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Monthly Archives: June 2010
Edmonton Oilers – NHL Draft Preview
Heading into the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, the Edmonton Oilers face a tough decision. For other 30 NHL teams, it is a problem and they would love to have.
Do they select Taylor or Tyler?
As the top two players available in the draft, Taylor Hall of the Memorial Cup Champion Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and Tyler Seguin of the Plymouth Whalers of the OHL have established themselves and will likely be picked first and second. Hence, which player should be selected first is one of the biggest debates heading into the draft. With the first overall pick, the Edmonton Oilers will settle the dispute as to who the top pick will be.
The Oilers are rumored to be in favor of selecting Hall (a left wing), even though they have needs at center (where Seguin plays). Hall has a crowd-pleasing game that has Edmonton fans giddy with excitement and he is the winner of two straight Memorial Cups. When he visited Edmonton a short time ago, the chef at the restaurant he was eating at came out to have his apron signed by Hall.
To improve a defense that allowed a league-worst 3.39 goals per game last season, the Oilers also see this draft as an opportunity. Expect them to take a defenseman such as Alexander Petrovic or Jarred Tinordi, when they pick again with the 31st overall pick. Both players are at least 6-4. He would immediately be one of the biggest players on the team, if either of them becomes an Edmonton Oiler.
California tourney features more 100 games: Roller Hockey
Recently, the Escondido Sports Center held a roller hockey tournament that featured more than one hundred hockey games. The tournament served as a qualifying tournament for the North American Roller Championship hockey finals and featured teams from all over the western half of the nation. The finals will take place soon in San Jose, California.
For the area, this event is really a big deal. In San Diego County, the tournament was the largest of its kind to ever be held. The tournament attracted a wide range of talent. There were players that are NCAA Division I hockey players, although, certainly not every player in the tournament was a top prospect. This sort of attraction was a huge success for the city and area in general.
The big winner of the Junior Men’s group was a team from Las Vegas, called the Las Vegas Tour Rebels and there were several different divisions. To take the title, en route to winning the tournament the Las Vegas Rebels had to beat the Stingrays. They were successful, winning by a score of 7-3.
In the United States and Canada, this tournament is one of 19 that are held worldwide. The teams are able to participate in the aforementioned North American Roller Championship hockey finals and can gain huge fan popularity by NHL hockey previews, by performing at a high enough level.
For many young players, this tournament also serves as a start. As they begin playing hockey at ages younger than 8 years old, children are able to take part in this tournament against others their age.
Stanley Cup Finals: Game 3 Review and Game 4 Preview
On Wednesday, June 2nd, the Philadelphia Flyers and Chicago Blackhawks played Game 3 of the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals. Philadelphia was playing at home, with their backs against the proverbial wall. They were down 2-0 and needed a win on Wednesday night. They got it, but it was far from easy.
Philadelphia defeated Chicago 4-3 in overtime in Game 3. Once again, they showed off one of their biggest assets, their depth, as four players scored a goal. Chicago played very well for most of the game, and carried a 3-2 lead before allowing Philadelphia to tie the game. Michael Leighton, goalie for Philadelphia, played a solid game, making 24 saves and allowing 3 goals. Chicago’s goalie, Antti Niemi, made 28 saves while taking the loss. Claude Giroux played the role of hero on Wednesday, scoring the winning goal in OT. Patrick Kane for Chicago had a good game as well, scoring a goal and making an assist.
While winning Game 3 has to boost Philadelphia’s confidence, now is not the time to slack off. Game 4 is Friday night in Philadelphia, and they have momentum on their side. If they are able to play as well in Game 4 as they did in Game 3, they have a real chance to head back to Chicago with the series all tied up at 2-2. If they make the mistake of becoming overconfident, though, they could easily head back to Chicago behind 3-1, which would be a tough deficit to overcome.