sports // 18 Celebrate! » ..good tears, come on Eric Wilkins Assistant Editor i Massistant 4 | @theotherpress.ca iddle linebacker Stephen Tulloch of the Detroit Lions will finish his season on the injured reserve after tearing his ACL in a game against the Green Bay Packers. An ACL tear is one of the worst injuries that can befall an athlete and is definitely no laughing matter. Tulloch has been strong in the aftermath of his injury though. ‘Td do it again, brother. You do it every time. If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen. Just a matter of time,” said Tulloch to the Detroit Free Press. Said like a true warrior. No hesitation in wanting to lay his body on the line for the team again. Except that Tulloch’s injury wasn't due to a play in the game. It was his celebration that did him in. Shades of the immortal Bill Gramatica come to mind. The now former-NFL-active- leader in consecutive games played at linebacker (131) has received a great deal of flak for his embarrassing end to his season and his comments about it, but he shouldn’t. It’s not as if the man tried to pull offa gymnastics routine following his sack of Aaron Rodgers. Not even a backflip. He was just performing an overenthusiastic rendition of Rodgers’ Discount Double Check. Obviously, hindsight being 20/20, Tulloch wouldn’t do it he was going to tear his ACL, but he’s saying he’s not going to stop celebrating just because of one freak injury. Relative to other over-the-top exultations, Relative to other over-the-top exultations, Tulloch’s was tame. : Tulloch’s was tame. Giving a : man grief for an unfortunate : accident is unnecessary. Moving : on. Flogging this hung, dried, : and quartered horse one final : time before it’s completely gone, : Td like to say that it’s highly : unlikely that the Washington : Redskins name was intended as : an affront at its conception. Hear : me out. I’m going to write out a : line of reasoning with broccoli; : feel free to substitute the actual : party in discussion wherever you : see fit. I hate broccoli. I hate broccoli so much that I’m going ; to name a sports team after : it. This sports team will wear : broccoli logos on their helmets : and have matching uniforms to : boot. Fans of the squad will wear : broccoli merchandise and cheer : on the team raucously with : chants such as, “Go broccoli!” : Under the name broccoli, this : organization will perform a : number of charitable deeds in : the community while its players : try to be role models for young : athletes. Players will be proud to : be members of broccoli. Wish the whole “praise those whom you hate” fad : caught on as well elsewhere. : Also food for thought, here’s again at that moment if he knew : : African-American; Japanese, : Chinese, Korean—Asian; Indian; Aboriginal; white. Black, yellow, : brown, and red are racist. Why : not white? some inoffensive terms: theotherpress.ca A look at the NHL rule changes » New changes include a bigger trapezoid and no more spin-o-ramas in shootouts Nick Bondi The Peak (NUW) ? QO: September u, the NHL announced new rules that will go into effect this season, which are designed to allow for more goal-scoring opportunities—read on fora breakdown and analysis of the changes: Trapezoids: The trapezoid will now be expanded by two feet on each side. This will allow goalies more room to come out and handle the puck, leading to more turnovers and most likely : goals. The goalie coming out to play the puck more frequently will : : help to protect defencemen from : those nasty hits into the boards : that have been more prevalent : the last few years. I still wish : they would get rid of the whole : trapezoid though, as it would : make for some more interesting : dump-ins. : Spin-o-ramas: The NHL has : : eliminated the spin-o-rama in : shootouts altogether. I’m not a fan : : of this one, as it limits the moves : players can use in a shootout. : Isn’t the shootout supposed to : bea skills competition? Why say : toa player “you can’t use that : move’ if he has the skills to pull : it off? It takes away an exciting, : skill-oriented aspect from what is ! : a mostly-pointless portion of the : game. Instead, maybe the NHL : could start using international : shootout rules, where players can : shoot multiple times; now that : would be interesting. Tripping on breakaway: Players are no longer allowed to trip a player on a breakaway, : even if they get the puck first. Previously, a player could dive in : front of an opposing player ona : breakaway, effectively tripping : him, as long as the player on the : breakaway touched the puck first. : I don’t think this is a very good : idea, simply because it takes a : great deal of skill and awareness to knock the puck off a player on : a breakaway instead of simply : tripping him up. However, I’m not : : that upset about this rule, because : : who doesn’t want to see more : breakaways? Diving: The NHL can now : give out fines for players who : dive and embellish, but it’s not a : big enough fine, in my opinion. : Two thousand dollars is a drop : in the bucket fora guy making : $4-million a year, and that fine : only happens on the second : offence; the first garners a nice little warning. And why is the : coach getting fined? He starts : getting fined after a player’s : fourth offence, but he’s not the : one diving, and he's probably not : telling the guy on the bench to snap his head back. Faceoffs: After an icing call, : a team can now be penalized : for trying to delay a face-off—a : much-needed rule change. GMs : and coaches must have gotten sick : of players essentially cheating on : icings and going unpunished, and : doing so in plain sight no less. : Plus, it’s good for the fan; I was : tired of watching games where : the face-offs took twice as long : because a guy intentionally waived : himself out. Now with the threat : of a penalty, at least a player has to : think twice before cheating.