Inland Waterways » world of professional sports, the pressure is on.

Its been two years since the BC Lions hoisted the Grey Cup and Wally Buono handed the head coaching reigns to Mike Benevides. Since then the Lions have entered each season with one of the most talented rosters in the league before falling short of expectations. Two years is a short time to be sure, and its not like the Lions cant supply excuses for their shortcomings since 2011 – Travis Lulays shoulder injury last year – but in the ultra-competitive and impatient world of professional sports, the pressure is on. Bad teams feel pressure to be better; good teams feel pressure to be the best. And dont forget the added burden of a potential home field for the Grey Cup and the three-year streak of Grey Cup champs winning at home. The Lions were smart in acquiring veteran leader and “quarterback 1A” Kevin Glenn from the Ottawa Redblacks during the CFL Draft for the fifth-overall draft pick. The price was a little steep for a player few figured would actually end up with Ottawa for the upcoming season, but with Lulays shoulder still a talking point, Glenn provides quality insurance at the most important position. BC has opted for younger projects at QB behind Lulay the past couple years but the Glenn acquisition makes sense for a team that cant get derailed for even a short period of time, should Lulay miss games – for whatever ailment – this season. Especially with Thomas DeMarcos selection in the Expansion Draft, Glenn gives the Lions peace of mind at one of their most worrisome areas for 2014. Another solid move, adding to a position of strength, was the free agent signing of Jamall Johnson. Johnson returns to BC after five seasons in Hamilton, his last a down year after being asked to play in the middle, and joins a frightening linebacking corps that already includes Solomon Elimimian and Adam Bighill. BCs task in once again entering the year as one of the most talented teams on paper is replacing receiver Nick Moore and a number of large bodies on the offensive line. Not to diminish Moores impact, but the Lions receiving corps still has enough burners, and more importantly, added Canadian content, that Lulay – or Glenn – shouldnt feel frustrated for lack of quality targets. The line however, may have to rely on more youngsters than would be considered ideal. The good news is their young contingent on the offensive line is talented and the unit is still anchored by perhaps the best left tackle in the game in Jovan Olafioye. While theyve fallen short of the Grey Cup the past two years, the Lions still qualified for the postseason those years, and were just a win away from a return trip in 2012; so it feels strange to suggest the team enters the season under pressure to do more. That reality is part testament to how well the Lions organization is run, but as is the case with all good teams, being good only counts for so long; greatness sticks. Like the Argos and Riders before them, look for the Lions to go all out in 2014. Notes Parting Ways After a long tenure with the Lions as an offensive coach and coordinator, Jacques Chapdelaine left the Lions early in the off-season, the coach and team mutually agreeing to part ways. It was certainly a big shakeup on Benevides staff, getting rid of the offensive mainstay of 10 of the past 11 years. Up and coming offensive mind Khari Jones replaced Chapdelaine as well as taking on the QB coach role. Expansion Draft The Lions search for a backup quarterback began anew after the Ottawa Redblacks selected Thomas DeMarco, who gained solid experience filling in for an injured Travis Lulay In 2013, in the first round of the Expansion Draft. BC also lost guard Matt Albright and DT Andrew Marshall to the Redblacks. Free Agency With the least amount of players to hit the free market, the Lions were one of the least active teams during the free agency period. They did lose promising receiver Nick Moore to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers however, but made a splash on the other side of the ball when they brought back linebacker Jamall Johnson, who last played for the Lions in 2008, from Hamilton. Retirements The Lions offensive line took a number of big hits this off-season with the retirements of three big pieces. Veteran centre Angus Reid was the first to announce his retirement. The 13-year veteran was a three-time West Division All-Star and one-time league All-Star. Not long after tackle Ben Archibald retired. The two-time All-Canadian spent the past three seasons in BC. Then late in the off-season Patrick Kabongo joined the two in retirement. The nine-year vet was a one-time West Division All-Star. CFL Draft The Lions traded out of the first round in order to solidify their backup quarterback situation by grabbing Kevin Glenn from the Redblacks for the fifth-overall pick. The team had two picks in the second round, grabbing OL Tchissakid Player from Northwestern State and FB Pascal Lochard from Laval. With their final five selections the Lions took LB Casey Chin from Simon Fraser in the third round, DL David Menard from Montreal in the fourth round, WR Alexander Fox from Bishops in the fifth round, DL Dylan Roper from Simon Fraser in the sixth round, and RB Guillaume Bourassa from Laval in the seventh round. Khalif Mitchell Returns One of the most enigmatic players in the league the past few seasons made his return to BC late in the off-season after a year with the Toronto Argonauts. Khalif Mitchells talent and impact at his DT position are unquestionable, but his return to the Lions was surprising after Mitchell seemingly burned a lot of bridges on his way out of BC a year ago. Lions GM Wally Buono has said all the right things about Mitchells return so far, noting the player has matured over the years. Cleveland Browns Bernie Kosar Jersey . 5 Trade Deadline is drawing closer and teams will be deciding on whether to buy or sell while figuring out which players can make the biggest difference and hold the greatest value. Stitched Cleveland Browns Jerseys . The day began ominously for the Rangers when star pitcher Yu Darvish was scratched from his scheduled start with stiffness in his neck. Fill-in Scott Baker gave up three hits over six innings and Chris Gimenez hit a tiebreaking two-out RBI single in the sixth off Phil Hughes. http://www.cheapbrowns.com/90u-cheap-greedy-williams-jersey-browns.html . -- Adrian Peterson takes a look around the league and sees big money flying everywhere. Cleveland Browns Joe Thomas Jersey .ca has you covered for whos in, whos out and what to expect from all 30 teams. Cheap Cleveland Browns Jerseys Online . Nikolaos Kounenakis has been hired as an assistant coach, the team announced on Monday.Tampa, FL (SportsNetwork.com) - Ben Bishop made 30 saves and the Tampa Bay Lightning did just enough to top the Edmonton Oilers, 3-2, on Thursday. Tampa Bay was outshot 32-19, but Ondrej Palats two goals in the third period put the Lightning in front. Steven Stamkos also lit the lamp for Tampa Bay to help end a two-game losing streak. I liked the ending, Lightning head coach Jon Cooper said. You want to make a habit of coming back, but you dont want to make a habit of being down. The Oilers got a pair of goals from Benoit Pouliot, but could not tie the game late. Ben Scrivens made 16 saves on 19 shots as Edmonton fell for the 14th straight time on the road. For the first time this season, the Lightning were able to erase a deficit entering the third period and win the game. Palat tied the game 1 1/2 minutes into the third when he was in the right place to bury a rebound off Nikita Kucherovs initial shot. With eight minutes to go, Palat found the back of the net again. Nikita Nesterov won a puck battle along the boards to free the puck to Tyler Johnson. He made a behind-the-back pass to Palat stepping into the slot, and after he took a moment to shift the puck to his forehand, he wristed the puck by Scrivens for the game-winner. Edmonton took a 1-0 lead with a short-handed goal in the first period. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins carried the puck out of danger and used his speed to skate around Antonn Stralman to get a shot on goal.dddddddddddd Bishop made the save, but Pouliot followed up to knock the loose puck into the net. Stamkos evened the score after the Lightning killed a penalty. After exiting the box, Matt Carle received a pass on the blue line. His pass skipped over an Oilers stick to Stamkos, and he ripped a shot past Scrivens. The Oilers missed chances to retake the lead. Nail Yakupov hit the goal post, and Bishop made a save on Derek Roys weak shot coming on a 3-on-1 rush. We had some great scoring opportunities, especially in the second, said Oilers coach Todd Nelson. We hit a couple posts and just didnt bury those chances. In the third, I think Tampa Bay cranked it up a notch. Pouliot scored his second goal with a minute to go in the period, this time on the power play. The Lightning failed to clear the puck all the way down the ice, and Edmonton moved back in transition. Pouliot got behind the defense on Taylor Halls pass, and after being denied on his first shot, Pouliot scored on another rebound. Game Notes Tampa Bay entered 0-13-1 when trailing after two periods ... Pouliot has six goals during a four-game goal streak ... Stamkos has five goals during a four- game goal streak ... The Lightning have won six straight home games ... Edmonton fell to 7-7-1 against Eastern Conference opponents ... Edmontons Boyd Gordon skated in his 600th NHL game. 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