Announcements » d the largest skating team to Sochi. This

Frisco, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - FC Dallas forward Tesho Akindele has been named Major League Soccers Rookie of the Year, the league announced on Monday. The award culminates an outstanding season for the 22-year-old Akindele which saw him rise from NCAA Division II soccer to the national-team radar of both his native Canada and the United States. Akindele finished the 2014 season with seven goals and three assists, starting 18 games and making 26 appearances. He played all 270 minutes for FCD in the postseason and scored the opening goal in the clubs 2-1 win over the Vancouver Whitecaps in the Western Conference knockout round. Akindele played four years for the Colorado School of Mines and is the first player in team history to win Rookie of the Year. He was drafted by Dallas with the sixth pick in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft, but played just 15 minutes in two appearances in the first 10 Dallas games of the season. At the beginning of the year, I had the highest hopes, Akindele said. I wasnt getting too much time, but as things went on, I got so much playing time, got to score goals, in the roster all the time. Its been a fantastic year. I couldnt be happier. But an injury to playmaker Mauro Diaz forced Dallas to change their style, and Akindele played a key role, seeing time both as a wide player and a target forward, capable of switching spots during a game. Hes the first forward to win the award since Kansas Citys CJ Sapong in 2011, and just the fourth forward to win the award since it was introduced in 1996. Torrey Smith Jersey .Y. -- Florida Panthers captain Ed Jovanovski finally has something to show for all the pain he went through in overcoming a string of injuries that kept him sidelined for much of the past two years. D.J. Moore Panthers Jersey . But history aside, theyre still happy to participate in the Par 3 contest, traditionally held on the day prior to the first round of the Masters. http://www.shoppanthersonline.us/panther...oe-blue-jersey/. - Titans quarterback Jake Locker will miss the rest of the season with a Lisfranc injury to his right foot, leaving Tennessee trying to rally with Ryan Fitzpatrick. Jarius Wright Jersey . LOUIS -- Known for his game-managing and defensive skills, Yadier Molina made another statement with his bat. Custom Carolina Panthers Jerseys . -- Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh says he isnt going to change what he does on the field.OTTAWA - Qualifying for Canadas Olympic Skating Team takes place this weekend at The Canadian Tire National Skating Championships in Ottawa This is not just another national championships. It is the chance of a lifetime to make the Canadian Olympic Team and its a celebration of 100 years of the Canadian Championships. Canadian skating is celebrating its past at these Championships and also its future, as based on stellar results, Canada has qualified to send the largest skating team to Sochi. This is about Canadian skaters continuing to break new ground at home and on the international stage. Patrick Chan is on the verge, he hopes, of being the first Canadian man to win Olympic Gold. He has treated us in the past to superb performances at nationals, en route to his World Championship wins. In light of his performances this season, we can expect nothing less of him here. Saving and peaking are words not in his vocabulary. He will no doubt hold nothing back as he goes after his 7th Canadian title. This is about what is believed to be a Canadian farewell to Olympic Champions and ice dance legends Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, who unless we can convince them otherwise, will leave competitive skating after the Games. They have been building throughout this season and are looking stronger and fitter, more refined and in tune each time out. They will look at their performance here as a gift to themselves to be able to perform their Olympic programs in front of their Canadian fans while in peak condition. They will likely be soaking it all in and storing it to memory so that it can be looked back on fondly down the road. So too I bet, will the audiences. This is a welcome back to the nationals for six-time Canadian Medalists Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje. Kaitlyn was injured last year in practice a month before nationals and so was unable to compete. Her injury, a broken fibula, was so severe the doctors even ruled out the possibility of competing at Worlds last March. Three months to the day after the accident and after methodically and relentlessly working through the pain of rehab, Kaitlyn and Andrew competed and finished 5th at The World Championships and once again showed us how they can grow stronger and more resilient throough adversity.dddddddddddd Injury free and at the top of their game, they hope that they will put up the kind of numbers here that are worthy of podium contention in Sochi. This is about two rival pair teams continuing the rich tradition of Canadian pairs as they duke it out once again for the Canadian title. Kirsten Moore-Towers and Dylan Moscovitch were Canadian Champs in 2011, Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford in 2012. Last year in the closest of contests Meagan and Eric defended their title, beating Kirsten and Dylan by less than a point in the short and just over a point in the long. It was one of those events where when its over you literally sit back in your seat and think, "Wow! What a fight!" At last years World Championships, the edge once again went to Meagan and Eric who finished third and just one spot ahead of Kirsten and Dylan. Both teams have the same goals, Canadian title and Olympic medal. As teams, they cant get much closer. As a competition, it doesnt get much better. And then there are the unknowns. Kevin Reynolds, the quad king, who had a break-out season last year finishing 5th in the world, has not competed this year due to boot problems. There are seven guys going after three spots. Patricks got one of those spots and Kevin certainly has the credentials to earn the second, but he will be pressured in this, his first competition of the season. Canadian ladies champion Kaetlyn Osmond is feeling the same kind of heat as hers has been a season of untimely injuries which have cost her valuable training time. Six women fighting for two spots. Kaetlyn has posted by far the best scores to date, but she will contend with a Canadian Champion and some young and feisty up-and-comers and so will have to be on her toes, so to speak. This is about dreams coming true and bitter disappointments. About your last four years being defined by the next four minutes. About becoming a champion, a medalist, an Olympic team member or going down trying. As Roosevelt said in The Man in the Arena, "His place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat." This is the 100-year anniversary of the Canadian Skating Championships. The tradition continues. Blackhawks Jerseys Store Cheap Wild Jerseys Cheap Red Wings Jerseys Cheap Maple Leafs Jerseys Penguins Jerseys Store Capitals Jerseys For Sale Blues Jerseys Store Cheap Kings Jerseys Adidas Lightning Jerseys Stars Jerseys For Sale Cheap Predators Jerseys Ducks Store Sharks Jerseys For Sale Cheap Sabres Jerseys Rangers Jerseys For Sale ' ' '