Happy Dominion Day!

Posted on July 1, 2015 by Edward Brain
The Maple Leaf

The Maple Leaf

Happy Dominion Day to everyone in Canada!  July 1st, 2015 marks the 148th birthday for the Dominion of Canada since Confederation on July 1st, 1867.

Confederation was created thanks to the hard work of many people, and helped to create the Canada we know today.

On July 1st, 1867, three British colonies: Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and the Province of Canada (the combined colonies of Upper and Lower Canada.)

Other provinces and territories were added over the years: Manitoba (1870), Northwest Territories (1870), British Columbia (1871), Prince Edward Island (1873), Yukon Territory (1898), Alberta (1905), Saskatchewan (1905), Newfoundland and Labrador (1949), and Nunavut (1999.)

So, Happy 148th Birthday, Canada!

English: Proclamation of Canadian Confederation

Proclamation of Canadian Confederation (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

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Matt Boyd Makes an Impresses in Major League Debut

Posted on June 27, 2015 by Edward Brain

Today, Toronto Blue Jays Pitcher Matt Boyd made a huge impression in his first ever major league appearance.  Despite losing the game 4-0 to the Texas Rangers and Yovani Gallardo (who pitched an impressive 8 1/3 innings), Boyd pitched with confidence.

Boyd would give up three solo homeruns to open the fourth, fifth, and seventh, he would get the next three batters out in the fourth and fifth, and the next two out in the seventh.  Boyd would also get seven strikeouts and no walks. Continue reading →

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Toronto Argonauts 2015 Season

Posted on June 26, 2015 by Edward Brain

The Toronto Argonauts open the 2015 regular season on June 27th vs. the Edmonton Eskimos in a game to be played in Fort McMurray, Alberta.  The game will count as a home game for the Argos.

In total, the Argos play 18 games, nine at home and nine on the road.  They play two games (one at home, one on the road) against the BC Lions, Calgary Stampeders, Edmonton Eskimos, Montreal Alouettes, Saskatchewan Roughriders, and Winnipeg Blue Bombers.  They play three games each against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Ottawa RedBlacks.

The schedule breaks down as follows: Continue reading →

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Dusty Rhodes has Passed Away

Posted on June 12, 2015 by Edward Brain

Legendary wrestler Virgil Runnels, known by his ring name of “The American Dream” Dusty Rhodes, has passed away at the age of 69.  Mr. Runnels was born on October 12th, 1945 in Austin, Texas.

Mr. Runnels broke into the wrestling in 1968 in the American Wrestling Association (AWA).  While there he teamed with Dick Murdoch. Continue reading →

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Union-Pearson Express Enters Service

Posted on June 7, 2015 by Edward Brain
Union-Pearson Express

Union-Pearson Express

On June 6th, 2015, the Union-Pearson Express (UPX) started service between Toronto’s Union Station and the Lester B. Pearson International Airport.

The trains, consisting of two or three car consists, are Diesel Multiple Units (DMUs), and depart from Union Station and the airport every 15 minutes, and take 25 minutes to go one way. Continue reading →

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2015 Stanley Cup Finals

Posted on June 3, 2015 by Edward Brain
The Stanley Cup.

The Stanley Cup.

The Stanley Cup Final is now set.  The Clarence S. Campbell Bowl winners, the Chicago Blackhawks will face off against the Prince of Wales Trophy winners, the Tampa Bay Lightning.

This is the first postseason meeting between the two teams.  This series marks the Lightning’s second ever appearance in the Finals.  They won the Cup in 2004 when they last made it to the Finals.  The Blackhawks are making their 13th appearance in the Finals, and have won the last two times they appeared in the Finals in 2010 and 2013.

The two teams split their regular season series at one win each.  Both teams played a seven game series in the Conference Finals to reach the Stanley Cup Finals, with the Blackhawks beating the Anaheim Ducks, and the Lightning beating out the New York Rangers.

Look for the Blackhawks to win in six games, but all the games should be close.

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Captain John’s leaves Town

Posted on May 28, 2015 by Edward Brain

Today, May 28th, 2015, Toronto bid farewell to the Jadran, the late home of Captain John’s Seafood restaurant.

The ship left its berth at the foot of Yonge Street under tow, and brings to an end a long battle of what should happen to the ship.  The restaurant had closed a couple of years ago.  The Jadran arrived in Toronto back in 1975. Continue reading →

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Happy Victoria Day

Posted on May 18, 2015 by Edward Brain
Queen Victoria

Queen Victoria (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Today, May 18th, 2015, is Victoria Day in Canada.  I want to wish every Canadian a very happy and safe Victoria Day.

Today marks the celebration of the birthday of Canada’s first monarch, Queen Victoria.  Since 1957, Victoria Day also marks the official birthday of our current Queen of Canada, Queen Elizabeth II.

English: Queen Elizabeth II at Queen's Park

English: Queen Elizabeth II at Queen’s Park (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

So, let’s celebrate two of the most important people in the history of our glorious country.

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2015 NHL Conference Finals

Posted on May 17, 2015 by Edward Brain

The NHL Conference Finals start May 16th, 2015 and will feature the following two series:

In the Eastern Conference, the New York Rangers will face off against the Tampa Bay Lightning.  New York is the defending Presidents’ Cup winners.  Tampa won all three regular season games between the two teams.  This is New York’s second straight Conference Final, and third in the last four years.  Tampa Bay last made it to the Conference Final in 2011.  New York won the Conference Final last year.  Look for New York to win in six games.

In the Western Conference, the Chicago Blackhawks face off against the Anaheim Ducks.  Chicago won two out of three regular season meetings between the two teams, and this is Chicago’s third straight Conference Finals.   The last time the Ducks made the Conference finals, they beat Detroit in six games, and went on to win the Stanley Cup.  This is the first postseason meeting between the two teams.  Look for Chicago to win a seven game series.

So let’s see if we will get an Original Six final!

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2015 NHL Conference Semi-Finals

Posted on April 30, 2015 by Edward Brain
The Stanley Cup.

The Stanley Cup

The Conference Semi-finals for the National Hockey League (NHL) is now set.

After the Conference Quarterfinals, two of the five Canadian teams that made the playoffs are still playing (Calgary and Montreal.)  Three of the ‘Original Six’ teams qualified for the Conference Semi-finals (Chicago, Montreal, and New York.)

Let’s look at the match-ups: Continue reading →

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