Calgary Herald from Calgary, Alberta, Canada • 44

D2 CALGARY HERALD Monday, April 10, 2006 SPORTS CURLING RODEO ROYAL AROUND THE MW re Nr JE: lilt lm IMTII mmi IIWIM IIIIWIIIMUM IHIII mill HIMI Mil 'I Mil MRMMMII UrtllHIl liaillMMTl irilflM '--f ifflT" ''l-'! T'l 1 Vl Jenelle Schneider, Calgary Herald Rod Warren takes a spill Sunday in the saddle bronc event as his horse Zorro Bandit hits the Corral dirt. Relief, times two: Cassidy back on track Sweeping up some big bucks! Grand Slam event a breakthrough for Canuck women ALLEN CAMERON Calgary Herald They've been three of the most successful skips on the women's cashspiel circuit over the years, but, until this season, the third weekend in April was traditionally devoted to yard-work, golf or a little R-and-R. Now, Cheryl Bernard, Shannon Kleibrink and Heather Rankin finally get a chance to take advantage of an opportunity their male counterparts have enjoyed for more than a decade to play in a season-ending, best-against-best championship with some serious coin on the line. The three skips and their Calgary teammates made the cut for the 15-team field to play in the first BDO Women's Players' Championship, beginning Thursday at the CorraL The $100,000 Ultima World Curling Tour Grand Slam event, which is being run alongside the $150,000 Calgary Herald Men's Players' Championship, features the top guns of women's curling from around the world, and it's long overdue, said Rankin. "I am so ready for this event," said a typically enthusiasHc Rankin, who, along with third Deanna Doig, second Sam Preston and lead Nicole Jacques, opens against Winnipeg's Janet Harvey on Thursday at 8 a.m.

"I think it's fantabulous. I actually think if the greatest step (for women's curling) since Scott took over (as sponsor of the Canadian women's champi-' onship). There's a difference that you see in the men's game; they go out and they have a true camaraderie and fraternity, and I think women's curling has been miss- rv. I ing that I think lL N-. that's what the Play Shannon Kleibrink ers' Championship will give us." "I'm just excited that the women's tour actually has this final event of the year, and it's something to shoot for next year, as well," chimed in Kleibrink, whose Olympic bronze-medal winning team (third Amy Nixon, second Glenys Bakker, lead Christine Keshen) takes on Grande Prairie's Renee Sonnenberg on Thursday at 2 p.m.

in its opener. "I think it's amazing; I'm just so grateful that somebody put in the time to get this going for the womea I think if really going to raise our game to the next leveL It's been a long time coming." Bernard, along with St Albert's Cathy King and Regina's Karen Purdy, did much of the spadework to merge the men's and women's tours, which led directly to the creation of the Women's Players' Championship. "We're moving up into the level of the men," said Bernard, who, along with third Susan O'Connor, second Carolyn Darbyshire and lead Cori BarteL has an opening date against Regina's Jan Betker on Thursday at ajn. "Any of the top sports out there have a players championship at the end of the year, and this moves us up into a level with those kinds of sports, like golf and men's curling." It'll be the final event as a team for the Kleibrink foursome, as Bakker is leaving the team to spend more time with her young family. It will also be the first on-ice action since the bronze-medal game at Turin.

"We've had a long enough break that I'm excited again," laughed Kleibrink. "It's like it's a new season. It's a great way to wrap up the year." EXTRA ENDS: Round-robin games will be eight ends to accommodate the five-draw days Thursday and Friday The top eight teams from the three round-robin pools in both men's and women's play make the single-knockout money round Law firm Bennett Jones is sponsoring a year-end UWCT awards banquet Wednesday at the Fairmont Palliser Rogers Sportsnet is showing all three playoff draws. ACAMERONIffTHEHERALaCANWEST.COM fWi UIKJ FROM HERALD NEWS SERVICES Cats jacked about Jovo Iovocop could very well be walking a different beat next winter. Elite Vancouver Canucks defence- iian Ed Jovanovskl, who returned to action Saturday after missing 27 games due to abdominal surgery, is highly coveted by his former team, the Florida Panthers.

Majority owner Alan Cohen is an unabashed Jovanovski admirer, and Panthers GM Mike Keenan says inking a "high-end defenceman" is a priority this summer. Jovanovski, the former No. 1 overall draft choice from Windsor, Ont, is an unrestricted free agent on Canada Day. Jovanovski's agent, Pat Morris, tells the Palm Beach Post he has heard "no overtures" to date from 'Nux GM Dave Nonis. "He's told me that, once the season is over, he will make a pitch to keep Ed in Vancouver," says Morris.

"His statement to me was they would try in earnest for a week and, if it doesn't happen, then everyone takes their chances. I would anticipate July 1 is going to come pretty quickly." Tragic kingdom The Los Angeles Kings now wait for the inevitable. Saturday's 4-2 loss to Anaheim was the death blow for the Royals, who once held the Pacific Division lead but will miss playoffs for the third straight season. Mathematical elimination is just around the corner for the 40-34-5 Kings. "There's not much to say, really," centre Mike Cammalleri tells the Orange County Register.

"We're not doing what it takes to win games, especially this time of year, especially when the game's on the line. We definitely failed in our goals of playing the way we want and giving ourselves a chance to win." Adds $5-million Tinseltown bust Jeremy Roenick: "We have no confidence in our ability and no confidence that what we're doing is right. We are afraid of failure." Zach doesn't parlez-vous Zach Parise comes from French-Canadian stock but the son of former Bruin, Leaf, North Star, Islander and Baron J.P. Parise wasn't born in Canada, and doesn't speak a word of French. In fact, the New Jersey rookie forward made his very first trip to Montreal over the weekend as the Devils defeated the Habs.

Fellow Devil "Marty (Brodeur) said it's embarrass Zach Parise ing," Parise tells the Newark Star-Ledger with a smile. "I don't speak any French and I've never been to Montreal. My brother took French in school, so he speaks a little. I'm lost. I don't even know where to start." How come he didn't pick up a little French around the house? "I don't know," he says.

"I'm going to ask my dad." Gerard and Co. will stay There'll be no housecleaning in Columbus. Blue Jackets head coach Gerard Gallant, and his assistants Gord Murphy and Dean Blais, will return to Ohio for 2006-07, says GM Doug MacLean. "Gerard's going to get a new contract, so are the rest of the coaches, and so is everyone in the hockey department who needs a contract," MacLean tells the Columbus Dispatch. The Jackets, decimated by injury early this season, are 20-14-2 in the second half.

"I like the job Gerard has done with a healthy team," says MacLean. A long, strange year On the yo-yo front, goaltender Adam Berkhoel has been recalled, incredibly, for a fifth time this season by Atlanta. Injuries to Kari Lehtonen, Steve Shields and Mike Dunham this winter have kept Berkhoel on the move. "When you're down in the ECHL, you obviously don't expect to go up to the NHL." the 24-year-old tells the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "But it's been that kind of strange year." Compiled by Tood Kimberley, Calgary Herald Feel.

Drive. lease rate is available for a limited time on wagons. You could own a vehicle that got its class from the Insurance Institute of y. iVv'" Qualifies for pair of Calgary Stampede events DWAYNE ERICKSON Calgary Herald Curtis Cassidy is finally free of a nightmare that has been tearing him apart for five months. The talented timed event hand from Donalda will be going to professional rodeo's version of Disneyland this summer's Calgary Stampede.

Cassidy, 27, has been struggling with the cold, hard reality he might not be on the invitation list for the Stampede since he had a horrible Canadian Finals Rodeo in November. He had only once chance left win either the calf roping or steer wrestling at the four-performance Rodeo Royal, which ended on Sunday afternoon at the CorraL Cassidy came through with the clutch performance of his entire career, now in its ioth year. Shrugging off the pressure, he not only won the steer wrestling, but also the roping. He's now eligible to compete in both events at the revamped Stampede, which offers $1.6 million in prize money, including a $100,000 bonus to the champions in each of rodeo's six disciplines. "Just to win one of them was great," said Cassidy, who turfed a cooperative red steer in 4.7 seconds in the closing performance to edge Black Diamond teacher Alex Cripps by a tick.

He won the roping with a time of 7.8 seconds. "I tied my calf in Thursday night's opening performance and was winning it and they never did move me down," he said. "It was unbelievable, especially to win both events, let alone one of them." How disappointed would he have been had he not qualified for the Stampede? "Oh, gawd," Cassidy shuddered, "I don't know very. I was telling somebody the other day that I've competed at the Stampede every year since my rookie season in 1997 and I said missing it would probably be worse than not qualifying for the CFR. "I'll tell you, with $100,000 on the line, I wouldn't have been too happy about it.

This is a huge relief." He'll have family company at the summer showdown; younger brother Cody qualified in the steer wrestling by finishing among the top five at the CFR. Cassidy.wasn't the only one to pull a rabbit out of the hat on the final day. The 2001 Canadian bull riding champion, Scott Schiffner, from Strathmore, tamed stock contractor Greg Kesler's big, rank, fast right spinner Shiver 'n' Shake for 90 points. "I never even thought about qualifying for the Stampede," he said. "You stay on a bull like that and good things are going to happea" Schiffner rode the same bull about four years ago at a spring rodeo in Coleman, and scored 90 points, then drew him again that same year late in the-summer at Armstrong, B.C., and was thrown off.

"It's been a long stretch since I've been on him, but for a 10-year-old, he's exceptional." Canadian champion Rayel Robinson also used the closing performance to win the barrel racing with a time of 13.30 seconds. Having already qualified for the Stampede, she opens up a hole for somebody else who will get an invitation from the rodeo committee. The same applies in the saddle bronc riding where Montana's eight-time world champion Dan Mortensen saw his second performance score of 85 stand up to win first. Texan Chris Harris, like Schiffner and Mortensen, former Stampede $50,000 champions, qualified in the bareback riding with an 86-point score on Calgary's Fearless Warrior on Saturday night. 'Super heavyweights' hit canvas Olympics, won by Brad Gushue's foursome.

The world title won by the Lockerbie Curling Club team was Scotland's fourth in the 48-year history of the competition. Canada's won 29 times. "They are a nation with a million curlers and I think we have 20,000," Murdoch said. "They're always the benchmark in the world championship and the Olympics." Scotland had last-rock advantage to start Sunday's game and used the hammer to stay in control in front of about 3,000 people at the Paul E. Tsongas Arena.

Menard needed to make a wide double takeout and stay in the house with his final shot of the ioth end for the Canadians to score two and take their chances in an extra end. But his shooter rolled out. "That wasn't the shot that cost the game," Roberge said. "We struggled a bit in the first five ends and it cost the game." "After the fifth-end break (the ice) was dead straight," Menard said. Think.

Scots get revenge by defeating Menard in final DONNA SPENCER The Canadian Press LOWELL, MASS. The surprising run of Jean-Michel Menard's curling team ended with a silver medal Sunday at the world men's curling championship. Canada lost 7-4 in the final to Scotland's David Murdoch. Menard's foursome from Quebec City was a virtual unknown at this year's Canadian and world championships, yet won the former and finished one step down on the podium from taking the latter. "I'm disappointed because we had a chance to become world champions," Menard said.

"I don't know if that was my only chance to win a world championship. "Overall, I'm pretty happy with the effort we gave this year. I don't think a whole lot of people would have thought at the end of the year we would be runner-up at the world championships." Menard, third Francois Roberge, second Eric Syl-vain and lead Maxime Elmaleh were the first Quebec team to represent Canada at the world championship since 1977, when Jean-Michel Menard Tim Ursel's Montreal rink also finished second. Murdoch was elated to take the world curling title from the country he calls "the super heavyweights of the curling world" after getting thumped 11-4 in last year's world final by Randy Ferbey and finishing fourth in this year's 4. ilia SUBARU 0.8 purchase financing and '0 2006 Legacy sedans the top safety rating and in Highway Safety.

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