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The Ontario government will decide within a few weeks whether to form a task force to examine working conditions for players in the Ontario Hockey League, said the president of Canadas largest private-sector union. Jerry Dias, the president of Unifor, met for an hour on Tuesday afternoon at Queens Park with the provincial labour and sports ministers. Dias called the talks "extremely positive" and said he pressed his argument that junior hockey has flourished as an industry and its players deserve to share a bigger piece of the profits. Dias said Unifor is involved with the effort partially because it would help its public image. He said the union would work pro bono for players or charge them a symbolic fee, perhaps $1 per month. Canadian Hockey League commissioner David Branch has said players dont receive more than modest stipends because they are considered student athletes. Many of the 1,300 mostly-teenaged players in the CHL qualify for educational scholarship packages, he said. Branch did not immediately respond to phone or text messages. Also Tuesday, a spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania governors office said the states labour laws offer an exemption from minimum wage laws for employees who work in entertainment and recreational jobs. "We are unaware of any authority specifically applying the Pennsylvania Minimum Wage Act to athletes," said Sara Goulet, the spokeswoman. "However, even if they could be viewed as employees, both state and federal law contains minimum wage/overtime exemptions for public amusement and recreational establishments that operate on a seasonal basis. This exemption has been invoked in law suits by non-athlete employees against professional sports teams, with varying results depending on the teams length of operations and revenues during the course of the year." Still, Goulet said players for the Eric Otters - the only CHL team in her state - may qualify as child labour. If they do, a number of different statutes might apply to their employment. Award-winning journalist Rick Westhead is TSNs Senior Correspondent for TSNs platforms - TSN, TSN Radio, TSN.ca and TSN GO. He has covered a wide variety of sports issues for a slate of leading publications, among them the Toronto Star, Bloomberg News, Canadian Press, Globe and Mail, New York Times, and Saturday Night Magazine. Earlier this year, Westhead was part of a team that won the prestigious Project of the Year at the National Newspaper Awards. He was also honoured with the Toronto Stars Reporter of the Year Award in 2007. Share your comments with Rick Westhead on Twitter at @rwesthead. Champions Jersey . Im very excited about the playoffs, particularly in the Western Conference with amazing match-ups, as well as the wonderful local story in the Toronto Raptors. It should be a blast. Here are my predictions, but based upon my lousy prognostications during the NCAA Tournament, you might be better off going the other way on some of mine - particularly with the Raptors, who I hope and pray are able to win an incredibly difficult match-up. Kenedy Jersey . -- The Chicago Bears have agreed to a one-year contract with cornerback Kelvin Hayden. http://www.chelseasoccerjerseysonline.co...chelsea-jersey/. -- Cole De Vries had a couple of key strikeouts during what could have been the inning that doomed him to defeat against the Kansas City Royals, allowing him to escape further damage and keep the game tied up. Kurt Zouma Jersey .com) - The red-hot Los Angeles Kings take aim at an eighth straight victory on Monday night as they wrap up a road trip versus the Calgary Flames. Ethan Ampadu Jersey . Formula One Teams Association secretary general Oliver Weingarten says the organization collapsed over unpaid subscription fees and a failure to strike an agreement for 2014 with all 11 teams.SURPRISE, Ariz. -- The Texas Rangers say ace Yu Darvish has no structural damage in his stiff neck but will likely begin the season on the disabled list. Darvish was examined Wednesday by Dr. Keith Meister in Dallas. The right-hander will start a throwing program this weekend and wont need any injections. Rangers general manager Jon Daniels says he expects Darvish will be put on the 15-day DL. The Rangers open Monday at home against Philadelphia. "I would think so, yes," Daniels said. "Thats kind of where its headed. Were looking at 10 days already. He will play catch Saturday and if he continues to improve, then well put a plan together from there." "Thats going to be two weeks. Hes not going to ready to break. Its a relief thats its positive news from the exam," he said. Darvish led the majors in strikeouts last year. With him out, Tanner Scheppers will start the season opener. Scheppers will be making his first big league start after 115 relief appearances. "Scheppers is making his first big league start on opening day," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "Hes profiled as a No. 1 kind of guy. The innings he pitched last year were under a lot of pressure and I think he can handle the pressure that goes along with opening day." The Rangers said Nick Martinez will be their No. 5 starter to begin the season. He has pitched in just five games above Class A. Martin Perez will start the second game and Robbie Ross the third and Joe Saunders the fourth, giving the Rangers four left-handers to start the season. None of the five was in the Texas rotation to start last year. Martinez, a right-hander, was not even in the big league camp. He finished last season 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA with Double-A Frisco. He was 12-7 with a 2.50 ERA last year between Myrtle Beach and Frisco. "Martinez gives us an opportunity," Washington said. "He has the stuff to pitch at the major league level. I think its on us to make certain to keep him in the mental state that he needs to be in. I think he can go out there and hold that spot down until we get Colby (Lewis) and Harry ((Matt Harrison) back.dddddddddddd" Harrison, an 18-game winner in 2012, is rehabbing from a neck injury. Derek Holland will start the season on the DL because of knee surgery and Lewis is recovering from forearm and hip issues. "We, maybe not you, but we feel confident that we are going to be competitive and are going to win some ballgames," he said. The 23-year-old Martinez, 23, was an 18th-round pick in 2011 out of Fordham. "Weve had a number of injuries to our pitching staff," Daniels said. "Its obviously a little quicker than we anticipated with Nick. Given the injuries and looking at our options, we had the most confidence in Nick. There was an opportunity for someone to seize it." "As an organization, we feel Nicks the right guy for that opportunity," he said. "Nicks got three solid pitches, four really, plus command and has tremendous makeup. Hes an athlete, a shortstop-second baseman in college. Hes been durable. Hes smart. Hes poised. He attacks the strike zone." The Rangers made a series of roster moves. They signed right-hander Scott Baker, who was released by Seattle, to a Triple-A Round Rock contract. The 32-year-old Baker has a 63-48 record with a 4.14 ERA in 160 big league games. Texas claimed two players off waivers, getting infielder Donnie Murphy from the Cubs and right-hander Seth Rosin from the Dodgers. Rosin is a Rule 5 draft pick and must remain on the 25-man major league roster all season or be offered back to Philadelphia. Murphy can play second base, shortstop and third. The Rangers were in the market for a second baseman with Jurickson Profar out 10 to 12 weeks with a torn muscle in his right shoulder. The 31-year-old has played in 290 major league games in eight seasons with Kansas City, Oakland, Miami and the Chicago Cubs. He spent most of last season with Triple-A Iowa, hitting .265. The Rangers also released right-hander Tommy Hanson rather than guaranteeing his $500,000 salary, which would have increased to $2 million when the season started. Hanson was 0-2 with a 6.43 ERA in four exhibition games. 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