It's Wednesday

It's Wednesday. Here's what's happening.

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Today is December 19th, the 354th day of 2012. There are 12 days left in the year.

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Taylor pleased with last workouts before Europe trip.

Canadian Jr. team features strong group of Quebecers.

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

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Henry II became King of England on this date in 1154.

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Corvallis, OR. -- Today, The Oregonian, in conjunction with the Austin American-Statesman, starts a 10-part series comparing Oregon State and Texas ahead of the Dec. 29 Alamo Bowl in San Antonio (3:45 p.m., TV on ESPN).

Read the rest here.

Visit the Oregon State Athletics department official web site.

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On this date in 1732, Benjamin Franklin began publishing "Poor Richard's Almanac."

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Dunk: Austin ready to make his mark on Tiger-Town.

Tim Prinsen leaves Esks for position at U of A.

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

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On this date in 1777, General George Washington led his army of about 11,000 men to Valley Forge, PA, to camp for the winter.

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Tampa, FL. —Tampa Bay's postseason hopes have slipped away during a four-game losing streak that's also raised questions about whether Josh Freeman is the Buccaneers' quarterback of the future.

Read the rest here.

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Hawaii's independence was recognized by the U.S. on this date in 1842.

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I'll take one of those please.

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You're reading the Johnny Blog. Almost as much fun as checking the oil level in your car, isn't it?

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Today in Elvis History

1957 - At Graceland, Elvis Presley was notified informally of his draft into the U.S. Army. He picked up his draft notice in person the next day.

1962 - Priscilla Beaulieu saw Graceland for the first time.

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On this date in 1843, Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" was first published in England.

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Today in Beatles History:

1964 - The album "Beatles For Sale" hit #1 in the U.K.

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Corrugated paper was patented by Albert L. Jones on this date in 1871.

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Today in Sports History:

1887 -  Jake Kilrain and Jim Smith fought in a bare knuckles fight which lasted 106 rounds and 2 hours and 30 minutes. The fight was ruled a draw and was halted due to darkness.

1917 - The first regular season games of the new National Hockey League (NHL) were played. Five teams made up the league Toronto Arenas, Ottawa Senators, Quebec Bulldogs, the Montreal Canadiens and the Montreal Wanderers. Quebec did not actually begin operations until two years later. Dave Ritchie (Montreal Wanderers) scored the first goal in NHL history.

1959 - Penn State’s Nittany Lions beat Alabama, 7-0, in the first Liberty Bowl football game.

1964 - ABC used an overhead camera for the first time. The event was the Liberty Bowl.

1979 - ESPN televised its first NHL game. The teams were the Washington Capitals and the Hartford Whalers.

1984 - Wayne Gretzky, 23, of the Edmonton Oilers, became only the 18th player in the National Hockey League (NHL) to score more than 1,000 points. He did it in his 424th career game. The previous record was held by Guy Lafleur who did it in 720 games.

1984 - Scotty Bowman became the NHL's all time winningest coach with his 691st victory.

1985 - Jan Stenerud announced his retirement from the NFL. The football kicker held the record for the most career field goals with 373.

1985 - ABC Sports announced that it was severing ties with Howard Cosell and released ‘The Mouth’ from all TV commitments. Cosell continued on ABC Radio for another five years.

1986 - Michael Sergio was sentenced to 100 hours of community service and fined $500. Sergio, a Mets fan, had parachuted into Shea Stadium during Game 6 of the World Series.

1988 - The NCAA placed the Oklahoma Sooners football program on probation for violations.

1989 - Larry Bird (Boston Celtics) began a NBA free throw streak of 71 games.

1990 - Bo Jackson (Los Angeles Raiders) became the first athlete to be chosen for All Star Games in two sports.

1991 - Pitcher Steve Howe (New York Yankees) was arrested for cocaine possession.

1999 - Orlando Brown (Cleveland Browns) was ejected from a game for pushing referee Jeff Triplette to the ground. Triplette had accidentally hit Brown in the eye with a weighted penalty flag.

2003 - The baseball that was deflected by a fan in the stands during a Chicago Cubs game was sold for $106,600 at auction. The foul ball appeared to be headed for the glove of left fielder Moises Alou in Game 6 of the National League Championship series. The Florida Marlins ended up winning the game 8-3. The Cubs then lost Game 7.


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On this date in 1973, Johnny Carson started a fake toilet-paper scare on the "Tonight Show."

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Coming Up:

Tonight --

Nothin' Doin'

Thursday --

Nothin' Doin'

Friday --

Nothin' Doin'

Saturday --

Empire South Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors vs Florida Eels 5:15pm EST

EJHL South Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors vs Florida Eels 8:00pm EST

Sunday --

NFL Football -- Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs St. Louis Rams 1:00pm EST

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