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HomeSportsHart AttackHartley Miller’s Hart Attack – October 2, 2015 Edition 543

Hartley Miller’s Hart Attack – October 2, 2015 Edition 543

Often a team that loses the first of a WHL double-header at CN Centre comes back with a victory in game two.

This was the case for the PG Cougars as they gained a split against the Everett Silvertips.

The Cats looked nervous, tense, uptight and apprehensive in the 2-0 loss. The players obviously felt the pressure of trying to live up to opening night hype.

The same Cougars team appeared poised, relaxed, calm and loose in a much better effort, a 5-1 convincing victory.

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There was some consistency though from the Cats in a couple of areas. Goaltending from both Ty Edmonds (33 saves Friday) and Mack Shields (25 saves Sunday) was superb.

The Special Teams shined with Prince George a combined 2 for 5 on the power play and 4 for 4 on the penalty kill. The Cougars have spent much time addressing these areas that have been a sore spot in recent seasons.

Meanwhile, attendance was under-whelming with 3,902 followed by 2,290. In 2014, the first two home games attracted 5,659 and 2,581 against Kelowna.

With September complete, focus turns to the October schedule that begins for the Cougars Saturday in Seattle. A six game home-stand will follow against Tri-City (Oct 9th-10th), Kelowna (Oct 16th-17th) and Calgary (Oct 20th-21st).

The month wraps up with four on the road: at Kelowna (23rd), at Vancouver (25th), at Kamloops (28th) and at Kelowna again (30th).

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No one with a straight face could suggest there is parity in the NFL. Green Bay and New England not only have the best quarterbacks, but they are the best of the seven teams that sit 3-0.

It’s far too early to suggest the Packers and Patriots are on a Super Bowl collision course. Last year the Seahawks were 3-3 before winning the NFC.

However, handicapping the race at this juncture, Green Bay and New England are pardon the pun at the head of the “Pack”.

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Aaron Rodgers greatness should not be taken for granted. His quick release and pin point passing is second to none. Since the start of 2014, he has 48 touchdown passes and just 5 interceptions.

Rodgers has not thrown an interception at home in nearly three years, a span of 580 attempts (during which has tossed 48 TD passes).

This year, Rodgers has thrown 10 TD passes without an interception but Tom Brady doesn’t take a back seat with 9 TD passes without a pick. Brady also leads the league in passing yards, averaging 370.7 per game.

A Rodgers-Brady Super Bowl would enhance the debate about who is the better quarterback but more importantly who plays for the better team.

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Injuries to star quarterbacks continue to pile up at an alarming rate. In the NFL, with the season just three weeks and one game old, Ben Roethlisberger and Tony Romo are already on the sidelines for several weeks. Drew Brees and Jay Cutler did not suit up last Sunday.

In the CFL, just two of the nine teams, Calgary and Ottawa, have not had a starting QB on the long term injury list this season.

Whether they are drop back passers or running quarterbacks, the game’s most important player remains vulnerable.

There is no concrete answer to this dilemma but it’s noteworthy a player like Eli Manning has never missed a game since entering the league in 2004.

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Manning has a streak of 173 consecutive regular season starts, which is 3rd all-time behind his brother Peyton Manning (208 from 1998-2011) and the retired (we believe) Brett Favre (297 from 1992-2010).

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The BC Lions are exactly 2/3 into their 18 game regular season schedule. The 4-8 Lions still have the worst ranked offence in the CFL (316.1 yards per game) but they have moved up to the second worst ranked defence in the League (392.5 yards allowed per game), four yards better than Saskatchewan.

BC hasn’t missed the playoffs in 19 years but they are in danger of not qualifying this season.

The Lions sit two points out of the last post-season berth held by Montreal although the Lions have a game in hand and would win a tie-breaker. In addition, BC has a favorable schedule with four of its last six games at home.

They play each team, except Montreal and Ottawa, once more. The next two games are home to Saskatchewan Saturday and to Winnipeg Oct 10th.

The Riders and Bombers are struggling more than the Lions but if the trend continues there’s a strong possibility three Western teams will miss the playoffs for the first time.

It’s taken many years, but finally CFL East is not Least.

From the Quote Rack:

The MLB season might really be going on too long. This year the Blue Jays may end up playing meaningful games longer into 2015 than the Maple Leafs.

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The Washington Nationals have suspended closer Jonathan Papelbon after a dugout incident which he choked teammate Bryce Harper. Apparently, Papelbon was just trying to do to Bryce what the Nationals have done on the field since he arrived two months ago.

Contributor Janice Hough of Palo Alto, California www.leftcoastsportsbabe.com

At the UN, in a heated clash with Vladimir Putin, President Obama assured the Russian President that there would be no American boots on the ground in the Nationals clubhouse.

Fred Upton, a Michigan Republican and Chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, attended a meeting of House Republicans and tweeted ‘No Fireworks, No Papelbon’. Maybe he should try a meeting of the Taiwan Parliament.

Contributor Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe, California

Don Cherry defended Washington Nationals’ pitcher Jonathan Papelbon in his attempted choking of teammate Bryce Harper in the dugout. Can someone start a poll and find out how long the lineup would be of people that want to strangle Don Cherry?

Ragnar the Minnesota Viking’s mascot has been told to take a hike after asking for a pay raise from $1,500 per game to $20,000 per and a 10 year contract. Meanwhile, many CFL players are on the team’s side, and aid “What’s wrong with making $1,500 a game?”

Comedy writer TC Chong of Vancouver http://alwaysfunny.com/

Reuters reports U.S. scientists have designed an “invisibility cloak” and have had success making things disappear. Who have they been testing it on, the Washington Nationals?”

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In honour of the pope’s U.S. visit, the Philadelphia Phillies gave out “Pope Francis rookie cards” during a game. Don’t laugh: word is he’s a real pray-maker.

Comedy writer RJ Currie www.Sportsdeke.com


And in case you missed it:

A woman gave birth at San Diego’s Petco Park during a recent Giants-Padres game. Fans didn’t have to spank the baby to get him to cry. They simply informed him the Padres were 11 games under .500.

Comedy writer Jerry Perisho

Hartley Miller is the sports director and morning news anchor for 94.3 the Goat. His column appears Fridays on myprincegeorgenow.com. Send along a quote, note, or anecdote to [email protected]
Follow him on twitter: @Hartley_Miller

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