#whats it like only playing with a teammate for 1 year in finland

[ratatatastic]

nothing destroys me more than the fact that the mikksyluosty celly in the bg WAS BLURRED BECAUSE THE CAMERA CHOSE THAT MOMENT TO GO OUT OF FOCUS

mikksy trying to high5 luosty after they won the cup and luosty half heartedly doing it because what he actually wants to do is drag him into a hug

and he hugs him soooo hard he shifts him backwards on his skates :(((

and the way mikksy cradles him back and shakes him DO YOU KNOW THE DEVASTATION IM GOING THROUGH RIGHT NOW 😭😭😭

and the way he leans down so luosty can talk into his ear and luosty grasping onto the back of his jersey ITS TIME FOR ME TO JUMP INTO THE OCEAN I CANT TAKE IT ANYMOREEEEEEE

[goaliekisses]

Malkin’s teammates share what sets him apart; favorite memories before his 1,000th game

they’re all like ‘he’s so BIG AND FUNNY AND BEAUTIFUL’ and sid is like, repeatedly ‘he’s so DOMINATING also let me rattle off a list of my favorite geno goals and also did i mention, he’s so dominating? i’m so lucky to have seen them close up i’ll cherish them forever (like i cherish him)’

Sidney Crosby still remembers the first time he saw Evgeni Malkin play.

It was the 2005 World Junior Championship in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It was the second World Junior appearance for both Crosby and Malkin, but the two hadn't gone head-to-head in the tournament in Helsinki, Finland the year prior. They finally met in the gold medal game, with Crosby and Team Canada winning the tournament with a 6-1 victory over Malkin and Russia.

Malkin made his World Championship debut with the senior Russian team later that season. Watching that tournament, Crosby couldn't help but take notice again of the young Russian prospect who had been drafted by the Penguins the year before.

"He was just dominating," Crosby recalled when I sat down with him earlier this week. "He was just 18 then. I thought he was pretty special from the first time I saw him play."

Crosby and Kris Letang were both drafted by the Penguins that summer, and Crosby made his NHL debut in the season that followed. Letang and Malkin joined Crosby in Pittsburgh a season later, and the three have been together now for 17 seasons.

Through Malkin' career 999 games, he's amassed 451 goals, 714 assists and 1,165 points, ranking No. 3 all-time in franchise history in each category behind Mario Lemieux and Crosby. When the puck drops for the Penguins' game against the Blackhawks in Chicago on Sunday, Malkin will join Crosby in the record books as the only players in franchise history to play 1,000 games with the Penguins.

I spoke with Crosby, Letang and a number of other teammates of Malkin about what makes Malkin so special and some of their favorite memories of Malkin over the years.

Crosby remembers it being "pretty hard to communicate" with Malkin during those early years together, when Malkin's English was extremely limited. Still, that didn't stop Malkin from quietly tagging along with his teammates when everyone would hang out outside of the rink.

"I mean, he didn't say anything," Letang said. "He would just come and have dinner and not say a word. He would just say the same thing, 'hamburger,' all the time. ... He was so shy earlier on and didn't speak much, but his humor is funny, like joking around making fun of everyone."

Letang was a little amused recalling that Malkin insisted on his teammates calling him "71" rather than his name back then.

Players who made their debuts with the Penguins later in Malkin's career remember being a little intimidated by Malkin at first.

"Obviously, you're pretty scared," Jake Guentzel said with a laugh about his first time meeting Malkin. "He's a superstar. My first game I sat alongside him and Phil (Kessel), I think you get pretty nervous. You don't want to mess up."

"It was a lot of intimidation on my part," Bryan Rust said. "I was probably feel a little nervous to meet him, just a guy of his stature both physically and with what he's done."

Brian Dumoulin said that he felt like he was "tiptoeing" around Malkin early on, and was a little nervous being around someone of Malkin's stature, until he realized he just had to talk to Malkin like any other person.

"I wouldn't say he's the most outgoing guy when you first get to know him," Dumoulin said. "It takes some time to get to know him and for him to open up and for you. I remember people were saying to Geno, like 'Why don't you say hi?' He's like, 'Why don't you say hi to me?' That's kind of how it was for 'G'. I mean, you've got to approach him just like anyone else. That's how he wants to be treated."

A common trend in players' first interactions with Malkin is Malkin getting their names wrong, much to the amusement of his teammates.

"It's such a Geno thing to do, to not remember names," Kasperi Kapanen said. "I don't know, I actually should go ask him now to see if he remembers my first name or not."

Consensus seems to be that Malkin's gotten better with names over the years, but it's still a bit of a running gag for a teammate to ask him what a newer teammate's name is to see what he says. Marcus Pettersson remembers being in the stick room with Patric Hornqvist in his first week after being traded to the Penguins when Malkin walked in the room. Hornqvist pointed to Pettersson and asked Malkin what his name was. Malkin paused, then pointed to the stick Pettersson was holding, and read the "Pettersson" label out loud. Players used to do the same at the yearly rookie parties, making it a game to see if Malkin knows the actual names of the younger players. He might know a guy as "Rusty" or "Dumo," but beyond that?

"That's the thing," Dumoulin said with a laugh. "He might not know my first and my last name, but he knows my nickname, you know? That's all that really matters, I don't care. He doesn't have to know my name or anything like that. It's pretty funny."

Some players think that Malkin's notoriously bad memory with names might be a little bit of an act, given his sense of humor.

"He called me 'goalie' for the longest time," Casey DeSmith said. "He's definitely a character in the room. I remember the first time he said like, 'Good game Casey' I was like, (shocked face) 'What'd you say?!'"

"He just kept calling me Jack," Guentzel laughed, recalling his rookie year. "I don't know if he was just messing around with me, playing a prank on a young guy. But it was just funny, because nobody really knows."

When you ask players what makes Malkin so special or how they'd describe him, it's that sense of humor that is often mentioned first. He keeps his teammates laughing, and keeps the room light.

"There's no filter," Letang said of Malkin. "It comes out raw with that kind of broken English. It's the broken English that makes it funny."

"His sense of humor, I think is awesome," Rust said. "He just kind of sticks to himself, he's kind of quiet most of the time. Then all of a sudden, he'll just start cracking jokes, he'll just kind of pop in there just at the right time. He has the whole room laughing."

"Every day, he always says something," Kapanen said. "He's got those one-liners that make everybody laugh, and he's just a funny, fun guy to be around. He's one of the funnier guys I've ever met. So it's been a pleasure to be here with him.

"He's always got some smartass comment to make or something sarcastic," DeSmith said.

"He's spontaneous," Tristan Jarry said. "He's just always yelling, always getting the guys to laugh."

On the ice, it's Malkin's passion, drive and skill that get mentioned by his teammates as what sets him apart.

"It's just his natural ability," DeSmith said

"He's generational talent," Jarry said. "Being able to watch him every day in practice and in every game, it's something special."

"He's passionate," said Rust. "He loves coming here and he loves playing hockey. He loves being with this team, in this organization, in the city. You can see it when he's playing well, you can see it when he's playing bad. He just wears his emotions on his sleeve and he just wants this team, he wants himself, and he wants everybody else to do so well. You can see how much he cares."

Pettersson compared Malkin to a train, and spoke about admiring that same passion Rust spoke of.

"He's fire," Pettersson said. "He's like a locomotive when he takes over the game, he's so powerful the way he drives the puck. I just think about whenever he gets fired up on the ice, scores a big goal or something like that. Like when we were in Toronto and he had a pretty bad tripping call on him then scored. When he gets fired up, he creates so much energy for us and it's fun to see him in beast mode when he gets like that."

Dumoulin said that Malkin is a "magician" with what he's able to do on the ice.

"Pittsburgh is very lucky and I think I'm very lucky to be able to watch him play for so long," Dumoulin said. "I mean, on the ice, he's the magician. You never really know what he's going to do with the puck, whether it be D zone, offensive zone, neutral zone. It's just fun to watch him get the puck and just go. He's always a game changer every time he's out there. It's exciting to watch."

"I think of him as a beast," Letang said. "He's just so strong, so big, skilled. He's kind of unstoppable when he's playing well."

Crosby said that if he had to choose one word to describe Malkin, it would be "dominant."

"The way he can take over a game is pretty rare," Crosby said. "There's not too many guys who can do that, and he's done it for a long time."

Crosby said that he has "tons" of favorite on-ice memories of Malkin, with a big one being his first NHL goal against the Devils in 2006.

"Then against Tampa, when he walked through everybody," Crosby added, referring to this goal in 2012.

"Edmonton, the spin-o-rama," Crosby said, talking about this goal from 2015.

"That Carolina game, the hat trick he had in the playoffs," Crosby said, on Malkin's performance in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final in 2009.

"I've been lucky," Crosby reflected. "I got to see a lot of those close up. Those are memories that I'll cherish forever."

Letang mentioned Malkin's entire performance in the 2009 playoffs -- when Malkin led the team in scoring with 14 goals and 22 assists in 24 games -- as one of his favorite memories. He also named Malkin's goal in the last game of the 2011-12 regular season against the Flyers: It was the first (and only) time Malkin hit the 50-goal mark in his career, and capped off a regular season in which Malkin won the Art Ross Trophy as the league's leading scorer, the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league MVP, and the Ted Lindsay as the league's top player as voted by the players.

Letang was asked what he thinks Malkin's legacy will be in Pittsburgh, and he thought it was a tough question to answer. He mentioned the three Stanley Cups they won together, and Malkin's impending 1,000th game, but said that Malkin's legacy to him will be something different.

"I don't remember those guys for the hockey part," he said. "I remember those guys for being with them. He's funny. He's hilarious. He's loud in his own way."

If one were to make a Mount Rushmore of the top four Penguins in franchise history, Malkin would surely be on it. His skill, dominance and passion are what has made him one of the greatest to ever play for the Penguins. But it's who he is off the ice that has him so beloved by his teammates.

[puckthisyear]

Malkin's teammates share what makes sets him apart, favorite memories before his 1,000th game

CHICAGO -- Sidney Crosby still remembers the first time he saw Evgeni Malkin play.

It was the 2005 World Junior Championship in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It was the second World Junior appearance for both Crosby and Malkin, but the two hadn't gone head-to-head in the tournament in Helsinki, Finland the year prior. They finally met in the gold medal game, with Crosby and Team Canada winning the tournament with a 6-1 victory over Malkin and Russia.

Malkin made his World Championship debut with the senior Russian team later that season. Watching that tournament, Crosby couldn't help but take notice again of the young Russian prospect who had been drafted by the Penguins the year before.

"He was just dominating," Crosby recalled when I sat down with him earlier this week. "He was just 18 then. I thought he was pretty special from the first time I saw him play."

Crosby and Kris Letang were both drafted by the Penguins that summer, and Crosby made his NHL debut in the season that followed. Letang and Malkin joined Crosby in Pittsburgh a season later, and the three have been together now for 17 seasons.

Through Malkin' career 999 games, he's amassed 451 goals, 714 assists and 1,165 points, ranking No. 3 all-time in franchise history in each category behind Mario Lemieux and Crosby. When the puck drops for the Penguins' game against the Blackhawks in Chicago on Sunday, Malkin will join Crosby in the record books as the only players in franchise history to play 1,000 games with the Penguins.

I spoke with Crosby, Letang and a number of other teammates of Malkin about what makes Malkin so special and some of their favorite memories of Malkin over the years.

Crosby remembers it being "pretty hard to communicate" with Malkin during those early years together, when Malkin's English was extremely limited. Still, that didn't stop Malkin from quietly tagging along with his teammates when everyone would hang out outside of the rink.

"I mean, he didn't say anything," Letang said. "He would just come and have dinner and not say a word. He would just say the same thing, 'hamburger,' all the time. ... He was so shy earlier on and didn't speak much, but his humor is funny, like joking around making fun of everyone."

Letang was a little amused recalling that Malkin insisted on his teammates calling him "71" rather than his name back then.

Players who made their debuts with the Penguins later in Malkin's career remember being a little intimidated by Malkin at first.

"Obviously, you're pretty scared," Jake Guentzel said with a laugh about his first time meeting Malkin. "He's a superstar. My first game I sat alongside him and Phil (Kessel), I think you get pretty nervous. You don't want to mess up."

"It was a lot of intimidation on my part," Bryan Rust said. "I was probably feel a little nervous to meet him, just a guy of his stature both physically and with what he's done."

Brian Dumoulin said that he felt like he was "tiptoeing" around Malkin early on, and was a little nervous being around someone of Malkin's stature, until he realized he just had to talk to Malkin like any other person.

"I wouldn't say he's the most outgoing guy when you first get to know him," Dumoulin said. "It takes some time to get to know him and for him to open up and for you. I remember people were saying to Geno, like 'Why don't you say hi?' He's like, 'Why don't you say hi to me?' That's kind of how it was for 'G'. I mean, you've got to approach him just like anyone else. That's how he wants to be treated."

A common trend in players' first interactions with Malkin is Malkin getting their names wrong, much to the amusement of his teammates.

"It's such a Geno thing to do, to not remember names," Kasperi Kapanen said. "I don't know, I actually should go ask him now to see if he remembers my first name or not."

Consensus seems to be that Malkin's gotten better with names over the years, but it's still a bit of a running gag for a teammate to ask him what a newer teammate's name is to see what he says. Marcus Pettersson remembers being in the stick room with Patric Hornqvist in his first week after being traded to the Penguins when Malkin walked in the room. Hornqvist pointed to Pettersson and asked Malkin what his name was. Malkin paused, then pointed to the stick Pettersson was holding, and read the "Pettersson" label out loud. Players used to do the same at the yearly rookie parties, making it a game to see if Malkin knows the actual names of the younger players. He might know a guy as "Rusty" or "Dumo," but beyond that?

"That's the thing," Dumoulin said with a laugh. "He might not know my first and my last name, but he knows my nickname, you know? That's all that really matters, I don't care. He doesn't have to know my name or anything like that. It's pretty funny."

Some players think that Malkin's notoriously bad memory with names might be a little bit of an act, given his sense of humor.

"He called me 'goalie' for the longest time," Casey DeSmith said. "He's definitely a character in the room. I remember the first time he said like, 'Good game Casey' I was like, (shocked face) 'What'd you say?!'"

"He just kept calling me Jack," Guentzel laughed, recalling his rookie year. "I don't know if he was just messing around with me, playing a prank on a young guy. But it was just funny, because nobody really knows."

When you ask players what makes Malkin so special or how they'd describe him, it's that sense of humor that is often mentioned first. He keeps his teammates laughing, and keeps the room light.

"There's no filter," Letang said of Malkin. "It comes out raw with that kind of broken English. It's the broken English that makes it funny."

"His sense of humor, I think is awesome," Rust said. "He just kind of sticks to himself, he's kind of quiet most of the time. Then all of a sudden, he'll just start cracking jokes, he'll just kind of pop in there just at the right time. He has the whole room laughing."

"Every day, he always says something," Kapanen said. "He's got those one-liners that make everybody laugh, and he's just a funny, fun guy to be around. He's one of the funnier guys I've ever met. So it's been a pleasure to be here with him.

"He's always got some smartass comment to make or something sarcastic," DeSmith said.

"He's spontaneous," Tristan Jarry said. "He's just always yelling, always getting the guys to laugh."

On the ice, it's Malkin's passion, drive and skill that get mentioned by his teammates as what sets him apart.

"It's just his natural ability," DeSmith said

"He's generational talent," Jarry said. "Being able to watch him every day in practice and in every game, it's something special."

"He's passionate," said Rust. "He loves coming here and he loves playing hockey. He loves being with this team, in this organization, in the city. You can see it when he's playing well, you can see it when he's playing bad. He just wears his emotions on his sleeve and he just wants this team, he wants himself, and he wants everybody else to do so well. You can see how much he cares."

Pettersson compared Malkin to a train, and spoke about admiring that same passion Rust spoke of.

"He's fire," Pettersson said. "He's like a locomotive when he takes over the game, he's so powerful the way he drives the puck. I just think about whenever he gets fired up on the ice, scores a big goal or something like that. Like when we were in Toronto and he had a pretty bad tripping call on him then scored. When he gets fired up, he creates so much energy for us and it's fun to see him in beast mode when he gets like that."

Dumoulin said that Malkin is a "magician" with what he's able to do on the ice.

"Pittsburgh is very lucky and I think I'm very lucky to be able to watch him play for so long," Dumoulin said. "I mean, on the ice, he's the magician. You never really know what he's going to do with the puck, whether it be D zone, offensive zone, neutral zone. It's just fun to watch him get the puck and just go. He's always a game changer every time he's out there. It's exciting to watch."

"I think of him as a beast," Letang said. "He's just so strong, so big, skilled. He's kind of unstoppable when he's playing well."

Crosby said that if he had to choose one word to describe Malkin, it would be "dominant."

"The way he can take over a game is pretty rare," Crosby said. "There's not too many guys who can do that, and he's done it for a long time."

Crosby said that he has "tons" of favorite on-ice memories of Malkin, with a big one being his first NHL goal against the Devils in 2006:

https://youtu.be/7j7KB0LwYs0

"Then against Tampa, when he walked through everybody," Crosby added, referring to this goal in 2012:

https://youtu.be/Gp78VBEghWA

"Edmonton, the spin-o-rama," Crosby said, talking about this goal from 2015:

https://youtu.be/GHQbAhRgCTU

"That Carolina game, the hat trick he had in the playoffs," Crosby said, on Malkin's performance in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final in 2009:

https://youtu.be/h3RuU31iw6A

"I've been lucky," Crosby reflected. "I got to see a lot of those close up. Those are memories that I'll cherish forever."

Letang mentioned Malkin's entire performance in the 2009 playoffs -- when Malkin led the team in scoring with 14 goals and 22 assists in 24 games -- as one of his favorite memories. He also named Malkin's goal in the last game of the 2011-12 regular season against the Flyers: It was the first (and only) time Malkin hit the 50-goal mark in his career, and capped off a regular season in which Malkin won the Art Ross Trophy as the league's leading scorer, the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league MVP, and the Ted Lindsay as the league's top player as voted by the players:

https://youtu.be/uMRFiOUB9f8

Letang was asked what he thinks Malkin's legacy will be in Pittsburgh, and he thought it was a tough question to answer. He mentioned the three Stanley Cups they won together, and Malkin's impending 1,000th game, but said that Malkin's legacy to him will be something different.

"I don't remember those guys for the hockey part," he said. "I remember those guys for being with them. He's funny. He's hilarious. He's loud in his own way."

If one were to make a Mount Rushmore of the top four Penguins in franchise history, Malkin would surely be on it. His skill, dominance and passion are what has made him one of the greatest to ever play for the Penguins. But it's who he is off the ice that has him so beloved by his teammates.

[ideks-on-mars]

Half-Brothers?

The Taichi-Naoyasu Situation

Taichi and Naoyasu are half-brothers and here's how lol

Taichi's mother and father had both met in their birth country of Germany. However, his grandparents on his mother's side hadn't approved of his father. The two had then decided to study a good amount of Japanese before saving up for plane tickets and running off to Japan. They changed their last names and had a completely fresh start. The two were madly in love, or at least that's what Taichi's mother thought. She had figured out she was pregnant, with who we know as Taichi, and she was ecstatic. She quickly told Taichi's father and his reaction was the exact opposite of what she expected. The man was furious and didn't want anything to do with the woman or baby. After hours of begging and yelling the man had left the German woman to fend for herself and her unborn baby. She picked up a few different jobs at small stores, extra shifts and she would make good friends that were more than happy to help her, two of those friends being the Shirabu's who also had a baby on the way. Her life in Japan was getting better. And on April 15, 1995, her baby Taichi, was born. She had changed her name after the "Love of her life" had left. Her last name was Kawanishi. And now, all she had was her, her friends, and her beloved baby.

Meanwhile, almost exactly 4 months before Taichi was born. A small, fragile, pale woman, had been another victim of the man. She had found out she was pregnant by him during January 1996. The woman was, just like the last, left soon after. The woman was young and hadn't even been in Japan for too long. She had came to Japan from her home country of Finland due to that fact that it had always been a dream of hers to move in with her grandmother, who moved to Japan when she was two. She was intelligent though, and knew languages like Finnish, Slovak, German, and Japanese. She could also keep up a normal conversation in English and Danish. She was confident in her ability to take care of a baby and she studied extra hard, wanting to be able to get a decent job for her and her baby.

After graduating from college, she was now about seven months pregnant. She lived with her grandma and she was working as a translator for people visiting Japan. She had, who we know as, Naoyasu Kuguri, not long after. However, the older he had gotten, his mother had taught him more Finnish, Slovak, and German than Japanese. He knew some Japanese, of course, they lived in Japan. However his mother thought that all he needed was her and the only person he should feel the absolute need to talk to was her.

TIME SKIP

Multiple years later and Taichi is now seventeen with Naoyasu being sixteen. STZ was having a practice match against Nohebi and they were having a small break between the first and second set.

"Kawanishi-Kun~...doesn't number twelve over there remind you of yourself~ hehe~"

Kawanishi turned to the place his upperclassmen, Tendō Satori, was pointing towards, curious as to what he was talking about.

Taichi scanned the other team until his eyes landed on number twelve. The boy had a lean, yet muscular build, his height similar to Semi's. He had a bored expression on his face and a water bottle in hand. His eyes were pointed at the end, very similar to Taichi's. The only difference was that number twelve's eyes rounded into the point. Taichi's were more of a obtuse angle that lead to the point. Their eyelids were both very pointy. His eyebrows were thicker than Taichi's and his pupils were a lot bigger and more circle shaped, compared to Taichi's oval shaped pupils. Taichi's eyes were silver gray, number twelve's eyes seemed to be green with a hint of grey. Taichi's hair was a darker ginger, thick, and messy. Yet number twelve's hair was...interesting. His hair was a blonde mixed with brunette, leaving him with a very light brown bedhead. However his eyebrows were darker.

"He does look...kind of like me..."

"Kind of", was a bit of an understatement, Taichi could go around telling his team that they were related and they'd most likely believe it, except for Kenjirō of course, who knew the whole situation with Taichi's family.

"You should talk to him! You two seem equally as uninterested."

Some of his teammates laughed at Yamagata's joke but Taichi, for once in his life, actually considered going up to the boy and talking to him.

As if God himself had granted him an opportunity, Nohebi's captain walked up to the team, his hand placed on the back of the stoic winged spiker.

"Hey, sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but would any of you mind helping Kuguri-Kun here find the restroom?"

The captain, who they knew was called Daishō, patted the boy's, now known as Kuguri, back twice. Kuguri didn't react though, he stood there beside his captain quietly, slouched and staring at the ground blankly, his hands stuffed into his volleyball jacket pockets. Before anyone could speak, Tendō, not surprisingly, did.

"Oh! Well our dear Kawanishi-Kun would love to escort Kuguri-Kun! Right Kiwi?"

Kawanishi looked at Tendō with an expression that said "are you serious?" but Taichi wasn't one to go against an upperclassmen's wishes, especially Tendō's. Taichi sighed.

"Yes, Tendō-San."

Daishō smiled a snake-like smile, however Taichi didn't think he could help it, and walked away leaving his teammate with the monsters known as Shiratorizawa. Taichi could tell he was uncomfortable so he quickly walked past him towards the exit.

"C'mon, Kuguri-Kun."

He said, his German accent slipping a little. He glanced behind him and saw that Kuguri was sauntering behind him. Taichi stopped, waiting for the slightly shorter male to catch up with him and began to walk at the other's pace.

Taichi got to the door first and held it open for the brunette. He glanced up at Taichi and nodded. However Taichi could've swore he saw the other's eyes widen for point two seconds before he looked back down and walked through the door way. Taichi, even though it was barely audible, heard Kuguri speak.

"Thank you, Kawanishi-San."

The thick, obviously European, accent was clear in his words. Taichi could tell that it was slightly German, but it just had to be another Northern European accent. Taichi quickly shook it off and nodded. They silently headed down the hall, the occasional Shiratorizawa student walking past them. Suddenly, and surprisingly, Kuguri spoke.

"So...where are you from?"

Taichi was taken aback, the other's accent was thicker now. Taichi seemed confused but figured the the other thought he was from somewhere else due to his accent.

"Oh, um, I'm from Japan. It's just that my mother is German and...I knew how to speak German before Japanese."

Kuguri nodded.

"Oh. I was just asking. I spoke Finnish, Slovak and German before I spoke Japanese. I'm still not as good as I should be at it."

Taichi understood. Japanese was no joke, and neither was Finnish, Slovak, and German.

"Well, if speaking in German makes it easier for you, then I don't mind."

(Bold + Red = Speaking in German)

Kuguri smiled happily. It wasn't the biggest smile, more of just the sides of his lips curling upward, but still, a smile.

"Thank you...Naoyasu Kuguri."

Taichi smiled back, a similar smile to the one Naoyasu had shown him before.

"Nice to meet you...I'm Taichi Kawanishi."

The two smiled, happy that they had someone that they could relate to.

"Anyways, I didn't see you on Nohebi last year, are you new?"

"Yeah, I'm a first year..."

TIME SKIP

It was now the end of the match and Nohebi was about to get on their long trip back to Tokyo.

(I looked it up and from Miyagi to Tokyo is 4-6 hours 👀)

The two teams thanked each other for the practice game, all waving as they piled into the bus. Naoyasu was the last one to get on. He turned around and waved at Taichi one more time. Taichi waved back and watched happily as his new friend had drove off. He was glad they had exchanged numbers.

"So you really did make friends with him?"

Taichi looked over at his teammates.

"Yeah. He was pretty chill."

They nodded.

"Did you catch his name?"

"Yeah. Naoyasu Kuguri."

TIME SKIP

The two boys ended up being good friends. They didn't get to hang out as much as they wanted but it was good enough for them due to the fact that they weren't very social people anyway. Though, when they found out that they both got to go to the same training camp, they were excited. In the training camp you actually got time to lay back and chat with people from other teams, giving them the chance to hangout with each other.

The thing was, at this training camp they allowed parents and/or siblings to come. The parents would come watch their children play, help with lunch and dinner, and help with other fun drills and activities, and if they had younger children they were allowed to bring them. That's how a lot of the parents and siblings made good friends with the others. Taichi's mom, Annike, had always come, due to the fact that, 1) she loves and wants to support her son, and 2) she was great friends with most of the moms of his teammates and other teams. She would always bring Taichi's little six-year-old half sister, Takara, who enjoyed playing with the other little ones. She was the result of of Taichi's old stepfather. He was a cool guy and him and his mom were on good terms. Taichi never really gave him a chance though. However, Taichi would never deny the fact that he adored his little sister.

Once they arrived, Taichi quickly scoped out his teammates and joined them whilst his mother conversated with the other parents.

The coaches informed everyone that they would take the first day to let everyone get settled in, eat, and conversate.

Earlier into the day, Taichi heard his name being called.

"Kawanishi-San. Hello."

Taichi turned around, already having an idea of who it was.

"Hi Kuguri-Kun, how've you been?"

"Alright. You?"

"Fine, thanks."

"Naoyasu! Don't run off like that."

(Bold + Blue = Speaking in Finnish)

"Sorry ma."

Taichi looked a little behind Naoyasu and saw a short, pale woman with blonde hair that fell beautifully over her shoulders, he could've swore she was made of glass. She had on light blue jeans and a grey shirt on. Her eyes were the same color as Naoyasu's.

"Who's this?"

Taichi had no clue what she was saying, considering she was speaking in Finnish. Suddenly Naoyasu moved to the side, so that he wasn't between the two and they could meet eyes and Taichi didn't only see one half of her.

"Ma, this is Taichi Kawanishi, a friend of mine. Kawanishi-San, this is my mother."

Taichi remembered that Naoyasu only had his mother and knew that she knew and taught him German, plus Naoyase was just speaking to her in German so he responded in German.

"It's nice to meet you Kuguri-San. I'm good friends with Naoyasu-Kun."

Taichi stuck his hand out. The woman grabbed it, firmly shaking his hand.

"Nice to meet you Taichi-Kun. You can call me Aino."

"Taichi!"

Taichi looked behind him to see that his mother had come up behind him. She walked up beside him, a smile on her face, Takara beside her. Taichi's mom had curly, long, ginger hair that was pulled into a ponytail. She had on jeans and a t-shirt just like Miss Aino. She turned over to Aino and now the womans' jaws dropped.

Taichi and Naoyasu looked confused while Takara didn't seem to care all the much, only hugging her big brother's leg. Taichi patted her head, still not taking his eyes off of the two women.

"Aino?"

"Annike?"

Now the boys were beyond confused. They knew each other. Both the women nodded to each other and began to walk away. Taichi tried to call out to his mother.

"Mom-"

"Watch your sister Taichi. I'll be back soon."

Naoyasu tried too.

"Mom where are you-"

"Stay with Taichi, help watch the girl."

"Hi!"

Taichi and Naoyasu both looked at each other, shrugged, and looked down at the little girl, who was now looking up at Naoyasu.

WITH THE WOMEN

The two were behind the building now, staring at each other.

"It's been a while."

"It has."

They both were quiet for a few seconds.

"Is that...his son?"

Aino nodded.

"Yeah...it is. Naoyasu is his. I'm sure Taichi is his, correct?"

"Yeah, he is."

The two women chuckled.

"They're half-brothers."

"Yeah they are. They deserve to know."

Annike nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I can't lie to Taichi any longer."

The two talked more. Catching up with each other and talking about their respective sons. They were nervous to tell their sons, yet excited and happy that they at least had met and are good friends.

AFTER THEY HAD SAT THE TWO BOYS DOWN

Both Taichi and Naoyasu were now sat down on the curb of the parking lot near the building where the training camp was being held. The women were leaning against the Kawanishi's car, both smoking a cigarette. Takara was being watched by some of the Shiratorizawa moms.

Annike dropped the cigarette onto the asphalt and stepped on it, putting it out.

"We have to tell you something important."

The two boys nodded.

"I don't think you both realize how much this will affect you both. This will shock you both tremendously."

The two were hesitant, but nodded. The two women looked at each other and Aino gestured for the other to go ahead and tell the two.

"You two are half-brothers."

The two brothers paused completely. That was until Taichi slapped his thigh and stood up.

"I knew we looked alike!"

He didn't say it in German, causing some other people to look at the usually quiet boy out of curiosity. Taichi bowed towards them apologetically before returning to the situation at hand.

Naoyasu was in shock. Half-brothers? He was just being told now? He assumed that they had the same dad. He wasn't stupid. He put two and two together.

Naoyasu stood up beside Taichi. The two looked at each other not exactly knowing what to do. However, Taichi, who was already a big brother, now of two, had his instincts kick in. Whenever his little sister was confused and was completely lost on what to do, he comforted her, so that's what he did to his new, well new in his life, little brother.

Taichi wrapped his arms around Naoyasu tightly. Naoyasu seemed genuinely scared at first but calmed down quickly. He hesitantly wrapped his arms around Taichi, resting his head on Taichi's shoulder.

The two women smiled gently at their sons, both extremely pleased that the two seemed happy. Taichi pulled away and patted both Naoyasu's shoulders.

"Let's go introduce you to your new little sister too."

Naoyasu looked confused.

"But...I'm not related to her."

"You're part of the family now. No escaping."

Taichi and Naoyasu both laughed and began to make their way to the little girl. The moms watched before Annike started walking too. She noticed that Aino wasn't following her and turned around.

"You too, Aino. You're part of the family too."

Aino couldn't even fight the smile creeping onto her face and dropped her cigarette, stepping on it. Annike reached her hand out and Aino grabbed it.

They both rounded the corner and smiled widely when they saw Takara walking between her two big brothers, holding both theirs hands and talking about something with a big smile on her face.

[footballxwrites]

Ridiculously in love with your writing so giving another one😂

So read reports that Christian pulisic maybe going back to the bundesliga to play for Bayern so maybe you could write one on that where he feels guilty for not having been able to probably make it work in Chelsea. He’s been with his fiance since they were like 12 and she’s a British citizen and an arsenal fan so she was definitely the happiest when they moved to london as because she runs her own company and their main office is in London. Christian feels like a crap fiancé also because now she’ll have to travel up and down every other week like she did when they were in Dortmund, and she’s done and sacrificed so much for him and he couldn’t even make it work so she can be in her hometown for once and also be with her family, plus they’re looking to start a family so this travelling business and not having grandparents around the corner isn’t ideal either. With all this plus not starting games plus family stuff weighing him down, he starts to be distant from her and she obviously notices. She gives him a bit of space at the beginning but then quickly realises that they should talk about it like they always have in their relationship. So she brings it up and he lets out everything and she’s like “ don’t be stupid, I want the best for your career and if that’s in freaking Finland well go there, you’ve had a tough year and not the ideal start to your time at Chelsea ans that’s okay. Everyone has set backs but we need to make a comeback so we’re gonna do what’s best for you and then go from there. Europe is small and London to Munich or wherever it is isn’t too bad at all, plus you know I genuinely like travelling for work. And when the kids come we’ll just figure out a schedule that puts them first and have you seen our parents, they’re gonna be coming and seeing us all the time. It’s fine, we’re gonna be fine, you’re gonna be just fine” and then Christian is just crying by then because how did he get so lucky blah blah blah... can’t wait for this one xxxxxx

Long Distance Love ♡

𝖧𝖺𝗁𝖺 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗄 𝗒𝗈𝗎! 𝖨 𝗅𝗈𝗏𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗊𝗎𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖨 𝗁𝗈𝗉𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗌 𝖺𝗅𝗋𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍 (𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗂𝗍 𝗆𝖺𝗄𝖾𝗌 𝗌𝖾𝗇𝗌𝖾 𝗅𝗈𝗅)...𝗈𝗇𝗅𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗂𝗌 𝖨 𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗅𝖽𝗇’𝗍 𝖻𝖾 𝖻𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈 𝗌𝗉𝖾𝗅𝗅 𝖼𝗁𝖾𝖼𝗄 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝗌𝗈 𝖺𝗇𝗒 𝗆𝗂𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗄𝖾𝗌 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗍𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗒 𝗈𝗇 𝗆𝖾 😅𝗑

January 10 2021

Suddenly, you felt him stir slightly, readjusting his arms that were snaked around your body, which made your head shoot up to gaze at him, seeing his eyes fluttering open and a lazy smile creep upon his lips as he leaned into a kiss. His arms were quick to pull your waist against his so your head was flat on his chest, listening to the peaceful sound of his heartbeat, instantly making you feel at home. You little moment was cut short when his phone went off and he rushed out the room with a groan, leaving you annoyed and your heart pounding, having a feeling you knew exactly what the phone call was about, hoping he come back and give you the answer you wanted to hear...

“It’s gone through...the transfer” he sorrily spoke, making your breath hitch in your throat, although knowing it was a high possibility of the move actually happening, a part of you was certain he’d be staying here in central London for at least another year. “Guess you’d better get packing then” you softly laughed, feeling disheartened to say the least, the words of “it’s happening” not being the ones you wanted to fall from his lips, “look can we talk about this properly-“ he began, reaching for your hand as you swiftly dodged his grip and made your way to the bathroom, ready for a complete meltdown about everything, “No I have to get ready for work...while I still have my own business” you trailed off, letting the door close behind you with a slam...

————————————————

January 2 2019

"The real question is, how did I get so lucky?" you giggled before he gently pushed the mug of coffee into your hands while leaning in to plant a small kiss on your forehead. Instantly, that warm feeling flew through your body just from the smallest, loving touch he gave you, it never getting old. “Good morning, beautiful." he mumbled against your lips, before wrapping his arms around your neck and resting his head on top of yours, “and a very good morning to you handsome” you smiled, feeling the most relaxed you’ve felt in a while, lifting your gaze to him, love dancing in your eyes as you leaned in to clasp your mouths together.

"Kissing you never gets old," you mutter softly as you both pull away, Christian flashing you a cheeky grin before spotting his luggage packed and ready for the off beside the front door of your new complex, a sigh falling from his lips, “can’t believe I arrived here a week ago and I’m already flying back to Germany” he frowned, pulling a pout. “It’s only six months and it’ll be over before you know it, I’m not going to lie I will miss living over there, especially the weather” you giggled, messing up his perfectly gelled hair to which you got no thanks for, “hands off, this took ages to do” he said, pretending to be serious and grabbing your hand as if to say ‘go on do it again I dare you’. “I’m gonna miss you, the apartment’s gonna seem empty without you here...and it means I have to build all the flat pack furniture from IKEA myself” you huffed, pointing at the hundreds of cardboard boxes filling the spacious room as he laughed, culling your face and running a finger along your cheek, “you’ll be fine, we’ll FaceTime every night and whenever we have a minute spare because you’re gonna be busy as hell now...my super business woman” he winked as you shook your head, still not quite believing you actually own a company, like a whole ass company belonged to you and it was mad to just even picture it.

“Ah shut up, you’re making me blushing Mr Pullisic, now go before you miss that flight of yours” you grinned, going in for one last peck while shoving him out the door with a struggle, feeling like his clingy self wasn’t ever gonna leave, “I love you, see you in half a year” he happily said, grabbing his many cases and walking out, letting the door gently fall closed...

——————————————————

July 1 2019

The classic iPhone ping went off as an incoming text message lit up your phone screen, instantly opening the pic attachment of him saying ‘en route’ which meant he was on his way and by god you couldn’t wait to just see him in person after all this time. He barely got through the front door before you took a leap, linking your legs around his torso as his hands secured under your thighs to carry your weight. Squeezing him tight, you rested your head in the crook of his neck, enjoying his presence as a laugh escaped his lips, “missed me just a bit?” he stupidly asked, not even bothering to let you answer before smashing his lips on yours for the first time what felt like in forever.

Gently tapping your legs, he slowly placed you feet on the ground and then cupped your face, pulling you in for another long, loving kiss, “so how’s everything been then, and by the way you’ve done a good job decorating this place” he nodded, eyes gazing at all the modern interior, “funny you asked, I managed to open two more branches this week, one in Gateshead up north and the other in Manchester!” you exclaimed letting out a small squeal, not able to control your excitement any longer as his eyes went wide with joy. “I didn’t think you could make me any prouder but I guess I was wrong eh” he gushed, heading over to sort out his cases, “I’m saying the same about you” you laughed as he pulled out a couple man of the match awards along with a jersey signed by all the teammates. “It felt strange to say goodbye to them after all these years...but it’s time for a fresh start, here in London with Chelsea Fc and with you” he whispered, excited for the new chapter in your lives to finally begin.

——————————————————

The next year could only be described as perfect for the both of you, his career taking off and loving every moment at the club, getting along with everyone in the dressing room and then loving the fans and atmosphere within the stadium, and knowing you were in the stands somewhere cheering on your ‘captain America’ made it all the more special. As for you, your company was doing beyond amazing, going from National to world wide, owning buildings in Dubai, Spain and you’ll never guess where, Germany. Your main branch was of course London, where the company was founded and to which was the office you managed and were based at, meaning you rarely visited the abroad ones but you weren’t complaining, with you being a London gal to be in your home city with your own bloody business was unimaginable, not to mention you were only a 20 mins drive from your family.

Oh yeah and he popped the question about four months into the move on your eight year anniversary which you of course said yes to, already having planned out your dream wedding, the pair of you agreeing to have it here rather than America with work and travel and all that malarkey.

For the first time in ages, it all seemed to be coming together for yous...

———————————————————

January 10 2021

8 hours later and the two of you hadn’t spoken all day, with him going off to what you assumed was his last training session and proceeding to ignore you and your many questions, you decided to go to work too, trying to get this whole moving countries once again after only one fucking year back home thing off your mind.

“Right that’s it, you’re going to talk to me Christian because you must think I’m a mind reader or something and I can just tell what’s going in in that brain of yours” you said, stumbling through the door and throwing your keys in the side before throwing yourself on the sofa beside your sad looking boyfriend. “I’m sorry” was all he could say, looking down at the ground leaving you with a confused frown on your face, “enough with the apologies, I just want to know what this means, for us” you sighed, placing a hand on his cheek and giving it a small pinch, hoping it’d put a smile on his lips.

“Well I’m definitely leaving Chelsea, guess not everything works out...but it means I’m back off to Germany” he said as you slowly nodded, “you have to do what’s best for your career, ok?” you smiled, running a hand through his hair as he was quick to shake his head, “no I can’t. I don’t wanna leave you, not again. And anyways we’re supposed to be trying for a baby and that’s going to be a challenge if we’re in different countries don’t you think?” he’s spoke with a slight laughter. “I’m not arguing with you Pullisic, go and sign that contract and get yourself away to Germany to revive your job. I’m not saying I’m going to drop everything and move again because I have my work and life, but I can easily fly out and visit, you’re forgetting I have an office over there. As for kids, we’ll get to that part when it comes around...so just take one step at a time and get on the phone to your agent to tell him you’re taking the transfer” you blurted out with a soft smile, knowing exactly what you were saying and that this was just another step in your life, at the end of the day, life isn’t life without it’s challenges along the way...❤️

———————————————

If you got this far reading it, I hope you enjoyed it! x

@kingkepa @champagne-coys @footballcloud @footballmagical @alexajanecollins @masonmounts @hoely-pavard @hazardybala @jamesmaddiscnx

[martinnecas]

Quick Guide | Carolina Hurricanes: Meet The Team - Opening Night 2019-20

New season means a new quick guide to the roster 

2018-19 season

This took me a couple of days to put together so please appreciate it

Want to know how to pronounce a players name? 

Click this link!

*All gifs made by me* 

Forwards: 

☞ Sebastian Aho™️ #20

Yes there is another “Sebastian Aho” from Sweden but he’s usually in the AHL (Bridgeport/Islanders)

Born: July 26, 1997 (22 years old/Leo) from Rauma, Finland

6′0, Centre, 35th overall CAR 2015

Nicknames: Fishy, Seabass, Sepe, Sebu

He’s the face of this franchise and the only player on this team that the Canadian media knows about

Is being held against his will in Raleigh because he wants to play for Montreal if you don’t know the actual story MTL sent him an offer sheet that he signed because he wanted the money and knew Carolina could pay it, but you know how Habs twitter can be.

Possibly the messiest Hurricane 

Who’s my daddy?! 

Spirit animal is a lion, hear him roar

Avid coffee drinker

Baby face

Painted a picture of his cat one time

☞ Ryan Dzingel #18 

Born: March 9, 1992 (27 years old/Pisces) from Wheaton, Illinois

6′0, Centre, 204th overall OTT 2011

Nicknames: Zinger, Dizzy, Dzingel Bells, D-pingel

Played with the Ohio State Buckeyes for 3 seasons, recorded the first hat trick in Big Ten history against Xichigan

Traded to CBJ Feb ‘19, signed with CAR as a free agent summer ‘19 

Might need glasses, he squints like that ^ a lot 

Golfs... A L O T 

Wants to produce for the team so he can stay here in Raleigh and make it his home ♥︎

Jeep guy 

Looks uncomfortably similar to Tripp Tracy 

UNC fan 

☞ Warren Foegele #13

Born: April 1, 1996 (23 years old/Aries) from Markham, Ontario 

6′2, Left Wing, 67th overall CAR 2014

Nicknames: Foegs, Foegdaddy 

Best friends with Andrei Svechnikov and Dougie Hamilton

Duke fan 

Accidentally broke Osh*e’s collarbone but TJ and C*p fans will claim he tried to murder him

Spirit animal is a tiger, also hear him roar

Very easily scared 

Duke fan

☞ Erik Haula #56

Born: March 23, 1991(28 years old/Aries) from Pori, Finland

6′0, Left Wing, 181st overall 2009 MIN

Nicknames: Hauls, Haulsy  

Moved to Minnesota in 2008 to play hockey in boarding school

Played for the University Of Minnesota Gophers for 3 seasons

Signed with MIN in 2013, was picked up by the VGK in 2017 as a free agent in the Expansion Draft, then traded to CAR summer of 2019 (for Nic Roy & draft pick)

Suffered a pretty bad knee injury in the 2018-19 season 

CAKE 

Got married this past summer ♥︎

Currently living in Calvin de Haan’s old house 

☞ Jordan Martinook (A) #48

Born: July 25, 1992 (27 years old/Leo) from Brandon, Manitoba

6′0, Left Wing, 58th overall 2012 PHX

Nicknames: Marty, Marty Man, Marty Party 

Signed with PHX/ARI in 2012, traded to CAR in 2018 (for Krüger)

Raw chaotic dad energy 

Doesn’t like corndogs and has a very high pitched scream

His wife gave birth to their first son last season before he got his downstairs fixed in the offseason

LETS GO SVECH

Spirit animal is a dolphin because he has a great impression 

There is so much more I want to put on here but you should really just follow his Twitter 

☞ Brock McGinn #23

Born: February 2, 1994 (25 years old/Aquarius) from Fergus, Ontario

6′0, Left Wing, 47th overall 2012 CAR

Nicknames: Ginner, Brock McWinn, McPing, the new Mr. Game Seven (that one is kind of a joke though), Big Cock Brock 

Single handedly defeated evil not only once but twice on April 24th, 2019, earning him the nicknames “Brock McWinn” and the new “Mr. Game Seven”

Has two brothers who also play professionally; Jamie (NHL) and Tye (AHL) McGinn

Co Owner of the Roanoke Rail Road Dawgs with his brothers and father

His daddy is Bob

Has a high probability of burning his whole house down 

Used to be a fighter, but he didn’t fight anyone last season 

Thor

Was 3rd in the league with most MsS Post (10) in the 2017-18 season earning him the nickname Brock McPing 

☞ Martin Nečas #88

Born: January 15, 1999 (20 years old/Capricorn) from Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Rebublic

6′2, 12th overall 2017 CAR, “He plays, like, Centre”

Nicknames: Neči, Marty, Nacho, Marto 

Your 2019-20 ****** ****** winner 

He’s here to fix out PP units, quote me on that

Little hockey stick chain ^ 

Is known for falling while scoring 

Is it avocado or avocaydo?

Hidden talent: Belly dancing 

Almost killed the entire team with a golf club last season  

Don’t mess with him

Just won the Calder Cup with the Checkers :) 

☞ Nino Niederreiter #21

Born: September 8, 1992 (27 years old/Virgo) from Chur, Switzerland

6′0, Right Wing, 5th overall 2010 NYI

Nicknames: El Nino

Was the highest drafted Swizz born player until Hischer in 2017 

Signed to the Islanders in 2010, traded to Minnesota in 2013, then traded to Carolina in January 2019 (for Rask)

Was about to take a nap when he was traded

Just when canes fans almost lost hope, Nino showed up and saved our season

When he came to Carolina, someone gave him sweet tea and he really liked it

Was voted best dressed by a couple teammates

Loves the surge

Supports women’s hockey

☞ Jordan Staal (C) #11

Born: September 10, 1988 (31 years ago/Virgo) from Thunder Bay, Ontario

6′4, Centre, 2nd overall 2006 PIT

Nicknames: Stallsy, Jordad, Gronk

Arrested at his brother’s bachelor party

Won the Stanley Cup with the Penguins in 2009 

Jordan is the youngest out of the other brothers (Eric, Marc) in the league (NHL) 3rd brother is the youngest and is now a coach 

Signed with PIT in 2006, traded to CAR in 2012 (for 8th overall pick, Brandon Sutter and Brian Dumoulin)

Named Captain in the 2017-18 season, became Alternative Captain in 2018-19, is now Captain again in 2019-20 

Great at dad jokes 

☞ Andrei Svechnikov #37

Born: March 26, 2000 (19 years old/Aries) from Barnaul, Russia

6′2, Right Wing, 2nd overall 2018 CAR

Nicknames: Svech, Mother Russia 

Svech is ready

“Just win every game” 

Wears #37 because that’s what his brother, Evgeny Svechnikov (DET), wears

Russia = Cold, Raleigh = Hot

Apparently his biggest talent outside of hockey is… magic? 

Best friends with Warren Foegele and Dougie Hamilton

Likes to shovel the ice during practice 

Me?

Terrible at golf..

.. I mean like really bad  

☞ Teuvo Teräväinen #86

Born: September 11, 1994 (25 years old/Virgo) from Helsinki, Finland

5′11, Left Wing, 18th overall 2012 CHI 

Nicknames: Turbo, Teukka

Shortest Hurricane 

Began with CHI in 2014, traded to CAR in 2016 (along with Bickell for 2nd round pick)

Won the cup with CHI in 2015 (Along with van Riemsdyk)

Has the worst sense of smell ever

I mean come on.. pumpkin? toothpaste? 

I could keep going with this I don't know what’s wrong with his nose

Most likely the messiest Hurricane 

Would dump Sebastian on the side of the road after 100km 

Gets scared REALLY easily

His sisters plays hockey over in Finland (and is pretty good at it too) 

☞ Lucas Wallmark #71

Born: September 5, 1995 (24 years old/Virgo) from Umea, Sweden

6′0, Centre, 97th overall 2014 CAR

Nicknames: Wally

My daddy!?

His spirit animal is… a horse? 

^ He enjoys watching horse racing

*Straight face* “Snacks!? Candy!?” 

Deal with it

Showed up to a U12 and U18 team practice to work on skills with kids 

Owns a pug named Lovis

Defense 

☞ Joel Edmundson #6

Born: June 28, 1993 (26 years old/Cancer) Brandon, Manitoba

6′4, 46th overall 2011 STL

Nicknames: Crop Top King, Eddy

Won the cup in 2019 with STL and partied in a crop top 

True Canadian, ate poutine out of the cup

Traded in September 2019 to CAR (along with Bokk for Faulk and draft pick)

Going to strengthen our PK I promise 

Finally, an enforcer 

Forgot to take his skate guards off during his CAR preseason debut in front of 18,000 people 

Is a barbie girl, living in a barbie world 

☞ Haydn Fleury #4

Born: July 8, 1996 (23 years old/Cancer) from Carlyle, Saskatchewan 

6′3, 7th overall 2014 CAR

Nicknames: Fleurs 

Beat his little brother Cale (MTL) during his NHL debut 

Best friends with Trevor van Riemsdyk

Has the cutest dog named Kobe

Won the Calder Cup along with Nečas :)

If you want to giggle watch this 

Has the worst witch cackle you will ever hear 

Apparently the best golfer on the team

Big Duke fan

☞ Jake Gardiner #51

Born: July 4, 1990 (29 years old/Cancer) from Minnetonka, Minnesota 

6′2, 17th overall 2008 ANA

Nicknames: Gards 

Played for the University of Wisconsin for 3 seasons 

Traded to TOR in 2011, signed as a free agent to CAR in summer 2019

Has the cutest baby 

Denied several offers from other teams mtl to play with us instead 

Hands down had the best Halloween costume two years ago

☞ Dougie Hamilton #19

Born: June 17, 1993 (26 years old/Gemini) from Toronto, Ontario

6′6, 9th overall 2011 BOS

Nicknames: D-Ham, Doug the Thug, well his real name is Douglas so I guess Dougie is technically a nickname

Tallest Hurricane 

Both of his parents are Olympians, brother also plays professional hockey 

Started with BOS in 2012, traded to CGY in 2015, then traded to CAR in 2018 (Last remaining player from the huge Hamilton, Ferland & Fox for Lindholm and Hanifin trade)

Best friends with Andrei Svechnikov and Warren Foegele 

Porche guy 

Grew out a mullet because his hair salon couldn’t take him as a walk in

Jack Edwards complained that he was wearing a number retired from the Whalers so he taped a 6 over the 1 in 19 to make 69

Goes to children's hospitals dressed as woman characters 

Lowkey shootout king

Floss

Another Duke fan

Wears the same blazer to every road game

☞ Brett Pesce #22

Born: November 15, 1994 (24 years old/Scorpio) from Tarrytown, New York

6′3, 66th overall 2013 CAR

Nicknames: Pesh 

“I play defense bro”

Played for the University of New Hampshire for 3 seasons (2 of those seasons with van Riemsdyk)

Pretty ^

Wears 22 for his dad 

He’ll break your ankles

Fortnite squad

Brought his wonderful brother on the mentors trip

Allergic to cats

☞ Jaccob Slavin (A) #74

Born: May 1, 1994 (25 years old/Taurus) from Denver, Colorado

6′3, 120th overall 2012 CAR

Nicknames: Slav-o

The second ‘c’ stands for captain

Faith and family

Played for Colorado College for two seasons 

Adopted a beautiful baby girl with his beautiful wife

Has an instagram for his two dogs

His daddy is “Robert” 

Not afraid of snakes at all 

☞ Trevor van Riemsdyk #57

Born: July 24, 1991 (28 years old/Leo) from Middletown, New Jersey

6′2, Undrafted 

Nicknames: TVR, Riems

Agreed to terms with CHI in 2014 

Won the cup with CHI in 2015 (along with Teräväinen)

Was picked up by the VGK in the 2017 expansion draft 

The next day traded to CAR (for 2nd round pick)

James van Riemsdyk (PHI) is his older brother 

Played with the University of New Hampshire for 3 seasons (2 of those seasons with Pesce) 

He’s too tired to be scared 

March Madness

Best friends with Haydn Fleury 

Pride representative for the team 

Goalies 

☞ Petr Mrázek #34

Born: February 14, 1992 (27 years old/Aquarius) from Ostrava, Czech Republic

6′1, 141st overall 2010 DET

Nicknames: Mrazzle Dazzle, St. Petr

Moved to Ottawa at age 17 

Signed with DET in 2014

Was HUGE for them during the 2015 playoff run

Traded to PHI in Feb ‘18, signed as a free agent with CAR in July ‘18

Stylish 

He had custom hats made for every player on the team

Always has Peter Griffin in his helmet design 

Signature move: Poke Check  

☞ James Reimer #47

Born: March 15, 1988 (31 years old/Pisces) from Morweena, Manitoba

6′2, 99th overall 2006 TOR

Nicknames: Optimus Reim, The Statue, Reims

Debuted with TOR in 2010, traded to SJS Feb ‘16

Signed with FLA as a free agent summer ‘16, traded to CAR summer ‘19 (for Darling and a 2020 6th round pick)

Has two kids 

Really good swimmer

You may recognize this famous goalie meme, that’s right, that's him

Optimus Reim helmet art

He looks so much like Weston from Love Island USA 

Honorable Mention

☞ Julien Gauthier #44

I’m including him because everyone expected him to make the team as he did phenomenal in the preseason (playing all 6 games) but due to cap space (and our horrid pp units), he was sent back down.

Born: October 15, 1997 (turning 22/Libra) from Pointe-aux-Trembles, Quebec

6′4, Right Wing, 21st overall 2016 CAR

Nicknames: Goat, Gauths, Jules

Big boy

Bilingual (French/English)

Cute accent

His uncle played 554 games in the NHL (Denis Gauthier) 

Both his father and grandfather were professional bodybuilders

That explains his muscles

The best thighs in the league (not up for debate) 

Also won the Calder Cup this past season with Haydn Fleury and Martin Nečas

Head Coach

☞ Rod Brind’Amour #17

Roderick Jean Brind’Amour

Born: August 9, 1970 (age 49 years/Leo) from Ottawa, Canada

6′1, Centre, 9th overall 1988 STL

Nicknames: Rod the Bod, RBA 

Played with Michigan State for one season

Started with STL in the playoffs of ‘88, traded to PHI in ‘91, traded to CAR in 2000

Captain of the 2006 CAR Stanley Cup winning team

Played 20 seasons, 1,484(GP) 452(G) 732(A) 1,184(P)

Became head coach for the 2018-19 season

First year as HC broke the team’s 9 year playoff drought and brought them all the way to the ECF

Is known for his extreme workouts

Still in better shape than 98% of the league

Could very well still lace up and play better than 80% of the league 

Lives rent free in W*lson’s and Reirden’s heads

Gives the best post-game speeches

President & General Manager

☞ Don Waddell

I really just wanted an excuse to put this gif in here 

Coached the 1998 DET Stanley Cup winning team 

Named Pres. & GM of CAR in May ‘18

Owner

☞ Tom Dundon 

Lives rent free is Habs fans minds

Estimated net worth is $1.1 billion?

Majority owner of TopGolf (55%)

Chairman of the Alliance of American Football

Purchased 52% of CAR in January 2018 for $420million

Likes to hang around team/fan events 

Stays in the same hotel as me lol

[mitchbeck]

CANTLON: WOLF PACK CAN WIN TITLE THURSDAY

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - The Hartford Wolf Pack scored two goals in the third period, then held off a late rally by the Sound Tigers to win their home finale in this shortened season 4-3 Tuesday afternoon. The win sets up a winner take all meeting for the Atlantic Division title with Providence Thursday in Marlborough, MA, in the regular season finale against Providence. A regulation win will give the Wolf Pack the division title outright. While three points currently separate, the two teams of those three points were against the Utica Comets- the only non-conference game the Bruins played all season. “We’ve gone 9-2, and I think since we had our big meeting in March, guys committed to learning our systems. We slowed things down a bit, and the biggest change was the growth of our younger players, and it's nice to see the guys on the bench so pumped, and it's gonna be play one more big game on Thursday,” remarked head coach Kris Knoblauch. The Wolf Pack ended their brief home schedule fans with a home mark at .500 of 6-6-0-0 sans fans, and their overall record is 14-8-1-0 for 29 points heading into their season finale in Marlborough, MA on Thursday. Bridgeport concludes their season in third place in the Atlantic Division 7-14-2-0 for 16 points. What turned out to be the game-winning goal came from a simple pass play, and Tim Gettinger did the rest. Jonny Brodzinski, just inside the Wolf Pack blue line, sent a short pass to Gettinger, who saw he had daylight to go past Sound Tigers defenseman Carter Hutton and Mitch Vande Sompel. He sped by Hutton like a locomotive and flipped a dandy backhander over Ken Appleby for what seemed to be a safe two-goal cushion. “We had talked between the first and second period about using our speed, challenge their D, and going wide. When we utilize our speed, we're most effective. He has been one of our most reliable top three or four forwards on a nightly basis. Whether it’s five-on-five, powerplay or shorthanded,” said Knoblauch. Gettinger was all smiles after the game. “Jonny made a great play to me. I looked up and saw I had some space; I used my speed was able to get across and score.” Were you thinking backhander the whole time? “I had the angle and saw I could cut across the net on the D and the goalie and was able to go backhand.” The Wolf Pack had gained the lead first at 3-2 because of some simple but effective forechecking first; Ty Ronning on the right-wing boards lost the puck to the Sound Tigers. Parker Wotherspoon was forced back by Austin Rueschoff. Then behind the net, the Sound Tigers Carter Hutton thought he had an out up the right-wing, but Patrick Khordorenko was there to block that escape hatch, and Rueschhoff was bearing down on him from behind. Hutton lost control of the puck, and it went off the side of the net, skittered in front, and veteran Paul Thompson right there had an easy tap in and jammed home his fifth goal to make it 3-2 at 4:52 for the AHL’s most lethal powerplay scored with three seconds left in the advantage. It wasn’t a highlight tally, but very effective. “Everybody loves to see goals scored, and sometimes it's baffling players see their teammates scoring around the net and sometimes there reluctant around the net. Unless you have a shot like Ovechkin (not many do), you're not going to score many goals from the perimeter! Paul knows that, and you look at his stats. That’s where his goals have been,” remarked Knoblauch. The Sound Tigers didn’t roll over, pulling their goalie with over three minutes to play, scoring for the second time on the afternoon with two minutes left in the period. Once again, Bode Wild’s left point blast was stopped by Adam Huska despite a Tanner Fritz screen, but the loose puck was in front as Arnaud Durandeau pounced on it and ripped his fourth goal over the fallen Huska and Sound Tigers inched closer to the Wolf Pack, but that would be as far as they could get at 4-3. The best Wolf Pack chance of the second period came with just three seconds to go as after Huska made a glove save on a Mitch Vande Sompel shot. Huska dropped the puck to Vincent LoVerde and pointed to center ice. Coming out of the penalty box was defenseman Patrick Sieloff was at the Sound Tigers blue line. LoVerde caught him perfectly in the direction by Huska, but Sieloff’s backhand shot on a clean breakaway was stopped by the Sound Tigers Ken Appleby’s glove hand. The second period was a perfect road game for the Sound Tigers; combined with a myriad of whistles, offsides, and a lot of board play, there were few clear chances for the Wolf Pack. In the first period, the AHL’s best powerplay help the Wolf Pack take the first lead of the game. Anthony Greco, one hand swipe, kept the puck in the zone to Zach Giuttari, and then he passed it to Jonny Brodzinski, who got his shot on net and was stopped and then a tight in front a bang-bang play Sound Tigers goalie Ken Appleby stoned Patrick Newell on the doorstep. The rebound came back into the high slot Brodzinski corralled the puck and then went onto the left-wing circle dished it back to Greco (team-high six shots), who launched a hard wrister 30 feet out that beat Ken Appleby high stick side at 3:46 for just his third goal of the season. The Sound Tigers were able to get some puck luck as the left point shot by Samuel Bolduc missed the net short side but caromed right off the backboards to Simon Holmstrom, who put in his fifth of the season at 7:38 on the backhand. The Wolf Pack regained the lead as a strong forechecking sequence led to their second goal. Michael O’Leary physical play forced a turnover by Erik Brown, and Austin Rueschhoff, who powered through a hit by Mitch Vande Sompel on his right-wing entry, snagged the loose biscuit. He then circled behind the net and sent a pass back to Mason Geersten, who split the D in two and jammed home his third of the year right at the goalmouth at 14:38. Geersten now has a two-game goal-scoring streak. The pesky Sound Tigers tied the game at two on a powerplay of their own. Cole Coskey deep right got the puck back to Otto Koivula at the right point, and he sent a pass off to Bode Wilf on his offside. The shot from 50 feet out had a perfect screen by Erik Brown in front eluded Adam Huska. It was the second of the season for Wild at 18:00 and knotted the game at two. LINES: Richards-Gettinger-Ronning Newell-Brodzinski-Greco Thompson-Khordorenko-Cullye Rueschhoff-O’ Leary-Geersten Raddysh-Taylor LoVerde-Skinner Giutarri-Sieloff Huska Wall THREE STARS: - Jonny Brodzinski Hartford - Austin Ruesschoff Hartford - Mason Geersten Hartford HONORABLE MENTIONS: - Tim Gettinger Hartford - Adam Huska Hartford - Bode Wild Bridgeport SCRATCHES: -Alex Whalen, James Sanchez, Ryan Dmowski, and Francois Brassard. Gabriel Fontaine (upper-body injury done for the season). -Defenseman Zach Berzolla Colorado College (NCHC) was released from his PTO contract without playing a game for the Wolf Pack. -Bridgeport scratched its team, Seth Helgeson, with six other players. -The Wolf Pack regular season record against Bridgeport finishes up at 8-3-1. Hartford is on a three-game winning streak and are 9-2-0 over their last 11 games. Our mythical seven playoff series using these last seven games as our guide, the Wolf Pack won the series four games to two. -The only other AHL game Tuesday, Laval lost 4-3 in overtime to Toronto at the Bell Centre, and the Marlies goalie Joseph Woll put on a goalie clinic with 57 saves on 60 shots. -A tentative opening date for the 2021-22 AHL season is October 15th. -The AHL will have a Zoom league BOG meeting on Thursday to formally approve the most open secret in hockey the relocation of Vancouver’s AHL team to Abbotsford, BC, who were in the league from 2009-2014 and play at the Abbotsford Civic Centre. We had learned the building had installed NHL style boards and plexiglass ostensibly to host an NHL exhibition game this fall, making the building AHL compliant per non-COVID safety protocols. The other issue is New Jersey’s expected relocation of their Binghamton franchise to Utica and sees the revival of the Utica Devils name for the franchise. -Goalie Trevin Kozlowski, who played at Gunnery Prep (Washington, CT), finishes with Army (AHA) and signs with Iowa (AHL). That makes 68 Division I collegians to sign with a North American with pro teams and 73 total signees. Stanislav Demin became the 55th school transfer from the University of Denver (NCHC) to defending national champion UMASS Minutemen (HE). There have been 44 college grad transfers. -Rangers draft pick (3rd round 92nd overall in October) Oliver Tarnstrom, son of ex-Sound Tiger Dick Tarnstrom, has signed a deal with Rogle BK (Sweden-SHL) for next season and is WJC eligible. This season he played AIK J-20 (Sweden) before the league was shut down because of COVID, skated a few games with AIK (Sweden-Allsvenskan), and has been on loan to Tyresö/Hanviken  (Sweden HockeyEttan Division-1). He is also eligible to skate for the AIK J-20 team next season. -Rogle BK is playing the Vaxjo Lakers for the LeMat Swedish Hockey League championship. Vaxjo is up to two games to none. Jack Drury, son of ex-Whaler Ted Drury and nephew of Hartford GM Chris, plays on the first line. In Game 1, he had a goal and assist and won 80% of his faceoffs. In Game 2, he had the primary assist on the game’s first goal. Among his teammate is ex-CT Whale and Ranger rearguard Tim Erixon. -Ex-Pack and Sound Tiger Chris Bourque is supposed to negotiating with ERC Ingolstadt (Germany-DEL) for next season. -Justin Danforth (Sacred Heart University/Sound Tigers) is coming off a third straight solid season in Europe. He finished sixth in overall KHL, scoring with Vityaz Podolsk with 22 goals and 57 points. He spent his first two years in Finland with Lukko Rauma. He signed a one-year one-way deal at $750K deal with Columbus for 2021-22. -Former Quinnipiac University goalie Michael Garteig has left ERC Ingolstadt to play in Finland next year. Goalie Nick Malik, son of former Whalers, Rangers, and Beast of New Haven defenseman Marek Malik, leaves HC Frydek-Mistek (Czech Republic Division-2), where his father is the assistant coach and has signed with KooKoo (Finland-FEL). -Ex-Pack and Ranger, Jan Hlavac 44, will be playing yet another year going from BK Nova Paka to HC Letnany (Czech Republic Division-3). -Fabian-Dahlstrom Zuccarello (CT Oilers-EHL), the younger brother of former CT Whale and Rangers, Mats Zuccarello, now with Minnesota, is going down several levels from Lorenskog (Norway-NEL) to Hasle/Loren (Norway Division-2). HARTFORD WOLF PACK HOME Read the full article

[zeroviraluniverse-blog]

The U.S. women's hockey team hasn't won gold since 1998. Will the spell be broken in South Korea?

Visit Now - http://zeroviral.com/the-u-s-womens-hockey-team-hasnt-won-gold-since-1998-will-the-spell-be-broken-in-south-korea/

The U.S. women's hockey team hasn't won gold since 1998. Will the spell be broken in South Korea?

Passion forming with every tighten of the lace

Years of the same routine perfected today

Rituals that are practiced and shared behind locker room doors.

— Kacey Bellamy

It could have been a disaster.

Hurricane Irma was on a path toward the Tampa, Florida, area on Sept. 9, and authorities were bracing for a direct hit. As it happened, the best women’s hockey players in the United States had just begun training in Wesley Chapel, a few miles north of Tampa International Airport.

Even though the NHL’s Tampa Bay Lightning had decided to evacuate its players, Team USA decided to shelter in place at the Saddlebrook Resort, where they were staying. One agent who was worried about his clients told USA Today, “Why isn’t the women’s team evacuated? Is it because they are just girls … to me this is stupid, they are our Olympic team.”

But Reagan Carey, the general manager for the team, had thought it through, even going so far as to find out the number and the strength of the steel trusses in the shelter area at the Saddlebrook Resort. So on Sunday morning, Sept. 10, the team members abandoned their apartments for the shelter, joining other evacuees to wait out the storm, which lost steam from its original designation as a Category 4. Still, 80 mph winds howled outside the building as Irma passed over. The women played cards, visited with Hilary Knight’s bulldog puppy, Winston, in a separate pet area, and made hockey fans out of their fellow refugees. Captain Meghan Duggan later called it “a big sleepover,” and by the next morning, they were able to return to their quarters and their lives.

“We were kind of scared,” said Kacey Bellamy, the veteran defenseman and one of six players who are in Pyeongchang for their third straight Olympics. “But the negative turned into a positive. It was a great bonding experience for us, the kind of thing that brings a team closer together. Plus, I learned how to play [the card game] euchre.”

By Tuesday, they were back to practicing and helping out in the community. Irma faded into a metaphor for a team that has had to weather a lot of storms over the years.

There was the crushing loss to Canada in the gold-medal game in Vancouver eight years ago. And the devastating 3-2 overtime loss in Sochi in 2014 that gave Canada its fourth straight gold medal. And the battle with USA Hockey last spring, when the women threatened to boycott the 2017 IIHF world championships if they weren’t given living expenses, travel accommodations and medal bonuses befitting representatives of the United States of America.

Not only did they win that battle, but they also went to Plymouth, Michigan, for the world championships and beat Canada 3-2 in overtime in the final — earning the team’s fourth consecutive title. “We’ve been through a lot together,” said Bellamy, now an assistant captain on the team. “I think that’s made us stronger.”

Resilience is part and parcel of hockey, but for female players — who often start out playing with the boys, who give up the comfort of home, who fight off waves of challengers and adjust to a succession of coaches all to pursue their Olympic dreams — well, you just bounce off the boards.

You might even write a poem about the sport you love.

World champ and Olympian Kacey Bellamy (22) watched the gold medal slip away from her team to archrival Canada in two consecutive Winter Olympics. She’s looking for gold in Pyeongchang. AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File

Actions that are defined as the norm within the team

Replaying the past of one game, one play, one second

That has triggered one year of training against that one team.

It was a disaster.

What happened in Sochi’s Bolshoy Ice Dome on March 6, 2014, is excruciating to watch, even four years later. Team USA had a 2-0 lead on Team Canada late in the third period of the gold-medal game. But with 3:26 left in the game, Canada’s Brianne Jenner fired a shot that would’ve gone wide had it not ricocheted off Bellamy’s right leg and past goalie Jessie Vetter. Coach Katey Stone clapped her hands and told the team not to panic, that they were OK.

As time wound down, Canada pulled goalie Shannon Szabados, and Team USA’s Kelli Stack got off a clearing shot that headed for the empty net … and bounced off the left side of the left post. “When those things start to happen in the game of hockey,” Stone later said, “you start to wonder if it is your night.”

It wasn’t. Just 55 seconds away from finally beating Canada for the gold, Marie-Philip Poulin tied the score at 2-2 to send the game into overtime. Team USA had its chances in OT — the left-handed Bellamy almost ripped one past Szabados — but then the refs made some questionable calls, leaving the U.S. short-handed at just the wrong time. At 8:10 of overtime, Poulin fired the game winner past Vetter.

Imagine what it was like watching the Canadians celebrate and then waiting around to accept your silver medals.

“All that work, all that hope,” said Bellamy. “Gone just like that. It took me five months to get over it. March, April, May, June, July. I’m big on watching videos of games, but I didn’t look at that one until August. I needed to get my motivation back.”

Part of that motivation has to do with the team that beat the Americans, the team that always seems to beat them. USA vs. Canada in women’s hockey is one of the greatest rivalries in all of sports. It started way back in 1916 and captivated the world when women’s hockey debuted as an Olympic sport at Nagano in 1998. The U.S. won that gold-medal game, but the Canadians have won every Olympics since.

The rivalry is so intense that 10 fighting majors were handed out in one 2013 game, resulting in six U.S. players and five Canadians crammed into the penalty boxes. But they are also friends who share a love of the sport and often play on the same collegiate and pro teams. Caroline Ouellette and Julie Chu, one-time captains of Teams Canada and USA, respectively, first met at the Salt Lake City Games in 2002 and are now coaching at Concordia University in Montreal together while raising Liv Chu-Ouellette, born to Caroline last November.

After 20 years of rivalry, if it boils down to these two for the gold medal in Pyeongchang, who will have the edge?

Do Jordan Greenway and the NHL-less U.S. men have enough firepower to fend off Canada, Finland and OAR? And will the American women gain revenge on their archrival and strike gold for the first time since 1988? Here’s who will take home the hardware.

After helping Team USA to two world championships and a silver medal in Sochi, and then overcoming a crippling concussion, Amanda Kessel has her sights set on gold at the Pyeongchang Olympics. But off the ice, her future is a little more complicated.

2 Related

Both shielded by different armor

Separated by a simple borderline

Sharing the same frenzy for the sport and rivalry

Colors, countries, teammates

All united on the same ice

Bellamy, a women’s studies major at the University of New Hampshire, likes to write poetry in her spare time. “They’re mostly about nature and people,” she said. “But I did write this one about hockey.” In fact, USA Hockey used the poem for a video to promote the “Bring On The World” tour before the last Olympics.

That’s Bellamy’s voice narrating her words in the video, an ode to the challenges of the sport in general, and the rivalry in particular. There is a depth of feeling to the poem that explains why and how Bellamy and the other five three-timers have stayed at the top of the American team for so long, through three different coaches (Mark Johnson, Stone, Robb Stauber) and all the ups and downs.

“Eight years ago, I was just a rookie with my eyes wide open, in awe of where I was, who I was playing with,” said Bellamy. “Now I’m 31 and still in awe of the responsibility. The Olympics is about more than the rivalry with Canada. It’s about representing the country. It’s about showing people how beautiful women’s hockey can be. It’s about the little girls with sticks, the little girls we used to be.”

Two years ago, Bellamy wrote a powerful “Letter to My Younger Self” for The Players Tribune. Addressed to 15-year-old Kacey, she recalled leaving behind her family and friends in Westfield, Massachusetts, to attend the Berkshire School and how the first two weeks “are going to be the worst two weeks of your life.” She told her about the friends and coaches who changed her life, about getting her heart broken when she was cut from USA Hockey’s under-22 team, about using the rejection as motivation to make the senior national team.

“You’re going to play for the U.S. team for a long time,” she wrote. “But never take anything for granted. Make the most of the opportunities you have.”

Each playing for the crest on the front of the jersey

And sticking up for every name on the back

Relax. Just like in Tampa, it might not be the disaster they’re predicting.

Some people who care deeply about Team USA worry that Pyeongchang will be as much a disappointment as Sochi or Vancouver or Turin or Salt Lake City were. They wonder why Stauber, a former NHL goalie who assisted Stone in Sochi, didn’t name any female assistants to his staff. And while he did coach the team to the world championship last April, and beat Canada 5-1 to win the Four Nations Cup on Nov. 12, Team USA has lost the past four games to Canada in its pre-Olympic warm-up.

A 2-1 overtime loss to Canada at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Dec. 3 was particularly painful because the tying goal was scored by Poulin and the winning goal by Jenner, their Sochi nemeses. And it happened in front of members of the 1998 USA Olympic team, who were honored between periods for the United States’ only gold medal.

Afterward, Stauber said, “For us, it’s not necessarily about the 20 years, but more about, ‘It’s time.’ We’ve got to bring home a gold medal. We’ve got a pretty good vision. We’re sticking with it, and we like our direction.”

That direction included the addition of three players since Irma: defenders Cayla Barnes and Sidney Morin and forward Haley Skarupa. When the final roster was named after the second period of the Winter Classic at Citi Field on Jan. 1, veterans Bellamy, Duggan, Knight, Monique Lamoureux-Morando, Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson and Gigi Marvin were on it, but forward Alex Carpenter, Team USA’s leading scorer in Sochi, and defender Megan Bozek were not — leading some to speculate that they did not buy into Stauber’s system.

Stauber stresses a controlled possession game that sometimes takes the puck back into the neutral zone. As for the lack of a female coach, he does rely on his veterans to help the younger players. Bellamy has been working with the 18-year-old Barnes, who had been getting ready to play for Boston College when she was asked to report to Wesley Chapel. “She’s wise beyond her years,” says Bellamy. “Very poised … she’s just wonderful to have around the locker room.”

While the recent results against Canada have been disappointing, it’s worth keeping in mind that in the American men’s last exhibition game with the Soviet Union before the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” game, Team USA was crushed 10-3.

In Pyeongchang, both archrivals beat Finland and the Russians in the first two games of Group A play — though there was some hand-wringing as the U.S. got off to slow starts in the first period of both games. It was Bellamy who broke the ice at 8:02 of the first period of the victory over the Russians, stepping into the attack off a pass from Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson and firing a seeing-eye shot past Russian goalie Valeria Tarakanova. Team USA then put the game away in the second period, thanks to a more aggressive mindset and two goals by Lamoureux-Davidson within six seconds — an Olympic record.

By winning those first two prelims, Canada and Team USA assured themselves of a place in the semifinals, meaning that their game tomorrow means nothing… and their next one everything.

“We’re starting with a clean slate in South Korea,” says Bellamy. “This time will be different.”

Or, as she once wrote:

Mistakes lead to success

Errors lead to victory

Pride leads to gold

[philiprolz]

CHOOSE YOUR FRANCHISE By Philip Rolz  Nov 7, 2017 

I was lucky enough to go to a couple of Orlando Magic games back in the 90′s and 2000′s and fell in love. But living almost 2,000 miles away from the nearest NBA city made it hard for me to really root for a team, a city, a franchise. But like a drunken, low self esteem college girl with daddy issues I gave myself to the first one that wooed me... a Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway led expansion team in Florida. I’ve stuck with them ever since. 

But it got me thinking, how do you choose a team? Are some teams more likely to be a fan favorite than others? What’s their fan-ability? Before I make my case I gotta tell you what I took into consideration making this list: how cool or uncool the city is, how good-looking their uniforms are, GM decisions over the years, iconic players, fan base, the culture of the organization, overall success or lack there of, team history. OK, here’s my list:

Atlanta Hawks

You can’t NOT love a place people refer to as “The dirty south”, I mean it sounds fun and rappers made it cool to root for Atlanta based teams (specially the Hawks and Falcons).

Dominique Wilkins and Spud Webb were the first real iconic players that put the Hawks on the map with their amazing athletic abilities. The rivalry with Jordan and the Bulls was real (both in real games and in dunk contests at All-Star Weekends) and people noticed them. They were fun to watch. 

Ever since the “Dominique era” the franchise has been kind of a letdown though. Always underachieving and kinda disappearing in the clutch. 2014-2015 was a clear example of a roster that made a lot of noise but crapped their pants when it got real in the playoffs.  

Currently they’re probably one on the top teams looking to tank this season to get a franchise defining rookie in this apparent “loaded” draft, so the Hawks aren’t really a team you root for this year but they have been fun to watch largely in part of high flying young players like John Collins and Taurean Prince.

Fan-ability: B-

  Boston Celtics

The Celtics are one of the most successful franchises in sports. Their fan base is extremely loyal, somewhat violent and friggin’ loud. They might be responsible for starting the whole “superteams” trend some seem to hate, but when it comes down to it, it’s just good management and recruiting. Then there’s the legendary Celtic players from oldies Bill Russell and Larry Bird to not so oldies Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce. These guys are deified by the hardcore Boston fans and man have they come through with epic playoff performances and hard nosed triumphs.  Nowadays they seem to expect a LOT from the young roster GM Danny Ainge put together majestically and guess what? They are they fun to watch. Kyrie Irving has the most insane handles in the league and I haven’t seen a small guard finish as efficiently in the paint since Tony Parker’s best days. The Celtics are also very similar to the Spurs when it comes to drafting well which is a big thing for fans looking for franchises to root for when there’s youth and potential. Will Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown be the NBA’s next studs? Will Markelle Fultz be a complete bust? (therefore making the Celtics even smarter)  The Celtics are NBA Elite and that makes them either really loved or really hated.  Fan-ability: B+

Brooklyn Nets

Brooklyn, New York. Home of everything cool in the world, right? Wrong! The Brooklyn Nets seem to be a forced fed team (notice the cheesy SI cover above) completely divorced with the whole swagger of this New York borough. Nobody wants to be associated with failure, and the Nets have been failures in so many ways during the last years it’s embarrassing. They basically gave away all their draft picks, they over-hyped a Deron Williams that was arguably one of the biggest free agent busts of all time. Their iconic players? Dr J? Jason Kidd? Kerry Kittles (just kidding)? Kinda feels weird picking guys who did play for the Nets, just not the Brooklyn Nets. I feel bad for them though, playing in one of the biggest markets in the country and not being known for enticing big name free agents, not even with Jay-Z helping them out for a little while. I’m pretty certain HOVA wanted out before the stink rubbed off on him.  They haven’t drafted well, they’re not fun to watch, they’ve become synonymous with losing. The only good thing they have going for them is the fact that Brooklyn is a tourist destination and there’s a chance some tourist will buy a Nets ticket before a Knicks ticket.

Fan-ability: D+

Charlotte Hornets

Remember those big flashy Starter Jackets with the Charlotte Hornets logo plastered all over them? Those were the days! The Hornets used to be good and/or fun. An Alonzo Mourning team alongside Larry “Grandmama” Johnson, Muggsy Bogues and Steph Curry’s dad (who apparently could shoot very well, too) was a fun thing to watch.

Several years later it all went straight to hell with the Bobcats. Let’s face it, when you think of the Bobcats you think of a bunch of scrubs and Adam Morrison. Good God!

Now they’re back to being the Hornets, although, they’re still not that fun. They don’t have Zo they have Dwight Howard, one of the least likeable players out there. They don’t have LJ, they have Frank Kaminsky (crickets chirping). They don’t have Muggsy they have Kemba Walker... ok that’s better. And instead of Dell Curry they have a rookie who I’m really rooting for: Malik Monk.

They’re ok. They’re not super exciting but they have some star power. Hopefully this year the young guards can do some damage down the stretch and maybe be a sneaky team in the playoffs.

Fan-ability: B+

Chicago Bulls

You think Bulls, you think MJ, his Airness, the G.O.A.T.

For younger fans you think D.Rose being drafted by his hometown team and making them a force to be reckoned with in the East and dethroning the King with a 2010-2011 MVP award.

But it’s 2017 now. The face of the franchise is a blonde kid from Finland named Lauri Markkanen and the face of Nikola Mirotic was obliterated by fellow teammate Bobby Portis. Well maybe not obliterated, but I hear it was a heck of a knockout.

It really doesn’t matter how bad GM Gar Foreman and owner Jerry Reinsdorf have been, because what Michael Jordan did for the NBA he did for this NBA franchise as well. Fans crave for the second coming of Michael and until that day comes (I’m pretty sure it’ll never happen) the first thing you’ll think of when you see a red Bulls jersey is #23.

Fan-ability: A-

Cleveland Cavaliers

I’ve never been to Cleveland. I don’t think I’ll ever go there. Not really a bucket list destination.  But I have to admit, LeBron James made Cleveland relevant since the day he was drafted by his hometown team. He was the chosen one entering the league and did not disappoint. He carried a really weak team to an NBA Finals versus a really strong San Antonio Spurs team (and lost). Took his talents to South Beach making everybody in the league feel sorry for the Cavs. As soon as he ditched Miami to go back to “The Land” they were legit once more. LBJ is no MJ however. Some people seem to dislike his demeanor, question his clutch gene and doubt his leadership. He is a little whiny sometimes. Yet no one has denied that LeBron is still the best player on the planet and has been for the better part of his career. I mean it feel like its been 30 straight NBA Finals for him.  He’s great. He made Cleveland great. Even if he leaves this upcoming season, Cleveland should be forever grateful for everything King James has done. And because people enjoy experiencing greatness the Cavaliers are a fan favorite. (Me personally, not really a fan) Fan-ability: A

Dallas Mavericks

A lanky slow-ish blonde forward from Würzburg, Germany made the Dallas Mavericks NBA champions against, non other than, the chosen one (or as Skip Bayless likes to call him “the frozen one”). But aside from being lany, kinda slow and uh... blonde, Dirk Nowitzki is one of the top 20 greatest players of all time, one of my personal favorite players and proud owner of one of the sweetest fade away jumpers ever. 2010-2011 was the Mavericks championship season and man was it a well constructed team that no matter if you love or hate outspoken owner Mark Cuban, you gotta hand it to him. Combining veteran leaders like Jason Kidd and Jason Terry with defensive anchor Tyson Chandler and freaks of nature like Shawn Marion was the recipe for success under the brilliant mind of one of the most underrated coaches, Rick Carlisle. You felt glad they were champions. It wasn’t a “super team” but it was really really good and they were underdogs against a Miami team that promised not 1, not 2, not 3, not 4, etc. championships. After the ‘chip they remained relevant until maybe last season. Dirk is rapidly aging and this really seems like it’s gonna be his last season. To be honest I’ve stopped watching Mavericks games because this is not the Dirk I want to remember. I do watch a lot of highlights though, mostly because of rookie Dennis Smith, Jr. Holy cow! That kid looks like he was made with the same stuff Russell Westbrook was made from. DSJr is another rookie I’m really rooting for, specially because he’s in great hands with old man Dirk to guide him and Rick Carlisle to coach him and get the best out of him. It’s a winning franchise in a hip warm weather city, with a wild celebrity owner, an iconic international player and champion, with a lot of young talent. Nuff said. Fan-ability: A-

Denver Nuggets

I think the Nuggets’ greatest moment in franchise history was the improbable win against the #1 seeded Sonics in 1994. Big whoop. There were other highlights in franchise history like drafing Melo (who later demanded a trade outta there). They did have Allen Iverson on their team, but then they traded him to Detroit because he wasn’t the 76ers Allen Iverson of old.    And this is the part where I want to talk about Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. He was a muslim player (duh!) and was unbelievably good. But he was a muslim. Many compare his game to Steph Curry’s. But he was a muslim. He had crazy handles, the highest basketball IQ and one sweet jumpshot. But he was a muslim, and he started the whole Colin Kaepernick thing where he protested during anthems. Oh boy. Can you imagine a guy named Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf protesting in front of thousands of proud americans back in the 90′s? Yeah, that was the end of that. It’s really sad to wonder how good he would’ve been. At least Ice Cube gave him a shot in the BIG3. Anyway, back to the Denver Nuggets franchise comprised of young exciting talent but not a clear cut superstar. Nikola Jokic is really entertaining but is enough to make the Nuggets relevant? Millsap just joined them, but let’s face it he’s a really good boring player. Garry Harris was supposed to have a breakout year and it’s still early but he’s been a little too quiet for my taste. Jamal Murray, Emmanuel Mudiay seem a long way from being relevant and Kenneth Faried hasn’t been traded after 1,864,227 times it’s been rumored. The biggest indicator the Nuggets are in trouble is the fact that their own fans don’t show up as they finished last in attendance last season. Yikes! Fan-ability: F

Detroit Pistons

Personally I can’t really talk about the Bad Boy Pistons from the 80′s because I didn’t really get into the NBA until a little later. But from what I’ve heard and read, I really dig it. An uber-defensive team that wasn’t scared of anything or anyone. Hard nosed defenders, clutch shooting, trash talking and an iconic coach kinda sound like... hey! The 2004 champion Pistons! The comparison just goes to show that a culture within a franchise can go a long way.  The 2004 Pistons were tough, smart and had the winning mentality that I’m sure legendary coach Larry Brown implemented in the locker room. Big Ben was scary big even though he wasn’t as tall as your traditional center. ‘Sheed was a bad man with a sick jumper and a f*ck you attitude. Rip and Chauncey were the smart and offensively skilled guard combo. Okur, Tayshaun and McDyess played their roles just right. To this day I can’t believe they beat Kobe, Shaq and another “superteam”.  The Pistons of 2017 however lack some of that old school attitude. It’s well coached (shout out to Stan Van G) but no very well managed (sorry Stan Van G). Drummond is a huge piece of human who can block shots, dunk over anyone and has kind of improved the free throw issues of the past. Reggie Jackson seems to be a conflictive dude lacking the leadership of a Chauncey Billups. Tobias Harris who’s good but would’ve been better in a different era. Today’s NBA doesn’t really work for a guy like him. It’s not a roster you can nip and tuck and turn into a legitimate force in the NBA, to me it feels like it’s either this group of guys to maybe get past the first round of the playoffs or blow it all up and tank away to get younger and better. Can we send Avery Bradley to the Celtics, please?  Overall, it’s a city with a lot of heart and a franchise with a lot of history but right now who knows what they are? Fan-ability: B-

Golden State Warriors

My first memory of the Golden State Warriors is Chris Mullin’s hair and short shorts. Tim Hardaway’s crossovers. Latrell Sprewell’s angry two handed dunks (also angry head coach chokings) and an underachieving Chris Webber. But that’s all in the past. Even the good stuff like the Baron Davis and Stephen Jackson Warriors that made a lot of noise in the 2006 playoffs. That’s all irrelevant now because things changed in the bay area. Mark Jackson started coaching a young group of really promising guys and started a style of play that later Steve Kerr, who replaced him as head coach, perfected and made history. I don’t need to talk about how good Steph Curry is and how he revolutionized the game or how good of a shooter/defender/heat check guy Klay is. Or how Draymond is the new villain and best defender in the NBA or how Durant made this team virtually invincible... because everybody knows it. The only thing that worried me was if I would ever get bored of this team; short answer: NO. Again, people like greatness and the bar set by these basketball juggernauts is so high it’s become ridiculous. People call them “bandwagon fans” but it’s really just a matter of wanting to feel part of something as special as this group of future hall of famers... that and they’re totally bandwagon fans. Bandwagon fan-bility: A+

Houston Rockets

Probably not gonna be on the same page as a lot of people here but I’ve always found Rockets players kind of douchey. Maybe not the championship Rockets Olajuwon, Drexler, Horry or Cassell. More like Steve Francis, the worst version of Dwight Howard, and now James Harden AND Chris Paul. Yes, I said it. James Harden is a douchebag. He gets a lot of points, has become an elite point guard but his game isn’t really that exciting... and he’s a whiny flopper. 

They have a lot of history and a bunch of iconic players but ever since the championship years in the mid 90′s we haven’t gotten a dominant conference shifting team. Today’s roster is a poor man’s Golden State Warriors and they’ll eventually find out (the hard way) that in a 7 game series you won’t outshoot or outscore the Dubs. OK, I’ve really bashed the Rockets here, but don’t get me wrong I have to give credit where credit is due: James Harden is an MVP caliber player and Chris Paul is the point God but nobody likes ‘em. Fan-ability: C

Indiana Pacers

Back in the day the Pacers of Reggie Miller, Mark Jackson, Rik Smits, Derrick McKey and Antonio & Dale Davis were for real. They had shooting, rebounding, star power, coaching ...they had it all! It’s a shame that Michael Jordan and the Kobe/Shaq combo never let Reggie and the Pacers win a championship. A decade later the Pacers found themselves with a very strong group of talented players that made LeBron and the Heatles a little nervous. Paul George the emerging superstar along Lance Stephenson, Roy Hibbert and company were battling LeBron down to the last second but eventually falling short. Paul George broke his leg got better and basically told everyone in Indiana to go screw themselves because he would leave them for his hometown Lakers. Now he’s in OKC as a rental and Indiana has highly motivated Victor Oladipo (fan favorite in Indiana) Arvydas Sabonis’ son and what’s left of Lance Stephenson. They should be tanking this year but they’re not in large part because of phenom Myles Turner and a rejuvenated Thad Young. So, what are they? Good? Mediocre? Bad? At this point, we don’t really know.  It’s a small market team with no real superstar anymore and a lot of young talent that could either shine or implode. Fan-ability: D

L.A. Clippers

CP3 leaving means the Clippers are now terrible, right? Nope. Point Blake is for real, DeAndre looks like he’s having fun again and all the role players seem engaged. Oh! And this guy with the scruffy beard is their 30 year old rookie point guard who’s soooo fun to watch. What about the history of the franchise? Well, it’s no pretty. The Clippers were synonymous with failure for a long time. They were terrible at attracting free agents, terrible at drafting (i.e. Michael Olowakandi) until they put together what would become Lob City. It was fun but not very successful.  Los Angeles is sexy and cool but you don’t really think Clippers, you think Lakers, even when the Clippers have clearly been the better basketball team for the last 3 or 4 years now. With the Lakers making a comeback it’s becoming more obvious that the the Clippers should just move north and become the beloved Seattle Sonics.  Fan-ability: C+

L.A. Lakers

Showtime is back in L.A.! Not particularly because of their style of play but because of all the buzz the young players have caused and the circus surrounding Lonzo Ball, who in his first month playing in the NBA looks... different from what Lavar promised. It’s okay, nobody really expected Lonzo to be better than LeBron, Steph and God in his first games. The bottom line is Lonzo not bad and could become really good! Ingram is looking pretty good (just needs an extra 50 lbs) and I’m predicting he could become a Greek Freak type of superstar. But enough about the Baby Lakers, who we know are gonna be alright eventually, let’s talk about the incredibly successful franchise throughout the years. Ugh! Can’t believe I just said something nice about the Lakers. Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal and of course Kobe Bryant are one of the biggest names in the history of the league and they’re all Lakers (shout out to Nick Van Exel, one of my favorite players ever). I was blessed to witness the early 2000′s reign of Shaq and Kobe (even though I kept thinking what would’ve happened if Shaq stayed in Orlando) and their epic battles with the Spurs.  Let’s face it, the Lakers are the Yankees of basketball. People love the city of Los Angeles and they root for what the Lakers were and what they could eventually become once again. Fan-ability: A+

Memphis Grizzlies

They’ve come a long way from those Vancouver days when their best player was Bryant “Big Country” Reeves. They established a culture of hard work reminiscent of the city they play for. They created “Grit and Grind” and should be very proud of it. The history of the franchise is a little iffy since they were really bad for a really long time (normal for an expansion team in small markets).  Marc Gasol, Mike Conley, Tony Allen and Z-Bo put the league on notice and transformed a joke of a franchise to a legitimate contender. The roster has been almost completely revamped but Gasol and Conley are keeping the “Grit and Grind” very much alive. For how long? Only time will tell (hopefully as long as possible). Fan-ability: C+

Miami Heat

Fun fact: Did you know the Miami Heat won a championship without LeBron James? Yup!  Here’s another one for you: Did you know the Miami Heat and the New York Knicks hated each other and had a bunch of epic playoff battles back in the 90′s and early 2000′s? Hell yeah! My point is Miami has had a lot history before the LeBron and Heatles “superteam” nonsense. Pat Riley is largely responsible for all of it. And this post LeBron phase hasn’t been as terrible as you’d expect because this well oiled machine of a franchise keeps drafting, signing and getting all the right pieces to be contenders in a very weak Eastern Conference. They’re still a couple of moves away from being the top dogs so don’t be surprised if they make some moves during this season or once the season is over. The city of Miami is fun and sexy and so are the Heat fans. As long as Pat Riley is there they’re gonna be relevant and in the conversation. Fan-ability: B+

New Orleans Pelicans

As Tony Montana famously once said: “Manny, look at the pelican fly. Come on, pelican!” refering to some flamingos he was watching on TV. I kind of feel that way when I’m watching these guys play... I think I’m watching two of the best big men in the game along with some decent role players but I’m really just watching a franchise with no idea of what they’ll do when they inevitably lose both their big men (AD & Boogie) and return to being bad (worse). My second thing about this franchise: how are we supposed to root for a team called the Pelicans?! Wait... their arena is called the “Smoothie King Center”? OK, I’m done.

Weird to not root for a team that has 2 of the top 15 players in the league. Fan-ability: F 

New York Knicks

New York IS basketball. When you walk around this magnificent city you breathe basketball. Some of the best street ballers are New Yorkers. Yet, the Knicks haven’t been as great as Knicks fan expect them to be (not in the last 3 or 4 seasons anyway). Owner James Dolan is not exactly a fan favorite, Phil Jackson left without accomplishing what he was hired to accomplish, Charles Oakley has been banned from MSG (yes, the former Knicks legend) and the Melo-drama of last year(s) was quite frankly very annoying. So yeah, it’s been pretty brutal. It’s seems like a very long time because their last championship was in 1973 but there have been some really interesting, talented and semi-successful Knicks teams since Bernard King’s epic finals performance. One of the most sought after rookies landed in MSG and had a really good career (Patrick Ewing) and the aforementioned Charles Oakley along with John Starks, Anthony Mason and Doug Christie among others were talented, feisty, tough and relentless enough to reach the finals against a really loaded Rockets team. Then there’s Van Gundy’s squad with Ewing, Allan Houston, Latrell Sprewell, Larry Johnson and Marcus Camby who played the role of the underdog from day 1 until they reached the finals which they once again lost, this time against a dynastic Spurs. As of today the Knicks, minus Carmelo Anthony, have been quite surprising and own of the most precious assets in basketball: a unicorn. Kristaps Porzingis has won the heart of every single Knicks fan because of the dog in him, something very important to a city that values hard work. His stellar numbers and the potential of becoming a very unique type of player (hence the nickname “unicorn”) might be that x-factor that brings the championship back to the mecca. All they have to do is be patient, avoid the drama (hard to do with the New York media) and draft well... let’s hope Frankie Smokes is the perfect compliment to KP’s amazing talent. Oh, and please pray to the basketball gods... no injuries, please! Fan-ability: A-

Oklahoma City Thunder

You know what helps building a fan base when your not the coolest city in the world? Superstars! Oklahoma City has had some of the biggest names in the NBA play for them: Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, James Harden and Serge Ibaka. More unbelievable? They played together! Just goes to show what a great GM (Sam Presti) and great scouts will do to a franchise. Even with all these amazing atheletes on their team they really never got to win it all. KD and Russ were an unbelievable duo but many wondered if they didn’t really compliment eachother... maybe KD needed more of a playmaker, maybe Russ needed more of a role player and shine on his own. Well KD left to join the ridiculously talented Dubs (and won the title) and Russ won the MVP averaging a triple double.  Now they have even more star power adding hoodie Melo and Paul George to the mix and hoping this trio will knock down the reign of the all mighty Warriors (highly unlikely).  Superstars aside, OKC really has had an uphill battle developing a fan base in such a small market and have done so beautifully.  Fan-ability: B+

Orlando Magic

Whoa! This is hard for me. I’m probably gonna bash the franchise I first loved (and still do for some strange reason). My best memories as a kid are in Orlando when me and my whole family went to Disney World, Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure, so I’m a little bias. Imagine a kid from Guatemala city going to a basketball game in a jam packed arena where Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway put on a show. Done deal! I’m a Magic fan for life.  Orlando somehow managed to lose Shaq by lowballing him in an almost  offensive way comparing him to other players in the league and criticizing his rebounding and defense in an attempt to “negotiate” a deal that wouldn’t mean breaking the bank for Shaq. But guess what? For Shaq, you DO break the bank and by not doing so they broke the heart of every Orlando Magic fan. So Shaq left and it took a long time to recover. 13 years later Dwight Howard somehow managed to go to an NBA Finals with a very weird and well coached Magic team that seemed content to just get there, and let’s face it, didn’t really have a shot against the Lakers.  Then, Rob Hennigan happened. Bad draft picks, horrible free agent signings and head scratching trades were the norm under this guy. Even though he’s still no longer with the team the stench of his horrible decisions still linger over the very bizarre roster today’s Magic have assembled. Granted the beginning of this season has been a very pleasant surprise many people feel it’s just a phase in which a lot of “bad teams” started hot and will eventually fall back down to earth. I’m just trying to believe they might snatch the East’s 8th spot and finally be back in the playoff picture, but... why? Shouldn’t they just tank and hope to get ANOTHER draft pick? Who knows? All I know is Aaron Gordon is finally playing some decent basketball and I have really high expectations from rookie Jonathan Isaac and might eventually become a steal in the draft.  Fan-ability: D

Philadelphia 76ers

Oh God! The Process. The day they win a championship I’ll tolerate the Process. I feel awful for the Philly fans that had to endure such a long run of shameless, utter failure while being the laughing stock of the whole league. Having the commissioner actually getting involved in the team’s plan to continue sucking has got to be embarrassing. But 76ers fans have shown they always trusted the process and are now celebrating as if Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons are the next best thing since sliced bread, but I have to remind every Sixer fan once in a while that they drafted Michael Carter-Williams and traded him for nothing, Nerlens Noel and traded him for nothing and Jahlil Okafor, who’ll be traded for nothing... so let’s not get too excited just yet. We still have to find out what Markelle Fultz becomes. The level of incompetence they endured for so long actually made us all root for them making them the most lovable underdog in history and thus captivating a new fan base of people rooting for the eternal losers to finally get a break. They used to be good though. Real good. Mostly because they had Allen Iverson, the best pound for pound player ever. Those A.I. teams were surrounded by a bunch of scrubs, role players and stiffs that watched “The Answer” in awe as he dismantled every opponent they faced. The team had a superstar and a lot of heart that would eventually take the finals against another almost invincible Lakers team, that for a second, crapped their pants when Allen Iverson tore them apart in Game 1. Eventually L.A. won 4 straight and the series was over. Philadelphia was praised for valiantly battling a star studded team with a minuscule scorer along with a bunch of unknowns (so yeah, they’ve always been the lovable underdogs). In a very “Rocky” way, Philadelphia always seems to be forced against the ropes and fighting back the best way they can.  Fan-ability: B

Phoenix Suns

It’s hard to imagine a time where the Phoenix Suns were a great Western Conference team. They were. My first memories of good Suns teams was the Barkley, KJ and Majerle led team. Then there’s the Nash-Stoudemire era where the battles against their Western Conference nemesis were pretty epic. It’s seems like its been forever since the glory days for the Suns. They had a nice little run not long ago with a trio of guards that are really good (Eric Bledsoe, Goran Dragic and Isaiah Thomas) but seemed like they handled it very poorly only ending the very brief run with some questionable GM decisions. Overall the Suns are franchise that hasn’t really clicked and found a clear path to becoming a fun team to watch. The Suns are very young and do have a great-to-be shooting guard in Devin Booker, but they’re probably 4 years from being competitive again and some young players like Bender, Marquese Chriss and Josh Jackson have to prove their worth in the next upcoming seasons. Trading Bledsoe seems like it could be a fresh start and open up some very important playing time for the younger talent. So brace yourselves, it’s not gonna be pretty. Fan-ability: C-

Portland Trailblazers

Hispters rejoice! There’s no doubt that rooting for the Blazers is the cool thing to do since nobody really trusts their backcourt defense, bench or bother to give Dame Dolla (a.k.a. Damien Lillard) an All-Star nod.  CJ McCollum and Damien Lillard think they’re the best backcourt in the NBA and it’s a legitimate claim since they score at will against any and every defender. When it comes to clutch shooting... you know it’s Dame Time! I personally find the Blazers a really fun team to watch and when you think about it, it’s been the case for a very long time. Awesome Blazer players throughout the years: Clifford Robinson (headband included), Jerome Kersey, Rod Strickland, Arvydas Sabonis, Rasheed Wallace, Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge are just some of the names that made this cool-ass city much much cooler. They’ve been relevant but haven’t really won a championship but at least they’ve been to one. Even if they’ve lost more than they’ve won they are definitly a cool team. Fan-ability: B+

Sacramento Kings

Before owner Vivek Ranadivé thought Nik Stauskas was the next best thing, before they drafted every single big while having arguably the best center in the league in Boogie Cousins and confusing everybody with every single poor decision the Kings were exciting.

Can it be argued that Jason “White Chocolate” Williams was the most entertaining point guard of the last 25 years? I certainly think so. He put the Kings on the map along with a very productive Chris Webber, the shooter extraordinaire of Peja Stojakovic and a bunch of really good role players. They kind of underachieved but looking back on that team, they might have been a little too young and flashy. The only time they made the NBA Finals was unfortunately in the movie “How to lose a guy in 10 days”. They lost those fake finals to the Knicks, how about that?

They might be making a comeback, though. The fun team they used to be could once again excite us basketball fans with rookie phenom De'Aaron Fox, second year shooting guard Buddy Hield, big man Willy Cauley-Stein and the rest of the young core. After all the DeMarcus Cousins drama they dealt with I sincerely hope they find their way with this young squad and make the Kings games a must watch. Fan-ability: C

San Antonio Spurs

You know how some organizations are so good they become kind of annoying and after a while they stop being annoying again because you’re in awe of how well they do everything? That’s the San Antonio Spurs.

Only the Spurs can reach the playoffs a record setting 20 consecutive years (also the longest active playoff streak in any major North American sports league as of 2017) and keep drafting really good under the radar rookies, who eventually turn out to be really good. You can’t talk about the Spurs without talking about Tim Duncan or Gregg Popovich, and even though there have been a lot of other amazing Spurs players (David Robinson, Manu, Tony Parker, Sean Elliott, now Kawhi, etc.) it’s Pop and Timmy’s dynasty. And is it just me or was Gregg Popovich really unlikable back when we didn’t really know him? He seemed like a real a**hole but now people want him to be the next President.

They are an iconic dynasty that will be a trademark of greatness for years and years to come. Watching Timmy retire was hard, I can’t imagine what’ll be like when Pop calls it quits.

Fan-ability: A+

Toronto Raptors

All Star Weekends aren’t really important. I was always a fan of these long, flashy, ceremonious events, but not really. It’s like it’s supposed to happen and it’s kinda like the mid-season awards in a way but it’s definitely not a big deal. In the year 2000 (shout out to Conan) though, it mattered, mainly because of the Canada’s basketball ambassador unbelievable display of amazingness and athletic dunk display that became, and still is, the single best dunk contest in the history basketball. Vince Carter was “Air Canada” but eventually it became a messy divorce with the franchise and once again became a sub par team. Nowadays they a decent top 3 team in the Leastern Conference, but I don’t expect them to go further than the second round of the playoffs, even though Masai Ujiri managed to assemble a nice roster that inlcudes the Big Medium 3 of: Lowry, DeRozan and Ibaka. The Raptors have always been ok and cool to root for (they are the only non U.S. team in the league, and that might be a plus) and the list of iconic players is actually pretty decent: Vince, T-Mac, Damon “Mighty Mouse” Stoudamire, Marcus Camby and Skip to my Lou (Rafer Alston). The most notable Raptors fan nowadays is Toronto’s rapper Drake (see also: Nav Bhatia) which really boosts popularity for the franchise, even when we know LeBron will have his way with the Raps come playoff time. Fan-ability: B+

Utah Jazz

Ok, first things first... let me just say that the biggest oxymoron is this franchise’s name. Has there ever been actual jazz played in the Mormon state? (shout out to Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the hilarious “Book of Mormon” musical) Now that I got that out of the way, let’s go ahead and analyze the franchise. They’ve been a really well coached team for the most part (Jerry Sloan and now Quin Snyder) and even when they’re lacking star power they seem to be that team you don’t want to face. They’re really good at drafting and developing young talent and that translates into really feisty hard working potential all-stars... that eventually leave via free agency, probably because Utah isn’t the sexiest place in the world. Deron Williams was on his way of becoming the best point guard in the league and almost overnight became an expendable bench player. Gordon Hayward was the big white hope but opted to join forces with his former Butler head coach in Boston and got injured 5 minutes into his Celtic debut... wait is this a “Leave Utah curse” theory? Nah. Hayward will be alright... I hope. The 90′s and 2000′s were different though, Utah was a star studded franchise always representing the west come playoff time mainly because of the one the best duos of all time: Karl Malone and John Stockton. Although they never got to win the championship they’ll always be remembered as a legit force in the league. As for now, let’s just hope Rudy Gobert keeps developing into the best dang Center in the league... he certainly has the potential. Rodney Hood (awesome name by the way) needs to become an offensive force and most importantly be consistent. Dante Exum sadly, hasn’t really lived up to the hype and I believe has reached his ceiling. They are what all Jazz teams are, gritty and tough. Fan-ability: C+

Washington Wizards

DC’s team is and has always been a conundrum. Wizards teams have been pretty good on paper but none of them, including a Michael Jordan led team, could really make them relevant (granted MJ was getting pretty old and wasn’t in the best shape). It seems the current team is the best the franchise has had in a long time, yet they’re not close to being a Conference favorite. Do the Wizards have big names? Yup, John Wall is in the prime of a stellar career. Bradley Beal has proven he can stay healthy and stay productive. Otto Porter got paid All-Star money and should become one for this team to really go further. Are they well coached? Debatable, but I believe Scott Brooks is a huge improvement over several of the last coaches in Washington. Now the big question is can they actually dethrone Cleveland? The other big question is whether this roster is built for the future like Boston is. Sadly, my answer for both these questions is no. They had their share of bad draft picks (Kwame Brown most notably), players gone bad (Gilbert Arenas, Juwan Howard) iconic players that never really transcended or carried the franchise (MJ, Chris Webber), but the bottom line is they’re a cool franchise to root for (used to be cooler when they were the “Bullets”) in a cool city. Hopefully one day they’ll become a legitimate championship contending team. Maybe if they figure out how to get Boogie Cousins that’ll happend sooner rather than later. Fan-ability: B-

[gadgetsrevv]

Italy and Mancini are set to cruise to Euro 2020. Just don’t ask about the green shirts

Italy look rested and rather comfortable in Euro 2020 qualifying right now. It’s a refreshing change after failing to reach the 2018 World Cup.

Perhaps it shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise to hear Roberto Mancini say “I prefer the blue.”

His opinion on Italy’s new green shirt, which the team will wear for Saturday’s qualifier with Greece — stream live: 2.45 p.m. ET, ESPN+ (U.S. only) — isn’t necessarily that of a traditionalist. Mancio won league titles as a player in the blue of Sampdoria and Lazio and his greatest successes as a coach came in the same hue at Inter and Man City. Superstition is the way.

“We’ll see what it looks like on the pitch,” he smiled. “It’s a bit strange.”

Returning to the Stadio Olimpico for the first time in four years, greying fans of a certain vintage will maybe remember the time Italy last played in green here. It happened just once in 1954: a friendly against Argentina. PUMA are calling it the “Renaissance Kit” and whatever you might think of it, the launch it certainly captures the zeitgeist around Mancini’s Nazionale.

– Rodri: Man City’s new star talks exclusively to ESPN – Ogden: What’s the problem with England’s traveling fans? – O’Hanlon: Who’s the best finisher in soccer?

Designed to appeal to a new generation, this is very much the Italy team of that generation. Eleven of the players in the squad are 25 or younger and Mancini will call up one or two from the Under-21s once Thursday’s qualifier with the Republic of Ireland is done and dusted. Dialling up the “linea verde” (“the green line”) is one idiom Italians use when youth is being invested in and Mancini hasn’t put the phone down in his year in charge.

This weekend, Italy will book their place at Euro 2020 nice and early with three games to spare, as long as they beat Greece and Armenia fail to win in Liechtenstein. The choice of venue is significant. In the event of qualification, Italy will play their first two group games next summer in Rome; Mancini wants the players to get used to the atmosphere. After vanquishing Finland 2-1 in Tampere last month, he said: “The hope is that the Stadio Olimpico is as full as it was during the 1990 World Cup, a time when we were all a little younger.”

Currently on a seven-game winning run, matching the streaks of former coaches Ferruccio Valcareggi and Giovanni Trapattoni, this new-look Italian side has completely changed the mood around the national team, regenerating enthusiasm after the massive disappointment of 2018. Sure, as Mancini’s predecessor Giampiero Ventura (now coaching in Serie B at Salernitana) has pointed out, their qualification group is an easy one. But Italy laboured and rarely entertained against similar opposition not just under him, but also legendary managers who could call on hall-of-famers in contrast to promising youngsters.

“I wanted a group with Germany, Holland, France and Spain but they didn’t give it to me,” Mancini cheekily hit back.

His latest squad includes only one debutante: Napoli right-back Giovanni Di Lorenzo, whose story is the stuff of fairytales. The 26-year-old has gone from playing in the third division with Matera to the Champions League and now, his country in just two seasons. He is the Moreno Torricelli of 2019.

Nicolo Zaniolo is back after his punishment for showing up late for a training session at the U21 Euros in the summer. Moise Kean, his partner in that tardy crime, is not, however, after a slow start to life at Everton. Currently training with the Azzurrini, it wouldn’t come as too big a surprise if he were promoted to the senior squad after the weekend. That said, Mancini has given the impression that the more likely graduate will be Brescia’s Sandro Tonali who has yet to debut for the Azzurri but was on the bench last month in Armenia.

Florentines were disappointed that Gaetano Castrovilli did not make the cut after a breakout start to the campaign but his chance will come soon enough. That said, Mancini believes “the squad is more or less set,” adding “there are maybe two or three spots up for grabs. If someone all of sudden gets ruled out [through injury] then we’ll see but the players going to the Euros are here or have already been called up. If anything, we’re a little short on the left-side of our defence. Emerson Palmieri [Italy’s main creative thrust in Yerevan] is out. [Roma’s] Leonardo Spinazzola has played the last two. [Inter’s] Cristiano Biraghi is back [fit] but he isn’t playing a lot.”

Italy coach Mancini, left, presents the new green Italy shirt to Vincenzo Spadafora, Italy’s Minister for Sport and Youth Policies.

Questions about Italy’s problem position, the No. 9 role, ended up getting convincing answers in September. Andrea Belotti scored in Armenia and Ciro Immobile found the back of the net in Finland, the pair of them putting to rest long droughts for an international goal. Friendly rivals for one place in the team, the competition seems to be bringing out the best in the former club teammates. Belotti boasts 12 goals in 17 games for club and country this season, Immobile nine in 10.

It means the striker-less lineup that sparked Mancini’s Italy into life this time last year has been shelved as has the Kean-Fabio Quagliarella combo that lit up the Azzurri over the spring. It’s up to them and the likes of Mario Balotelli and Patrick Cutrone to persuade Mancini otherwise over the next eight months ahead of Euro 2020.

Out wide, the only guaranteed starter at the moment is Federico Chiesa, who is learning more tricks of the trade alongside Franck Ribery at Fiorentina. On the opposite side, Napoli’s Lorenzo Insigne needs to shape up after a poor and bad-tempered start to the season. He’s failed to score or assist in five of his last seven appearances and Carlo Ancelotti left him in the stands for the trip to Club Brugge in the Champions League, unimpressed with what he’d seen from his captain in training.

As for Federico Bernardeschi, he has barely played for Juventus this season. He only made his first league start at the weekend and did not match what he’d shown previously in the Champions League against Bayer Leverkusen. One of the novelties of the Greece game could be the repurposing of Bernardeschi in midfield. It would highlight how much Mancini rates the player and underline his efforts to skill up the team as much as possible.

Ciro Immobile, right, is in superb form for club and country and will be leaned upon as Italy’s attack looks better and sharper than it has for years.

Last time out he used Lorenzo Pellegrini as a nominal left-winger knowing that when Italy had the ball and Emerson or Leonardo Spinazzola pushed up, the Roma playmaker could come inside and occupy something akin to a No. 10 role. Pellegrini ended up getting the go-ahead goal in Armenia and has made it rain assists at club level throughout September. Unfortunately, his foot is now in plaster and he’ll be watching from home. 

The midfield that seemed written in stone, with Nicolo Barella, Marco Verratti and Jorginho complementing each other brilliantly in last season’s internationals, was remarkably being challenged not only by the form of Pellegrini, but also Stefano Sensi, the player everyone’s been talking about, who, lamentably, will also be missing this round of games after straining his adductor in the Derby d’Italia.

Injuries aside — don’t forget captain Giorgio Chiellini is rehabbing from knee surgery as well — Mancini must be encouraged by the range and age profile of the players coming through. He has lifted the gloom around the national team and is imposing his own winning mentality. Ending this qualification campaign with a perfect record will see Italy back among the top seeds and heading into the Euros full of self-esteem and optimism.

As for this weekend, it’s hoped the team will play better than they did in September when you could tell they had not worked together for four months and that the Serie A season was only two games old. It was no coincidence that the Premier League-based players and the Torino contingent — back early for the Europa League qualifiers — were the ones who stood out.

Saturday’s game has been billed as a “mock exam” by Mancini. Italy should pass it in flying colours. Just not the ones we’re used to seeing them in.

//due to VPPA compliance we can not send keywords through URLs implicitly in the US var countryValue = $.cookie("country"); if(!!countryValue && countryValue !== "us") {

(function() { var _fbq = window._fbq || (window._fbq = []); if (!_fbq.loaded) { var fbds = document.createElement('script'); fbds.async = true; fbds.src = "http://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbds.js"; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(fbds, s); _fbq.loaded = true; } _fbq.push(['addPixelId', '1587432981493230']); })(); window._fbq = window._fbq || []; window._fbq.push(['track', 'PixelInitialized', {}]);

$.ajax({ url: '//pixel.mathtag.com/event/js?mt_id=694557&mt_adid=137010&v1=&v2=&v3=&s1=&s2=&s3=', dataType: 'script', cache: true }); } (function(d, s, id) {var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if (d.getElementById(id)) return;js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id;js.src = "http://connect.facebook.net/en_GB/all.js#xfbml=1&appId=116656161708917";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, "script", "facebook-jssdk")); Source link

via wordpress https://ift.tt/35uu26a

[beamheat2-blog]

Bulls Season Rewind 18-19: Lauri Markkanen

SEASON GAMES PLAYED POINTS REBOUNDS ASSISTS 2018-2019 52 18.7 9.0 1.4 2017-2018 68 15.2 7.5 1.2

Second-year big man Lauri Markkanen is extremely popular amongst Bulls fans, and it's easy to see why. Few NBA players of any age possess his combination of shooting, size, athleticism and basketball smarts, and in just two seasons with the team he has blown through many expectations without looking back. After an All-Rookie first team campaign, expectations were high for the 7-footer out of Finland, and it's safe to say Lauri continues to develop into a potential star player for the Bulls.

Unfortunately, Lauri's 2018-19 season hit a snag right out of the gate, as an elbow injury suffered in the opening days of training camp caused him to miss the opening 23 games of the season. His presence was greatly missed on the court, and Bulls fans and teammates alike were extremely pleased to see him make his on-court debut on December 1 in Houston.

After working his way back into form, Lauri continued to develop as the team's leader and one of their go-to players. In his top 6 scoring games of the season, the Bulls went 6-0 – meaning that Lauri going supernova scoring usually resulted in a Bulls win. He had big moments as well – a last second basket to beat the Thunder in Coach Jim Boylen's home debut, complete games where he was dominant offensively, moments where he put the team on his back. Though he missed the final stretch of the season due to extreme fatigue, the Bulls have an exceptional talent in Markkanen, and at just 21 years old, a bright future as he continues to develop.

Let's take a look at some of Lauri's best performances this season:

February 23, vs Celtics (Bulls 126, Boston 116)

Markkanen Stat Line: 35 points (12-20 FG), 3-7 3PT, 8-9 FT, 15 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal

This game just meant a little more, and Markkanen played like it. He grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds (the highest Boston rebounder had just 6) and was nearly unstoppable offensively, scoring from all over the court and getting to the free throw line at will en route to a career-high 35 points on the night. After the Celtics had walloped the Bulls on their home court two months earlier, this win against a full-strength Boston team was just that much sweeter.

Markkanen knocks down a double-double in a win against the Celtics

February 8, at Nets (Bulls 125, Nets 106)

Markkanen Stat Line: 31 points (11-18 FG), 4-7 3PT, 5-6 FT, 18 rebounds, 2 blocks

What a stat line. The story of this game was the debut of new small forward Otto Porter, who came over in a trade two days earlier for Bobby Portis and Jabari Parker. Porter was a natural fit right off the bat, and having an experienced NBA starter next to him at the small forward position opened Lauri's game up to a monster night and a win on the road against the Nets. This was Lauri's third consecutive 30-point game, his best stretch of the season, and he was a force from any angle: spotting up, driving, and in transition. Markkanen repeatedly grabbed rebounds and brought the ball up himself, igniting the offense and showing an awareness beyond his years.

"He's smart; he knows if he rebounds it gets him into the game, so he's trying to get every rebound he can," Coach Boylen said about Markkanen after the win. "He's settling less, he's driving the ball more. I thought his aggressiveness is encouraging. When you get lost in the other parts of the game beside scoring, defense, rebounding, making the correct play, setting a good screen, I think it all comes back to you and I think it's all coming back to him."

March 1, at Atlanta (Bulls 168, Hawks 161 4OT)

Markkanen Stat Line: 31 points (9-18 FG), 3-6 3PT, 10-12 FT, 17 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block

That score is still unbelievable. This wasn't Lauri's most efficient game, but it has to be mentioned given just how hard he played and fought to get this win. Logging a career-high 54 minutes, the big man left it all out on the floor in an epic four overtime game that went into the record books as the highest scoring Bulls game in history and one of the highest in the history of the NBA. Lauri and teammate Zach LaVine each scored 31 in the seemingly endless game, the most memorable one of the entire season, and Lauri did the dirty work down low, grabbing 17 rebounds against a Hawks team that fought for every possession. An instant classic, and Lauri was a big reason it ended with the Bulls on top.

Markkanen goes for 31 points and 17 rebounds in a 4OT game against the Hawks

December 7, vs Oklahoma City (Bulls 114, Thunder 112)

Markkanen Stat Line: 24 points (8-12 FG), 4-8 3PT, 4-5 FT, 7 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists, 1 block

This was not among Markkanen's most statistically impressive games, but it deserves mention for the circumstances and meaning. The Bulls were coming into this game against Russell Westbrook, Paul George and the Thunder on a seven-game losing streak and having come off a coaching change, with newly promoted coach Jim Boylen making his home debut as the head man on the bench. Lauri was also making his home debut after having missed the first six weeks of the season with an elbow injury, and boy did he put on a show.

In just his third game back from injury, Markkanen was an efficient 8 of 12 from the field with seven rebounds. But beyond the stats, it was his play in the final 30 seconds of the game that not only saved the Bulls after a Dennis Schroder drive gave the Thunder a 110-109 lead, but illustrated his value to the team and his impact in today's NBA. First, Markkanen took a drive down the lane, collapsing the defense and enabling him to swing the ball to the corner to an open Justin Holiday, who hit the open triple to give the Bulls a 112-110 lead. Then, after a Westbrook basket tied the game with 19 seconds left, Markkanen hit a running shot with 4.9 seconds left that won the game, snapped the losing streak and gave the team a huge win against a good team in front of their home crowd.

Markkanen's game-winning bucket against the Thunder

Source: https://www.nba.com/bulls/bulls-season-rewind-18-19-lauri-markkanen

[malaceinthepalace]

There is no man happier than Nico Rosberg as the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel crossed the line to finish first in the 2017 opening Grand Prix from Melbourne, Australia. After the race ended he tweets out congrats to the Scuderia and his countrymen then takes a direct shot at Lewis by asking "Are you ready for that?" As a fan of F1 I love to see drama on and off track unfold and the storylines this year will have plenty fuel for the fire. Lewis vs Seb Let's start at the top and heading into China the reining world champions and the last world champion to win that is racing is under fire from Ferrari. Back in 2015, the church bells at Marinello rang early in the season but later on it was raining Lewis as he sent Nico home empty handed for the second strait year to chinch his third world championship only surpassed by today's race winner Sebastian Vettel. As a Red Bull driver he won 4 consecutive world championships to the extreme dismay not only of Fernando Alonso but especially of Mark Webber. Like Nico, Webber was the 2nd fasted and sometimes it was not his fault but like a noble man he drove the hell out of that car, unlike Rosberg he never got to win a drivers world champion a award that you don't get a penny for but if you listen to Hamilton's late race radio in Abu Dhabi back to the team as he was on a Sunday drive attempting to push his teammate back into the competition to win the title you can hear a mans heart break. It was sad and exciting to see him challenge Wolf and prove him or the computer algorithm wrong. With this early success the main story line will be Hamilton and Vettel fighting it out for the first time in years as Lewis tries to even up the world championships at 4 and Seb is on his drive for 5 (which he's been on for 4 years now). Red Bull The next major story line that come is on Red Bull. I am a Riccardo fan but you can not deny Max and what he brings with his world wide fame. In his first season with the team Daniel drove a very bad car to 3 wins and beat Vettel the four-time consecutive world champion showing the world he is a beast but so is Max. Last season race in Brazil was nothing short of amazing. Senna was smiling from heaven as the teenager looked as if he was simply playing a video game as he obliterated his competition. Moments like that will be on best of reels for the rest of recorded history. I feel over this season the battle for 1st driver within that team can put pressure on both Mercedes and Ferrari. In my opinion the future is with Max but Riccardo is a string driver but can he be a role player when he is supposed to be a star too? It's Alonso!! The third story line is Alonso and McLearn. Under new leadership and under preforming, Alonso been with the team and it has not been a return to his glory days prior to Lewis' arrival. In his post race interview today I saw IT in him again and would love to see him in a car that can fight for a win but I do not see that for him as his window to get back on par with his peers of triple world champions closes with time. When you look at his career he was the youngest ABC XYZ as others around him surpassed his achievements and now he is at a back of the pack team in the swan song of his career. Let's be honest this is not the world working against him it's himself, yes he has been a victim of circumstance but he has also been a beneficiary of it too. His first world championship was sealed well let's say in a very machiavellian way which means Alonso's finger prints are all over it. After he left Mclearn I was not a fan but after his return he has grown on me and has shown me that he is no matter if he is in a car powered by a GP 3 engine is a top driver in the field. I personally wished he jumped onto Williams to fill Massa's seat and then again to fill Bottas seat as he went over to Mercedes. If Alonso can get a seat on a top team and soon he will be a force this year. Kimi vs Bottas When it comes to Finland I think of the Ice man Kimi Raikkonen the 2007 world champion who took a two year hiatus to return to drive his way back into the hearts of the fans. His drive at lotus was supposed to be what Alonso was looking for with McLaren, but unlike Alonso his return to his old team has been more successful. But over the past few season a younger Fin Valtteri Bottas has the seat of the reining world champion for last year and has been a thorn in Kimis. For Bottas there is little chance Kimi is not a hero similar but for him to match his idol he must beat him. Now with Mercedes both drivers can take a personal victory home every race because if Kimi beats the Mercedes he not only is beating the pace setter for the past 4 seasons he is keeping a lock on his legacy as the best Finnish driver and as Bottas job is to finish the race on the 2nd or 3rd step keeping Kimi of the podium or being a place or two better will be good not only for his career but also for his push to be the next driver to unseat Hamilton and Vettel as world champion. The Pink Cars So marketing genius, I force (out of love) for my fiancée to watch the race and before the end of the race Force India had a fan. Sergio and (that other guy as she called it which is a sub story line who are these new drivers) Esteban thank you now when I buy a bottle of Blue Label she will not be as angry with the price. Cheers! 2017 could not have kicked off better for F1 so many story lines on and off track to follow and a true clash of titians brewing this may be one of the best season yet. As a fan of the sport but also of the man Lewis Hamilton this is going have to be a great year. Coming 6 points shy with 3 DNFs to the World Champion's 1 on the same constructor he must not allow historic problems surface off track and on track he must keep finishing on the top step.

[junker-town]

2017 NHL mock draft: The trade deadline shakes things up in our 2nd simulation

New needs and no consensus make this draft interesting.

It’s nice to have a NHL entry draft with no clear “best prospect.”

The 2017 NHL draft doesn’t have a Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews, or Aaron Ekblad. It doesn’t even have a consensus best 30 players. The top of the draft is as arguable as the late first-round picks following it.

So no wonder our second mock NHL draft looks different from the first. This time, we didn’t use lottery simulators. We just went down the list, but kept the trade deadline movements in mind. Needs have changed!

1. Colorado Avalanche - Timothy Liljegren, D, Rogle (Sweden)

I’m starting to come around to Mile High Hockey’s argument that the Avalanche can’t afford to pass up the best defenseman in the draft. The consensus Best Three™ in the 2017 draft are Nolan Patrick, Nico Hischier, and Liljegren. Two centers and a defenseman. When Tyson Jost joins Nathan MacKinnon in Colorado next season, they’ll be set down the middle for years.

Might as well stock the defense with a prime puck-mover like Liljegren.

2. Arizona Coyotes - Nolan Patrick, C, Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL)

Photo by Mathieu Belanger/Getty Images

Coyotes fans would hate being left with Patrick or Hischier. Not that they’re not good, but the Coyotes need young defensemen as much as the Avalanche.

In this scenario, though, I tend to think GM John Chayka takes Nolan Patrick. Arizona is blessed with forward talent, but few of them have the skill and size Patrick brings.

3. Vegas Golden Knights - Nico Hischier, C, Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)

Best player available. Hischier is skilled, flashy and as good at setting up teammates as he is putting the biscuit in the basket. Vegas would be thrilled to take him.

4. New Jersey Devils - Casey Mittelstadt, C, Eden Prairie High School (Minnesota)

It sure seems like the Devils might stick with Pavel Zacha on the wing. In that case, expect them to go for a center here if Liljegren isn’t available (he won’t be).

Scouts rave about Mittelstadt’s compete level all over the ice, something that the Devils will no doubt covet. He’s also supremely gifted offensively, making him a talent the Devils can’t pass up. He’ll play for the University of Minnesota next season.

5. Vancouver Canucks - Gabriel Vilardi, C, Windsor (OHL)

Vilardi has all the tools to become a No. 1 center someday: size (6’3), skill (scouts love his effortlessness while making plays), and finishing ability (about to eclipse 30 goals with Windsor this year). By drafting Olli Juolevi and trading for Jonathan Dahlen, the Canucks have added high-end talent on the wings and blue line in the last year.

Taking Vilardi fifth overall would help round out their system.

6. Dallas Stars - Eeli Tolvanen, LW/RW, Sioux City (USHL)

If there’s one thing the Stars are guilty of in recent drafts, it’s not taking forwards with high-end skills. Size and hockey I.Q. are great, but you also need players with game-breaking abilities.

Tolvanen fits that mold. A pure scorer, the USHL star can score at will in so many ways: off the rush with his heavy shot, off a deke, with a slap-shot ... you name it. He’ll play with Boston College next season and could reach the NHL sooner than a lot of the players in this draft.

7. Detroit Red Wings - Cale Makar, D, Brooks (AJHL)

We still like the idea of Makar joining the Red Wings. The crafty right-handed defenseman is rising quickly up draft boards after a 24-goal, 75-point season with the Bandits. Detroit can start their rebuild with the draft’s best power play quarterback.

Makar will head to UMass-Amherst next season.

8. Buffalo Sabres - Owen Tippett, RW, Mississauga (OHL)

With Liljegren and Makar off the board and no defensemen worth reaching for at this spot, Buffalo is left in “best player available” mode.

That’s Tippett, the best scoring winger in the draft not named Eeli Tolvanen. A pure sniper, Tippett is fifth in the OHL with 44 goals this year. With Sam Reinhart, Alexander Nylander, Cliff Pu, and Tippett in the system, the Sabres’ wings will be the envy of the Eastern Conference.

9. Winnipeg Jets - Nick Suzuki, C, Owen Sound (OHL)

Photo by Dennis Pajot/Getty Images

Suzuki is a rare gem: an uber-talented penalty killer who can score in bunches. His defensive prowess was well-known before this season, but he erupted into one of the OHL’s best scoring threats with 45 goals and 96 points in 65 games. Winnipeg’s leaky penalty kill would love to have Suzuki join them.

10. Florida Panthers - Klim Kostin, W, Balashikha (KHL)

Two things are going against Kostin right now. First, a shoulder injury ended his season early. Second, he reminds people of Stars winger Valeri Nichushkin: a big, Russian winger with obvious skill but a tendency to pass instead of shoot. And since Nichushkin bolted for Russia last offseason, you’d imagine that might affect his draft status.

But Florida might go against the grain here and take him anyway. With Jaromir Jagr and Jussi Jokinen on the decline, the Panthers could use a bullishly skilled winger in their prospect pool, even if Kostin stays in the KHL to develop for a few years.

11. Philadelphia Flyers - Cody Glass, C/RW, Portland Winterhawks (WHL)

Another late-bloomer like Makar who rocketed up draft rankings this year. Glass is a talented, all-around forward: capable of dishing the puck, finishing plays and responsible up and down the ice. Philadelphia could use him in a number of ways.

12. Carolina Hurricanes - Elias Pettersson, C, Timra IK (Sweden)

At this point of the draft, it’s hard to nail down which player teams would covet more. But Carolina’s so stacked defensively that we know they’ll aim for a forward in the first round.

Pettersson might be the pick. He’s a pure playmaker, with arguably the best vision in the draft. You could see him becoming a true power play threat for the Hurricanes down the road, making him worth a pick here even though he’ll have a longer development than most.

13. Los Angeles Kings - Michael Rasmussen, C, Tri-City (WHL)

Size and skill are a rare combo for centers these days, but Rasmussen fits that mold. His 6’5 frame makes him seem Kings-worthy already, and his poise around the net makes him a valuable offensive presence on the power play.

14. Tampa Bay Lightning - Juuso Valimaki, D, Tri-City (WHL)

Photo by Marissa Baecker/Getty Images

Valimaki is a well-rounded two-way defenseman with leadership qualities already apparent at such a young age. Valimaki’s 55 points lead all teenage WHL defensemen this year, indicating he could make a rapid ascent to the NHL.

15. New York Islanders - Callan Foote, D, Kelowna (WHL)

The Isles drafted five forwards in the first round over the last three drafts. All of them (Josh Ho-Sang, Anthony Beauvillier, Mathew Barzal, Michael Dal Colle, and Kieffer Bellows) are already close to NHL-ready.

So New York should spring for a defenseman this year. Foote, son of Adam Foote, will round out their defensive core nicely. At 6’3, Foote is imposing in his own end with a safe, but smart, game.

16. Toronto Maple Leafs - Nicolas Hague, D, Mississauga (OHL)

And so the run on defensemen begins!

With Nikita Zaitsev and Morgan Rielly in the fold, the Maple Leafs aren’t short of puck-movers on the blue line. They are missing a big body, though. Hague is huge, but mobile: a 6’6 defenseman who captains Mississauga’s power play and isn’t afraid to mix things up in his own end. He could be a jack-of-all-trades, master of none. Or he could be a master of everything. Toronto will gladly take that risk.

17. St. Louis Blues - Ryan Poehling, C/LW, St. Cloud State (NCAA)

Photo by Elsa/Getty Images

With a year of college hockey under his belt, Poehling could reach the NHL quicker than most of his draft peers. That makes him appealing to a lot of teams, particularly contenders.

So will his two-way ability. Poehling is blessed with the skills of a top center and the smarts of a third-line, shut-down winger. Sounds like a Blue, doesn’t he?

18. Nashville Predators - Martin Necas, C, HC Kometa Brno (Czech Republic)

David Poile will do cartwheels if Necas falls this far.

The only knock on the 5’11 center is that he holds onto the puck too long. But that pass-first mentality is born out of strong vision and speed to burn. The Predators lack a true, high-skill center behind Ryan Johansen. Necas can slot into that role.

19. Boston Bruins - Lias Andersson, C, HV71 (Sweden)

Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images

Andersson’s draft stock fell after a quiet World Juniors. The 5’11 center drew attention with a 24-goal season as a 16-year old, but his offensive upside is now in question after a nine-goal season in the Swedish pro league.

His competitiveness isn’t, though. Players with energy, work ethic, and hockey I.Q. are valuable, and the Bruins would make a good fit while Andersson develops his game. And if he re-finds that scoring touch, all the better.

20. Edmonton Oilers - Miro Heiskanen, D, Helsinki HIFK (Finland)

The only knock on Heiskanen? He’s small. That didn’t stop Torey Krug from thriving. It didn’t stop the Stars from drafting Julius Honka. It won’t stop teams from drafting Makar. And it won’t keep the Oilers from jumping at Heiskanen if he falls this far.

Heiskanen disappointed at the World Juniors, but what Finland player didn’t? The Finnish defenseman makes up for his size with an active stick in his own end and can make plays offensively.

21. Calgary Flames - Kristian Vesalainen, LW, Frolunda (SHL)

Calgary should be pleased if Vesalainen is available here. It’s hard to figure why he’s falling in scouts’ eyes. He was such an important player in Finland’s gold medal run in the 2016 World Juniors. Vesalainen has struggled immensely this season, bouncing around Finnish junior and pro hockey with just six goals.

But the talent (skill and a good shot) is there.

22. Anaheim Ducks - Kailer Yamamoto, RW, Spokane (WHL)

The Ducks play a heavy style of hockey, so maybe this is just wishful thinking on our part. Yamamoto is 5’7 but oozes skill. Teams passed on Johnny Gaudreau and Alex DeBrincat because of their size. They all regret it. Anaheim would do well to take Yamamoto here.

23. Ottawa Senators - Maxime Comtois, LW, Victoriaville (QMJHL)

Comtois isn’t the most skilled winger in the draft. He doesn’t have the best shot. But he does have elite speed and a high-energy style that puts opponents back on their heels. He could end up as a top-line winger. He could end up as a bottom-six penalty killer. Whatever role he slides into, Comtois will play it well and make a noticeable impression.

24. Montreal Canadiens - Nikita Popugaev, W, Prince George (WHL)

Photo by Derek Leung/Getty Images

Just look at the kinds of players Montreal targeted at the trade deadline. Big. Strong. Hard to play against.

Popugaev, a 6’5 winger, is all of those things with skill mixed in. He’s struggled since a trade to the Cougars, a more well-rounded team that spreads the offensive love around.

25. New York Rangers - Pierre-Olivier Joseph, D, Charlottetown (QMJHL)

Joseph is garnering first-round consideration because he’s developed confidence with the puck all over the ice. Once he trusted himself to become more involved offensively, his skill and smarts have impressed scouts. The defense-starved Rangers could take a flier on him here.

26. San Jose Sharks - Conor Timmins, D, Sault Ste. Marie (OHL)

Another defenseman playing his way into first-round status. Timmins boasts one of the hardest shots in the draft and leads the OHL in even-strength points. San Jose’s younger forwards are coming along nicely this season, so the Sharks could shore up their blue line with a prospect like Timmins.

27. Arizona Coyotes (from Wild) - Urho Vaakanainen, D, JYP (Finland)

Vaakanainen has the tools to become a strong puck-moving defenseman. Right now, he feels like a “safe” player destined to at least become a quality top-six talent. Arizona might bet on the former.

28. Chicago Blackhawks - Shane Bowers, C, Waterloo (USHL)

Bowers seems like a Jonathan Toews clone: great two-way play with a great shot and great hockey senses. The only question is how high his ceiling is. That question didn’t exist with Toews, and it doesn’t exist with the other centers taken ahead of Bowers.

29. Columbus Blue Jackets - Lukas Elvenes, RW, Rogle (Sweden)

A smart, crafty winger, but one-dimensional right now. Columbus’ Stanley Cup window is just opening, so they have time to let a player like Elvenes work on developing his all-around game. The tools are there, though.

30. Pittsburgh Penguins - Matthew Strome, LW, Hamilton (OHL)

Here’s a risk: a player with the Strome family pedigree and a physical brand of play, but poor foot-speed keeping his ceiling low.

31. St. Louis Blues (from Capitals) - Kole Lind, RW, Kelowna (WHL)

If St. Louis goes all-around with their first pick, they can afford to go all-skill with Lind at 31. Lind might be one of the better goal-scorers in the first round as far as instinct goes. It’s just a matter of whether he can get stronger.

[mitchbeck]

CANTLON'S CORNER: WOLF PACK 2020-21 SEASON

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - With the 2019-20 AHL and Hartford Wolf Pack season officially canceled, talk changes from what could have been, to what awaits at the next training camp that should start at some point in the final months of 2020. For the New York Rangers, their off-season decisions are many and plentiful. The NHL's proposed salary cap which was projected to be between $84 and $88 million two weeks before the pandemic outbreak is out the window as a result of the COVID-19 crisis. Roster decisions will now be even harder for every team's management to handle once that actual number is decided upon. The Rangers have an excess of defensemen as they did last year. There are 19 defensemen in the system and only 12 can dress between the AHL and NHL. Some are heading elsewhere. In New York, Jacob Trouba, Marc Staal, Ryan Lindgren, Brendan Smith, Adam Fox and Tony D’Angelo have the top spots. Staal and Smith each have one year remaining before they reach UFA status. D’Angelo is now an RFA coming off a solid potentially shortened season. Lindgren will be an RFA after next season. In Hartford, there's Libor Hajek, Yegor Rykov, and Sean Day, who are all entering the last year of their entry-level deals. Hajek is at a crossroads. After making the Rangers out of camp last year, he missed 20 games with an injury was supposed to be in Hartford on injury rehab, but never made it back to Broadway. Day started the year in Hartford, then was sent to the team's ECHL affiliates, the Maine Mariners for the remainder of the season in favor of Rykov, who was a upcoming player. Rykov’s stock fell precipitously at the end of the year. He was a healthy scratch in nine of the last 10 games including the last game the Pack played on March 11th against the Providence Bruins. The team elected to play a freshly signed rookie, Zach Guitarri, from Brown University (ECACHL) instead. Rykov could be dealt this summer if the right offer comes along. Rykov was unhappy about how things were progressing with the knock-on him, according to several sources, was his skating. It's not out of the question that Hajek could also potentially be involved in a package deal. Darren Raddysh and Brandon Crawley are both RFA’s this summer. Both Vincent LoVerde and Mason Geersten were already locked up when they signed one-year AHL deals a short time ago. Raddysh played well on both sides of the puck, as did Loverde. They were the number one shutdown tandem for two months. He would appear to have earned himself another one-year deal. After a good training camp, Crawley spent the majority of the season in Maine. LoVerde was very well-respected in the locker room as well as with the coaches. In fact, he played with every defenseman the Wolf Pack had on their roster this season. Geersten proved to be worth his weight in gold and earned a contract coming in as a non-roster invitee. He was the best body-checker on the team and a true heavyweight who took care of the "physical" business and was another solid veteran signee that stabilized the locker room. Both players earned deals with Geersten seeming to deserve a one-way, NHL money deal. The Rangers signed K’Andre Miller to a three-year, entry-level deal just before the season was suspended. Tarmo Reunanen, who was signed last year but played in Finland, enters year two of his three-year deal. In the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), Nils Lundkvist is coming off a strong year and at the WJC. There's also the aforementioned Guitarri. The problem for Reunanen and Lundkvist coming to North America is that in Europe, COVID-19 hit very hard and the question is where or not they will be able to come across the Big Pond because of possible visa issues. Earlier this week, the EU (European Union) discussed an immunity visa that could be issued and there is a whole panoply of security and civil liberties issues that could potentially follow that. It's a total unknown and it's highly possible both could stay in Europe for another year. Defenseman Matt Robertson, from Edmonton (WHL), will likely be signed to a standard three-year, entry-level deal very soon. Among the defenseman only Nick Ebert is the only UFA-Group 6 free agent. It's not likely that Ebert will be re-signed. He could end up elsewhere in the AHL or Europe. In the forward category, there are significant players who are Group 6 UFA’s. the Pack's leading scorer, Vinni Lettieri, and Danny O’Regan. Team captain, Steven Fogarty, is a UFA. Despite possessing a cannon of a slapshot, Lettieri could sign elsewhere. His stock fell in the Rangers' eye over the last year-and-a-half. O’Regan, an old friend of Rangers head coach David Quinn from their BU days, was highly regarded by the Wolf Pack coaching staff. He will likely get a one-or-two year AHL deal in the neighborhood of $300,000K. Then there's Fogarty. He was a solid captain who played through illness and injury. Near the end of the season, he wasn’t putting up with some of the lethargic play that crept back into the lineup and called out his teammates. He could receive another one year, one-way NHL deal, but he will likely test the market. He will get offers and will likely head elsewhere. There are four RFA’s on the roster. They are Boo Nieves, Ryan Gropp, Dawson Leedahl, and Gabriel Fontaine. Gropp, a former second-round pick, after being assigned to ain't took a three-week sabbatical early in the season. He returned to Maine and worked his way back up to the Pack lineup. He played well, but didn’t produce enough points, He could be departing as well. Leedahl spent most of the season in Maine and likely will not be back. Coming off of season-ending, left shoulder surgery, Fontaine will likely get a one-year AHL deal. Nieves is a tough call. He played very well, tallying 12 points in 10 games before suffering from severe migraines. He played just one game the remainder of the year. He was a last-minute scratch in what was to be his second consecutive game. Nieves is a tantalizing talent, but the Rangers pigeonholed him as a defensive center, which didn’t work. He's now 27 and on a one-way, one-year, $700K NHL deal. It isn't likely he will be offered another deal. A really solid player and person, he will likely migrate elsewhere. Entering, the last year of their deals, are the most improved player last season in Tim Gettinger, as well as Ty Ronning, Patrick Newell, Nick Jones, and the wildest of wild cards, a former first-round pick, Lias Andersson. Andersson's unexpected departure back to Sweden on November 18th, not surprisingly, earned him organizational scorn, however, some are said to be still willing to give him another chance. Andersson wasn’t a malcontent but made a rash, impulsive, and immature decision that put him in a box. Inside sources indicate he had a bit of an emotional breakdown two weeks before bolting. The self-imposed stress of having to live up to his being the number seven overall draft pick and producing very little results weighed heavily on him. Unless a larger trade deal is constructed that he's a part of, or he has some huge reversal in his behavior, he'll likely spend the final year of his original deal skating on the bigger surfaces in Sweden. The other first-round pick returning for year two is Vitali Kravtsov, who had a difficult first-year. He went back to Russia after just five games, came back, and showed only glimpses of his skill that made him a seventh overall draft selection as well. He was too inconsistent and did not get enough puck time and his willingness to take a hit to get the puck or to take a shot. Nick Jones, a free agent signee did everything he was asked to do and did a lot of good things on both sides of the faceoff circle. He helped set players up and was very strong on the PK. A looming minus-14 needs to be improved upon. Jones’ Achilles Heel was being unable to finish on his scoring chances. He was reminiscent of a young Jed Ortmeyer. He has likely earned a one-year, two-way AHL deal. Ryan Dmowski and Shawn McBride were the heart of the fourth line. The team relied on them before play was suspended. Both were both on AHL deals and looks like they've earned another one-year, AHL deal. Numbers plus analytics will ultimately determine if they do get offers. Returnee Jake Elmer has two years remaining on his deal. He spent more time in Maine than in Hartford. There's a batch of new signees for the Pack. The 6’7, Austin Rueschhoff, as well as Patrick Khodorenko, Patrick Whelan, Michael O’Leary, and Justin Richards will be in what should be a very competitive training camp whenever that camp actually opens though is anyone's guess. The only UFA on the Pack roster is veteran, Matt Beleskey. He and his $825K NHL cap hit and overall $1.9 million are over. He will end up either with an AHL veteran's deal somewhere else or will take a deal to play in Europe. At the start of the season, the Rangers' not even inviting Beleskey to their NHL training camp was one of the very few questionable moves. He would still be a locker room bonus and gave it his all for the team. Late in the season, he was involved in the line brawl in Springfield in the second to last game of the year that earned him a three-game suspension. Late in the year, the departure of Ville Meskanen was obviously the other "questionable" decision by the team's management. The Wolf Pack could have used him, especially when the team hit the skids during a five game losing streak and a 2-7-1 mark in their final 10 games. Meskanen could have easily made a difference in the team's slide rather than having to rely on signing guys, like Connor Bleackly, to PTO’s and ATO’s to fill in the gaps. Goaltending is a major hot button issue for the Rangers. There are presently seven in the organization. A bit of a soap opera will play out until the situation with future Hall-of-Famer, Henrik Lundquist, is resolved. He is entering the last year of his $8.5 million per year deal. Alexander Georgiev becomes an RFA, and Igor Shesterkin enters year two of his two-year deal. An option for the Rangers is to buy-out Lundqvist. Trading Georgiev is another option. Meanwhile, in Hartford, Adam Huska (UCONN) is in his second year. J.F. Berube is there and is a UFA. Tyler Wall was just signed out of UMASS-Lowell (HE) and makes for a very congested organizational goalie crease area. Toss in the drafted, but unsigned, Olof Lindbom, who is coming off an injury sustained while playing with Mora IK (Sweden-Allsvenskan), and his hopes for a bounce back season in Sweden in the SHL possibly with Farjestad BK, where he played one game with last year. He is also WJC eligible. Lots to ponder about the 24th edition of the Wolf Pack coming out of this pandemic. Stay safe. Read the full article

[paradoxicalca]

(OC) Don Cherry Drafts the Toronto Maple Leafs (An Alternate Reality)

(Previous parts of this series include: Tom Wilson-Proofing the Penguins, Dundon DIYs the Hurricanes, Re-Chiarelling the Oilers, Moneyballing the Sens, Covertly Tanking the Wild, and Frenchifying the Canadiens.)​This is way longer than I thought it would be - turns out 2004 is longer ago than I thought.~~~~~~~~~~~Part INobody remembers exactly how it happened.According to the contract, it was the 20th of December, 2003. The Maple Leafs had just defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-2, their fourteenth consecutive game without a regulation loss. General Manager John Ferguson Jr. was riding high, and he didn't care who knew it. He was just months into his tenure with the Leafs and he was already almost certain to be the first GM to bring a Cup to Toronto in 36 years. So he decided to celebrate with friends and a few bottles of wine at the best restaurant he could think of: Wayne Gretzky's, just a few blocks away.Half-remembered through the haze of cigar smoke and wine, it was one of the best nights of Ferguson's life. The soirée was a who's who of hockey royalty - incredible stories were being passed around over freshly microwaved meatloaf and cheese-sprinkled nachos. But the life of the party was CBC's Don Cherry. He had regaled the group with anecdotes about Ferguson's father - "one of the toughest guys you'll ever see in the National Hockey League, and he could put pucks in the net! Ya don't see that much these days!" But he also had a lot of concerns with the direction the league and the Leafs had taken - drafting gutless players who'd never win a Cup like Alex Steen in the first round. "If I was in charge of scouting", he assured Ferguson, "teams wouldn't be excited to be playing the Leafs I tell ya!"The next morning, Ferguson awoke with a splitting hangover and checked his answering machine. Don's voice bellowed out:"Hey Johnny, glad we could work things out last night. I won't let you down I'll tell ya that much!"Ferguson had no idea what he was talking about until he received the email from Cherry's lawyer. Attached was a picture of a hand-written but impeccably worded contract with both men's signatures on it.The signing parties of this legally binding contract recognize the following stipulations: 1. That Mr. Donald Cherry be vested with the full and final power to decide who the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey club drafts in the first round of the National Hockey League entry draft. 2. That the Toronto Maple Leafs not trade their first round pick in the NHL Entry Draft without the express permission of Mr. Cherry. 3. That the Toronto Maple Leafs not trade players that Mr. Cherry has drafted without the express permission of Mr. Cherry. 4. That the existence of this contract not be disclosed to the public unless the Toronto Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup or the contract is violated. 5. That the violation of the above stipulations will result in the payment of $50,000,000 CDN to the estate of Mr. Cherry. 6. That the above be valid each year for the remainder of Mr. Cherry's life, regardless of changes made to management or ownership. To their horror, the Leafs' lawyers could not figure out a way out of this. From that day on, Don Cherry was the most important scout the Leafs had.Part II2004While Cherry was tempted by the notion of receiving Brian Leetch from the Boston Bruins, he was keen to make a swift impact on the Leafs' future. With the 24th overall pick, the Leafs selected G David Shantz of the Mississauga Ice Dogs. When he asked if this pick was solely based on that fact that Shantz played for the OHL team Cherry owned, Ferguson was assured that Shantz is a beautiful kid and a hell of a goalie, and always willing to sacrifice the body to block shots.2005When the Leafs' scouting department told Cherry that they wanted to pick some Euro named Tooka Rask, he was amazed that a guy as smart as Ferguson had hired those morons. They wanted to pick a goalie outta Finland? Guy probably had never even faced a slapshot before! Not to mention that Shantzy was already their franchise goalie of the future. Instead they drafted a real big kid with #1 defenceman potential: D Matt Pelech, a 6'4 member of the Sarnia Sting. He may not be an offensive guy, but 74 penalty minutes in 31 games? This guy's a Hall of Famer in the making.2006The Leafs barely missed the playoffs, in large part due to bad goaltending. When Cherry heard that Ferguson had tried to trade Shantz to Boston for Andrew Raycroft he was mad. When he heard that his scouts wanted some guy named Yeery Taloosty outta Checkaslovakia he was furious. You gotta beautiful kid like LW Chris Stewart on the board and you're gonna take some wuss? Ridiculous.2007The backstabbing son of a bitch tried to do it again. What is it with Ferguson and these Finnish goalies? You wanna give up a first for Vensa Toksala? Unbelievable. He told Cherry that it was a shallow draft and that the pickings would be weak at 13th overall. Ya wanna call LW Colton Gillies weak to his face? Here's a beautiful kid, big kid, 6'4 207 with size and a hell of a shot, plays the game the right way, nephew of a good guy: Clark Gillies.2008Ferguson was fired in January, and Cliff Fletcher was hired as his interim replacement. The team finally had a top draft pick, and Cherry was ready for a fight. Luckily, everyone could agree that they had to pick up a beautiful kid named D Luke Schenn. He can hit, he'll drop the gloves, and his tendency to ice the puck will give Cherry plenty of opportunities to complain about touch icing on Coach's Corner.2009Chris Stewart, Luke Schenn, and Colton Gillies made their NHL debuts and boy did they look big out there. Viewers of Hockey Night in Canada wondered why Cherry was constantly advocating ferociously for the Maple Leafs to call up David Shantz from the ECHL. New general manager Brian Burke, when informed by his predecessor of the Cherry contract, was completely non-perturbed until he realized it would stop him from trading away first round picks.The 7th overall pick demands real reflection: so many beautiful kids available. You got Jared Cowen, Zack Kassian outta Windsor - now there's a guy who stands up to his teammates. And then there's Kadri. TALK ABOUT HEART this kid is a hardworker, gets to the tough areas, God love ya. Cherry decides to let Burke take C Nazem Kadri.2010No way in hell is Don gonna let Burke trade those precious picks for some American guy who doesn't even defend. The Leafs, led in scoring by Chris Stewart, finish second last in the NHL. Brian Burke invests a full month trying to convince Cherry to let him take Tyler Saygenn. But it's no use. Sure Seygen's flashy, and Cherry's sure he's a nice kid, mum and dad raised him well, but when you've got D Erik Gudbranson on the board you're taking the 6'5 defenceman every day of the week.2011Another big season by Chris Stewart keeps the Leafs out of the basement but the rebuild continues. By the end of the season they end up with the 7th overall pick. Cherry tells the scouts he's considering two players: Sam Couttserier and Dougie Hamilton. The scouts try to sell him on the Bathurst product but it was never really in doubt: Hamilton is a beautiful kid, plays the game right, big shot from the point, 6"6, and plays for the Ice Dogs. D Dougie Hamilton is the guy. Fortunately for Hamilton, his parents unwittingly helped his career prospects by concealing his love of reading and museums from Cherry when they met at the CHL Top Prospects Game. Cherry also fully supports Burke's picks of RW Tyler Biggs and D Stuart Percy.2012At this point, Cherry can hardly watch a Leafs game without bursting into tears at the beauty of it. Kadri and Stewart at forward, Schenn, Phaneuf, and Gudbranson on defence. Sure the team is absolutely terrible, but they're losing the right way. The Leafs end up with the 3rd overall pick, and appear poised to draft talented centre Alex Galchneeyuck. Instead they pick up a real good guy: D Griffin Reinhart.2013With Stewart falling off a cliff and no offensive star to replace him, the Leafs do not make the playoffs in 2013. Instead, they draft LW Max Domi at 10th overall, good kid from a great family, an absolute beauty, you know his dad, his dad always left it all out on the ice, still a good friend, loves the troops, good stuff! The scouts don't even bother trying to talk him into taking a Russian guy named Valerie.2014Shanahan is now in charge and is furious that nobody mentioned this arrangement to him before he promised fans a full rebuild. William Neelander was never gonna be Cherry's guy. It's LW Nick Ritchie. He’s 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds. Only three players scored more than this guy. He is tough. He can score. He has beautiful hands. Leafs have enough weak wingers.2015The Maple Leafs take a guy with size and skill D Noah Hanifin with the 4th overall pick, and Cherry almost dissociates at the thought of drafting an American over a beautiful Ontario kid like Marner.2016The Leafs finally bottom out. Shanahan begs Cherry to take a guy from the Southern USA who plays in friggin Switzerland of all places, Austin Matthews, 1st overall instead of LW Matthew Tkachuk. Beautiful kid, and what a family I tell ya what I REMEMBER yknow Keith now there's a hockey player they send him down to the desert, what a disgrace, there's a great player!2017With the 10th overall pick, the Leafs take D Cal Foote, big kid from a beautiful family, his dad, Adam, big friend of the show, always finished his checks, and that's why, yknow that's why he's got those rings! These goofs really wanted some girly looking Euro called Timoth Linegren, forget about it. Cherry is really starting to hate these hippy pinkos in charge of the Leafs.2018Leafs go off the board and select C Ryan McLeod outta Mississauga in the mid-1st round instead of trading down for Rasma Sandy (again with the Swedes? It's a nice place to visit sure but quit sending us hockey players!). John Tavares chooses to sign with the San Jose Sharks, a contender, instead of the mediocre Leafs. Desperate for a 2nd pair left defenceman, the Leafs sign Jack Johnson to a 5 year, 4 million AAV contract.EpilogueThe Maple Leafs now have this lineup :​Matthew Tkachuk - Max Domi - Zach Hyman Patrick Marleau - Nazem Kadri - Andreas Johnsson Tyler Ennis - Brandon Leipsic - Josh Leivo Tyler Biggs - Dominic Moore - Leo Komarov Noah Hanifin - Dougie Hamilton Jack Johnson - Erik Gudbranson Griffin Reinhart - Luke Schenn Fredrik Andersen Garret Sparks Shanahan decides that enough is enough. Bringing his new General Manager Kyle Dubas with him, he summons Cherry for a meeting in the Maple Leafs war room. Grapes mockingly wears a pink three piece suit dotted with Shanahan's face."Don, we're here to negotiate. We need to get out of this contract.""Oh THAT'S what this is about then eh? Ya need more Swedes and Soviets out there? That's not how ya win a Cup!""We're willing to offer you 25 million dollars in cash right now to void the agreement."After a couple minutes of thinking, Cherry realizes that could buy every team in the QMJHL and fold them for that money. "Awright ya punks, you gotta deal. But these team's goin' nowhere if you pack it full of Euros and weaklings." He stares directly at Dubas and barks "Kids, you gotta always keep your head up out there or you're gonna get hit""Are you threatening him?""He knows I'm kiddin' around! I swear, these guys out here, can't take a joke anymore. Ya know Shanny, you were a real good player hard in the corners good Irish kid God love ya. Dunno why ya went so soft."Shanahan shakes his head "Don, the game's changed. You need speed and skill, not just big tough guys out there to win. It's not like when you were playing anymore."Don gets up and walks towards the door, but turns around before leaving. The old man's face is as orange as the jersey Bobby Clarke used to wear, now there's a player, eat your heart out yknow when we used to play the Flyers ya had to watch out for that guy because he's small sure but what a warrior he'd drop the gloves no questions asked. He has tears in his eyes."Yeah whatever Shanny. This isn't the first time I've gotten in trouble for putting too many men on the ice."~~~~~~~~~~~~~Next time: The Islanders accidentally give Mike Milbury a second chance. (OC) Don Cherry Drafts the Toronto Maple Leafs (An Alternate Reality) Source

[fiveonfir3]

Four Thoughts: Turnpike Divided

1. The Rangers hiring of John Davidson could probably take up an entire Four Thoughts column on its own, so this point will be slightly watered down. Hiring JD as far as the rebuild is concerned is significant and that’s probably an understatement. The Rangers are JD’s third team in which he has started at the bottom of a rebuild and has left the last two franchises in much better shape than he left them in. David Backes and Alex Pietrangelo had nothing but glowing things to say about his time in St. Louis and his contributions both on and off the ice. JD only left St. Louis because of a new ownership group coming in and felt like his contract with the team was a “burden on the club” as JD put it back in 2012. JD did a fantastic job dealing with the post Rick Nash era coming out of the 2012 lockout with the Blue Jackets and shaped the team to the playoffs in 4 of the last 6 seasons after just one appearance in 13 seasons before that. As far as the present is concerned, I’m curious to see if there’s any change to draft philosophy and how NYR attack the July 1 UFA class moving forward. As the rebuild continues, drafting for value remains a critical part towards NYR playing meaningful spring hockey again.

2. I wanted to expand further on a tweet I made on May 11th, asking whether NYR fans were getting more nervous about the Devils possibly taking Kakko first over Hughes in the draft. It’s been well known that Jack Hughes was going to go first overall for the last several years. In the same way that Connor McDavid was, Sidney Crosby was, John Tavares was, etc. Time will tell if Jack Hughes becomes that kind of elite center but to automatically assume that Hughes going first as a stone cold lock, with the way Kakko is playing right now is a bit of a stretch. Draft boards across the league have yet to be completely written in stone, so you can bet there will be some teams that have Kakko ahead of Hughes when the smoke finally clears. For example, it’s a poorly kept secret that the Rangers had Elias Pettersson ranked first on their draft board and actively tried to move up for him during the 2017 draft while other teams were debating Hischier vs. Patrick. So anything is possible.

3. I’ve been partial to Kakko over Hughes not because of his skating ability and edgework. Or his play in the corners behind the net, or his ability to protect the puck. But his ability to make his teammates better, while playing in a mens league in Finland, is something that only comes naturally to a select few. The game length footage I’ve watched of Kakko at the WJC tournament and now at Worlds only confirms that. This is not meant to knock Hughes, who has played on a loaded USNTDP roster which could potentially have 5 players drafted in the top 15 next month. But again, what Kakko has done over this last season, breaking Aleksander Barkov’s goals record for a U-18 player, isn’t something I can easily push aside. I’m looking forward to the Hughes vs. Kakko debate for years to come. As a side note, circling back around to Hughes’ teammates at the USNTDP, I’ve been doing a little researching to see who could be available at 20th overall. If NYR had the chance to take Cole Caufield, who has put up record breaking offensive totals, I don’t know how you could pass him up. Elsewhere, another player I’m keeping an eye on is Raphael Lavoie, who plays for Halifax in the QMJHL. I’ll be watching him in the Memorial Cup tournament. Defensively, I’m giving a long look to Philip Broberg, a left handed defenseman from Sweden. There will be plenty to choose from at 20th overall if the Rangers keep the pick.

4. I had mentioned in my last Four Thoughts piece about NYR potentially offer sheeting a player, suggesting Marner or Laine as part of this years RFA crop. Elliotte Friedman mentioned on his 31 Thoughts podcast released on 5/16, that he believes if NYR attempt to sign anyone, it’s Brayden Point in Tampa Bay. As mentioned above, JD does come into play here. Adding Point would be interesting because of the logjam that’s still very prevalent up the middle from last season. It might make more sense to work out a trade for Point, rather than the four first picks that it’s going to require sending to Tampa if they don’t match an offer sheet. I have my own personal reservations about Point and giving him that kind of money might not be worth it for the Rangers in the long term, but that’ll be a bridge we’ll cross later if we get to it.

4a. Prediction review again. I have not had a good spring with this.

(CAR in 6) BOS in 4- So there’s no one out there that had the Bruins sweeping this series, but if Tuukka Rask isn’t playing the best hockey of his career right now... wow. Poor Carolina didn’t have much of a chance. The magic ran out at the wrong time. Mrazek’s injury didn’t help either.

(SJ in 7) STL in 6- Yes, the Sharks skated by with some incredible puck luck in the first two rounds, but if the Sharks really want to take the next step with what they have there, they really need a goalie that can do it because Martin Jones isn’t that guy. Jordan Binnington is quite literally the calmest, most relaxed goalie I have ever seen. I think that kind of idiosyncrasy has actually spread to the rest of the team. And because of it, the hand pass that led to Erik Karlsson’s goal in Game 3, which could’ve easily derailed them, didn’t get the Blues down. In fact, that was the last game they’ve lost.

SCF Prediction- This series is going to be so incredibly tight, it’s hard to find where one team has a distinct advantage. Boston might have more skill up front, but both are incredibly deep and extremely good on the blue line. Leaving my anti-Boston bias aside, I still like the Blues in 7. We’ve seen what happens this postseason when teams get too much rest, and I don’t think it’ll be much different here either. Only this time, the team that swept the prior round won’t get swept in the next round.