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The 2014 NHL draft is many things to many people, but Year of the Defenceman it is not. The oddity, of course, is that its a blueliner who is the mid-season favorite to be taken No. 1 overall at the draft in Philadelphia, June 27-28. Barrie Colt defenceman Aaron Ekblad is No. 1 on TSNs Mid-Season Top 50 Prospects rankings. In a survey of 10 NHL team scouts, Ekblad garnered eight No. 1 votes and was No. 2 on the remaining two ballots. The only other players to get a No. 1 vote, one apiece, were Kootenay Ice centre Sam Reinhart and Kingston Frontenac centre Sam Bennett (who was ranked No. 1 by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau in its mid-term rankings). Ekblad and Reinhart both performed admirably for Canada at the 2014 World Junior Championship but the defenceman clearly made a bigger impact, reversing TSNs pre-season polling that had Reinhart at No. 1, by virtue of five first-place votes, compared to Ekblads three. The truth is, from the Ivan Hlinka Memorial under-18 tournament last August through to the Canadian Hockey League Top Prospects game in mid-January, the 6-foot-4, 216-pound defenceman has been on a strong, steady arc. "In the summer, a lot of the projections for (Ekblad) were he might not be anything more than a (No.) 4 (NHL defenceman), that he was neither a real offensive threat or a true shutdown defenceman," one scout told TSN. "But the way he played at the Hlinka, this season in Barrie, the World Juniors and the Prospect game, hes showing a lot more range in his game." While Ekblad will never be a power play quarterback, he can hammer the puck well enough to project as a power play shooter from the point and score goals. Both at the Hlinka and WJC, Ekblad was consistently used in a shutdown role and performed well. Many scouts believe now he has top-pairing NHL potential, a big body who can skate, move the puck, defend, contribute offensively and play both sides of special teams while munching a lot of minutes. After the WJC, Ekblad scored four goals (including a shorthanded marker) and one assist in one game. "Hes not a superstar by any means," another scout said, "but hes going to be a very good NHL defenceman." Some scouts have taken note of Victor Hedmans emergence, the second overall pick in the 2009 draft, as a top-minute defenceman for Tampa this season and see many similarities in Ekblad. Ekblad is far and away the top defenceman in this draft. Only one other blueliner - Red Deers Haydn Fleury, at No. 6 – cracked TSNs Top 10 prospects. In fact, only five defencemen - Ekblad, Fleury, Kingstons Roland McKeown at No. 17, Swift Currents Julius Honka at No. 18 and Sarnias Anthony DeAngelo at No. 26 – are in TSNs Top 30. The latter three are likely first-round picks, but not by any means guaranteed. Relative to recent years, the death of top-echelon defencemen is striking. Last year, eight of the top 18 picks were defenders. In 2012, eight of the top 10 picks were blueliners. Scouts do not believe this years draft class has the same high-end sizzle and overall depth as last years group that was headed by Nathan MacKinnon, Seth Jones, Jonathan Drouin and Aleksandr Barkov. And it would be fair to say theres more anticipation for the 2015 draft class, headed by highly-touted Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, amongst others, than this year. But the scouts also cautioned that the top-end prospects this year are still excellent talents, just not necessarily potential stars. TSNs No. 2-ranked Reinhart didnt really do anything to "lose" No. 1 status from the pre-season as much as Ekblad simply elevated his game. Reinhart has played very well in the WHL and logged significant minutes for Canada at the WJC. A centre in junior, some scouts believe hell be best suited to wing in the NHL. Reinharts chief assets are an extremely high hockey I.Q. and skill level as both a goal-scorer and playmaker. Hes not physically overpowering and his skating is not dynamic but a seemingly innate ability to be in the right place at the right time to make plays is his trademark. Kingstons Bennett, the only player other than Ekblad and Reinhart to get a No. 1 vote, is No. 3 on the TSN list. The competitive centre who has some of the same qualities as his Kingston general manager Doug Gilmour can be both a productive offensive force but also does quality work without puck, earning rave reviews for his complete approach to the game. Oshawa General winger Michael Dal Colle checks in at No. 4 on TSNs list. The rangy forward has a pro shot and was a top five prospect on eight of 10 scouts ballots, including one vote as the second-best prospect available in this draft. No. 5 on TSNs list is Prince Albert Raider centre Leon Draisaitl, who is destined to be the highest-drafted German player and, for now, the top European prospect on the TSN list. But Draisaitl seems to be trending in the wrong direction. He played poorly at the WJC and didnt perform particularly well in the CHL Top Prospects game. But hes still a big-body, two-way centre. The second half of the season could mean more to Draisaitls ranking than any prospect in the draft. The balance of TSNs Top 10 is top heavy with wingers. Only two-way defenceman Fleury, at No. 6, interrupted a run on wingers: Peterborough Petes power forward Nick Ritchie is No. 7, followed at No. 8 by Niagara Ice Dog Brendan Perlini, whose assets are size, speed and an NHL shot. The No. 9 slot belongs to Finnish winger Kasperi Kapanen, the son of former NHL winger Sami Kapanen, and the Top 10 is rounded out by Calgary Hitmen power winger Jake Virtanen, a strong skater who drives the net and can play the physical game. There appears to be a lot of volatility in this years mid-season rankings. NHL scouts dont seem as fully sold on this years first-round prospects, especially those ranked from No. 11 through to 30. One of the issues is size. Many of the more skilled prospects - Swedish forward William Nylander at No. 11, the son of former NHLer Mikael Nylander, Denmarks Nikolaj Ehlers, a forward with the Halifax Mooseheads at No. 15, No. 22 Russian Nikolay Goldobin, a forward in Sarnia, No. 23 Czech winger Jakub Vrana , No. 24 Swiss forward Kevin Fiala, Sarnia offensive defenceman DeAngelo at No. 26, No. 29 Windsor winger Josh Ho-Sang and No. 30 forward Rob Fabbri of the Guelph Storm - are all listed as sub-6-footers by NHL Central Scouting. And while scouts dont dispute the individual skill level of prospects like Nylander, Goldobin, Vrana, DeAngelo, Ho-Sang and No. 25 ranked Nick Schmaltz of the USHLs Green Bay Gamblers (headed for University of North Dakota), multiple scouts expressed some reservation about those players trying to do too much with the puck or not showing enough consistency and commitment to the team game. "Nylander is the most skilled player in this draft, bar none," one scout told TSN. "But he likes to play the game on his own." Another scout said: "Some nights you watch Schmaltz and hes a dominant player, best on the ice, but then he doesnt even show up a lot of games." A third scout said: "Ho-Sang played a great game at Prospects and showed an ability to play with others but a lot of nights in Windsor, he wants to do it on his own. There seem to be a lot of guys like that this year." No goalie was ranked in TSNs Top 30, but American Thatcher Demko, who plays at Boston College, fell just outside, at No. 31, and should be considered a potential first-rounder. He was the overwhelming consensus top goalie in a year where theres never been so little consensus beyond the top guy. Demko appeared on eight of 10 ballots, but the next highest ranked goalie, Alex Nedeljkovic of the Plymouth Whalers at No. 42, was on only five of 10 ballots. Swedish goalie Jonas Johansson was the only other goalie to crack TSNs Top 50, filling the 50th and final spot. There were, however, three goaltenders getting honorable mention for the Top 50: Finlands Kaapo Kahkonen; Charlottetowns Mason McDonald; and Russian Ivan Nalimov. One note regarding TSNs rankings. The numbers assigned are a projection of when TSN believes a prospect is most likely to be drafted, if the draft were being held now. Its not a subjective analysis - not to be confused with the many scouting services who actually evaluate the prospects - as much as it is a numerical consensus obtained from surveying NHL scouts and where they rank specific players. TSNs next ranking - a revised Top 10 - will be done in April at the same time as the NHL draft lottery. TSNs final rankings come out the week prior to the NHL draft in late June. Basketball Shoes From China . -- Pelicans coach Monty Williams does not expect guard Eric Gordon to play in any of New Orleans final five games this season. Cheap Basketball Shoes Authentic . The Brazilian-born strikers brace drew him level with Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo as the leagues leading scorers with 17 goals apiece through 16 rounds. "The important thing is to help the team win, not the goals," Diego Costa said. After a first half dominated by defence, Atletico pressed Valencia into its area and Diego Costa did the rest. http://www.clearancebasketballshoes.com/ . Wrights first stint with Milwaukee was on a 10-day contract from March 14-23. He played in two games, averaging six points and two rebounds in 16. Discount Basketball Shoes . PAUL, Minn. Cheap Basketball Shoes For Sale . Watching them over the past year - and in some cases, two years - has given us a starting point for this seasons Craigs List.VANCOUVER -- Milan Dragicevic is determined not to go down without a fight. Dragicevic, coach of the University of British Columbia varsity mens hockey team, is on a mission to keep his program going as its future remained in doubt Tuesday. The school announced 16 teams, from the current 29, that will play next season -- but mens hockey wasnt among those approved. "It was really disappointing, obviously -- disappointing for the players, disappointing for the program, disappointing for the alumni -- and all the hard work thats (been done) for this program for the last 100 years," said Dragicevic. "And for (university administrators) to even consider putting this program as a non-varsity (program), its a slap in the face, I think." UBC has played a key role in Canadas national hockey development. The late Father David Bauer and former UBC athletic director Bob Hindmarch established the first Canadian national team on campus in 1963. The universitys sport review advisory team is in the midst of examining the athletics department and determining which teams should stay at the varsity level. The fate of the 13 other teams will be decided at the end of February, giving Dragicevic and the programs supporters about six weeks to save the mens hockey program. Teams receiving a passing grade include: womens ice hockey and womens field hockey, mens and womens basketball, mens football, mens rugby and womens volleyball. "Mens hockey is gonna stay," said Dragicevic. "I have a feeling that its going to stay. Im very confident, and as I told all the players today, our alumni group is a very powerful group. They support our program. It doesnt matter about wins and losses. Its all about player development and development for life afterward." Administrators contend the varsity teams annual budget, which has been raised by $200,000 to $6.4 million, is insufficient for so many high-performance teams. "We simply could not have gone on with 29 varsity teams," said Louise Cowin, UBCs vice-president of students, during a news conference. "And, its not just a question of financial resources." Cowin added that UBCs athletics program was on "an unsustainable path" and other Canadian universities have been struggling with the same issues. She pointed to the University of Toronto, Queens, Carlton, University of New Brunswick, Trent and Brock as examples of post-secondary institutions where the number of varsity teams has been reduced. But Dragicevic called his teams omission from the approved list "shocking" given hockeys popularity and rich history in Canada. "Its Canadas national sport," said Dragicevic. "Weve been around for a long time. It kind of blows your mind that they would consider this, when you look at the tradition and the community involvement that we have. At the end of the day, I believe theyre gonna say hockey is a no-brainer to keep at the varsity level." The approvals came after teams submitted reasons why their programs should coontinue.dddddddddddd The mens field hockey team is also determined to retain its varsity status after missing out in the first stage. "I thought we fit the criteria very well," said Arif Virjee, a player who with the team who also sits on UBCs athletes council. He cited players strong academics, national team representatives and the teams long history as factors in its favour. "Weve had national team players stretching back to the 1950s," he said. Virjee, who is in his last year at UBC, feels mostly for young players who hope to continue with the program. "This is my last year at the university," he said. "I think its more disappointing for first and second-year players. They made choices in coming here. They have to make some decisions going forward." Other notable omissions from the approved list include womens soccer, even though UBC is a national soccer training centre that Canadian womens team coach John Herdman has pledged to use for training and player development, mens and womens golf and mens baseball. The baseball team has supplied a number of players, including pitcher Jeff Francis, to the major leagues and Canadas Olympic team. Varsity teams are being graded on a number of criteria set out by the university, including success in competition, coaching strength, history, alumni support and even attendance, which is traditionally low for most sports on campus. Cowin and Ashley Howard, UBCs managing director of athletics and recreation, were surprised that 16 teams passed the first stage of the review. They had expected fewer teams to qualify. Howard said the approved teams made the based on their current situations and decisions were not based on new alumni funding support. But, she said, new funding programs will be considered for teams seeking to be approved as part of the second stage. The review process has generated strong opposition from some alumni and current donors with many concerned some teams are being unfairly targeted for their high cost and lack of recent success. Derek Swain, head of an alumni group who has been battling to keep programs alive, was not impressed with what he heard at the news conference, contending that administrators have not been as transparent as they claim to be. He said the administrations plan has been "highly flawed" while the review has "an unnecessary and divisive process." "Im hopeful though that they got the message that varsity athletics are very important and theyre very important to the community at large," said Swain, a former UBC basketball player. Swain said alumni groups are planning to withhold donations to the university if teams lose their varsity status. He said its important to recognize that former varsity athletes contribute more to the universitys general coffers than other graduates. But Swain, who criticized administrators for not including more people with varsity sports experience in the review process, said hes hopeful that some programs can be saved. ' ' '