Monday Morning Meissnervations

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

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Today is February 17th, the 48th day of 2014. There are 317 days left in the year.

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Stanley Cup makes surprise visit to Canada House.

Oshie appreciates attention but ready to move forward.

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

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Today's Birthdays: Rene Russo (Thomas Crown Affair, a couple of Lethal Weapon movies) is 60; Dallas Stars Head Coach Lindy Ruff is 54; Basketball legend Michael Jordan is 51; Socialite Paris Hilton is 33; Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Inception, 3rd Rock from the Sun's Tommy Solomon) is 33.

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Tampa, FL. --More than 60 players from the ages of 9-60 traveled from as far as Kissimmee and Daytona to the Brandon Ice Sports Forum to compete in the newly reintroduced Tampa Bay Lightning Shootout Challenge..

Read the rest here.

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Blondie Boopadoop married Dagwood Bumstead on this date in 1933, three years after Chic Young’s popular strip first debuted.

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Wenatchee, WA. – The Wenatchee Wild hosted the Soo Eagles Saturday night at the Town Toyota Center and sent 3,588 fans home happy, with their second straight 3-1 win, moving past the idle Kenai River Brown Bears and into sole possession of 4^th place in the NAHL’s Midwest Division in the process.

Just like Friday night, the first period ended in a scoreless tie, with the Wild outshooting the Soo 14-4.

Nicholas Rivera (Pacific Palisades, California) opened the scoring, putting home a rebound of an Omar Mullan (Dearborn, Michigan) shot. The goal, coming at 5:37 of the second period, put Wenatchee up 1-0. Seven minutes later, Brendan Harris (Las Vegas, Nevada) slammed one into a wide-open net, to increase the lead. The unassisted goal, at 12:55, put the Wild up 2-0. Wenatchee would get a power play goal in the period’s final minute, as Troy Loggins (Huntington Beach, California) popped home a rebound for a power play goal. Mitch Demario (Franklin, Wisconsin) assisted at 19:14, giving Wenatchee a 3-0 lead.

The Eagles finally got on the board early in the third. Sandis Zolmanis scored unassisted at 1:59, cutting the Soo deficit to 3-1. The Eagles could get no closer however, as the Wild held on for their second straight 3-1 win over the Soo. “It was a good weekend for us” said Wenatchee Wild Head Coach Bliss Littler. “Goaltending for Chase (Perry) was very good, we moved the puck out of our own zone very well, we had good rushes, we did a good job of getting into offense and our special teams were very good. It was a good weekend.”

Wenatchee outshot the Eagles 41-14 on the night. Chase Perry (Andover, Minnesota) made 13 saves for the Wild; Nathan Klebe had 38 stops for the Soo. Wenatchee was 1-for-4 on the power play and 1-of-1 on the penalty kill.

The Wild is now 24-19-6; the Eagles are now 20-21-7.

Wenatchee now hits the road for the final time in regular season action, as they play two games in Johnstown next Friday and Saturday, February 21^st and 22^nd. The Wild then hosts the Kenai River Brown Bears in a key Midwest Division showdown on Thursday, February 27^th and Saturday and Sunday, March 1^st and 2^nd. The Thursday and Saturday games start at 7:05pm PST and the Sunday game faces off at 3:05pm PST. Individual and group game tickets for all home games are on sale now. Call 509.888.PUCK (7825).

WILD 2.0 UPGRADE

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Ellen Page has come out as gay. [Experts say that this will be highly unlikely to harm either her acting career or her position in the upcoming NFL draft.]

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U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team Skates Past Slovenia, 5-1, in Final Group Play Outing at 2014 Olympic Winter Games Team USA finishes first in Group A, will play in a Wednesday quarterfinal SOCHI, Russia – Phil Kessel (Madison, Wis./Toronto Maple Leafs) scored three goals, each assisted by Joe Pavelski (Plover, Wis./San Jose Sharks), to help the U.S. Olympic Men’s Ice Hockey Team defeat Slovenia, 5-1, in the preliminary round finale for Team USA at the 2014 Olympic Winter Games. The win clinches first place in Group A for Team USA (2-1-0-0, W-OTW-OTL-L) and a berth into the quarterfinals. "It was certainly a concern after the emotional game yesterday and getting ready for this game," said Dan Bylsma, head coach of the 2014 U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team. "In the end we were fortunate that right out of the gate we got a couple of great skill plays and two goals there to get us that lead. To get up like we did I thought that was very big for our team to look up and see the scoreboard and know that we were up in that game." Kessel began the scoring with goals at 1:04 and 4:33 of the opening period. First, Kessel deked around a defenseman, outside to inside, to earn a clear path to the net and beat goaltender Luca Gracnar through the five-hole. Then, Pavelski retrieved a dump-in along the goal line and flipped the puck across the crease for Kessel to whack out of mid-air into the goal. The U.S. doubled its lead to 4-0 with goals at 11:05 and 12:17 of the second stanza. Kessel completed the first hat trick by a U.S. Olympian since John LeClair achieved the feat in 2002 by tapping in the rebound from Pavelski’s right point shot. Later, Blake Wheeler (Robbinsdale, Minn./Winnipeg Jets) circled the offensive zone before stopping in the left corner and findingRyan McDonagh (St. Paul, Minn./New York Rangers) in the far circle. McDonagh quickly snapped the puck high over Gracnar’s glove. David Backes (Minneapolis, Minn./St. Louis Blues) made it 5-0 at 3:26 of the third period, crashing the net and deflecting a Ryan Callahan (Rochester, N.Y./New York Rangers) pass just inside the right post. Slovenia spoiled goaltender Ryan Miller’s (East Lansing, Mich./Buffalo Sabres) shutout bid with 18 seconds left in the game when Marcel Rodman scored. Miller finished with 17 saves. Dustin Brown (Ithaca, N.Y./Los Angeles Kings), Brooks Orpik (Amherst, N.Y./Pittsburgh Penguins), T.J. Oshie (Warroad, Minn./St. Louis Blues) and James van Riemsdyk (Middletown, N.J./Toronto Maple Leafs) each had single assists. The U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team returns to action Wednesday (Feb. 19) in the quarterfinal round of the 2014 Olympic Winter Games. Team USA’s opponent and game time will be decided Tuesday (Feb. 18) at the conclusion of the qualification round. NOTES: For today's box score, plus video highlights and photos, click here ... The U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team finished unbeaten in group play for the second consecutive Olympics ... James van Riemsdyk has points in three straight games ... Ryan Miller moved into second all-time among U.S. goaltenders in career Olympic wins with six ... Ryan Suter played a team-high 20:40 ... Paul Stastny registered a game-high five shots on goal ... Derek Stepan made his Olympic debut ... Team USA wore throwback jerseys, honoring the 1960 gold medal-winning U.S. team ... For the compete Team USA roster, click here ... The 25-man roster for the 2014 U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team was announced on NBC as part of its coverage of the Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic on Jan. 1 at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich. ... Dan Bylsma, head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins, is the head coach of the 2014 U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team. Tony Granato, assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Todd Richards, head coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets, and Peter Laviolette, serve as assistant coaches ... USA Hockey's International Council, chaired by Gavin Regan, vice president of USA Hockey, has oversight responsibilities for all U.S. National Teams. 2014 Olympic Winter Games Game Schedule for U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team  Feb. 13-23 • Sochi, Russia Date Opponent Venue Time (Local/EST)/Result Thurs., Feb. 13 Slovakia Shayba Arena W, 7-1 Sat., Feb. 15 Russia Bolshoy Ice Dome W, 3-2 (SO) Sun., Feb. 16 Slovenia Shayba Arena W, 5-1 Wed., Feb. 19 Quarterfinals Bolshoy Ice Dome 12:00 p.m./3:00 a.m. Bolshoy Ice Dome 4:30 p.m./7:30 a.m. Bolshoy Ice Dome 9:00 p.m./12:00 p.m. Shayba Ice Dome 9:00 p.m./12:00 p.m. Fri., Feb. 21 Semifinal Bolshoy Ice Dome 4:00 p.m./7:00 a.m. Semifinal Bolshoy Ice Dome 9:00 p.m./12:00 p.m. Sat., Feb. 22 Bronze-Medal Game Bolshoy Ice Dome 7:00 p.m./10:00 a.m. Sun., Feb. 23 Gold-Medal Game Bolshoy Ice Dome 4:00 p.m./7:00 a.m.

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The Powerball jackpot rose to $400 million over the weekend, one of the largest prizes in the lottery's history. The jackpot soared by about $70 million after there were no winning tickets sold to claim a $330 million prize in a drawing on Saturday. The next drawing was scheduled for Wednesday.

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Newest Ticats Arrive in Tigertown.

2014 Free Agent Tracker.

Please visit the league's official website, cfl.ca.

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Burger King decided to try to find people around the world who have never been exposed to advertising from either Burger King or McDonalds to see which burger they liked better. In fact, in the viral video -- designed to show that people prefer Burger King -- we learn that all of the real people in it have never even tried a burger before. Many of them don't even know how to eat a hamburger. | video link

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Tampa, FL. — Monday is the first day teams can use the franchise or transition tags, which means absolutely nothing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But that's a good thing.

Read the rest here.

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The first high school automobile driver’s education course was introduced in State College, PA on this date in 1934.

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Jimmy has dessert

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You're reading the Johnny Blog. Almost as much fun as watching the U.S. women beat Sweden in Olympic hockey, isn't it?

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Today in Elvis History

1958 - The Elvis Presley movie "Jailhouse Rock" opened in the U.K.

1958 - Production for the Elvis Presley movie "King Creole" began in New Orleans, LA. Filming was nearly impossible due to the large crowds in the streets.

1960 - Elvis received his first gold record for "Elvis." 

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A South Carolina woman, attempting to report a crime to police, was jailed for a 9-year-old crime. Kayla Michelle Finley was locked up for not having returned a VHS copy of the Jennifer Lopez movie Monster-In-Law. Finley rented but never returned it in 2005.

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Today in Beatles History:

1975 -  John Lennon released "Rock n' Roll." It was his last record before he left the music business for 5 years.

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The Lego Movie was the top box office draw for the second week, stacking up $48.8 million Friday-Sunday -- and finishing far ahead of new movies About Last Night and RoboCop.

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Today in Sports History:

1924 - Swimmer Johnny Weissmuller set a world record in the 100-yard freestyle. He did it with a time of 57-2/5 seconds in Miami, FL. 

1943 - Joe DiMaggio (New York Yankees) joined the U.S. Army as a voluntary inductee.

1962 - Wilt Chamberlain (Philadelphia Warriors) scored 67 points against St. Louis.

1967 - Wilt Chamberlain (Philadelphia Warriors) scored the first of an NBA record 35 consecutive goals without a miss.

1968 - The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame opened in Springfield, MA.

1979 - Jerry Sloan became the first player for the Chicago Bulls to have his number retired. He wore #4.

2003 - Emmitt Smith (Dallas Cowboys) and owner Jerry Jones agreed that releasing Smith from the team was a "win-win situation." The formal announcement was made on February 27. 

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Comedienne Joan Rivers made her first guest appearances on " The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson" on NBC-TV on this date in 1965.

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Coming Up:

Tonight --

Nothin' Doin'

Tuesday --

Nothin' Doin'

Wednesday --

Nothin' Doin'

Thursday --

Nothin' Doin'

Friday --

NAHL Hockey -- Wenatchee Wild at Johnstown Tomahawks 7:30pm EST

Saturday --

Nascar Nationwide Series -- Drive4COPD 300 at Daytona International Speedway 1:15pm EST

NAHL Hockey -- Wenatchee Wild at Johnstown Tomahawks 7:00pm EST

Sunday --

Nascar Sprint Cup Series -- Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway 1:00pm EST

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