The Blackhawks continued their remarkable run of this decade by reaching a third Stanley Cup Final since 2010 with a 5-3 win over the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday night. We’ve seen similar runs stretches these in other sports—the Giants or Patriots may come to mind—but what sets Chicago apart is its remarkable core of talent that transformed the franchise from laughingstock to powerhouse. Patrick Kane, Brent Seabrook, Jonathan Toews, and Duncan Keith are the backbone of the Blackhawks, and they came through not only in last night’s Game 7, but throughout the grueling series with the Ducks. On Saturday, Toews scored two goals in the first period to set the tone for Chicago’s dominance, Kane picked up three assists and Keith spent over 27 minutes on the ice—finishing the series with more than 230 minutes of ice time. The Ducks seemed poised to play for the Cup after an overtime win in a remarkable Game 5 gave them a 3-2 series lead. But for the third straight season, Anaheim blew such a lead and lost at home in a Game 7. The Stanley Cup series is now set, as the Hawks will fly south for a Game 1 meeting with the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday. Hopefully we see seven more games of awesome hockey. Photo via Getty
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Nick Pope will see a specialist to examine the extent of a shoulder injury and Robbie Brady has sustained a hamstring concern of his own, Burnley boss Sean Dyche has confirmed.
Reports have suggested the goalkeeper, part of England s squad at the World Cup, could be out of action for several months.
Pope suffered the injury in the first leg of Burnley s Europa League second qualifying round tie at Aberdeen on Thursday, where substitute Sam Vokes hit a late leveller to secure a 1-1 draw.
After Burnley drew 0-0 with Montpellier in a pre-season friendly on Sunday, Dyche confirmed Pope s shoulder was dislocated, although he remains unsure of the seriousness of the injury.
Gutted to have picked up the injury last night on such a special occasion. Would like to…
Felipe Anderson has revealed he received support from fellow Brazilian Neymar over his move to West Ham.
The 25-year-old midfielder became the club s record signing when he joined for a reported club-record £36million fee from Lazio, penning a four-year contract.
Having played together for Santos and Brazil, with the pair part of the 2016 Olympic squad that won the gold medal in Rio, Felipe Anderson discussed the switch with Neymar, who knows all about the pressure that comes with a big transfer following his world-record move from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain last year.
Many players and many friends who are still in contact sent me messages [about joining West Ham]. They wished me luck for the new season, Felipe Anderson said in an interview with ESPN Bra…
Newcastle manager Chris Hughton has confirmed the club plans to sell Spanish ace Xisco this summer.
The 23-year-old has failed to make an impact at Newcastle since joining the club in 2008.
Xisco is currently on loan at Spanish side Racing Santander.
He s a player we were prepared to let go a year ago, Hughton told The Journal. I don t see much has changed since then.
We ll see whether he wants to remain in Spain. He s contracted to us, so if he did come back he d be a Newcastle player and we d judge him on the merits of what we saw.
[Source: The Journal]
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Fabio Capello s honeymoon with the English media came to an abrupt end on Tuesday when he was hit with a barrage of criticism over his involvement in a website that will rate his own players performances during the World Cup.
Newspapers were unanimous in their verdict that the Italian coach had scored an own goal by putting his name to the Capello Index, a website that will use bespoke software to track and rate the performance of players during matches.
The site has been launched in time for the World Cup and England players face the potentially unsettling prospect of their marks being available within hours of matches ending.
The reaction to the initiative ranged from The Guardian s suggestion that it displayed questionable timing, to the Daily Star s claim th…
Chelsea, Barca eyeing Bernando Silva
Chelsea are Barcelona are the latest high-profile sides to have joined the race for Monaco starlet Bernardo Silva, according to Daily Mail.
The Portuguese midfielder has seen his stock rise a great deal since joining from Benfica and he is now being heavily linked with a big club move.
Jut few days ago, it was suggested that for his services, but it is now clear that the Bianconeri could face competition from other top sides.
Daily Mail understands that both Chelsea and Barcelona are showing interest in the 21-year-old footballer.
But, while the Catalans do not exactly have the funds to launch an assault in January, the Premier League holders are reportedly pondering a €30 million offer.
Bernardo Si…
Belgium international goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois is set to hold talks with parent-club Chelsea regarding his long-term future next month.
Courtois, 21, joined Chelsea on a five-year deal from Jupiler Pro League side K.R.C. Genk in July 2011 and has been on loan at Atlético Madrid since the start of the 2011/12 season.
The Belgium No. 1, who has made 133 combined appearances for El Atleti over the past three seasons, is considered one of the best goalkeepers in world football, and rightfull so.
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has insisted he expects Courtois back at Stamford Bridge after the World Cup finals in Brazil but the Belgian has yet to reveal his plans.
According to reports, Atletico are willing to offer Diego Costa or Koke in exchange …
Victor Osimhen of Lille OSC is very close to completing a move to Napoli, according to Italian journalist .
The 21-year-old is a versatile attacking player mostly deployed as a centre-forward, but he can hit the opposition defences coming in from either flank too. Capped eight times for Nigeria, Osimhen played in 38 games for Lille in all competitions in 2019/20, scoring 18 times and providing his teammates with six assists. He has been on the radar of numerous clubs across Europe, but it seems Napoli have won the race for his signature.
Last week, Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly spoke to Gazzetta dello Sport and revealed he had spoken to Osimhen, encouraging him to pick Napoli over other potential destinations.
Romano says the Serie A side have already agreed…
Germany s Bundesliga teams will be forced to enter quarantine training camps next month in a move designed to ensure the season ends before Euro 2020.
The drastic step was announced by the German football league (DFL) on Thursday and will begin on May 3 with an initial soft quarantine as players, coaches and team officials are ordered to only leave their homes to visit club training facilities or to take part in a matchday.
A harder quarantine will follow from May 12 as the same groups are ordered to stay in locked-down team camps away from their families when not involved in games, with that period ending after the final matches of the season take place on the weekend of May 22-23. It means teams must provide accommodation and living quarters for players and core team …
Zimbabwe striker Benjani Mwaruwari has been released by Manchester City as boss Roberto Mancini wields the axe after his side s failure to qualify for the Champions League.
The 31-year-old scored against Manchester United on his City debut but failed to make an impact at Eastlands after that and spent the second half of last season on loan at Sunderland.
Benjani scored seven goals in 31 appearances for City following his 3.8 million pounds move from Portsmouth in January 2008.
Mancini, planning for an influx of new signings during the close-season, has also released Bulgaria midfielder Martin Petrov and Brazilian left-back Sylvinho.
Martin Petrov, Sylvinho and Benjani are senior players who will leave City this summer. All three are out of contract and …
Austrian champions Red Bull Salzburg have officially completed the signing of midfielder David Mendes da Silva from Eredivisie outfit AZ Alkmaar. The 27 year old has signed a three year contract with the Bulls and leaves AZ after four seasons with the club.
Mendes da Silva started his career with Sparta Rotterdam and moved to NAC Breda in 2004 after a stint on loan with Ajax. He stayed at Breda till 2006 before sealing a switch to AZ, and was part of their victorious 2008/09 Eredivisie squad. AZ however failed to defend their title and had to be content with a fifth placed finish last season.
Mendes da Silva has also earned seven international caps for the Netherlands.
[Source:- Red Bull Salzburg]
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