The Fifth Liners

It has been a big week trade wise in Ontario and the Toronto Blue Jays have succeeded in giving fans a renewed faith. After a season of fans and experts talking about changes that needed to be made, GM Alex Anthopoulous has apparently been listening keenly. From out of nothing the last 48 hours have been a trade deadline whirlwind. On Wednesday, All Star short-stop Troy Tulowitzki was traded to Toronto from Colorado Rockies for Jose Reyes , Miguel Castro , Jeff Hoffman and Jesus Tinoco. This move came a big but very welcome surprise to Jays fans and it is a move that has bolstered their already thriving offense. There were rumblings that Tulo wasn't made aware of the deal until moments before and that he wasn't at all happy. Any baseball fan could probably side with his mentality here because his entire career had been played at Coors Field. Despite any misgivings, he still gave Toronto fans a debut to remember with a home run blast in an 8-2 win over the Phillies. Given

Brendan Shanahan's rebuild of the Toronto Maple Leafs took another turn today as it was announced that Lou Lamoriello has been hired as new team GM. Having held the same post at the New Jersey Devils since 1987, Lamoriello is certainly experienced. Under his reign, the Devils took home three Stanley Cups from 1995 to 2003. However, will his lack of progress since then hinder Toronto's chances? The first thought we have to contend with is that is Lamoriello jumping from one sinking ship to another which has already sunk? His 28 years in New Jersey brought about some great results, he was the first GM in the NHL to bring across Soviet players into North America. Also he brought about 21 play-off appearances and nine division titles, for his efforts Lamoriello was inducted to the NHL Hall of Fame in 2012. Asides from the roll of honor, there are some minor facts to be considered, such as the fact that from 2010 onwards, New Jersey has only made one trip to the play-offs. Alt

Hockey fans cast your mind back to the night of May 16th, 1995, when the Quebec Nordiques lose 4-2 to the New York Rangers at MSG. Bitterly disappointed, the Nordiques play-off run had come to an end in the first round over six games. The next season would prove to be the ultimate disappointment to Quebec City as their beloved team relocated to Denver, Colorado. Since this day, Quebec City has been dry of hockey and despite local passion and hope still hanging in the air, no return has come about. There had been problems developing for years before hand as the limited market in this part of Quebec had been causing the team to suffer financially. Also being pretty much a monolingual city had also harmed their marketability to attract bigger players. At this stage, Quebec had a fine roster including future hall of famers, Joe Sakic as well as Peter Forsberg and previously held big names like Mats Sundin and Peter Stastny . Quebec City lack of English speaking culture proved a deturr

As the the free agency period drags on, there are still some note worthy names who have yet to find a new home. Here are the pick of the bunch who still remain un-signed. Cody Franson  The 27 year old blue-liner has been the source of much speculation this summer, but as yet no offer has been made. Last season splitting his time between Toronto and Nashville, his form declined after being traded in February. Franson has a good shot and has proven to be a solid D-Man in years gone by. The main problem is the $3.3 million cap hit that his signing would bring. Still, I believe this man is one name that shouldn't be left floundering in free agency for this long. Alexander Semin After having the remaining $7 million bought out of his contract after a poor season for Carolina, Semin is search for a new dawn. Although he has proven to be a solid pro, his point production has slowed over the years after leaving Washington. However, at only 31 years old, Semin still has plenty to pr

Nothing spices up a surfing competition like a good old fashion shark attack. That's what Australian surfer, Mick Fanning found today during a World Surf League competition in South Africa. Bravely Fanning defended himself while the shark attacked him from behind- talk about a sneak attack! Luckily Fanning wasn't hurt, but the days competition was cancelled. Kudos to the big man- from both of us here.

It has been announced that the long saga involving Raheem Sterling 's future at Liverpool has been resolved. The club today has accepted a bid over £49 Million from Manchester City . Apart from the fact that is an astonishingly high sum for a club be playing for a player who is only 20 years old, the real question will be is he worth it? This summer has been filled with the will he/won't he spectulation, but is Manchester City really the club for this guy? Sterling is unquestionably a talented player and Liverpool losing him will be a big blow. However, I do not feel that he is really worthy of this kind of transfer fee. Many people sneered when Gareth Bale went to Real Madrid for £85 million. Prior to that he had two PFA Player of the Year award's in his corner and had been one of the leagues most talented wingers. A Champions League winners medal later and everyone saw just how valuable he could potentially be. Sterling however is still in the early dawn of a playing

Admittedly this year's Free Agency pool was only ankle deep and compared to previous seasons there was not the big names for bidding.  However, there were still some bargains to be had and there was flurry of signings come July 1st. Here are my personal top 3 picks Justin Williams  Although William's goal production had been slowing the last few years at LA, the Washington Capitals have got themselves a bargain. Williams at 33 is still an effective right wingers which can be used to anchored the second or third line. The Capitals with the exception of Ovechkin and Holtby are a team that still needs rounding out. Williams also have extensive experience of the post season, including three Stanley Cup wins. His Conn Smyth Trophy  win in 2014 shows just what an asset he can be to a team.  P A Parenteau  Things didn't end happily in his season in Montreal, but 32 year old Parenteau still has life left in him. Signing for the Toronto Maple Leafs is a smart move as the te

After becoming a free agent, today Martin St Louis has announced his retirement after 16 glorious years. There has been much speculation about the 40 year old's future, but after only 1 goal in 19 playoffs games last season, team were not stepping up to sign him. St Louis scored an impressive 391 goals and 1,033 points from 1,134 regular-season games in a career that took in Calgary Flames , Tampa Bay Lightning and lately the New York Rangers . In 2004, St Louis had his most successful year as he helped the Lightning to a Stanley Cup win and was also awarded the Art Ross, Ted Lindsay and the Hard Trophy for his career best showing. He was also selected for over six different All-Star games. Noted for being one of the smaller players in the NHL, St Louis was noted for being a passionate player. Also he felt that being forced into a more checking role whilst at Calgary 'helped to round out my game'. Even when he was traded to the Rangers in 2014, St Louis was still a fe