Monday Afternoon Meissnervations

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

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Today is March 26th, the 86th day of 2012. There are 280 days left in the year.

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Toews continues to work through frustrating recovery.

Belfour honored in Chicago.

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

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Today's Birthdays: Actor Leonard Nimoy is 81; Rock Hall of Famer Diana Ross is 68; Actress Jennifer Grey (Dirty Dancing) is 52; Actress Keira Knightley is 27.

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Philadelphia, PA. -- The Tampa Bay Lightning are at the Philadelphia Flyers tonight on NBCSN.

Read the preview right here.

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National Cleaning Week starts today.

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U.S. National Sled Hockey Team Defeats Estonia, 2-1, in a Shootout
in 2012 IPC Sledge Hockey World Championship Opener

Team USA Outshoots Estonia, 21-6

HAMAR, Norway - Taylor Lipsett (Richardson, Texas) scored the only goal of the shootout to lift the U.S. National Sled Hockey team to a 2-1 victory over Estonia in its opening game of the International Paralympic Committee Sledge Hockey World Championship this afternoon at the Olympic Amphitheatre.

"We're happy to earn the shootout win, but I was disappointed we didn't set the pace today," said Jeff Sauer, head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. "Hopefully we learned our lesson and can take a step forward in our next game."

Despite outshooting Estonia, 13-4, Team USA trailed 1-0 at the end of two periods.

Nikko Landeros (Berthoud, Colo.) sprang free on a breakaway at 7:41 of the third period and found the back of the net to tie the game. Neither team was able to light the lamp again in regulation and the game went to overtime.

After a scoreless extra stanza, Lipsett scored the only goal of a three-round shootout to lift the U.S. to the win.

Jen Yung Lee (San Antonio, Texas) and Steve Cash (Overland, Mo.) combined to make five saves for Team USA in the win, while Valeri Falkenberg recorded 20 saves in the loss.

The U.S. National Sled Hockey Team will face the Czech Republic tomorrow (March 26) at 5:15 a.m. EDT. A full schedule and results are below.

NOTE: Nikko Landeros was named Team USA's Player of the Game ... For a complete 2011-12 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team roster, including bios, click here ... Live scoring of all games in the 2012 IPC Sledge Hockey World Championship can be found here ... Taylor Chace (Hampton Falls, N.H.) is serving as a captain for the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, while Taylor Lipsett is the team's alternate captain... Team USA is the defending champion of the event ... The U.S. National Sled Hockey Team has participated in two previous competitions this season. Team USA captured second place in the World Sled Hockey Challenge in Calgary, Alta., (Nov. 27-Dec. 3) and posted a 1-0-0-2 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record against Canada in an exhibition series in Williamsville, N.Y. (Feb. 23-25).

GAME SUMMARY

Scoring By Period

USA 0 - 0 - 1- 0- 1-- 2
EST 0 - 1 - 0- 0- 0-- 1

First Period - Scoring: None. Penalties: EST, Tiitsu (teeing), 2:42; USA, Landeros (interference), 4:59.

Second Period - Scoring: 1, EST, Kalm (unassisted), 5:41. Penalties: EST, Tiitsu (holding), 3:11; EST, Koppelmann (interference), 8:27.

Third Period - Scoring: 2, USA, Landeros (unassisted), 7:41. Penalties: EST, Piirioja (teeing), 2:06.

Overtime - Scoring: None. Penalties: None.

Shootout - EST, Eerma (no goal); USA, Salamone (no goal); EST, Liiv (no goal); USA, Landeros (no goal); EST, Kalm (no goal); USA, Lipsett (goal).

Shots by Period
1 2 3 OT SO Total
USA 6 7 4 3 1 21
EST 1 3 1 1 0 6

Goaltenders (SH/SV) 1 2 3 OT SO Total
USA, Lee, 45:00 1/1 3-2 1/1 -- -- 5/4
USA, Cash, 5:00 -- -- -- 1/1 0/0 1/1
EST, Falkenberg, 50:00 6/6 7/7 4/3 3/3 1/0 21/20

Power Play: USA 0-4; EST 0-1
Penalties: USA 1-2; EST 4-8

Team USA 2012 IPC Sledge Hockey World Championship Schedule
Hamar, Norway

Date Opponent Time (Local/EDT)
Sun., March 25 Estonia W, 2-1 (SO)
Mon., March 26 Czech Republic 11:15 a.m./5:15 a.m.
Wed., March 28 Japan 11:15 a.m./5:15 a.m.
Thur., March 29 Semifinals TBA
Sun., April 1 Bronze-Medal Game 12 p.m./6 a.m.
Gold-Medal Game 4 p.m./10 a.m.

U.S. National Sled Hockey Falls to Czech Republic, 2-1, in a Shootout
in 2012 IPC Sledge Hockey World Championship

Team USA Outshoots Czech Republic, 16-9

HAMAR, Norway - Despite outshooting the Czech Republic, 16-9, the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team fell, 2-1, in a shootout in its second preliminary-round game of the International Paralympic Committee Sledge Hockey World Championship this afternoon at the Olympic Amphitheatre. Team USA is now 0-1-1-0- (W-OTW-OTL-L) in the tournament.

"It was a great effort and our guys worked hard," said Jeff Sauer, head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. "We just came up short in finding the back of the net."

Daniel McCoy (Cheswick, Pa.) gave the U.S. a 1-0 lead at 2:48 of the first period when he fired a shot from the slot that beat the Czech Republic goaltender Michal Vapenka high. Josh Pauls (South Plainfield, N.J.) was credited with an assist on the play. With 46 seconds remaining in the opening stanza, the Czech Republic's Michal Geier tied the game.

Neither team was able to light the lamp in the second or third periods, which forced an overtime session. After a scoreless extra stanza, the Czech Republic scored on its first two shootout attempts and the U.S. was unable to convert on both of its attempts.

Steve Cash (Overland, Mo.) made seven saves for Team USA in the loss, while Vapenka recorded 15 saves for the Czech Republic.

The U.S. National Sled Hockey Team will play its final preliminary-round game against Japan on Wednesday (March 28) at 5:15 a.m. EDT. A full schedule and results are below.

NOTE: Alexi Salamone (Grand Island, N.Y.) was named Team USA's Player of the Game ... For a complete 2011-12 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team roster, including bios, click here ... Live scoring of all games in the 2012 IPC Sledge Hockey World Championship can be found here ... Taylor Chace (Hampton Falls, N.H.) is serving as a captain for the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, while Taylor Lipsett is the alternate captain ... Team USA is the defending champion of the event ... The U.S. National Sled Hockey Team has participated in two previous competitions this season. Team USA captured second place in the World Sled Hockey Challenge in Calgary, Alta., (Nov. 27-Dec. 3) and posted a 1-0-0-2 (W-OTW-OTL-L) record against Canada in an exhibition series in Williamsville, N.Y., (Feb. 23-25).

GAME SUMMARY

Scoring By Period

USA 1- 0- 0- 0- 0- 1
CZE 1- 0- 0- 0- 1- 2

First Period - Scoring: 1, USA, McCoy (Pauls), 2:48; 2, CZE, Geier (Hrbek), 14:14. Penalties: USA, Page (interference), 12:39; CZE, Berger (holding), 13:38.

Second Period - Scoring: None. Penalties: CZE, Habl (interference), 1:23; USA, Shaw (roughing), 10:31.

Third Period - Scoring: None. Penalties: None.

Overtime - Scoring: None. Penalties: None.

Shootout - CZE, Palat (goal); USA, Salamone (no goal); CZE, Berger (goal); USA, Landeros (no goal).

Shots by Period
1 2 3 OT SO Total
USA 6 4 4 2 0 16
CZE 2 4 2 0 1 9

Goaltenders (SH/SV) 1 2 3 OT SO Total
USA, Cash, 45:00 2/1 4/4 2/2 0/0 1/0 9/7
CZE, Vapenka, 45:00 6/6 7/7 4/4 2/2 0/0 16/15

Power Play: USA 0-2; CZE 0-2
Penalties: USA 2-4; CZE 2-4

Team USA 2012 IPC Sledge Hockey World Championship Schedule
Hamar, Norway

Date Opponent Time (Local/EDT)
Sun., March 25 Estonia W, 2-1 (SO)
Mon., March 26 Czech Republic L, 1-2 (SO)
Wed., March 28 Japan 11:15 a.m./5:15 a.m.
Thur., March 29 Semifinals TBA
Sun., April 1 Bronze-Medal Game 12 p.m./6 a.m.
Gold-Medal Game 4 p.m./10 a.m.

2012 USA Hockey National Championships Continue This Week

FASTHockey.com to Continue Live Streaming Coverage of Youth, Girls', Junior and Women's Championships Beginning Wednesday

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The 2012 USA Hockey National Championships continue this week, with tournaments being hosted in 11 cities across the country. In total, 28 champions will be crowned in the Youth, Girls', Junior and Women's categories.

Live video streaming of all 2012 USA Hockey National Championships will be provided by FASTHockey at USAHockey.FASTHockey.com.

Last week, USA Hockey national champions were crowned at the High School level, while the Tier III Junior American Division champions were crowned on March 12. For a full recap of those tournaments, click here.

For additional information on the 2012 USA Hockey National Championships, including schedules, standings and player statistics, click here.

Fans can also follow the action from each tournament on Twitter. In addition, fans are encouraged to post photos and stories about their USA Hockey National Championships experience to USA Hockey's Facebook page.

NOTES: The Adult National Championships, Junior Tier I and Tier II National Championships, Sled Tier I and Tier II National Championships and Women's National Championships will all take place beginning in April ... Games streamed on FASTHockey will be offered on a pay-per-view basis. FASTHockey uses a game-credit system, offering discounts to customers who watch multiple games. Users who want to watch one or more games must first sign up for a free account at USAHockey.FASTHockey.com. Users can then buy game credits - a single game ranges from $7.99 (when one game credit is purchased) to $5.99 (when 50 game credits are purchased). Game credits can be used to watch live games or on-demand archives and never expire. In addition, games will be available for purchase on DVD at USAHockey.FASTHockey.com

2012 USA Hockey
National Championships Upcoming Schedule
Date Classification Site
March 28 - April 1 Youth Tier I (All Divisions) Williamsville, N.Y.
March 28 - April 1 Youth Tier II 12 & Under Ashburn, Va.
March 28 - April 1 Youth Tier II 14 & Under Wayne, N.J.
March 28 - April 1 Youth Tier II 16 & Under Green Bay, Wis.
March 28 - April 1 Youth Tier II 18 & Under Lansing, Mich.
March 28 - April 1 Girls Tier I (All Divisions) Marlborough, Mass.
March 28 - April 1 Girls Tier II (All Divisions) Farmers Branch, Frisco, & McKinney, Texas
March 30 - April 1 Women's (Senior A, B, C) Marlborough, Mass.
March 30 - April 3 Junior Tier III (National Division) Rochester, Minn.
April 9 - May 14 Junior Tier I TBD
April 12-15 Adult 30 & Over, 40 & Over, 65 & Over Tampa, Fla.
April 13-15 Sled Hockey (All Divisions) Farmers Branch, Texas
April 19-22 Adult 50 & Over, 60 & Over Tampa, Fla.
April 26-29 Women's 30 & Over, 40 & Over, 50 & Over Ellenton/Tampa, Fla.
May 3-8 Junior Tier II Frisco, Texas

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A 150-foot fishing boat swept away from the Japanese tsunami has been spotted 150 miles off the coast of British Colombia.

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Barker ready to let Milanovich strut his stuff.

Stamps sign 2011 draft pick Matt Walter.

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

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The Final Four is set. Next weekend in New Orleans Kentucky will play Louisville and Ohio State will take on Kansas.

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Jimmy enjoys the shade.

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Now that the buzz over the third iPad has settled down, Kindle Fire owners can get excited over the next generation of their favorite device. A couple of sources say the next Kindle Fire will be out this year, with one saying Amazon might release two Kindle Fires in mid-2012: a refreshed 7-inch version and a larger, somewhat pricier 9-inch version. The latter model is expected to take on Apple's iPad directly whereas the former will address issues consumers had with the original model such as a lack of volume controls, a lack of an SD card slot and more.

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Today in Elvis History

1953 - Elvis Presley visited the Tennessee State Employment Security Office. The interviewer noted that Elvis was "rather flashily dressed 'playboy' type."

1956 - Elvis Presley was at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles to screen-test for producer Hal Wallis.

1960 - The TV special "Welcome Home Elvis" was recorded in Miami Beach, FL. The show was hosted by Frank Sinatra.

1962 - Elvis Presley reported to the studio to begin work on the "Girls! Girls! Girls!" soundtrack

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Today is Legal Assistants Day and Make Up Your Own Holiday Day .

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Today in Beatles History:

1964 - Pete Best (Beatles) appeared live on the TV show "I've Got a Secret."

1966 - The Beatles posed for the cover of "Yesterday...and Today."

1966 - The Beatles single "Nowhere Man" hit #3 in the U.S.

1966 - Peter & Gordon's single "Woman" hit #22 in the U.K. The song was written by Paul McCartney under the pseudonym Bernard Webb.

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Making history, The Hunger Games opened to an astounding $155 million at the domestic box office, the third-best debut of all time and the best for any film opening outside of summer. Hunger Games also had the biggest opening for a nonsequel.

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Today in Sports History:

1931 - Boston Bruins coach Art Ross became the first NHL coach to pull his goalie for an extra attacker. The Bruins lost to the Montreal Canadiens in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Semifinals.

1972 - The Los Angeles Lakers broke a National Basketball Association record by winning 69 of their 82 games.

1986 - Neal Broten (Minnesota North Stars) became the first U.S.-born player to score 100 points in a season.

1992 - In Indianapolis, heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson was found guilty of rape. He was sentenced to 6 years in prison. He only served three.

1995 - An opera based on the life of tennis player Martina Navratilova premiered at New York's Carnegie Hall.

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Director James Cameron took a solo journey Monday seven miles down to the bottom of the Mariana Trench. The Trench is 120 times larger than the Grand Canyon and more than a mile deeper than Mount Everest is tall.

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FONTANA, Calif. -- Tony Stewart made all the right moves Sunday at Auto Club Speedway, and the last one proved decisive in taking the three-time champion to Victory Lane in the rain-shortened Auto Club 400.

After raindrops slowed the race on Lap 124, Stewart, the race leader, faked a move toward pit road but stayed on the track and matched the pace car's speed of 65 mph, a far cry from the lightning-fast laps he ran under the green flag.

But that move -- staying out and running slow caution laps before NASCAR stopped the race on Lap 129 -- proved decisive for the defending Sprint Cup champion, who claimed his second victory of the season, his second at Fontana and the 46th of his career, tying him with Buck Baker for 14th on the career victory list.

Read the rest here.

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Well, the NCAA Final Four is all set. [And so is my final four: pizza, hot wings, chips, and Dr Pepper.]

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OPENING FRIDAY: Mirror Mirror (PG) and Wrath of the Titans (PG-13).

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St. Petersburg, FL. -- A day of reflection and new beginnings was capped by Helio Castroneves' celebration on Dan Wheldon Way.

After performing his famous fence climb in front of the Turn 10 grandstand to thank the spectators following his victory in the IZOD IndyCar Series' season-opening Honda Grand Prix of St. Petersburg, the Fort Lauderdale resident jumped on top of the concrete barrier and patted the street sign that was unveiled March 7 to honor the memory of the 2005 race winner and series champion.

Read the rest here.

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The Seattle Kingdome was imploded to make room for a new football stadium on this date in 2000.

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Coming up:

Tonight --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Philadelphia Flyers 7:30pm EDT

Tuesday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Boston Bruins 7:30pm EDT

Wednesday --

Nothin' Doin'

Thursday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at New Jersey Devils 7:00pm EDT

Friday --

Nothin' Doin'

Saturday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning vs Winnipeg Jets 7:00pm EDT

Sunday --

Nascar Sprint Cup Series -- Goody's Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway 12:30pm EDT

IZOD Indy Car Series -- Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park 2:00pm EDT

Monday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning vs Washington Capitals 7:00pm EDT

Tuesday --

Nothin' Doin'

Wednesday --

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

Thursday --

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

Friday --

MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays vs New York Yankees 3:10pm EDT (Regular season opener)

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at Arizona Diamondbacks 7:10pm EDT

Saturday --

NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Winnipeg Jets 7:00pm EDT (Final game of regular season)

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at Arizona Diamondbacks 4:05pm EDT

MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays vs New York Yankees 7:10pm EDT

Sunday --

MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays vs New York Yankees 1:40pm EDT

MLB -- San Francisco Giants at Arizona Diamondbacks 4:10pm EDT

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