The Ottawa Citizen from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada • 21

INSIDE: Gym dandy results, C2 NFL chief to retire, C6 Early Biro newt Deadline: March 24 Ufc 1 Editor: Hugh Paterson, 596-3525 sportsthecitizen.canwest.com fax 726-5830 'I'KSDAY, MARCH 21, 2006 THE OTTAWA CITIZEN SECTION Ms. JL JL RETURN OFTHE CONQUERING HEROES Senators, Emery gaining confidence Backup goalie's play in place ofHasek gives team big boost -S 1 irt 9kI CHRIS MIKULA. THE OTTAWA CITIZEN 1 CIS tournament all-star Ryan Bell, left, and MVP Osvaldo Jeanty stop to pose for photographers after the Ravens arrived back at Ottawa International Airport yesterday afternoon. Four down, one to go for Ravens' ace Jeanty J' 1 1 nS i i clutching a keepsake Brier trophy said yesterday, one day after his Quebec rink's historic win in the Canadian men's curling championship at Regina. "Hockey was a sport where you hated your opponent, and there was cross-checking.

That wasn't my sport. Curling was a gentlemanly sport with sportsmanship. You can sit with your opponent after a match, discuss it and make new friends." UPLANDER 4mM 48mth 0R 1 9,995" STK 06-6658 SILVERADO f334 OR 1 8,995" STItt 06-7053 I MP ALA 0R2395" STK 06-301 4 2DjllJ BY ALLEN PANZERI Ottawa Senators goaltender Dominik Hasek continues to make baby steps toward his recovery from a strained adductor muscle. He skated again yesterday with strength and conditioning coach Randy Lee, and, coach Bryan Murray said, was able to perform every exercise that was asked of him. It's probably not too long before Hasek is able to practise with his equipment and then set a target date for his return to action.

Not that anyone is worried too much. With Ray Emery playing so well, gnashing of teeth over Hasek's absence has ended. It actually couldn't be going much better for the Senators, who are 9-1-1 since the Olympic break and, thanks to dynamic victories against Buffalo and New Jersey, back on top of the Eastern Conference. Emery, who collected his third shutout of the season in Sunday's 4-0 win against the Devils, knows his run in net will end as soon as Hasek returns. That's a fact of life.

However, Murray says, it is accomplishing two very important things for the Senators, if not for now, then certainly for the future: It's making Emery more confident, and, just as important, it's making his teammates more confident in him. "To have a second goalie who can play and win games, that's huge for a team," Murray said. "And to have a young guy do it is huge. He has the possibility of being the guy here for a long time, so, for a guy like Ray to get a chance to develop is huge, and getting the confidence of the team is big, too. "To get back in the race, we needed that type of performance from our goaltender, and he has given us a chance to win in every game." Murray said if the playoffs started today and Hasek wasn't ready, he wouldn't be worried about having to use Emery.

Emery said it was nice to hear kind words from the coach, but he wasn't about to pat himself on the back. See SENATORS on PAGE C3 1 vlYERS AVEO 4 yZ 176 60mth Jean-Michel Menard of Gatineau was greeted at the airport by a crowd of curling fans, including his wife, Annie Lemay, one day after skipping a Quebec team to the Canadian men's curling championship. Gentleman curler a champion, too Life almost took him to the U.S. on a basketball scholarship, but staying at home has led to four national titles, reports MARTIN CLEARY. At age 18, Osvaldo Jeanty was confronted by a life-changing decision: accept a full basketball scholarship from one of four universities in the United States or take the bus to Carleton University.

If the talented guard from Gloucester had taken the free ride from Northern Iowa University, for example, he might have been in the March Madness mix, playing for the Panthers in the 2006 NCAA men's basketball Minneapolis Regional. Again, though, it would only have been a one-game experience as Northern Iowa dropped its NCAA opener for the third consecutive year. "I wanted to go to the United States, but it didn't work out, because of the people there, and I'd be going away from home," said Jeanty, who played for Samuel Genest High School and for the Celtics and Guardsmen community basketball programs. Instead, Jeanty's decision to attend Carleton, where he's a commerce student, has given him the unforgettable experi Gatineau's Jean-Michel Menard and teammates he only sees at competitions will represent Canada in the world championships, MARTIN CLEARY reports. CHRIS MIKULA, THE OTTAWA CITIZEN Menard, 30, is about to make more friends, as he, third Francois Roberge and second Eric Sylvain, both of Levis, and lead Maxime Elmaleh of St-Eti-enne will represent Canada in the world men's championship at Lowell, Massachusetts, on April 1-9, thanks to an 8-7 victory against Glenn Howard's Ontario foursome in the Brier final.

Menard, who has lived in Gatineau for five years, while his teammates reside in the Quebec City area, returned home to a warm reception yesterday at Ottawa International Airport. See MENARD on PAGE C5 As a young boy, Jean-Michel Menard had two choices when it came to sports in the northwestern Quebec community of Amos. He could either put on a pair of skates and play hockey or pick up broom and head for the curling rink. Menard chose curling. "Hockey was popular, but I had no interest.

My dad curled, and I wanted to try it," Menard, ence of participating in the Canadian version of March Madness at Halifax in each of the past four years and winning a remarkable four consecutive Canadian Interuniversity Sport men's basketball championships. The Ravens, who defeated the top-seeded University of Victoria Vikings 73-67 in Sunday's final, were greeted at the Ottawa International Airport yesterday by about 60 noisy, placard-waving fans. For Jeanty, this title represents four down and one to go as he prepares for his final season as a Raven. Carleton is only the second team to win four consecutive CIS men's basketball titles. After scoring a game-high 27 points on Sunday, Jeanty, who last week was named CIS mens' basketball player of the year, was selected Carleton's player of the game for the third match in a row, the national championship MVP (for the second time) and a tournament all-star.

Ontario University Athletics yesterday named him its athlete of the week. Jeanty, 22, says he's positive a fifth title is possible because of "the character of this group." Head coach Dave Smart said the Ravens expected to lose only one player, guard Pat Ross, from the 13-man roster. See RAVENS on PAGE C5 1 tilt steering, GM Warranty $12f895t Warranty 'a 1469? locks, tilt CD, rental Warranty 13,995 power A tilt ji r--: AC. power traction control. tti WM'irr--1 mo k.

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