Author Archives: Jaden Teja

Canucks Defeat Predators

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The Vancouver Canucks have won three straight games. Sounds the trumpets. The Canucks have won three straight games. I’m going to savor this as much as I can. The last time they won three or more games in a row was early October. Hopefully this calms down some of the news around the team. At Least just for now because the team is finally starting to put together some wins. Vancouver finally climbed their way back into a playoff spot. Ironically it was against the team they beat in the playoffs last year. 

In the first period Vancouver looked great. Nils Hoglander got on the board scoring his fourth goal of the year off of a beautiful passing play from Quinn Hughes and Elias Pettersson. Hughes came out to play tonight. Tallying his 20th multipoint game of the season making his MVP case stronger each game. I know you aren’t surprised us Canucks fans know how good Hughes is. After Nashville tied the game at one. Hughes setup Linus Karlsson for his first career NHL goal. The Canucks shut it down the rest of the game and Pius Suter added the empty net marker to ice the game for Vancouver. I’m trying to remember but I’m pretty sure Suter scored another goal last year against Nashville too. I wonder if that was an important goal.

 

Thatcher Demko played great making 31 saves. I don’t want to get too excited because I want to see more out of Demko. But this is definitely a step in the right direction. However, after this game I want to see Demko start against Dallas to see if he can get some consistency in his game. The Canucks have a tough test next game against the Stars Friday but with how this team is playing I’m feeling confident going into that game. I hope I won’t be eating those words.

Canucks Predators Preview

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With everything going on with the team and all of the noise in the media. I bet you forgot there’s a game today. The Canucks are playing a hockey game. Not just any hockey game, a game vs the team they eliminated in the playoffs. Also against a team they’ve lost to twice this year. The Nashville Predators. I’m not going to get into the JT Miller Elias Pettersson saga because that’s not important right now. It’s Canucks game day and they badly need two points. In Jim Rutherford’s interview yesterday, he said if the Canucks start winning both players might stay.

https://twitter.com/Canucks/status/1884632605397860612

The Canucks have a winning streak going for the first time since early December. Its about to be February and it already starts to feel like must- win hockey. After Monday’s win against the Blues the Canucks need to take any momentum and run with it. Thatcher Demko is starting in goal today and I don’t know how I feel about that. Demko hasn’t played like himself and I don’t know if he ever will. His knee injury is starting to become a major problem. Kevin Lankinen is giving the team a better chance to win right now. This might be a hot take but I could see this as being Demkos last year as a Canuck.

 

For the game tonight it’s absolutely imperative that the big guns score. If Pettersson, Miller and Brock Boeser score it will be a great game. Honestly if Pettersson scores assisted by Miller everything in Canucks land might be saved… If only it were that easy. But as they say winning cures everything and a Canucks win tonight could go a long way.

Vancouver Warriors : Building Lacrosse Culture In B.C.

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Over the last year, the Vancouver Warriors have given fans tons to cheer about. Since bringing in head coach and general manager Curt Malawsky, the culture of the Warriors completely changed.  

Malawsky has the team playing better than ever before. Since the second half of last season, the Warriors have turned it around and are making lacrosse exciting in Vancouver. Someone who has seen lacrosse grow in the Lower Mainland is Warriors defenceman Matt Beers. Beers grew up in Coquitlam and has played professional lacrosse in two different eras – first with the Vancouver Stealth, and now with the Warriors. He knows all about the culture of the sport in this region. 

 “The culture of lacrosse is really strong, it’s a very blue collar sport. There’s a lot of hard-working kids (who) just want to have fun and it’s still affordable for families.”The Warriors are very active in the community with their Stick to School program and lacrosse camps for kids. Beers explains how Malawsky emphasizes the importance of community to the team.  

“The culture of lacrosse in our dressing room with Curt is really professional.  There’s a lot of emphasis on growing the game on and off the floor. There’s a lot of accountability for us to do more in the community. I think that’s something he brings to the table, (and) that’s really changed the culture in our dressing room.”  

Beers is also a fan of how the National Lacrosse League is helping grow the game across the country. 

“I will say I think across the league, they do a pretty good job of that because a lot of us (players) have gotten here from volunteers and we know what it means to give back, so I do see that around the league, but the culture that Curt brings to his dressing room is unmatched. 

 

 If you’ve been to a Warriors game, you know how much effort they put into making it fun for the fans. Every game is a theme night with tons of festivities like a mechanical bull on country night. They make every game feel like a party. With how the team is playing and in the middle of a seven-game home winning streak, the attendance at Rogers Arena is growing. We all saw how much buzz there was around town with the Canucks in the playoffs last year. The Warriors are currently on pace to make the playoffs this year for the second time in franchise history. The first time came in 2017, but lacrosse has grown a lot in British Columbia since then. Beers knows how important playoff lacrosse would be for the province. 

“Really important, I was actually part of the team we played a championship game at Langley Events Centre and sold it out. You can just see the hunger in this city for playoff game. People came out in droves in  2010 when we won in Washington. A large portion of those people were from B.C. ‘If you build it, they will come’ (is what) Chris Hall used to say (when) we were playing our first year in Washington. We’re building it right here in Vancouver and we hope as we continue to grow and have success, the fans will come out and support us, and they have. So (we’re) really excited for a hopeful playoff game.” 

 The Warriors are currently fourth in the NLL and everyone around the franchise is excited for a potential playoff game this spring. 

Kirill Kaprizov Out For Four Weeks

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Minnesota Wild superstar Kirill Kaprizov  is out for a minimum of four weeks with a lower body injury. Kaprizov just recently returned after 12 games from another lower body injury. This is a massive blow to the to the Wild as Kaprisov is having an MVP caliber season. He was on pace for 115 points which would be a career high. Minnesota is still eighth in the league and third in the Central division despite Kaprizov’s absence. In his last three games he had two assists but general manager Bill Gurein said he was only playing at 60 percent.

Gurein spoke on Kaprizovs injury. Kirill is very upset,” Guerin said. “Kirill is such a team-focused guy. And I think with what he has, he knows he could probably get by in games and try to help the team. But he doesn’t like it. Him at 60 percent is better than most players in the League, but he wants to be 100 percent and help us play as long as we can this year. And I agree with him.” 

 

Wild coach John Hynes said, “Even on the bench at times, he was struggling to get through it. He did, and we did, everything we could to see if it would work for him, but it didn’t. So, now we’ve got to go this direction.”

 

Minnesota is still a good team but Kaprizov is at the center of it all. He is one of the most dynamic players in the NHL and easily one of the most valuable to his team. The Wild lose their best offensive weapon. This hurts, because outside of Kaprizov  Matt Boldy will have to carry the offensive. Its something that he’s done before but not to the level that Kaprizov can. These next four weeks will be huge for Minnesota, they will need other players to step up big time to help fill Kaprizovs shoes.

Championship Sunday Recap

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The Super Bowl matchup is set. After 20 long weeks we know the two teams who will fight for the Lombardi Trophy. Its the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. A rematch of two years ago. So how did both teams get here, lets breakdown both conference championship games.

 

NFC Championship Philadelphia Eagles 55 Washington Commanders 23

 

This was the third time these two teams met this season, with each team winning once. Obviously this game had the most stakes. These two teams are at different stages. The two years removed from a Super Bowl appearance expected to be here. Especially after last year’s disappointing playoff exit and after signing Saquon Barkley in the offseason. Meanwhile for Washington, this season was a massive success. The emergence of  rookie Jayden Daniels and first year head coach Dan Quinn have turned this team around in just a year. So how did the game go? After Washington drove down the field and put three points on the board. On the first play of scrimmage for the Eagles Saquon Barkley did Saquon Barkley things. He took a pitch broke three tackles and went 60 yards for a touchdown. Stopping the run would be a huge problem for Washington. I mean a huge problem. The Eagles scored seven rushing touchdowns….. Seven. Three from Barkley another three from Jalen Hurts. Even third one from Will Shipley. The Commanders couldn’t stop the run at all and the Eagles run away with the game. Literally.

AFC Championship Kansas City Chiefs 32 Buffalo Bills 29

 

We know the storylines. The Bills are 0-3 against the Chiefs in the playoffs. Kansas Citys looking for a three-peat while the Bills are looking to make it back for the first time since 1991. So what happened? It started out super back and forth through the first one and a half quarters. After Patrick Mahomes touchdown with 1:55 remaining in the first half some people might have thought the Chiefs would start to pull away. Then Josh Allen threw a beautiful pass to Mack Hollins for a touchdown to make it a five point game right before half. At this point you could sense a shift in momentum. Then the Bills went for it on fourth down at the one yard line and James Cook took a toss from Allen and made an amazing play for a touchdown. The biggest play of the game was a fourth and one for Buffalo at Kansas City’s 41 yard-line. It appeared like Josh Allen picked up the first down. However, after review they called him short and the Chiefs went down the field and scored a touchdown. With 3:33 left Harrison Butker kicked a 35-yard field goal. This set the stage for the Josh Allen legacy drive. Three minutes on the clock a touchdown sends his team to the Super Bowl. so what happens the Bills on at midfield its fourth and six. 57.4 million people are watching around the world. The Chiefs send a huge blitz and Allen puts up a prayer. That hits the hands of tight end Dalton Kincaid and falls incomplete. The Chiefs run the rest of the clock out and head back to the Super Bowl. For the Bills its another game added to the list of heart breaking losses. I’m so sorry Bills fans I was pulling for you guys.

Canucks Blues Recap

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For the first time since November 29th and December 1st, the Vancouver Canucks have won back to back games. They really needed this and they came out to play.  From the first shift the Canucks set the tone. Quinn Hughes made an absolutely perfect pass to Conor Garland for the game’s first goal. On the ensuing face off JT Miller dropped the gloves with St Louis Blues captain Bryden Schenn. Once that happened I knew Miller was dialled in. After St Louis lost a challenge, Garland capitalized on the power play for his second of the game. 

Conor Garland was all over the ice generating scoring chances left and right. Miller scored on the power play to make it 3-0, but the turning point of the game was when Nils Hoglander high sticked Blues star Robert Thomas resulting in a double minor. The Blues were starting to turn their game around and you could sense the nervousness in Canucks land. So what happened on the four minute power play? Tyler Myers made a great play by taking the puck away( I know shocking). This sent Pius Suter on a partial breakaway and he scored a much needed short-handed goal. 

 

The Canucks locked down for the rest of the game. Tyler Myers even scored an empty netter to ice the game. Vancouver won 5-2 and actually played well as a team. On offence, defence and special teams. I know what you’re thinking, how did Elias Pettersson play? He had a season high seven shots on goal and recorded an assist. Still not the Petey we know but definitely a step in the right direction. I know the Miller Pettersson noise has gotten loud recently. But at the same time doesn’t very similar to when your mom threatened to turn the car around if you and your sibling weren’t behaving? I hope Alvin figures it out and they both stay.  Regardless, how about we just be happy they won and worry about the nonsense later.

Winning Like Warriors

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The Vancouver Warriors keep finding ways to win games. Whether they’re down early or it’s a close game or a high scoring game. It doesn’t matter, they are finding ways to keep stacking wins. The production isn’t coming from a few players either. It’s a full team effort each night. After dropping two one-goal games on the road to Ottawa and Philadelphia, Vancouver returned home for a rematch with the Ottawa Black Bears. The Warriors couldn’t afford to drop three games in a row or lose to the same team for a second time within a week.

So how did the Warriors respond? By surrendering a franchise-low four goals, including only one at even strength. It was a true testament to the resiliency that head coach and general manager Curt Malawsky always preaches. Post-game, Malawsky stressed how the last road trip wasn’t up to the standard the Warriors need to play.

“We were pretty pissed off. You know, I had a good chat with the leadership group last night, and we talked about how it was a good bonding weekend, but at the end of the day, it was very disappointing to have two one-goal losses, and that’s not acceptable. That was the message even though we played in two tough games, we didn’t win.”

“That’s something I’ve seen in Vancouver over the years, the culture of being close but that’s not good enough. ‘We’re close, but that’s okay.’ It’s not okay, and it’s on the leadership. They really stood up and sent that message today. We didn’t get what we came for last week, and we need to get what we’re here for this weekend”.

https://twitter.com/VanWarriors/status/1883019195828380093

Losing three consecutive games is something no team wants to do. Goaltender Aden Walsh added how important it was to get this win — especially at home. “As much fun as we had as a group it was definitely disappointing that we didn’t get the outcome that we wanted. So we knew we had to buckle down and get this  one at home.”

Adam Charalambides was dominant from the moment the game started by creating scoring chances with multiple behind-the-back passes. He finished with a hattrick and three assists. Like his coach, Charalambides emphasized how important it was to get the win after the two road losses. “We weren’t satisfied with that road trip. (There were) two disappointing one goal losses and we understood the magnitude of other going 3-and-4 and now we’re sitting here at 4-and-3. We played it like a playoff game and I like the way we played.”

He added that he feels the Warriors are taking steps forward as a team. “Each week, we’re trying to get better… we’re doing the film, win or lose. (We) come back to the drawing board, back to the basics and (look at) what can we improve on, what are we doing well. Let’s keep rolling with what we are doing well.

In each of their four wins, the Warriors had different players step up. Even though they only have 71 goals for, which is third lowest in the National Lacrosse League, they have only allowed 64 goals, which is the second best in the league. They aren’t winning with star power, they are winning as a team, which is a recipe for success in the NLL. Especially for a team with playoff and championship aspirations, like the Warriors

 

 

Los Vegas Raiders Hire Pete Carroll As Head Coach

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The Los Vegas Raiders are hiring Super Bowl 48 champion  Pete Carroll as their next head coach. After firing Antonio Pierce after a year and a half the Raiders elected to go with the 73 year old Carroll to help lead the franchise. The 73-year-old Carroll will return to the sidelines after one year as a senior advisor for the Seattle Seahawks The Raiders will be  the fourth NFL franchise that Carroll will coach. After previous tenures with the New England Patriots, New York Jets and most notably the Seattle Seahawks. Carroll led USC to a national championship in 2003 as well as the Seahawks to a Super Bowl in 2013. He is only the third head coach to win a national championship and a Super Bowl.

This does come as a bit of an interesting hire for the Raiders. As they are in a rebuild with a ton of question marks all over the roster. However, Carroll is one of the best culture builders in all of sports. He changed the Seahawks and built the “ Legion of Boom” and made Seattle one of the biggest power house teams in the NFL during the 2010s. The Seahawks only missed the playoffs four times during his time in Seattle. 

 

Carroll is a very old school head coach. Who puts emphasis on running the football and playing good defence. He has his work cutout for him in Sin City because the Raiders have a ton of holes. Outside of Maxx Crosby there isn’t much talent there. Crosby might even be moved in the offseason for draft capital. The Raiders do  have the sixth overall selection in this year’s draft so Carroll will get some good young pieces to work with. What do you think Carroll wll do in Vegas? What direction does the organization go in?

Canucks Oilers Recap

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I said yesterday’s Canucks was going to be entertaining. I mean I was kind of right but mainly if you’re an Oilers fan. For Canucks fans things got bad real fast. With all of the storylines  headed into the game. All of the talk about Connor McDavids suspension and should Conor Garland be worried. Which in itself is a bad narrative because Connor McDavid is the one in the wrong. Whatever the storylines were, it was still an important game for both teams. The thing is Edmonton knew that, as they came out flying. However, for Vancouver in like many games they started out slow and the Oilers made them pay. 

After Zach Hymen opened the scoring, the Oilers scored two goals in 20 seconds to really deflate the Canucks. It was almost the exact reverse of last game. Last Saturday Vancouver scored three goals in the first period and two of them were pretty quick. But Edmonton got two back to get them back in the game in the second period. So did the Canucks do the same? Sort of they let Edmonton get another two to make it 5-0 then Vancouver started their comeback. Brock Boeser and Filip Hronek scored and made it 5-2. 

 

I got really delusional thinking this was the start of a comeback. Vancouver was actually getting some good chances too. Elias Pettersson hit the post and you could start sensing a comeback. Kasperi Kapenen scored and ended all of the hopes of a win. Now there are more question marks in Vancouver. What’s up with Demko?. Is there a trade coming? Who’s responsible for this? Whatever the problem or problems are they need to get sorted fast. As Vancouver has the first place Washington Capitals coming to town on Saturday.

Canucks Oilers Preview

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It’s the rematch we’ve all been waiting for. If last year’s playoff series wasn’t enough. Connor McDavids cross check on Conor Garland added even more fuel to the fire in the Canucks Oilers rivalry.  Since last Saturday the Oilers organization has been in a frenzy. Even putting out a statement following McDavids three game suspension.The Oilers organization is disappointed and we share in our fans’ frustration over the three-game suspension of our captain Connor McDavid. We support him through this process and the organization and our fans look forward to having him back in the lineup vs. Seattle next week.  Who does that? Only the Oilers. 

https://twitter.com/Canucks/status/1882473568371454119

When the Canucks beat the Oilers last Saturday, most fans were hoping it would be the start of a win streak. So what did the Canucks do? Blow a third period lead to the Buffalo Sabers. Classic Canucks. Hey, at least on the bright side Elias Pettersson scored. Other than that there wasn’t much good. The Canucks haven’t won consecutive games since early December. The crazier part might be they haven’t lost consecutive games since before then. It has truly been a weird year for the Canucks.

 

So what happens in today’s game. Does Conor Garland need to watch his back? I’ve heard rumors that players might be retaliating. I wouldn’t be surprised and it might make for some entertaining hockey. I know there’s no Connor McDavid but I’m expecting this to be one of the most entertaining games of the year. With all the storylines and both teams needing the two points. It should be a good one in Oil Country.