Lake Ontario swim Saturday will be largest and longest open-water race in Canada Oakville native Domenic Manchisi, who currently runs a sports therapy clinic in town, is the new massage therapist for the NHL's Calgary Flames.| photo by Nikki Wesley -- Oakville Beaver -- @ Halton_Photog 33 | Thursday, August 6, 2015 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Oakville therapist hired by Calgary Flames by Jon Kuiperij Beaver Sports Editor Domenic Manchisi was already enjoying what many would consider a successful career. He ran his own sports therapy clinic in Oakville, and he'd even worked for Hockey Canada at a pair of Olympic Winter Games. But when it came to his profession, the 36-year-old still felt a bit of a void. "The first thing I said when I came out of school was that I wanted to be in the NHL," Manchisi said. "It was my first dream." That dream will become a reality this fall. The Oakville native and Loyola high school grad is the new massage therapist for the Calgary Flames. He'll travel with the team to treat players after practices as well as before and after games. "I'll be working with a team of sports medicine doctors and a physiotherapist," said Manchisi, who worked in a similar role for the national women's hockey team at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics. "We'll work as a team to keep them in the best shape to be on the ice." Manchisi, who graduated from Burlington's Canadian Therapeutic College after earning his bachelors in kinesiology at Brock University in St. Catharines, has owned and operated the Path to Health and Wellness clinic out of River Oaks Recreation Centre for the past year. He'll continue to own the clinic even after moving out west in a couple of weeks with his wife Sonia and their three young children. "This is my first time actually getting outside the bubble. I was born and raised here... We'll miss everything. The kids are going to miss their schools, I'll miss the people I've worked with, the arena operators I've worked with. I've become great friends with them," Manchisi said. "The clinic... has been very successful. It (is difficult) to leave it at this point, but it had to be a great opportunity to leave it. You gotta do what you gotta do." Lake Ontario Swim Team organizers say Saturday's eighth annual L.O.S.T. Race in Oakville will be the largest open-water swimming race in Canada. More than 100 swimmers have already registered for the 3.8-kilometre race in the Lake Ontario water along the Oakville shoreline. Organizers say the event, which is part of the Global Swim Series, is also the longest open-water race in the country. Oakville Pan Am Games swimming silver medallist and Zack Chetrat 2016 Olympic hopeful Zack Chetrat will be the celebrity guest starter for Saturday's race, which will begin at 8 a.m. at the foot of Maple Grove Drive. The finish line is at the Navy Street pier, where the last swimmers are expected to arrive by approximately 9:30 a.m. Blue Devils drop second straight Suddenly, the Oakville Blue Devils' perch atop the League1 Ontario soccer standings isn't nearly as comfortable. After going undefeated in their first 12 games of the regular season, the Blue Devils dropped their second consecutive 1-0 decision Sunday at Sheridan College. The latest defeat came at the hands of the unbeaten Vaughan Sports Briefs Azzurri (eight wins, six draws), which moved to within four points of Oakville (11 wins, one draw, two losses) for first place. Sigma FC (9-3-2) is also four points back of the Blue Devils. Oakville, Vaughan and Sigma all have eight games remaining in the regular season. The Blue Devils are off this week and will return to action Sunday, Aug. 16, when they host Durham United FC for a 4 p.m. kickoff at Sheridan. Rock hosts Lakers in MSL playoffs The Oakville Rock was looking to even its first-round Major Series Lacrosse playoff series with the Peterborough Lakers last night (Wednesday) at Oakville's Toronto Rock Athletic Centre. The Lakers claimed the opening game of the best-of-seven series Sunday in Peterborough, downing the Rock 7-5. Stephan Leblanc and Alex Crepinsek each scored twice in a losing cause for Oakville, with Dan Lomas notching the Rock's other goal. Curtis Dickson recorded a hat trick for Peterborough. Oakville will also host Game 3 this Saturday (start time TBD) before the series shifts back to Peterborough for the fourth and, if necessary, fifth games. The Rock is making its first appearance in the MSL playoffs since relocating from Ajax three years ago. 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