Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. [url=https://www.custombaseballni

Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. Custom San Francisco Giants Nike Jerseys . This week, they discuss the strategy of the CFLPA, the Oilers hiring of Bob Nicholson, the Alouettes firing of offensive coordinator Rick Worman and the U.S. Open. Gary Lawless, TSN Radio - My thumb is down to the ill-fated strategy of the CFLPA and the underwhelming results theyve achieved once again. Disorganized and delusional best describe the players union in this latest CFL labour impasse. Their first offer was inflammatory and unattainable. They followed up with a series of retreats and eventual surrender. The CFLPA has followed the lead of legal counsel Ed Molstad since 1974. Lacking best describes the results. The CFLPA needs to represent its constituency with a spirit of inclusion and a face of diversity. The union must look inward and evolve. Questions must be asked and answered and hard decisions executed. The CFLPA finds itself at the intersection of change and rot. Its time to pick a new route. Steve Simmons, Sun Media - My thumb is up to Edmonton Oilers owner Darryl Katz for going outside the family and hiring Bob Nicholson to oversee everything that is Oiler. This isnt necessarily a hockey move as much as it is a business move but in either area Nicholson is clearly equipped for the challenge. And this is a challenge both in the standings and from what Katz wants from the newly formed business called Oilers Entertainment Group. Sports is no longer about only wins and losses. Its so much about veneer. In Edmonton, there will be a new downtown arena, an area to grow around it, a footprint for the future. When Nicholson took over Hockey Canada, it was a small disorganized operation, lacking in business acumen. He left it as a hockey corporation. The Oilers are fortunate to have him. Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated - My thumb is down to the Alouettes for the firing of offensive coordinator Rick Worman. Three months after coach Tom Higgins hired Worman, he canned him - before Montreal had played an exhibition game. Higgins was right to act sooner rather than later, unlike 2013 when the era of occupationally-challenged head coach Dan Hawkins lasted five games. But the abrupt dismissal speaks to the dysfunction of the franchise, whose owner, Robert Wetenhall, hired Higgins without involving GM Jim Popp. The Alouettes used to stand for quality on the field and steadfastness off it. If the Worman saga is an indication, soon the only thing the Alouettes will stand for is O Canada. Dave Hodge, TSN - My thumb is up to the U.S. Open golf championship, with emphasis on "open". To win the Masters, you have to be invited. To win the Open, you have to qualify, and everyone is eligible to try, which means anyone from anywhere can win. And that creates interest because "anyone" can be someone like 49-year-old Fran Quinn, who put his name on the leaderboard with a first-round 68. Who is Fran Quinn? He has one year of experience on the PGA Tour. Last year? No, 1992. He played in 18 events that year and he missed the cut 12 times. This year, he has played one event - on the Web.com Tour, golfs development league, if you will. Fran Quinn is still playing at Pinehurst - he followed his 68 with rounds of 74 and 79. He wont win. But he had a chance to win. Custom Houston Astros Nike Jerseys . Josh Mazzola drove in five runs to lead the Goldeyes (20-12) past the Capitales 11-5 Friday night at Le Stade Municipal in Quebec City. Custom Tampa Bay Rays Nike Jerseys . It was the first game back in Columbus for Rangers star Rick Nash, the Blue Jackets franchise leader in goals, assists and games. He was given a standing ovation during a video tribute in the first period, but was booed loud and long after a second-period, two-handed shove up high on Columbus goalie Sergei Bobrovsky. https://www.custombaseballnikejerseys.com/?tag=custom-st-louis-cardinals-nike-jerseys .ca NHL Power Rankings, finally overtaking the St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks, who rank second and third this week.SOCHI, Russia -- Swedish centre Nicklas Backstrom watched from the athletes village as his teammates lost 3-0 to Canada in the Olympic mens hockey final because he failed a doping test for a substance found in an allergy medication. "I was ready to play the biggest game of my career," Backstrom said Sunday following the game. "And two-and-a-half hours before the game, I got pulled aside." Backstrom paused, choked with emotion and appeared to be on the verge of tears. "Its sad," he said. The Swedish hockey team, meanwhile, was simply mad at the International Olympic Committee. "We are all very upset," said Tommy Boustedt, the teams general manager. "Our opinion is that IOC has destroyed one of the greatest hockey days in Swedish history." Boustedt lashed out at the IOC about the timing of its decision, saying it was "political" because it would make news. The governing body refused to fire back. "We will not comment on any potential process until it has concluded," IOC spokesman Mark Adams said. The International Ice Hockey Federation is taking the silver medal that would have been given to Backstrom in the post-game ceremony to its offices in Zurich while it waits for the IOC to decide whether it can be sent to Backstrom, according to IIHF spokesman Adam Steiss. Backstrom was punished more than another player was in the same situation four years ago. While playing for Slovakia at the 2010 Olympics, defenceman Lubomir Visnovsky tested positive for the same banned substance -- pseudoephedrine -- and was only reprimanded by the IOC because it said he declared on his doping control form that he was taking the medication. Backstrom, likewise, said he hasnt hid the fact that he takes the substance that is banned by the IOC during competition and was told by his Olympic team doctor he could take one pill a day without possible penalty. He was tested Wednesday after helping the Swedes beat Slovenia in the quarter-finals. He wwas pulled out of Swedens locker room four days later, just two-plus hours before the Sochi Games finale, and was informed he couldnt play. Custom Seattle Mariners Nike Jerseys. The Washington Capitals standout was supported by his Olympic team, NHL franchise, NHL Players Association and the IIHF. "I am convinced that Nicklas and the NHLPA will take this further," Boustedt said in Swedish during a news conference that lasted about 40 minutes. NHL deputy commissioner Bill Day issued a statement saying the substance Backstrom tested positive for is not on the leagues list of banned substances. "We do not anticipate there being any consequences relative to Nicklas eligibility," Daly said. The Capitals sent out a statement saying Backstrom has been taking the allergy medication intermittently for seven years, including this season, to cope with severe allergies. "The test was done on Wednesday and he was pulled out two hours before a game on Sunday, I think thats certainly flawed," NHLPA special assistant Mathieu Schneider said. Dr. Mark Aubry, chief medical officer of the IIHF, said Backstrom provided information correctly to the IOC about the medication he was taking. "He is the innocent victim of circumstances," Aubry said. Backstroms suspension from the gold-medal game may be a point of contention when the NHL and NHLPA negotiate with IOC about whether to let their players participate in the 2018 Olympics. He was listed in the team lineups distributed before the game, and his teammates later found out he wouldnt be with them on the ice. "Its too bad he couldnt play," Sweden winger Carl Hagelin said. "We lost a really good player." Backstrom is the sixth athlete to fail a doping test at the games. Five of the six, including Backstrom, tested positive for minor stimulants that are often found in food supplements. "They need examples to scare cheaters with, Nick is not one of them," Boustedt said. "And, thats why its awful." ' ' '