May 4

Goal: As M.L.S. Grows, Concern for Charter Clubs

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Mike Stobe/Getty Images For New York Red BuThe Red Bulls before a game last month at Red Bull Arena, where through four home dates, the team is drawing an average of 17,398.

Major League Soccer is bodysurfing a wave of optimism.

Real Salt Lake’s run to the finals of the Concacaf Champions League brought the league a bit of attention around the world, as have the recent signings of a number of players from South and Central America.

This summer will bring another invasion of some of

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the top clubs in the world, including Manchester United and Barcelona, the likely European Champions League finalists, who are expected to play before large crowds at N.F.L. stadiums.


Steve Dykes/Getty Images The Portland Timbers, in their first season in Major League Soccer, are playing to capacity crowds. But attendance is lagging in some of the league’s older, important markets, like New England and D.C.

The Red Bulls, with a strong and entertaining team led by Thierry Henry and Rafael Marquez, are still dealing with the residue of fallow years in Giants Stadium, where fans rattled around in a Wholesale cheap New Era 59Fifty hats huge arena where even a crowd of 30,000 looked meager. In the club’s first season in its jewel of a new building, Red Bull Arena, attendance increased by nearly 48 percent from 12,491 in 2009 to 18,441. Through four home dates this season, the Red Bulls are attracting 17,398 a game, according to the league.

In their previous incarnation as the MetroStars, the club and M.L.S. logged its highest average attendance in its inaugural season, 1996, with 17,406 a game. That number dropped to a low of Wholesale cheap snapback hats 13,756 in 2000, and has grown to 16,675 in 2010 and nearly 70 percent of capacity (an increase of 4 percent from 2009), a number that is loosely comparable to average regular-season per-game attendance in the N.H.L. and the N.B.A.

In M.L.S., however, the drag on attendance has come from some of the charter clubs, most notably the New England Revolution, the Columbus Crew, F.C. Dallas and the Colorado Rapids, the defending league champions; and to a lesser degree Chivas USA, which shares the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., with the Galaxy.

And in the Pacific Northwest, the three teams Wholesale cheap ED Hardy Snapback caps have little competition from other professional sports. Dallas, which built a soccer stadium in suburban Frisco, Tex., and the Rapids, whose stadium is in Commerce City outside Denver, have found it difficult to attract core soccer fans in markets saturated with professional, college and high school sports.

“I don’t think it makes sense to overemphasize attendance Wholesale Cheap Monster Energy caps on a day-in, day-out basis,” Abbott said. “It’s important, but trends take place over longer periods of time and we can’t really worry about numbers from one week to next, especially this early in the season.”

Notes

 

 

 

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May 4

Giants 7, Mets 6 (10 Innings): The Mets, Short-Handed From the Start, Fall at the End

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The Mets had won 7 of the 10 games in which Bay had played since he returned April 21 from a rib-cage injury. They badly needed his bat, especially with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth, but the Giants held on then and scrambled to a 7-6 victory in 10 innings.

“I threw it right down the middle for him, and it was a good pitch to hit,” Buchholz said. David Wright had led off with a double to the right-field wall, and Carlos Beltran was intentionally Wholesale Cheap LV snapback hats walked. Ike Davis grounded out, moving up each runner one base, and Willie Harris was intentionally walked. But Josh Thole grounded into a 1-2-3 double play to send the game into extra innings.

“We got some opportunities there, but we let it go away,” said Jose Reyes, who went 3 for 3 with three walks. Terry Collins said he might consider giving more playing time to the backup Ronny Paulino, who had five hits in his first start Sunday, a 2-1 victory over Philadelphia.

Despite their failure to score in the ninth, the Mets were fortunate to be tied after Francisco Rodriguez worked out of big trouble in the top of that inning. Emmanuel Burriss led off with Wholesale Cheap LV snapback hats an infield single that barely went 30 feet, stole second and went to third when Darren Ford laid down a bunt single.

After R. A. Dickey retired the Giants in order in the first inning, the Mets needed only four at-bats to grab a three-run lead. Reyes doubled into the right-field corner and Ryan Vogelsong, a 33-year-old journeyman, walked Murphy.

Dickey pitched another 1-2-3 inning in the second but got into trouble in the third, giving up four runs on four hard hits. Vogelsong rapped a run-scoring single through a Mets infield expecting him to bunt, and Rowand drove in another run with a single to center.

“It’s hard to get caught up in results, Wholesale Cheap guuci snapback hats but when our offense has a night like that, the starting pitcher has to do his job,” said Dickey, who has not won since his first start of the season, on April 3.

Now the Mets must face the Giants’ Tim Lincecum, Wholesale cheap New Era 59Fifty caps the two-time Cy Young Award winner. The Mets faced the Cy Young winners Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee over the weekend in Philadelphia. Bay probably will not play Wednesday, either.

INSIDE PITCH Sandy Alderson said the team would seek a second opinion for Jenrry Mejia, the prospect who tore the medial collateral ligament in his right elbow while pitching for Class AAA Buffalo. David Altcheck, the team’s physician, recommended surgery Monday for the 21-year-old Mejia, who pitched in 33 games for the Mets last year. Wholesale cheap new era snapbacke caps When asked if Mejia’s future would be as a starter or reliever, Alderson said, “I don’t think there’s any reason to believe that the injury itself will dictate how he’s used.” … Lucas Duda was called up from Class AAA Buffalo to replace Jason Bay in the starting lineup. He went 0 for 2.

 

 

 

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May 3

U.S. Rallies to Beat Norway 4-2 at Ice Hockey Worlds

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KOSICE, Slovakia (AP) — Nick Palmieri scored twice and the United States scored four third-period goals to beat Norway 4-2 on Monday and advance to the second round of the ice hockey world

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championship.

But Palmieri, who played for the New Jersey Devils, started the comeback and also scored the winner after Jack Skille tied it at 2.

The Slovak Interior Ministry said security had been Wholesale cheap snapback caps stepped up around the U.S. embassy in Bratislava and the American team in Kosice following the death of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan.

“Every game for us is emotional,” U.S. captain Wholesale cheap new era fitted caps Mark Stuart said. “Playing for our country every game is big and emotional. Nothing’s changed for us. Our emotion level is pretty high to start with.”

Craig Smith finished the scoring with a power-play goal to put away the Norwegians, who stunned Sweden in their first game.

“We didn’t come out for the start we wanted to,” Stuart said. “But we came back and played pretty well in the second half of the game.”

In Group D in Bratislava, defending champion Wholesale cheap new era snapback hats Czech Republic also advanced by cruising past Denmark 6-0 while Finland edged Latvia 3-2 after a penalty shootout to make the next round.

Michael Frolik had two goals and an assist and Milan Wholesale cheap new era fitted hats Michalek also scored twice, with Tomas Plekanec and Petr Prucha also scoring for the Czechs.

Niklas Persson scored twice and Magnus Paajarvi added another goal to help Sweden rebound from the loss to Norway.

 

 

 

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May 3

Roundup: Red Sox Hand Weaver His First Loss

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“He has a way of doing that,” Red Sox Manager Terry Francona said of Pedroia. “He fights. He doesn’t give in.” David Ortiz hit a two-run homer during a six-run burst that broke the game open. Baltimore Orioles from the American cheap snapback hats wholesale Association was the last to open 7-0 by the second day of May.

ETHIER EXTENDS STREAK TO 28Los nfl jerseys from china Angeles Dodgers hit safely for the 28th straight game, putting him halfway to the record 56-game streak by Joe DiMaggio in 1941. Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro could not control with two outs in the fifth inning.

ATHLETICS 5, RANGERS 4Hideki Matsui hit the first pitch of the bottom of the 10th inning from Darren Oliver into the right-field seats for a game-winning home run, lifting Oakland over the Texas Rangers.

“Hopefully after today’s game, there will be cheap baseball caps new era 100 more people,” Matsui joked. WHITE SOX 6, ORIOLES 2Mark Buehrle pitched six and two-thirds scoreless innings to win for the first time since opening day. Konerko hit a two-run home run and a solo shot for the White Sox, who ended a five-game losing streak and avoided a four-game sweep by Baltimore. It was Chicago’s first win at home since April 12. Tom Gorzelanny allowed three hits in eightcheap nfl jerseys sharp innings against a struggling San Francisco lineup, and Michael Morse and Jerry Hairston Jr. drove in runs for host Washington. Gorzelanny (1-2) had not lasted eight innings in a game since Aug. 12, 2007, when he Wholesale cheap new era caps threw a shutout for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Giants. Madison Bumgarner (0-5) retired Washington’s first 12 batters and didn’t allow an earned run but wound up with the loss because of two unearned runs in the seventh, his last inning. MARLINS 6, CARDINALS 5Mike Stanton hit a tying home run in the fifth inning and cheap hats wholesale tripled and scored the go-ahead run in the eighth to lift Florida at St. Louis. The Marlins improved to 18-9 — the franchise’s best start — and are tied with the Phillies for the National League East lead. BRAVES 6, BREWERS 2

FREESE OUT 9-12 WEEKS

 

 

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May 3

Henry Cooper, Dramatic Loser to Ali, Dies at 76

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The British Boxing Board of Control confirmed the death to The Associated Press, saying Cooper died after an unspecified extended illness.

He did not win either of his fights against Clay, who, by the time of their second encounter, in London in 1966, was the heavyweight champion known as Muhammad Ali. He whipped cheap baseball hats new era Cooper in a six-round technical knockout, opening a cut over Cooper’s left eye and taking advantage of his penchant for copious bleeding.

But their first bout, at Wembley Stadium in London in June 1963, was fraught with drama. At the time, Cooper was the champion not just of England but also of the entire Commonwealth. At 29 he was an elder statesman who had been fighting professionally for nearly a decade, a sporting figure known as “our ’Enry,” beloved for blank new era snapback caps wholesale his working-class cockney roots and modest manner. Clay, just 21, had yet to seize the heavyweight title from Sonny Liston, and he had arrived in England with his trademark braggadocio in full efflorescence.

Clay predicted he would win in five rounds. As the fight proceeded he seemed to be toying with Cooper as he waited for Round 5 to arrive. In the meantime he used his superior speed and size — 207 pounds to Cooper’s 183 — to torment Cooper with savage jabs and to dodge his potent left hook, a punch nicknamed “ ’Enry’s ’Ammer.” cheap nhl jerseys It nearly ended in disaster for Clay when, just before the bell to end Round 4, Cooper connected with a swift, thudding blow that sent Clay backward through the ropes.

An extended pause between rounds because of a split in one of Clay’s gloves — some say made purposely by Clay’s trainer, Angelo Dundee — helped Clay recover, and in Round 5 he fulfilled his prediction, quickly reducing Cooper’s face to a bloody mask.

Henry Cooper and his twin cheap mlb jerseys brother, George — who also boxed for a time — were born in London on May 3, 1934. Their father was a soldier and a boxing enthusiast, but he was gone during the World War II years; it was a neighbor who first took the brothers to a boxing gym.

Cooper fought — and lost to — two other men Jerseys from china who had been or would become champions. In 1957 he was knocked out by Ingemar Johansson, who would defeat Floyd Patterson for the heavyweight title in 1959. (Patterson regained the crown in a rematch.) In 1966 he lost to Patterson. His overall professional record was 40-14-1.

Cooper’s survivors include two sons and two grandchildren. His cheap hats wholesale wife, Albina, whom he married in 1960, was a waitress in his favorite Italian restaurant when they met. She died in 2008. George Cooper died last year. visited with him in London in 2009, issued a statement calling Cooper “a great fighter and a gentleman,” but otherwise confessing that the news rendered him uncharacteristically speechless.

 

 

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May 3

Bulls Fans Fear Not; Game 1 Loss Is Not End of the World

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Bulls fans had high hopes coming into the playoffs, and they were slightly shot down in round one after five hard-fought games against the Indiana Pacers.

As round two began, Chicagoans again felt blank new era snapback hats wholesale compelled to boost the somewhat unreasonably high expectations pinned on the young, inexperienced team.

That youth and inexperience showed their glaring teeth in Game 1 of the Bulls’ Eastern Conference Semifinals series with the Atlanta Hawks. The Coach of the Year-led Bulls got off to an extremely lackadaisical start, as they sleep-walked through the first half.

ESPN columnist and long-time Chicago enthusiast Michael Wilbon tweeted after the Chicago Bulls’ 103-95 loss at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks:

“One thing for the Celtics or Lakers to sleepwalk cheap snapback caps wholesale through a half of a playoff game…Bulls aren’t so talented they can do that…”

Wilbon is right; they aren’t talented enough.

The Bulls won in the regular season by being ignorant and trying extremely hard to win every game they possibly could. This uncommon trend in the NBA positioned them for a deep playoff run.

But teams like Atlanta, who lost their final six games heading into the postseason, are experienced enough to know to enter that proverbial fifth gear come the NBA playoffs.

And as Chicago struggled to match the streaking Hawks, I couldn’t help but wonder if all the expended effort has caught up to the young Bulls. But it wasn’t about physical fatigue; it was about mental state.

There are two types of the teams in the NBA.

One, for example the Celtics or Lakers, is a proven cheap nba jerseys competitor best served with a side of extreme confidence, even when the battle looks to be completely uphill.

The other, a Bulls or Thunder team, is a young, inexperienced club that must be approached in a different manner.

They need to be knocked down a few times; roughed up by the school-yard bullies. They need to have a chip on their shoulder, something tangible that they can play for.

For the Bulls the regular season came easy, due to the aforementioned opinion that Chicago simply tried harder than other teams in the NBA.

Now, that is not to doubt their talent level and ability. It is simply an explanation for their outstanding record.

It did appear that the Bulls’ inability to compete with cheap new era hats Wholesale the Hawks on both a talent and intensity level hampered them in their Game 1 loss; the continual learning experience for the young team does not end there.

The series opener will in no way be indicative of how this series will turn out. The Bulls just came off a series that they struggled through unnecessarily. They went off in Game 5 and finished off the Pacers with ease, giving them a false sense of security and confidence.

Meanwhile, the Hawks went through an emotional roller coaster of a series, knocking off their nemesis in the Orlando Magic. The experienced Hawks knew that no team can ever feel safe in the playoffs, and they may have just shown the young Bulls that in Game 1.

Also, another point to keep in mind is that the Bulls were coming from five days off. The last time they were off for that long was the 2011 All-Star Break. Their first game back: a loss to the nhl jerseys from china lowly Toronto Raptors.

But fear not, Bulls fans. Rose’s ankle will again prove to be a non-factor, and the Hawks’ sharp shooting will cool.

The Chicago Bulls should take this series in six games, winning Game 2 on Wednesday night and Game 3 in Atlanta, followed by wins in Games 5 and 6.

The learning experience for the young team is now continuous; they must learn on the job. Although largely ahead of the usual “learning curve” for potential NBA championship contenders, the Chicago cheap hats wholesale Bulls will suffer the peaks and valleys of the NBA playoffs. But overall it is the end result that counts.

So, Bulls fans and NBA watchers alike, I warn you: The Chicago Bulls are not turning over and calling the season a success with one playoff series victory.

They’re gunning for an NBA title, and too young to know any better.

 

 

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Apr 28

USA/DOM – Calipari poised to coach Dominican Republic

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Kentucky coach John Calipari has revealed he plans on taking the reins of the Dominican Republic this summer at the FIBA Americas Championship in Argentina in an attempt to lead the Caribbean country cheap baseball hats new era into the London Olympics.

With nearby Puerto Rico making the surprise announcement late Tuesday night that Louisville coach Rick Pitino will not coach their national team, at least one prominent cheap nhl jerseys college coach looks set to be in Mar del Plata when that tournament is staged from August 30 to September 11.

Calipari, a former coach of the New Jersey Nets, has like Pitino had a lot of success in the college game.

He led Kentucky to within seconds of playing in the Jerseys from china NCAA title game earlier this month before a narrow defeat to eventual champions Connecticut.

Calipari had previous stints with Massachusetts and Memphis.

He issued a statement on coachcal.com about his potential involvement with the Dominicans.

Calipari said: “During the season, I was approached by the cheap mlb jerseys Dominican Basketball Federation to become involved in helping grow basketball in their country. Now that our season is over, I can give proper attention to other things, such as this.

“My question to the Dominican Basketball Federation was, why are you calling me? Their response was, they liked what we are doing in China, including coaching their coaches and being involved in promoting grassroots basketball.

“Not only would I help train coaches in the Dominican Republic and here in Lexington like we have with the Chinese coaches, but I would also coach their national team.

“The commitment would mainly be from the blank new era snapback caps wholesale start of August through mid-September. The Dominican Republic national team would train in our state-of-the-art facilities at the Joe Craft Center in Lexington prior to the start of the Tournament of the Americas, which would begin towards the end of August.”

Calipari, speaking to Kentucky fans, said: “I wanted cheap hats wholesale the Big Blue Nation to be aware of what’s going on in your program. If I move forward on this, I’ll be asking you to adopt the Dominican Republic national team as your third team behind your Kentucky Wildcats and Team USA. I also want to let all our friends in China know that we will continue our relationship with the CBA and their coaches.”

 

 

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Apr 27

NHL Playoffs 2011: After 6 Games, What We Know About the Lightning and Penguins

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The Tampa Bay Lightning finally proved they could win on home ice against the veteran Pittsburgh Penguins and forced what we all expected—Game 7 in this evenly matched Stanley Cup quarterfinals matchup.

Indeed, it appeared inevitable that the Lightning and Penguins would end up here with a winner-take-all showdown on Wednesday night.

The Lightning were too talented to go out with a whimper. The Penguins were too experienced to allow a snot-nosed upstart to run roughshod over them—even without two superstars.

This series had to go the distance…and here we are.

What have we learned in the last six games that can help us peer into the crystal ball for some sort of advantage in the finale?

The Lightning Can Score Some Goals

We pretty much already knew this, but it wasn’t a certainty after Marc Andre Fleury looked like Terry Sawchuk in Game 1 of the series. Since that game, Tampa Bay has scored 21 goals in the past six games, including two blow out road wins.

Fleury has had his moments in the series but in the past two games, Tampa Bay seems to have found the answer to his puzzle.

Dwayne Roloson Has Outplayed Marc-Andre Fleury

41-year old Rollie the Goalie has been unconscious in this series for the Lightning. Roloson’s team has been outshot in every single game, yet his sparkling .941 save percentage is second only to Washington’s Michael Neuvirth among playoff goalies with at least four starts.

Fleury has been rather pedestrian, managing a 2.77 GAA and a .890 save percentage—despite shutting out the Lightning in Game 1.

The Penguins Are Extremely opportunistic

Tampa Bay’s concentration has at times seemed to disappear at key moments in the hockey game and the Pens have made them pay. The first goal of Game 6 was a poorly played puck by Roloson that ended up in the back of the Lightning net.

Several times in the series, the Lightning have failed to get the cheap snapback hats wholesale puck out of their zone, created unforced errors or simply fanned on a puck that Pittsburgh pounced and turned into chances.

At times, the Penguins Want It More

In Games 3 and 4, the Pens dominated the games (despite the close score) because they simply fought harder. They won the little battles in the corners, won faceoffs and did what needed to be done to pull out the hockey games.
Who wins Game Seven?
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Scoring Depth Has Been Key for the Lightning

Despite a brief appearance in Game 5, we haven’t “seen Stamkos” much this series. Without their hoss putting the biscuit in the basket, the Lightning have had to find other scorers to do the trick. Guys like Sean Bergenheim, Teddy Purcell, Nate Thompson, Pavel Kubina and others have made contributions when the big three (Stamkos, Lecavalier and St. Louis) have been marginalized.
Trends Don’t Mean Much in this Series

Coming into Game 6, there were several trends tipping the scales in Pittsburgh’s direction.

Five of the last six times the Penguins lost a series clinching game, they came back to win the next one.

In the playoffs, Marc-Andre Fleury was undefeated when coming off a game in which he was pulled.

The Pens had won six of their last eight playoff road games.

In this series, the team that scored Wholesale cheap new era caps the first goal of the game would eventually win it.

None of that seemed to matter Monday night.

I guess now is not the opportune time to mention the Lightning are undefeated in game sevens or have never won a series they did not have home ice advantage or that the Pens have lost four straight series clinching games.

The Lightning Can Win in Pittsburgh

Tampa Bay has won the last two games in Pittsburgh by a combined score of 13-3. Yeah, they have confidence going into this final game that they can win in the Steel city.

The Lightning Dominate on Special Teams.

Tampa Bay has been deadly on the power play. Despite cheap baseball caps new era going 0-for-4 last night, the Lightning still have clicked on 32 percent of their chances, good for third in the playoffs and best among Eastern Conference playoff teams. It’s a bit surprising the Bolts have been this effective against a Pens penalty kill unit that was tops in the NHL during the regular season.

As good as the Lightning have been on the PP, their penalty kill is really what has kept them in the series. Pittsburgh is a dismal 1-for-30 on the man advantage.

The Penguins Can Dominate 5-on-5

The Penguins 12-11 advantage on goals scored at even strength is a bit skewed by the Game 5 8-2 shibacle. Eliminate those four goals scored by the Bolts in that game and the Pens advantage is a much nfl jerseys from china more pronounced 10-7.

Of course, Game 5 happened and could happen again on Wednesday night.

Fleury Can Win or Lose the Series for the Pens.

If Marc-Andre Fleury has his “A” game, the Penguins not only have a chance to win Game 7 but will be extremely difficult to beat. If Fleury is the same goalie we’ve seen the past two games, it’s going to be tough for Pittsburgh to break their string of four straight clinching losses

Final Thoughts

This has been a tremendous, hard fought series between two evenly matched, good hockey teams. Would Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin have swung the series in favor of the cheap nfl jerseys Pens? Maybe, but we’ll never know. The bottom line is they’re not here and they’re not miraculously going to appear on the ice.

That’s okay for the Pens, who’ve held their own for quite awhile without them. The fact that they’ve faced an arguably better talented opponent and had them on the brink of elimination twice is in itself a testament to the depth the Penguins have.

The bottom line—a seven game series is supposed to determine who cheap hats wholesale is the better team. The Lightning have had superior scoring, superior goaltending and superior special teams throughout this series.

Experience and grit have tipped the scales for Pittsburgh three times. Will it be enough to close out the Lightning?

 

 

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Apr 26

Eulogy: Remembering the 2010-11 Anaheim Ducks

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By Rudy Kelly, Battle of California
No team in the NHL needed to miss the playoffs more than the Anaheim Ducks.
“What?” you may be asking. “Miss the playoffs? Rudy, you’re crazy!”
No, friend, I am not crazy; the Ducks would have benefited far more by missing the playoffs than they did by making it.
You see, the Ducks are an incredibly flawed team that will never go anywhere as currently constructed. The Ducks are probably the most top-heavy team in the league, blessed with two good scoring lines, a solid No. 1 defensive pairing, an All-Star goaltender… and absolutely nothing else. They are a team of stars and trash with nothing in between.
Their best forward that’s not on the top two lines was Brandon McMillan(notes), a 21-year old 3rd round pick who had 21 points. Their best defenseman not on the 1st pairing was an 18-year old Cam Fowler(notes) who had 40 points… and was also minus-25. Their best non-Hiller goaltender was Ray Emery(notes). There were stars and trash with nothing in between.
That type of mix could work, potentially, but even the Ducks’ stars are flawed. Ryan Getzlaf(notes), Corey Perry(notes) and Bobby Ryan(notes) are given responsibility that far outpaces most other No. 1 forwards despite never showing the maturity to handle it.
Ryan Getzlaf is expected to shut down other team’s top centers despite never really showing an interest in back checking. Corey Perry and Bobby Ryan are supposed to score the lion’s share of the team’s goals… when they’re not in the box for slashing.
Instead of showing displeasure at their young stars’ mistakes, the Ducks instead reward them; Ryan Getzlaf was named Captain of the team, Corey Perry was given an “A,” and Bobby Ryan was given a multi-million dollar deal last summer. What impetus do they have to change when the Ducks tell them that what they are doing is A-OK? Their goals are cheered and the goals against while they’re on the ice are ignored.
The Ducks were not very good this season despite the plan going as well Wholesale cheap New Era 59Fifty hats as Ducks GM Bob Murray could have hoped. The Ducks’ top line was fantastic offensively, with Corey Perry leading the league in goals while Bobby Ryan was not far behind (he had 34). Lubomir Visnovsky(notes) found chemistry with Toni LydmanWholesale cheap snapback hats (notes) and led all defensemen in points. Jonas Hiller(notes) made the All Star Game and was in the Vezina conversation for most of the season. Despite all this, the Ducks were still outshot by the 3rd greatest margin in the league (ahead of only Minnesota and Edmonton) and had the 10th best goal differential in the Western Conference.
Hockey’s not basketball, where one or two superstars can carry a below average team to glory. In hockey, everyone must contribute.
“But wait,” you may be thinking, “Didn’t they lose Hiller for most of the season and Getzlaf for a good Wholesale cheap ED Hardy Snapback caps part? They were pretty unlucky.”
It’s true, the Ducks did lose Jonas Hiller after the All-Star Break. Is it bad luck that they lost Hiller for the last 30 games or the season, or good luck that Hiller was able to have a .924 save percentage while facing 31 shots a game when he did play?
Is it bad luck that the Ducks lost Getzlaf for 15 games after he got a puck to the head, or good luck that Teemu Selanne(notes) was able to average over a point a game at the age of 40?
Was it bad luck that Andy Sutton(notes), Andreas Lilja(notes), and Paul Mara(notes) didn’t seem to click with the team, or good luck that Lubomir Visnovsky tied his career high in points at age 34?
Not to mention that Getzlaf and Perry both set career highs in shooting percentage, they managed to shoot 20 percent while 4-on-4, they won 8 games in overtime, etc.
No, friends, the Ducks were as good as they could be and it still wasn’t all that good. Still, they managed to ride a hot March into the fourth seed and were expected by many to do some damage in the playoffs. Then they ran into the Nashville Predators, and it’s poetic that it was the Predators that clipped the Ducks.
The Predators were the Bizarro Ducks: They are an unheralded team with no offensive stars, just wave after wave of tough players that can succeed in the tough areas where the Ducks, for all their talent, falter. It was extremely satisfying to watch the Ducks get more and more incredulous as this no-talent team beat them through sheer will and force of action.
The Ducks scored all the pretty goals but the Predators scored all the dirty ones. In Wholesale Cheap Monster Energy caps a poetic ending, Corey Perry scored 8 points in 6 games; then he took a slashing penalty right after the Predators scored the series-clinching empty net goal.
So where do the Ducks go from here? They have some offensive talent in the system to replace Selanne and Koivu but there’s no guarantee they will be nearly as good as those two Finnish icons were. Their young stars will have good seasons, they’ll have great seasons, and they’ll take stupid penalties. Their young defensemen will get better but their old defensemen, Visnovsky and Lydman, will get worse. The Ducks killed their star goalie and who knows when, or even if, he’ll be back.
If they had missed the playoffs maybe they’d see the fatal flaw in the makeup and strive to change it, but now… I doubt it. They’ll be stuck in a holding pattern unless something drastic changes as the

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memories of the Cup win fade and they assume their rightful place in the NHL as irrelevant.
Their fans like to think the Ducks are the “villains” of the NHL and that people in the league office are conspiring against them. They point to the suspensions of Bobby Ryan and Jarkko Ruutu(notes) as evidence of this conspiracy. This is nonsense, of course. It’s classic paranoid delusional thinking wherein one blames imaginary hostile forces for personal failures.
There is no conspiracy against the Ducks because that would require someone to give them a second thought. Even worse, this delusion spares the Ducks the pressure they need to actually change their ways.
But no, Ducks fans would rather live in a happy fantasy world and invent boos to cover the silence that’s actually there.
Los Angeles will always be important because c’mon, we’re kind of a big deal, but Anaheim? Anaheim is only relevant when they’re actively being annoying. They are of no more consequence than one of those terrible NHL Geico Caveman commercials — when they’re on they’re irritating, but then they’re gone and people forget they exist.
And right now, thankfully, they’re gone.

 

 

 

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Apr 24

Sports of The Times: An N.B.A. Rival Offers a Message of Hope for Knicks Fans

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“Regardless of what happens, there’s excitement in New York,” Hill said before the Knicks were routed by the Celtics in Game 3 of their first-round series. “After what’s gone on here for the last 10 years, they might throw a parade for the Knicks.” Tribeca Film Festival in New York to screen the documentary he produced, “Starting at the Finish Line: The Coach Buehler Story.” He said that when he and his wife, Tamia, arrived in New Wholesale cheap ED Hardy Snapback caps York on Thursday, they immediately felt the warm glow of expectation surrounding the Knicks.

Hill’s documentary tells the story of Al Buehler, the legendary track coach at Duke, who coached 45 years and was a champion of integration. Buehler’s cross-country teams captured six Atlantic Coast Conference Wholesale cheap New Era 59Fifty hats championships and finished second 10 times. Buehler was on the United States Olympic coaching staffs at the 1972, 1984 and 1988 Games.

The documentary was initiated by the filmmaker Amy Unell, and Hill, who played at Duke, came aboard Wholesale Cheap Monster Energy caps as executive producer and narrator. N.B.A. players who have produced documentaries. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar recently released “On the Shoulders of Giants,” about the Harlem Rens. Jalen Rose’s documentary on the Fab Five sparked an intriguing back and forth between Hill and Rose about the politics and sociology of race and identity. Baron Davis of the Cleveland Cavaliers and Steve Nash, Hill’s teammate in Phoenix, Wholesale cheap ED Hardy Snapback caps have long been involved in making documentaries.

Two summers ago, Hill contemplated joining the Knicks as a free agent but stayed in Phoenix. His friend and former teammate Amar’e Stoudemire joined the Knicks last summer. For the most part, Stoudemire has enjoyed an All-Star season.

“I encouraged him to look past all of the hype and make a decision he can live with,” Hill said. “When it’s not fun, when it’s not easy, can you imagine yourself living there? Look at the whole situation, don’t get caught up in all the fanfare. Obviously, it’s worked out.” Carmelo Anthony in February, Stoudemire had to share the spotlight, although Hill said Stoudemire set the tone for the Knicks’ rejuvenation.

The Knicks reached the playoffs and played well in the first two games against Boston, after an extended adjustment in the regular season that was guided by Coach Mike D’Antoni, though injuries to Chauncey Billups and Stoudemire took the sting out of the Knicks’ punch. Hill recalled that the Suns faced a similar situation with D’Antoni in the 2007-8 season when Shaquille O’Neal

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joined the team.

Friday’s drubbing by the Celtics, after a typical New York buildup, drained much of the joy. Hill, whose Suns missed the playoffs this season, cautioned the Knicks and their fans not to be downhearted: there’s much to be said for reaching the playoffs, regardless of the result.

None of that takes the sting out of missing the playoffs.

“I’d rather be guarding Kobe.”

E-mail: wcr@nytimes.com

 

 

 

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