Alles Andere » ll a five-minute penalty because the player is hur

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. -- He plays with passion and energy and always has something to say but Brandon Isaac will have a bit more juice than usual Friday night. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats colourful linebacker will face his former Toronto Argonauts teammates for the first time since being released by the CFL club in July. Isaac helped the Double Blue win a Grey Cup title last year and was a team captain to start the season before being let go four games into the season. The four-year CFL veteran will arrive at Rogers Centre with a definite chip on his shoulder in the opening game of a home-and-home series between the long-time rivals. The Argos face the Ticats in Guelph, Ont., on Oct. 14. "I can say you play a little harder, you can say that because youre going to have that grit to win and try to prove those guys wrong," Isaac said candidly. "Ive thought about it (facing the Argos), Ive looked at it a few times (on the calendar). "Its here now and as a team were ready to play and see where were at." Ticats coach Kent Austin, always a model of political correctness when addressing reporters, could only shake his head at Isaacs brutal honesty during Hamiltons pre-game news conference. "Thats not what I wanted to hear," a smiling Austin said, drawing laughter from the assembled media. And asked if Isaac had been watching his news conferences this season, Austin jokingly quipped: "Apparently not." However, Austin said hes not concerned about emotions getting the better of Isaac on the field. "Look, football is an emotional game and youve got to play with your heart but you also have to play with your head," he said. "B.I. brings us . . . the energy, the emotion, the physicality our defence needs. "He handles it the right way." Isaac definitely has the gift of the gab on the field and says hell have plenty to say Friday night. "Theres a couple of things I want to say," he said. "I envision me making certain plays and saying certain things but those plays have to happen for me to say it that way. "Im going to talk and whatever I feel at that moment is the right thing to say Im going to say it." But Toronto receiver/returner Chad Owens (ribs) -- who will be game-time decision -- said the Argos expect to face a motivated and vocal Isaac. "B.I. is a good football player," Owens said. "He tries to get under your skin but were not going to involved in that. "Whether he knows it or not, that energizes both sides of the football, that will get us going. We have to know where hes at, we have to understand what hes doing, when hes blitzing and we also have to worry about what were going to do." The game is an important one for both clubs, who will play their final five regular-season contests against East Division rivals. Toronto (9-4) can clinch a home playoff game with a win and would cement first in the East if the Montreal Alouettes also lose to the Edmonton Eskimos on Saturday. Hamilton (6-7) can close ground on the front-running Argos with a victory and would claim a post-season berth if Edmonton and Winnipeg (which is visiting Calgary) also both lose. "Thats what our season has come down to," Austin said. "Its pretty apparent theres good and bad news. "The good news is theyre all Eastern teams, the bad news is theyre all Eastern teams so we have to prepare well because theyre the most meaningful games." Sophomore Zach Collaros makes his sixth straight start for Toronto in place of veteran Ricky Ray, who suffered a shoulder injury against Calgary on Aug. 23. Ray will be the Argos No. 3 quarterback behind Collaros and backup Trevor Harris. "Hes not at 100 per cent, hes probably at 85 per cent strength in his arm but if he has to play, he can," Milanovich said of Ray. "We want to get him out there and used to his pre-game routine and going over the wristband . . . so if its next week or the week after hes ready to start that its not the first time he goes through it." Toronto is 4-1 since Rays injury, becoming the first CFL team ever to win all four games of a four-game road trip in the process,. They rallying from a deficit in each road win. Collaros has been especially impressive in the fourth quarter of those contest, completing 33-of-38 passes for 372 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions and a stunning 142.5 quarterback rating. "I guess weve executed, Ive thrown better, weve caught it better and done all those things better in the fourth," Collaros said. "I dont really know if their is an answer for that. "We need to find an answer for the first couple of quarters to get it going and not make it so hard on ourselves." Hamilton will have rookie safety Courtney Stephen back in the lineup while former Washington Redskin Brandon Banks will return kicks. "He (Stephen) is going to be a really really good football player in this league for a long time," Austin said. "We had pretty high expectations for him but I think hes developed faster than I thought he would. "Banks is a natural returner . . . hes got a great initial burst. Well see come gametime but what Ive seen in practice is what Ive seen on his tape and thats a guy who has good vision and runs with vision, not just with speed." Friday nights game will be Torontos first at home since dropping a lacklustre 20-9 decision to Montreal on Sept. 9, the first game after Ray was injured. "Im very excited to be back home," Milanovich said. "Just playing in our stadium and not having to concern yourself with weather and some of the decisions you have to make from a head coachs perspective on the road makes it a little bit cleaner. "It seems like its been a long time since weve gone into that locker-room." Milanovich downplayed the significance of Torontos record-setting road trip, suggesting it was a first because clubs dont often play four straight games from home. Of more importance, he said, was the Argos pulling together to find ways to win in hostile environments. But Austin said Toronto deserves to be in the discussion about which are the CFLs top teams. "Theyre a good football team, theyre well coached, they play well together and they believe in one another," he said. "You can see it, you can see the chemistry . . . Its hard to beat a team that has a high level belief that theyre unbeatable." Mike Ditka Jersey . -- The Denver Broncos are shuffling their offensive line this off-season and Orlando Franklin provided some insight into their plans Monday by tweeting that hes moving from right tackle to left guard. Akiem Hicks Jersey . On the eve of the 2013-14 NBA season, he can finally take a step back and allow his team to do the talking. http://www.chicagobearfootballauthentic.com/authentic-roquan-smith-bears-jersey/ . "Hopefully well get all this out of the way," he said, "and everyone will be healthy the rest of the year." Zimmerman was placed on the 15-day disabled list Sunday and is expected to miss between four to six weeks. Mitchell Trubisky Bears Jersey . So far, so good: Gonzalez has allowed one run through 12 innings this season. His second start came Tuesday night, when he gave up only three singles over six innings to lead the Nationals to a 5-0 victory over the Miami Marlins. David Montgomery Jersey . The league announced Thursday that Tom Higgins is leaving that post effective immediately.CALGARY -- Calgary Flames interim general manager Brian Burke defended his head coach Monday and said Vancouver Canucks head coach John Tortorella "oughta keep his mouth shut." Burke, also Calgarys president of hockey operations, countered Tortorellas post-game comments after Sundays game in Vancouver, where the Canucks won the regular-season finale 5-1. Tortorella had objected to the actions of Flames head coach Bob Hartley when Canucks forward Daniel Sedin was hit from behind and driven into the boards by Flames forward Paul Byron late in the second period. Sedin was taken off the ice on a stretcher after scoring twice in the game, while Byron was slapped with a five-minute major and a game misconduct. "Its embarrassing to coach against the guy across from me tonight," Tortorella said. "Some of the things that went on when Danny was hurt, its embarrassing. "I dont like the way he does business. I dont like him, and eventually I guess why I am talking about it in this way is because I need to protect my players and a lot of people dont understand that, so Ill just leave it at that. Tortorella feuded with Hartley in Vancouver on Jan. 18 when he tried to get into Calgarys locker-room following a line brawl. Tortorella was suspended for 15 days. Hartley wouldnt bite Monday when reporters asked Calgarys head coach about Tortorellas comments, but Burke weighed in. He called Tortorella a friend before launching his counter-attack. "Our coach acted completely appropriatelyy last night and Torts oughta keep his mouth shut," Burke said.dddddddddddd "Apparently what outraged him was the cardinal sin of our coach arguing for a penalty while Daniel Sedin was being tended to on the ice. "Paul Byron hit him. We think its a hockey play. We dont think its worth five minutes. We dont think its worth further review. Call a five-minute penalty because the player is hurt, thats fine with us. "Now the player gets attacked, punched repeatedly, no penalty. Where are the minor penalties against our player? Smallest player on the ice besides Johnny Gaudreau gets mugged, nothing. "Bob had the temerity and the audacity to argue with the officials for these penalties while Daniel Sedin was on the ice. No one likes to see a player get hurt. We hear Daniel is fine, which is great news, but that is when Bob has to argue that. "What Bob Hartley did last night was exactly what John Tortorella would have done had it been one of our players lying on the ice and he felt there was an inequity in the penalty calls. "John Tortorella was on my staff for the Olympics in 2010. Hes a good guy. I dont know whats going on in his head, but you know what? Shut your mouth and worry about your team. Leave my coach alone." The players in question seemed ready to make peace. Byron said he texted Sedin on Monday morning to apologize for the hit. "He responded," Byron said. "I think he appreciated the text and Im really glad hes OK." ' ' '