Sporting Madness

"We search for the truth/We could die upon the tooth/But the thrill of just the chase/Is worth the pain" - Ronnie James Dio , The Last In Line Tonight's Voyageurs' Cup game against the Montreal Impact may well be one of the most important matches of the Vancouver Whitecaps' season. Thanks to a pair of lacklustre draws at home, they must win on the road [ Marc Weber , The Province ] against their bitter rivals to maintain their hopes of claiming the Nutrilite Canadian Championship and its attendant berth in the CONCACAF Champions League. They have two points from two matches, while Toronto FC have seven from three. The teams play each other in the final clash of the competition next Wednesday, though, so the Whitecaps still have a shot at the title. In order to make that game relevant, though, they need to come away with three points tonight. As I wrote at Fighting For Canadian Supremacy before the season started , this competition may be the crucial one...

Saturday’s Vancouver Whitecaps clash against the Rochester Rhinos saw the fall of one streak and the continuation of a more auspicious one. Before 4,996 fans at Swangard Stadium, the Whitecaps found a way to break their goalless streak while maintaining their defensive dominance, coming away with a 2-0 victory. Vancouver threatened early, but that was something we’ve seen before. This last stretch of games has been characterized by the team creating scoring chances but not capitalizing on them. Tonight was different, though, as Cornelius Stewart ended their scoring drought in the 17th minute. He collected the ball in the box after Marcus Haber ’s shot hit him, turned and drilled it past Rochester goalkeeper Neal Kitson into the corner of the net. The goal came in the 276th minute of USSF-II play since the Whitecaps’ last league tally ( April 29 against Portland) and the 296th minute of USSF-II and Voyageurs’ Cup play since their last goal of any type (a Marcus Haber penalty May 5...

I'll be live-blogging tonight's USSF Division II game between the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Rochester Rhinos. Kickoff is at 10 p.m. Eastern/7 p.m. Pacific. A video feed of the action can be found on the Whitecaps' website . Come join me then! Whitecaps - Rhinos live blog

The Montreal Canadiens are in tough against the Philadelphia Flyers in the first-ever NHL conference final between a #7 seed (Philly) and an #8 seed (Montreal). They're down 2-0 in the series, they've given up nine goals and they haven't yet been able to beat Flyers' goaltender Michael Leighton . As Bruce Arthur wrote in his column in today's National Post , Philadelphia's rounding into form nicely and Montreal hasn't been impressive. If that continues, it seems likely the Canadiens' Cinderella run will end here. Yet, there are several factors that have me thinking this one isn't over yet. For one, Philadelphia's lineup doesn't overly impress me, especially without the injured Jeff Carter . They have talented players like Mike Richards , Danny Briere , Simon Gagne and, as much as it pains me to say it, Chris Pronger , but much of their roster is filled with guys who are most known for their thuggery. Montreal wasn't any better during...

Nike came out with another brilliant soccer ad today [ Spencer Hall , SB Nation ]. Check it out: This got me thinking about the long history of tremendous soccer commercials. There have been plenty of them, and this looks sure to find its place on that list. What better way to celebrate that than with my personal top 10? Here they are, for your enjoyment: Bonus: Nike: Cristiano Ronaldo vs. Bugatti Veyron This couldn't quite crack the Top 10, as it doesn't actually involve any soccer, but it's still pretty cool. The Bugatti is probably a better player than Ronaldo's former teammate Juan Sebastian Veron , for what that's worth. 10. adidas: Jose + 10 This adidas commercial from the 2006 World Cup is pretty awesome. Great lineup of players for a pickup game, including Oliver Kahn , Kaka , Michael Ballack , Zinedane Zidane and best of all, a young version of Franz Beckenbauer . 9. Pepsi: Surfing It appears an impressive lineup of players from Ronal...

For the Vancouver Whitecaps, the scoreline remained the same Wednesday night at Swangard Stadium as their third consecutive match there finished in a 0-0 draw. This had much more to it than previous USSF Division II efforts against Crystal Palace Baltimore [ Simon Fudge , WhitecapsFC.com ] and the Montreal Impact, though; the Voyageurs’ Cup and its accompanying berth in the CONCACAF Champions League were potentially on the line against hated rivals Toronto FC. The Whitecaps responded to the occasion and played a superb game against a Major League Soccer side, controlling possession, shutting down TFC’s attackers and creating their own chances. At the end of the day, though, that superior effort merely translated into another 0-0 scoreline. Head coach Teitur Thordarson was pleased with his team's performance, though. "I thought we played exceptionally well in all departments of the game," he said. "I thought we did well and controlled the game. For me, the only ...

I'll be live-blogging tonight's crucial Voyageurs Cup game [ Marc Weber , The Province ] between the Vancouver Whitecaps and Toronto FC here and at The 24th Minute . It could be the game of the season for Vancouver, or it could give Toronto FC another Nutrilite Canadian Championship. Kickoff is at 7:37 p.m. Pacific/10:37 p.m. Eastern, but we'll kick off the coverage around 7:30. Come join me then! Update: My game preview is posted over at Fighting For Canadian Supremacy . Check it out ! Toronto FC - Vancouver Whitecaps live blog

It's been a good couple of weeks for CIS football. After a strong showing by CIS prospects in the CFL draft, including first-overall pick Shomari Williams (who I interviewed before the draft), six CIS players appear in good shape to catch on with NFL teams. The Detroit Lions signed [ Sean Yuille , Pride Of Detroit ] Laurier defensive end Chima Ihekwoaba after their rookie minicamp [ Tom Kowalski , Mlive.com , via Ron Balaskovitz ], and Concordia linebacker Cory Greenwood signed with [ Mark Masters , National Post ] the Kansas City Chiefs today. Waterloo offensive lineman Joel Reinders has signed with Cleveland [ David Naylor , The Globe and Mail , Concordia offensive lineman Kristian Matte has inked a deal with Houston [ Herb Zurkowsky , The Gazette ], Bishop's wide receiver Shawn Gore reached an agreement with Green Bay [ Dave Heller , Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ] and Regina wide receiver Jordan Sisco signed with the Indianapolis Colts [ Ian Hamilton , Regina Le...

Saturday night’s 0-0 scoreless draw [ Simon Fudge , WhitecapsFC.com ] with the Montreal Impact saw the continuation of a disturbing trend for the Vancouver Whitecaps. They’ve now gone 259 minutes without scoring in league play since Nelson Akwari notched an 11th-minute goal against Portland on April 29. Following that, they went 79 minutes of the Portland game without scoring again, then held Crystal Palace Baltimore to a 0-0 draw [ Marc Weber , The Province ] last weekend before tonight's scoreless clash. Of course, Vancouver did get one goal during that span, but that came against Montreal in last week's Voyageurs' Cup game, though, not in USSF Division II competition. They're still doing reasonably well in the league and lead the NASL Conference with eight points, but that's unlikely to continue unless the goals start to come. Tonight's game was a little more promising on the offensive end, however, as head coach Teitur Thordarson commented post-mat...

The Vancouver Whitecaps and Montreal Impact will face off again tonight [ Simon Fudge , WhitecapsFC.com ]in USSF Division II play. The game has plenty of on-pitch implications, as Vancouver (2-1-2) and Montreal (2-1-1) are the top two clubs in the NASL Conference so far, but it also carries a significant off-field component. The rivalry between the teams is long-running, but it took on extra heat last year when Montreal's lopsided loss to Toronto FC cost Vancouver a CONCACAF Champions League berth, and again when the Impact beat the Whitecaps in the USL final. This year, the two clubs battled to a 1-1 draw in the Voyageurs' Cup last Wednesday. Montreal was officially announced as the newest MLS team (joining in 2012, one year after Vancouver) on Friday [ Paul Attfield , The Globe and Mail ], so this will be the first time the two clubs face each other since that, but hardly the last; Vancouver will travel to Montreal to face the Impact in another Nutrilite Canadian Champion...

TSN's Gino Reda tweeted an interesting question following the Flyers' improbable 4-3 comeback victory [ Broad Street Hockey ] over the Bruins [ Jon Bois , SB Nation ] tonight; was this the greatest comeback in NHL history? I'm tempted to say yes. To start with, coming back from a 3-0 series deficit in a best-of-seven in any sport is incredibly rare. It's never been done in the NBA, it's been accomplished exactly once in Major League Baseball and it's happened three times now in hockey. The other two occasions were the Toronto Maple Leafs' comeback against Detroit in 1942 and the New York Islanders' comeback against Pittsburgh in 1975 . Let's take a look at them and see how they stack up. First, the Maple Leafs' comeback in 1942. This was in the Stanley Cup Finals, so they get bonus points for that, and it was also the first Cup Finals to go seven games, so that's worth even more points. That was a tremendous Maple Leafs' team, f...

The Canucks came through in the crunch last time on the road, but can they pull it off again at home? They're still down 3-2 in the series, even if they may be buoyed by the return of Sami Salo . Will the Canucks continue their run, or will the Blackhawks close out the series? Find out in the live blog below! Canucks - Blackhawks Game Six

With their backs against the wall, this is what it all comes down to for the Vancouver Canucks. Down three games to one, in hostile territory on the road, they need to get a win here. If they can't pull it off, the dream of lifting the Stanley Cup will die for another year. Can they do it? Find out in the live blog below: Canucks - Blackhawks Game Five

Two prominent cases involving NFL players have hit the headlines recently. First, current Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was accused of sexual assault [ Will Brinson , NFL FanHouse ] for actions in the bathroom of a Georgia nightclub with a drunk 20-year-old college student. This, of course, was the second time in less than two years Roethlisberger faced similar accusations [ USA Today ]. . Second, former New York Giants star Lawrence Taylor was accused of third-degree rape this week regarding an incident in a small-town New York hotel room [ CBS ]. Both incidents present serious image problems for the NFL [ Scott Stinson , National Post ], especially when seen in the light of all the other off-field criminal incidents involving NFL players. However, there are significant differences between what happened in each case, and those are worth looking into. Despite compelling evidence that Roethlisberger may have forced himself on his accuser, he is currently fa...

It all comes down to this. On the final day of the season, with the English Premier League title on the line , Chelsea will host Wigan Athletic at Stamford Bridge. They sit top of the table with 83 points, so three points from a victory will clinch it for them. If they draw or lose, however, Manchester United could sneak by them. The Red Devils host Stoke at Old Trafford, and are only one point back of Chelsea. A draw does them no good thanks to Chelsea's superior goal differential, but if they win and the Blues drop points, it will be United who are champions of England. Adding to the drama, all of Sunday's games take place at the same time, 11 a.m. Eastern/8 a.m. Pacific. I'll be live-blogging both the Manchester United and Chelsea games and throwing in updates from other ones from time to time. Come join me here then to see how the EPL title is decided! EPL Title

A short preview and a collection of links for tonight's Canucks-Blackhawks game is posted over at Canuck Puck . Join me there or here at 9:30 Eastern/6:30 Pacific for tonight's live blog! Canucks - Blackhawks Game Four

I have a post up at The CIS Blog on Canada West's decision to add UBC-Okanagan, reject UNBC and VIU and make UFV and Thompson Rivers University permanent members. Might be worth a read for those interested in CIS issues; it's been a long process to get to this point, and it's still far from over.

( (L to R: Martin Nash , Teitur Thordarson , and Marcus Haber address the media after Wednesday's match). Wednesday's Voyageurs Cup game between the Vancouver Whitecaps and the Montreal Impact felt rather like an episode of 24, starting slowly and building to a chaotic and hard-to-believe 1-1 final. In between, there were a couple of goals, plenty of cards and much more entertainment than that other Vancouver team offered. The match offered little at first, with both teams electing to start defensive lineups; Montreal fielded a 4-5-1 with Peter Byers as the lone striker, while Vancouver opted for a 4-4-1-1 with Marcus Haber supported by attacking midfielder Jonny Steele . The Whitecaps controlled most of the early possession, but only created a few chances, and the score remained level until Byers slipped one by Jay Nolly in the 31st minute. Montreal then took over the game for the next fifty minutes until a bizarre sequence of events unfolded. With time dwindling, th...

The Vancouver Whitecaps kick off their Voyageurs’ Cup schedule tonight against the Montreal Impact. The two clubs have always had a strong rivalry, but last year's events took it to a new level; first, Montreal's 6-1 loss to Toronto in the final game of last year's competition cost the Whitecaps the championship , and the Impact made things worse by beating Vancouver again in the USL-1 championship . There's going to be a lot on the line tonight, as Sam pointed out in his preview ; with Vancouver heading to MLS next season, this tournament may be even more important for them than the league. Tonight's game starts at 7:30 p.m. Pacific (10:30 p.m. Eastern) and can be seen on whitecapsfc.com. I'll be live-blogging it here and at The 24th Minute come join me then! Whitecaps - Impact

I was on Daniel Feuerstein 's excellent soccer show, Feuerstein's Fire , earlier today to discuss the Whitecaps, B.C. Place and the Nutrilite Canadian Championship (speaking of which, I'll be live-blogging the Whitecaps - Montreal Impact match here tomorrow evening at 7:30 p.m. Pacific) with Daniel and my 24th Minute colleague Duane Rollins . The entire show is well worth a listen, touching on Toronto FC, the Montreal Impact and Canadian soccer generally. My segment starts about 45 minutes in. You can check out the show here .

The Canucks take on the Chicago Blackhawks tonight in what should be an excellent Game Two. My game preview is up over at Canuck Puck , and I'll again be live-blogging the game both here and there. All are welcome to come join in. The puck drops at 9 p.m. Eastern/6 p.m. Pacific: hope to see you then! Canucks - Blackhawks Game Two

Thanks to Chelsea's 2-0 thumping of Liverpool earlier this morning, Manchester United head to the Stadium of Light with their backs against the wall. They must beat Sunderland to have any hope of remaining in the title race. Kickoff is at 11 a.m. Eastern/8 a.m. Pacific. Join me in the live blog below! Manchester United - Sunderland

The English Premier League title race continues towards its exciting conclusion, and this second-to-last week features two matches that might just decide it all. First, Liverpool host league-leaders Chelsea at Anfield, and then Manchester United travel to the Stadium of Light to face Sunderland. Chelsea have 80 points from 36 matches, one more than United, and are also well ahead on goal difference. In the last week of the season, they'll host Wigan, which should be a relatively easy win; thus, their performance today will be crucial. United have a bit of an easier schedule, on the road against Sunderland today and then at home against Stoke next week, but they could win out and still lose if Chelsea take both of their games. I'm planning to live blog both of today's clashes, so stop by here for that. The first one, Liverpool and Chelsea, will kick off at 8:30 Eastern (5:30 Pacific) and will be live-blogged in this post; the second one, United and Sunderland, kicks off at 1...

This evening will see the debut of one of the most anticipated second-round series in the NHL playoffs, with the Vancouver Canucks traveling to Chicago to try and avenge their second-round defeat at the hands of the Blackhawks last year. It should be an outstanding matchup; the teams are very good and very even, and there's a burgeoning rivalry between them. I'll be live-blogging Game I here and at Canuck Puck starting at 8 p.m. Eastern/5 p.m. Pacific; make sure to stop by then! To keep you busy until the puck drops, I also have two previews up over at Canuck Puck , one interviewing Jim Neveau of Paint It Blackhawks and one with my series prediction and the best previews from around the web . Check those out, and then come back here at 8 for the live blog! Vancouver Canucks - Chicago Blackhawks