Last weekend, I was at the NHL Scouting Combine, an event which NHL prospects are put through the paces doing exercises and interviewing with teams, though its debatable how much value is gained through this process. Here are some observations: - One of the bigger stories to come out of the event was that Sam Bennett, the Kingston Frontenacs centre considered to be one of the top prospects, couldnt do a pull-up. A little surprising. Most of the guys I watched were around a half dozen, though some did more and, obviously, some did less. To his credit, Bennett didnt appear fazed by his goose-egg. "Games arent won or lost based on pull-ups," he said afterwards. Also, in The Hockey News Future Watch issue, published months before, a scout was raving about Bennetts strength on the ice, so this probably isnt a reason for concern. This also goes to a larger question about whether these tests have any relevance for a players NHL future. If there isnt some correlation with future success as a hockey player, what is the point? They might as well write a paper discussing theoretical physics, macroeconomics or something similarly correlated to hockey-playing success. This is the part where I annually plead for some kind on-ice testing to be part of the NHL Combine process. Nothing subtitutes for what a player does while competing in their actual sport, but knowing a players skating speed, for instance, could inform decisions more than how many times they can bench press 150 pounds. Consider the NFL Combine, for example. There are all kinds of flaws with 40-yard dash as a measure for a players football ability, not least of all because players rarely run 40 yards on a given play, but it has become a measure that affects a prospects value. A cornerback who locks down receivers in college isnt going to have the same success in the NFL if he runs a 4.7 40, or a running back who runs a 4.7 40 is going to get caught a whole lot more than a guy who runs a 4.2 and player value is adjusted based on that knowledge. Its not always right (Cleveland Browns cornerback Joe Haden has infamously performed at a high level despite a subpar 40 time), but were talking about odds and probability. Even with all the flaws in the 40-yard dash time, the uniformity of the test offers some value to teams because there isnt a circumstance in which a team prefers a slower player (you know, fast guys can always slow down if need be; it doesnt worth the other way). Former Colts GM Bill Polian, at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference a couple of years ago, talked about how the Colts, when seeking a new middle linebacker, had set parameters for how quick the player needed to be in order to fulfill the demands that their defensive scheme required. For the Colts, that meant a linebacker that could run a 4.76 40-yard dash. Wouldnt it be worthwhile to know whether that kid who is dominating a lower level of hockey is doing so because he plays at NHL speed? The long-standing argument against having on-ice testing for NHL prospects as part of the Combine process is that players have their seasons end at different times. A prospect in Minnesota high school might finish in early March, compared to players in the Memorial Cup, which finished in late May. Thats obviously a sizeable gap, but I submit that any teenager considered to be an NHL prospect would have access to ice somewhere in order to continue training. Its not like these guys pack up their equipment at the end of the season and bring it out again in September. Those days are long gone. Moving on... - There is such a variance in body type from one player to the next, such is the nature of 17-year-olds. Some still look like kids and others might as well be full-grown men (or close to it). One of the latter is top prospect Aaron Ekblad, who goes 6-foot-4, 216 pounds. He carries himself with the confidence of someone who expects to be a top pick and, while hes sure to get stronger as he matures, its easy enough to see that Ekblad could handle himself on an NHL blueline next season. One of the challenges scouts face, when it comes to evaluating players with superior physical stature, is trying to determine how much of their relative success in junior is due to playing against smaller, weaker players, something that wont happen nearly as much in the NHL, a proverbial mans league. Its completely fair to have those concerns about Ekblad, but he can play. Ekblad scored 23 goals last season; Ryan Murphy (12th overall to Carolina in 2011) is the only first-round defenceman in the past 10 drafts (2004-2013) to score more goals in his draft year. - By contrast, Vladimir Tkachev has a tiny frame -- listed at 5-foot-9, 141 pounds -- and surely wouldnt have great physical testing numbers, yet after joining Moncton of the QMJHL late in the year, he put up 17 goals and 39 points in 26 (regular season plus playoff) games. How much should teams care about his physical stature and fitness as an 18-year-old? At past Combines, I recall seeing the likes of Toni Rajala or Mike Reilly, who both looked way too small to be pro hockey players. Rajala was nearly a point-per-game scorer in the AHL (61 points in 63 regular season plus playoff games) before heading to Sweden this past season, where he scored 30 points in 37 games. Reilly isnt big, but he has grown since and was an All-American as a sophomore at the University of Minnesota last season. Not every player will fill out ideally for pro hockey, but some of them fill out at 19 and 20 instead of 17. - If Ekblad, as the top defence prospect, looks NHL-ready, the second-ranked defenceman, Haydn Fleury, doesnt look too far behind, physically. Hes not as imposing as Ekblad, but Fleury was listed at 6-foot-3, 201 pounds, enough size that it wouldnt necessarily prevent him from playing in the NHL next season. There may be a whole host of other reasons not to play an 18-year-old defenceman, but Fleury has the build of a solid defenceman. - Headed to Boston College in the fall, Sonny Milano probably drew more attention for his stick and puck tricks than anything else he did at the Combine. He was the second-leading scorer on the U.S. Under-18 Team, witt 39 points in 25 games, behind only 2015 top prospect Jack Eichel. - One of the most fascinating prospects in this years draft is Josh Ho-Sang, a very talented forward who played for Windsor in the OHL. Universally, Ho-Sang is described as a talented hockey player -- no one disputes his skill -- but, theres always a "but". In interviews, Ho-Sang is described as engaging and intelligent, an independent thinker.. Uh-oh. NHL teams (and pro sports teams in general) are not known for their acceptance of independent thinkers; they tend to prefer the players that follow the script. I recall, a couple of years ago, again at the Sloan Conference, former NBA head coach Jeff Van Gundy talking about how, as a coach, he wasnt seeking well-rounded individuals. He wanted players who were obsessed with basketball. My impression is that NHL teams have similar ideals -- hockey comes first, everything else can be a distant second, third, fourth in the pecking order. So, there may be some teams that dont want to deal with Ho-Sang and it could cost him spots in the draft as a result, but there will be teams that recognize that the vast majority of 18-year-olds have a lot of growing up to do and they might not want to let Ho-Sangs talent pass just because he talks a different game than others. A stats note on Ho-Sang: he scored 61 points (23 G, 38 A) at even-strength, tying Nikolaj Ehlers (30 G, 31 A) , not far behind late-birthday prospects Nikolay Goldobin (28 G, 37 A) and Sam Reinhart (22 G, 41 A) for even-strength scoring among first-year draft-eligible CHL forwards. Another Combine note for Ho-Sang: hes not big (5-foot-11, 175 pounds), but is very fit. He did more pull-ups than any other prospect, rattling off 13, the first 10 or so with easy fluidity. No idea if that makes him a better or worse prospect. - Leon Draisaitl is a big-bodied (6-foot-2, 204 pounds) that would be easy enough to project into an NHL lineup next season. In addition to having the frame, Draisaitl came across as mature and thoughtful in interviews. - There is an interesting group of second-generation NHL hopefuls. The most notable of which is Sam Reinhart, whose father Paul played 648 NHL games after he was drafted 12th overall in 1979, and has brothers Griffin Reinhart and Max Reinhart already in the prospect pipeline. That NHL exposure may help explain why Reinhart doesnt appear fazed at all by the attention. Some others: Kasperi Kapanen (father Sami played 831 NHL games), William Nylander (father Michael played 920 NHL games), Ryan MacInnis (father Al played 1416 NHL games), Dominic Turgeon (father Pierre played 1294 NHL games), Brendan Lemieux (father Claude played 1215 NHL games), Daniel Audette (father Donald played 735 NHL games), Ryan Donato (father Ted played 796 NHL games), Josh Wesley (father Glen played 1457 NHL games), Ryan Mantha (uncle Moe played 656 NHL games) and Luc Snuggerud (uncle Dave played 265 NHL games). - Oshawa Generals winger Hunter Smith, nephew of "Motor City Smitty" Brad Smith, is a tall one. Hes 6-foot-6 and will need time to fill out, but he emerged as a prospect this year scoring 40 points in 64 games for Oshawa. Thats not amazing production, but he had two points in 45 OHL games previously, so its progress and teams are always intrigued by the big guys. Its easy to see the appeal of players like Nick Ritchie, Brendan Perlini and Alex Tuch; they have huge frames and while its one thing to be a refrigerator on skates, its another to be able to put up numbers like those players and have the size that wont present questions about whether they can handle the physical play at the next level. The challenge for player evaluators is not to overvalue that size. - While there havent been any in-depth combine analytics, to my knowledge, going back over past results, there do seem to be some pretty good prospects finishing near the top of the VO2 Max test duration. Last year, the top 10 included the likes of Mirco Mueller, Chris Bigras, Rasmus Ristolainen, Samuel Morin, Bo Horvat, Sean Monahan and Anthony Mantha. The year before, it was Hampus Lindholm, Ryan Murray, Henrik Samuelsson, Tom Wilson and Nail Yakupov. In 2011, Adam Larsson, Brandon Saad, Dougie Hamilton and Jamie Oleksiak were among the leaders. This year, the leader was Clark Bishop, a centre for Cape Breton, but some other top prospects fit in the Top 10, including Sonny Milano, Sam Reinhart and Hunter Smith. What does all this mean? Maybe nothing. We dont know because we dont see the Bottom 10 (or all the results) so that we can find out of if there is any real correlation between having a good VO2 Max test and having an NHL career. Some other notable showings in the Combine exercises: - William Nylander had the best Anaerobic Fitness, both Peak Power Output and Mean Power Output on the Wingate Cycle Test. Tkachev fared well on the Mean Power Output, perhaps in part because the calculation is based on the participants weight. - Robby Fabbri (6.1%) had the lowest body-fat percentage. Sonny Milano and Nikolaj Ehlers were other top prospects in the Top 10. - Shane Gersich, who plays for the U.S. National Under-18 Team, has springs. He had the best scores in standing long jump and all the vertical jumps, his top vertical jump was 36 inches. - Alex Peters, a 6-foot-4 defenceman for Plymouth, had the strongest grip strength, in both hands. Aaron Ekblad was among the Top 10 in both too. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Jedd Gyorko Dodgers Jersey . The injury could land Machado on the 15-day disabled list, but its not as serious as it looked on Monday night, when the third baseman crumpled in a heap at the plate after taking an awkward swing in a game against the New York Yankees. Justin Turner Jersey . By then it was clear: The 76ers were going to win for the first time in two months, and they were going to do it with ease. The 76ers snapped their NBA record-tying, 26-game losing streak, routing the Detroit Pistons 123-98 on Saturday night to avoid establishing the longest skid in U. https://www.cheapdodgersonline.com/485h-manny-mota-jersey-dodgers.html .C. -- Ryan Sproul scored the winner late in double overtime to lift the Grand Rapids Griffins to a 2-1 win over the Abbotsford Heat on Friday in Game 1 of their American Hockey League playoff series. Manny Mota Jersey . Now, Sarah Burkes legacy will live on in Canadas Sports Hall of Fame. Burke, who tragically died at age 29 from a training accident in 2012, headlined the 2014 class named for induction Wednesday. Gary Sheffield Jersey . Re-signed by the club to a one-year, two-way (NHL/AHL) contract on July 5, Bass appeared in three preseason games with Columbus prior to breaking a bone in his hand on Sept.TORONTO -- It was another nail-biting win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats for Scott Milanovich and the Toronto Argonauts. Mitchell Gales one-yard TD run with just over five minutes remaining led Toronto to a thrilling 26-24 win over Hamilton on Saturday night. The Argos not only prevented the Ticats from clinching a playoff berth but also kept their hopes alive to finish atop the East Division. But the victory didnt come easily. After surging into a 15-0 first-quarter lead, Toronto committed four turnovers and watched Hamilton go ahead before regaining the advantage on Gales TD run. And when usually reliable kicker Swayze Waters missed a 31-yard field goal that went for a single at 14:39, the Ticats had plenty of time to march 35 yards and give kicker Justin Medlock a makeable game-winning boot. However veteran linebacker James Yurichuk, a native of Brampton, Ont., sent the Rogers Centre gathering of 19,258 home happy by sacking Hamilton quarterback Zach Collaros on the final play. Ive learned in the CFL its never over . . . its what makes this game so unique and fun but when youre hanging on by a thread to the lead its not much fun, Milanovich said. I was relieved to get out of here with a win. We did what we came to do, we got a win . . . at this point in the season its all we can ask for. I know I say it all the time, theres a lot of things weve got to clean up but were one game away (from clinching playoff berth) and well take that. But it was a dream ending for Yurichuk, a special-teams player who signed a contract extension earlier in the week, then drew the start Saturday. I think I blacked out for a second there, he said. Ive never really finished a game like that in the CFL. I just was thinking what a great week it was. We got the win, I got to re-sign this week and my family was here . . . it was one of those unbelievable moments. Gales TD at 9:43 of the fourth put Toronto ahead 25-21 after Hamilton stopped Steve Slaton short on third-and-goal but was flagged for being offside. That gave the Argos a fresh set of downs as Gales TD came after Waters connected from 29 yards out at 3:14. We stopped them on third-and-goal and then line up offside on defence, thats inexcuseable, said Ticats head coach/GM Kent Austin. We just let them have too many big plays and coming in we knew we couldnt do that. Hamilton pulled to within 25-24 with Medlocks 45-yard field goal at 12:29. Ricky Ray promptly marched the Argos from their 35 to the Ticats 24 before Waters missed. Ray finished 24-of-36 passing for 323 yards with a TD and interception. Toronto won the season series 2-1, which is the tie-breaker if the two teams finish with identical records. Hamilton won the first meeting 13-12 on Sept. 1 at Tim Hortons Field, then two weeks ago the Argos rallied from a 17-point deficit route for a 34-33 victory.dddddddddddd Toronto (7-9) moved into a second-place tie with Hamilton (7-9) in the East, two points behind the Montreal Alouettes (8-. The Argos finish their season visiting the Als next weekend before hosting Ottawa and can clinch first in the division by winning both. Toronto can clinch a playoff berth with a win over Montreal. Hamilton must beat Ottawa and then the Als on the final weekend of the season to reach the post-season. We had to win this game so nothing has changed, Collaros said. Every week has been a playoff week since Labour Day. We have to improve to the best of our ability and win two. Two weeks ago, Hamiltons special-teams registered 226 total return yards. On Saturday, the Ticats had just 69 return yards while Toronto amassed 171 return yards and Waters averaged 51.8 yards per punt. We got killed on field position, absolutely killed, Austin said. Every exchange on punts and kickoffs, that was a big problem for us. Slaton was terrific for Toronto, rushing for 80 yards on 16 carries and adding five receptions for 77 yards and a TD. The Argos ran for 115 yards, the first team in six games to rush over 60 yards against Hamiltons defence. Slaton played great, Ray said. He turned a lot of not very good plays into good plays and its huge when their defence has to worry about a guy like that. Collaros, who was 24-of-36 passing for 335 yards and three TDs, put Hamilton ahead 21-15 at 13:08 of the third. He capped a brilliant 109-yard, 10-play drive with a 27-yard scoring strike to Brandon Banks, whose miscue on a punt return had put the Ticats on their one-yard line. Collaros found Sam Giguere on a 43-yard TD strike at 4:49 of the third to pull Hamilton to within 15-14 following an 80-yard, five-play drive. Sophomore Luke Tasker was also huge for Hamilton with nine catches for 138 yards and a TD. Waters kicked two converts, three field goals and a single. The other points came on a safety just 1:16 into the contest. Medlock had three converts and a field goal. NOTES -- There was a moment of silence before the opening kickoff to honour the memory of Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent and Cpl. Nathan Cirillo, who died in separate incidents this past week . . . Running back Curtis Steele and linebacker Greg Jones didnt dress for Toronto while Hamiltons scratches were defensive back Emanuel Jones and offensive lineman Jeremy Lewis. Jones had 12 tackles for Toronto last weekend against Montreal . . . . The Ticats have used 54 different players in their starting lineup this season. That includes 12 different starters on both the offensive and defensive lines . . . Ray made his 188th career start and 16th straight for Toronto while Collaros started just 18th CFL game . . . Hamilton cornerback Delvin Breaux turned 25 on Saturday. ' ' '