Its strange, eh. Ottawa has always felt so safe, like a second home, really. I couldnt tell you how many times Ive stayed at the Westin Hotel there, how many times Ive frequented? the Rideau Centre mall attached to it; how many times Ive strolled from the Westin to past the Chateau Laurier on the way to Parliament Hill, or maybe a walk over to the Byward Market, where my sons condo was located in the months he lived in our nations capital. Is it 40 times? Fifty? One hundred? Ive never thought to count them up, to be honest, from the time I started covering junior hockey games there in 1979 to last Thursday, when I was there for the Senators home opener. But its been a lot. And as I sat on a plane today in Toronto, waiting to take off for New York, reading the horrific Twitter updates of possible shooters on the loose, a brave reservist of the Canadian Forces killed at the National War Memorial, of possible shootings elsewhere in the area, including the mall? I was casually strolling through last week, well, its almost incomprehensible. In this world we live in, it shouldnt be incomprehensible but it still is. I arrived in Ottawa from New York late Thursday morning last week, checked into the Westin though my room wasnt going to be ready for another hour. So I did what Ive done countless times before, take the elevator up to the third floor and into the Rideau Centre. I guess it had been almost a year since I was there last -- Daniel Alfredssons return as a member of the Detroit Red Wings last November-- so I was surprised to discover the malls street level food court and my long-time Tim Hortons was gone, under construction apparently, so I searched out the new food court at the opposite end of the mall. No Tims, apparently, but it was teeming with people and as I sat down at a table with my lunch, I happened to be seated close to a large group of teenagers, obviously on lunch break from their school. Its funny to watch kids interact with each other sometimes. You never know what youre going to get but this group of kids, spread out over two or three tables, struck me as maybe the nicest, happiest kids you could possibly imagine. They came in all shapes and sizes, all colours and nationalities, but what struck me was how incredibly kind and considerate and caring they were to each other. They couldnt have been happier, sharing each others company?, smiling, laughing, seemingly no boundaries or walls between them or the different tables they were sitting at. I watched them, was maybe even awed by them, for a good 15 minutes. In fact, it so made an impression on me I briefly thought about tweeting that I just saw a group of high school kids in Ottawa who made me feel really good about the world, about our community, how uplifting it was to see such inherently good or nice kids, or so it seemed to me. I thought of their parents and how pleased they must be at how well, at face value anyway, their kids looked to be turning out. I thought better of tweeting something, though, not feeling like opening a door to Twitter trolls, but as I went about my business in the mall -- going over to Hudsons Bay Co. to get a new watch battery; stopping by Chapters to see if my book was on display; dropping into Starbucks for a tea before going back to the hotel to get my room -- I thought about how much I enjoy Ottawa, how safe and comfortable it always is there, how maybe more than any Canadian city I visit, it feels like home. It was a good day and it ended as it started: happily, relaxing with friends and work colleagues in the hote?l bar after broadcasting the Sens home opener, a victory that sent everyone in Ottawa home happy that night. And then came today and the horrifying news from the Canadian capital. Of course, my thoughts are, first and foremost, with ?Cpl. Nathan Cirillo, who was killed standing guard at the War Memorial, and his family and friends. I thought about the brave first responders who put themselves in harms way when everyone else is running to safety. But I also thought of my friends and colleagues who were today at the Westin for tonights (now postponed) Toronto-Ottawa game, the same as I was last Thursday for the Senators and Colorado Avalanche game, and how something like affects everyone. And amid the reports of the mall and the hotels and the schools and the office buildings downtown being locked down with reports of gun fire ringing out, I thought of those high school kids and I wondered how they must be feeling, how different it would have been from when I saw them last week. None of us are naive enough to deny the existence of evil. Its all around us and it doesnt discriminate, not by country or city or town or village, so we shouldnt be surprised when it violently appears out of nowhere. When it does, theres no immunity. Which is what makes today such a difficult one for everyone everywhere. But? Im sure it wont be long before Im in Ottawa again and Im going to go the mall and I hope I see those kids, still happy and smiling, doing their part to make sure good triumphs over evil. Stay safe, Ottawa. Stay strong. Alex Bregman Astros Jersey . Louis Blues brought in the premier unrestricted free agent centre, and did it without breaking the bank. Tyler Clippard Jersey . - Dominika Cibulkova erased three match points in the second set Wednesday and beat Agnieszka Radwanska 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in the quarterfinals of the Sony Open. http://www.authenticbaseballshopastros.c...Bagwell-Jersey/. When the next inning rolled around Wednesday, though, Nationals manager Matt Williams sent Strasburg to the mound to face the top of the Dodgers order in what would become a 3-2 victory for Washington, the first time this season the No. Jose Cruz Astros Jersey . Louis Cardinals for the National League Wild Card, are in the drivers seat as they open the final series of the regular season, but they face a large task in the form of the Philadelphia Phillies. Josh Reddick Jersey . Power had a two-lap average of 218.896 mph in qualifying Friday at the high-banked, high-speed 1 1/2-mile track for his 34th career pole.Got a question on rule clarification, comments on rule enforcements or some memorable NHL stories? Kerry wants to answer your emails at cmonref@tsn.ca! Hi Kerry, Early in the second period of Mondays game between Los Angeles and Vancouver, Kings player Jake Muzzin hit Canuck Daniel Sedin with a high stick, knocking a tooth out. Sedin clearly showed the tooth to the referees, yet Muzzin received only a two-minute minor. Why was this not a double minor? Thanks,Shaun from Vancouver --- Hi Kerry, As I watched Daniel Sedin take a high stick to the mouth and broke a tooth (at least now people can tell the two apart), shouldnt that be a double minor? My understanding of rule 60.3 regarding a double minor is that it is any injury should warrant a double minor and blood does not have to show. When a player carries or holds any part of his stick above the shoulders of the opponent so that injury results, the Referee shall assess a double-minor penalty for all contact that causes an injury, whether accidental or careless, in the opinion of the Referee. Could you explain why the referees didnt give Muzzin a double minor? Thanks,GarethRichmond, BC Shaun and Gareth: Based on the physical evidence presented by Daniel Sedin to Referee Steve Kozari and the calm and accepting demeanor coach John Tortorella demonstrated in the explanation that followed, its most obvious that a replacement crown became unglued as a result of the high stick committed by Jake Muzzin. The solid cap Daniel pulled out of his mouth does not constitute an injury. On the other hand, if Sedin had spit out broken fragments of a tooth (crown) or even withheld solid evidence in his glove revealing a broken chiccklet, short of checking dental records the referee would have legitimate cause to assess a double minor penalty.dddddddddddd I found myself in this very situation in two different games played within a week of each other. Both times they involved Matthew Barnaby and his missing tooth. I wasnt aware that Barney had a capped front tooth. A stick came up near Barneys face and he immediately bent over and covered his mouth. By the time I got to him Matthews big smile revealed a broken front tooth. I assessed a double minor penalty as a result of the apparent injury.The very next week I worked another game involving the Buffalo Sabres player. During the National Anthem I noticed that Matt Barnaby was sporting a shiny silver crown. As good luck would have it, this time around I was in perfect position to see an errant stick clearly missed Barnabys face and head. Once again, Matthew doubled over, grabbed his face and yanked the silver cap out of his mouth which he immediately concealed inside his glove. Barney then approached me and pointed to the same filed down remnants of a front tooth as he appealed for a double minor penalty to be called. I now had legitimate reason to suspect I had been duped in the previous game. I told Matthew he had two problems with this attempt to sell a penalty call this time around. For one, the stick never touched him and two, his memory was obviously fuzzy since I was the same ref he pulled this on a week earlier. Matthew didnt dispute my claim and instead fished the shiny cap out of his glove, stuck it back in his mouth and gave me the smile of a choir boy! Fortunately for Referee Steve Kozari, Daniel Sedin didnt take a bite out of Barnabys play book. Jerseys NFL China Wholesale Jerseys Cheap NFL Hoodies Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Gear Wholesale Jerseys 2019 Wholesale NFL White Jerseys ' ' '