said. Yonder Alonso and Yasmani Grandal

Twelve years ago, it was Dan Crowley throwing passes to receivers Jimmy Oliver, Denis Montana, and Eddie Brown, and handing the ball off to Darren Davis. Thats a quarterback with just 253 passing attempts experience, and who would be out of the league in two years; three receivers with just one career 1,000-yard season combined; and a running back who after consecutive 1,000-yard seasons with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, failed to gain even 300 yards on the ground in either of his two years in Ottawa before leaving the league. Sorry for the painful trip down memory lane Ottawa football fans. Flash forward 12 years and it will be an awfully different scene, one with a lot more promise. Instead of a QB with just 1,696 passing yards at the time leading Ottawas new expansion team, theyll have a 14-year veteran in Henry Burris, a former Most Outstanding Player and Grey Cup champion, who has 51,526 career passing yards. 1,696 yards is a good weekend for the former Calgary Stampeder, Saskatchewan Roughrider, and Hamilton Tiger-Cat. The team has some promise in the receiving corps as well and an electrifying running back in Chevon Walker backed up by some solid CFL experience at fullback. The point is the Redblacks this season will look different than almost any expansion team before them, not just in the CFL or even football, but in all professional sports. Theyll look like a team that can compete. Its a nice change from the Renegades debut, whose problems ran far deeper than their game day roster week in and week out; having a team that can contend, or at least keep things close when the West Division heavy hitters come to town, is a boon to both the new ownership and CFL fans in Ottawa, who perhaps more than anyone deserve some good fortune on the gridiron. Using one part updated expansion draft rules that made more players available and one part a little good fortune in free agency, the Redblacks have built a deeper and more talented roster than your typical expansion team mish-mash. As mentioned earlier, Ottawa will be led by Burris, but theyll have some other veterans sprinkled into the roster to help the roster through their maiden voyage in the CFL. Guys like Walker at running back, receiver Paris Jackson, and offensive linemen John Gott, Joe Eppele, and JMichael Deane will help Burris run an effective offence that could easily be closer to the middle of the pack than the basement come seasons end. And on defence, former Most Outstanding Defensive Player Jovon Johnson should have enough gas left in the tank to lead the unit alongside veterans Keith Shologan, Anton McKenzie, TJ Hill, and Malik Jackson. This isnt to say the Redblacks are instant Grey Cup contenders, which in a nine-team league isnt entirely crazy. With the Winnipeg Blue Bombers heading West and the Argos, Ticats, and Alouettes all coming off at least decent regular seasons in 2013, the Redblacks will enter the year as favourites to finish in the East Division basement, but a 5-7 win season should keep the fans intrigued, and more importantly, excited about the future. Notes Expansion Draft - The Redblacks took their biggest step towards looking like a real team with the Expansion Draft in December. Highlights included picking two quarterbacks in Kevin Glenn and Thomas DeMarco, and other notable names such as Keith Shologan, Chevon Walker, Joe Eppele, and Eric Fraser. Glenn Saga - Kevin Glenn looked to be the Redblacks quarterback of the present until Henry Burris became available on the free market and Ottawa pounced. Not happy with the demotion, Glenn was eventually traded to the Lions where hell instead back up Travis Lulay on his fifth CFL team. Free Agency - Burris was the big coup in free agency but the team landed several other notable players including LB Malik Jackson from the Stampeders, defensive back Jovon Johnson from the Blue Bombers, and WR Kierrie Johnson from the Roughriders. CFL Draft - The Redblacks traded the first overall draft pick to the Stampeders for veteran offensive lineman John Gott, but got back into the first by trading Glenn to the Lions, and ended up with defensive back Antoine Pruneau. Other picks included WR Scott MacDonell in the second round, DL Nijel Romick in the third round, offensive linemen Aaron Wheaton in the fourth and Hugo Desmarais in the fifth, DL Stephon Miller in the sixth, and DL Vincent Desloges, LB Alexandre Bernard, and LS Kevin Malcolm in the seventh. Lansdowne Park - TD Place Stadium has been constructed where Frank Clair Stadium once stood and is expected to be fully ready for the teams Week 4 game against the Argonauts, the Redblacks home opener. Custom Boston Celtics Jerseys . Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. The latest from Bob As tweeted by TSN Hockey Insider Bob McKenzie on Monday, the Columbus Blue Jackets need to resolve their offseason plans with forward R. Dennis Johnson Celtics Jersey . "That was a great lift for the staff," Padres manager Bud Black said. Yonder Alonso and Yasmani Grandal homered, and Chase Headley drove in three runs, as the Padres beat the Chicago Cubs 11-1 on Friday night. http://www.celticssale.com/kids-robert-parish-celtics-jersey/ . -- Keith Aulie has joined the Tampa Bay Lightning. Bill Russell Celtics Jersey . - Henrik Samuelsson and Curtis Lazar each had two goals and two assists as the Edmonton Oil Kings secured top spot in the Eastern Conference by defeating the host Red Deer Rebels 7-4 on Saturday in Western Hockey League action. Robert Williams Jersey .Balotelli uploaded on Instagram a picture of the video-game character Super Mario, with whom the Italy international shares a nickname, with text around the image including jumps like a black man and grabs coins like a Jew.Quite possibly the leagues most talented team, thanks to two generational talents down the middle, the Pittsburgh Penguins have lots of fantasy appeal. Seriously. Top Picks: In the last three seasons, C Sidney Crosby has laid the rest of the league to waste when it comes to per-game scoring, his 1.61 points per game miles ahead of second place (teammate Evgeni Malkin, 1.20), and its that per-game dominance that led me to forecasting Crosby as the leagues top scorer for 2013-2014. However, that comes with a giant asterisk and lots of risk because Crosby has played 99 of a possible 212 regular-season games. But if the 26-year-old superstar can manage to avoid the concussion monster, he should win his second career scoring title. Malkin, who has led the league in scoring twice, has varied from spectacular seasons (topping 100 points three times) to merely good ones and 2013 was an injury-plagued good one, with 33 points in 31 games, despite a shooting percentage (9.1%) well below his 12.8% career mark. As one of the few players with the potential to lead the league in scoring, Malkin still rates as a high-end first-round fantasy pick, even if (or maybe because) hes coming off a down season. Playing on Crosbys wing has its benefits and LW Chris Kunitz scored over a point-per-game (52 points in 48 games) last season for the first time in his career. Hes 33-years-old, has never scored more than 61 points in a season and his production is tied awfully closely to No. 87, but if youre riding shotgun, thats the place to do it. Over the last two seasons, RW James Neal has scored 61 goals, ranking third, and he appears to be a fine fit on Malkins wing. Thats good enough to a standard No. 1 right winger for fantasy purposes. Before suffering a broken toe, D Kris Letang had scored better than a point-per-game, playing more than 25 minutes per game, for the first time in his career. Over the last three seasons, he has 130 points, ranking fourth among defencemen, and he works the power play with some of the leagues elite talents, so Letang is a strong No. 1 defenceman in fantasy. Value Plays: Just as Kunitz benefits from playing with Crosby, so too does Pascal Dupuis, a three-time 20-goal scorer; his offensive numbers are just enough lower than hes more oof a No.dddddddddddd 2 or No. 3 option on right wing. Again, the high-end production is so dependent on Crosbys health that it needs to be taken into account. Pittsburghs goaltending situation does present potential value. Even after another playoff flop, Marc-Andre Fleury has the backing of Penguins management (Stanley Cup wins can lead to serious loyalty, kids) and hes fine as a regular-season goaltender, posting a league-best 101 wins and entirely respectable .916 save percentage over the last three seasons. If he plays 60-plus games, he could even be a fantasy stud. On the other hand, Tomas Vokoun has a .922 save percentage since 2008-2009, ranking third. He gave the Penguins a chance in last years playoffs and would obviously have great value if he was Pittsburghs starter, but he does have to contend with Fleury. Sleepers/Breakthrough: There is an opening on the wing with Malkin and Neal, potentially one of the leagues plum spots, and there are a couple guys who could reap rewards on that left wing. Veteran Jussi Jokinen was lost in Carolina last season, but had 11 points in 10 games with the Penguins when he was acquired after Crosby was hurt. A three-time 50-point scorer, Jokinen could put up good numbers with other skilled players. If the Penguins want a little more youthful energy in that spot, Beau Bennett is coming off a solid first pro season, scoring 14 points in 26 games with the Penguins after 28 points in 39 AHL games. He was a first-round pick in 2010, but that doesnt necessarily mean the 21-year-old is ready for that prime spot. He could start the year on the third line instead. No ones going to excited about Brooks Orpiks scoring numbers (64 points over the last four seasons), but hes a hitter (827 over the last four years) and, playing for the Penguins, is plus-75 since 2007-2008. Rookies: With Bennett missing Calder Trophy eligibility by one game, there arent any likely freshman candidates to start the year in Pittsburgh. 19-year-old D Derrick Pouliot, the eighth pick in 2012, might warrant a look, but the blueline is already crowded. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. ' ' '