It's Wednesday

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

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Today is January 2nd, the 2nd day of 2012. There are 363 days left in the year.

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NHL, Union continue negotiations; to meet Wednesday.

Sanderson's autobiography details highs and lows.

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

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Today's Birthdays: Former TV evangelist Jim Bakker is 73; TV host Jack Hanna is 66; Gabrielle Carteris (Beverly Hills, 90210) is 52; Cuba Gooding Jr. (Jerry Maguire, As Good As It Gets) is 45; Kate Bosworth (Superman Returns, Blue Crush) is 30.

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CCM 'Pick Six' Sweepstakes Highlights Hockey Weekend Across America Three Winners To Select From Collection of 12 CCM Products COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The sixth annual Hockey Weekend Across America, presented by CCM Hockey, will include the Pick Six Sweepstakes it was announced today by USA Hockey. While Hockey Weekend Across America is set for Feb. 15-17, 2013, fans may begin entering Hockey Weekend Across America's Pick Six Sweepstakes on Jan 1, 2013, at HockeyWeekendAcrossAmerica.com. Three grand prize winners will have the opportunity to select their choice of six of 12 CCM products, including a hockey stick, hockey gloves, helmet/facemask combo, hockey pants, shoulder pads, shin pads, hockey bag, elbow pads, winter jacket, mini-hockey set, sports bag or golf bag. In addition to the grand prize winners, three "Pick Six" daily prize winners (one per day of Hockey Weekend Across America) will receive a CCM "Strap a Rocket to the Puck" hockey stick and 30 consolation prizes of a USA Hockey custom hat will be awarded (10 per day of Hockey Weekend Across America). For full information surrounding the weekend, visit HockeyWeekendAcrossAmerica.com. Associations and teams celebrating Hockey Weekend Across America are encouraged to submit their event plans to USA Hockey on this site. Each of the three days of Hockey Weekend Across America, presented by CCM, has a theme. "Wear Your Favorite Jersey Day" on Friday, Feb. 15, is the day for fans to show off their hockey pride by wearing their favorite hockey jersey. USA Hockey's Facebook and Twitter pages will accept photos from families, friends, and colleagues in search of the most passionate hockey fans. On Saturday, Feb. 16, hundreds of rinks nationwide will host "Try Hockey for Free" clinics, allowing thousands of children to experience hockey for the first time. Total Hockey is a sponsor of USA Hockey's Try Hockey for Free Days. Arenas interested in hosting an event and players wishing to take part should visitHockeyWeekendAcrossAmerica.com for more details. To cap off the weekend, "Celebrate Local Hockey Heroes" day on Sunday, Feb. 17, encourages hockey programs nationwide to develop ways to honor their local hockey heroes. USA Hockey invites all to post pictures and stories on its Facebook and Twitter pages. The day also includes NBC's Hockey Day in America coverage, which includes an NHL doubleheader on NBC and coverage of a third NHL game that evening on NBC Sports Network. Along with its game coverage, NBC will also produce content in and around the games showcasing hockey at all levels in the United States. Hockey Weekend Across America was created by USA Hockey in 2008 to engage the hockey community in celebrating the sport of hockey at all levels and exposing the sport to new audiences. U.S. Women’s National U18 Team Defeats Sweden, 8-0, at IIHF U18 Women’s World Championship Four-goal flurry in the first period powers Team USA victory HEINOLA, Finland  - Fueled by goals from seven different players, the U.S. Women’s National Under-18 Team defeated Sweden, 8-0, today in the team’s final preliminary game of the 2013 International Ice Hockey Federation U18 Women’s World Championship.  Katherine Schipper (Brooklyn Park, Minnesota) scored twice and added an assist while Team USA goaltender Sidney Peters (Geneva, Ill.) stopped 10 shots in the squad’s third straight shutout victory in the tournament.  “Our puck movement was phenomenal today,” said Jeff Kampersal, head coach of Team USA. “The defense did a good job of regrouping in the neutral zone the forwards hit their spots. It looked really good. I thought our kids did a great job of moving the puck all the way around.” The first 10 minutes featured action on both ends of the ice before the U.S. scored four goals in the span of 1:25 to take command. Cara Piazza (Darien, Ill.) started Team USA’s goal spree by finishing off a rebound from Danielle Cameranesi’s (Plymouth, Minn.) shot after Cameranesi stole the puck from a Swedish defenseman as she tried to clear the zone. Eighteen seconds later, Grace Zarzecki (Chicago, Ill.) buried a backhand shot for the second U.S. goal of the game.  Less than a minute later Megan Wolfe (Eagan, Minn.) scored to make it 3-0.  Jennifer Ryan (Victor, N.Y.) capped off the offensive burst 16 seconds after Wolfe’s goal with a blast from the point that knocked Swedish goaltender Maria Omberg’s water bottle off the net. Schipper’s wrist shot found the top right corner of the net 59 seconds into the second period to give the U.S. a 5-0 advantage. Taylar Cianfarano (Oswego N.Y) then picked up her second point of the game with a spectacular effort from the right side of the ice in which she faked a pass across the goal crease, drawing Omberg out of position, then buried the puck just inside the right post. Schipper notched her second goal of the game at 2:15 of the third period by capitalizing on a rebound from Amy Menke’s (Shakopee, Minn.) shot. It was the second time the two players combined for a goal on their line’s first shift of a period, having also done so in the second period.  Soon after, Sweden nearly spoiled the U.S. shutout with a breakaway chance, but Peters came up with the save.  Cameranesi capped off scoring for Team USA with a power-play tally midway through the period. With its three preliminary round victories, the U.S. receives a bye into Friday’s (Jan. 3) semifinal round and will learn tomorrow who its next opponent will be. NOTES: Taylar Cianfarano, who was 11-for-14 in the face-off circle and recorded two points (1-1—2), was named the U.S. Player of the Game … Team USA is the only squad in the tournament that has yet to concede a goal … Final stats from today’s game can be viewed here. Game Summary  Scoring by Period 1 2 3 F SWE 0 0 0 0 USA 4 2 2 8 First Period - Scoring: 1, USA, Piazza (Cameranesi), 10:26; 2, USA, Zarzecki (Wellhausen), 10:44; 3, USA, Wolfe (Cianfarano), 11:35; 4, USA, Ryan (Dunne, Schipper), 11:51. Penalties: USA, Rolfes (interference), 3:55. Second Period – Scoring: 5, USA, Schipper (Menke), 0:59; 6, USA, Cianfarano (Willard). Penalties: SWE, Johansson (interference), 2:42. Third Period – Scoring: 7, USA, Schipper (Menke), 2:15; 8, USA, Cameranesi (Dunne, Ryan), 7:41 (pp). Penalties: SWE, Hall (tripping), 6:47; SWE, Palm (body checking), 8:49; USA, Laing (tripping), 14:23; USA, Piazza (hooking), 19:33. Shots on Goal 1 2 3 Total SWE 3 5 2 10 USA 19 20 18 57 Goaltenders (SV-SH) 1 2 3 Total SWE, Omberg, 30:44 15-19 13-15 - 28-34 SWE, Murase, 29:16 - 5-5 16-18 21-23 USA, Shaw, 60:00 3-3 5-5 2-2 10-10 Power play: SWE 0-3; USA, 1-3 Penalties: SWE, 3-6; USA, 3-6 2013 IIHF U18 Women's World Championship December 29, 2012 - January 5, 2013 - Heinola & Vierumäki, Finland Date Opponent Location Time (Local/EST) Sat., Dec. 29 Russia* Arena Vierumäki W, 7-0 Sun., Dec. 30 Czech Republic* Arena Heinola W, 10-0 Tues., Jan. 1 Sweden* Arena Heinola W, 8-0 Fri., Jan. 4 Semifinals TBD TBD Sat., Jan. 5 Gold Medal/Bronze Medal Games TBD TBD * denotes preliminary round competition Minnesota Retakes No. 1 Ranking in USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men's College Hockey Poll USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine 2012-13 Men's College Hockey Poll - #12(first-place votes in parentheses) Rank School Last Week's Ranking 2012-13 Record Weeks in Top 15 1 University of Minnesota, 501 (25) 4 13-3-3 13 2 University of Notre Dame, 458 (9) 3 14-4-0 13 3 Boston College, 454 1 12-3-1 13 4 University of New Hampshire, 399 2 12-3-2 10 5 Quinnipiac University, 359 9 14-3-2 4 6 Miami University, 337 5 12-4-4 13 7 University of North Dakota, 303 8 10-5-3 13 8 Dartmouth College, 290 10 8-3-2 7 9 Boston University, 250 6 10-6-0 13 10 Western Michigan University, 177 7 11-5-2 13 11 University of Denver, 161 15 10-6-3 13 12 Cornell University, 145 11 7-4-2 13 13 Union College, 87 12 9-4-4 13 14 Minnesota State University, 59 NR 12-6-2 1 15 University of Nebraska-Omaha, 40 13 11-8-1 6 Others receiving votes: St. Cloud State University, 33; Yale University, 12; Robert Morris University, 9; Niagara University, 6. NOTES: Minnesota reclaims the No. 1 ranking to begin the new year after Boston College held the position for two straight weeks ... BC shared the preseason No. 1 rank with the University of Minnesota ... The Western Collegiate Hockey Association leads all conferences with five ranked programs this week. ECAC Hockey has four ranked teams, while the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and the Hockey East Association each have three ranked squads ... A total of 19 teams received votes. ABOUT THE POLL: The 18th annual USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Men’s College Hockey Poll is conducted each week in conjunction with the American Hockey Coaches Association. The poll includes input from coaches and journalists representing each of the five NCAA Division I ice hockey conferences, as well as composite votes from officers of the AHCA and USA Hockey Magazine, the most widely distributed hockey magazine in the world.

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WE'RE ALL ON A DIET - This is Diet Resolution Week.

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Now that the 2012 football season is complete, Oregon State's coaches will turn 100 percent of their attention on recruiting and rounding out the 2013 signing class. The Beavers have seen a flurry of activity in the past week, including the signing of two junior college defensive tackles and the commitment by a four-star cornerback.

Read the rest here.

Visit the Oregon State Athletics department official web site.

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Performer Psy officially retired Gangnam Style with his New Year's Eve show. [Gangnam Style is now living in retirement in Florida, sharing a condo with the Macarena.]

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Top 5 CFL stories of 2012.

Why the CFL shouldn’t bother with Tim Tebow.

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

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Great news for kids: Doctors are taking a stand on the benefits of recess, and not just for the exercise. It's just as important to children's development as class time is. The American Academy of Pediatrics is officially advocating a scheduled break during the school day. A pediatrician with the AAP says, "Children need to have downtime between complex cognitive challenges. They tend to be less able to process information the longer they are held to a task."

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Tampa, FL. —The final 2012 regular season standings have produced the draft order for 2013, at least the first 20 spots, and Tampa Bay is set to pick 13th in the opening round.

Read the rest here.

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How's that iPhone 5 treating you? Pretty sweet piece of hardware, ain't it? Well before summer is over you'll want to upgrade to the iPhone 5S. Or will it be the iPhone 6? Sources say Apple is already testing the next iPhone. What will be new? One source says Apple will offer the next iPhone in 6 to 8 colors.

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Look Daddy. I got a Doggie Dream Light!

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You're reading the Johnny Blog. Almost as much fun as watching the sun come up, isn't it?

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Today in Elvis History

1956 - Elvis went to Memphis for a five day tour with Johnny Cash and other Louisianna Hayride stars. 

1965 - Elvis Presley's soundtrack "Roustabout" hit #1 on the U.S. charts. It was knocked out of first place the next week by the Beatles' "Beatles '65."

1972 - Elvis gave Muhammad Ali a $10000 robe with "The Peoples Champion" inscribed on it. Ali wore the robe on March 31, 1973 when he lost to Ken Norton.

2007 - A remastered version of the original "Essential Elvis Presley" was released.

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A Florida family returned from vacation to find a burglar had eaten their food and slept in a guest bed before fleeing with some belongings. The burglar got away with about $500 worth of gold jewelry and a bottle of Jack Daniels.

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Today in Beatles History:

1968 - Newark, NJ, police confiscated a shipment of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's album "Two Virgins." The album featured a nude cover.

1975 - U.S. District Court Judge Richard Owen ruled in New York, that John Lennon and his lawyers will have access to Department of Immigration files pertaining to his deportation case. 

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Playboy founder Hugh Hefner is off the market, again. The 86-year-old married former Playmate Crystal Harris -- she's 26 -- on New Year's Eve in a small ceremony captured on Twitter.

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Today in Sports History:

1953 - The Baltimore Bullets (NBA) began a 32 game road losing streak.

1957 - Gene Fullmer defeated Sugar Ray Robinson to win the middleweight boxing title.

1965 - "Broadway" Joe Namath signed the richest rookie contract ($400,000) in the history of pro football.

1971 - In Glasgow, Scotland, 66 people were crushed when fans trying to leave encountered fans trying to return after hearing that a late goal had been scored.

1972 - Elvis Presley gave Muhammad Ali a $10000 robe with "People's Champion" inscribed on it. Ali wore the robe on March 31, 1973 when he lost to Ken Norton.

1982 - The New York Islanders began a 23 undefeated home streak.

1983 - Ken Anderson (Cincinnati Bengals) completed 20 consecutive passes to set an NFL record for passing accuracy.

1985 - The Rebels of UNLV beat Utah State in three overtime periods. The final score of 142-140 set a new NCAA record for total points in a basketball game (282). The game took over three hours to play.

1986 - Mike Bossy (New York Islanders) scored his 500th career NHL goal.

2002 - Mike Modano (Dallas Stars) scored his 400th career NHL goal. Modano became only the fourth United States-born player to reach 400 goals.

2002 - Ron Francis (Carolina Hurricanes) scored his 500th career NHL goal. Francis became only the fifth player in NHL history to reach 500 goals and 1,000 assists.

2003 - It was announced that Bill Parcells would be the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys.

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On this date in 1842 in Fairmount, PA, the first wire suspension bridge was opened to traffic.

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Coming Up:

Tonight --

Nothin' Doin'

Thursday --

Nothin' Doin'

Friday --

Junior Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors at Boston Showcase

Saturday --

Junior Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors at Boston Showcase

Sunday --

Junior Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors at Boston Showcase

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