Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good a

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Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. Jason Verrett Super Bowl Jersey . This week they discuss Russias mens hockey team, the ineptitude of the IOC handling the Nicklas Backstrom situation, John Tortorellas many apologies, and Canadas strong showing in curling. Bruce Arthur, National Post My thumb is down to Russias national mens hockey program, which is still making reverberations a week after Sochi. After falling in the quarter-finals for the second straight Olympics, Russias NHL stars came back angry. As Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review wrote, Evgeni Malkin and Alex Ovechkin were unhappy for many reasons, but most of all resented the programs bias towards KHL players, which greatly distorted playing time, pairings, strategy, and felt like a punishment to Russian stars who dont play at home. Russia was one of the worlds great hockey powers, and a worthy rival to Canada; now its a mess, riven by petty rivalries. Its a shame, really. The Russians havent won a best-on-best tournament since the 1981 Canada Cup, and somehow they feel further away than ever. Steve Simmons, SUN Media My thumb is down to the International Olympic Committee for the mess it made of the Nicklas Backstrom gold medal game allergy pill fiasco. As a member of Swedens hockey delegation said, the IOC destroyed one of the greatest days in Olympic hockey history for the country. Backstrom, who did test positive for pseudo-ephedrine, didnt disagree with that assessment. The IOC first tested Backstrom last Wednesday. In the three days that followed, they never did do a second test. The Swedish team was not informed of Backstroms status until two hours before game time. Now dont get me wrong, the Swedes could have had Nicklas Backstrom, Ralph Backstrom, and all the Backstroms you can name available for the gold medal game and the result wouldnt have been different. What they didnt need was an unnecessary disruption, born of IOC ineptitude. Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated My thumb is down to John Tortorella, not for his most recent apology but for the continual need to apologize. This time, the Canucks coach launched into a mea culpa after saying he favored Sweden in the Sochi final because he wanted his Swedish Olympians - Daniel Sedin and Alex Edler - to return with smiles on their faces. Tortorella wears blinders. Professionally, he sees the small picture, nothing beyond his team. Belatedly, of course, he grasped context - Vancouver … Canada. So four weeks after apologizing for losing his mind between periods against Calgary, he again was at a microphone wearing a hair shirt and a tight expression. Thats Tortorella, the never-ending sorry. Dave Hodge, TSN My thumb is up to the excellence shown by Canadas Gold-medalists in curling - Jennifer Jones and her rink from Winnipeg and Brad Jacobs and his rink from Sault Ste. Marie. We used to take for granted Canadas worldwide dominance in curling, and then we didnt, because as good as the Canadians continued to be, several other countries showed they were capable of winning world titles. Not that Jones and Jacobs allow Canada to rest on its laurels, but the Sochi results were very impressive, and hows this for proof of Canadas wealth of curling talent - the Brier is underway in Kamloops and the field is strong with Jeff Stoughton, Kevin Koe, John Morris, and Brad Gushue. And imagine talking about a strong field that doesnt include Jacobs, Glenn Howard and Kevin Martin. DeForest Buckner Super Bowl Jersey .ca. In addition to the game being aired in its entirety on CTV Two Vancouver Island and TSN.ca, TSN2 will also have coverage of Whitecaps FC immediately following NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Toyota Owners 400. Nick Mullens Super Bowl Jersey .com) - The Winnipeg Jets placed defenceman Paul Postma on injured reserve Tuesday. https://www.49ersrookiestore.com/49ers-Nick-Bosa-Jersey/ . Olsen, who is 6-foot-3 and 305 pounds, can play either centre or guard. The 25-year-old Olsen played 16 games and made four starts in 2012 with the New Orleans Saints.Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - Braden Holtby stopped 31 shots to lead the Washington Capitals in a 2-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Monday. Jay Beagle and Alex Ovechkin scored for the Capitals, who have won five of their last six. When we play our game, we play the system, said Ovechkin. We feel good about our goalie, and he feels good. Hes been playing unbelievably, and we feel like we can win hockey games. Alex Tanguay scored the only goal of the game for the Avalanche, who had a three-game winning streak stopped. Semyon Varlamov stopped 36 shots in defeat. Im not happy that we lost but Im happy with our effort, said Colorado head coach Patrick Roy. We had some chances there in the third period and just couldnt put them away. The Capitals got on the board at 7:34 of the first period when Jason Chimera threw a shot on net off a faceoff and Beagle backhanded home the reebound. Fred Warner Super Bowl Jersey. Colorado tied the game on the power play at 10:58 of the second period on a rush play when Jarome Iginla brought the puck in down the left wing and sent a backhand pass to the slot. Tanguays initial one-timer was stopped, but he put in his own rebound for his 13th goal of the season. Washington took the lead back with 2:14 to play in the second off a crisp passing play that saw three passes, with the third going to the left circle for an Ovechkin one-timer and a 2-1 lead. Colorado peppered Holtby with 18 shots in the final period and pulled Varlamov with over two minutes to play, but was unable to net the equalizer. Game Notes Washington hosts Philadelphia on Wednesday ... Colorado started a five-game road trip, and will play in Carolina on Tuesday ... Colorado was 1-for-2 on the power play, and Washington was 1-for-3. ' ' '