Family comes first as Mike O'Shea spurns Argonauts

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SIMMONS: Family comes first as Mike O'Shea spurns Argonauts

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Mike O’Shea decided not to take the money and run to the Toronto Argonauts.

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SIMMONS: Family comes first as Mike O'Shea spurns Argonauts Back to video

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It was all there for him.

More than he’s ever been paid before. More power than he’s had in Winnipeg. The opportunity to work with close friend and teammate, Pinball Clemons, and long-time associate Keith Pelley.

But after two days of meetings and almost three days of thorough consideration, O’Shea’s family and the city of Winnipeg won out over football, money, power and apparent opportunity.

The coach may have wanted to move. Why else do you spend two days being wooed by the Argos? But his family had no interest in leaving Winnipeg, which has left the Argos in a difficult spot trying to replace the departed Ryan Dinwiddie as head coach.

Dinwiddie took his two Grey Cup rings to Ottawa, where he will act as head coach and general manager of the Redblacks. He didn’t necessarily want the GM title in Toronto, but he did want more control over personnel. And he wanted John Murphy out as player personnel chief. The Argos said no to that and it played a significant role in Dinwiddie heading to Ottawa.

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Now the Argos need a coach — and probably fast. They lost Dinwiddie. They lost out on O’Shea, whom they really wanted. And now they can search for Kent Austin or Orlondo Steinauer or whoever else may be interested without knowing what comes next.

One name worthy of consideration: Montreal defensive coordinator Noel Thorpe, a Canadian who has coached more than 20 years in the CFL and whose defence baffled Dinwiddie and quarterback Chad Kelly in the 2023 Eastern final.

John Schneider’s 2nd-place finish no surprise

Cito Gaston was never manager of the year in the American League. He did win two World Series. The only Blue Jay to take home the top manager award: Bobby Cox in 1985 … And no, John Schneider wasn’t robbed in finishing second in the AL voting for this past season. That’s a respectable finish. Thirty qualified writers voted: Schneider got 10 first-place votes. Cleveland’s Stephen Vogt got 17. That’s not a close vote with 30 ballots in all … And the screaming about Toronto Star columnist Rosie DiManno voting for Vogt ahead of Schneider was a lot of noise signifying nothing. If DiManno had voted for Schneider first, which clearly wasn’t her determination, the vote would have been 16-11 instead of 17-10. Either way, a one-sided win for Vogt … The past five MVPs in the AL have been Aaron Judge, Judge, Shohei Ohtani, Judge and Ohtani. Ohtani has been in the National League for two seasons with two MVPs and two World Series championships … For the record, Babe Ruth was in his 17th season when the MVP award was introduced to baseball in 1931. He never did win one … Cal Raleigh had a season for the ages in Seattle. Judge had a season for the ages in New York. A tie for MVP would have been a perfect solution. How close was the vote? Put it this way, there are two voters in each AL city, 30 votes in all. In seven cities, the voters split their votes, one for Judge, the eventual winner, one for Raleigh. Those claiming the New York influence was the difference should know that the New York votes were split … George Springer finished seventh in MVP voting. If I had a ballot, he would have been listed fifth, behind Judge, Raleigh, Jose Ramirez and Bobby Witt Jr. … Anthony Santander is a problem for the Blue Jays. There is no DH place for him if Springer is in the lineup. That means he plays the outfield, which he’s not particularly good at. It also means a lack of lineup lacking flexibility, which was a Jays strength this past season. If the Jays sign an outfielder, for example, Santander, Daulton Varsho and the new outfielder would be the starters. That would move Addison Barger to third base, and Ernie Clement to second while Nathan Lukes, Davis Schneider and Myles Straw to the bench. The presence of Santander complicates Jays’ versatility … Of course, super-agent Scott Boras is singing the Blue Jays praises rather publicly. Boras has about a billion dollars in free agents available this winter. He wants some of that Blue Jays money … I’d like to see the Blue Jays sign closer Edwin Diaz as a free agent. That would give them a bullpen of Diaz, Jeff Hoffman, Yimi Garcia, Louis Varland, Mason Fluharty and Braydon Fisher. That’s a deep and impressive bullpen on paper. One contradiction from me: I normally hate big-money bullpen signings. They usually don’t work out. This one, seems different. Diaz is that good.

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It’s not Caps goalie’s stats Team Canada doesn’t like

Washington’s Logan Thompson should be the starting goalie for Team Canada at the Winter Olympics. Statistically, he’s the top Canadian goalie in the NHL. But there’s a problem: The Team Canada brass doesn’t care much for Thompson as a teammate or as someone who might have to share the net. In their meetings, Olympic assistant coach Peter DeBoer was particularly strong in the anti-Thompson class, having coached him in Vegas. The current Vegas coach, Bruce Cassidy, also an Olympic assistant coach, was Thompson’s coach when the Golden Knights won the Stanley Cup. He played no part in the Golden Knights playoff run and wasn’t particularly beloved as a team player, at least not the way that Jonathan Quick was while playing the good solider behind Adin Hill … Another Canadian goalie to consider: Scott Wedgewood of the Colorado Avalanche. He is 10-1 with a 2.26 goals against average this season. Projected Canadian starter Jordan Binnington is having a below-average season in St. Louis with a rather abrupt .869 save percentage … Department of Weird Statistics: The now injured Leafs goalie Anthony Stolarz has six wins this season, one less than Team USA starter and defending Hart Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck … The two best teams I’ve seen this NHL season: Colorado and Carolina. An Avalanche-Hurricanes Stanley Cup final would be all kinds of fast and fun hockey … The first woman builder in the Hockey Hall of Fame should have been Fran Rider. Odds are, you wouldn’t know women’s hockey existed today were it not for Rider’s early days building the sport … Duncan Keith’s Hall of Fame speech was a lot like his career: Smart, quick, effective, efficient, powerful and just the right length … Has Jack Parker finished his Hall of Fame speech yet? … The Alexander Mogilny I knew, the one who played for Toronto and New Jersey, was funny, quirky, and just about the smartest guy in any dressing room. He did his Hall of Fame speech on video from Russia. He looked like he was taken hostage and asking for his release.

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Tavares the only Leaf having his best season

John Tavares may be having his best season as a Maple Leaf. This season, he’s the one doing that in Toronto. Anyone else having a great season? … And no, for all William Nylander does at one end of the ice, he gives back at the other. So, appreciate his scoring numbers, but also realize what they mean big picture … As of Saturday afternoon, Tavares was tied for third in goal scoring in the NHL with Sidney Crosby, David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand and young studs like Leo Carlsson and Wyatt Johnston. That’s nice company to be keeping at a time he was supposed to be slowing down … Hockey is different from other sports in one way: Effort and defensive positioning can compete with skill most nights. This is a problem for the Leafs. Most nights, they are the second hardest working team on the ice. They are second best at winning puck battles and second best in physical play. This has nothing to do with Mitch Marner leaving in free agency and everything to do with the lineup dressed most nights … The Leafs don’t play Craig Berube hockey very often, which frustrates Craig Berube. By my unscientific count, they have played 18 games and have been impressive for 60 minutes in three or four of them … The Leafs don’t draw enough penalties and neither do the Edmonton Oilers. Two supposed contenders who don’t move their feet enough. Leafs have had 47 power plays to date. Edmonton has had 50. The Florida Panthers, playing without Matthew Tkachuk, who takes a lot of penalties, have had 65 power plays … It’s Sunday, which is normally the day to read Larry Brooks’ weekly column in the New York Post. That’s what I’ve been doing pretty much every Sunday for as long as I can remember. Brooks passed away the other day, and I will miss his reporting, his writing, his sharp thoughts and his unique individual opinions, all of them about hockey. He was a giant in a field of few giants. He cannot be replaced.

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The Raptors appear to be playoff-bound

I wouldn’t have thought this a month ago: The Raptors are going to make the playoffs. Can’t say the same at this time for the Maple Leafs … The great Nikola Jokic leads the NBA in assists. The previous time a centre led the NBA in that statistic was in 1968. The guy: Wilt Chamberlain … Jokic happens to be seventh in the NBA in scoring and first in rebounding. Which means he’s still the best player in the league, and that includes the rather amazing Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who will be named Canada’s athlete of the year sometime next month … Steph Curry is 37 years old and apparently doesn’t age. He’s scored 49 and 46 points in his past two games. The NBA will be so much poorer when he is gone … Was it a joke that Major League Soccer decided to alter its schedule to the winter? Doesn’t it know it has franchises in Toronto, Montreal, Minnesota, New York, Chicago, Vancouver, and I could go on … I can’t think of anything I’d want to do less than spend a February winter afternoon at BMO Field freezing and watching soccer … How dumb were those Cleveland Guardians pitchers getting busted for throwing pitches to match prop bets in Major League Baseball games? In the case of Emmanuel Clase, the Cleveland reliever, he was to be paid $26 million for the next three seasons and he sold his arm for $7,000 a pitch. And now his career is over … David Kampf is an NHL player who is useful, a penalty-killer of some note and a fourth-line centre who should be able to help some teams. But he signed in Toronto for $2.4 million and too many seasons. That made Kampf untradeable when the Leafs looked to move him. He eventually signed for $1.1 million with the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, which is a lot less than he was making in Toronto. There is a lesson in this for any mediocre player looking to make more money. Don’t reach too far or it could end up costing you. … Say a prayer for Bernie Kosar, the longtime Cleveland Browns quarterback. He is in ill health … I can’t remember an AFC as weak as this one. Kansas City doesn’t look like Kansas City. Buffalo doesn’t look like Buffalo. Baltimore doesn’t look like Baltimore. The thought that you had to go through Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson to get to a Super Bowl seems less intimidating this year than in the past. If the Bills can’t get to a Super Bowl this year, when will they get there? … Early coach of the year candidates in the NHL: Joel Quenneville in Anaheim; Dan Muse in Pittsburgh; Marco Sturm in Boston and always Rod Brind’Amour in Carolina … This is when you know you’re either injury-prone or irresponsible: Jack Hughes got hurt at a team dinner and now he’s had surgery on his injured finger. Does this put his Team USA status in jeopardy? … My Hockey Hall of Fame class for 2026: Carey Price, Patrice Bergeron, Curtis Joseph and Patrik Elias. And if not Elias, there should be room for Ryan Getzlaf and Henrik Zetterberg on the same plain … I find it funny the CFL Players’ Association says no rule changes will come to the league without players’ consent in the future. And I’m thinking: I don’t recall Roger Goodell, Gary Bettman, Rob Manfred or Adam Silver seeking players association approval before changing or altering rules … Happy birthday to Dwight Gooden (61), Karl-Anthony Towns (30), Frank Bruno (64), Akeem Hicks (37), Bol Bol (26), Pete Davidson (32), Amar’e Stoudemire (43) and Mackie Samoskevich (23) … And hey, whatever became of Chad Kackert?

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