01-21-2020, 06:55 AM
ABBOTSFORD, B.C. - Shots were at a premium for the Abbotsford Heat on Friday night, but Corban Knight made no mistake in making the most of his. The 23-year-old rookie notched a hat trick in Abbotsfords 6-3 victory over the visiting Rockford IceHogs, despite being outshot 48-18 in the American Hockey League matchup. Although Knight admitted his goals werent the most highlight-reel type of goals, he made them count when he got the chance. "It was definitely a relief to get that first one," Knight said. "Then after that it was just kind of one of those nights where things were kind of going well for me offensively … You look at my goals and none of them were really that flashy, so it was just nice to get that off my back and contribute offensively for my team." Knight said his first professional hat trick couldnt have happened without the help of his linemates Sven Baertschi and Tim Miller. "Baertschis been putting up a lot of points and producing offensively," said Knight. "(Millers) the kind of guy where he just brings his lunch pail and just works hard and gets a lot of pucks back. Tonight it was just kind of clicking for us." Miller said theres no mistaking the dynamic between Knight and Baertschi on the ice. "I got the notice in the pre-game skate that I was going to play with those guys," Miller said. "You can tell the talent those two have out there. Its my job to still play physical, try to create room for them in the offensive zone and get to the net." Knight scored back-to-back goals in the first period. The High River, Alta., native tipped a shot from Max Reinhart over Jason LaBarberas left shoulder to give his team a 2-1 edge on the power play at 16:40 of the first period. His second goal came just over a minute later at 18:04 as Miller took advantage on a Rockford turnover in the IceHogs zone, feeding the puck across the crease to Knight, who buried it short side. Baertschi had two goals and three assists for Abbotsford (38-25-7), while Miller picked up a goal and two helpers. "That line had an opportunistic night — they did a good job finishing," said Abbotsford head coach Troy Ward. "We thought Miller was our best player … I thought he had his best game by far for the Heat. He just opens up space for those other guys. He played honest, he played hard, and he gives Corban and Sven some space." Joni Ortio stopped 45 of the 48 shots he faced in the victory. "He made some big time saves at really important times, so he was huge for us tonight," Knight said. "I dont think we wouldve won that game without him playing the way he did." Mark McNeill and Alex Broadhurst each had a goal and an assist for Rockford (33-27-9). LaBarbera allowed four goals on 12 shots in the loss, while Kent Simpson stopped five shots in a relief effort. "It was a tough night and kind of weird game out there," said Knight. "The feel of the game was just weird, but fortunately we got the win, so well put it behind us and get ready for tomorrow." McNeill opened the scoring at 3:05 of the first as he powered around Abbotsfords Zach Davies, cut to the crease and roofed it over Ortios glove. Broadhurst and Klas Dahlbeck picked up assists. At 11:25 of the first, Miller picked up Heat captain Dean Arsenes point shot and buried the rebound into an open net to tie the game. Less than a minute into the second period, Alex Broadhurst received a Terry Broadhurst pass from behind the net and quickly put it past the outstretched left pad of Ortio. Knight scored his hat trick goal at 7:28 of the second, flipping the puck on net from behind the goal-line, and squeaking it just between the goal post and LaBarberas left shoulder. Baertschi added to Abbotsfords lead by feeding an intended pass through the crease that deflected off of a Rockford defender at 13:49 of the second. The IceHogs responded on the power play at 16:21 as Brian Connelly fed Adam Clendening at the point, who then fired it through traffic to cut Abbotsfords lead to 5-3. Baertschi added an empty-net goal from centre ice with 0:41 remaining in the game. Fake Jordan 1 Outlet . Costa Rica followed up its wins over Uruguay and Italy by holding England to a dour 0-0 draw on Tuesday, enough to finish first in Group D. Yeezy Boost 700 Store . Zimmermann became the National Leagues first 16-game winner, pitching seven solid innings to lead the Washington Nationals past the Philadelphia Phillies 3-2 Wednesday night. http://www.cheapestairmaxstore.com/.com) - The Los Angeles Kings werent playing their best hockey before the league went on break during the Winter Olympics. Stan Smith Store . The Rangers centre left early in Game 1 with an upper body injury after being checked by Canadiens defenceman Mike Weaver and has not played since. Brassard told reporters after practice that he was good to go. That brought a smile to the face of Rangers coach Alain Vigneault. Nike Basketball Shoes Clearance ., will experience this week. A year in which the Canadian curling championship has been pushed forward a week to accommodate the Winter Olympics was deemed the perfect chance to stage the event in Montreal for the first time since 1979.As 2013 winds to a close, TSN.ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. TSN.cas writing staff reflects on the best baseball moments from the past 12 months including the Jays highs and lows, Ichiros moment in the sun, Todd Heltons farewell and more! Torontos Opening Day optimism vanishes in a hurry By: Barry Riz A winter unlike most in Blue Jays history had passed with some of the most dramatic player upgrades the franchise had ever seen. Jose Reyes, Melky Cabrera, R.A. Dickey, Mark Buehrle, and Josh Johnson were each star additions and made the Blue Jays a revitalized force in the AL East. Many prognosticators saw Toronto as a 95-win team, and Las Vegas sportsbooks had the Jays as World Series favourites. Opening Day is usually sold out in Toronto - but tickets to this one against Cleveland were tough to come by two months in advance. There was a buzz in the stadium, an expectation that had been building all winter. The road back to the postseason was going to start - and start in style - with defending NL Cy Young winner Dickey on the hill for the Blue Jays. Well for those who believe in signs, there were plenty to go around. Catcher J.P. Arencibia allowed three passed balls from the knuckleballer which led in part to Clevelands first two runs. Torontos newly potent offence was held to just four hits, with their sole run coming on a double play groundout. The Indians cruised to a 4-1 win. After months of winter build-up the aura of invincibility for Blue Jay fans was gone in a hurry. Ichiro joins baseballs elite By: Shane McNeil Baseball has had a pretty brutal couple decades from the 1994 players strike through to the Biogenesis bombshell of 2013, but Ichiro is the type of classic baseball player that performs at the most basic technical level in hugely entertaining fashion. I dont care that he has hit one home run for every 83 major league plate appearance, because theres no one else in the game Id rather see run as fast as they can from home to first. So when Ichiro joined Pete Rose and Ty Cobb as the only professional ball players to reach the 4,000 hit plateau on Aug. 21, it gave baseball fans a chance to respect a man who has excelled at the game on its most basic of levels. Some put an asterisk on the achievement due to his time in Japan, but there are many reasons why those people are wrong. Ichiro has played baseball in a beautiful and dignified way for the last 13 years in North America while countless other superstars have chosen not to. If we cant allow the man his one moment in the sun in what is likely the twilight of his MLB career, were doing something wrong. A quiet goodbye for a Hall-of-Famer By: Mike Beauvais The 2013 MLB season had some great storylines and it was one of the more compelling campaigns in recent memory including legendary New York Yankees reliever Mariano Riveras farewell tour. There was another significant retirement in 2013, but it certainly didnt receive the coverage that Riveras did. On Sept. 17, Colorado Rockies first baseman Todd Helton announced that the 2013 season would be his last in the MLB. Only 11 days later, he would play his final game at Coors Field. There was a modest ceremony prior to the game and Helton would go on to close out his career in Denver with a home run and three RBI. Maybe Heltons retirement didnt merit the fanfare that came with Riveras, but Heltons played out much like the majority of his 17 seasons with the Rockies did â€" quietly and under the mainstream radar. If youre a casual baseball fan, you just might be taken aback by Heltons career numbers: .316 career batting average, top-10 all-time in OBP (.430,), only player in MLB history to have 10-consecutive seasons of 35 or more doubles as well as countless Rockies career records. Helton was never the sexy name that Derek Jeter was and never starred in the spotlight of the Bronx like Jeter and Rivera did, but Todd Helton was the Colorado Rockies talisman and worthy of Cooperstown consideration. In his final at bat on that cool, September night in Denver, Helton went out as unassumingly as you would think a playyer like Helton would: he struck out swinging before politely soaking in the standing ovation from the Coors Field crowd.dddddddddddd "It goes by really quick," Helton said after the game of his career. "You blink and here you are." Brian McCann stands up for his principles By: Daan De Kerpel In a two week span in September, Brian McCann had confrontations with Miami Marlins rookie Jose Fernandez followed by Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Carlos Gomez after they each admired a home run a little too long. On Sept. 11, Fernandez was making his last start of the season in Miami. In the sixth inning, he hit a home run and watched it a little too slowly for the Braves liking. As he rounded third, Fernandez made some gestures to the Braves bench, which didnt sit well with McCann, who immediately started talking to the 20-year-old. After the game, Fernandez told the media that he apologized to both McCann and Mike Minor, the pitcher who hit the home run off of. McCanns response: "Hey, man, youre a kid but youre in the big leagues. You need to do what big leaguers do." Perhaps taking a page out of Johnsons playbook, McCann was much more animated two weeks later when Gomez took Paul Maholm deep, watched the ball sail into the seats before running. After trading barbs with Braves players as he ran the bases, McCann stood in front of home plate and wouldnt let the Gomez pass. That led to the benches clearing and even punches being thrown. While no one is expecting McCann to display this type of fire all the time in the regular season, the fact that he can get that wound up in games against non-playoff teams in September, makes me wonder what hell be like in a rivalry game against the Red Sox. The infectious joy that is Munenori Kawasaki By: Sarah Zintel The Toronto Blue Jays 2013 season may not have met their fans expectations but they certainly got lucky with the hilarious distraction that was Munenori Kawasaki. He stormed onto the Jays infield leaving everyone in stiches. The shortstop quickly became best known for his unorthodox stretching, unique dance moves, original handshakes with teammates, and most importantly his interview skills. The Japan natives most infamous interview was after his walk-off double for the win at home against the Orioles where he stole the show with his preplanned notes and poor English. The interview quickly went viral and most recently earned him the MLBs GIBBY Award for "Cut 4 Topic of the Year". Kawasakis positive and joyous attitude helped motivate not only the fans but also his teammates to come together and celebrate the Blue Jays, despite the team finishing last in the AL East. The team declined Kawasakis option for next season and the fans will surely miss his spirit. But one thing that will never be forgotten is: "My name is Munenori Kawasaki. I come from Japan. Im Japanese!" MLB strikes unlikely gold in Game 162 By: Shane McNeil So, were now two years into Major League Baseballs expanded playoff format and while nothing could replicate the insanity of the final day of the 2011 season, the extra playoff spot has at least provided meaningful games on the seasons final day with regularity. This season was no different, as the Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers and Cleveland Indians entered the final game vying for wild card spots. All three teams won their final game, setting up a one-game playoff between the Rangers and Rays to earn a spot in another one-game playoff with the Indians. But the highlight of the day would come not from the wild card chase but a meaningless game in Miami. Marlins hurler Henderson Alvarez no-hit the Detroit Tigers for nine innings, but his teammates were unable to get him a run through eight. The Marlins caught some fortuitous bounces in the ninth, including the wild pitch that would plate Giancarlo Stanton for the winning run. Immediately after Stanton crossed, the Marlins mobbed Alvarez â€" who was standing in the on-deck circle - to celebrate the achievement. When was the last time you saw a pitcher relish a no-no with a batters helmet on? ' ' '