There are so many random things rattling around in this old brain at times that we just feel like writing about them all. This is one of these times.
Blais off to slow start in an effort to crack Canucks roster
When you are a good hockey club, there aren’t too many roster spots that are available.
That’s the dilemma that Sammy Blais is facing.
The 28-year-old is with the Canucks on a PTO and is trying to stick with the club as a depth forward.
It’s uncharted territory for Blais, who has seven NHL seasons under his belt and a Stanley Cup ring with the St. Louis Blues to his credit.
“It’s kind of new coming to a new team on a PTO. I’m just trying to be myself out there. It’s been a little nerve-wracking but I’ve been around the NHL a long time and I know what to do to be successful. If I just play my game, I’ll be fine,” Blais told reporters earlier this week.
Blais suited up for the Canucks first two pre-season games but failed to register a point and wasn’t overly impressive in either the 3-1 win over Seattle or the 4-3 victory against Calgary.
“I really want him to elevate and fight for a position. I think he has to elevate his fitness a little more so he can be faster out there but we are going to give him a chance. We need him to be that forechecker who is a heavy guy. We are going to keep working with him,” said Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet after the Seattle game.
Blais will get another opportunity this week when the Canucks travel to Seattle and Calgary for a pair of games on Friday and Saturday respectively.
Lions Rugamba is an amazing story
During this week’s edition of ‘B.C. Lions on Tap’ – which airs every Tuesday at 10 p.m. on CKNW 980 – our guest was Lions halfback Manny Rugamba.
Rugamba was born in a refugee camp in Zambia after his family fled war-torn Rwanda. The family moved to Chicago when Manny was two and sports became a big thing for Manny and his siblings.
In fact, Rugamba came into the game of football more by chance than design.
The youngest of 11 children, Rugamba watched his older brothers play basketball and was set to register for a local youth league in the Chicago area.
One small problem.
“We went through the paperwork of registering at a local rec centre and found out I wasn’t old enough. I was nine and you had to be ten. I started to cry because I wanted to play basketball with my brothers. So were driving out of the rec centre and there was a big sign – Trojans football – so my mom signed me up,” recalled Rugamba.
His journey in the game of football took him to the University of Iowa, Miami of Ohio, a Cleveland Browns training camp and now to B.C.
Through it all, Rugamba’s experiences in life have kept things in perspective.
“It makes football not so hard. It’s like I’ve already done the hardest thing I’m going to do in my life which is survive. Every day out of that refugee camp is profit because I’ve had family members that didn’t make it out and have passed,” Rugamba told us.
A’s long history with baseball in Vancouver
The Oakland A’s 3-2 victory over the Texas Rangers on Thursday night marked the end of their 57-year run in the Bay Area with the team moving to Sacramento next season and eventually to Las Vegas.
I – like many others – am upset that it got to this but that’s another story for another time.
The history of baseball has always appealed to me and when looking at the Athletics over the years, you’d be hard-pressed to ignore their connection to Vancouver.
Did you know that the A’s organization has deep ties to baseball in Vancouver that spans over sixty years?
The Pacific Coast League Vancouver Mounties pre-dated the A’s move to Oakland from Kansas City in 1968 and was the organization’s Triple-A farm team from 1965 to 1968. Players such as Joe Rudi, Blue Moon Odom, Paul Lindblad and Sal Bando – all of whom would play key parts of the A’s three consecutive World Series championships from 1972 to 1974 - played in Vancouver. Future Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa also suited up for the Mounties during this time.
The Mounties left in 1969 but Pacific Coast League baseball returned in 1978 in the form of the Vancouver Canadians and it was the A’s who stocked the team for that first season. The affiliation would return for the final season of Triple-A baseball in Vancouver in 1999.
That team would win the Pacific Coast League title and the Triple-A World Series. It saw the A’s future ‘Big Three’ of starting pitchers Mark Mulder, Tim Hudson and Barry Zito all spending time in Vancouver as well as future A’s stars Eric Chavez and Ramon Hernandez.
When the Triple-A franchise moved to Sacramento the following season, the Northwest League version of the Canadians came to Vancouver and that team would be affiliated with Oakland as well.
That run lasted 11 seasons with future major leaguers like Nelson Cruz, Nick Swisher, Andre Ethier and Dallas Braden honing their craft at Nat Bailey Stadium.
UBC Hockey Alumni continue with solid support
The UBC Thunderbirds hockey team is coming off an extremely successful season having won its first Canada West championship in 53 years and a big reason why head coach Sven Butenschon’s squad has had success is because of the support they are receiving from alumni.
This week the UBC Hockey Alumni held their annual golf tournament at Marine Drive Golf and Country Club in Vancouver on Sept. 23 with over 150 golfers taking part. The entire UBC team was also on hand as the program tries to get their players to network with alumni.
“It’s almost like the recent alumni involvement has directly translated to what’s happening on the ice. Of course, there’s a lot that goes into it such as recruiting, player development and school support but the alumni are the backbone and foundation of all that. They’ve allowed us to become one of the top teams in Canada,” explained Butenschon.
The Thunderbirds open their 2024-25 season at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Center on Oct. 4 against the University of Calgary and will be raising their championship banner that night.
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