Hallelujah!!!

Sometimes in my world it is hard to be a fan. 'My teams' as I refer to them have in the past been rather, well let's just say, underperforming. The Oilers were nowhere close to a play - off spot this year despite lofty expectations. The Blue Jays have been a colossal disappointment in my eyes. The Washington Redskins were a bright spot this year. And the NBA is, well, the NBA and something I will watch only when required. That being said, the only NBA mention today is that I sincerely hope that the Indiana Pacers knock off Miami tonight in Game Seven. What a treat that would be for all those who root for the underdog.

That being said, every year around this time something pops up which will more or less consume me for the next five plus months. I will read as much as I can, watch as much as I can, and just generally immerse myself in much of the CFL, in particular the Roughriders, as humanly possible.

Training Camp kicked off yesterday in Saskatoon as the Riders kick off the 2013 season, one which will see Mosaic Stadium host the 101st Grey Cup in November. The eternal optimist I am when it comes to being a fan, I have very high hopes for this club this season and want nothing more than to sit there with the old man in Novemeber and watch the Riders play for the Cup on their home turf. My Dad and I have been to a Grey Cup featuring the Riders before but let's just say 2009 wasn't really a bright spot in my sporting experiences.

Camp got off to an even better than expected start with the return of John Chich after a four year hiatus in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts and Jacksonville Jaguars. Chick, who says he is better than he was when he headed south in 2009 instantly makes our defence that much better. If he is 75% of what he was when he left, we have truly improved the strenght of our D - Line. It is not out of the question to say that a healthy, productive Chick, along with likely starters Keith Shologan, Tearrius George and Ricky Foley could have turned our biggest weakness into a strenghth on the that side of the ball. Throw in the recently acquired Jermaine McElveen and we could be the envy of the league when it comes to pressuring the QB and stopping the run.

I love the fact that Chich was very open about his decision to come to Regina for a second time. He loved it here the last time, knew what Ridernation has to offer and he embraces that. His wife is on board as well which provides us the hope that he could be around for a few years to come. There are those naysayers who will say he is old and past his prime. To them I would say time will tell.

One bit of news which surprised me somewhat was the fact that the Riders have Tyron Brackenridge playing Safety. I know he has the skillset required to play in that position but thought Craig Butler was very effective at Safety. Then again moving Butler to the WILL linebacker position could provide us better coverage over the middle against the likes of Nik Lewis. Again, before I render judgement I would point out that Corey Chamblin and Richie Hall know a lot more about running a CFL defense than I do, so again, time will tell. We all know from last year Coach Chamblin is not afraid to make adjustments so things could very well change between now and July.

Offensively, the sky is truly the limit for this club in my mind. The addition of George Cortez, who we all know likes to stretch the field and 'go big' if you will is music to this fans years. Darian Durant can on any given day be the best QB in this league. If the system works like it should, you add that skillset to the recieveing corps we have along with the likes of Sheets and Sanders in the backfield and look out. Taj Smith, Weston Dressler, Chris Getzlaf, Rob Bagg, Geroy Simon, Greg Carr, and the list goes on. I realize Smith and Carr in particular have a lot to prove and Bagg needs to stay healthy but who wouldn't like that crop of recievers in camp. Not to mentions Kierrie Johnson who apparently was very impressive from what I understand on Day One of camp.

Whether or not Butler stays at LB, they still have two quality men there. Rey Williams just makes his way to the ball and prior to an ankle injury last seaosn Abraham Kromah was quite impressive as well.

In the secondary, there are a lot of decisions to be made as evidenced by the turnover back there last season. All I can say based on last season is prior to injust Milt Collins was pretty good, Terrell Maze was the most consistent all season despite the fact people still want to pin the loss in the WSF on him and I really liked the play of Macho Harris at the end of the season. I would not be surprised to see Harris line up at one of the Halfback positions on June 29th in Edmonton.

Again, the Riders become my second life this time of year, and if you come to this blog semi - regularly you will quickly realize that. Please, keep coming back, see what I have to think and don't be afraid to throw in your two cents from time to time. It would be vey much appreciated.

On to the NHL, and here are my random thoughts as both Conference Finals are underway:

* Johnathon Quick looks human after LA's Game Two loss in Chicago. Don't count out the Kings quite yet though. Despite being in an 0 - 2 hole they are very tough to beat at home.

* I love watching the Pittsburgh Penguins grow frustrated as they did on Saturday night against Boston. The Bruins are clearly trying to goad the more skilled Pens into the style of play the Flyers made them play in the opening round last year and we all know how well that went. Crosby needs to get his nose out of those scuffles if the Pens have any hope of winning. His skating into Tukka Rask was in a word, classless and what is he thinking playing with the big boys like Chara. Unless the Pens get back to the puck control game they need to play for success, Boston will win that series in short order.

* Damien Cox still thinks he knows everything about all that is sports. For an increased sense of frustration on your part coupled with a not so subtle hint of egotistical rhetoric give him a follow on Twitter. He could be incensing you in a matter of seconds.

* The Edmonton Oilers HAVE to make some moves this year to address their glaring needs on the back end as well as provide them with some grit. Ryan Jones is a keeper but the Ben Eager isn't getting it done. Shawn Horcoff should probaly start concerning himself with that inevitable phone call also. I would not be shocked to see Mactavish do something big. It might not work, but at least it will show an effort on his part to make necessary changes unlike his predecessor.

* Tiger Woods weekend at Muirfield was delightful; at least from a fan's perspective it was. He said after the conclusion of yesterday's round the greens didn't look fast but they rolled fast to account for his poor putting. Uh, wouldn't he have figured this out by, oh I don't know, Friday?

* Another solid week for Graham Delaet, T21 and a coold $50K in his pocket.

* Got to run, it's been fun.