recent weeks has vaulted the team back into the Eastern Conference playoff picture.

Only this time, the effort fell just short.

Teddy Purcell and Martin St. Louis scored a pair of goals 46 seconds apart in the game’s final minute to chip away at a four-goal deficit, but it proved too little, too late, as the Lightning fell 4-3 to the division-rival Winnipeg Jets at the MTS Centre, snapping the club’s three-game win streak.

Read the rest here.

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Texas Cowboy Poetry Week starts today.

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Stephen: Stamps focus on internal improvements.

Winnipeg acquires punter Eric Wilbur.

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

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If you're a fan of oldies music, bookmark this site: Goodguy radio.com. It'll be manned by on-air personalities from the former 910AM KISN, which ruled the Portland, Oregon airwaves in the 60s and 70s. Friend them via their Facebook page and read all about them right here. They're in test mode right now and they'll be up and running for real at 10pm EST tonight. Keep on KISN!

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Wanna play ball Daddy?

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According to E-Poll Market Research, Oprah Winfrey is the most influential celebrity around. While people might not be watching Oprah's network, they still care about what she thinks and does.

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Today in Elvis History

1957 - Elvis Presley recorded the song "Loving You." The song was released in June 1957 as a single with "(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear."

1962 - Elvis Presley's single for "Rock-A-Hula Baby" with the b-side "Can't Help Falling In Love" hit #1 in the U.K.

1968 - Elvis Presley's single for "Guitar Man" hit #43 in the U.S.

1992 - The U.S. Postal Service unveiled 2 versions of its proposed Elvis stamp for fans to vote on. The younger Elvis design won and was issued on January 8, 1993.

1998 - The Elvis Presley compilation album "A Touch of Platinum" was released.

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OSCAR TIME - The Academy Awards are Sunday night. The Best Picture nominees are:

_ The Artist
_ The Descendants
_ Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
_ The Help
_ Hugo
_ Midnight in Paris
_ Moneyball
_ The Tree of Life
_ War Horse

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Today in Beatles History:

1943 - George Harrison was born in Wavertree, Liverpool. In 1992, Harrison stated, "I only learned recently after all these years that the date and time of my own birth have always been off by one calendar day and about a half hour on the clock."

1964 - The Beatles appeared for the 3rd time on "The Ed Sullivan Show." They appeared via tape.

2002 - Paul McCartney dedicated an a cappella rendition of "Yesterday" to George Harrison during a tribute concert at Liverpool's Empire Theater.

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A new study shows that it's a horrible idea for most couples who have broken up to then get back together. [I wonder if Rihanna knows about this study.]

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Today in Sports History:

1932 - Malcolm Campbell set a Daytona speed record when he went 253.96 mph.

1937 - Lou Gehrig did a screen test for the role of Tarzan. Johnny Weissmuller eventually got the part.

1980 - Wayne Gretzky (Edmonton Oilers) became the first player in NHL history to score 100 points in a season before the age of 20.

1980 - In Lake Placid, NY, the U.S. hockey team defeated Finland 4-2 to win the gold medal at the Winter Olympic Games.

1982 - Wayne Gretzky (Edmonton Oilers) scored his 77th goal of the season to break the NHL record of 76 held by Phil Esposito. Gretzky ended up with 92 goals for the season and 212 points. He was the first player to finish a season with more than 200 points.

1987 - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, of the Los Angeles Lakers, got his first three-point shot in the NBA.

1993 - Steve Yzerman (Detroit Red Wings) scored his 1,000th career point.

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An Illinois office supply company (Paper Mate) says its national survey found 100 percent of respondents admitted to stealing pens from colleagues. The survey found 78 percent of respondents admitted to stealing pens by accident while 22 percent admitted to taking pens on purpose.

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Daytona Beach, FL. -- Three months off and a crew chief change haven't slowed Tony Stewart.

In the first of two Gatorade Duel 150-mile qualifying races Thursday at Daytona International Speedway, Stewart took the checkered flag under caution a half-lap after Danica Patrick -- the driver he hired for a 10-race Sprint Cup schedule -- took a vicious hit against the inside wall on the backstretch.

Escaping an attempted block from Roush Fenway Racing teammate Greg Biffle, Matt Kenseth took the lead on the final lap of the second Duel -- a caution-free race -- and held off Regan Smith for the win.

Read the rest here.

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Harry Potter author JK Rowling is releases a new book for adults. The title, release date and details about the novel were not announced. Her seventh and final Potter story came out in 2007.

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Coming up:

Tonight --

Nothin' Doin'

Nascar Nationwide Series -- Drive4COPD 300 at Daytona International Speedway 12:00pm EST

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Pittsburgh Penguins 1:00pm EST

Sunday --

Nascar Sprint Cup Series -- Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway 12:00pm EST

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at New Jersey Devils 1:00pm EST

Monday --

Nothin' Doin'

Tuesday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning vs Montreal Canadiens 7:30pm EST

Wednesday --

Nothin' Doin'

Thursday --

Nothin' Doin'

Friday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning vs New York Rangers 7:30pm EST

Saturday --

EJHL South Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors vs Palm Beach Hawks at Sunrise, Florida 1:30pm EST

Nascar Nationwide Series - Bashas' Supermarkets 400 at Phoenix International Raceway 4:00pm EST

Sunday --

Nascar Sprint Cup Series -- Subway Fresh Fit 500 at Phoenix International Raceway 2:30pm EST

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