Hi, this is Fred Wallace with ” Off the Wire “, brought to you by Hal Wright Chevrolet-Cadillac-GMC-Buick on the Sunset Strip in Owen Sound.
I know I should be over it by now…….but I guess I never will.
The trigger this time around came from NASCAR which fined Michael Waltrip Racing $300,000 and docked drivers Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex, Jr. and Brian Vickers 50 standings points apiece for trying to manipulate the outcome of a race at Richmond.
The allegation is that Bowyer intentionally spun out with Ryan Newman in the lead; the suggestion being, the fake spin out created a break in the action and contributed to Newman losing a race, and a spot in the Chase, when he looked like he had the race won.
Everybody knows I know nothing about auto racing. But I do know about manipulation, certainly in Junior Hockey.
Every year, very late in the season, one or another of the perennial OHL powerhouses has left half their team at home for a road game.
I understand not wanting key players to be injured in a meaningless game, but what if it impacts the standings.
You could make the case the 2012 Owen Sound Attack could have been 4th or 5th, rather than 6th in the Western Conference had everybody iced a full squad.
And of course there’s the lingering bitterness at the 2011 St John Sea Dogs who did not dress their top half dozen players for a Memorial Cup Round Robin game against Kootenay.
Again, I get it, but you can argue the action allowed Kootenay to stay alive and in a cruel twist be better rested than the Attack for the tie-breaker game later in the tournament.
You’re right. I should be over this sort of thing, but I can’t help wishing NASCAR was running Junior Hockey.
I’m Fred Wallace