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PHILADELPHIA -- Too worried about his own draft night, Jake Virtanen didnt hear about his hometown Vancouver Canucks trading Ryan Kesler until late Friday. Of course he paid attention when he saw the Canucks kept the No. 6 pick. "I just tried to shake it off and try not to worry about it," Virtanen said. The next player up after the consensus top five of Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart, Leon Draisaitl, Sam Bennett and Michael Dal Colle, Virtanen got his "dream come true" when the Canucks used that sixth overall pick on him. "Its pretty surreal for me," the six-foot left-winger said. "Still trying to soak it in. Its an amazing feeling." Virtanen, a native of Abbotsford, B.C., becomes yet another piece of the Trevor Linden/Jim Benning retooling project on the day Kesler was sent to the Anaheim Ducks and defenceman Jason Garrison to the Tampa Bay Lightning. So does Sault Ste. Marie centre Jared McCann, taken with the No. 24 pick the Canucks got as part of the Kesler deal. Unlike centre Nick Bonino and defenceman Luca Sbisa, whom the Canucks got from Anaheim, and Derek Dorsett, acquired from the New York Rangers for a third-round pick, Virtanen seems like a long-term project. Not only could he probably use some more time with the WHLs Calgary Hitmen, but he had shoulder surgery in May and is targeting mid-October to be cleared to take contact. "If its not mid-October, I think I just want to be 100 per cent healthy," Virtanen said. "Im not going to rush anything. I just want to be healthy and be able to play my best game." Virtanen, a power forward who NHL Central Scoutings Peter Sullivan compares to Jarome Iginla, showed some of his best hockey this past season as a point-a-game player. He was also tied as Canadas leading scorer at the world under-18 championship. All that didnt mean Virtanen went into draft day relaxed and confident. He tossed and turned Thursday night worrying. Virtanen wondered if the shoulder injury would cause him to drop a few spots, but he hoped it wouldnt a big deal. Still, he was anxious about where hed get taken. "I kind of just sat at the hotel just sweating," Virtanen said. "The day was pretty crazy." Not just for him but the Canucks organization given the flurry of trades. Vancouver wrapped up its haul for Kesler by taking McCann, ranked 10th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting, with the 24th pick. McCann, a native of Stratford, Ont., had 62 points in 64 games last season and is considered a gifted playmaker. Cheap New Balance Australia . The team announced the moves before Sundays game against Houston. Shaw was 1-4 with a 4.26 ERA in 43 games for the Diamondbacks. Bergesen was claimed off waivers from Baltimore on Friday. New Balance Shoes Australia .ca. Hi Kerry, Love reading your column and loved watching your analysis on the TSN broadcasts!And were now in Round 2! Bruins! Canadiens! We know all about the great games of the past from the players, the broadcasters and the writers. http://www.discountaustraliashoes.com/cheap-nmd-fake.html. Instead, Nonis and Kessel were sorting through the fallout of a wild melee with the Buffalo Sabres, one that saw Kessel suspended for the duration of the pre-season. Air Max 97 Australia .ca. The NHL Play of the Year showdown kicks off with some slick moves going head-to-head with a combination of soft hands and endless patience. Cheap Vapormax Australia . -- The Detroit Lions made it crystal clear to Golden Tate that he was their top target in free agency.MONTREAL -- There was something familiar about the way coach Mike Babcocks Detroit Red Wings checking smothered the Montreal Canadiens on Wednesday night. It was almost exactly like the way Babcocks Team Canada won gold at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The result was a 2-1 Red Wings victory on Swedish Olympian Gustav Nyquists rebound goal with 28 seconds left in overtime. "(Babcock) always stressed that we play this way," said Johan Franzen, who returned from a concussion to assist on both Detroit goals. "This is how you win games. "Especially coming down the stretch here and going into the playoffs, this is how you have to play hockey. Youve got to track like never before, and always be above their guys and make it small for them so you can create turnovers. Then you give your team a lot of opportunities." Franzen set up a power-play goal 14:01 into the first period by Todd Bertuzzi for Detroit (27-20-12). Captain Brian Gionta scored for Montreal (32-21-7) with 29 seconds left in regulation time after goalie Peter Budaj was pulled for an extra attacker. Babcocks defence-first style helped Canada go 6-0 at the Olympics, surrendering only three goals along the way. Giontas goal was the first against a Babcock-coached team since Lauris Darzins got one at 15:41 of the first period of Canadas 2-1 quarter-final win over Latvia. Canada shut out the United States 1-0 in the semifinals and then topped Sweden 3-0 in the final on Sunday. "Its tough to compare," said Nyquist. "Its a different style of game on a smaller rink here. "It was an adjustment for a few guys out there. But it was nice to get the win." There were a handful of Olympians of both sides who had trickled back over the past week as their teams were eliminated. It made for slow, scrambling hockey with few good scoring chances on either side. Detroit had a 30-20 shot advantage, and fans booed as Montreal tested Jimmy Howard only twice in the second frame. "Im sure guys noticed the time differencce a bit," said Nyquist.dddddddddddd "You have to battle through it. "It was the middle of the night in Sochi, but weve been back for three days and were starting to get it back. Well get some sleep before we play in Ottawa (on Thursday night)." The Canadiens salvaged a point when Gionta collected a puck at the side of the net in a scramble and backhanded the tying goal into a top corner. "The execution was not there tonight for both teams," said Montreal coach Michel Therrien. "Both teams played solid defensively. "There wasnt much space on the ice. But we put ourselves in position to get a point. Its disappointing that we didnt score in overtime or get to the shootout." Franzen fed Bertuzzi at the edge of the crease for a power-play goal 14:01 into the game after Canadian Olympian P.K. Subban was called for roughing. Bertuzzi returned to the lineup after missing eight games with an upper-body problem. Franzen had sat out six in a row and 21 of the last 22 with his concussion, but said he felt fine after the game. In overtime, Franzen tipped a Danny DeKeyser shot and the rebound went to Nyquist for a shot into an open side. Budaj had been slated to start in goal for Montreal even before Canadian Olympian Carey Price suffered a lower-body injury during the teams game-day skate. He is to start again when Montreal visits Pittsburgh on Thursday night. The 21,273 at the Bell Centre gave a rousing ovation to 12 members of Canadian mens and womens hockey gold medallist teams from the Sochi Olympics in a pre-game ceremony. The biggest cheers went to Marie-Philip Poulin, who had two goals in the womens final, and to Babcock and Canadiens players Price and Subban. Notes: Canadiens Alex Galchenyuk and Travis Moen returned from injuries, but Michael Bournival and Brandon Prust remain sidelined. Goaltender Dustin Tokarski was recalled from AHL Hamilton. . . The Red Wings played the 3,000th road game of their history. They are 1,086-1,439-475 away from Detroit. ' ' '
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