It's Thursday

It's Thursday. Here's what's happening....

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Today is October 4th, the 278th day of 2012. There are 88 days left in the year.

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Shining a light on some lesser-known NHL records.

U.S. to hold World Junior camp in New York.

Visit the official league website, http://www.nhl.com/.

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The first complete English translation of the Bible was printed in Zurich, Switzerland on this date in 1535.

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National Team Development Program Weekly Update U.S. National Under-18 Team to Start Collegiate Schedule Against Ranked Foes; U.S. National Under-17 Team Takes to Road Versus Indiana U18 TEAM SETS OUT TO BEGIN COLLEGE SCHEDULE: The U.S. National Under-18 Team sets out to start its collegiate portion of the 2012-13 season. The U18s first take on the University of Wisconsin on Saturday (Oct. 6). Puck drop is scheduled for 9 p.m. EDT at the Kohl Center. The Badgers are currently ranked No. 15. The following evening (Oct. 7), Team USA squares off against The University of Notre Dame at the Compton Family Ice Arena. The game starts at 6 p.m. EDT. The Fighting Irish are currently ranked No. 10. U17 TEAM TAKES TO ROAD VERSUS INDIANA: The U.S. National Under-17 Team takes to the road for one game this weekend (Oct. 5) versus the Indiana Ice. Puck drop is scheduled for 8:05 p.m. EDT at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The U17s are currently 1-1-0 (W-L-OTL) in regular season United States Hockey League play. U17s SPLIT OPENING WEEKEND IN USHL: The U.S. National Under-17 Team defeated the Des Moines Buccaneers, 6-1, in its first regular season USHL tilt on Sept. 28. Dylan Larkin (Waterford, Mich.) andChris Wilkie (Omaha, Neb.) notched one goal and added one assist each in the victory. Jack Eichel(North Chelmsford, Mass.) chipped in with two assists. Thatcher Demko (San Diego, Calif.) turned aside 41 shots for Team USA in the win. The following night (Sept. 29), six straight goals by the Muskegon Lumberjacks put the game out of reach despite a three goal comeback attempt in the third period by Team USA. Larkin tallied two goals while Ryan Hitchcock (Manhasset, N.Y.) and Dylan Pavelek (Marysville, Mich.) recorded two assists each in the loss. Kevin Labanc (Staten Island, N.Y.) connected with Wilkie on the only other U.S. goal. UNDER-18 TEAM NEWS/NOTES: Two players will join the U.S. National Under-18 Team this weekend for its games against the University of Wisconsin and the University of Notre Dame. Ryan Fitzgerald(North Reading, Mass.) and Connor Hurley (Eagan, Minn.) will fill roster spots vacated due to injury. Fitzgerald, a forward currently suiting up for the Valley Jr. Warriors of the Eastern Junior Hockey League, is coming off MVP honors at the CCM/USA Hockey All-American Prospects Game on Sept. 29, at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, N.Y. He is ranked as a "B" skater on the National Hockey League Central Scouting Services preliminary draft rankings. Hurley is a forward from Edina (Minn.) High School. He is also ranked as a "B" skater on the NHL CSS preliminary draft rankings. UNDER-17 TEAM NEWS/NOTES: Forward Jack Eichel had his four game point streak (4-5) snapped on Sept. 29 versus Muskegon. He still leads the team in points with nine ... Sonny Milano (Massapequa, N.Y.) also had his point streak snapped on Sept. 29. Milano's goal on Sept. 28 gave him points in four straight. The forward is tied for second on the team in points (3-3) ... Chris Wilkie now has at least one point in each of Team USA's first five games. The forward has six points (2-4), which is tied for second most on the squad ... After being held off the scoresheet in the first three tilts this season, Dylan Larkinput up back-to-back, two-point games. The forward now has three goals and one assist in five games.  For the complete weekly update, click here. ABOUT THE NTDP: In 1996, USA Hockey launched a revolutionary new initiative called the National Team Development Program, based in Ann Arbor, Mich. Currently in its 16th season of play in 2012-13, the goal of this full-time development program is to prepare student-athletes under the age of 18 for participation on U.S. National Teams and success in their future hockey careers. Its efforts focus not only on high-caliber participation on the ice, but creating well-rounded individuals off the ice. USA HOCKEY AND THE INTELLIGYM: The U.S. National Under-17 and Under-18 Teams utilize The Hockey IntelliGym, a revolutionary software program that trains hockey sense. To learn more, visit USAHockeyIntelliGym.com. THE USHL AND FASTHOCKEY: Catch all of Team USA's USHL action on FASTHockey.com, the premier online destination for ice hockey fanatics from around the world. Visitors can choose from an incredible array of games from national governing bodies, conferences, leagues, teams, tournaments, and other events.

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On this date in 1648, The first volunteer fire department was established in New York by Peter Stuyvesant.

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Corvallis, OR. -- His teammates might find this hard to believe, but Brandin Cooks arrived at Oregon State thinking he wouldn’t get close with anyone. Get in, get work done on the football field, graduate and move on, Cooks thought to himself.

Read the rest here.

The Oregon State beavers put their 3-0(2-0 in the Pac-12) record on the line on Saturday, when they host the 2-3 (0-2 in the Pac-12) Washington State Cougars. Kickoff is set for 6:00pm EDT on 1190 KEX, the Beaver Sports Network or via the listen link on the left side of this blog. The game can be seen nationally on the Pac-12 Networks.

Visit the Oregon State Athletics department official web site.

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Edward Leveaux received a patent for the player piano on this date in 1881.

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Lulay headlines September Players of the Month.

Practice rosters expanded; teams announce signings.

Visit the leagues' official website, http://www.cfl.ca/.

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The Dinosaur National Monument was established on this date in 1915. The area covered part of Utah and Colorado.

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Saskatchewan Roughriders to give Brandon West another chance.

With the win over BC, Saskatchewan improves to 7-6, ahead of a Monday, October 8th game in Toronto against the Argonauts. Kickoff is set for 4:30pm EDT on 620 CKRM and the Rider Radio Network, with Rod Pedersen and Carm Carteri calling the action. The game can be seen in Canada on TSN and in the U.S., the game can be seen online on ESPN3.com.

Visit the team's official website, http://www.riderville.com/.

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The first actual work of carving began on Mount Rushmore on this date in 1927.

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Tampa, FL. —The Bucs have used their bye week, in part, to engage in some self-evaluation after one month of play, and that may be particularly useful in regard to QB Josh Freeman and what he feels most comfortable doing in the team's new offense.

Read the rest here.

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The comic strip "Dick Tracy" made its debut in the Detroit Daily Mirror on this date in 1931. The strip was created by Chester Gould.

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How y'all doin'?

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Let's see, what's on the agenda for today....Washing dishes, writing the Johnny blog, WMEL stuff and TV. How 'bout you?

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St. Petersburg, FL. -- Wednesday night's season finale at the Trop offered little consolation to the Rays for not making the playoffs, but Tampa Bay did manage to make the most of the situation by turning another Game 162 into something special.

The results of that effort showed in a 4-1 win over the Orioles, giving the Rays their 12th win in their final 14 games and their 90th win of the season.

"The only unfortunate component is that we're not going to the playoffs," manager Joe Maddon said.

Read the rest here.

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The Railroad Hour" debuted on ABC radio on this date in 1948.

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Los Angeles, CA. -- The 5-1 defeat that the Los Angeles Dodgers handed the Giants on Wednesday was thoroughly meaningless. But that didn't mean it was irrelevant.

Read the rest here.

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December Bride" debuted on CBS-TV on this date in 1954.

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Today in Elvis History

1960 - Shooting for the Elvis Presley film "Flaming Star" wrapped up.

1968 - Elvis Presley recorded "Stay Away" and "Goin' Home."

2005 - Sony BMG Strategic Marketing Group released "Hit Story." The three CD set contained 80 Elvis Presley chart hits. 

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"Playhouse 90" debuted on CBS-TV on this date in 1956.

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Today in Beatles History:

1974 - "Walls And Bridges" was released by John Lennon.

1998 - Julian Lennon performed at a concert for the International Association Against Drugs.

2001 - Paul McCartney read original poetry at the 21st Poetry Olympics.

2001 - An undated draft of a letter written by John Lennon to Paul and Linda McCartney failed to sale at auction. The angry letter was written after the Beatles' 1970 split. The minimum price was set at $96,000, but, the top bid only reached $77,000. 

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"Leave it to Beaver" debuted on CBS-TV on this date in 1957.

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Today in Sports History:

1893 -  The first professional football contract was signed by Grant Dibert for the Pittsburgh AC.

1895 - The first U.S. Open golf tournament took place in Newport, RI. Horace Rawlins, 19 years old, won the tournament.

1959 - The first World Series to be played west of St. Louis began in Los Angeles, CA.

1981 - Bruce Jenner and Harry Belafonte debuted in their first dramatic roles in NBC-TV's "Grambling's White Tiger".

1987 - NFL owners used replacement personnel to play games despite the player's strike.

2001 - Barry Bonds (San Francisco Giants) hit his 70th home run of the season to tie Mark McGwire's major league record. Bonds also moved past Reggie Jackson on the all-time list with his 564th career home run.

2001 - Rickey Henderson (San Diego Padres) scored his 2,246th career run to break Ty Cobb's major league record.

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The Soviet Union launched Sputnik I into orbit around the Earth on this date in 1957. Sputnik was the first manmade satellite to enter space. Sputnik I fell out of orbit on January 4, 1958.

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Tonight --

Nothin' Doin'

Friday --

Junior Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors at Charlotte Showcase. TBA

Saturday --

Junior Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors at Charlotte Showcase TBA

Sunday --

Nascar Sprint Cup Series -- Good Sam Roadside Assistance 500 at Talladega Superspeedway 1:00pm EDT

Junior Hockey -- Tampa Bay Juniors at Charlotte Showcase TBA

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That's it for today. Thanks for stopping by, I hope that you'll do so tomorrow too. Thanks again!