[arry J]

Scott Cullen has some post-Olympic notes on Martin St. Reggie Nelson Jersey . Louis trade rumours, Team Canada in 2018 as well as NHL Olympic participation in Pyeongchang, South Korea (and beyond). 1. The Internet was abuzz, following the Olympics, about the possibility of the Tampa Bay Lightning dealing leading scorer Martin St. Louis to New York for Rangers captain Ryan Callahan. This was my initital reaction. That isnt to say that the Lightning might not deal St. Louis because, if hes really unhappy after the whole Olympic team selection fiasco, then that might be the impetus for movement. However, the Lightning are in third place in the Eastern Conference, which means they arent just going to give him away, and there are several issues at play with regards to St. Louis future with the team. First, since St. Louis has a no-movement clause, the Lightning are at his mercy should they decide to trade him. If St. Louis says that his preferred destination is the Rangers, because he lives in nearby Connecticut, then you can expect the Rangers to avoid paying fair market value, instead paying closer to monopolistic value, not unlike the Pittsburgh Penguins offered to the Calgary Flames for Jarome Iginla last season. Additionally, if the Lightning are going to shop St. Louis, wouldnt it make much more sense to do it in the offseason, when they might be able to get a better quality return, or perhaps open the trade talks to more than one team (its not like Manhattan is the only NHL location relatively close to Connecticut)? Whatever the deal ends up being, there is little reason for the Lightning to deal St. Louis, straight-up, for an inferior winger with an expiring contract. Maybe Callahan plus works, but it would definitely depend on the plus. The reigning scoring champion cant just be peddled out of town at a cut-rate price if a franchise is going to be seen as legitimate. Considering how torn Lightning GM Steve Yzerman must have been throughout this process, its no wonder that hes had enough as Team Canada GM after back-to-back Olympic gold medals. 2. The 2014 Olympics were barely finished before Mike Johnson was tasked with projecting Team Canada for 2018. Obviously, this requires a lot of projection, going four years ahead of time, but here are some 2014 players that are likely due to be replaced because of age: Roberto Luongo, Mike Smith, Chris Kunitz, Patrick Sharp, Martin St. Louis, Jay Bouwmeester, Dan Hamhuis, Patrick Marleau, Rick Nash and Jeff Carter, all of whom are 29 or older this season. There could easily be more turnover, but filling those 8-10 spots seems a reasonable starting point. In net, I would add Jonathan Bernier (who I would have taken in 2014) to Carey Price. As the number three goaltender, I lean to a younger player like Braden Holtby, even if hes going through some tough times this season. On the blueline, with the right side staying the same -- Drew Doughty, Shea Weber, Alex Pietrangelo, P.K. Subban, along with Duncan Keith and Marc-Edouard Vlasic on the left -- that leaves room for a couple of new faces. Today, Ill go with Ryan Murray and Travis Hamonic ahead of Morgan Rielly and Brenden Dillon. Up front, after bringing back Sidney Crosby, Jonathan Toews, Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry, John Tavares, Jamie Benn, Matt Duchene and Patrice Bergeron, I add Steven Stamkos, Tyler Seguin, Taylor Hall, Claude Giroux, Logan Couture and Nathan MacKinnon to get to 14 forwards. It pains me to pass over Blue Jackets C Ryan Johansen, but hes one that I find intriguing. The debate will surely rage, but maybe we can put it aside for at least three years before getting caught up in it too much. 3. One other twist, as it pertains to participation in the Olympics, and was mentioned by Gord Miller, is that the NHL could go with the under-23 model that soccer uses in the Summer Olympics. The sticking point, to me, in this plan is that teams arent going to want to continue playing their schedule without some of these top-calibre players. Here are some of the best 22-and-under players in the NHL this season. Can we really expect a team to go forward and play games for a couple of weeks without players of that calibre? Imagine the Colorado Avalanche without Ryan OReilly, Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog, or the Winnipeg Jets minus Evander Kane, Mark Scheifele and Jacob Trouba. Those would be devastating to those particular teams. The other tweak to the option is that NHL teams could decide which players can go which, given previous experience with the World Junior tournament, would pretty much eliminate the participation of NHL players, which begs the question: why impose an age limit at all if NHLers wont be participating? By most accounts, the players always seem in favour of the experience. Those that are playing enjoy it and those that dont enjoy getting some time off during the season. As it stands now, NHL owners and executives have taken the position that they arent so interested in participating in the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea and that could be their legitimate stance, especially after some teams had players suffer injuries while playing in Sochi. At the same time, its also the kind of position that a negotiator would take if they wanted to extract more favourable compensation from the International Olympic Committee. Theres no leverage if you state that youre unequivocally in love with the current relationship. Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs, who has hardly been regarded as being tight with the players, told the New York Times, "I know the importance of competing in the Olympics to many of our players — they are our partners and if it is important to them it should be important to us." That doesnt sound like the door on NHL Olympic participation has been shut altogether. At least not yet. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Connor Cook Jersey . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Steve Mason, Philadelphia (4) - Mason was brilliant all night long with save after big save on Benoit Pouliot, Carl Hagelin and Derick Brassard. Marquel Lee Jersey . -- Alex Anthopoulos spoke volumes with what he didnt say on right-hander Ervin Santana. 403 Forbidden . -- Joe Thornton scored the tiebreaking goal with 5:39 left in regulation to help the San Jose Sharks overcome a two-goal deficit to beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 5-3 on Thursday night.The Vancouver Whitecaps defeated FC Dallas 2-0 on Saturday, temporarily extending their lead in the Western Conference playoff race to four points over the Portland Timbers. The Timbers would claw that lead back to just one point late Saturday night when they defeated the San Jose Earthquakes by a score of 2-1. THE FORMATIONS For the third game running, Whitecapsa€? head coach Carl Robinson named an unchanged lineup. The 4-2-3-1 formation has served Vancouver well over the last three games, where the club has picked up six out of nine available points. FC Dallas made one change to the team that beat the Seattle Sounders 3-1 last week, with Ryan Hollingshead replacing Jair Benitez in midfield, and they lined up in a 4-4-2 formation. THE GAME The Whitecaps started the game brightly, carrying on from where they left off the previous week in their 2-1 victory over Real Salt Lake. Their high pressure in midfield paid off early in the first half, as Sebastian Fernandez scored in the 14th and 18th minutes to put Vancouver in control of the match. Fernandeza€?s first goal was an unlikely one, as the diminutive Uruguayan out-jumped Je-Vaughn Watson to head home Mauro Rosalesa€? cross. Dallas goalkeeper Raul Fernandez got a hand on the header, but couldna€?t keep it from nestling in the top corner of his goal. Vancouvera€?s second goal highlighted their tenacity in midfield and their quickness in transition. Pedro Morales a€“ usually renowned for his pinpoint passing and control of the ball, rather than for his tough tackling a€“ harassed Moises Hernandez into a turnover, with Rosales picking up the lose ball and then driving at Matt Hedges and Zach Lloyd. Rosales stalled his run long enough to allow Fernandez to jump into the attack, and after Rosales slid the ball into Fernandeza€?s path, the winger took one touch to set himself before poking the ball beyond his namesake in the Dallas goal. It was all the Whitecaps would need to secure a precious three points in the Western Conference playoff race. FC Dallas offered very little buildup play through central midfield on Saturday, where neither Michel nor Victor Ulloa did much to support Blas Perez and David Texeira offensively. If their buildup play didna€?t come down the flanks through Andres Escobar, Perez and Texeira often had to drop into midfield themselves to get the ball. This made the defensive side of the game relatively straightforward for Whitecapsa€? defenders Andy Oa€?Brien and Kenndall Waston. Jihad Ward Jersey. . The absence of both Fabian Castillo and Mauro Diaz for Dallas was a mitigating factor for the visitors; both players are very influential for Dallas, although Diaz has played sparingly this season due to injury. This turned out to be a blessing for the Whitecaps, who really only had to contain Perez and Texeira to ensure David Ousted kept his 10th clean sheet of the season. THE GOOD There were some excellent performances from Vancouver. Ousted was solid in goal and dealt with everything that came his way with ease. The back four were strong in the second half after they got a bit of a talking to at half time for being a little slack in the opening 45 minutes. The goal in every game for a defender is to keep a clean sheet, and in this respect the Whitecaps back four plus Ousted certainly delivered. In midfield, Matias Laba was excellent, while beside him Russell Teibert had a quietly effective game. Neither player had as much to do as they did against RSL the previous week, but they nonetheless were tireless in their defensive work in front of the back four. The attacking midfield trio of Rosales, Morales and Sebastian Fernandez were a thorn in Dallasa€? side all game. Their movement and interplay was delightful at times, and all three linked well with striker Erik Hurtado. His performance was arguably his best of the season, and while he didna€?t score, he held the ball up really well and constantly threatened the Dallas back four with his pace. THE BAD Fernandez picked up a yellow card late in the game, meaning that he will be suspended for Fridaya€?s crucial game in Seattle against the Sounders. Suspensions could prove to be a big factor for Vancouver over the last three games of the regular season, as Morales, Teibert and left back Jordan Harvey will all be suspended if they pick up another yellow card. THE STAR MAN Fernandez deserves praise for his two-goal performance, as do the others mentioned above. But on reflection, the best player on the pitch was 33-year old Rosales. The Argentinian has achieved a great deal in his career, but he puts himself about like hea€?s a 19-year old trying to earn his first contract. His work rate was tireless, his distribution superb, and it was fitting that he picked up assists for both of Fernandeza€?s goals. Vancouvera€?s next game is in Seattle to take on the league-leading Sounders on Friday, Oct. 10 (10pm et/7pm pt on TSN1, TSN3, TSN4 and TSN5). Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '