Sports with Bryan Wyatt

The regular season is winding down for the Thunderwolves hockey team and a regular-season division title is not looking good at this stage of the game.

As the 2012 sports year is underway, here are some thoughts about how things may go over the next year. I will predict right now that the biggest story in hockey is going to be this ongoing problem with head injuries.

Thunder Bay lost a well-known local sports figure just before Christmas. I was among thousands saddened to hear of the sudden death of Don Stokaluk.

After starting with back-to-back losses at home to national finalist McGill, the Lakehead Thunderwolves have turned things around in a big way, winning 13 of 14 games.

It certainly came as no surprise that Detroit Tigers right-handed ace Justin Verlander was the unanimous 2011 Cy Young winner in the American League.

Tony La Russa goes out on a high note. Just days after the St. Louis Cardinals wrapped up the World Series, the No. 3 manager on the all-time wins list announced it was the end of the line for him.

We’re down to the last hurrah of the long baseball season and in August who would have thought the Texas Rangers and St. Louis Cardinals would compete for the World Series title? The Cards were 10.

The puck is about to drop on another hockey season for the Lakehead Thunderwolves. Coach Joel Scherban has had a busy off-season recruiting players.

I love September. The pennant races start to build in baseball, the NFL season begins, hockey is set to return, high school sports are back in gear and university sports are right around the corner.

I'm sure glad the NFL and the players have settled their labour dispute and there will be a season. It would have been a long winter without one.