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Now that another Olympic Games is over, many across Canada know the stories of our athletes and the various roads they took to get to their ultimate goal. But what about the officials? Every sport has officials and they also have stories about hard work and sacrifice but their accomplishments are seldom recognized by anyone outside their inner circle. Well, meet Derek Amell, 17-year NHL linesman and now an Olympian. When I turned on the mens hockey gold medal game between Canada and Sweden, I was happy to see that an old acquaintance would be working the lines for the biggest game on the worlds biggest stage. You see, over 25 years ago, Derek and I worked together at a drug store chain in Whitby, Ontario. I was a university student taking a year off school and he was a high school student looking to improve on his first job working the night shift at Burger King for $2.85/hr. There were two things I remembered about Derek back then: he was a lot bigger than me, and he had a very calm personality. Looking back, those are two good attributes for an NHL linesman. For Derek, the dream took off at the age of 24 when he worked his first Ontario Hockey League game. Three years later, he started working American Hockey League games and this is where our paths would cross again. I was an off-ice official with the Hamilton Canucks and Hamilton Bulldogs in the 1990s and we would touch base now and again at Copps Coliseum. I could see then that he was on his way to the NHL. "I felt the NHL was an attainable goal after working the AHLs Calder Cup Final in my first year," said Amell. He wouldnt have to wait long for the big moment. The following year, he found out he would be working NHL games in the upcoming season. In his first NHL season, the league made the decision to return to the Olympics in Nagano, meaning there was now another rung on the ladder of success for NHL players and officials. There would be some career highlights along the way, such as the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, the 2009 and 2012 Stanley Cup Finals as well as the 2012 NHL All-Star Game. Could the Olympics be next? And then he got the news. Unlike the athletes who are introduced at news conferences, Amell was contacted through e-mail by Stephen Walkom, the NHLs director of officiating. The message was sent on December 1, naming the 13 NHL officials who were chosen to work in Sochi. Of course, when athletes go to the Olympics, they stay in the Athletes Village and invite family and friends to share in the experience. Is it the same for the officials? "The officials stayed together in a hotel right inside the Olympic area. It was great to be together with all the amateur officials," said Amell, who is a married father of two children but did not have any family join him in Sochi. To work the gold medal game, he had to prove himself again. "The gold medal officials were chosen by a panel of supervisors from various countries and it was based on performance during the tournament. We were told by e-mail after the semifinal games," said Amell. When the officials for the gold medal game were announced, former NHL player and Swedish international Peter Forsberg was incensed that Canadians would be working the game but some current Swedish players defended the decision, saying their nationality wouldnt affect their decision-making. "We knew there would be extreme scrutiny on the officiating when it was announced that the officials were Canadian," said Amell. "We knew the players would be comfortable with us since we are all in the NHL. It was more an issue with the media than with the players. "At the end of the game, the entire Swedish team came over and shook our hands and told us we did a great job. That was very satisfying for us." So which was more nerve-racking: the first NHL game or the gold medal game? "Working the gold medal game was the most nerve-racking game I have ever officiated," he admitted. Its been a long road from collecting shopping carts in Whitby to officiating at the gold medal game in Sochi. And while Amells appearance at the Olympics may not have been as celebrated as many of the athletes, or even noticed by most viewers, the accomplishment is no less significant. And just like the athletes, family plays an integral role in the success of officials, offering support and enduring hardships over the years. "Since we only work 6-8 games a year at home, the family sacrifices are large," said Amell. "I miss most of my childrens sports activities and birthdays. They understand the life of an NHL official, but it still can be very difficult on my wife and children," said Amell. As for the hundreds of people who show up at the airport for our returning athletes, how does the return of an official compare? "No one met me at the airport," Amell laughed. "It was like coming home from any other road trip!" The Olympics is a place where dreams can come true. Most people dream of winning a gold medal but dont tell Derek Amell that his accomplishment is anything less. He just achieved his Olympic goal with a lot less fanfare. And, like a linesman who goes unnoticed when he does a good job, thats the way he likes it. Emmanuel Mudiay Jersey . And follow TSN.ca right through Deadline Day for all the updates. Getting Creative The Pittsburgh Penguins will try their best to acquire Ryan Kesler from the Vancouver Canucks before the Trade Deadline. Will Barton Jersey . "Uuufff," was all shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria could come up with after Stantons latest mammoth shot. http://www.authenticnuggetsproshop.com/Allen-Iverson-Jersey/. Sterling was banned for life and fined US$2.5 million by the NBA on Tuesday for racist comments the league says he made in a recorded conversation. Nash, who plays for the rival L.A. Lakers, spoke as a representative of current NBA players at a press conference assembled by Sacramento mayor and National Basketball Players Association adviser Kevin Johnson. Alex English Jersey . Mauer struck out to end the inning, with a runner on third base in the seventh on Wednesday and the Twins trailing 1-0. Everybody does this, of course, in a sport with a 30 per cent success rate at the plate long proven to be a benchmark of excellence. Wilson Chandler Jersey . According to a report from the Vancouver Province, the Lions are expected to replace former DC Rich Stubler with defensive backs coach Mark Washington.Oilers captain Andrew Ference plays his first game against his old team tonight as Edmonton hosts the Boston Bruins at Rexall Place. The Oilers are 3-1-1 so far in December and are coming off Tuesdays 5-4 overtime win against visiting Carolina. Jordan Eberles power-play goal 1:48 into the extra session saved two points for the Oilers, who led the game by a 4-1 score early in the second period before letting the Hurricanes back into the contest. The Oilers coughed up a 4-1 lead over a period and a half, with Jeff Skinners goal late in the third tying it for Carolina. But Hurricanes defenseman Justin Faulk was sent off 19 seconds into overtime, penalized for boarding after hitting Ryan Nugent-Hopkins from behind in the corner to give the Oilers a 4- on-3. Eberle then scored on a second-chance shot through the legs of Carolina defenseman Andrej Sekera, who was covering the net on the left side for Cam Ward. "It was a weird game but we found a way to win," Eberle said. Taylor Hall, Nail Yakupov, Jesse Joensuu and Nugent-Hopkins also scored for the Oilers, who moved to 2-1-1 on a five-game homestand that ends tonight. Devan Dubnyk made 24 saves for Tuesdays win and he could get the start again on Thursday. Dubnyk is 0-2-0 with a 4.57 goals against average in two career games against the Bruins, while Rask boasts a 3-0 record and a 1.67 GAA in three lifetime outings versus the Oilers. The Bruins take aim at a fourth consecutive victory when they continue a four-game road trip. The Bruins picked up a third win in a row and improved to 2-0 on their current swing with Tuesdays comeback win in Calgary. Boston scored a pair of goals late in the third period to rally for a 2-1 win on the night Jarome Iginla returned to the Saddledome. Boston made Iginlas return to Calgary a triumphant one, as the club overcame a 1-0 third-period deficit to win in regulation. Reilly Smith potted the game- winner for the Bruins wwith 4:33 left to play, a mere 98 seconds after David Krejci recorded the equalizer with the Bruins on the power play.dddddddddddd Iginla, the Flames all-time leader in goals (525), points (1,095) and games played (1,219), faced the club he spent 16 highly productive seasons with for the first time since Calgary traded its longtime captain to Pittsburgh during last Aprils trade deadline. The revered 36-year-old received a warm and rousing ovation from the home crowd during postgame introductions. "It brought back a lot of great memories," Iginla said of his return. Tuukka Rask stopped 26-of-27 shots to help Boston improve to 13-3-1 over its last 17 games, a stretch that has vaulted the Bruins into first place in the Atlantic Division. Boston won on Tuesday despite playing without a handful of players due to injuries, and another because of an impending suspension. Defensemen Dougie Hamilton and Adam McQuaid missed the last game with lower- body injuries, while forwards Loui Eriksson (concussion), Daniel Paille (upper body) and Chris Kelly (broken ankle) also sat out with various ailments. All of those players are expected to miss Thursdays game, including Hamilton, who will miss 2-to-4 weeks after suffering an injury in Sundays win at Toronto. Meanwhile, Bruins forward Shawn Thornton is facing a suspension for his actions in Saturdays win over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Thornton, who grabbed Brooks Orpik of the Penguins from behind during a scrum and began punching him, is scheduled to have an in-person hearing with the league on Friday and he could be suspended for six or more games. Even with a short-handed lineup, the Bruins hope to continue their dominance of the Oilers on Thursday. Boston has won 10 straight in this series overall and has taken four in a row and 10 of the last 13 meetings in Edmonton. Boston is 8-5-0 on the road this season and will complete its current trek in Saturdays game against Vancouver. 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