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Saturday, April 30, 2016

{allcanada} Jets move up in Draft Lottery, will pick second

 

TORONTO -- Kevin Cheveldayoff has been adamant about a draft-and-develop philosophy ever since he took over as general manager of the Winnipeg Jets in 2011.

Cheveldayoff received a golden opportunity to add another top-tier prospect Saturday when the Jets moved up from No. 6 to No. 2 in the 2016 NHL Draft after winning the second pick in the NHL Draft Lottery. The Toronto Maple Leafs were awarded the No. 1 pick, and the Columbus Blue Jackets won the No. 3 selection.

After Toronto won the first pick, Winnipeg had the fifth-best odds to win the No. 2 pick in the draft, which will be held June 24-25 at First Niagara Center in Buffalo.

"I have to admit, it was very nerve-racking," Cheveldayoff said. "You're waiting all day, doing several different interviews, and then you see the 14 cards coming onto the floor and you know the time is getting close.

"Once I saw the No. 9, No. 8 No. 7 picks revealed, and knew were weren't going to move backwards, that's when my nerves kicked in even more. I knew at that point we'd have an opportunity at the top three."

For the first time, the lottery assigned the top three picks in the first round.

The Jets have seven picks in the draft, including two in the first round; they also have the 26th pick obtained when they traded forward Andrew Ladd to the Chicago Blackhawks this season.

"When you get an opportunity to draft at the top end of the draft, those are the type of players who can make a difference," Cheveldayoff said. "Every year is different and you don't know exactly what that player will do moving forward, but from what I've seen of players at the top end of the draft, these are players who can make an impact over a period of time.

"No one player is going to come in and change a franchise overnight, but certainly it's a big building piece moving forward."

A few young players within the Jets system made an impression in the NHL this season, including center Mark Scheifele (29 goals, 71 points) and 20-year-old rookie right wing Nikolaj Ehlers (15 goals, 38 points). There are others on the verge of making the roster next season: left wing Kyle Connor (No. 17, 2015 draft), defenseman Josh Morrissey (No. 13, 2013), and center Nic Petan (No. 43, 2013).

Auston Matthews (6-foot-1, 210 pounds) of National League A in Switzerland's top professional league is projected by many to be the No. 1 pick. The Scottsdale, Ariz. native is No. 1 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of international skaters eligible for the draft after scoring 24 goals and 46 points in 36 games. After Matthews, the next two players on almost every draft board are forwards Patrik Laine of Tappara and Jesse Puljujarvi of Karpat in Liiga, the top professional league in Finland.

Laine (6-4, 206), No. 2 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of international skaters, had 17 goals and 33 points in 46 games. He was named most valuable player of the Liiga playoffs after scoring 10 goals and 15 points in 18 games for league champion Tappara.

Puljujarvi (6-3, 203), No. 3 on NHL Central Scouting's final international ranking, led all skaters at the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship with 17 points and was named the best forward and most valuable player of the tournament. He had 13 goals and 28 points in 50 games for Karpat.

Jesse Puljujarvi, Patrik Laine and Auston Matthews will be top picks in 2016 NHL Draft

"I had an opportunity to go to the World Junior Championship and watch [Laine and Puljujarvi] play a big part of winning a championship," Cheveldayoff said. "I watched Puljujarvi win another gold for Finland at the World Under-18 Championship and saw what Laine did in the Liiga playoffs.

"Sitting here today, I don't think there's any wrong decision at No. 1, No. 2 or No. 3. We're just excited that we get an opportunity to take one of them."

Teemu Selanne, a native of Finland, spent four seasons with Winnipeg after the Jets selected him in the first round (No. 10) of the 1988 draft. The impact Selanne had on Winnipeg certainly wasn't lost on Cheveldayoff.

"Teemu is still revered for what he's done in the city and community and how he embraced it," Cheveldayoff said. "There's a lot of good story lines and it's exciting. Any one of the players we select is going to be a big part of our franchise for many years to come."

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{allcanada} 2016 NHL Draft order:

 
 

2016 NHL Draft order:

1. Toronto Maple Leafs

2. Winnipeg Jets

3. Columbus Blue Jackets

4. Edmonton Oilers

5. Vancouver Canucks

6. Calgary Flames

7. Arizona Coyotes

8. Buffalo Sabres

9. Montreal Canadiens

10. Colorado Avalanche

11. New Jersey Devils

12. Ottawa Senators

13. Carolina Hurricanes

14. Boston Bruins

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{allcanada} Rays beat Blue Jays on ninth-inning walkoff

 

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Curt Casali drove in the winning run with a single in the ninth inning Saturday night and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3.

Brad Miller led off the ninth with a pinch-hit single off Brett Cecil (0-5). Miller beat first baseman Justin Smoak to the bag after a ground ball. Kevin Kiermaier followed with a double before Casali's hit, the first walkoff hit of his career.

Logan Forsythe had tied it for the Rays with a home run in the seventh after Kevin Pillar's first homer of the season gave Toronto a 3-2 lead.

Forsythe went 3 for 3, including his fourth homer, and walked.

Xavier Cadeno (2-0) got the win after retiring two Blue Jays in the ninth.

Jose Bautista's two-run home run off Chris Archer gave the Blue Jays a 2-0 lead in the third. It was Bautista's fifth homer of the season.

Forsythe's two-out single got the Rays on the board in the third and Evan Longoria tied it 2-2 by hitting J.A. Happ's first pitch of the sixth inning for his fourth home run.

Archer gave up one hit — Bautista's homer — in six innings, walking four and striking out four. He retired the last 11 batters he faced.

Happ pitched 6 2/3 innings, giving up six hits and three runs while striking out seven.

The Blue Jays had only three hits. They have 10 hits, including six home runs, in the first two games of the series.

GOOD SWITCH

Moving Michael Saunders into the leadoff spot and moving Pillar out of it has paid off for both. Saunders is hitting .333 in 10 games as a leadoff hitter and Pillar, who batted .188 in 12 games as a leadoff man, has hit .364 in 12 games since being dropped in the order.

NUMBERS

Archer's four strikeouts set a franchise record of 43 for April, exceeding David Price's 41 in 2014. ... Happ has a 1.87 ERA over his last 15 starts, the last five this season. ... Forsythe is hitting .388 in his last 11 games.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Rays: RHP Brad Boxberger (adductor surgery) threw a bullpen session. After one more session in two or three days, he expects to throw live batting practice. ... RHP Alex Cobb, who threw 25 pitches in a bullpen session, is still months away from pitching in his recovery from Tommy John surgery on May 14, 2015.

UP NEXT

RHP Marcus Stroman, who beat the Rays on opening day four weeks ago, will pitch the series finale for Toronto against RHP Jake Odorizzi, who has allowed one earned run or fewer in 20 of his 33 starts at Tropicana Field.

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{allcanada} Drogba, Burling help Impact draw Rapids

 

MONTREAL - The Montreal Impact got a point off one of the top teams in Major League Soccer this season but they felt like it was a defeat.

The Impact (4-3-2) wasted a pair of one-goal leads as Bobby Burling's 73rd minute strike gave the Colorado Rapids a 2-2 draw on Saturday before a full house of 20,801 at Saputo Stadium.

"It's a point but it's more like we lost two points," said captain Patrice Bernier. "In the first half we played well.

"We were compact and we created opportunities. In the second we fell asleep a bit. We can't look at it as a good point. We had a chance to take three."

Didier Drogba put Montreal ahead early with a perfectly placed free kick but Shkelzen Gashi tied it early in the second. Maxim Tissot struck back only to see Burling score off Gashi's free kick.

It left the Impact with two points from a run of three games in eight days that started with a crushing 2-0 loss at home to Toronto last Saturday, followed by an uplifting 1-1 draw at New York City on a Dominic Oduro goal in added time.

Fatigue may have been a factor. The Impact also have a handful of injured players. And 38-year-old Drogba managed to play a full 90 minutes for a third straight game despite battling a flu.

But midfielder Kyle Bekker wasn't buying excuses.

"That's the easy way out," he said. "It wasn't good enough. It's a game we should have won."

Colorado (5-2-2) ended a three-game winning streak but were more than pleased to emerge with a point on the road against one of the Eastern Conference leaders.

Coach Pablo Mastroeni said the two goals his team conceded were "world-class strikes" and he was proud of his team's showing.

"They didn't give up," said Mastroeni. "They believe in each other."

The Impact dominated the early going and got the first goal on Drogba's free kick after Ignacio Piatti was pulled down by Burling. Drogba looped a shot just inside the left post from 25 yards for his second of the season.

That set two-time Olympic moguls skiing gold medallist Alex Bilodeau to ringing the Impact's goal bell in the east grandstand.

Colorado equalized only two minutes into the second half as Mekeil Williams crossed the ball in from the left side. Centreback Laurent Ciman missed it and the ball went in off the onrushing Gashi, who got inside position on Tissot.

"I should have given him a push, but I tried to fix my mistake and I scored five minutes later," said Tissot.

Montreal struck back in the 50th when Tissot drilled a shot along the ground from distance that went just inside Zac MacMath's left post. It marked the first time this season Colorado has conceded more than one goal in a game.

"I hit it well," the Gatineau, Que., native said. "I wanted to hit it with the outside of the foot so it would come back in and that's what happened."

The Rapids tied it again when Gashi's free kick into a crowd in the Montreal box was nudged forward by Axel Sjoberg to Burling, who put it in from the doorstep in the 73rd.

The Impact travel to Columbus next Saturday while the Rapids return home to face Salt Lake.

Notes — For a second straight game, the Impact started four Canadians, a rarity — Bernier, Tissot, Bekker and Wandrille Lefevre. . . Former Impact fullback Eric Miller, injured last week against Seattle, was not in Colorado's lineup. Miller was traded in March for a draft pick and money. . . Burling was selected by Montreal in the 2012 expansion draft, but elected not to sign and was traded to the defunct Chivas USA.

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{allcanada} Villa strikes twice as NYCFC downs Whitecaps

 

NEW YORK, N.Y. - David Villa struck twice as New York City FC held on for a 3-2 victory over the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday.

Steven Mendoza scored the winner for New York City (2-3-4) in the 73rd minute, just 10 minutes after the Whitecaps tied the game at 2-2.

Christian Bolanos evened the game for Vancouver (3-5-2) by scoring his second goal in as many games. Octavio Rivero opened the scoring just 37 seconds into the match after teammate Nicolas Mezquida forced a turnover from NYCFC goalkeeper Josh Saunders.

It was Rivero's first goal of the season and the Whitecaps' second fastest goal in Major League Soccer history. Rivero had to leave the game shortly later after suffering a left ankle sprain.

Villa evened the game at 1-1 in the 35th minute after finishing inside the box after a Vancouver turnover in midfield. Villa scored his second goal six minutes later by volleying an Andrea Pirlo corner at the back post.

Kekuta Manneh drew a penalty in the second half but Bolanos' penalty kick attempt was saved by Saunders. Bolanos followed his shot and tapped in the rebound to even the game.

Mendoza fired a low strike into the near post after a cross from the left for the winner.

It was the third match in eight days for the Whitecaps with the team drawing 1-1 with Sporting Kansas City at home on Wednesday and shutting out FC Dallas 3-0 on April 23. Vancouver faces defending MLS Cup champion and rivals Portland Timbers on May 7. It's their first meeting since the Timbers eliminated the Whitecaps in last year's post-season.

Vancouver goalkeeper David Ousted managed just one save while Saunders had five saves.

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{allcanada} Maple Leafs win NHL Draft Lottery

 

TORONTO -- The Toronto Maple Leafs will pick first in the 2016 NHL Draft after winning the NHL Draft Lottery on Saturday.

The Winnipeg Jets were awarded the No. 2 pick, and the Columbus Blue Jackets won the No. 3 selection.

The Maple Leafs are likely to use the pick to select center Auston Matthews of Zurich in the National League A, the top professional league in Switzerland. Matthews (6-foot-1, 210 pounds), a native of Scottsdale, Ariz., is No. 1 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of international skaters eligible for the draft. The 18-year-old won the league's Rising Star award and was second in voting for most valuable player in NLA after scoring 24 goals and 46 points in 36 games.

The 14 teams that did not qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs participated in the lottery.

For the first time, the lottery assigned the top three picks in the first round. As a result of this change, the team with the fewest points during the regular season was no longer guaranteed, at worst, the second pick. The Edmonton Oilers fell to the No. 4 pick.

Three draws were held: the first drawing determined the team selecting first, the second drawing determined the team selecting second, and the third drawing determined the team selecting third.

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{allcanada} Canucks sign G Garteig to entry-level deal

 

VANCOUVER - Goaltender Michael Garteig signed a one-year entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks on Friday.

The 24-year-old Garteig, recently completed his senior season with Quinnipiac University, leading the Bobcats to the ECAC Championship and a berth in the NCAA national championship.

He had a 32-4-7 record with a .924 save percentage and a 1.91 goals-against average in 43 games this season. His 43 games played and 32 wins led the NCAA while his eight shutouts and .826 win percentage ranked him second in American collegiate play.

The six-foot-one, 190-pound goaltender has appeared in 124 NCAA games over four seasons for Quinnipiac University, where he has compiled a record of 78-25-16, a 1.98 GAA, and a .917 save percentage.

Prior to his collegiate career, the Prince George, B.C., native spent parts of four seasons in the BCHL, split between the Penticton Vees and Powell River Kings. He earned back-to-back BCHL top goaltender awards in 2011 with Powell River and in 2012 with Penticton en route to an RBC Cup national junior A championship.

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[SurroundSound] Re: Request Filled: Bach: The Four Great Toccatas and Fugues [SACD]

Take a look on Usenet in alt.binaries.sound.dts ......

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[SurroundSound] Re: Request Filled: Bach: The Four Great Toccatas and Fugues [SACD]

Jonathon,

If you're still desperate I could upload my SACD ISO to MediaFire for a few days.  PM me if this suits.

Daniel

On Thursday, April 14, 2016 at 12:34:45 AM UTC+10, Jonathan Sonne Andersen wrote:
Hi, is this SACD rip by any chance still available?

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Friday, April 29, 2016

{allcanada} QMJHL: Shawinigan downs Saint John in five games, will play for President Cup

 

SHAWINIGAN, Que. - The Shawinigan Cataractes have advanced to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's final.

Anthony Beauvillier had two goals and three assists as No. 2 Shawinigan downed the No. 3 Saint John Sea Dogs 6-3 in Game 5 on Friday to take their third-round set 4-1.

Alex Pawelczyk also had a pair of goals for the Cataractes, who will play for the President Cup for the first time since 2009 when they fell in the championship against Drummondville.

Dennis Yan and Dmytro Timashov also scored for Shawinigan as Philippe Cadorette made 33 saves for the win.

Beauvillier leads the QMJHL playoffs with 26 points in 16 games, while Timashov is third with 24 points in 16 contests.

Matt Murphy, Joe Veleno and Thomas Chabot scored for Saint John.

Marc-Antoine Turcotte started in net for the Sea Dogs but was pulled after allowing three goals on 14 shots in 25:42 of action. Alex Bishop kicked out 11-of-13 shots in relief.

Shawinigan went 1 for 3 on the power play while Saint John scored twice on eight chances with the man advantage.

---

WILDCATS 2 HUSKIES 1

ROUYN-NORANDA, Que. — Keven Bouchard made 34 saves as Moncton edged the No. 1 Huskies in Game 5 of their third-round series.

Austin Kosack and Vaclav Karabacek scored for the No. 6 Wildcats, who still trail the series 3-2. Game 6 goes Sunday in Moncton.

Peter Abbandonato was the lone scorer for Rouyn-Noranda. Chase Marchand stopped 27-of-29 shots in a losing cause.

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{allcanada} Raptors collapse in loss to Pacers; Game 7 on Sunday

 

INDIANAPOLIS - The Toronto Raptors' playoff series against the Indiana Pacers has come down to one game.

Paul George scored 21 points to lead the Pacers to a 101-83 victory over the reeling Raptors on Friday, that evened their best-of-seven opening-round series at three wins apiece.

Cory Joseph and DeMarre Carroll had 15 points apiece to top the Raptors, who had disappointing shooting nights once again from their all-stars DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry.

Jonas Valanciunas had 14 points and nine rebounds. Lowry had 10 assists but just 10 points on 4-for-14 shooting. DeRozan had eight points on a 3-for-13 shooting night.

Game 7 goes Sunday in Toronto.

The Raptors roared out to an early 12-point lead, but by the end of a horrible third quarter, it had turned into an eight-point deficit, and they trailed 71-64 going into the fourth.

Then things got ugly in a hurry. The Pacers reeled off a lightning-quick 13-0 run to take a 19-point lead just over two minutes into the fourth quarter that had the hundreds of Raptors fans in attendance sitting in stunned silence.

Then it got worse. The Pacers continued to pour in one shot after another, to the delight of Pacers fans, and the Raptors seemed helpless to stop them. When George scored on a long jumper with 3:27 to play, it put the Pacers up by 26 points, and prompted fans to chant "U-S-A!"

The Pacers shot 46 per cent on the night, to Toronto's 36, and held a narrow 44-40 rebounding advantage over the Raptors.

Coming off last season's disastrous four-game opening-round sweep by Washington, the subtext all season long has been: Can the Raptors win a playoff series? The answer will come Sunday.

The Raptors have just one series win in their 21-year history, in 2001 versus the New York Knicks.

Coach Dwane Casey said his team wouldn't be distracted by thoughts of past post-season disappointments.

"Right now, today, the first quarter, second quarter, each possession, it's far more important," Casey said before tipoff. "That's what I try to get our players to lock in on, and not the heavy burden of history."

Once again, hundreds of Raptors fans made the trek from Toronto to Indy, "the heart of basketball country" according to the game announcer, a place steeped in basketball tradition.

Their presence made for a raucous atmosphere at Bankers Life Fieldhouse with duelling chants and non-stop noise. There was a smattering of boos before the singing of "O Canada." Large pockets of Raptors red broke up the backdrop of yellow Pacers T-shirts.

Among those in attendance: long-time Pacer Rik Smits, comedian Mike Epps, and Brazilian race car driver Tony Kanaan.

The Pacers took aim at Toronto's "We The North" slogan with their own "We The Gold" campaign, which was written on the yellow T-shirts given to fans, under the words "UNITED STATE OF BASKETBALL."

Casey had been preaching a strong start for Game 6 after woeful first quarters in Games 4 and 5. The Raptors were clearly listening, roaring out to a 12-point lead in the first quarter behind nine points from Carroll. The Pacers pulled to within 22-20 going into the second.

The Pacers tied it up midway through the second quarter, but the Raptors would go up by eight before taking a 44-40 advantage into halftime.

The Raptors' defence disappeared in the third, as they gave up 31 points to Indiana.

The Raptors won Games 2, 3 and 5, while Indiana took Games 1 and 4.

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{allcanada} Saunders lifts Blue Jays over Rays to snap skid

 

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Michael Saunders hit two home runs and Aaron Sanchez pitched seven shutout innings for the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night in a 6-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Saunders homered off Rays starter Drew Smyly (1-3) in the third inning and added his fourth home run of the season off Dana Eveland in the eighth. The left fielder is hitting .368 (14 for 38) in nine games since moving into the leadoff spot in the Toronto batting order.

Sanchez (2-1) gave up six hits and two walks while striking out six to help the Blue Jays break a three-game losing streak.

Josh Donaldson hit his eighth homer off the c-ring catwalk at Tropicana Field in the sixth, giving the Blue Jays a 2-0 lead.

Ryan Goins drove in the final run with his first homer in the ninth off Jhan Marinez, who was making his major league debut.

The first two home runs were the only hits given up by Smyly, who struck out eight in six innings.

Rays manager Kevin Cash was ejected by home plate umpire Mark Ripperger in the fifth inning for arguing balls and strikes. It was the first ejection of the year for Cash and the fourth of his career.

FAN FRIENDLY

The Blue Jays were striking out 9.4 times per game going into the weekend, enough for Donaldson to declare in a television interview that "some people need to evaluate their approach" to hitting. "There's no doubt we're striking out way too much," said manager John Gibbons.

BAD NUMBERS

The Blue Jays struck out eight times Friday night, bringing their season total to 225 in 24 games. ... Troy Tulowitzki is hitless in his last 18 at-bats against left-handers. ... Logan Morrison went 0 for 4 for the Rays, dropping his batting average to .100 (6 for 60). ... The Rays are 1 for 26 on their current homestead with runners in scoring position.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Blue Jays: C Russell Martin got a sore neck in the cold weather up north. "Doesn't feel great, but it's playable," Gibbons said ... RHP Bo Schultz (off-season hip surgery) threw a shutout inning in his first rehab start for Class A Dunedin.

UP NEXT

LHP J.A. Happ (3-0) will oppose Rays RHP Chris Archer (1-4), who lost to the Blue Jays on opening day despite striking out 12. It will be Archer's 17th start against Toronto. "The common denominator in every start is if I fill up the strike zone, I'm pretty successful," he said.

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{allcanada} Kristen Hager has joined The Kennedys: After Camelot

 
Being Human alumna Kristen Hager has joined Reelz's upcoming miniseries The Kennedys: After Camelot. Per Deadline, she will play Joan Kennedy, the beautiful, blonde wife of Ted Kennedy (Matthew Perry).

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{allcanada} Burns, Doughty, Karlsson named Norris finalists

 

Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson can win the James Norris Memorial Trophy for a second straight season and third time in his NHL career.

Karlsson, Brent Burns of the San Jose Sharks and Drew Doughty of the Los Angeles Kings were named finalists Friday. The winner will be announced at the 2016 NHL Awards in Las Vegas on June 22.

The trophy is awarded to the defenseman who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-around ability at the position.

Karlsson established a Senators single-season record for assists (66) and points (82) by a defenseman, leading the NHL in assists and ranking first among defensemen in points for a third straight season and fourth time in the past five seasons. He drove puck possession with a 51.47 Corsi-for percentage in 5-on-5 situations. His Corsi relative percentage of 7.2 was fourth-best among NHL defensemen, and meant the Senators attempted 7 percent more shots with Karlsson on the ice compared to his teammates.

Karlsson is the first NHL defenseman to score at least 82 in a season since Brian Leetch of the New York Rangers (85 points) and Ray Bourque of the Boston Bruins (82 points) in 1995-96. Karlsson played all 82 regular-season games for a third straight season and led the NHL in ice time (2,375:55), even-strength ice time (1,885:26), and average ice time (28:58), all NHL career highs.

Burns, a first-time Norris Trophy finalist, set Sharks records for defensemen in goals (27), assists (48) and points (75). He also established a Sharks record with 353 shots on goal. Burns played in all 82 games for a second straight season and led San Jose with an NHL career-high 25:51 in ice time. The Sharks took 189 more shots than they allowed with Burns on the ice at 5-on-5.

Doughty, who drove puck possession with a League-leading 58.89 Corsi-for percentage in 5-on-5 situations, ranked third in the League in average ice time (28:01) to help lead the Kings to a third consecutive top-five finish in team defense with a 2.34 goals-against average. His 14 goals and 51 points were his most since the 2009-10 season (16 goals, 59 points), and his plus-24 rating was an NHL career high. The Kings took 537 more shots than they allowed with Doughty on the ice at 5-on-5. Doughty, a three-time finalist, was third in voting in 2009-10 and second in 2014-15.

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{allcanada} Michael J. Fox Finds False Reports About His Health 'Disturbing and Total B.S.'

 
Michael J. Fox Finds False Reports About His Health 'Disturbing and Total B.S.'
 
Michael J. Fox is alive and well.

The actor, 54, took to
Twitter on Friday to shut down a false report that claimed his health and mental wellness was in decline.

Fox has
publicly battled Parkinson's Disease since 1998, and he told PEOPLE in 2006: "I'm so blessed with a great family, and I've had success in my career. I feel this is a really unique opportunity for me to help out and try to effect change."

Most recently, Fox – who shares four children with his wife of 27 years, actress
Tracy Pollan, 55 – celebrated the 30th anniversary of his big-screen breakout Back to the Future.

For more information on Fox's work fighting Parkinson's, and to donate, visit michaeljfox.com.

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{allcanada} Raptors treating Game 6 like a must-win

 

TORONTO - The Toronto Raptors have played like two different teams at times in their first-round NBA playoff series against the Indiana Pacers.

There was the squad that looked bewildered in Games 1 and 4, and there was the team that resembled the side that won 56 regular-season games in Games 2 and 3. Game 5 had a bit of everything — a brutal start, flashes of brilliance, frequent lulls, a stirring comeback and a nailbiting finish as the Raptors barely hung on for the win.

Now armed with a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series, head coach Dwane Casey will have his players treat Friday's Game 6 as if it's a must-win contest.

You can watch the game live across the TSN Network and on TSN GO at 7pm et/4pm pt.

"We can't go and get ambushed," Casey said. "We've got to go in with our high-beams on, laser-like focus from the start of the game to the end of the game."

An Indiana win at Bankers Life Fieldhouse would put the pressure squarely on the Raptors, who do not exactly have a glowing playoff history. Toronto made its first post-season appearance in 2000 and has been eliminated in the first round on six of seven occasions.

The Raptors' lone second-round appearance came in 2001 after they beat the New York Knicks in a best-of-five series. Toronto was swept out of the first round by the Washington Wizards last year and fell in seven games to the Brooklyn Nets in 2014.

"What happened two years ago is in the past. As well, what happened last year is in the past," said Raptors forward Patrick Patterson. "So to think about it, to dwell on it, none of us really do that. We're focused on this opportunity that we have now with this new team, these new faces, this new coaching staff and this brand new opportunity."

The players seemed loose and relaxed during a lunch-hour practice session at BioSteel Centre on Thursday afternoon before their flight to Indianapolis. Game 7, if necessary, would be played Sunday at Air Canada Centre.

Several Toronto players have taken a turn in the spotlight over the first five games.

Toronto centre Jonas Valanciunas posted strong numbers as the Raptors split the first two games at home. All-star guards DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry rebounded after slow starts to help Toronto take Game 3 while forward Bismack Biyombo was one of the few bright spots in a Game 4 loss.

Biyombo, DeRozan and rookie Norman Powell helped the Raptors complete a comeback win at home in Game 5 to regain control of the series.

"One night, one guy might not have it," Casey said. "But that doesn't mean you give up on him and throw him in the waste bin. We've got to be consistent."

Toronto was a solid favourite entering the series. The second-seeded Raptors had 11 more regular-season wins than the Pacers.

However, Indiana has shown that it can hang with Toronto. The strong play of Paul George — who's averaging 28.8 points a game in the series — has kept the Pacers in it.

"We know it's not going to be easy," said Lowry. "We know how hard it's going to be. But we've got to go in there and play and be the more assertive team and just go out there and be more physical and just fight for it. Just fight for every inch on the floor."

With a 3-2 lead, Toronto has an 83 per cent chance of winning the series, according to basketball-reference.com.

"The opportunity is upon us and I think we just have to take advantage of it," Lowry said.

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{allcanada} Report: Bouchard, coach Hogstedt part ways

 

According to Yahoo blog Eh Game, Eugenie Bouchard and coach Thomas Hogstedt have parted ways after only six months.

Hogstedt has already signed on to coach American Madison Keys.

Ex-coach Nick Saviano appears to be back in the Bouchard mix, though nothing has been made official.

Saviano was the 22-year-old's coach for eight years when she broke into the top 10 in 2014. Bouchard reached the semifinals in three of the four majors that year before the two parted ways acrimoniously at season's end.

Bouchard then struggled last season, falling to 48th in the world before suffering a concussion as a result of a fall at the U.S. Open.

She currently sits 46th in the world rankings.

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{allcanada} Draft Lottery to set future for non-playoff teams

 

The 14 teams that failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs are hoping for some consolation when the 2016 NHL Draft Lottery is held in Toronto on Saturday (8 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVA Sports).

The lottery will determine the order of the first 14 picks of the 2016 NHL Draft, which will be held June 24-25 at First Niagara Center in Buffalo.

In August 2014 the NHL changed the lottery format, and for the first time in 2016 the lottery drawing will assign the first three picks of the draft. Three separate drawings will be held.

The NHL also lowered the odds of success for the teams with the fewest points in the regular season. The 30th-place team has a 20.0-percent chance of winning the top pick; in 2014, prior to the changes, the 30th-place team had a 25.0-percent chance of winning.

"This year's lottery represents another step toward removing, hopefully once and for all, any incentive, or perception that an incentive exists, for teams in the NHL to finish lower‎ in the regular-season standings," NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said. "By identifying the top three selections by lottery, with 14 clubs eligible to be selected, teams necessarily understand that they cannot materially benefit themselves for positioning in the draft by end-of-season jockeying in the standings."

The remaining 16 picks of the draft will be determined at the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Here are five questions to consider in preparation for the draft lottery:

1. How will the 2016 NHL Draft Lottery be different?

All 14 teams that didn't qualify for the playoffs will have an opportunity to win the No. 1 pick, but there also will be lotteries for the second and third picks.

The change in format means the 30th-place team in the League standings could end up with the No. 4 pick; in previous years that team would slide to No. 2 if it didn't win the lottery.

The odds of winning the lottery for the No. 2 and No. 3 picks increases on a proportional basis depending on which team wins the previous draw.

After the three drawings, the 11 remaining teams will be assigned draft spots No. 4 through No. 14, in inverse order of regular-season points.

2. Which teams have the best odds of winning the Lottery?

The Toronto Maple Leafs have the best odds (20.0 percent) of winning the No. 1 pick after finishing with the fewest points at the end of the regular season. The last time the Maple Leafs selected first was the 1985 draft, when they chose left wing Wendel Clark.

The Maple Leafs will be assigned 200 of the 1,001 possible four-number combinations as the team with the highest odds.

The Edmonton Oilers, who have won three of the past six lotteries and have chosen No. 1 in four of past six drafts, finished with the second-worst point total and have a 13.5-percent chance of winning; they were assigned 135 four-number combinations. The Oilers won the lottery last year and selected center Connor McDavid.

All seven Canadian teams are lottery contenders this year, and there's a 68.5-percent chance that one of them wins the No. 1 pick.

3. How confident should Toronto fans be having the highest odds of winning the lottery?

Cautiously optimistic. The last four years the 30th-place team has not won the Draft Lottery; six times in the 21 previous lottery drawings has the first pick gone to the team with the fewest points. The last time it happened was 2010, when the 30th-place Oilers won the lottery and selected forward Taylor Hall

In 2012 the Columbus Blue Jackets were last in the League but the Oilers won the lottery and selected right wing Nail Yakupov. In 2013 the Florida Panthers finished last but the Colorado Avalanche won the lottery and selected center Nathan MacKinnon. The Buffalo Sabres finished last in 2014 and 2015, but the Florida Panthers (Aaron Ekblad) and Oilers (McDavid) won the lottery in those years.

4. Which elite prospects will be available for those teams winning the first three picks?

The projected No. 1 pick is center Auston Matthews, No. 1 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of international skaters eligible for the draft.

Matthews (6-foot-1, 210 pounds) played this season for Zurich in National League A, Switzerland's top professional league, where he was coached by former NHL coach Marc Crawford.

He was tied for fourth in NLA in goals (24) and points per game (1.28) in 36 games. He also helped the United States win the bronze medal at the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship, and was the first player named to the U.S. for the 2016 IIHF World Championship.

Scouts have compared his style of play to Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews and the Los Angeles Kings' Anze Kopitar.

He grew up in Scottsdale, Ariz., where he was a fan of the Arizona Coyotes, who have a 6.5-percent chance of winning the lottery.

Two other players high on most draft boards are forwards Patrik Laine of Tappara and Jesse Puljujarvi of Karpat in Liiga, the top professional league in Finland.

Laine (6-4, 206) is. No. 2 on Central Scouting's final ranking of international skaters. He helped Tappara win the Liiga championship and was named the most valuable player of the postseason after he had 10 goals and 15 points in 18 playoff games. He also had 17 goals and 33 points in 46 regular-season games.

He's considered a threat to score from anywhere on the ice and could have the best one-timer of any player in this draft class.

Puljujarvi (6-3, 203), No. 3 on NHL Central Scouting's final international ranking, led all skaters at the WJC with 17 points, and was named the best forward and most valuable player of the tournament. He had 13 goals and 28 points in 50 games for Karpat.

Defenseman Jakob Chychrun (6-2, 205) of Sarnia of the Ontario Hockey League is No. 4 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters. He had 11 goals, eight power-play goals and 49 points in 62 games. Chychrun has the size, strength, speed and maturity required of a top-end prospect at his position.

5. Are there top talents beyond the first three picks to get excited about?

Yes. The first 10-12 players chosen should challenge for NHL roster spots within three years.

"The top end of this draft class is deep," NHL Director of Central Scouting Dan Marr said. "After Matthews, Laine, and Puljujarvi, forwards Pierre-Luc Dubois (Cape Breton, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League) and Matthew Tkachuk (London, OHL) are in the top-five mix with all of them having the potential to be future NHL All-Stars. The differences in the talent available from picks six to 16 is minuscule, which makes this group of players very interchangeable. There is considerable depth in the first round, meaning all the lottery teams will be getting a potential impact player.

"The potential of the world-wide players available in the first two rounds indicate that the 2016 draft could prove to be one of the deepest in recent years, which could generate a lot of trade talk by the 30 NHL clubs."

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{allcanada} NHL Players’ Association won't stand in the way of expansion

 

The National Hockey League and the Players' Association have agreed upon the rules of engagement for an expansion draft.

While the NHL's executive committee has yet to recommend expansion, this is a major hurdle cleared. The NHLPA could have protracted the process, but negotiations between the league and the union last week proved fruitful and a deal was reached. An NHL source confirmed the agreement on Friday.

The NHL has hundreds of steps to go through before potential expansion becomes a reality, but getting an agreement with the NHLPA was viewed as near the top of the list. The executive committee would not have recommended expansion to the board of governors for the purpose of a vote without an agreement in place with the NHLPA, and, in particular, a resolution on how existing no-trade and no-move clauses would be handled in the expansion draft process.

Sources indicate that players with no-move clauses will have to be protected by teams. The CBA states that a no-move clause "may prevent the involuntary relocation of a player, whether by trade, loan or waiver claim."

Players with no-trade clauses, which allow a player to decline a trade to either all teams in the league or a modified number spelled out in his contract, are not exempt and can be left exposed.

Time is getting tight for the NHL if it is going to expand for the 2017-18 season. If that is the plan, the league has stated it would have to inform general managers prior to this year's entry draft in late June. A source said Friday that if expansion is going to move forward, mid-May is the timetable for an announcement.

The 10-member executive committee, should it decide to take an expansion package to the rest of the league's owners, will need to have a full and complete document for consideration. The rules of the expansion draft are vital to the individual clubs as it will affect their on-ice product.

The NHL, if it expands, will charge $500 million for a new franchise. The league has determined it wants any expansion franchise to ice a competitive team. The framework it presented to the GMs would see each team lose one player if the league expands by one team and two if two franchises are added.

Existing teams would be allowed to protect seven forwards, three defencemen and one goaltender or eight skaters and a goaltender.

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{allcanada} Burke talks draft lottery, Matthews, losing out on Crosby

 

Brian Burke insists he and Sidney Crosby are pals.

At the 2014 Sochi Olympics, Burke asked Crosby to record a message for his daughter's Grade 3 class for a project, which the Canadian captain was more than happy to do.

As cordial as they may be, the duo lost the chance to be bosom buddies 11 years ago when the very last card flipped in the draft lottery was that of the Pittsburgh Penguins, not Burke's Anaheim Mighty Ducks.

While the Penguins finished last a year earlier, the result came as a gut-punching surprise to Burke, who was convinced his team was destined to get one of the game's few generational players that night.

"I thought we had him," said Burke this week, shaking his head at the mere memory.

"Even though it was 50-50, I was convinced we were getting him. I just had a good feeling the next card coming up was us."

Because the previous season had been lost to labour strife, the NHL developed a lottery system in which teams got one, two or three balls in the hopper (based on playoff appearances and past draft picks) with a chance at landing Sid the Kid. Burke's Ducks has two balls compared to Pittsburgh's three, which made it no less of a heartache for Burke to shake GM Craig Patrick's hand and then walk off the stage as consolation winners.

"It wasn't devastating," insisted Burke, who will be the Flames representative at Saturday's highly-anticipated draft lottery in Toronto.

"It was disappointing, but we were really happy to pick second in that draft. That was a straight lottery – we could have picked 30th. Our scouts said, 'if we get in the top six we're good,' so when we did I could relax. We had a shot at a franchise player but a consolation prize was we had a shot at a pretty good player."

Once they got into the top four, Burke knew his club was taking either Jack Johnson or Carey Price.

When they landed at No. 2, he knew right away that the Mighty Ducks were taking American-born OHL star Bobby Ryan, who went on to score 30 goals in each of his first four seasons in Anaheim.

"He's turned out to be a real good player," said Burke, who sent Ryan back to Owen Sound for two more years of seasoning before summoning him in 2007-08, mere months after the Ducks won the Stanley Cup.

"He had some really good years in Anaheim and they made a real good trade when they moved him to Ottawa so there's no regrets about drafting Bobby."

The lone regret with Ryan stems from word Burke described Ryan as having no intensity during American Olympic team selection meetings, which ultimately determined the winger wouldn't be included on the squad.

"I was defending him – that was the tragedy of the whole thing when I said 'he can't spell intensity,'" said Burke.

"I'm sitting at a table and there's six guys who are questioning his intensity. So you've got a choice: you either convince them he's intense or you say 'he's not intense but he can break the game open.' So I said, 'OK, he's not intense. Let's all agree he can't even spell intensity, but he's a good player.' And I had him on the team. On my final ballot I had him on the team."

A disappointed Ryan called the comments "gutless" and the two haven't spoken since.

"I left him a couple messages," said Burke, unfazed by the fact Ryan never responded.

"I'm not offended by that. I know he told (former Ottawa Senators GM) Bryan Murray, 'tell Burkie I'm fine – it's not a problem.'"

Burke agreed the unique nature of the draft lottery in 2005 made it the most dramatic in league lore and not just because every team had a shot at No. 1.

"That and there was a generational player up for grabs so that one will go down as memorable," said Burke.

"I would not describe Auston Matthews as a generational player, but he's a hell of a player."

Although there's plenty of excitement in Canada where there's a better-than 66 per cent chance the top pick will be handed to a Canadian club, the draft lottery format will be considerably quicker than the 2005 affair.

A lottery will be held for first pick overall, then another for second and another for third, leaving the rest of the clubs eligible for a top-three spot seeded in reverse order to how they finished the year.

Burke admits he's anxious for the lottery even though his 26th-ranked club only has an 8.5 per cent chance of landing the first pick, which he confirmed the Flames have pegged as Matthews.

He says the Flames solidified their ranking of the top eight selections earlier in the month and it's now up to the hockey gods to decide if he'll again leave with a podium finish. This time finishing second would land the Flames what they need most – a talented hulking winger in either Finnish star Patrik Laine or fellow countryman Jesse Puljujarvi.

"I just remember when the lottery started in 2005, you're sitting there and if you're a religious person, you're praying," said Burke.

"If you're not, you're just sweating it out."

Burke kept praying he wouldn't see his team's logo until the end in 2005.

This time it's the opposite – you want to see it first.

And he's hoping the most fateful flip turns out in his favour this time.

Or else his relationship with Matthews will revolve almost entirely around future Olympics.

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