Each week, The Reporters put their thumbs out to the good and the bad in the world of sports. This week, they discuss the mistakes in the recently-filed concussion lawsuit, Jaroslav Halaks unwillingness to play his fomer team, Ryan Smyth and what he meant to Edmonton and Canada, and the new, civilized way managers and umpires argue with each other. Bruce Arthur, National Post My thumb is up to proofreading, especially when you happen to be filing a class-action lawsuit that pertains to concussions. The suit filed this week against the NHL on behalf of a group that included a small group of former players, including Michael Peluso and Dan Lacouture, was the second of its kind in hockey, and wont be the last. And it probably didnt help the cause by misspelling Sidney Crosbys name, citing movies like “Friday the 13th” and “Mystery, Alaska”, and declaring Gordie Howe dead. Look, we know what brain trauma does to people, now. In sports, what leagues knew and when they knew it is important, because if information was concealed, that could be monstrous. Now, Im not a lawyer, but if youre looking for answers, maybe start by not killing Gordie Howe. Steve Simmons, SUN Media My thumb is down to Jaroslav Halak, for basically opting out of playing goal against his former team, the St. Louis Blues. This is a hard one to completely understand and there is more than one version of the story. But the way I understand it, the Washington Capitals picked up the goalie at the trade deadline for the express purpose of trying to help them get in the playoffs. Yet he told his coach, Adam Oates, that he wasnt comfortable playing against the Blues, the team that just traded him away. Not comfortable? Isnt the athletes favourite game the one against his former team with all his friends? Isnt that what a goalie signs up for? The odd part in all this, without Halak the Capitals beat the Blues Tuesday night and still managed to miss the playoffs. Michael Farber, Sports Illustrated My thumb is up to Ryan Smyth, who announced his retirement Friday. He was not the greatest Oiler, obviously, but he was as much of an Edmonton-standard bearer in his era as Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier were in theirs. Smyth was not conspicuously skilled, but he stood for old-time hockey values - and he stood in front of the net, the source of most of his 386 goals. He was steadfast in commitment to country, playing in eight World Championships and two Olympics. Captain Canada, indeed. But Smyth spent 15 of 19 NHL seasons in copper and blue. He belongs to Edmonton. The rest of the country was lucky it could borrow him. Dave Hodge, TSN My thumb is down to baseball fans who say they miss the loud-cursing, dirt-kicking, arm-waving, near-spitting, face to face arguments between managers and umpires. Those have been replaced this season by civilized conversations that the managers deem necessary while they wait for dugout advice on replay challenges. We have enough fits of temper and rage in this world that they dont have to come in the form of phony sports entertainment. The managers look better when they act older than five, the umpires are deserving of respect and this way, bad calls can actually be corrected. Its all quite civilized, which, Abner Doubleday intended, I believe. If, indeed, Doubleday was baseballs inventor. There are other claims, but lets not fight about that, either. Dirk Nowitzki Jersey . -- Cincinnati Reds closer Aroldis Chapman is undergoing surgery to repair a broken bone above his left eye but has no other serious injuries after being hit in the face by a line drive in a spring training game. DeAndre Jordan Jersey . The Blueshirts hope to stay alive once again when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins in Sundays Game 6 battle at Madison Square Garden. http://www.cheapmavericksjerseys.com/?ta...-brunson-jersey. Pedroia reached the milestone with a little panache, hitting a grand slam in the sixth inning and propelling the Boston Red Sox to a 7-1 win over the Oakland Athletics on Friday night. Ray Spalding Jersey . A knee to the thigh might have stung him the most, but his sixth straight double-double made up for the brief burst of pain. Cheap Mavericks Jerseys Authentic . Head coach Lindy Ruff confirmed on Sunday that his starting goalie has a head injury and the team will take it day by day.(SportsNetwork.com) - The Winnipeg Jets hope to set into motion a losing streak for the Colorado Avalanche this evening. You can catch all of the action on TSN Jets and TSN 1290 at 7pm ct. Winnipeg continues to lose ground in the Western Conference playoff race as it sits six points out of the second wild card position. The Jets snapped a six- game slide with a 7-2 win over Dallas on Sunday, but fell in defeat the following night 3-1 to the St. Louis Blues. Eric ODell scored the Jets lone goal and the clubs were tied until the Blues David Backes scored a power-play goal with 6:51 to play. Winnipeg went down a man when Evander Kane went off for slashing. "We just cant be in the box there," Winnipeg head coach Paul Maurice said of Kanes penalty, which occurred in the offensive zone. "Thats the bottom line on that play." Al Montoya allowed two goals on 25 shots for the Jets. It is unknown when Ondrej Pavelec will be ready to return from a lower-body injury, so Montoya will get the start again tonight. He has good numbers versus the Avalanche, going 2-1-2 with a 2.14 GAA and one shutout. Dustin Byfuglien will miss his first game of the season tonight due to a lower-body injury. Head coach Paul Maurice hopes hell be able to play Saturday against Carolina. Eric Tangradim, who has been a healthy scratch for the last four games, replaces Byfuglien. The Avs are coming off just their thhird setback in the past 10 games, losing in head coach Patrick Roys return to Montreal.dddddddddddd. Roy starred for the Canadiens franchise for 10-plus seasons before a trade to the Avalanche in 1995 and received a warm reception during the game. The home cheers eventually went to Montreals Thomas Vanek, who notched a hat trick to help hand Colorado a 6-3 loss. Jamie McGinn had a goal and an assist for the Avalanche, who also got goals from Nathan MacKinnon and Maxime Talbot. Jean-Sebastien Giguere turned aside 30-of-35 shots. "I didnt want them to feel pressure of winning a hockey game for their coach. Its all about our team here," Roy said. The Avs fell into a tie with the Chicago Blackhawks for second place in the Central Division, eight points back of the first-place St. Louis Blues. Theyll try to avoid losing two straight for the first time since Feb. 4-6. Reto Berra, the third goaltender on Colorados roster, will get the start tonight and it will be his first with the Avalanche since they acquired him from the Calgary Flames. Berra, signed to a three-year extension by the Avs last Friday, was 9-17-2 with a 2.95 goals against average in 29 games (27 starts) with the Flames. That includes a 1-1-0 mark versus the Jets with a 4.32 GAA. The Avs have won three of four versus the Jets this season, including a 4-3 shootout decision on Dec. 12 in the lone encounter in Winnipeg. ' ' '