Some young Maple Leafs prospects already know that championship feeling
Article content
For a few players at development camp this week, the thrill of victory has already trumped the agony of defeat, which is great if you believe that winning is contagious.
Article content
Article content
Easton Cowan's London Knights came back from a crushing loss in the 2024 Memorial Cup final to hoist it in June, along with camp invites Landon Sim and Andoni Fimis. Cowan, Toronto's coveted first round pick in 2023, netted the Cup-winner against Medicine Hat.
Article content
Article content
And there's Owen Michaels, whose double-overtime goal put his home state Western Michigan Broncos into the NCAA title game where he scored twice in the 6-2 final against Boston University.
Article content
Article content
'When you win, go through that grind of playoffs, that's something you can't teach,' said Hayley Wickenheiser, Leafs assistant general manager, player development and a women's world and Olympic gold medalist.
'I've never been through seven games repeated, but in the Olympics, the grind of getting there, being able to win and take it over the top like that, those are things that stick with you as an athlete and as a person forever.
Article content
'So, whenever we get people in here who've won, we know that's a quality we can't just give them. They have an advantage over everyone else.'
Article content
Cowan is still basking in the Cup and the leadership role it provided, making him the big man on campus at this camp of 48 prospects.
Article content
Article content
'When the games got bigger, I got better,' Cowan said. 'There are a lot of people watching and high stakes.
Article content
Article content
'It's awesome. The experience of winning helps so much — and to do it with that group, that team.'
Article content
He was just as thrilled to get congratulatory texts from Leafs captains Auston Matthews and John Tavares, who remembered him battling hard for a job at the last two NHL training camps and sure to again in September.
Article content
'It means a lot that they're still keeping tabs on me,' Cowan said.
Article content
Michaels, a 6-foot-2 right winger, was off the draft radar as he didn't start at Western Michigan until age 21, after playing junior in the U.S. Midwest. But his 36 points in 42 games last season sparked conversations with the Leafs around December and his Frozen Four heroics sealed the invite.
Article content
'I'm super appreciative of management inviting me here,' Michaels said. 'I feel I've earned this chance.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
30 minutes ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Kissing contamination defense clears French Olympic fencer Thibus in doping appeal case
LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — French Olympic fencer Ysaora Thibus was cleared of a doping allegation Monday because the judges accepted she was contaminated by kissing her American partner over a period of nine days. The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling echoed a verdict clearing another French athlete with a similar defense in a doping allegation — tennis player Richard Gasquet in the celebrated 'cocaine kiss' case in 2009. CAS said in the Thibus case its judging panel dismissed an appeal by the World Anti-Doping Agency, which asked for her to be banned for four years. Thibus tested positive for the anabolic substance ostarine in January 2024. She was later cleared by an International Fencing Federation tribunal weeks before the Paris Olympics, which let her compete there. WADA challenged the explanation that Thibus was contaminated 'through kissing with her then partner, who had been using a product containing ostarine without her knowledge,' CAS said. The court said Monday 'it is scientifically established that the intake of an ostarine dose similar to the dose ingested by Ms Thibus' then partner would have left sufficient amounts of ostarine in the saliva to contaminate a person through kissing.' The CAS judges 'accepted that Ms. Thibus' then-partner was taking ostarine from Jan. 5, 2024, and that there was contamination over nine days with a cumulative effect.' Her partner at the time was Race Imboden, a two-time Olympic fencing bronze medalist for the United States. Thibus, a silver medalist for France in women's team foil at the Tokyo Olympics, placed fifth at that event in Paris and 28th in the women's individual foil. ___ AP Summer Olympics:
Winnipeg Free Press
17 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Van Gisbergen wins in Chicago once again, completing a NASCAR weekend sweep
CHICAGO (AP) — Shane van Gisbergen completed a sweep on the Chicago Street Course on Sunday, winning the NASCAR Cup Series race on the tricky downtown circuit. It was van Gisbergen's second victory of the season and his third career Cup win. The Trackhouse Racing driver also won in Chicago in 2023, becoming the first driver to take his Cup Series debut since Johnny Rutherford in the second qualifying race at Daytona in 1963. Ty Gibbs was second, and Tyler Reddick finished third. Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch rounded out the top five. It was a dominant weekend for van Gisbergen, a three-time champion in Australia's Supercars. The 36-year-old New Zealand native won the Xfinity Series race from the pole Saturday. He also was the top qualifier for the Cup race. Michael McDowell joined van Gisbergen on the front row and quickly moved in front. He won Stage 1 and led for 31 laps before he was derailed by a throttle cable issue. Van Gisbergen regained the lead when he passed Chase Briscoe with 16 laps left. As fog moved into downtown Chicago with thunderstorms in the forecast, van Gisbergen controlled the action the rest of the way. AJ Allmendinger was sixth, and Ryan Preece finished seventh. Ryan Blaney, who won the second stage, was 12th. William Byron's day was cut short by a clutch problem. The Hendrick Motorsports driver began the day on top of the series standings. After McDowell seized the lead early in the race, Carson Hocevar caused a multicar crash when he hit the wall and spun out between Turns 10 and 11. Brad Keselowski, Austin Dillon, Daniel Suárez and Will Brown were among the drivers collected in the wreck. 'I didn't see it until the last second,' Keselowski said. 'I slowed down and I actually felt I was gonna get stopped and then I just kind of got ran over from behind. It's just a narrow street course and sometimes there's nowhere to go.' Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. Ty Dillon and Reddick moved into the third round of NASCAR's inaugural in-season tournament when Keselowski and Hocevar were unable to finish the race. Dillon, the No. 32 seed, eliminated Keselowski after he upset top-seeded Denny Hamlin last weekend at Atlanta. Gibbs, Preece, Alex Bowman, John H. Nemechek, Zane Smith and Erik Jones also advanced. The winner of the five-race, bracket-style tournament takes home a $1 million prize. Bowman, the 2024 champion on the downtown street course, won his head-to-head matchup with Bubba Wallace. Bowman and Wallace made contact as they battled for position late in the race after they also tangled in Chicago last year. ___ AP auto racing:
Winnipeg Free Press
19 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
The Kevin Durant trade to Houston sees seven teams involved in the record-setting deal
Kevin Durant's trade to the Houston Rockets is official and officially record-setting. The deal got approved by the NBA on Sunday as part of a seven-team transaction, one in which a slew of other trade agreements got folded into one massive package. 'Kevin impacts the game on both ends of the court and is one of the most efficient scorers in the history of basketball,' Rockets general manager Rafael Stone said. 'We liked the growth our team showed last season and believe Kevin's skill set will integrate seamlessly.' Involved in the deal: Phoenix, Houston, Atlanta, Minnesota, Golden State, Brooklyn and the Los Angeles Lakers. It includes a total of 13 players — the headline moves include Durant going to Houston from Phoenix, the Rockets sending Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks to the Suns, and the Rockets acquiring Clint Capela from the Hawks. The seven-team involvement in the Durant trade tops the previous record, a six-team transaction last summer that most notably sent Klay Thompson to the Dallas Mavericks. Golden State — Thompson's former team — obviously was another part of that trade, as were Charlotte, Minnesota, Philadelphia and Denver on varying levels. 'One of the greatest to ever play the game, we are grateful for the impact Kevin made on our organization and in our community,' Phoenix general manager Brian Gregory said of Durant. 'As a member of the Suns, he climbed the scoring charts to become just the eighth player in NBA history to score 30,000 career points, and we wish him the best as he continues his career in Houston.' There will be at least five second-round draft picks in the deal before all terms are satisfied, the potential for another second-round pick swap and the Hawks and Timberwolves both had to receive some cash considerations to make all the math work. And some of those draft picks won't actually be made until 2032, which raises the serious possibility that some players who will go down in history as being part of the trade haven't reached high school yet. Durant averaged 26.6 points last season, his 17th in the NBA — not counting one year missed because of injury. For his career, the 6-foot-11 forward is averaging 27.2 points and seven rebounds per game. The move brings Durant back to the state of Texas, where he played his only year of college basketball for the Longhorns and was the college player of the year before going as the No. 2 pick in the 2007 draft by Seattle. Houston becomes his fifth franchise, joining the SuperSonics (who then became the Oklahoma City Thunder), Golden State, Brooklyn and Phoenix. Durant won his two titles with the Warriors in 2017 and 2018, and last summer in Paris he became the highest-scoring player in U.S. Olympic basketball history and the first men's player to be part of four gold-medal teams. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. Durant is a four-time scoring champion, a two-time Finals MVP and one of eight players in NBA history with more than 30,000 career points. 'Having played against Kevin and coached him before, I know he's the type of competitor who fits with what we've been building here in Houston,' Rockets coach Ime Udoka said. 'His skill level, love of basketball, and dedication to his craft have made him one of the most respected players of his generation, and my staff and I are excited to work with him.' Houston sent Green and Brooks to Phoenix, along with the rights to Khaman Maluach from last month's draft, a second-round pick in 2026 and another second-rounder in 2032. The Hawks got David Roddy, cash and a 2031 second-round pick swap from the Rockets. Brooklyn gets a 2026 second-round pick and another in 2030 from the Rockets, and the Warriors received the rights to Jahmai Mashack from last month's draft. ___ AP NBA:
