TODAY’S LINEUP
A look at the top sports stories in today’s edition of The Herald:
1. Call this one the migraine on ice
Team USA played two scoreless periods before warming up in Wednesday’s quarterfinal hockey game against Switzerland. The 2-0 win was anything but impressive, while our neighbors to the North followed it up with a convincing spanking of gold-medal contender Russia. All that Canada needs to do to get that golden rematch with the U.S. is take Satan’s kingdom down. Slovakia’s Miroslav Satan, that is. The Slovakians made sure that defending champion Sweden wouldn’t get another shot at gold.
2. And they’re not the only U.S. hockey team opening eyes
The Silvertips got a huge win Wednesday night, beating Spokane 2-1 to solidify their hold on second place in the U.S. Division. The Tips are in postseason form, although most of them are too young to start growing the playoff beards yet.
3. Playing tag, which is just what the Seahawks’ defense was doing last year
Olindo Mare went from the coach’s doghouse to the franchise’s penthouse in a matter of months. The Seahawks kicker was given the franchise tag Wednesday, which means his salary will match that of the top-five-paid kickers in the NFL. The man who criticized Mare early last season, Jim Mora, was given a different designation: the franchise slap.
4. Now he knows how Jon Kitna felt when the Lions took Matt Stafford
Mariners first baseman Mike Carp is trying to figure out what his role is after the M’s spent much of the offseason upgrading his position. It’s too early to say what role Carp will have, but they’ve already earmarked a parking spot for him at Tacoma’s Cheney Stadium.
5. Maybe she should take over for Danielle Lawrie, too
UW sophomore basketball player Kristi Kingma is used to taking over for star teammates, having moved into the role of go-to scorer behind Dani Oster for the Jackson soccer team a few years ago. Now Kingma is in a similar situation, only this time she’s not waiting until Huskies leading scorer Sami Whitcomb graduates before taking over as the main scoring option. One role that Kingma rarely fills as a Husky is the one where she’s sitting in the winning locker room.
THE WARMUP PITCH
Broken pinky, damaged relationship
Golden girl Lindsey Vonn fell short in her quest for another medal;http://www.cbssports.com/olympics/story/12973375/vonn-crashes-breaks-right-pinkie-in-giant-slalom-race?tag=headlines, and it got worse. She broke her pinky on a fall, then got into a media spat with teammate Julia Mancuso. The mountains of Whistler just got a whole lot icier.
A big ouch in West Lafayette, Ind.
One of the “haves” in college basketball lost a key component Wednesday when Purdue star Robbie Hummel went down with a knee injury in a win over Minnesota. Husky fans might remember Hummel from last year’s NCAA tournament. You do remember what the NCAA tournament is, don’t you Husky Nation?
Playmaker won’t get charged with making a play
Not sure if this really fits in the “good news” file, but Hall-of-Fame receiver Michael Irvin got some relief, at least, when prosecutors decided not to pursue rape charges against him. And they said the Cowboys don’t get any breaks after November.
Sad news from the Seahawks family
It was learned Wednesday that Mosi Tatupu, the father of Seahawks linebacker Lofa Tatupu, died at the age of 54. The Herald did a story on their relationship a few weeks before Lofa’s rookie season began in 2005 , and it’s clear how much respect the son had for his father, who also played in the NFL.
CURVE BALLS
The wild and wacky news from the world of sports …
Well, his OTHER brother must’ve been on something
The headline piqued our attention, but we soon found out that a tell-all book by Mark McGwire’s brother had nothing to do with one-time Seahawks bust Dan McGwire. Jay McGwire wrote a book about steroid use. His next book will be about how his grandmother was the best quarterback prospect in the family.
Why we’re starting to miss the days when boxing was king
UFC fighter Frank Mir took a few steps over the line this week when he told a Pittsburgh radio station that he hoped to literally murder heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar in the ring. It’s another black eye for a sport designed to give out black eyes. Suddenly those brawls at Silvertips games are starting to look tame by comparison.
What he meant to say was ‘filthy commies’
NBC commentator Mike Milbury may have put his skate in his mouth when he referred to the Russian team as “Eurotrash” on Wednesday. Off the air, he made somewhat of an apology, saying: “Well, those donut-eating hosers from up north deserved better competition.”
THE RUNDOWN
When it comes to international competition like the Olympics, rivalries are natural. But this year’s Winter Games seem to have spawned a few more than the usual America-hates-Russia variety:
5. U.S. hockey vs. Team Canada: It’s looking more and more like these two teams are headed for a gold-medal rematch. It’s also looking like the Americans should want no part of it.
4. Canada vs. Team Canada: Before Wednesday’s win over Russia, the Canadian hockey team looked primed for deportation.
3. Lindsey Vonn vs. Julia Mancuso: Post-Olympic idea for pay-per-view: cage-match downhill.
2. Johnny Weir vs. PETA: Hate to say it, but we’re with PETA on this one. Wearing fur is bad enough. But taunting a pro-animal organization? Weir is skating past Tonya Harding on the most-hated Olympian list.
1. Sven Kramer vs. his ego: The Dutch speedskater chewed out a reporter for having the gall to ask him what his name was. Then Kramer lost a gold medal when he couldn’t keep track of which lane he was supposed to occupy.
Contact The Closer at inthebullpen@heraldent.com.
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