It's Friday

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

************************************************

Today is July 11st, the 192nd day of 2014. There are 173 days left in the year.

************************************************

Ducks' Kesler enjoying transition to Anaheim.

Roy says Avalanche could be better this season.

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

************************************************

Charles IV of Luxembourg was elected Holy Roman Emperor in Germany on this date in 1346.

************************************************

Tampa, FL. -- The Tampa Bay Lightning have re-signed forward Brett Connolly to a one-year, two-way contract, vice president and general manager Steve Yzerman announced today.

Read the rest here.

************************************************

The U.S. Marine Corps was formally re-established by "An Act for Establishing a Marine Corps" passed by the U.S. Congress on this date in 1798. The act also created the U.S. Marine Band. The Marines were first commissioned by the Continental Congress on November 10, 1775.

************************************************

Taylor Lipsett and Andy Yohe Announce Retirement Paralympians Helped U.S. Win Gold at 2014 Paralympic Winter Games; Taylor Chase, Rico Roman and Greg Shaw to Skip 2014-15 Season COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Taylor Lipsett (Mesquite, Texas) and Andy Yohe (Bettendorf, Iowa), gold medalists from the 2014 U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey Team, have retired from international competition, USA Hockey announced today. “It’s bittersweet to see Taylor and Andy move on but I’m also extremely happy to have the ability to thank them for the tremendous contributions they have made to our team, USA Hockey, the U.S. Olympic Committee and their country,” said Dan Brennan, general manager of the 2014 U.S. Paralympic Sled Hockey Team and USA Hockey’s director of sled and inline national teams. “We've enjoyed great success togther and they have Paralympic gold medals and world championship gold as well and they should be extremely proud of that.” Lipsett, a forward, spent more than a decade as a member of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, making his debut in 2003-04 as a 16 year old. At his first Paralympic Winter Games in 2006, he helped Team USA collect a bronze medal. In 2009, Lipsett and the U.S. won their first IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship in Ostrava, Czech Republic. At the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, B.C., Lipsett won a gold medal while leading Team USA with five goals. En route to the gold medal at the 2012 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship, he spearheaded the U.S. offense with six goals and eight points. Lastly, Lipsett competed in the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games, helping Team USA win gold in Sochi, Russia. Yohe’s rookie season with Team USA culminated in a bronze medal at the 2006 Paralympic Winter Games in Torino, Italy. After a year off in 2007-08, he returned to the squad to help it capture the gold medal at the 2009 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship. He switched from forward to defense during the 2009-10 season and captained Team USA to gold at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, B.C. After sitting out three years for family reasons, Yohe reclaimed the captaincy in 2013-14 and helped guide Team USA to the gold medal once again at the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia. Click here to see Brennan discuss the retirement of Lipsett and Yohe. NOTES: Taylor Chace (Hampton Falls, N.H.), Rico Roman (Portland, Ore.) and Greg Shaw(Merritt Island, Fla.) have elected to take the year off and will not participate with the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team during the 2014-15 season. Tryouts for the 2014-15 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team are set for Sat.-Sun. (July 12-13) at The Northtown Center at Amherst in Williamsville, N.Y. The roster will be announced the week of July 21.

************************************************ Enrico Caruso recorded "Over There" written by George M. Cohan on this date in 1918. ************************************************ Regina, SK. -- The Saskatchewan Roughriders are confident that Terrell Maze can replace Dwight Anderson in every way - except for one. Read the rest here. Coming up, the Saskatchewan Roughriders return home to take on the BC Lions tomorrow night. Game time from Mosaic Stadium is 9:30pm EDT. Catch the game on 620 CKRM, the Rider Radio Network and 620ckrm.com with Rod Pedersen and Carm Carteri calling the action. The game can be seen in Canada on TSN and in the U.S. on ESPN3. ************************************************ The first appointments to the newly created Federal Communications Commission were made on this date in 1934. ************************************************ . Video: Lions Look to Prove They Can Roar in Riderville. Coming Back: Ex-Esks look to prove former club wrong. Please visit the league's official website, cfl.ca. ************************************************ U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt became the first American chief executive to travel through the Panama Canal while in office on this date in 1934. ************************************************ Tampa, FL. -- Tampa Bay's plans to overhaul the passing game with bigger and taller targets was an engine behind the drafting of tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins. Read the rest here. ************************************************ The U.S. Air Force Academy was dedicated in Colorado at Lowry Air Base on this date in 1955. ************************************************ St. Petersburg, FL. -- Joe Maddon found solace earlier this summer in one set of numbers, the law of averages that dictated the Rays were simply too talented to reside in baseball's cellar. Read the rest here. ************************************************ The first transatlantic TV transmission was sent through the Telstar I satellite on this date in 1962. ************************************************ San Francisco, CA. -- While Gregor Blanco took Thursday afternoon's final at-bat, "Let's go, Oakland" chants cascaded from the AT&T Park stands, where the preeminent color was green. Read the rest here. ************************************************ The Medal of Freedom was awarded posthumously to Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in a White House ceremony on this date in 1977. ************************************************ Here we are at the ol' ball yard, Daddy.. ************************************************ You're reading the Johnny Blog. Almost as much fun as ESPN's Top Ten plays, isn't it? ************************************************ Today in Elvis History: 1955 - Elvis Presley recorded "I Forgot to Remember to Forget", "Mystery Train" and re-recorded "Trying to Get to You."  1961 - Filming began on the Elvis Presley film "Follow That Dream."  1964 - Elvis Presley's single "Kissin' Cousin's" hit #10 in the U.K.  1966 - Principal filming began on the Elvis Presley movie "Double Trouble".  1970 - Elvis Presley's "The Wonder of You" hit #1 in the U.K.  1994 - Michael Jackson's spokesman, Lee Solters, denied that Jackson and Lisa Marie Presley were married.  2003 - AOL Music's "First View" began 'airing' the worldwide exclusive premiere of Lisa Marie Presley's video for the single "Sinking In."  2004 - Elvis Presley's re-issued single "That's All Right" hit #3 in the U.K. The single had been re-released to mark the 50th anniversary of the Presley's first single. ************************************************ The abandoned U.S. space station Skylab returned to Earth on this date in 1979. It burned up in the atmosphere and showered debris over the Indian Ocean and Australia. ************************************************ Today in Beatles History: 1966 - John Lennon and Paul McCartney won two Ivor Novello Awards. "We Can Work It Out" won for Highest Certified British Sales and "Yesterday" won for Outstanding Song of 1965.  2000 - A limited edition CD of John Lennon's "Rock N Roll" was released. ************************************************ Dr. H. Harlan Stone announced on this date in 1985 that he had used zippers for stitches on 28 patients. The zippers were used when he thought he may have to re-operate. ************************************************ Today in Sports History: 1914 - Babe Ruth debuted in the major leagues with the Boston Red Sox.  1960 - In Honolulu, HI, the first tournament held outside the continental U.S., sanctioned by the U.S. Golf Association, began.  1985 - Nolan Ryan of the Houston Astros became the first major league pitcher to earn 4,000 strikeouts in a career.  1987 - Bo Jackson signed a contract to play football for the L.A. Raiders for 5 years. He also continued to play baseball for the Kansas City Royals.  1994 - Shawn Eckardt was sentenced in Portland, OR, to 18 months in prison for his role in the attack on figure skater Nancy Kerrigan.  1995 - Mickey Mantle made his final public appearance. It was to increase awareness of organ donation programs. ************************************************ Apple released the iPhone 3G on this date in 2008. ************************************************ Coming Up: Tonight -- MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays vs Toronto Blue Jays 7:10pm EDT MLB -- San Francisco Giants vs Arizona Diamondbacks 10:15pm EDT Saturday -- Nascar Nationwide Series -- Sta-Green 200 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway 3:30pm EDT MLB -- San Francisco Giants vs Arizona Diamondbacks 4:05pm EDT MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays vs Toronto Blue Jays 4:10pm EDT Verizon Indy Car Series -- Iowa Corn Indy 300 at Newton Iowa 8:00pm EDT CFL Football -- Saskatchewan Roughriders vs BC Lions 9:30pm EDT Sunday -- Nascar Sprint Cup Series -- Camping World RV Sales 301 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway 1:00pm EDT MLB -- Tampa Bay Rays vs Toronto Blue Jays 1:40pm EDT MLB -- San Francisco Giants vs Arizona Diamondbacks 4:05pm EDT ************************************************ That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by, see you tomorrow.