Jock Talk – Where rain outs on scheduled golf days blow.
This Rasmus Dahlin kid will blossom similar to how Phil Housley held the helm as a constant all-star D-man for the Buffalo Sabres back in the day. Dahlin is now the second Swedish player ever to be taken No. 1. Mats Sundin being the other back in 1989 with Quebec Nordiques – Speaking of which, that was my squad! Michael Goulet and the Stastny brothers were fire for Guy LaFleur and the Habs. S/O Mario Tremblay though, that was my type of player. He and Doug Jarvis.
But back to the draft, overall it was kind of boring. No big deals, just a lot a bark, no bite. Nice pick though by the Senators, Brady Tkachuk is a keeper. Good genes all day! His pops Keith was a pain in the ass to play against as well as being a great goal scorer. And as we can see, son Matthew followed suit. But Brady is even more intense on the ice compared to the two. Plays all three zones, and drags you into the fight whether you want to be there or not.
Leafs went the Swedish route as well by drafting Rasmus Sandin with their first pick. I like the fact the kid played in the OHL with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, experiencing the Canadian grind of junior hockey. He’s quick, lefty shot, and very smart with the puck. I say give him three years of development and hopefully he can be our homegrown Brian Leetch type player. And I like the third-round pick, Semyon Dee-Arguchintsev. Only 17-years-old, played the last two seasons with the Peterborough Petes. Aside from his skills, I can’t wait for announcers to say his name 25 times a night.
Canucks went small, favourably towards getting faster. Flames did what most expected by beefing up a bit. Canadiens pretty much played it safe. Oilers got what they wanted with their 10th overall pick in drafting Evan Bouchard. Wonder though if they’d like a mulligan on that Taylor Hall deal to New Jersey? I think it’s better to draft a D-man and get him acclimated within your system, as opposed to uprooting a young player and expecting him to grasp a new system on the fly.
Congrats to DeAndre Ayton on going No. 1 to the Phoenix Suns. I like his game. Dominant big man with a feathery touch. So Joel Embiid can act jealous if he wants, but this kid is coming for that crown. The Raptors had no picks. None at all. Yet, Masai Ujiri was nowhere to be found for comment. Nowhere! I scoured the net and not a dang word from the overrated GM. Probably still thinking of ways to convince us as to why he drafted Bruno Caboclo and traded him for a cup of coffee.
No. 2 pick Marvin Bagley will give the Kings a legit paint man. He does it all. Says here, Mavs will rue the day they traded Trey Young to the Hawks. Congrats to Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, drafted by the Hornets with the 11th pick. Steals of the draft: Michael Porter jr. going to the Nuggets, Lonnie Walker off to the Spurs and Aaron Holiday heading to the Pacers. Good genes strikes again. NBA big brothers Jrue and Justin both supported Aaron donning Pacers caps for the one night.
The NFL plans to lay the lumber on Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback James Winston for the first three games of the season for violating the league’s personal conduct policy.
The planned suspension stems from an alleged incident with an Uber driver in Scottsdale, Arizona, in March 2016.
The league still has not notified Winston of its official decision. Winston would stand to lose $124,000 in base salary for a three-game suspension because his base salary is only $705,000 this season. His base salary for next season is scheduled to be over $20.9 million, reducing the chance he would consider appealing this three-game suspension. Just another incident in Winston’s file of erratic behaviour. Like dude, you’re getting paid to do what you love. Why play yourself out? Florida State alumni move different from that. Another week of World Cup fever is among us as we head into Match Day 3… “Hurricane” Harry Kane and Romelu Lukaku are in sublime form and will be battling for the Golden Boot and top spot in Group G. The fate of one of them will likely be the Germans, who through a late winner from Toni Kroos’ indirect free kick put their campaign into gear.
The VAR (Video Assistant Referee) stories continue with its Tournament nemesis Neymar and Brazil. With much of the world agreeing with the decision, there are still a large contingent pleading that Neymar was impeded from getting his shot off (before the theatrics). As a result of this and the nature of the defensive aggression in modern football, the 2018 World Cup will almost certainly smash the record for most penalties awarded. Despite the hoopla of what should, could and would be – like it or not, I would concede VAR has more benefits than drawbacks thus far.
Of course the highlight story continues to be who is more the 2018 Maradona – Messi or Ronaldo? Ronaldo seems to have Messi’s number thus far, but with a game to play each – Messi is very capable of putting together a show to trickle into the round of 16. Ronaldo can regain his lead for the Golden Boot if he turns in a typical performance against underdogs Iran, and going forth.
Some sent packing, others have work to do and a few have a weight off their shoulders.
As of June 24th:
Qualified: Russia, Uruguay, France, Croatia, Belgium, England.
Eliminated: Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Peru, Costa Rica, Tunisia, Panama, Poland.
It’s a must that I big up the NHL Awards show for being enjoyable to watch after years of missing the mark. These past few have been entertaining and a lot more memorable. Vegas baby! Hip is in and always will be. Embrace the new culture. And I like they way the NHL pays respect to those who paved the way for the future of the game today, and onward. Classy! Salute the vets!
Congrats to the winners. Well deserved for sure.
Hart Trophy: Taylor Hall, New Jersey Ted Lindsay Award: Connor McDavid, Edmonton
Norris Trophy: Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay
King Clancy Trophy: Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin, Vancouver
Calder Trophy: Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders
Lady Byng Trophy: William Karlsson, Vegas
Masterton Award: Brian Boyle, New Jersey
Selke Trophy: Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles
Jack Adams Award: Gerard Gallant, Vegas
Messier Leadership Award: Deryk Engelland, Vegas
Vezina Trophy: Pekka Rinne, Nashville General Manager of the Year: George McPhee, Vegas
Willie O’Ree Community Hero Award: Darcy Haugan, Humboldt Broncos coach
NBA awards were held on Monday night. And to no surprise on this side Dwane Casey was named the NBA’s Coach of the Year. Not bad for a guy who was made the scapegoat for the Raptors disappointing end to the season. Forever classy Casey thanked his all-stars in DeMar and Kyle, and all the people who contributed to his success as a coach in the NBA. Though I must note, Raps new head coach Nick Nurse and GM Masai Ujiri weren’t shouted out. Hold that! Glad Casey got the last laugh. Our loss is Detroit’s gain.
Complete list of the winners:
Defensive Player of the Year: Rudy Gobert, Utah
Sixth Man of the Year: Lou Williams, Los Angeles Clippers
Most Improved Player: Victor Oladipo, Indiana
Rookie of the Year: Ben Simmons, Philadelphia
Most Valuable Player: James Harden, Houston
Lifetime Achievement Award: Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson Teammate of the Year: Jamal Crawford, Minnesota
NBA Cares Community Assist Award: Kevin Durant, Golden State
Sager Strong Award: Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo
MLB Rundown: Welcome back Marcus Stroman. Blue Jays SP finally returned to the lineup and looked sharp in helping the team salvage a split with the Angels over the weekend … 1B Paul Goldschmidt continues to sizzle at the plate for the D-Backs. Last 15 days, .327 AVG .444 OBP, 5 HRs, 13 RBIs, 15 Runs … Nice to see SP Clayton Kershaw return to the mound for the Dodgers … Meanwhile SP Chris Sale is throwing heat for the Red Sox. 23 Ks over his last 14 innings spanning two game with an ERA of .150 … Still can’t believe the Rays sweep the Yanks, cost me money man … 3B Nolan Arenado mashing for Rockies right now. .327 AVG, .387, 6 HRs, 19 RBIs 17 Runs over 15 days.
Quick Hits: UConn President Susan Herbst told Kevin Ollie she was upholding his firing because the former men’s basketball coach had a pattern of breaking NCAA rules and committed serious violations. Yeah whatever, it was all good until it wasn’t. Costing my guy Ollie $10 million large … Undefeated junior welterweight power puncher Vergil Ortiz Jr. had no trouble disposing of two-time former junior lightweight titleholder Juan Carlos Salgado. Ortiz Jr threw a vicious left hook to the body at 1:52 of the third round to rock buddy off his game.
I’m all for the NBA returning to Vancouver and Seattle. They need to make that happen soon … Congrats to Bubba Watson for capturing the Travellers Championship.
My track of the week goes to Haley Smalls. The sharp songstress with the melodic voice hails outta Mississauga, ON. She’s been letting off chune for these past few years now. Her catalogue is no joke and she’s only getting started.
Most definitely she’ll break through and become a household name. That’s my belief! My bro Mega, as in Megaman, the monster producer from Scarborough, has been mentoring Haley in the trenches. Showcasing various styles and range while learning new faucets of the ever changing music industry. The music is sweet, and her growth is always evident in all projects. This track here, “Dopamine.” Just my toonie on how I see sports. Point Spread sheets all in my console, capitalize I must. Peace y’all!
Your boy,
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Jock Talk with JD: Track of the Week
Thanks for rocking with me for another week.
