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No hockey today at Blue Jackets' summer camp. Instead, the prospects spent the morning testing their agility by skating through a taxing collection of cones. If there were wayward boys among them, they were likely vowing to walk the straight and narrow after a fifth trip through the course.

Zach Parise stepped before reporters in Toronto yesterday and announced he had no announcement to make regarding where he plans to sign as a free agent. An impatient sigh could be heard from St. Paul. Minn., to New Jersey and several NHL cities in between, including Columbus, where the Blue Jackets await Parise's decision before proceeding with the most dramatic transaction in franchise history.

Stump Merrill was talking with an old friend when a photographer asked to take their picture. Bernie Williams put his arm around Merrill, who wore large sunglasses that hid tired eyes. But his presence next to the 6-foot-2 Williams hardly hid how he, the 5-8 Carl Harrison Merrill, had earned his nickname.

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BEREA, Ohio -- The Pro Football Hall of Fame is home to the NFL's most iconic players. It also houses a felon or two, and a few legends who found opponents easier to conquer than personal demons. Trent Richardson dreams of being inducted into the Canton shrine that he and other first-year players will visit Saturday as part of the NFL Rookie Symposium.

BEREA, Ohio - Browns defensive tackle Phil Taylor strolled onto the practice field Tuesday to speak with former Baylor University teammate Robert Griffin III. Taylor hopes to be chasing the elusive rookie quarterback on Dec. 16 as the Browns meet the Washington Redskins in Cleveland, but the second-year pro gave no indication as to when he might return from a torn pectoral muscle.

BEREA, Ohio -- Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III ran around the practice fields at the Browns' training facility Tuesday, lofting passes to kids and getting acquainted with fellow NFL rookies. There was a time the dynamic Baylor product thought the Berea complex might serve as his new home.

Blue Jackets captain Rick Nash was not traded at the NHL trade deadline in February. He did not get moved at this weekend's NHL Draft in Pittsburgh. Next comes free agency, where Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson hopes the demand for his franchise player increases.

TORONTO - If the Edmonton Oilers decide to pass on winger Nail Yakupov with the No.?1 pick in the NHL draft on Friday, the Blue Jackets will have an opportunity to land the type of dynamic offensive player they will need if Rick Nash gets traded. Yakupov sells tickets.

Spilled some Metamucil on the notebook, and here's what happened: -- When a player like Rick Nash hits the trade market, it's fascinating to observe the gamesmanship employed by NHL GMs and other executives.

Happy Friday guys! Last week I posted a sneak peek of my new book, and a few days later, it became available for pre-order on Amazon! Secret's out. My newest book is called Blog, Inc., and it gives the 411 on how to create and grow a successful blog.

By Joe Vardon The Columbus Dispatch Thursday June 14, 2012 4:14 PM Kevin Lamarque | Reuters CLEVELAND - President Barack Obama said today that voters this fall will break "the stalemate in Washington between two fundamentally different views of which direction America should take."

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Posted: Tuesday, June 12, 2012, 5:15 PM Plain Dealer's Cleveland Browns beat writers Mary Kay Cabot and Tom Reed report on the final week of OTAs in Berea. After this week, the next time the team gets together will be training camp in late July.

SAN JOSE, California - San Jose Sharks Executive Vice President and General Manager Doug Wilson announced today that the club has acquired defenseman Brad Stuart from the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for forward Andrew Murray and a conditional draft selection in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.

CHICAGO - When asked about President Barack Obama's "the private sector is doing fine" remark, which drew a strong rebuke from Republicans in all corners, Obama campaign national press secretary Ben LaBolt told The Dispatch: "I think the people in Ohio know that things turned around, and they didn't turn around by mistake."

CHICAGO - If it were up to the conservatives who gathered here Friday, Republican Florida Sen. Marco Rubio would be presumptive nominee Mitt Romney's pick for vice president. Rubio overwhelmingly won a Conserative Political Action Conference Chicago straw poll of potential VP picks with 30 percent. Ohio Sen.

The Franklin County Democratic Party is cutting ties with fundraiser Melissa Barnhart. With questions swirling about recent payments Barnhart was getting from the party for undocumented work said to have been done in 2007 and 2009, county Chairman Greg Schultz notified Barnhart via email yesterday that her consulting contract was being terminated, effective after 30 days.

The Blue Jackets have hired former NHL forward Chris Clark as development coach, granting his wish to stay in Columbus and remain involved in the NHL. Clark, who lives in Upper Arlington, began scouting for the Jackets last season, first watching and evaluating games in Nationwide Arena and later hitting the road to scout amateur talent.

On June 4, 1967 at 105-15 Euclid Avenue in Cleveland, a collection of some of the top black athletes in the country met with -- and eventually held a news conference in support of -- world heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali (front row, second from left), about Ali's refusal to be drafted into the U.S.