Under Further Review – Douglas Smith with Editor Bill Morphy. Special thanks to our regular contributors including Jordan Moss, Ian MacPhee, Dave Kittle, Ted Tait, Frank Sullivan, Peter Hucul, Glen and Bill Myles, Howard Steiss, Rob Wagner and John Dancause.
Spanning the digital ether to bring you the constant variety of sport… the thrill of victory… and the agony of defeat… the human drama of athletic competition… This is Under Further Review.
Oh No Canada – We were all ready to pen the classic Cinderella story about how Team Canada overcame all the odds to earn a medal at Copa America 2024. The upstart Canadians were just minutes away from upsetting Uruguay and earning third-place. Well, it didn’t happen. Uruguay tied the match 2-2 and then won it on penalty kicks but it certainly should diminish what Canada has accomplished over the past six weeks. It really was a Cinderella journey.
Who would have thought they would advance to the semifinals in their tournament debut? Incredibly, Canada somehow reached the knockout stage by grinding out a 1-0 win over Peru and a 0-0 draw with Chile in group play. The quarterfinal win over Venezuela was Canada’s coming-out party. The growth in the team has been nothing short of miraculous.
New Canadian coach Jesse Marsch looks like a miracle worker. One of his goals was to expand the depth of the Canadian roster and he did just that. 22-year-old Ismael Kone was a breakout star. He owned the midfield and scored a beautiful bicycle kick goal in the third-place game. The Montreal native is headed to play for Marseille, a top French club, and his future looks exceedingly bright. Marsch provided playing opportunities for several other young players include Moise Bombito, Derek Cornelius, Ali Ahmed and Mathieu Choiniere. It’s the biggest positive coming out of the tournament as Canada gets ready to co-host the World Cup in 2026.
Marsch was certainly correct in his criticism of Copa organizers. The tournament favours South American countries. Canada was treated like second class citizens. The refereeing was bogus. The histrionics and theatrics were laughable. Do you really think fans of a sport like hockey want to watch players rolling around, writhing in pain, feigning injury? It was out of control. Several Uruguayan players went into the stands to engage in fights with fans following the semifinal loss to Colombia. Yet, there were no suspensions prior to the third-place game with Canada. Shameful.
Despite all the positives, the biggest challenge going forward for Canada will be goal-scoring. Canada scored only four times at Copa America and repeatedly squandered prime scoring opportunities. Jonathan David and Alphonso Davies were largely quiet. If Canada wants to take the next step, they need to learn to finish.
The Maritimes Messi – Argentina has Lionel Messi. Canada has Jacob Shaffelburg, the ‘Maritimes Messi.’ Shaffelburg emerged as another of Canada’s break-out stars at Copa America, bursting onto the scene with one timely goal after another including a brilliant 40-yard run in the win over Venezuela.
The 24-year-old grew up in Port Williams, Nova Scotia, a town of only 1,000. He never had the opportunity to play for one of Canada’s national youth teams. Shaffelburg failed to make Canada’s 2022 World Cup team. He was completely overlooked by former coach John Herdman.
After attending the Berkshire School in Massachusetts, Shaffelburg received several U.S. scholarship opportunities but elected to sign with Toronto FC and joined their development program. During physical testing, Shaffelburg was determined to be the fastest player in the club’s history. Toronto foolishly loaned Shaffelburg to Nashville for the final few months of the ’22 MLS season. Jacob scored in his debut and his career has taken off ever since. Shaffelburg may be under-sized but you can’t gauge heart and hustle.
Footie Fever – What a great time to be a soccer fan! For a record fourth time, Spain are the champions of Europe. Favoured Argentina overcame Colombia 1-0 in extra time to claim the Copa America crown.
The young Spanish squad delivered a late goal to edge England and capture the UEFA Euro 2024 title 2-1. Spain are worthy champions after winning all seven games. It continued the string of heartbreak for England who have now lost consecutive Euro finals. For Spain, the breakout sensation was Lamine Yamal, who just turned 17 on Saturday. He became the youngest player to ever start a major final.
When are the powers-that-be going to wake up and make serious changes at the top level of soccer? Too many key matches at the Euro and Copa America tournaments were decided by penalty kicks. The fans deserve better. Would you want the Stanley Cup Final to be decided in a shootout? It’s just plan stupid. Canada lost in the semi-final on kicks but would have never advanced without winning the quarter-final on kicks. Ditto for Uruguay over favoured Brazil. England made it to the Euro semifinals on kicks. So did France. The FIFA powers need to figure it out. Fix it and make the beautiful game beautiful again!
Cristiano Ronaldo may be the GOAT but it’s time for him to step aside. Portugal failed to advance past the quarterfinals at Euro 2024 and part of the reason is they kept expecting Ronaldo to perform like he did a decade ago. He’s 39 years old and finished the tournament without a single goal. Ronaldo played this season in the Saudi Pro League which didn’t exactly prepare him for the highest level of competition. Sorry, there’s no turning back the clock.
Riding High – Don’t look now but the B.C. Lions are 5-1 with five straight wins and a ton of momentum. The Lions have an MOP candidate in quarterback Vernon Adams Jr. who threw for 451 yards in Saturday’s win over the previously unbeaten Saskatchewan Roughriders. Adams is the leading passer in the CFL and a big reason the Lions are off to such a good start. He has a chance to break the all-time CFL passing record of 6,619 yards held by Doug Flutie.
Adams is throwing to the top two receivers in the CFL. Canadian Justin McInnis grabbed 14 passes for 243 yards in the win over the Riders. He leads the CFL with 725 yards. Teammate Alexander Hollins is second with 656. The 6-foot-5 McInnis hails from Pierrefonds, Quebec. He played his college ball at Arkansas State.
Canucks Post July 1 Takeaways – For the second summer in a row, the Canucks management group took a very prudent approach to free agency. While fans may look at the roster and be left wanting more, there is still plenty of time for further additions. The Canucks have more than $1 million left in cap space. When they add Tucker Poolman’s contract to LTIR, there could be as much as $3.5-$4 million left to add another useful piece.
Juggling the roster was no easy task when you consider the Canucks front office had to account for pay bumps for Elias Pettersson and Filip Hronek that totalled nearly $8 million. They were able to bring back Dakota Joshua, Tyler Myers and Teddy Blueger while adding some useful spare parts in Kiefer Sherwood, Danton Heinen, Derek Forbert and Vincent Desharnais. It should be enough to keep the team solidly in playoff position until opportunities to make a bigger splash present themselves.
Down on the Farm – With the NHL’s salary cap so restrictive, every team needs young cost-efficient talent pushing up through the system. For the Canucks, it’s going to be critically important that young players fill roster spots on entry-level contracts. With that in mind, here’s a brief snapshot on four prospects who are closest to making the NHL roster.
Jonathan Lekkerimaki: After being drafted by the Canucks in the first round (15th overall) in 2022, Lekkerimaki suffered a series of injuries and it cast doubt about his long-term prospects. Give the kid credit because he rebounded in a big way this season including an MVP performance in the World Junior Championships. Lekkerimaki ended the season with a brief cameo in Abbotsford where he got a taste of what it will take to make the next step. Added strength this summer should set Lekkerimaki up make an NHL appearance as some point next season. Lekkerimaki’s quick release should be a power-play weapon for years to come. He figures to be a top-six sniper once he rounds out the finer points of his game including earning the trust of coach Rick Tocchet. The party line from the Canucks front office is that Lekkerimaki will spend next season in Abbotsford. Considering the lack of scoring up front during the playoffs, look at Lek to make his debut at Rogers Arena by December.
Tom Willander: Willander was the Canucks first choice (11th overall) in the 2023 NHL draft. We give him high marks for leaving his native Sweden to play NCAA hockey at Boston University. Willander has all the tools to be an impact right-shot defenceman. He’s not overly big at 6-foot-1, 185 pounds but his skating ability and awareness make him a high floor prospect. He has excellent defensive instincts. If Willander can improve his offence and overall puck skills, his path to Vancouver should begin at the end of the Terriers 2024-2025 season next March. Willander would head to Abbotsford and get a taste of pro hockey before competing for a job with the Canucks in the fall of ’25.
Elias Pettersson: Excitement is building another the team’s other EP who looks like a third-round steal from the 2022 draft. At 6-foot-4, Pettersson has the size to be a prototypical shutdown defenceman. His skating is solid which allows him to close gaps and take away space. Pettersson will need to improve his puck-moving ability on breakouts before he’s ready to make the jump but don’t rule out an NHL cameo before the end of next season. His robust physical play will be welcome.
Aatu Raty: The upcoming season figures to be make-or-break for Raty. He needs to make a serious push for an NHL roster spot or he’s probably destined to end up back in Finland. After a slow start, Raty put up 27 points in the final 32 games in Abbotsford. We’re still not convinced he will play centre at the NHL level. His best work last season was on the wing. At 21, it’s time Raty made a statement.
Post July 1 NHL Ramblings – The Calgary Flames are head-long into a full-blown rebuild. Since taking over the job last year, Craig Conroy has shipped out seven regulars. It will be years before we learn if any of the deals pay real dividends. Late round picks and B-list prospects will not move the needle.
It looks like the Flames are going to lean on pint-sized goalie Dustin Wolf to be their goalie-of-the-future. We’ll see about that. Zayne Pareyk was the team’s top selection in this year’s NHL Draft. He’s an undersized defenceman who dominated junior hockey but many teams were skeptical whether his offensive skills will transfer to the NHL. His defence is non-existent.
The Flames entered free agency with $29 million in cap space but only signed Jake Bean and Anthony Mantha which was beyond underwhelming. Unless the Flames can hit on some foundational talent in the next few draft cycles, it’s doubtful they will be ready to contend when the new arena opens in Calgary in 2027-2028.
The never-ending rebuild in Buffalo continues like some bizarre episode of the Twilight Zone. The Sabres haven’t reached the playoffs in 13 years and don’t expect anything different next season. They’re still sitting with $14.55 million in cap space yet seemingly have no plan to spend it. The defence lacks any kind of push-back at a time when teams are constructing jumbo-sized bluelines. The Sabres are good at the ‘tearing down’ part of the rebuild. They are just not very good at the ‘building up’ part.
Want to know why the Sabres keep falling on their sword? No team is more-inept at the draft table. The Sabres keep selecting sub-six-foot forwards in the first round and none have made much of an impact. The latest was Finnish centre Konsta Helenius who was taken with the 14th pick in this year’s NHL draft. Buffalo could have taken rugged Norwegian defenceman Stian Solberg, filling a major need. Matt Savoie, the Sabres top choice in the 2022 draft, has already been shipped to Edmonton for Ryan McLeod. The Sabres had two other first-round picks in that draft and selected Noah Ostlund and Jiri Kulich, both undersized forwards. Apparently, the Sabres didn’t get the memo that says size matters in today’s game.
Watching players exit seems to be the price you pay for winning a Stanley Cup. The Vegas Golden Knights found that out. The Florida Panthers are dealing with the after-effects as well. Over the last few years, no team has done a better job plugging holes than the Panthers. After the Stanley Cup hangover wore off, GM Bill Zito made a host of bottom-of-the-roster additions including A.J. Greer, MacKenzie Entwistle, Jesper Boqvist, Tomas Nosek, Nate Schmidt and back-up goalie Chris Driedger, all pretty much at the league minimum. Will it be enough? Probably not but the Panthers have plenty of time to find out.
We were disappointed to hear that top NHL draft pick Macklin Celebrini has signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the San Jose Sharks. The Hobey Baker award winner will forego the opportunity to return to Boston U. for a second season. Can Celebrini make the jump to the woebegone Sharks at just 18? Yes. But is it the best thing for him? We question that because we’ve seen too many cases where players were not physically ready. How can returning to a winning program not benefit Celebrini? The Sharks figure to be terrible again next season and may start the season with the 18-year-old Celebrini and 19-year-old Will Smith as their top two centres. That’s just a bad idea. Canada will certainly miss Celebrini at the World Juniors. It’s doubtful he will be loaned out for the tournament.
The Maple Leafs refusal to act decisively over the past several years is proving costly. We said it at the time and we maintain, it was a mistake to hand Morgan Reilly a long-term extension at $7.5 million per season. The deal has six more years to run. Reilly is 30 now and only in Toronto is he considered a true number one defenceman. The Leafs keep rolling him out on the power-play and he’s woefully ineffective. Reilly has scored 14 power-play goals in nearly 800 regular-season games. Two in 57 career playoff games. He’s not a threat to shoot from the point. It’s a lot of money to pay for a guy who’s also a nightmare in his own end.
It should come as no surprise to learn that former Nashville Predators captain Greg Johnson had CTE. (chronic traumatic encephalopathy) His family has confirmed the diagnosis some five years after his death by suicide. We should know by now that it’s not just tough guys who end up with CTE. Think about the players who played before the mid-60’s without a helmet? And the goalies who played for years without a mask? How can the NHL continue to have the audacity to dismiss all the evidence of the concussion-related impacts of playing the game?
If you need any evidence as to why players end up dealing with the effects of CTE, check out this video of the Rangers Matt Rempe doing off-season work with former NHL goon Georges Laroque.
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/nDAWJDJi9PHDEYuy/?mibextid=0VwfS7
Changing of the Guard – Every year or so, we like to play GM and look at the potential makeup of Team Canada in anticipation of the next major international hockey tournament. We’re definitely starting to see some inevitable roster churn as several veterans play themselves out of the mix. Mitch Marner and Jonathan Huberdeau seemed like locks a few years ago. Bo Horvat, Matthew Barzal, Thomas Chabot, Morgan Reilly and Darnell Nurse were under consideration but have since fallen off our radar. Veterans no longer a factor include Claude Giroux, Brent Burns, Kris Letang, Marc-Eduoard Vlasic and Sean Couturier.
Here’s our lineup with a few other players who remain under consideration:
Forwards:
- Hyman – McDavid – Reinhart
- Lafreniere – MacKinnon – Point
- Marchand – Crosby – Bedard
- Hagel – Cozens – Johnston
- Verhaege – Cirelli – Stone
Extras: Stamkos, Scheifele, Byfield, Mercer
Defence :
- Toews – Makar
- Theodore – Pietrangelo
- Morrisey – Bouchard
- Power – Dobson
Extras: Doughty, Harley, Guhle, Parayko
Goaltenders :
Binnington, Hill, Skinner
Up front, it’s the last kick at the can for Brad Marchand and Sidney Crosby. We don’t see any way you can keep Connor Bedard off the roster. Brandon Hagel, Dylan Cozens and Wyatt Johnston add youth and speed and most importantly, a big injection of forechecking pressure. Every roster needs balance and you have to include players who can kill penalties. The top three defence pairings are very solid with some youth in behind as we look to the future. Goaltending is a major issue. Jordan Binnington is the presumptive starter. He will need to be at his best. Who’s the backup? It’s anyone’s guess. Maybe “Possum Stu’ Skinner.
We invite your feedback. A lot can change before the Four Nations Cup tournament next February.
Blue Jays Notebook – The Blue Jays hit the All-Star break eight games under .500 and nine and a half games out of a wildcard spot. The pitching staff has given up the most home runs in all of baseball. The Jays are, without a doubt, the most disappointing team in MLB at the halfway mark.
Mark it down. Bo Bichette can’t get out of Toronto soon enough. He’s certainly playing like he’s already checked out. In his rookie season, Bichette hit .357 against fastballs. This season, he’s hitting .226. From 2019-2023, Bo ate up lefties. In 2024, he’s hitting .153 against lefthanders with no home runs and only two extra-base hits. In the first inning of games this season, he’s hitting .115 with NO extra-base hits. The evidence couldn’t be more insurmountable. Bichette is playing like he wants out…NOW.
With speculation continuing around current manager John Schneider, we couldn’t help but reflect on the uninspiring list of former Jays managers? Is there a team in baseball with a more nondescript list of former managers? Remember Charlie Montoyo? He hasn’t found another managing job since being shown the door. Same for John Gibbons. Cito Gaston was solid. Who can forget Carlos Tosca? Buck Martinez tried and failed miserably. There was Jimy Williams, Roy Hartsfield, Tim Johnson, John Farrell and Bobby Mattick. Schneider is destined to take his place beside this unremarkable group.
Pitching prospects are never a sure thing. The Jays keep waiting for top prospect Ricky Tiedemann to finally get healthy and take the next step. The still-only 21-year-old is returning from ulnar nerve inflammation, the latest in a string of arm ailments. Tiedemann is back in Triple-A Buffalo but he was pulled from his first outing with forearm soreness. Sound familiar? Tiedemann has top-of-the-rotation stuff but you wonder if he will ever deliver on all the promise.
The MLB Draft took place on Sunday. It was the ninth draft overseen by the current front office. It’s hard not to connect the dots and look at the current state of the team and not trace it back to the lack of success in the draft. There have been a lot of swings and misses. Names like T. J. Zeuch, Logan Warmoth and Jordan Groshans. The team hit on Bo Bichette in 2016. That was the first draft under GM Ross Atkins. Since then, not a lot of impact at the major league level.
MLB Notebook – The full MLB All-Stars rosters have been released. The Philadelphia Phillies lead the way with eight selections including starters Trea Turner, Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm. Among the two lineups, there are 32 first-time starters led by Pittsburgh Pirates flame-throwing rookie Paul Skenes who is the likely NL starter. Skenes had a no-hitter going after seven innings in his last start but was pulled from the game due to a high pitch count. He may already be the best pitcher in baseball.
The All-Star teams will also feature a pair of brilliant young shortstops, Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals and Elly De La Cruz of the Cincinnati Reds. First baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Blue Jays was named a starter for the American League. He was the only Blue Jay to be named to the roster.
What’s going on with the New York Yankees? Every team goes through a bad stretch at some point in the season but the Yanks have been in a tailspin for over a month. New York dropped six consecutive series at one point. Manager Aaron Boone is under fire and for good reason. Look for the Yankees to be active at the trade deadline. Can’t let a promising season just go up in smoke.
If the Blue Jays elect to move a starting pitcher at the trade deadline, they should make a call to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers starting staff has been decimated by injuries. Clayton Kershaw is still rehabbing from off-season surgery. Five other starters are on the injured list including Walker Buehler and Tyler Glasnow. The Dodgers promise to be active in the pitching market.
Hard not to think that both the Jays and the Seattle Mariners are regretting the decision to move Teoscar Hernandez. He’s headed to the All-Star game and will competing in the home run hitting contest. Sure, Hernandez strikes out too much but so does 90% of the league. The Mariners also dealt Eugenio Suarez. Together, the two combined for 189 RBI’s last season. Seattle is finding out that’s hard to replace.
Ryder Cup Shocker – Now here’s a shocker for you. The PGA of America has just named Keegan Bradley as captain of the 2025 Ryder Cup competition at Bethpage in New York. At 38, Bradley is the youngest Ryder Cup captain since Arnold Palmer was player captain in 1963.
The PGA clearly wanted Tiger Woods to serve as captain next year. Tiger turned it down. The usual fallback would be to go with one of the vice-captains from last year’s Ryder Cup which includes Stewart Cink, Davis Love III and Fred Couples. Instead of picking the next man up, the U.S. decided to make the more-risky selection in Bradley. We will see how it works out. There’s no truth to the rumour they turned thumbs down on Phil Mickelson, long the favourite, because they were concerned, he would place bets on his own team.
Random Leftovers – There’s been no silencing the talk that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is preparing to purchase the Seattle Seahawks. We know money is not the issue. Bezos is reportedly worth an estimated $219 billion. That’s billion with a B. You can be sure that if Bezos wants to buy an NFL team, he has the ability to make it happen.
There should be not doubt about who’s the best tennis player in the world. It’s Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz with a bullet. Alcaraz took out Novak Djokovic in straight sets to win his second consecutive Wimbledon title and fourth major of his young career. Time has taken a toll on Djokovic. He underwent knee surgery just six weeks ago following the French Open and was no match for the 21-year-old.
Wasn’t this supposed to be the halcyon days for Canadian tennis? There was so much optimism around Felix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov but neither have been able to reach the upper echelon. Milos Raonic is at the tail-end of a lacklustre career. On the ladies side, Bianca Andreescu has faded badly since winning a U.S. Open. It’s much the same for Leylah Annie Fernandez, whose biggest moment was a U.S. Open final. All the Canadians were ousted within the first week of Wimbledon.
The 12-man roster has been set to represent Canada in men’s basketball at the upcoming Paris Olympics. The team is led by the backcourt duo of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jamal Murray. Eleven of the twelve players have NBA experience. The squad is shy on length in the front court which could prove costly. Team Canada has been placed in a really tough group. They be joined in their group by Greece, Spain and Australia. The top two teams from each of the three groups will move onto the knockout stage. The top two third-place teams will also advance so point differential will be important when it comes to any possible cross-group tiebreakers.
As if the U.S. needed any more help? Joel Embiid recently became a naturalized U.S. citizen and will be wearing the red, white and blue at the Olympics. Why would he not represent his native Cameroon? Embiid has never won anything with the Philadelphia 76’ers so I guess he wants to find out what it feels like to actually win something.
Canada can boast the second highest number of players in the NBA. However, we may soon lose that distinction. French freak Victor Wembanyama was the top selection in the 2023 NBA Draft and France followed it up with the top two selections this year, forwards Zaccharie Risacher and Alex Sarr. France also produced the sixth overall pick, Tidjane Salaun, as well as the 25th pick, Pacome Dadiet. Look for France to be a medal winner in Paris.
If you are a hoops fan, remember the name Cooper Flagg. He’s headed to Duke after being the top recruit in the country. The 6-foot-9 forward mopped the floor in his final year of high school competition. Flagg was named Gatorade Player of the Year, Naismith Player of the Year and a McDonald’s All-American. In 2022, he led the U.S. to gold at the U17 World Cup. Still only 17, Flagg was invited to work out against the U.S. Olympic team during their training camp and he more than held his own. Don’t be surprised if Flagg is the No. 1 pick in next year’s NBA draft.
It’s a reflection of what’s happening in our current world when someone can get so much attention for accomplishing nothing. Otherwise, how do you explain Bronny James? He was drafted late in the second round by the L.A. Lakers in the recent NBA Draft and was rewarded with a four-year contract for close to $8 million dollars. His Bronny-Ness scored four points in 22 minutes in his Summer League debut. In his next outing, he finished with eight points on 3-of-14 shooting, missing all eight of his three’s. The pathetic media followed every move. Needless to say, not a word would have been written if Bronny was not the son of King LeBron. Here’s hoping Bronny goes quietly into the night so we don’t have to hear about his every misstep. Talk about an oxygen-sucking non-story!
YouTube Music Video Highlight – Few rock bands have left an indelible legacy like the Allman Brothers. In 2009, on the occasion of the band’s 40th anniversary, the Allman Brothers performed a landmark concert at the Beacon Theatre in New York. It was an instant classic featuring some incredible guitar work from Warren Haynes and slide master Derek Trucks. Check it out for yourself.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MR9XdGy2mso
Hot List – Here’s a Top 10 Playlist for this week that you may want to add to your collection.
- Ryan Hurd – ‘Breakdown’ from the release Petty Country (A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty)
- Roy Rogers + Shana Morrison – ‘Hello Stranger’ from the album Everybody’s Angel
- Norton Buffalo – ‘Hoodoo Roux’ from the album King of the Highway
- Pops Staples – ‘Father Father’ – title track from album Father Father
- Josh Farrow – ‘Who’s Gonna Love You When I’m Gone’ from the release Trouble Walks with Me
- Zach Bryan – ‘Better Days’ featuring John Mayer from the album The Great American Bar Scene
- Nils Lofgren Band – ‘Blue Skies’ from the release Crooked Line
- David Grissom – ‘Never Came East to Me’ from the release How It Feels to Fly
- Kajsa Vala – ‘Fly Free’ – single release featuring Mike Andersen
- Shelby Lynne – ‘Track 12’ (Rainy Night in Georgia) from the album Suit Yourself
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