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Coach David Urquhart
a, Men's Varsity, Sports

Sitting down with David Urquhart, Redmen hockey assistant coach

by Emily Wang on

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The McGill Redmen hockey team is currently six games into the pre-season, and have gone 2-4 against some tough competition. Last year, the Redmen finished at the top of the OUA East and nearly made it all the way to Nationals. Many of the players from that team have graduated, including the team’s leading scorer and OUA East MVP, Cedric McNicoll. 

The team will look a lot different this year with 10 new players joining. The freshman class includes players from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League and Ontario Hockey League, as well as transfer students from other CIS schools. The young team is still adjusting to the league and playing with new faces, Redmen Assistant Coach David Urquhart explained after the team’s trip to the Maritimes two weekends ago.

“We still have a lot to learn [about] systems and structure in terms of the way we play,” Urquhart said. “A lot of guys got to play in new situations, which is good for them, and we played against two of the top teams in Canada.”

The Redmen lost the two games they played by wide margins, dropping the first game 3-6 and the second 1-7.

“The trip wasn’t designed to be easy for us,” Urquhart continued. “We were on the bus for 24 hours this weekend. We wanted the guys to face some adversity early in the season and to set the bar, see where they need to be, see what type of talent we’re going to face at Nationals. So, I think we achieved that.”

It’s wrong to read too much into these pre-season box scores. Exhibition games are often more about process and learning rather than results.Although the Redmen have lost a lot of players up front, much of the their defence is returning, as are netminders Jacob Gervais-Chouinard and Karel St-Laurent. The pair were by far the best goaltending tandem in CIS last season; their combined regular season save percentage was .935 per cent, 10 percentage points better than the next best school. In addition, Urquhart believes that the blueline has a good mix of size, skill, and experience, making it one of the team’s biggest strengths.

“We’re strong on the back end,” Urquhart claimed. “We have some big guys […] but we also have some high end skill on the back end as well.”

To some extent, every CIS team has to deal with a large amount of roster turnover every year due to graduation. For McGill, this situation is exacerbated by the fact that most players coming from Quebec only play three years before graduating. Still, it’s tough to lose players of McNicoll’s calibre and maintain a productive offence. Adding players like Liam Heelis, the former captain of the Acadia Axemen, should help, but whether they can replace the offence they’ve lost is the biggest question heading into the season. 

For the freshmen, jumping into a different league with an unfamiliar team comes with a steep learning curve. Nonetheless, Urquhart believes that the players are adjusting well and picking up the systems quickly.

“They’re sharp,” Urquhart said. “These guys are all quick studies, they’re really good to work with.”

The Redmen aren’t just quick learners on the ice. The players on this team are also academically successful, something that Urquhart is proud of.

“Last year we had 13 academic All-Canadians—that’s guys with a GPA of over 3.7,” he explained. “They’re also successful in the classroom. That’s one of our main focuses. The two go hand in hand. Being a successful student athlete means you do well in school and on the ice as well.”

To some extent, every CIS team has to deal with a large amount of roster turnover every year due to graduation. For McGill, this situation is exacerbated by the fact that most players coming from Quebec only play three years before graduating.

Urquhart stressed the high level of hockey the team plays.

“We’d just like to see everybody come out to watch,” Urquhart said. “You’re not going to see higher quality hockey [in Montreal] outside of the Canadiens. We’ve got guys who have all played major junior and it’s the next level. They’re great hockey players and they’re great students, too.”

The Redmen home opener is on October 16 against Laurentian.

a, Science & Technology

Volkswagen cheats its way on to the roads

by Uzair Khan on

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Volkswagen came under fire by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last week following allegations of cheating and deceit.  In a statement released on Sept. 18, the EPA stated that the German automobile company misled environmental regulators about its car emissions. Special software, colloquially known as the defeat devices, reported incorrect emissions data during testing. Consequently, thousands of underperforming and environmentally unsuitable Volkswagen cars had found their way on to the roads.

The EPA began looking into Volkswagen cars after researchers at West Virginia University, in collaboration with the International Council on Clean Transportation, noticed irregularities in the emission levels of the cars. The numbers researchers observed in their tests did not match the ones provided by Volkswagen. They notified the EPA, which after further investigations, demanded an explanation from the company. Volkswagen subsequently admitted to installing the defeat devices in their cars—enabling the vehicles to pass standard emissions tests. The EPA consequently issued a notice of violation (NOV) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) to Volkswagen. 

According to Volkswagen, this device could have potentially helped some 11 million cars undeservingly pass environmental regulation tests worldwide.

“A sophisticated software algorithm on certain Volkswagen vehicles detects when the car is undergoing official emissions testing, and turns full emissions controls on only during the test,” announced the EPA in a press release. 

The algorithm is embedded in the software code that runs the engine control computer. It senses whether the vehicle is being tested or not based on inputs such as the position of the steering wheel, vehicle speed, the duration of the engine’s operation, and barometric pressure. When it thinks that the vehicle is undergoing tests, the software sets the emissions’ control to full power. When the car is returned to normal driving conditions, however, the pollution emissions control devices installed in the car stop working. Disabling these control devices results in the car emitting nitrogen oxides in quantities up to 40 times the permitted standard. 

Affected Models

 

Jetta (2009-2015)

Jetta Sportwagen (2009-2014)

Beetle (2012-2015)

Beetle Convertible (2012-2015)

Audi A3 (2010 – 2015)

Golf (2010-2015)

Golf Sportwagen (2015)

Passat (2012-2015)

According to Volkswagen, this device could have potentially helped some 11 million cars undeservingly pass environmental regulation tests worldwide. 

This scandal may be one of the biggest ever related to the automobile industry. As news of the deception broke on Friday, Volkswagen’s stock plummeted by 20 per cent, costing its investors and shareholders billions of dollars. In response, Volkswagen allocated 7 billion dollars to cover the necessary service measures and other efforts to win back the trust of its customers. In addition, the EPA could fine Volkswagen up to $37,500 for each affected vehicle—a total of $18 billion in the U.S. alone. Volkswagen may even be forced to recall or reimburse the owners the full price of their vehicles.

These events could have a significant impact on Germany’s economy. The auto industry is central to the country’s status as a manufacturing powerhouse and a scandal this size is bound to cause problems. The auto industry accounts for 20 per cent of the total German industry revenue and employs 775,000 people; however, estimating the amount of damage this scandal will inflict is difficult.

With the emergence of a new breed of high-quality electric cars from companies like Tesla, old companies like Volkswagen that still rely on diesel cars for a big proportion of their business will be put to the test. There is no technology that can allow diesel cars to compete with the environmental friendliness of electric or hybrid cars. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, a non-profit science advocacy organization, 60 percent of Americans now live in regions where electric vehicles (EVs) produce fewer heat-trapping nitrogen oxide emissions per mile than the most efficient hybrids. If other automakers follow this trajectory, diesel car manufacturing may soon become a shadow of what it once was.

a, McGill, Montreal, News

Divest McGill brings Fossil Free Week to James Administration

by Maya Reid on

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From Sept. 21 to 25, Divest McGill held Fossil Free Week, a series of workshops, professor talks, and rallies to ask the university administration to divest from oil and gas industries. Divest McGill is an organization whose goal is to urge the university to divest its endowment from fossil fuel and tar sands companies such as Chevron, Suncor, and British Petroleum. Throughout the week, organizers also camped out in front of the James Administration Building to increase campus awareness of the divest movement.

Chloé Laflamme, a U2 biochemistry student and one of the organizers of Fossil Free Week explained some of the steps that have been taken to urge administration leaders to reconsider Divest McGill’s demands.

“We [sent an email to] Kip Cobbett, who is the chair of the Board of Governors, and the interim chair of the Committee to Advise on Matters of Social Responsibility (CAMSR),” Laflamme said.  “[Suzanne Fortier, McGill Principal] […]  was [also] CC’d on that email, to let them know about our main demands […] to have them recommend a freeze on fossil fuel investments while they look at their full petition for divestment.”

Laflamme stated that Fossil Free Week was established to showcase diversity within climate justice activism.

“We’re hoping to cater to a wide variety of people because this issue, in nature, is very intersectional [.] We’re definitely trying to reach out to the community,” she said.

Through a series of professor talks given at Community Square, McGill faculty members and community leaders discussed various reasons for divestment, including the impacts of climate change on indigenous peoples, the economic viability of oil investment, and the physical science behind anthropogenic global warming.

During a Sept. 22 talk entitled “Fossil Fuel and the Anthropocene,” Richard Janda, Professor of Law and Environmental Science, explained moral, ethical, and legal grounds for supporting divestment, and praised the week of activism.

“I am inspired by the students who have been working on the Divest McGill campaign,” he said. “The courage, the dignity that you’ve shown—but also the tenacity to bring ideas forward […] [have] been truly remarkable.”

Victor Frankel, a Biology Ph.D candidate and supporter of divestment, stated why he believed the university should divest.

“[Divestment] would be economically consistent with the university’s mission to fulfill its fiduciary duties to the students and to the community,” Frankel said. “But our focus is not on the economic argument that it makes sense to divest from these toxic assets.  What we’re really pushing for is divestment on the moral grounds […] because these companies are responsible for social and environmental injury.”

In addition to on-campus events, Divest McGill members participated in a rally on Thursday, targeting the federal leaders’ French language debate held in Montreal. A contingent of various environmental protection organizations gathered in front of the Radio-Canada Building to protest a lack of climate justice.

One such protester, Divest McGill organizer Julianna Duholke, spoke about the campus-wide support of Fossil Free Week, and what this means for their campaign.

“Our campsite has actually tripled in size […] and we’ve gathered almost a thousand signatures just this week,” she said. “Now it’s really great to be tying this into the federal debate. We are not only holding McGill accountable, but trying to hold our federal leaders accountable, too.”

a, Science & Technology

Drug price hike causes global outrage

by Esha Kaul on

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Martin Shkreli, CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, was harshly criticized last week after raising the cost of one of the company’s drugs, Daraprim, from $13.40 USD to $750 USD—an increase of 5,000 per cent. Manufactured exclusively by Turing, this price hike has reignited the debate on the ethics of charging patients for medicine. 

Daraprim is used to fight against toxoplasmosis, an infection caused by the parasite Toxoplasma Gondii. It can cause various symptoms like body aches, headaches, fever, and fatigue. The drug is mainly prescribed in the treatment and care of immunocompromised individuals. This includes young children, HIV positive patients, pregnant women, and those undergoing chemotherapy. For HIV positive patients in the U.S.,  the average annual cost of care is about $25,200— nearly 40 per cent higher than it was 20 years ago.

The reason behind Daraprim’s newly increased price can be explained by investigating the drug development process. Most drugs are developed in phases. In the U.S., the first step towards releasing a drug is a three to four year-long pre-clinical phase. If successful, it is followed by an application to the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) as an Investigational New Drug (IND). The next steps are clinical phases 1, 2, and 3, after which the FDA choses to approve the drug or not. Following approval, the manufacturer files a New Drug Application (NDA) with the FDA. If accepted, the FDA may also ask the manufacturer to conduct additional post-marketing studies. The entire procedure takes eight to 12 years.

Dr. Joseph Schwarcz, director of McGill University’s Office for Science and Society spoke about the finances of creating a new drug.

Top tier pharmaceutical companies will employ over 1,500 scientists and spend over $1 million each day, on discovering new biological targets and creating new therapeutics—chemicals, proteins, or vaccines—in hopes of moving into clinical testing.

“When you’re looking at the cost of a drug, you’re not just looking at what it really costs to produce that drug, which is usually very little, but what you have to pay for the years of research to not only get that drug but the others [as well], which never made it to market.”

Since developing a drug takes such a long amount of time, it also requires a lot of funds. According to a new study by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development, developing a new prescription drug is estimated to cost $2.6 billion USD. Top tier pharmaceutical companies will employ over 1,500 scientists and spend over $1 million each day, on discovering new biological targets and creating new therapeutics—chemicals, proteins, or vaccines—in hopes of moving into clinical testing. 

Schwarcz continued to explain the difference between the types of drugs pharmaceutical companies make. 

“Some drugs are absolute blockbusters [that is, they] generate profit,” he said. “But there are [also] orphan drugs, which can cost as much to develop but don’t have the chance to make money because there aren’t enough patients to take that drug”

According to a study done by Forbes, pharmaceutical companies had a 42 per cent profit margin in 2013. A profit margin shows what percentage of sales are left over after all expenses are paid by the business. For example, if a company has a 20 per cent profit margin, it’ll get $0.20 for every dollar of revenue earned. In that year, Pfizer, Hoffmann-La Roche, AbbVie, GlaxoSmithKline and Eli Lilly—five of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world—all had a profit margin of 20 per cent or more.

Nevertheless, Schwarcz highlighted that pharmaceuticals use most of their profits to fund research on newer drugs. 

“They are not philanthropic enterprises,” Schwarcz said. “Pharmaceutical companies need to have a chance to make money, because if they don’t then there’s not going to be any research.”

In an interview with Bloomberg TV, Shkreli justified increasing the price of Daraprim.

“We needed to turn a profit on this drug," he said. "The companies before us were [basically] giving it away.” 

Schwarcz disagreed with Shkreli’s reasoning, stating that insurance coverage would not completely absorb the increased costs of the drug.

“A raise to that extent is absolutely ridiculous," Schwarcz explained. "[Shkreli] argues that it’s insurance coverage anyway. [But] so many people don’t have insurance coverage [in the U.S.].” 

Financing the pharmaceutical industry remains a complicated issue.

“It is a question of how the drugs are paid for,” Schwarcz said. “And to make sure that someone who [doesn’t] have the means to pay can have access to the same drug. It’s government responsibility.”

a, Martlets, Men's Varsity, Sports

The week that was for McGill Athletics: Sept 28

by McGill Tribune Sports on

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In this week's edition of the week that was for McGill Athletics the McGill Tribune Sports team looks at Rob Sedin and Rebecca Green, our athletes of the week, Redmen Lacrosse and Redmen Baseball, and our weekly edition of by the numbers.

Beyond the box score

REDMEN LACROSSE

McGill came back from a two goal halftime deficit to beat Queen's 13-8 at Molson Stadium on Friday. Attackman Spencer Bromley netted four times in the game and midfielder Connor Goodwin scored six goals. Co-captain and defenceman Paul Rakoczy was key in shutting down Queen’s top scorer, Corey Wright, as midfielder freshman Alex Beckes continued his excellent faceoff form, winning 54 per cent of his opportunities.

REDMEN BASEBALL

McGill capped off a perfect Sunday by beating the Ottawa Gee-Gees three times in one day at Gary Carter Field. McGill also defeated Concordia and Montreal on Sept 23. and Sept 25., respectively. Sedin recorded a four hit shutout against the Carabins which followed up Adriano Petrangelo's excellent pitching performance against Concordia where he allowed only one run and six hits for the game. The Redmen are now third in the CCBA Northern division with a 6-3 record.

Tribune Athletes-of-the-Week

Rob Sedin

Starting Pitcher, Redmen Baseball

Sophomore – Management

 

 

After losing back-to-back games against the Montreal Carabins earlier in the season, the sophomore righty took matters into his own hands on Friday night, striking out seven in a four-hit complete game shutout victory over the Carabins. Sedin threw 65 per cent of his pitches for strikes, and walked only two. He also drew a walk and scored a run batting from the leadoff spot. After stumbling out of the gates to a 1-3 start, the Redmen (6-3) have reeled off five straight wins to move back above .500.

Rebecca Green

Forward, Martlet Soccer

Senior – Science

 

 

Less than a minute after Laval took the lead on a goal in the fifth minute, the Martlet soccer captain responded with an unassisted strike to give McGill new life. The Rouge et Or would eventually take the game, but Green’s outstanding play is a big reason why the Martlets currently own a winning record in one of the toughest divisions in the country. In her final year with the team, Green already has three goals and an assist through six conference games.

By the numbers

Hover over the numbers to learn more. If you're on mobile all you have to do is click!

33

 

 

 

 

Consecutive regular season games won by the Redmen lacrosse team.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

99

 

 

 

 

Number of pitches Rob Sedin needed to secure his complete game shutout.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2006

 

 

 

 

Last time the Redmen football team started the season 2-0 at home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Photos courtesy of McGill Athletics)

a, Men's Varsity, Sports

Football: Redmen blunt Acadia Axemen to move to .500 on the season

by Zikomo Smith on

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McGill Redmen
45

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Acadia Axemen
15

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was a dreamlike quality to McGill’s seamless offensive game plan in their 45-14 victory over the No. 10 ranked Acadia Axemen (2-1) at Molson Stadium on Saturday. The Redmen (2-2) were successful on three of seven attempted third down conversions and were a perfect 4-4 in the red-zone. Running backs Luis Guimont-Mota and Nicolas Khandar flourished, rushing for a combined 279 yards and three scores.

“I have confidence in these young men […] we wanted to compete and we will be aggressive when we need to be aggressive,” Head Coach Ronald Hilaire explained. “On third-and-one I think we have a very good offensive line [that] I trust […] to get the first down for us.”

The equally impressive Redmen defence held the Axemen to just six points after three quarters. McGill recorded one sack—a brilliant loping edge rush from defensive back Charles William Tremblay that forced a fumble in the third quarter—and terrorized opposing quarterback Cody Cluett’s into several overthrows—he completed a nightmarish 42 per cent of his passes and was pulled in the third quarter. Tremblay led the way for McGill with eight tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble.

“We are an aggressive defense, we come with different packages, different fronts and we try to confuse protection,” Hilaire said. “We knew we had an advantage number if we attacked them on the running backs side and that is exactly what we did and we were successful.”

The Redmen also held explosive Axeman running back Thomas Troop to 56 yards; he rushed for 243 yards in his previous two games. McGill only allowed Acadia to muster 17 first downs, most coming in the final quarter with the game out of reach.

“We knew that they had a great ground attack,” Hilaire commented. “So we figured [that] if we come out and […] play physical and stop them on first down we would have some opportunity [to be successful] on second down.”

The team does have multiple areas to grow: They fumbled a worrying number of punts—though they recovered them all—and still seem susceptible to big plays.

“I expect the second and the first string playing at the end to limit the big plays,” Hilaire explained. “They got a couple at the end and we’ll fix that and we will be better.”

McGill can celebrate after their most complete victory in a long time. The green shoots of improvement for this team are everywhere to be seen.

Stat of the game

Khandar rushed for 153 yards on eight carries for an astonishing 19.1 yards per carry.

Play of the Game

Khandar’s excellent night continued—he delivered a booming hit on the Axeman kick-off returner at the start of the second half to dislodge the ball. Linebacker Karl Forgues recovered the fumble.

Sound Bites

Ronald Hilaire on Guimont-Mota’s impact on the team: “He is awesome. He was a big loss for us last year and to […] get him back is awesome. He has a great energy and attitude and he brings that energy to […] our offence. To have him run and to run hard is exactly what we need.”

This article was corrrected on September 29, 2015. The Tribune regrets this error.

Alexander King of McGill Redmen Soccer
a, Men's Varsity, Sports

Soccer: Redmen fall to Rouge et Or, move to sixth in RSEQ

by Nicholas Jasinski on

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McGill Redmen
0

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Laval Rouge et Or
3

 

 

 

 

 

 

The McGill Redmen (1-4-0) soccer team fell to the Laval Rouge et Or (1-3-0) 3-0 on Friday night in a match that was fought largely in midfield. The match ended with possession distributed evenly between the two teams, but the visitors were far more purposeful with the ball at their feet. Laval’s attacks were more deliberate, their passing more precise, and their shot selection more ambitious. On defence, McGill was frequently caught scrambling and backtracking. On a number of occasions only fortuitous bounces prevented the score from being more lopsided. Overall, it was an uninspiring display from the Redmen, who fell to sixth place in the RSEQ standings.

“The problem was quality,” third-year Head Coach Marc Mounicot said. “We didn’t generate anything.”

The match started out with an even mix of possession in midfield but no real chances for either side. McGill goalkeeper and captain Max Leblond had a couple of solid early saves, drawing cheers from the crowd. By the middle of the first half, Laval picked up the pace of the match and pressed further and further into the Redmen half. Finally, in the 26th minute, Laval forward Marc-Olivier Kouo-Dibongue found the back of the net with a sliding shot from the middle of the box, putting the visitors up 1-0. McGill failed to respond convincingly for the rest of the half, bogged down in midfield much to Mounicot’s frustration

Unfortunately for McGill, Laval seemed to go up a gear in the second half of the match. The Laval defence dispossessed McGill attackers before they could even get a decent look on goal, let alone a shot. Afterwards the Rouge et Or sent waves upon waves of counterattacks. Each shot by the visitors seemed more and more likely to go in and eventually Laval struck twice in a row in the 64th and 65th minutes, putting a dejected McGill side down by three. McGill’s best chance of the match came in stoppage time with a one-on-one between the Laval goalkeeper Alexis Pacquette and McGill forward Conor O’Loughlin. The shot came too low and was punched out for a corner by Pacquette. The match, McGill’s second goalless game this season, ended without any fanfare as the team headed dejectedly to the locker room before preparing for Sunday’s away match against the Montreal Carabins. (3-1-0)

Sound Bite

McGill Tribune (MT): “What do you think we did well tonight?”

Coach Mounicot (CM): “Nothing.”

MT: “Well maybe you could tell me what went wrong then?”

CM: “Everything.”

Moment of the Game

Laval’s first shot on goal of the match came in the fourth minute, a screamer off of a set piece by eventual goal-scorer Kouo-Dibongue. The shot came just below the bar on the upper right corner of the goal but was masterfully fisted away by Leblond, saving what could have been a disastrous start to the match.

Stat of the Game

Leblond, the Redmen captain, saved four of the seven shots he faced while Alexis Pacquette turned away all three of the shots he faced.

McGill Martlet Soccer
a, Martlets, Sports

Soccer: No. 1 ranked Rouge et Or overpower Martlets

by Adrian Knowler on

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McGill Martlets
1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Laval Rouge et Or
3

 

 

 

 

 

The Laval Rouge Et Or (5-0-1) overpowered the McGill Martlets (3-2-1) 3-1 on Friday night at Molson Stadium. The Martlets struggled to execute offensively in this tough matchup and fell to fourth place in the RSEQ.

“This game is always such a difficult one,” junior goalkeeper Cassandra Fafalios said. “They’re the best team, technically, that we play every year.”

The 2015 CIS rankings confirm Fafalios’ statement. Laval won last year’s National Championship and have maintained their No. 1 ranking, beginning the season undefeated.

From the starting whistle, Laval dominated possession. Without the steady presence of veteran sweeper Zoe Fasoulakis—who was sitting due to a concussion—the Martlets’ defence was spread thin. After a quick attack down the wing towards the byline, Laval sent a cross into the box, which was deflected by a McGill defender. The ball trickled out and was smashed in on the rebound by Laval’s Cynthia Turcotte, her first goal of the season, which put Laval up 1-0.

The Martlets got off to a slow start, allowing Laval to control the ball in the midfield and pressure the McGill zone early on. From the sideline, Head Coach Jose-Luis Valdes urged his players to press Laval’s back line to force a mistake and win possession.

The hosts responded with a greater sense of urgency and soon equalized. In the sixth minute, fifth-year forward and captain Rebecca Green scored an unassisted equalizer, blowing by the left side of the Laval defence before slotting it away.

The Rouge Et Or came back with an explosive counterattack, narrowly missing on a myriad of scoring opportunities. McGill relied heavily on Fafalios to keep the scores level going into the break.

In the second half, the Rouge et Or proved to be too much for McGill. Striker Lea Chastenay-Joseph scored in the 51st and 64th minute to put the game out of reach. McGill’s only good chance came in the 62nd minute when Sophomore science student Audrey-Ann Coughlan, hit the crossbar with a free kick, narrowly missing a chance to tie up the match.

Valdes was pleased with his players despite the outcome.

“Right to the last second, everybody on the field was going all out,” he said. “That’s the type of energy I’m very happy with.”

Fafalios was was superb once again on Sunday against the Montreal Carabins (3-0-3), making 13 saves to salvage a 0-0 tie and maintain McGill’s second place position in the division. 

Moment of the Match

Green’s goal evened the score early, which rallied a strong defensive performance from the team for the rest of the half. Inspired play kept Laval from breaking through until the second half.

Stat of the Match

Fafalios recorded 10 saves in the match, the most by a McGill keeper this season. None was more impressive than her leaping stop in the second half to keep a shot out of the top left corner.

Sound Bite

They had six players with me at the World University Games this summer. We only have one. That gives you an idea of the talent pool that they have.”  Head Coach Jose-Luis Valdes on Laval’s talent. 

Memphis Depay
a, Soccer, Sports

UEFA Champions League Matchday 1 review

by Adrian Knowler on

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The UEFA Champions League is back! This week marked the beginning of the group play, and all 32 teams left in the competition have completed their first matches. There was plenty of drama and goals to discuss and analyze. Here are the important takeaways from the first match day's biggest games.

Group A

Two of Europe’s biggest and richest clubs, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), both took care of their opponents handily this week. PSG, quarter-finalists last year, improved its squad by signing Argentine winger Angel Di Maria. Madrid made it a step further to the semifinals in 2014-2015 before losing to Juventus. Both clubs should top the group, with Madrid as slight favorites to win the group outright.

Group B

Despite qualifying for the group stages with ease, Manchester United lost its first match against PSV Eindhoven. United’s new signing, electric winger Memphis Depay, scored first for the Red Devils against his former club. It soon, however, fell apart for the English squad. Not only did the heavy favourites cough up a lead to lose 2-1, they also lost starting fullback Luke Shaw to a freak double leg fracture for the rest of the season. United can still qualify for the next round, but they have an uphill task.

Group D

Given their strong start to the domestic season, Manchester City looked surprisingly weak in their home loss to Juventus. Despite being Champions’ League runners-up last time around, Juventus lost key players this off-season such as Carlos Tevez, their top goal scorer last year, and box-to-box midfielder Arturo Vidal. City are now in the hole from the get-go, and will have to drastically improve if they want to survive the group, let alone win it.

Group E

The goal of the competition might be settled after just one match: Roma fullback Alessandro Florenzi lobbed FC Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen from the middle of the field to help Roma draw 1-1 with the reigning champions. Barça are favourites to repeat their Champions League victory. They should still win the group easily despite this disappointing result. Look for them to take out their frustration on Bayer Leverkusen when the Bundesliga side visit Spain next week.

Group F

Arsenal outdid themselves in their 2-1 defeat to Zagreb, and not in a good way. Their decision to  rest key players in preparation for the weekend’s league match against Chelsea  backfired as they lost both in Croatia and at Stamford Bridge. Arsenal cannot afford to do the same against Olympiakos next week; They will need three points heading into their clash with European superpower Bayern Munich.

Pagans in Vegas Metric
a, Arts & Entertainment

Album Review: Pagans in Vegas – Metric

by April Barrett on

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Metric is a band that has yet to make a misstep in their 17 year career, and they have become known as founders of the Canadian indie-rock scene. Their latest album Pagans in Vegas, the band’s sixth overall and first in over three years, attempts to follow this trend. Frontwoman Emily Haines evokes comparisons to Debbie Harry of Blondie: Blonde and bored, backed by a gang of indistinguishable white guys, emoting aggression and listlessness with an interesting, rather girlish voice. After all these years, Haines has even been granted some of the do-no-wrong idolatry bestowed on the aforementioned Harry. A tone of confidence is present throughout Pagans in Vegas and sonically the album is more electronic than ever. In “Letter to You,” an open letter to fans published on Metric’s official site, Haines discusses the album as homage to the great British new wave artists of the ’80s like Depeche Mode. She conveys the band’s desire to participate in the “next wave of electronic music.”

Pagans’ 8-bit production certainly evokes an exaggerated Jetsons-style future sound. Lead single, “The Shade,” opens with a riff appealingly identical to a Pac-Man game. “Cascades” takes this one step further, distorting Haines’ voice into a robotic recitation of the advice, “just keep going strong.” Lyrically, Haines’ vague, self-righteous critiques often come across as irrelevant. “Holding off your freedom of speech / Rage against the dying of the light,” she sings, after making a comment about how an indistinguishable “you” lobotomized and commodified her,  which could be compelling if it didn’t sound so contrived. At other times, however, her lyrics get an emotive burst. On “Fortunes” she sings, “she cracked right on the dance floor/ but I won’t.” Haines promises in a forlorn attempt to get the listener to “stay / to soften the blow.” Unfortunately, these moments don’t last long.

Overall, Pagans in Vegas reveals that Metric’s status as a ‘modern classic’ is at odds with its desire to stay provocative and relevant. In “Letter to You” Haines described the album as “a gift, a burden, a time capsule, an escape, an alarm, a question, and a call with no answer, leave a message at the tone,” but even that leaves some serious questions: Mostly the glaringly obvious, ‘what does that even mean?’ After listening to Pagans In Vegas, it’s hard to know for sure if she even knows herself.

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