Monday Morning Meissnervations

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

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Today is March 30th, the 89th day of 2015. There are 276 days left in the year.

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American Auston Matthews will headline 2016 Draft.

Playoff Countdown: Predators, Ducks, Canadiens in.

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

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Today's Birthdays: Eric Clapton is 70. MC Hammer is 52. Ian Ziering is 51. Celine Dion is 47. Norah Jones is 36.

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Tampa, FL. -- The Tampa Bay Lightning will place single-game tickets for home games during the Eastern Conference Quarter-Finals of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs on sale Friday, April 3 at 10 a.m. The Lightning’s 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs is presented by Florida Hospital.

Read the rest here.

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Fifty Shades of Grey is arriving soon on DVD and Blu-Ray. Yep — you’ll be able to watch Christian and Ana get it on in the comfort of your very own home on May 8, and from the looks of it, there’s going to be a lot more to watch than just the movie. The trailer was released Tuesday and teases some spicier, never-seen scenes. • Video

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Brendan Burke Internship Applications Now Being Accepted Opportunity is for a recent college grad interested in hockey operations COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Hockey is accepting applications through May 15 for the 2015-16 Brendan Burke Internship. The 10-month opportunity runs from Aug. 15, 2015 - June 15, 2016, and is designed for a recent college graduate interested in pursuing a career in hockey operations. Established in April 2010, the internship was founded in memory of the late Brendan Burke, who served as a student assistant for the Miami University men's ice hockey team and is the son of Brian Burke, director of player personnel for the 2014 U.S. Olympic Men's Ice Hockey Team and currently the president of hockey operations for the National Hockey League's Calgary Flames. Brendan passed away in an automobile accident on Feb. 5, 2010. The 2015-16 Brendan Burke Intern will be based in Michigan, home of USA Hockey's National Team Development Program. The position calls for assistance in all aspects of hockey operations with the NTDP, including both the U.S. National Under-17 and U.S. National Under-18 Teams. In addition, the selected candidate will gain experience with international events, the American Development Model and Coaching Education Program. The deadline for applications is Friday, May 15, 2015. U.S. National Sled Hockey Team Defeats Canada, 3-1 McKee Leads USA to Sixth Straight Victory Over Canada INDIAN TRAIL, N.C. – Kevin McKee (Chicago, Ill.) scored twice and Declan Farmer (Tampa, Fla.) tallied three assists to lead the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team past Canada, 3-1, today at Extreme Ice Center in Indian Trail, North Carolina. “We dealt with some adversity today but everyone stepped up and did a great job, especially in the third period,” said Guy Gosselin, acting head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. “Both teams came out to play and fortunately we came out on top.” McKee opened the scoring for Team USA just 2:24 into the game when he finished off a passing play from Brody Roybal (Northlake, Ill.) and Farmer. Canada’s Marc Dorion evened the score a minute later with a redirection from the left circle that found its way by Steve Cash (Overland, Mo.). The goal was Canada’s first in four meetings between the two teams and ended Cash’s shutout streak against the Canadians at just over 250 minutes of play. The U.S. regained the lead midway through the period when McKee beat Canada goaltender Corbin Watson with a wrist shot that rang off the crossbar and in. After a scoreless second stanza, both teams traded chances early in the final frame. With five minutes remaining and Canada pressing for the equalizer, Farmer stole the puck in the defensive zone and sent Adam Page (Lancaster, N.Y.) on a breakaway where he beat Watson glove side to give the U.S. a 3-1 lead. Cash made two point-blank saves in the final minute to secure the victory. With a 2-0 victory yesterday (March 26), the U.S. has won the first two games of the sled series for the first time ever. The victory was also the sixth consecutive win for the U.S. against Canada. The final game of the series will take place tomorrow (March 28) at Extreme Ice Center. Puck drop is set for 12:30 p.m. ET and the game will be streamed live at FASTHockey.com. Additionally, live coverage of the series can be found here. 2015 USA vs. Canada Sled Series Mar. 26-28 - Indian Trail, N.C. - Extreme Ice Center Date Time (ET) How to Follow Thurs., March 26 W, 2-0 Live Stats Fri., March 27 W, 3-1 Live Stats Sat., March 28 12:30 p.m. FASTHockey.com Live Stats Notes: For full game statistics, click here … The US. has outscored Canada, 15-3, during its six-game win streak … Brody Roybal (4-5--9) has a point in every U.S. game this season … Declan Farmer (3-9--12) leads Team USA in points while Kevin McKee (6-3--9) leads the team in goals …Guy Gosselin (Grafton, Wis.), assistant coach for the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, is serving as the acting head coach for Team USA throughout the Sled Series. Jeff Sauer (Madison, Wis.), currently in his fourth season as head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, is missing the series to coach the U.S. Deaflympic Ice Hockey Team in the 18th Winter Deaflympics in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia … Dan Brennan, director of sled and inline national teams for USA Hockey, is serving as the general manager. Additional staff members include team physician Mike Uihlein(Grafton, Wis.), athletic trainer Mike Cortese (Boynton Beach, Fla.) and equipment manager Joel Isaacson (Houghton, Mich.) … For live updates, follow @USAHockeyScores on Twitter and join the conversation on social media by using #SledSeries … The 2015 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships will take place April 26-May 3 at HARBORCENTER in Buffalo, New York. For tournament information, click here. For Team USA information, click here. U.S. National Sled Hockey Team Shuts Out Canada, 2-0 Victory Gives Team USA its First-Ever Series Sweep Over Canada INDIAN TRAIL, N.C. – Declan Farmer (Tampa, Fla.) and Brody Roybal (Northlake, Ill.) each recorded a goal and an assist and Steve Cash (Overland, Mo.) made eight saves to lead the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team to a 2-0 victory over Canada today at Extreme Ice Center in Indian Trail, North Carolina, and a sweep of three-game series. The U.S. won the series opener, 2-0, on Thursday (March 26) and earned a 3-1 victory yesterday (March 27). “Three games three days in a row is a lot of hockey but I think we improved with every game,” saidGuy Gosselin, acting head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. “We knew this last game was going to be tough. I thought our team discipline was very good and our guys really stepped up and battled to finish the series.” Cash was busy early, stopping a breakaway just :20 into the contest. The teams traded chances throughout the opening frame before Farmer’s power-play goal beat Canada goaltender Corbin Watson with 5:54 left in the first period. Canada nearly leveled the scoring with 13.6 seconds left when a shot from the point rang off the crossbar and out of play. The U.S. made it 2-0 just two minutes into the second stanza. Farmer picked up a loose puck and passed it back to Nikko Landeros (Johnstown, Colo.) who fed Roybal in the left circle for a shot that beat Watson high to the blocker side. Dominic Larocque replaced Watson in net a minute and finished the game for Canada. Cash, who had two shutouts in the series, finished the three games with a 0.33 goals-against-average and .964 save percentage. The U.S. National Sled Hockey Team will return to action April 26 when it opens play in the 2015 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships at HARBORCENTER in Buffalo, New York. For tournament information, click here. 2015 USA vs. Canada Sled Series Mar. 26-28 - Indian Trail, N.C. - Extreme Ice Center Date Result Game Stats Thurs., March 26 W, 2-0 Game Stats Fri., March 27 W, 3-1 Game Stats Sat., March 28 W, 2-0 Game Stats NOTES: For full game statistics, click here … The U.S. has won seven straight games vs. Canada with a 17-3 cumulative scoring margin in those contests … Brody Roybal (5-6--10) has a point in every U.S. game this season … Declan Farmer (4-10--14) leads Team USA in points while Kevin McKee (6-3--9) leads the team in goals … Guy Gosselin (Grafton, Wis.), assistant coach for the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, served as the acting head coach for Team USA for the three-game series vs. Canada. Jeff Sauer (Madison, Wis.), currently in his fourth season as head coach of the U.S. National Sled Hockey Team, missed the series to coach the U.S. Deaflympic Ice Hockey Team in the 18th Winter Deaflympics in Khanty-Mansiysk, Russia … Dan Brennan (Colorado Springs, Colo.), director of sled and inline national teams for USA Hockey, is the general manager of the 2015 U.S. National Sled Hockey Team. U.S. Women's National Team Defeats Canada, 4-2, in Opening Game of 2015 IIHF Women's World Championship Bellamy and Coyne Notch Two Points Each; Vetter Earns Victory MALMO, Sweden. – The U.S. Women's National Team defeated Canada, 4-2, here today at Malmo Isstadion in the opening game for each team at the 2015 International Ice Hockey Federation Women's World Championship. Kacey Bellamy (Westfield, Mass.) and Kendall Coyne (Palos Heights, Ill.) both registered two points (goal and assist) and nine players overall had at least one point in the victory. Jessie Vetter (Cottage Grove, Wis.) stopped nine of 11 shots she faced to earn the victory. "We came out fast and played a strong game right from the start," said Ken Klee, head coach of the 2015 U.S. Women's National Team. "When we weren't at our best, Jessie was there with a key save. It's a good start to the tournament and we'll now turn our attention to Finland for tomorrow." For complete recap and box score, click here. Team USA is back in preliminary action tomorrow (March 29) against Finland at 3 p.m. ET. NOTES: The U.S. outshot Canada 34-11 ... Kacey Bellamy was named U.S. Player of the Game. The U.S. has played Canada in the gold medal game in all 15 of the previous events, capturing the event’s top prize a total of five times (2005, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013), including four of the last five tournaments and five of the last seven. U.S. Women's National Team Defeats Finland, 4-1, at 2015 IIHF Women's World Championship Knight Notches Pair of Goals and Rigsby Earns Victory MALMO, Sweden. – The U.S. Women's National Team defeated Finland, 4-1, here today at the 2015 International Ice Hockey Federation Women's World Championship. Hilary Knight  (Sun Valley, Idaho) registered a pair of goals and one assist while Brianna Decker (Dousman, Wis.) notched three assists. "We were a little flat out of the gate but we turned it on and had an impressive showing," said Ken Klee, head coach of the 2015 U.S. Women's National Team. "We just got stronger as the game went on and generated a lot of offense. It's another building block toward our ultimate goal in the tournament." For complete recap and box score, click here. Team USA is back in preliminary action on Tuesday (March 31) against Russia at 6 a.m. ET. NOTES: The U.S. outshot Finland 53-12 ... Hilary Knight was named U.S. Player of the Game. The U.S. has played in the gold medal game in all 15 of the previous events, capturing the event’s top prize a total of five times (2005, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013), including four of the last five tournaments and five of the last seven. 2015 Toyota-USA Hockey National Championships: Final Pairings FASTHockey to stream championship games COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Four days of spirited competition has whittled hundreds of teams down to just a few championship contenders in the Youth, Girls and Tier III Junior categories at the 2015 Toyota-USA Hockey National Championships. FASTHockey will webcast all championship games taking place tomorrow in seven cities across the United States. A full schedule of games is listed below. For a listing of past USA Hockey national champions, click here. Games are available live and on-demand by visiting USAHockey.FASTHockey.comand creating a free account. In addition, games will be available for purchase on DVD following the tournament by visiting USAHockey.FASTHockey.com. Also of note is the Toyota-USA Hockey National Championships app. Available for both Apple and Android devices, the app provides unprecedented access to news, scores and schedules, as well as photos and videos from fellow participants in the app social stream. In addition to streaming and mobile coverage, USA Hockey will provide scoring, stats and photos from each of the title games on USAHockey.com. Fans can follow all of the action from each tournament on Twitter at @USAHNationals. For more information, contact Jayson Hron (jaysonh@usahockey.org / 719.538.1159). 2015 Toyota-USA Hockey National Championships  Championship Game Schedule LEVEL FINALISTS TIME LOCATION Tier I Youth 14U Chicago Mission (IL) HoneyBaked (MI) 8 a.m. ET Amherst, N.Y. Tier I Youth 16U HoneyBaked (MI) Shattuck-St. Mary's (MN) 9:15 a.m. ET Amherst, N.Y. Tier I Youth 18U NJ Avalanche (NJ) CT Wolf Pack (CT) 10:30 a.m. ET Amherst, N.Y. Tier I Girls 14U Boston Jr. Eagles (MA) Pittsburgh Penguins Elite (PA) 10 a.m. CT Green Bay, Wis. Tier I Girls 16U Chicago Young Americans (IL) Shattuck-St. Mary's (MN) Noon CT Green Bay, Wis. Tier I Girls 19U Chicago Mission (IL) Shattuck-St. Mary's (MN) 11 a.m. CT Green Bay, Wis. Tier II Youth 14U 1A Portland Hawks (OR) Junior Steelheads (ID) 8 a.m. MT Salt Lake City, Utah Tier II Youth 14U 2A Chesterfield (MO) Tampa Scorpions (FL) 10:15 a.m. MT Salt Lake City, Utah Tier II Youth 14U 3A TBD TBD 12:30 p.m. MT Salt Lake City, Utah Tier II Youth 16U 1A Team South Dakota Montana Thunderblades (MT) 8 a.m. CT Plano, Texas Tier II Youth 16U 2A Affton (MO) Tampa Scorpions (FL) 9 a.m. CT Plano, Texas Tier II Youth 16U 3A St. Clair Shores (MI) Hyland Hills Jaguars (CO) 10:15 a.m. CT Plano, Texas Tier II Youth 18U 1A Portland Jr. Pirates (ME) Charlotte Checkers (NC) 8 a.m. ET Troy, Mich. Tier II Youth 18U 2A Ashburn Xtreme (VA) Team Ohio Black (OH) 9:15 a.m. ET Troy, Mich. Tier II Youth 18U 3A Mid-State Mustangs (PA) Littleton Hawks (CO) 10:30 a.m. ET Troy, Mich. Tier II Girls 14U Amherst Knights (NY) Assabet Red (MA) 9 a.m. ET East Lansing, Mich. Tier II Girls 16U East Coast Wizards (MA) Team Alaska (AK) 10 a.m. ET East Lansing, Mich. Tier II Girls 19U Portland Pirates (ME) East Coast Wizards (MA) 11:30 a.m. ET East Lansing, Mich. *Women's A Minnesota McGoverns (MN) 2 Minnesota Blue J's (MN) 0 3 p.m. CT Green Bay, Wis. *Women's B Rochester Edge (NY) 2 Anaheim Lady Ducks (CA) 8 1:15 p.m. CT Green Bay, Wis. *Women's C Minnesota Blue J Bandits (MN) 3 O'Leary Hawks (MI) 1 1:15 p.m. CT Green Bay, Wis. Tier III Junior (Division I) Northern Cyclones (NH) North Iowa Bulls (IA) 4 p.m. ET Simsbury, Conn. Tier III Junior (Division II) NY Aviators (NY) Boston Jr. Bruins (MA) 1 p.m. ET Simsbury, Conn. * Game completed Sunday, March 29.

************************************************ The X-Files mini series is a go. Fox has ordered a six episode run of the popular ’90s television show. Both stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson are on-board. ************************************************ Combine Saturday: Recapping first day of testing. Combine Sunday: Recapping day two of testing. Please visit the league's official website, http://www.cfl.ca. ************************************************ Iggy Azalea admits that she got breast implants recently. [Which explains the name change to Biggie Azalea.] ************************************************ Tampa, FL. -- When you finish with the worst record in the NFL, it's obvious that your roster needs an influx of new talent, including starters at multiple positions. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are no exception, as they head into the 2015 NFL draft looking for upgrades at multiple positions. Read the rest here. ************************************************ In the wake of Burger King releasing a Whopper-scented fragrance, McDonald’s Sweden is launching a Big Mac clothing and lifestyle line. The line will consist of clothing, wallpaper, bedsheets, rain boots, and even a dog jacket, all peppered with photos of the chain’s most popular sandwich. ************************************************ Corvallis, OR. -- Michael Gretler’s run-scoring single in the fifth inning proved to be the game winner as the 24th-ranked Oregon State baseball team defeated Cal Poly, 4-2, Sunday at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field in the series finale. Read the rest here. ************************************************ A bulldog left in an SUV apparently was not too fond of being left alone — especially with the windows up in Eureka, California. He made his situation known by blaring a car horn intermittently for minutes, off and on — becoming known as the “angry dog” or “road rage dog.” Someone videoed the dog and put it on YouTube. • Video ************************************************ Howdee doo from me to you! ************************************************ You're reading the Johnny Blog. Almost as much fun as watching Paw Patrol with your son, isn't it? ************************************************ Today in Elvis History: 1961 - In Hawaii, a resolution was passed "expressing gratitude and appreciation to Elvis Presley and Col. Tom Parker" for helping to raise funds for the USS Arizona.  1967 - Elvis Presley's "Guitar Man" hit #19 in the U.K.  2004 - The album "Maximum Elvis" was released. It contained the songs "The King Of Western Bop", "A White Man Who Could Sing The Blues", "Let's Get Real, Real Gone For A Change", "The Snowman", "This Unspeakably Untallnted, Vulgar Young Entertainer", "At The Movies", "A Nice Lad When You Get To Know Him", "The Hippie Element", "Death" and "Resurrection?".  ************************************************ Police in Sandwich, Massachusetts, are looking for a thief with really, really white teeth. Police say a man entered a CVS Pharmacy and went directly to the aisle containing teeth whitening strips. He left without paying for $295.95 worth of dental products. ************************************************ Today in Beatles History: 1967 - The cover of the Beatles' "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" was staged and photographed.  1996 - The Beatles' "Anthology 2" hit #1 on the U.S. album chart.  2007 - A man was arrested after trying to force his way into Paul McCartney's mansion in Sussex.  2014 - John Lennon's "A Matter of Pee" letter sold at auction for $88,218. ************************************************ Warner Bros.’ Lego empire keeps expanding. The studio has hired Jason Segel, the actor who helped Disney revive The Muppets several years ago, and Drew Pearce, the writer behind Iron Man 3, to write and co-direct a new Lego movie, this one titled The Billion Brick Race. ************************************************ Today in Sports History: 1925 - The Victoria Cougars of the WCHL became the last non-NHL team to win the Stanley Cup.  1946 - Maurice "The Rocket" Richard scored his first of three overtime goals in the Stanley Cup Finals.  1980 - George Gervin (San Antonio) became the fifth NBA player to win at least three consecutive scoring titles.  1993 - The Ottawa Senators lost their 37th consecutive road game to tie the NHL record that had been set in 1975.  1997 - Golfer John Daly checked into the Betty Ford Clinic after a drinking binge a few days earlier.  2002 - The Dallas Stars lost 3-1 to the Edmonton Oilers. The game ended the Stars' streak of 50 straight wins when leading after 2 periods.  2004 - NFL owners approved a modified version of the instant replay system for five years. They added a third coaches' challenge if the first two were successful. ************************************************ A new study has discovered 30 new species of flies in the smog of Los Angeles. [Well that should boost tourism.] ************************************************ MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- With Brad Keselowski beating a tattoo into his rear bumper, and with his No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota sliding sideways as it approached the checkered flag, Denny Hamlin held on to his car and held off Keselowski to win Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series STP 500 at Martinsville Speedway. Read the rest here. ************************************************ This past Friday afternoon, NASA astronaut Scott Kelly strapped into a Russian rocket and kiseds Earth goodbye for an entire year to live on the International Space Station. Meanwhile, his identical twin Mark, a retired NASA astronaut himself, will stay here on Earth. Both men will be tested during and after Scott's year-long stay in space and their info will be compared. ************************************************  ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Twenty-four hours before securing his 13th Indy car victory and first on a road/street course since Vancouver in his 1999 CART championship season, Juan Pablo Montoya was sizing up the Verizon IndyCar Series season. Read the rest here. ************************************************* A four-year-old in Youngstown, Ohio, wants your letter. Landen Green has been diagnosed with cancer and his cousin, Sommer, asked him what makes him feel better. He told her mail. And so Sommer has launched Letters for Landen. Wanna make a four-year-old kid with leukemia feel better? Send a letter to Landen: 66 South Richview Ave., Youngstown, Ohio 44509. ************************************************  Coming Up: Tonight -- NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Montreal Canadiens 7:30pm EDT Tuesday -- NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Toronto Maple Leafs 7:30pm EDT Wednesday -- Nothin' Doin' Thursday -- NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Ottawa Senators 7:30pm EDT Friday -- Nothin' Doin' Saturday -- NHL Hockey -- Tampa Bay Lightning at Florida Panthers 7:00pm EDT Sunday -- Nothin' Doin' ************************************************ That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by, see you tomorrow.