the mad sports man

 Geez February, you're leaving already?  What did you leave us with? Let's see, a Super Bowl won by the Los Angeles Rams, a whole wad of make up games in the NHL, 16 days of Olympic insanity, and a likely chance the baseball season won't start.  Oh yeah and I have a new job.

 Wayne Gretzky scores three goals in Buffalo as Edmonton beat the Sabres 6-3. His first goal passes Phil Esposito for most goals in an NHL season. His second passes Bobby Hull for most goals in a hockey season. (Hull had 77 in the 1974-74 WHA season.  NHL wouldn't or still don't recognize the WHA). Gretzky finishes the 1981-82 season with 92 goals.

 It's a two-fer Tuesday. 2/22/22. Also will be a palindrome until the end of the month.  On this day in 1980, the US beats the Soviet Union 4-3 in a major hockey surprise, known as the "miracle on ice."  Two days later, they beat Finland 4-2 to win gold.

 These games wen from February 4-20. 91 nations and 2871 athletes participated. 1. 7 new sports were added to these games. 2. Haiti and Saudi Arabia made their winter debuts here. 3.  Marie Philip Poulin is the only hockey player to score a goal in 4 gold medal games. 4. Sarah Nurse first black woman hockey player to win gold. She also set points record with 18 in the tournament. 5. Donovan Carrillo became the first Mexican to make the free skate and first Mexican+Latin American to land a quad. 6. Ireen Wust became the first speed skater to win a gold in five Olympics. 7. Slovakia wins first ever hockey medal. They beat Sweden 4-0 to win bronze. 8. One podium sweep A. February 15, two man bobsled, Germany, Francesco Friedrich and Thorsten Margis, Johannes Lochner and Florian Bauer, Christoph Hader and Matthais Sommer finished on the podium. 9. Norway won most medals with 37 (16g, 8s, 13b). Norway's 16 golds broke a record for most golds.(previous record was 13 done three times...

 Final speeches have been made. The flame put out. The Olympic flag handed over. The 2022 winter Olympics are done. Canada finishes with 4g, 8s, 14b for 26 total. Next winter Olympics are in 2026 in Milan and Cortina D'Ampezzo Italy. Before that, the 2024 summer Olympics in Paris. See you then.

 Finland has won its first ever men's hockey gold with a 2-1 win over Russia.  Quite the game here. Finland will be partying for sure.  No more medals to be handed out. Just the closing ceremonies.

 The four man bobsled team of Justin Kripps, Ben Coakwell, Ryan Sommer and Cam Stones just picked up a bronze with a time of 3:55.09.  Hung on to bronze by .06 second. Germany was that close to a podium sweep.  That is now 4g, 8s, 14b for 26 total, matching their total from 2010.  Yay.

 ...... Isabelle Weidemann. Just announced a few minutes ago. A gold, silver and bronze won. Not surprised by this choice. The end is close now.

 Great Britain was stripped of their silver in the 4 x 100m men's event, due to Chijindu Ujah testing positive for a banned substance. Andre DeGrasse, Aaron Brown, Jerome Blake and Brendon Rodney went from bronze to silver. That puts Canada's final 2020 total to 7g, 7s, 10b for 24 total.

 Start with hockey. Slovakia won its first ever medal, beating Sweden 4-0 to claim bronze. Wow.  In curling, Sweden beat Great Britain 5-4 to win men's gold. Meanwhile, Sweden beat Switzerland 9-7 to win women's bronze. This caps day 15.

 Ivanie Blondin has picked up a silver in the speed skating mass start race. Was a pretty good race. Irene Schouten off the Netherlands with gold and Francesca Lollabrigida of Italy with bronze. That is now 4g, 8s, 13b for 25 total. This race was Steve Armitage's last race called, as he announced his retirement yesterday following the Olympics. Have a happy retirement, Steve. It was a treat hearing your calls.

Canada will be announcing the flagbearer(s) tomorrow night at 5:45pm. Any predictions on who it will be?

 This just in.  Laurent Dubreuil just won a silver in the 1000m speed skating event. His time was 1:08.32.  That is now 4g, 7s, 13b for 24 total.  Woohoo!!

 The team of Brad Gushue, Mark Nichols, Brett Gallant and Geoff Walker have claimed bronze with an 8-5 win over the USA. Wasn't their best week, but today they were good enough.  Lots of tears and emotion after the game. For Gushue and Nichols, it's their second medal. They have gold from 2006. That is now 4g, 6s, 13b for 23 total.

 Just finished. Cassie Sharpe has the silver and Rachel Karker has the bronze in the freeski halfpipe. Yeeesssss!!!!! That is now 4g, 6s, 12b for 22 total.

 This race just finished. Marielle Thompson just won a silver in ski cross. She went from fourth to silver in the race. That is now 4g, 5s, 11b for 20 total.

 It was close the whole game.  Canada has just beat the USA 3-2 and has taken gold in women's hockey.  Marie Philip Poulin with the game winner. She has a gold in every gold medal game she had played in since 2010. Canada has now 4g, 4s, 11b for 19 total.  Yaaaay.

 This season had 6 teams and a 70 game schedule. Ice surface was painted white for the first time. Ted Lindsay, Sid Abel and Gordie Howe finished 1-2-3 in scoring.  February 5, Dick Irvin won his 500th game as coach.  Terry Sawchuk makes his debut here.  Bill Durnan wins Vezina, then retires due to stress.  Semi finals had Detroit beat Toronto 4-3 and New York beat Montreal. Detroit then beats New York to win the Stanley Cup. New York plays two "home" games in Toronto. The circus had taken over Madison Square Garden. Welcome to the 1950s.

 Charles Hamelin, Steven Dubois, Pascal Dion and Jordan Pierre Gilles has won gold in the men's 5000m  short track relay. Yes.  For Hamelin, it's his sixth career medal. He ties Andre DeGrasse for most medals by a Canadian male, medals in five Olympics and ties Cindy Klassen for most speed skating medals. This was also Hamelin's last race in the Olympics. Wow.  That is now 3g, 4s, 11b for 18 total.

 This is big.  Slovakia just beat the USA 3-2 in a shootout and is now in the semis. Stay tuned for who they will play.

 The team of Isabelle Weidemann, Valerie Maltais and Ivanie Blondin have won gold in speed skating team pursuit. Beat Japan in the final after Japanese had a wipeout on the final corner.  That is now 2g, 4s, 11b for 17 total.

 This one in snowboarding big air. Max Parrot has the bronze to go with the gold won earlier. That is now 1g, 4s, 11b for 16 total. Yesssss.

 Canada blew out Switzerland 10-3 and will play for women's hockey gold. They will face either the USA or Finland. Brianne Jenner scored her 9th goal tying her with Meghan Agosta (Canada) and Stefanie Marty (Switzerland) for most goals in a tournament.  Gold medal game is Wednesday night in Prince Albert, Thursday morning in Beijing.

 Also a first in monobob. Kaillie Humphries is the first champion. Elena Meyers Taylor of the USA has the silver and Christine De Bruin of Canada with the bronze with a time of 4:21.03.  Congratulations to all.  Canada has now 1g, 4s, 10b for 15 total.

 The Los Angeles Rams are Super Bowl 56 Champions after beating the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20. Touchdown late on the 4th gave them the win.  The NFL season is now done. Now back to the Olympics.

 Last day of round robin is done. USA, Finland, Russia and Sweden (best second place team) got a bye to the quarter finals. The preliminary has: Canada vs China (Canada just beat them 5-0), Denmark vs Latvia, Czech Republic vs Switzerland and Slovakia vs Germany. Prelims are Monday night into Tuesday here.

 Steven Dubois has yet another bronze for Canada, this time in the 500m race.  This after missing out in the 3000m relay.  That is now 1g, 4s, 9b for 14 total.

 It will be Canada vs Switzerland and USA vs Finland in the semis. This morning Finland beat Japan 7-1 and Switzerland beat Russia 4-2. Yesterday Canada blew out Sweden 11-0 and USA beat Czech Republic 4-1. Semi final are Monday.

 How about another bronze, this one in team snowboard cross.  Meryeta O'Dine and Eliot Grondin has it after O'Dine and another competitor wiped out in the final.  O'Dine got up and crossed the line, finishing third. That is now 1g, 4s. 8b for 13 total.

 Isabelle Weidemann has a silver in the women's 5000m event with a time of 6:48.18. Irene Schouten of Netherlands won with a time of 6:43.51, an Olympic record). Weidemann is the first to medal in this distance since Clara Hughes in 2010 (bronze). That is now 1g, 4s, 7b for 12 total.  Yay.

 Yep another bronze, this time in team aerials. Marion Thenault (RBC athlete), Miha Fontaine and Lewis Irving picked up this bronze. That is now 1g, 3s, 7b for 11 total.

 What a race this was. A photo finish to determine gold and silver. Eliot Grondin ended up with a silver in the final of snowboard cross.  Great race for him. That is now 1g, 3s, 6b for 10 total. Yippee.  Happy bouncy.

 James Crawford has Canada's 9th medal of the games, this one a bronze in the men's combined downhill. His time was 2:32.11.  That is now 1g, 2s, 6b for 9 total. Redemption for missing out on the podium the other night.

 First day of men's hockey. Russia beat Switzerland 1-0 and Denmark surprised Czech Republic 2-1. Surprise. Pretty much it for day 5.

 This just happened. Steven Dubois just won a silver in the 1500m short track event. Would you believe there were 10 skaters? Yep. So that is now 1g, 2s, 5b for 8 total.

 Meryeta O'Dine has just won a bronze in snowboard cross.  Put up a pretty good run. Lindsay Jacobellis of the USA won gold. Canada now has 1g, 1s, 5b for 7 total.

 The medal ceremony for the team figure skating was postponed due to "an emerging legal issue" with one of the medalists (Russia, USA or Japan). Canada finished 4th in the event. They could end up with a medal. Stay tuned.

Japan beat Czech Republic in a shootout 3-2, Sweden beat Denmark 3-1 and Finland beat Russia 5-0. This sets up the quarter finals. The matchups are: USA vs Czech Republic (February 11), Canada vs Sweden (February 11), Russia vs Switzerland (February 12) and Finland vs Japan (February 12).  This should be fun.

 This was a good game. Canada beat the USA 4-2 and will finish first in group A, the USA will finish second.  Canada will face the third place team from group B, the USA will get the second place from group B. Will be fun to see how this shakes out. Oh yeah, Marie Philip Poulin scored a regulation time penalty shot during preliminary - a first.

 First from Kim Boutin. She won hers in the 500m short track event. I think she's four for four I'm individual races for medals And a first in ski jumping. In the team event. Mackenzie Boyd Clowes, Alexandria Loutitt, Matthew Soukup and Abigail Strate won bronze in the inaugural event.  Also the first time a North America nation has ever won a medal in ski jumping since 1924. How about that? So that is 1g, 1s and 4b for 6 total.  The four medals is also the most won on day 3. Previous high was 3 in 2014 and 2018. Yes.

 Double podium in snowboarding slopestyle. Max Parrot wins gold and Mark McMorris wins bronze. Couple of great runs. That is now 1g, 1s, 2b for 4 total. Now for some hockey.

 Kerri Einarson and the rest of team Canada beat Northern Ontario 9-6 to win their third straight Scotties. They will represent Canada at the upcoming world's and next year's Scotties. Congrats.

 Second medal of the games comes from the bumpy hill. Mikael Kingsbury won silver in the moguls. That is now 1s and 1b for 2 total.

 Start with the first medalists. Therese Johaug of Norway wins first gold of the games in 15k skiathlon. Natalya Nepryayeva of Russia with silver and Teresa Stadlober with bronze.  Speaking of bronze, Canada had picked up its first medal of the games, a bronze in the women's 3000m speed skating. Isabelle Weidmann has it with a time of 3:58.64.   Netherlands has the gold in this.

 Lost in the Olympic madness, the Scotties tournament of Hearts have been playing since last Friday. Today, the Northwest territories, led by Kerry Galusha, is into the championship round for the first time ever. Had to beat Mackenzie Zacharias of Manitoba in a tiebreaker to do it. They get New Brunswick in a semi final, and the winner faces Kerri Einarson in one final. Nova Scotia vs Northern Ontario in the other semi, with the winner playing Tracy Fleury in the other final. Different playoff format. Will be fun finding out who goes into the page playoffs.

The 2022 winter Olympics have officially begun. The opening ceremonies were pretty simple, as was the lighting of the cauldron. The cauldron was the torch inserted into a holder with a giant snowflake surrounding it. The snowflake was made from the placards of the 91 nations from the parade of nations.  Canada came in 27th and Italy, who was supposed to have been between New Zealand and Serbia, came in before host China. Italy is the next winter games host. Now it's back to bed to try get more sleep.

 We've made it. The 24tj winter Olympics begins officially tomorrow and goes to the 20th. 91 nations and 2871 athletes scheduled to participate. 1. Big air freestyle, women's monobob, team skiing aerials, team ski jumping, team snowboard cross and mixed short track relay are added sports. 2. Haiti and Saudi Arabia make their winter debuts here. 3. Mixed doubles, women's hockey and moguls have already begun. Mikael Kingsbury qualified easily and is in the final. He will be going for a medal Saturday morning. Canada beat Switzerland 12-1. They get Finland next. Rachel Homan and John Morris lost to Great Britain 6-4 and beat Norway 7-6. They play Switzerland next. 4. Canada is sending 215 athletes, the third most they've sent. 109 men and 106 women going. There are 118 first time Olympians. 5. Opening ceremonies are tomorrow morning at 6am Prince Albert time. Should be fun.

 Start with the loss. Rachel Homan and John Morris opened their mixed doubles tournament with a 6-4 loss to Great Britain. Bit of a sloppy game by both sides.  Canada gets Norway early Thursday morning. Now with the win. It wasn't much of a game as Canada opened the women's hockey with a 12-1 win over Switzerland.  Next game is Finland Friday night here/Saturday afternoon in Beijing.

 The 23rd winter Olympics was held in Pyeongchang from February 9-25. 93 nations and 2922 athletes participated. 1. Big air snowboard, mass start speed skating, mixed doubles curling, and team alpine skiing were added as new sports. 2. Ecuador, Eritrea, Kosovo, Malaysia, Nigeria and Singapore made winter debuts here. 3. Sven Kramer (Netherlands) wins gold in 5000m, becoming only male speed skater to win the same event three times. 4. Ireen Wust (Netherlands) wins individual gold for 4th consecutive Olympics, marking the first time that had ever happened. She is also first speed skater to win 10 medals. 5. Jorien Ter Mors (Netherlands) becomes first female to win a medal in two different sports in the same games. (1000m long track and 3000m relay short track) 6. Ester Ledecka (Czech Republic) becomes first female to win gold in two different sports in the same games (super-G skiing and snowboard parallel giant slalom. 7. Noriaki Kasai (Japan) became first athlete to participate in 8...

 ... Marie-Philip Poulin and Charles Hamelin. Nine Olympic Games between them and eight Olympic medals.  Two very good choices.

 South Korea has qualified for the World Cup as one of the top two in group a in the Asian qualifying. Them and Iran made it look easy in group A. Three teams are battling for two spots in group B.  Saudi Arabia, Japan and Australia are those teams. Two games left, anything can happen. Third place in each group will decide who plays in the inter conference game vs the 5th place team from South America.

 The 22nd (already 22) edition of the winter Olympics was held in Sochi Russia from February 7-23. 88 nations and 2873 athletes participated in the games. 1. Dominica, Malta, Paraguay, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, and Zimbabwe made their winter debut here. 2. Biathlon mixed relay, women's ski jumping, team figure skating, team luge, halfpipe skiing, snowboard slopestyle and snowboard parallel slalom among new events. 3. Eight podium sweeps. A. February 8, men's 5000m, Netherlands, Sven Kramer, Jan Blokhuijsen, Jorrit Bergsma B. February 10, men's 500m, Netherlands Michel Mulder, Jan Smeekens, Ronald Mulder C. February 13, men's slopestyle, USA, Joss Christensen, Gus Kenworthy, Nick Goepper  D. February 16, women's 1500m Netherlands, Jorian Ter Mors, Ireen Wust, Lotte Van Beek. E. February 18, men's 10000m Netherlands Jorrit Bergsma, Sven Kramer, Bob de Jong. F. February 20, men's ski cross, France, Frederic Chapuis, Arnaud Bovolenta, Jonathan Midol G. February ...

 To those who celebrate, happy Lunar New Year. It's the year of the tiger. I was born in the year of the tiger.  There will be many celebrations. Enjoy