weve learned about football and buy into what coach Etch is try

LONDON, Ont. -- Antoine Bibeau bought the Val-dOr Foreurs valuable time at the Memorial Cup with his 51-save shutout Friday. Val-dOr didnt have a full tank mentally or physically in a 1-0 win over the host London Knights to kick off the tournament. Theyd won the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League title in a Game 7 on Tuesday in Baie-Comeau, Que. But Bibeaus heroics allow the Foreurs to rest on that important first win of the tournament for two days before facing the Ontario Hockey Leagues Guelph Storm on Monday. "It really was Bibeau who made the difference tonight," Foreurs forward Anthony Mantha said. "Winning this game gives us a little break, gives us two days off and we come back strong on Monday. Its just a confidence-builder for our team in general." Mantha, a first-round draft pick of the Detroit Red Wings, scored in the first period for his 82nd goal in as many games for the Foreurs this season. Among Bibeaus pivotal saves was getting his blocker on a penalty-shot attempt by London forward Bo Horvat early in the third period and stopping Knights captain Chris Tierney on a breakaway in the first. The Toronto Maple Leafs prospect faced an average of 40 shots a game in the final four games of the QMJHL final series against the Drakkar, which set him up for Fridays performance. "In the last couple of weeks I was used to receiving lots of shots, so I think I was just ready and I was just trying to give the team a chance to win tonight," Bibeau said. "We wanted to get the first win as quick as possible." The Memorial Cup has been awarded to Canadian junior hockey champions since 1919 in memory of those who died in the First World War. The tournament includes the Ontario, Western and Quebec champions as well as the host team. The Western Hockey League champion Edmonton Oil Kings face the OHLs Storm on Saturday. The team with the best record after the preliminary round earns a bye to the final May 25. The second- and third-place teams meet in the semifinal May 23. If two teams are tied for third, a tiebreaker game is played. The Foreurs guaranteed themselves at least a tiebreaker game with their win Friday. This years tournament opener featured the least-rested team against a hockey club playing its first game in five weeks. The Knights were eliminated in the second round of playoffs by Guelph on April 11. The hosts Knights held the Foreurs scoreless on a pair of two-man advantages in the first two periods and outshot them 51-28. London goaltender Anthony Stolarz played his first game in over seven weeks because of an eight-game suspension in the post-season. Stolarz played well in stopping all but one shot in front of a capacity crowd at Budweiser Gardens. The weary Foreurs sometimes reached for a pass instead of skating for the puck. "We need to play a little bit better defensively," head coach Mario Durocher said. "I think at one point we were mentally tired and we started to run all over in our defensive zone." London was one of three teams who scored over 300 goals in the OHL this season. But the Knights didnt recover their scoring touch despite three power-play chances, the penalty-shot opportunity and pulling Stolarz for an extra attacker with almost two minutes to go. London also shot the puck wide of the net several times when they had a shooting lane. "Its definitely a critical moment and Im definitely kicking myself for not scoring on that," Horvat said of his penalty-shot attempt. "Theres not much you can do about it now. Learn from it and not dwell on the past. "Yeah, missed nets. We probably had 10 missed nets. I think we could have had 60 shots. Maybe thats something we have to start thinking about and starting burying out chances." The Knights face the Oil Kings in their next game Sunday. This is Londons third straight trip to the Memorial Cup after winning the OHL championship the previous two years. The Knights lost to Shawinigan in overtime in the 2012 final and were eliminated in last years semifinal by the Portland Winterhawks in Saskatoon. Bibeau, a 20-year-old from Victoriaville, almost had a goaltenders worst nightmare in the first period. While waiting for the puck to drop for a faceoff at the far end of Budweiser Gardens, he looked up at the scoreboard a little too long and looked down just in time to close his legs on the puck. "The 200-foot (save) was easy. It was just me. I wasnt ready," Bibeau said. "I saw the puck at the last second. It was an easy save, but a key save I think." Mantha, six foot five and 204 pounds, swooped from Stolarzs left and tucked the puck under the Knights goaltender on his stick side at 16:20 of the first period. 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Kevin Durant Shoes From China . - The RBC Canadian Open will return to Glen Abbey Golf Club next year, marking the 27th time that the national open championship will be played at the Oakville, Ont.WINNIPEG -- Maybe its third time lucky for linebacker Ejiro Kuale, who has bounced around a bit since he was released by the Toronto Argonauts after the 2012 season ended with their Grey Cup win. As the Winnipeg Blue Bombers opened their main training camp Sunday, Kuale is one of the newcomers brought in to bolster a sagging defence that ranked overall where the Bombers finished 2013, in the CFL cellar with a league high 585 points against. After brief stints in Montreal and Saskatchewan in 2013, Kuale is entering his fifth year in the CFL in Winnipeg, where the Bombers are now coached by former Toronto special teams co-ordinator Mike OShea. The two have a lot of good things to say about each other. "He understands what its like to be a player," says Kuale, who played special teams in Toronto when OShea was there. "He approaches the game differently from any of the coaches Ive ever been around." The Bombers are in need of a middle linebacker after star Canadian Henoc Muamba jumped to the NFL and Kuale, six-foot-two, 238 pounds, is certainly a contender. "Theres good competition at that middle linebacker spot but Kuale is, having coached him in Toronto, hes a different type of player," said OShea. "Hes very physical. Hes always in great shape and he can be a leader, that sort of emotional type of leader for guys. Hes come in and hes not let us down." For someone who will turn 31 in July, Kuale showed no ill effects Sunday from a four-and-a-half-hour practice in weather that wouldnt have been out of place in his hometown of Daytona Beach, Fla. "I feel great today although I should have brought my old cleats, my brand new cleats have my feet hurting a bit. . . I pulled a rookie move, Im a vet, I should know better." Veteran offensive lineman Glenn January liked what he saw at camp. The O-line is another place the Bombers are looking to add talent. "Everyboody thinks they look good May 31 or June 1 but I think were looking pretty good," said January, entering his eight season in the CFL and sixth with the Bombers.dddddddddddd After disappointing fans with as 3-15 season in 2013, January wasnt getting too bold in his predictions. "They should be expecting a better season than last year." But he says the labour dispute between the league and players isnt getting in the way of business on the field. "Its Day 1, lets focus on football." OShea agreed, saying he sees no signs the players have anything but playing football on their minds The defence is coached this season by Gary Etcheverry, another favourite of OShea who is known for taking an unusual approach. "We have to forget everything weve learned about football and buy into what coach Etch is trying to teach us," says Kuale. Defensive back Johnny Sears says its going to be unique and the kind of defence opposing teams may have a hard time preparing to battle. "You cant get a bead on it, its different," he says. "I might not be playing the position you see me playing today... The scouting report says `This guy plays here. Next week when they see us, I might play there for the first snap, who knows the rest of the game... I think thats a good advantage for us." The first day of camp brought its share of injuries. Former Detroit Lions running back Kevin Smith was sidelined with a hamstring pull when he jumped to make a catch early in practice. Canadian wide receiver Jordan Brescacin also had a hamstring injury. Canadian linebacker Jesse Briggs was favouring an arm but OShea said they didnt have a report on what might have happened. Offensive lineman Paul Swiston wasnt on the field and is still recovering from off-season surgery, said the coach. Defensive lineman Willie Moseley is expected to return in a couple of days from a muscle strain. ' ' '