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Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. This week they discuss Russias mens hockey team, the ineptitude of the IOC handling the Nicklas Backstrom situation, John Tortorellas many apologies, and Canadas strong showing in curling. Bruce Arthur, National Post My thumb is down to Russias national mens hockey program, which is still making reverberations a week after Sochi. After falling in the quarter-finals for the second straight Olympics, Russias NHL stars came back angry. As Rob Rossi of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review wrote, Evgeni Malkin and Alex Ovechkin were unhappy for many reasons, but most of all resented the programs bias towards KHL players, which greatly distorted playing time, pairings, strategy, and felt like a punishment to Russian stars who dont play at home. Russia was one of the worlds great hockey powers, and a worthy rival to Canada; now its a mess, riven by petty rivalries. Its a shame, really. The Russians havent won a best-on-best tournament since the 1981 Canada Cup, and somehow they feel further away than ever. Steve Simmons, SUN Media My thumb is down to the International Olympic Committee for the mess it made of the Nicklas Backstrom gold medal game allergy pill fiasco. As a member of Swedens hockey delegation said, the IOC destroyed one of the greatest days in Olympic hockey history for the country. Backstrom, who did test positive for pseudo-ephedrine, didnt disagree with that assessment. The IOC first tested Backstrom last Wednesday. In the three days that followed, they never did do a second test. The Swedish team was not informed of Backstroms status until two hours before game time. Now dont get me wrong, the Swedes could have had Nicklas Backstrom, Ralph Backstrom, and all the Backstroms you can name available for the gold medal game and the result wouldnt have been different. What they didnt need was an unnecessary disruption, born of IOC ineptitude. Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated My thumb is down to John Tortorella, not for his most recent apology but for the continual need to apologize. This time, the Canucks coach launched into a mea culpa after saying he favored Sweden in the Sochi final because he wanted his Swedish Olympians - Daniel Sedin and Alex Edler - to return with smiles on their faces. Tortorella wears blinders. Professionally, he sees the small picture, nothing beyond his team. Belatedly, of course, he grasped context - Vancouver … Canada. So four weeks after apologizing for losing his mind between periods against Calgary, he again was at a microphone wearing a hair shirt and a tight expression. Thats Tortorella, the never-ending sorry. Dave Hodge, TSN My thumb is up to the excellence shown by Canadas Gold-medalists in curling - Jennifer Jones and her rink from Winnipeg and Brad Jacobs and his rink from Sault Ste. Marie. We used to take for granted Canadas worldwide dominance in curling, and then we didnt, because as good as the Canadians continued to be, several other countries showed they were capable of winning world titles. Not that Jones and Jacobs allow Canada to rest on its laurels, but the Sochi results were very impressive, and hows this for proof of Canadas wealth of curling talent - the Brier is underway in Kamloops and the field is strong with Jeff Stoughton, Kevin Koe, John Morris, and Brad Gushue. And imagine talking about a strong field that doesnt include Jacobs, Glenn Howard and Kevin Martin. Milwaukee Bucks Jerseys . LOUIS -- Julius Randle had 19 points and 15 rebounds, Aaron Harrison finished with 18 points and No. Wesley Matthews Jersey .Y. - Phil Varone was the lone scorer in the shootout as the Rochester Americans edged the Toronto Marlies 3-2 on Sunday in American Hockey League action. https://www.bucksrookiesshop.com/Brook-Lopez-City-Edition-Jersey/ . "I could have been equipment manager but nooooo" from Lisa on Ice. Season 6, Episode 8. Sterling Brown Bucks Jersey . An unconventional night for Texas-El Paso nearly led to the Miners getting a huge upset. Down by 14 with 2:21 left, the Miners went on a frantic closing spurt that fell just short, and UTEP was beaten by No. Giannis Antetokounmpo Jersey . The game was the first of two international friendlies that Canada is playing during the international break, with the second game against Slovenia set for Tuesday in Celje. Canada looked uncomfortable defensively throughout the game, and every free kick that came into Canadas penalty box looked like ending up in the back of the net.New York, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Isaiah Thomas scored nine of his 22 points in the fourth quarter to help the Phoenix Suns pull away from the New York Knicks in their 99-90 victory at Madison Square Garden on Saturday afternoon. Eric Bledsoe posted a double-double with 25 points and 10 rebounds while Markieff Morris chipped in with 19 points for the Suns, winners of two straight following a six-game slide. Carmelo Anthony returned to the Knicks lineup after missing Thursdays loss in Chicago and netted 25 points on 9-of-19 shooting. He also pulled down 11 boards, but it was not enough as New York fell for the 14th time in 15 games. Jose Calderon added 21 points but netted just two in a fourth quarter that saw the Knicks get outscored by 10. An Alex Len tip-in early in the fourth capped an 11-0 Suns run that gave Phoenix a 75-68 lead. The Knicks answered with six straight points to pull within one but never went back ahead. A pair of emphatic Sammuel Dalembert dunks energized the MSG crowd, but a Morris jumper and Thomas 3-pointer stretched Phoenixs cushion to 95-86 with 1:34 to play.dddddddddddd. Anthony was whistled for an offensive foul at the other end, and Phoenix held on from there. The Suns led by 11 early on but let the lead slip away less than three minutes into the second quarter. New York scored six of the first seven points to take a 27-25 advantage and went into the break holding a 47-44 edge. Neither team led by more than five in the third frame, which ended with the hosts clinging to a 68-67 lead. Game Notes The Suns pulled back to .500 (14-14) on the season ... The Knicks were without center Amare Stoudemire (rest) and guard J.R. Smith, who missed a sixth straight game with a partially torn left plantar fascia ... The Suns are 6-1 on the road against the Eastern Conference this season ... New York shot 39.8 percent from the field. ' ' '