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Last Word On Sports

Sports News Since 2011. Honestly.

Last Word On Sports Logo

Sports. Honestly. Since 2011

Year: 2012

England Took on the World in Friendly Soccer Match for UNICEF

Posted on by Grant Alexander

Soccer Aid is a charity event that was started in 2006 and has raised over $6.5 million  for UNICEF over that time. The event is held every two years and is showcased by a soccer match involving celebrities and soccer legends from around the world. The match is always set up the same way, pitting “Team England” versus “Team World”, and is played in various stadiums around England. The 2012 Soccer Aid match was held this past Sunday in Manchester, and I don’t think I’m alone in saying, “who knew”?

I have heard of the event before, but the only problem is I usually hear about it after it’s been played. I have to admit, I don’t have my ear to the ground in the soccer community, but for an event of this magnitude I shouldn’t have to. I know the event was heavily publicized in England, but what about the rest of the world? With major celebrities such as Michael Sheen, Will Ferrell, Gordon Ramsey, Gerard Butler, Edward Norton, Woody Harrelson, and Canadian icon Mike Myers taking part, it definitely flew under the radar in North America. In my opinion it was a missed opportunity not only for the fans, but for the world-wide charity UNICEF. You don’t have to be a soccer fan, or even a sports fan to enjoy some hijinks from your favourite celebrities. And if you are a sports fan, you could have enjoyed watching some world-class talent take the pitch together. Either way, I hope next time ’round we hear about the event in advance.

The 2012 Soccer Aid rosters:

England Squad

Celebrities

Jonathan Wilkes (Captain)
Robbie Williams
Paddy McGuinness
Marvin Humes
Jamie Theakston
Aston Merrygold
John Bishop
Olly Murs
Jason Isaacs
Mark Owen
Ben Shephard

Legends

David Seaman
Des Walker
Teddy Sheringham
Kevin Phillips
Martin Keown
Graeme Le Saux

World Squad

Celebrities

Michael Sheen (captain)
Will Ferrell
Gordon Ramsay
Gerard Butler
Patrick Kielty
James McAvoy
Sergio Pizzorno
Mike Myers
Joe Calzaghe
Edward Norton
Woody Harrelson

Legends

Edwin van der Sar
Jaap Stam
Clarence Seedorf
Roy Keane
Hernan Crespo
Fredrik Ljungberg

This year’s match saw the Brits win 3-1 on goals from Sheringham, Wilkes, and Phillips. Pizzorno got the lone goal for the World squad. Other highlights included a yellow card by England’s Paddy McGuinness, and two notable injuries to World players, Will Ferrell and Gordon Ramsay. Both players were forced to leave the match, with Gordon Ramsay being taken to the hospital for minor injuries.

It’s always nice to see celebrities and athletes take time out of their schedules for a good cause, and what better cause than UNICEF?  They get paid boatloads of money to do what they do best, and from my point of view, giving back to the community and to those less fortunate isn’t mandatory, but it sure says a lot about their character.

…and that is the Last Word.

If anyone saw the event, we would love to hear from you in the comment section below.

NFL QB's War of Words!

Posted on by Anto Dowsett

The title may be a bit dramatic, but Cam Newton and Alex Smith are definitely involved in a spat. And, to make matters worth, a bunch of NFL players are involved in this war on Twitter, including Panthers’ Jon Beason and Thomas Davis and 49ers’ linebacker Patrick Willis, just to name a few.

It all started with an Alex Smith interview – “I could absolutely care less on yards per game, I think that is a totally overblown stat because if you’re losing games in the second half, guess what, you’re like the Carolina Panthers and you’re going no-huddle the entire second half. Yeah, Cam Newton threw for a lot of 300-yard games. That’s great. You’re not winning, though.”

These comments created quite an uproar over Twitter.  Smith, a mediocre quarterback at best throughout his career, could not keep his comments to himself, and just had to “chirp” Cam and his Panthers. This was not such a great idea, especially since things he said weren’t exactly true. Many of the Panthers’ games were close towards the end, therefore, Carolina was not in no-huddle the entire second half of games.  Also, Cam only had three 300-yard games, and the last time I checked, the number three was not defined as “a lot”.

Smith, who did finish 13-3 last year, was not an all-pro quarterback despite the great record.  Perhaps the defence had something to do with it?  In fact, Cam averaged 55 more passing yards per game last year over Smith, and he was undoubtedly involved in many more touchdowns.

On the other hand, Smith did have more wins than Cam, and football, like all sports, is all about winning. San Francisco this year asked Smith to manage the game rather than lead it. They figured they would let their stellar defense and fabulous running game do the winning for them. The plan obviously worked as the ‘niners played in the NFC championship.

All the Twitter chirping prompted some backup, as Jon Beason, Carolina’s starting MLB, came to the defence of Newton and told Smith how he would have lost his job if Manning would have chosen San Fran over Denver. Mind you, many quarterbacks in the league would lose their job to a healthy Peyton Manning.

To end off, Smith has to realize that he does less for his team than Newton does, and that’s a fact. Put Newton on the 49ers and who knows how last year would have ended. But of course, that’s speculation and we can only imagine.  So for now, Smith can chirp all his wants, showing the confidence he has in himself, and his team…we’ll just see if he can in fact be the last piece to San Fran’s puzzle.

…and that is the last word.

NHL Mock Draft Part II – Picks 15 – 29

Posted on by Ben Kerr

Yesterday I brought you the first half of our NHL Mock Draft.  You can read Part 1 (picks 1-14) here and Part 3 (picks 31-48) here and Part 4 (Picks 49-65) here

Before we move into the second half, lets quickly review the FAQs about this mock draft.

– Our draft Rankings are arrived at jointly, while the mock draft is my work alone.  So if I go away from the rankings greatly that could be one reason why.

– The rankings are pure “Best Player Available”.  The mock draft takes into account team style of play, the prospects already in the team’s system, and prior draft trends, this is another reason why I haven’t followed the ranks exactly.

Edit: June 13th, the New Jersey Devils have decided to keep their pick, so we will be adding them in.

– I am doing a mock draft with no trades (except those that have already been made).

– If you click the player’s name, you will get a link to their draft profile.

Got it?  Good.  Lets move to part 2 of the mock draft.

15) Ottawa Senators – Codi Ceci
Bryan Murray is thrilled to see the 67s defence product still on the board.  Since Murray came aboard the team has acquired a number of former 67s and other local Ottawa area players, so this certainly fits with the local philosophy.  Ceci is an excellent defence prospect in a draft full of them.  Last year the Senators loaded up on forwards taking Mika Zibanejad, Matt Puempel, Stefan Noesen, Shane Prince, and Jean Gabriel Pageau with their 5 of their first 6 picks, with the only exception a 3rd rounder that was traded to Columbus for Nikita Filatov.  After a draft like that, and the Rundblad for Turris trade, replenishing the D pipeline makes sense, especially with so many D available at this point in the draft.

16) Washington Capitals – Matt Finn
At pick 11 the Capitals took centre Radek Faksa, with the thinking being that George McPhee loves two way centremen. At pick 16 the Capitals follow another of their recent draft trends by taking a two way defenceman, who is a very good skater. The Capitals have depth on the main club and in their system at all positions, and adding a guy like Finn just adds to it.

17) San Jose Sharks – Zemgus Girgensons
The Sharks are pleased that the best available player is a forward. They are able to take Girgensons and add him to a position where they have needs. The Sharks may be deeper at Centre than at Wing, but this is a team that hasn’t been afraid to play centres on the wing in order to load up their forward lines.

18) Chicago Blackhawks – Derrick Pouliot
Pouliot already wheres a similar uniform playing for the Portland Winterhawks, so its easy to envision him in a Blackhawks jersey. Pouliot is a pure offensive defenceman with great skating, and while it may take time he could develop into a player similar to Brian Campbell who the Hawks traded away last year. With Picks of Mark McNeill and Brandon Saad last year, Pouliot fills an organizational need as well as being the best available player here.

19) Tampa Bay Lightning (from Detroit) – Malcolm Subban
The Lightning addressed the Defence Core earlier with Griffin Reinhart picked at 10. At 19 they take the best goalie in this draft, tabbing Malcolm Subban from the Belleville Bulls. Subban won’t fix the Lightning’s immediate need for a goalie, but he will allow them to develop a future starter.

20) Philadelphia Flyers – Slater Koekkoek
The Flyers made over the team’s offence in the last year with the additions of Brayden Schenn, Schenn Couturier, Matt Read, and Wayne Simmonds. At the back end, Kimmo Timmonen is still playing well, but he is getting older, and Chris Pronger’s career in jeopardy. Slater Koekkoek is a talented defender who would have been taken slightly earlier if not for a shoulder injury, so the FLyers are pleased to get him.

21) Buffalo Sabres (from Nashville) – Hampus Lindholm
The Sabres used their own pick to take Sebastian Collberg. They use the Nashville Predators pick to take Hampus Lindholm, giving them two Swedes in this year’s draft. The Sabres will hope that the talented PP QB will develop into someone who can dish passes to Tyler Myers and Christian Ehrhoff and allow them to be the trigger men at the point of the Sabres PP.

22) Pittsburgh Penguins – Pontus Aberg
The Penguins always seem to be on the search for wingers to play with their trio of talented centres. This year they take Aberg, the Swedish Sniper. He has speed to burn, and is a sharp shooter with a great one timer, and I’m sure he’ll look great converting passes from Malkin, Crosby, or even Staal.

23) Florida Panthers – Tomas Hertl
The Panthers have accumulated a ton of picks and prospects in recent years under Dale Tallon. This gives them the opportunity to draft for a pure best player available. The Panthers see the Talented Hertl as fulfilling that need, and a potential future linemate for the talented Jonathan Huberdeau.

24) Boston Bruins – Brady Skjei
The Boston Bruins go for an American Defencemen with offensive skills here. Skjei and Dougie Hamilton could form and effective PP tandem for the Bruins going forward, plus he’d give the Boston faithful an actual reason to chant “USA, USA” when Canadian based teams are in the Garden, while other than their goalie who doesn’t support the way the country is being run.

25) St. Louis Blues – Ludvig Bystrom
The Blues continue to build from the net out with the addition of the Swedish Defender Ludvig Bystrom.  With Alex Pietrangelo, and Kevin Shattenkirk, Bystrom would give the Blues an excellent stable of puck movers on their blue line going forward.

26) Vancouver Canucks – Tom Wilson
Mike Gillis identified an organizational need for big, tough forwards and addressed this need by acquiring Zach Kassian at the trade deadline.  Gillis continues the work of toughening up the Canucks forward lines by taking the hulking Wilson.  Wilson and Kassian could team together in a few years to form a Vancouver chapter of the Bruise Brothers.

27) Phoenix Coyotes  – Henrik Samuelsson
The Phoenix Coyotes are thrilled with this pick.  They take the Best Player Available, and he fills an organizational need for a young power forward as well.  On top of that, its a player who is a marketting dream, (a kid born in Scottsdale, Arizona) and someone they are very familar with as Ulf Samuelsson was a Coyotes’ assistant coach from 2006 through 2011.

28) New York Rangers –  Colton Sissons
Glen Sather loves big, physical players, and as such takes the best prospect who possesses those attributes with the 28th overall pick.  The young Sissons also oozes intangibles and leadership something the Rangers have been very big on in recent years.  The Kelowna captain seems a perfect fit for the Broadway Blue Shirts.

29) New Jersey Devils – Michael Matheson
Lou Lamoriello has always believed in mobile defensive defensemen, and takes Matheson out of the USHL’s Fighting Saints.  Matheson is an excellent skater who plays a solid two way game.  The Devils were extremely pleased to get Adam Larsson in 2011, and hope that they have found another anchor to their defense core here.

30) Los Angeles Kings – Phil DiGiuseppe
Scott Howson and the Blue Jackets decline their option on taking the Kings pick and choose to take the 2013 selection from the Jeff Carter trade. The Kings take DiGiuseppe who played this season at the University of Michigan and is the best available player at this point in the draft.  The Kings add the winger, and will look for him to continue to grow at the NCAA level before bringing him to the pros.

 

I’ve decided that 30 picks aren’t enough…. so I’m gonna give a freebie pick 31.

After the draft Columbus ownership is so upset with the decision to wait for the 2013 draft (Its a good decision, but they are upset anyway) and they fire GM Scott Howson immediately after TSN and the NHL Network go off the air in Pittsburgh.  Needing an immediate replacement, they bring in Mike Keenan.  His first act as GM is to make the Blue Jackets pick in the 2nd round of the draft.  Keenan hasn’t been doing any draft preparation, obviously, but when he asks the Columbus scouts for a list of the 5 best available players, one name stands out to Keenan.

31) Columbus Blue Jackets (1st pick of the 2nd round) – Stefan Matteau
Keenan does what he always does when taking over a new team, he acquires Stefan Matteau.  Of course I’m just joking with the whole Mike Keenan scenario, but I do believe that Matteau would be a good pick for the Blue Jackets here.  A young power foward prospect to help build some up front depth amongst their prospects, especially with the possible trade of Rick Nash this summer.

Check in tomorrow as we will continue the draft prospect profiles with #52.

Part 3 is now available here.

Part 4 (Picks 49-65) is available here. 

Feel free to leave your comments below and follow me on Twitter @lastwordBKerr

For a listing of NHL Mock drafts around the internet, please check out our friends at the NHL mock database.

…. and Thats the Last Word.

NHL Mock Draft – 1st Round (Part 1: Picks 1-14)

Posted on by Ben Kerr

Instead of our normal draft profiles today I begin the first round of my NHL mock draft.  Today I bring you picks 1-14, or the selections that belonged to teams that missed this year’s NHL playoffs.  Picks 15-30 can be found here: Mock Draft Part 2. Picks 31-48 can be found here: Mock Draft Part 3 and Picks 49 to 65 are here: Mock Draft Part 4

Some things to keep in mind:

– Our draft Rankings are arrived at jointly, while the mock draft is my work alone.  So if I go away from the rankings greatly that could be one reason why.

– The rankings are pure “Best Player Available”.  The mock draft takes into account team style of play, the prospects already in the team’s system, and prior draft trends, this is another reason why I haven’t followed the ranks exactly.

– I have assumed the New Jersey Devils will forfeit their first round pick this year as punishment for the Kovalchuk Circumvention ruling, (they must pick one year between 2011-2014 to forfeit a first rounder).  I am guessing this year is the year since they will be picking 29th or 30th.  As a result we have a complete finalized 2012 Draft Order.
Edit: The Devils have chosen to keep their pick – reported June 13, 2012.

– I am doing a mock draft with no trades (except those that have already been made).

– If you click the player’s name, you will get a link to their draft profile.

So without further ado, here we go… the 2012 Mock Draft.

1) Edmonton Oilers – Nail Yakupov
The Oilers take the Best Player Available in this year’s draft.  Despite having young forwards like Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, and Ryan Nugent Hopkins, the Oilers pass up the temptation to draft for need, and take the dynamic Russian winger.  With Yakupov now onboard, the Oilers offence will terrorize NHL coaches, defenders, and goalies for years to come.

2) Columbus Blue Jackets – Ryan Murray
The Blue Jackets take Murray and continue to rebuild a defence that has been remodeled with the acquisitions of James Wisniewski and Jack Johnson in the last 12 months. Murray should grow to be an excellent complement to Johnson taking on the major defensive responsibilities in the pairing, while also providing puck-moving skills, and offence.

3) Montreal Canadiens – Alex Galchenyuk
The Habs have not had a big, dynamic, offensive centre since the days of Vincent Damphousse, and before him, Bobby Smith.  Galchenyuk with his two-way play, great skating, work as a gym rat, excellent wrist shot/release, and good family bloodlines, is the prototypical forward pick of Habs director of scouting Trevor Timmins.

4) New York Islanders – Mathew Dumba
The Islanders are an extremely difficult organization to predict.  However they go for the dynamic, right handed shooting defenceman Matt Dumba.  With young Forwards like Tavares, Strome, Neiderreiter, Nelson, Bailey, and Grabner all on the team or in the system, the Isles will choose a defender here.

5) Toronto Maple Leafs – Filip Forsberg
Brian Burke and the Leafs were desperately hoping that Galchenyuk would fall to them, but he didn’t.  The Leafs have a well-trusted scout in Thommie Bergman in Sweden, and he recommends the drafting of Forsberg.  Burke liking the developping physical game agrees, and pulls the trigger on the young Swede.

6) Anaheim Ducks – Mikhail Grigorenko
After reaping the big benefit of Cam Fowler falling on draft boards in 2010, the Ducks are thrilled to see the same happen this year to Russian Centre Mikhail Grigorenko.  Grigorenko’s poor finish this season, and disappointing playoffs have scared off some scouts, but the Ducks believe that with reports of mono, and a bad ankle he’s worth the risk, and are pleased to take him.

7) Minnesota Wild – Morgan Rielly
With Michael Granlund, Charlie Coyle, and Zach Phillips headlining an incredibly deep group of forward prospects in the Wild system, the team is thrilled to see only 2 defencemen taken in the first 6 picks.  They choose the offensive minded, smooth skating Rielly who fills a need for the Wild and also happens to be the best player available at 7.

8.) Carolina Hurricanes – Teuvo Teravainen
Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford went against his instincts in 2011 when he took defenceman Ryan Murphy in the first round.  Rutherford has long said he doesn’t like taking defencemen too early in a draft, unless they are too good to pass up.  Last year the falling Murphy qualified, this year he goes back to his normal strategy and takes a forward.  The incredibly skilled Teravainen has been a huge riser on draft boards and he cracks the top 10.

9) Winnipeg Jets – Jacob Trouba
The Jets have a good, and relatively young defence core and have a continuing need to add more offence. That said they quite simply can’t pass up a defenceman here. Trouba is the clear Best player available, and as such the Jets take him at 9th overall.

10) Tampa Bay Lightning – Griffin Reinhart
The Lightning are up with the first of their two first round picks.  They tab Griffin Reinhart, the huge defenceman who starred for the Edmonton Oil Kings in the WHL playoffs and Memorial Cup.  With young forwards like Steven Stamkos, Brett Connolly, Nikita Kucherov, and Vladislav Namestnikov on the team and in the system, Yzerman is thrilled to see the Best player available is a defenceman.

11) Washington Capitals (from Colorado) – Radek Faksa
GM George McPhee loves big 2-way centres, and Faksa fits the bill here.  The young Czech centre had an impressive rookie season for the Kitchener Rangers, and the Capitals use their first of two picks in this round to try to find a future 2nd line centre to play behind Nick Backstrom.

12) Buffalo Sabres – Sebastian Collberg
The Sabres are the third team in a row who are making their first of two picks in the first round.  As a result they have the luxury of taking the best player available.  The Sabres are thrilled to see talented Swedish winger Sebastian Collberg on the board, and hope they’ve found a future first line winger here.

13) Dallas Stars – Olli Maatta
The young Finnish blue liner was especially impressive in the OHL playoffs for the London Knights, and probably raised his draft stock since when we profiled him. The Stars have a big need for high quality defence prospects, and have done well with Finns before, so they roll the dice on Olli Maatta.

14) Calgary Flames – Brendan Gaunce
The Flames seemingly never ending search for a top line centre continues.  They tab Brendan Gaunce as their latest attempt to find one.  It may be too late to say Gaunce will be the centre for Jarome Iginla, but with Sven Baertschi looking like a prime sniper, the need to find a pivot for him will still be there.  Unfortunately for the Flames, the centres available at 14, are probably gonna top out as second line guys.

And that brings us to the end of part 1 of the mock draft.

You can find the next installments here Mock Draft Part 2 (Picks 15-30) and here: Mock Draft Part 3 (Picks 31-48) and here: Mock Draft Part 4 (Picks 49-65)

Feel free to leave your own comments below and follow me on Twitter @LastWordBKerr.

For a listing of NHL Mock drafts around the internet, please check out our friends at the NHL mock database.

… thats the Last Word.

What is the NHL Thinking?

Posted on by Carl Mostacci

 The Los Angeles Kings booked their ticket to the 2012 Stanley Cup Final last Tuesday and the New Jersey Devils last Friday.  Now the last NHL playoff round isn’t scheduled to start until Wednesday May 30th, 2012.  My question is; why is the league waiting so long?  I can understand giving the Devils a full two days to recover from their seven game series with the New York Rangers and starting the final Stanley Cup round on Monday, May 30th, 2012 – that would make sense? But to wait a full five days until Wednesday is way too long.

I honestly can’t figure out what the reason is.  The Kings will have had eight days off between games, and the Devils five.  Both teams are lucky to get that amount of time off during the regular season.  I wonder if it will affect their play early on in the Stanley Cup final?  Whether Game 2, 3, or 4 is televised either on NBC or NBC Sports on the weekend or not, I don’t think will drastically change ratings.  Although, I suppose I have been wrong before.  While I’m on the subject, this isn’t the first time the NHL has waited five days between the conclusion of the third and beginning of the final Stanley Cup rounds.  Does anyone know why this happens?  If you do, please comment below and enlighten me.

Either way I think it’s a ridiculous idea. I just want to watch more hockey!

…and that is the Last Word.

What you need to know after UFC 146

Posted on by Mark Modeski

One thing is always guaranteed after an exciting UFC event; there are going to be at least a few bombs dropped at the event and during the post-fight press conference.  Last night was no different.

There were a couple of bombs dropped on us that should make for some exciting times to come. Here are some of the more interesting ones:

 

 

  • Probably the biggest bomb of the night was that Brock Lesnar may be poised for a return to the UFC. After receiving a camera treatment from the ringside just before the main event, Brock was seen talking with Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta. While Dana confirmed post-fight that they had not discussed his return directly, he said it was “possible”.
  • As I predicted on twitter last night (@lastwordmark) after the Velaszquez v. Silva fight, Velaszquez will likely be next in line for a title shot versus Junior Dos Santos.
  • Dana White mentioned post-fight that he would no longer be dealing directly with Alistair Overeem. Everyone knows Dana’s hardline stance on steroids, and apparently he is the next fighter to be blackballed after his recent positive test. Lorenzo Fertitta will now deal directly with Overeem and his management.
  • Strikeforce heavyweight Grand Prix winner, Daniel Cormier, will be coming to the UFC –although Dana White mentioned he would prefer to see him come in as a light heavyweight. This being said, he did not confirm that Josh Barnett would be coming over to the UFC.
  • The UFC’s return to the UK is imminent, despite failed efforts to-date for the sport to break in there.
  • Despite Arianny Celeste’s recent run-ins, Dana did confirm that she will be staying with the UFC.
  • Jason “Mayhem” Miller is done with the UFC after his loss last night, and for WEC featherweight champ Mike Brown has retired after his win.
  • Gilbert Melendez will not be coming over to the UFC anytime soon.
One thing is for certain, after last night’s event and the ensuing news, the heavyweight division is going to be the one to watch in the rest of 2012… and likely moving into 2013. Stay tuned!

…and that is the Last Word.

Feel free to leave comments about the event below

 

Juventus: Is it Scudetto 28 or 30?

Posted on by Luciano Giuliano

It has been two weeks since the 2011-2012 Serie A season has ended, but ever since Week 37 when Juventus defeated Cagliari 2-0 to mathematically secure the Scudetto, there has been a lot of discussion with regards to the number of titles the Old Lady holds. Is it 28 or is it 30? For every ten titles, a star is added to the team’s jersey.

In 2006, Juventus won the Serie A crown for the 29th time in their history. But lo and behold, the scandal known as ‘Calciopoli’ broke out in which Juventus Director General Luciano Moggi, was found guilty of match-fixing. As a result, the Bianconeri were stripped of two Serie A titles which reduced their tally to 27 and were demoted to Serie B (the second division).

As a rabid Juventus supporter, much to the delight of jealous fans of the other Serie A teams, this was a bitter pill to swallow. Demotion meant the loss of funds, sponsors, Champions League action, and the sale of star players who did not want to remain. In other words: having to rebuild a dynasty from the ground up during a time of economic crisis.

It has taken Juventus six years, millions of dollars, and a massive overhaul of players and administrators to get back on top of the Italian league in order to add another cup to their cabinet – number 28. But the club, players, and fans feel that La Vecchia Signora deserves recognition for winning 30 domestic trophies. That said, Andrea Agnelli, the Juve president, is adamant of adding a third star to the jersey for next season. Gianluigi Buffon, the man who many regard as the world’s best goalkeeper, recently said in an interview that if anyone were to ask him how many titles he has won, he would reply that according to him, he has won five, but the league is only counting three.  The players, especially those who played in the Juve side of 2004-2005 and 2005-2006, feel that in their hearts they deserve recognition as Scudetto winners for those seasons having worked hard to win on the field.

On the other side of the fence is the Italian FA president, Giancarlo Abete, who states that Juventus will be forced to follow the proper protocol meaning that it is Scudetto number 28, not 30 and there will be no third star added at this point in time.

I would love nothing else but to see another star added to the Bianconeri chest. But in my opinion, I think it is more important to respect the rules of European football. It would have been 30 had Calciopoli never happened. Unfortunately, it did. In addition, considering that Juve was not expected to finish top four this season let alone top spot, I think we as Juve fans need to count our lucky stars and just accept that it is what it is. Let’s just enjoy the moment as Serie A champions and hope that the club successfully strengthens the team for next season to open another winning cycle and dynasty, and perhaps taste Champions League glory which has been missing since 1996. So in closing, sorry Juventus FC and fellow supporters of the Old Lady of Italian Football, but according to the record books, we only have 28 official Scudetti and not 30. In our hearts, we have 30, but one day, in the near future I hope, we will all see that third star sewn on.

…and that is the Last Word.

What are your thoughts?  Feel free to add comments below.

 

Conn Smythe Trophy Contenders

Posted on by Ben Kerr

So here we are, the Stanley Cup Finals are upon us. On Wednesday the Los Angeles Kings will travel to Newark to take on the New Jersey Devils in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals.  At the end of the series, two major trophies will be given out, the Stanley Cup of course, but also the Conn Smythe Trophy for MVP of the playoffs.

From NHL.com, “The Conn Smythe Trophy is an annual award given to the most valuable player for his team in the playoffs. The winner is selected by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association at the conclusion of the final game in the Stanley Cup finals. “

Unlike Most leagues, the NHL awards its post-season MVP not just to the MVP of the championship game or series, but rather recognizes the performance of the player all playoffs long.  The Stanley Cup playoffs is a gruelling two month-long war of attrition, and as such this makes the Conn Smythe a prestigious and much coveted award.  Since we are 3/4 of the way through the playoffs, lets look at who I believe are the 4 Conn Smythe Contenders headed into the finals.

Martin Brodeur:  Earlier this season I wrote that Brodeur was washed up, that he was ruining his legacy by continuing to play, and that he should retire.  Boy, was I ever DEAD WRONG!  Marty is currently playing his best hockey in years, and proving why he is a legend, and a contender for the title of Best Goalie of All-Time.  Brodeur is chasing his 4th Stanley Cup Championship, however he has never won the Conn Smythe.  Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs will be the 200th Playoff Start in his illustrious career.  Brodeur heads into the finals with a 12-6 record, a 2.04 GAA, a 0.923 SV % and one shutout.  But more than that Brodeur has come up with key save after key save when the Devils have needed it, whether it was in their first round 7 Game Overtime Series against the Florida Panthers, their 5 game win over the Flyers, or their 6 game (again in OT) conference final victory over the New York Rangers.  Brodeur is the inspirational leader of the Devils, and this may be the year he adds the one trophy that has eluded him in his Hall of Fame Career.

Ilya Kovalchuk:  In the summer of 2010, many laughed when the Devils signed Kovalchuk to 15 year, $100 million contract.  After this was a guy who had never even won a playoff series in his NHL career.  The critics puffed their chests and said they were justified after the Devils disastrous 2010-11 season, where they didn’t come close to a playoff spot.  The refrain of “you can’t win with him, he’s an enigma” was heard loud and clear.  My, how everything has changed.  Ilya Kovalchuk has 7 goals in the playoffs so far, and leads the league with 18 playoff points, this despite missing a game in the Flyers series due to an injury.  More than just pure points though, Kovalchuk has been clutch.  His line is easily New Jersey’s most dangerous and has been the focal point of their offence.   

Dustin Brown: Sometimes the best trades are the ones you don’t make.  As this season’s trade deadline approached, Dustin Brown was the subject of numerous trade rumors, and TSN’s Bob McKenzie mentionned that he was on the block.  The Kings ultimately choose to keep their captain, and he’s been a dominant force in the NHL playoffs.  Brown has been a strong physical presence and also shown off his offensive skills.  The emotional leader of the Kings, leads by example in playing the strong physical game that coach Darryl Sutter preaches.  He has also led the team on the scores sheet with 7 goals and 16 points.  Three of Brown’s goals have been game winning goals, and three of his assists have come on game winning goals, meaning that he’s been directly involved in the Game Winning Goal in half of Los Angeles’ wins so far.

Jonathan Quick: Los Angeles’ best player all season long, and the guy who they rode into a playoff spot was undeniably their goaltender Jonathan Quick.  Quick has emerged as one of the NHL’s best goalies and is nominated for this year’s Vezina trophy.  He’s continued his great regular season play as he leads the league with the incredible numbers of a 12-2 record, a 1.54 Goals Against Average, and a 0.946 Save percentage.  He’s also put up 2 shutouts.  These numbers are so good, they are usually only seen in Video Games.  Quick has been an almost impenetrable wall for the Kings so far in these playoffs, and is a huge reason why they are playing in their first final since 1993.

While these are the four main contenders at this point, there is still one more series to play.  A good series from Devils Captain Zach Parise, Centre Travis Zajac,  Brown’s linemate Anze Kopitar, or Kings Defenceman Drew Doughty could have them steal the Conn Smythe at the last minute, and more importantly would greatly help their team win the Cup.

Hockey fans hope that the next 2 weeks are as exciting as the last 6 have been.  We all hope for a competitive and hard fought final, with a bit more drama to end this season.  My prediction is that the Devils will win the Cup, and Martin Brodeur will be crowned as the Conn Smythe winner.  What’s your take?

… and thats the Last Word.

NHL Draft Prospect Profile #51: Brady Vail

Posted on by Ben Kerr

Drafted 94th Overall by the Montreal Canadiens.

Brady Vail has improved by leaps and bounds this year, after a disappointing rookie season.  A Centre for the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL, Vail went from scoring 3 goals and 10 points in 2010-11, to scoring 22 goals and 55 points this past season, in what was a real breakout campaign for the young American forward. However Vail improved in more than just stats.  He also improved his defensive game, his aggressiveness, and his conditioning which allowed the Windsor coaches to use him in more important situations, and to give him more ice time overall.  Born in Palm City, Florida; Vail is yet another example of how the game is making some inroads into the Southern United States, similar to our previously profiled Nick Kerdiles.  However the level of competition in the Southern United States is still not great, and the Vail family recognized this.  When he was a teenager, and it became apparent that Brady Vail had special hockey talent, the family moved to Detroit, Michigan so that Vail could play against better competition and continue to grow as a player.

Center
Born Mar 11 1994 — Palm City, FL
Height 6.01 — Weight 190 — Shoots Left

2009-10 Waterloo Black Hawks USHL 48 4 4 8 40 -14 2 0 0 0 0
2010-11 Windsor Spitfires OHL 61 3 7 10 27 -3 16 4 0 4 4
2011-12 Windsor Spitfires OHL 68 22 30 52 55 1 4 0 0 0 4

Vail is an effective two way centre.  Offensively he is strong on the puck and is at his best playing a cycle game down low.  A tireless worker, Vail wins a ton of board battles and is never afraid to get himself into traffic.  He has a hard, accurate shot and a quick release.  Vail is also a good passer, and has decent vision to find the open man in the offensive zone.  While Vail has greatly improved this season, and is much better with the puck on his stick, he still isn’t the type of player who will dangle a ton of defencemen, or deke guys out.  His offensive game is more straightforward and based on pure north-south play, and a dogged determination.

Defensively, Vail is an incredibly intelligent player.  He uses strong positional play, and good insticts, to almost always be in the right spot in the defensive zone.  He understands how to cut down on passing lanes, and to block shots.  A dogged player, he gets into his opponents face, and his high energy level can get under an opponent’s skin.  Vail finished the season playing key minutes for the Spitfires, as he was a prime player on the penalty kill and was given the key assignment of always being matched against the opponent’s top line.

Vail’s skating stride is unorthodox and choppy.  Despite this he generates decent top end speed, and reaches it quickly with good acceleration.  He has good balance and is strong on his skates, making it difficult to knock Vail off the puck.  Vail however could stand to work on his agility and pivots, as his lateral movements, and quick changes in direction do need some work going forward.

We believe that Vail’s maximum potential is to be a 2nd line NHL forward, however its more likely he ends up as a third liner who can also provide some scoring.  We’d compare his game and potential to Dave Bolland of the Chicago Blackhawks.

… and thats the Last Word.