Big game spotlight brings out best in Valkyries’ Girolami

Haley Girolami had three catches for 100 yards and three touchdowns for the Valkyries on Sunday.

    Haley Girolami is still oblivious to statistical milestones in football.

    The rookie receiver was unaware how big her performance was in the Saskatoon Valkyries 53-0 romp over the visiting Lethbridge Steel in a Western Women’s Canadian Football League semifinal match on Sunday at Saskatoon Minor Football Field.

    In that contest, Girolami hauled in three passes for 100 yards and scored three touchdowns. The 23-year-old scored the Valkyries first touchdown on a 28-yard catch with 5:52 expired in the first quarter to give Saskatoon a 7-0 lead.

    During the second quarter, Girolami caught a long pass and on the way to a 66-yard catch and run touchdown to account for her second major.

Haley Girolami reacts to making a six-yard TD catch.

    She hauled in a six-yard reception for her third score of the game before the second quarter expired.
    Girolami didn’t know a 100-yard receiving game is a big statistical moment for a pass catcher. She wasn’t even keeping track of the fact she reached the end zone three times.

    “I wasn’t thinking about it,” said Girolami. “I just knew I had to do my job.

    “If the ball was coming to me, I had to catch it. I did, and I was thankful for that.”

    Before joining the Valkyries this season, Girolami had been out of competitive sports for a lengthy stretch. For three seasons from 2010 to 2013, she was a defender for the Saskatoon Stars female midget AAA hockey team.

    After exhausting her midget AAA eligibility, Girolami continued to play sports at the recreational level. She is pursuing studies in nursing at the University of Saskatchewan.

    A year ago, Girolami watched her younger sister, Danielle, play through her rookie season as a receiver for the Valkyries. Haley decided to join her 20-year-old sibling this season.

    “Danielle played last year, and I guess I kind of saw her having fun,” said Haley, who stands 5-foot-9. “I figured I can’t let her have all the fun, so I thought I would join.”

Haley Girolami races downfield after making a catch.

    While Haley followed in Danielle’s footsteps in football, Danielle followed in Haley’s footsteps in hockey. After Haley graduated from the midget AAA ranks, Danielle joined the Stars playing defence for the team from 2013 to 2016. She helped the Stars win Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League titles in 2015 and 2016.

    Growing up playing hockey, the two never got to play a full season together on one team. They would cross paths from time to time with the Saskatchewan provincial hockey team program.

    Football has provided the two sisters the chance to play on a competitive sports team together for a full season.

    “It is great,” said Haley. “I love having my sister there on the other side of me.

    “I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

    Valkyries head coach Pat Barry was happy to see Haley Girolami have a big game against the Steel. The sideline boss has been impressed with how well Girolami has balanced playing for the Valkyries along with her commitment to the U of S nursing program.

    “She is an exceptional athlete,” said Barry. “I know she is in nursing, which is a very challenging program.

    “Sometimes, we haven’t had her at all the football games. We’re very pleased to have her, and we have to get the ball to her as much as we can.”

Haley Girolami scores a TD on a 28-yard reception.

    On Saturday, the Valkyries travel to Regina to play in the WWCFL Championship game against the host and two-time defending champion Riot at 4 p.m. at Mosaic Stadium. Barry believes Girolami could have a huge impact on the final outcome of that contest.

    “She could be a big factor,” said Barry. “Again, it is a team game, and we have to have 12 people on the field all pulling together.

    “If that happens, hopefully we will be successful.”

    Girolami has enjoyed the atmosphere of being on a competitive team again with the Valkyries. She missed the comradery that comes with the bus trips and the hotel stays with the team, which doesn’t happen often at the recreational level.

    On top of all of that, Girolami is thankful the Valkyries have been really welcoming.

    “It has been lots of fun,” said Girolami. “I missed competitive team sports, so it was really nice being back with everybody as a team.

Haley Girolami (#17) celebrates a touchdown with her teammates.

    “The girls are really encouraging. It is lots of fun being out there as a team together and you work well.”

    Now, Girolami will try and help the Valkyries win their first WWCFL title since 2016. They fell 14-10 in last year’s league title game to the Riot.

    She believes she will have some nerves going into that game, but expects her teammates will help her out.

    “The atmosphere is going to be a lot different,” said Girolami. “With all the team there, it is going to be pretty exciting I think.”

CFL and CFLPA looks bad on Lawrence suspension

QB Zach Collaros (#17) is out due to a Simoni Lawrence hit.

    The CFL and CFL Players’ Association are getting rightly roasted by pundits over the fallout of the Simoni Lawrence suspension.

    The CFL handed down a two-game suspension to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats linebacker for when he dove and drove his left shoulder into the head of Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback Zach Collaros. The play occurred in the Tigers-Cats 23-17 victory over the Roughriders in Hamilton on June 13 in the regular season opening game for the entire league.

    Collaros, who has a history of concussion injuries, was placed on the six-game injured list and hasn’t played since the hit.

    Lawrence received a Grade 2 roughing the passer penalty resulting in a 25-yard gain for Saskatchewan.

    The CFL handed down its suspension to Lawrence on June 17. Last Wednesday, the CFLPA informed the CFL it was grieving the two-game suspension to Lawrence.

    The appealing hearing is set for July 9. Lawrence is eligible to play for the Tiger-Cats until the appeal hearing is held.

    This sort of situation has happened in the CFL before, and it will likely happen again in the future.

    If Lawrence agreed to sit out his two-game suspension, there would have been a lot of people that said justice was served. With that said, there would have been others that said the suspension wasn’t stiff enough, but their voices likely would have faded had there not been an appeal.

    Still, the Lawrence situation would have come to a conclusion instead of being dragged out like it is, if he served the CFL imposed suspension.

    There was a feeling before the season started that player safety would be more important to all parties involved. With how Lawrence’s situation has played out, that doesn’t appear to be the case.

    The CFL looks toothless, because it appears unable to enforce the suspensions it hands out. The CFLPA looks awkward trying to defend a player that has committed an obvious foul, while appearing to overlook an injury to one of its other union members.

    It seems like ensuring Lawrence doesn’t miss getting a game paycheque trumps player safety.

    This is one of those situations where all parties are in the wrong outside of Collaros himself.

    All the criticism that has come and likely is still to come is warranted.

NHL Entry Draft not be all in making league

A David Schlemko hockey card and puck set.

    If you get passed over in the NHL Entry Draft, it doesn’t all hope of having an NHL player career is gone.

    This year’s NHL Draft was held last Friday and Saturday in Vancouver, B.C., and in the immediate aftermath, a lot of draft eligible players are left to deal with the disappointment of going unselected.

    One of my favourite success stories was never selected in the NHL Entry Draft.

    In his final major junior campaign in 2006-07, David Schlemko piled up eight goals, 50 assists and a plus-12 rating in the plus-minus department skating in 64 regular season games with the Medicine Hat Tigers.

    Cementing a solid reputation as an offensive defenceman during what was his 19-year-old season in the WHL, Schlemko helped the Tigers win the WHL title and earn a berth in the Memorial Cup tournament championship game.

    The Tigers fell in that year’s Memorial Cup title game 3-1 to the host Vancouver Giants.

Schlemko, who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 191 pounds, was never selected in the NHL Entry Draft, but in July of 2007, he signed a three-year entry-level contract with the NHL’s Arizona Coyotes.

    He made his NHL debut during his second year in the professional ranks in 2008-09 with the Coyotes and ultimately played three games that season.

    Over 12 seasons as a professional, Schlemko has played 415 career NHL regular season games collecting 18 goals and 76 assists with the Coyotes, Dallas Stars, Calgary Flames, New Jersey Devils, San Jose Sharks and Montreal Canadiens.

    The now 32-year-old’s NHL rights are held by the Philadelphia Flyers. While there is no certainty that he will play with the Flyers next season, his NHL career has to be deemed an unequivocal success.

    If you are signed by an NHL club as an undrafted free agent, most pundits view those types of players as a long shot to make it into the league.

    The fact Schlemko has played over 400 games in the league over 12 professional campaigns blows that notion away.

    He is a smart player who knows when to make the simple plays and went to take a calculated chance on the ice. Schlemko has always been a good teammate, and all those factors have allowed to play in the NHL for as long as he has.

    He showed it is possible for someone to make it to the NHL and play in the league over a long period of time even if they go undrafted.

Being first overall pick doesn’t guarantee anything

    Do you remember who was the first overall selection in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft that saw the Vancouver Canucks select twin brothers Daniel and Henrik Sedin?

    Believe it or not, the first overall selection wasn’t one of the Sedin twins. The Canucks took Daniel second overall and Henrik third overall.

    With the first overall selection, the Atlanta Thrashers picked centre Patrik Stefan from the Czech Republic.

    Who is Patrik Stefan you ask?

    He is best remembered for a regularly shown blooper, when he was a member of the Dallas Stars. On Jan. 4, 2007, the Stars were in Edmonton leading the host Oilers 5-4 in the dying seconds of the third period.

    Stefan had a breakaway towards an empty Edmonton net. He attempted a casual backhand shot that missed the goal, and he also tripped and fell to the ice.

    After falling to the ice, Stefan proceeded to clear the puck to an Oilers player. The Oilers came back up the ice and scored the equalizer that forced a 5-5 tie. Dallas proceeded to win the game 6-5 after a tiebreaking shootout.

    Stefan, who stands 6-foot-2 and weighs 210 pounds, is remembered more for that gaff than being selected first overall in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft.

    The 2006-07 campaign turned out to be Stefan’s final season in the NHL, and he retired in October of 2007.

    He appeared in 455 career regular season games playing for both the Thrashers and the Stars posting 64 goals and 124 assists.

    Most hockey players would do something extreme to have an NHL playing career like that.

    When you are the first overall selection of an NHL Entry Draft, those numbers make you a draft bust. While that might be cruel, that is the way it is.

    There is a notion that all first overall selections in the NHL Entry Draft are can’t miss prospects for star status.

    Stefan’s career showed being the first overall selection definitely does not guarantee you will make the Hockey Hall of Fame one day.

    Instead, you can become a permanent feature on the blooper reel.

Raiders, Blades kick off regular season against each other

The Blades and Raiders are set to get it on to start the season.

    Now that the rivalry is back to a fever pitch, the Prince Albert Raiders and the Saskatoon Blades will kick off their respective WHL regular season schedules playing each other in a home-and-home series.

    The archrivals collided in the second round of the WHL playoffs last season, and the Raiders claimed the best-of-seven series 4-2. Prince Albert marched on to win the Ed Chynoweth Cup as league champions.

    The Raiders host the Blades on Friday, Sept. 20 at 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre. One night later, the Blades host the Raiders at 7 p.m. at the SaskTel Centre.

    Both games should draw big crowds, and that is likely an understatement.

    This also marks the first time the Raiders and Blades have opened a WHL campaign playing each other in a home-and-home series since the start of the 2015-16 campaign.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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