The cliché, “he’s won everywhere he’s been” is so commonly used in sport circles that it was the premise of the 2014 movie Draft Day, staring Kevin Costner and Jennifer Garnner. The importance of winning, and its’ impact on a player’s opportunity to advance to the next level, has been of interest to me for sometime now. While it is easy to explain the relationship between team success and draft success by saying that better teams are better because they have better players, I

When the Toronto Maple Leafs hired Brendan Shanahan in 2014 the unequivocal message to die-hard Leafs fans was that there was pain ahead, as he was granted MLSE board approval for a "scorched earth rebuild". Since coming to Toronto Brendan Shanahan has marketed himself to Leaf fans as the man with the stomach to deal with the criticism of fans and the media, and the willingness to stick to a plan over the next half a decade, and beyond. The last few seasons for the Leafs have

The holidays are a wonderful time of year, when families get together and celebrate the past year, as well as prepare for the coming new one. While there are families all across Canada who prepare for the holidays by decorating a Christmas tree, lighting a Menorah, or any number of other holiday preparations, my friends and I prepare for New Years by getting a case of beer, a box of wings, and watching the World Junior Hockey Championship. As an avid fan of the World Juniors

For many young hockey players the decision on whether they will play in the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), the banner league of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), Western Hockey League (WHL), or, alternatively, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). is being made at a younger and younger age. This important decision is typically made at the family level and it is important that each family is made aware that this decis