The 2014 NHL draft is many things to many people, but Year of the Defenceman it is not. Boog Powell Jersey . The oddity, of course, is that its a blueliner who is the mid-season favorite to be taken No. 1 overall at the draft in Philadelphia, June 27-28. Barrie Colt defenceman Aaron Ekblad is No. 1 on TSNs Mid-Season Top 50 Prospects rankings. In a survey of 10 NHL team scouts, Ekblad garnered eight No. 1 votes and was No. 2 on the remaining two ballots. The only other players to get a No. 1 vote, one apiece, were Kootenay Ice centre Sam Reinhart and Kingston Frontenac centre Sam Bennett (who was ranked No. 1 by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau in its mid-term rankings). Ekblad and Reinhart both performed admirably for Canada at the 2014 World Junior Championship but the defenceman clearly made a bigger impact, reversing TSNs pre-season polling that had Reinhart at No. 1, by virtue of five first-place votes, compared to Ekblads three. The truth is, from the Ivan Hlinka Memorial under-18 tournament last August through to the Canadian Hockey League Top Prospects game in mid-January, the 6-foot-4, 216-pound defenceman has been on a strong, steady arc. "In the summer, a lot of the projections for (Ekblad) were he might not be anything more than a (No.) 4 (NHL defenceman), that he was neither a real offensive threat or a true shutdown defenceman," one scout told TSN. "But the way he played at the Hlinka, this season in Barrie, the World Juniors and the Prospect game, hes showing a lot more range in his game." While Ekblad will never be a power play quarterback, he can hammer the puck well enough to project as a power play shooter from the point and score goals. Both at the Hlinka and WJC, Ekblad was consistently used in a shutdown role and performed well. Many scouts believe now he has top-pairing NHL potential, a big body who can skate, move the puck, defend, contribute offensively and play both sides of special teams while munching a lot of minutes. After the WJC, Ekblad scored four goals (including a shorthanded marker) and one assist in one game. "Hes not a superstar by any means," another scout said, "but hes going to be a very good NHL defenceman." Some scouts have taken note of Victor Hedmans emergence, the second overall pick in the 2009 draft, as a top-minute defenceman for Tampa this season and see many similarities in Ekblad. Ekblad is far and away the top defenceman in this draft. Only one other blueliner - Red Deers Haydn Fleury, at No. 6 – cracked TSNs Top 10 prospects. In fact, only five defencemen - Ekblad, Fleury, Kingstons Roland McKeown at No. 17, Swift Currents Julius Honka at No. 18 and Sarnias Anthony DeAngelo at No. 26 – are in TSNs Top 30. The latter three are likely first-round picks, but not by any means guaranteed. Relative to recent years, the death of top-echelon defencemen is striking. Last year, eight of the top 18 picks were defenders. In 2012, eight of the top 10 picks were blueliners. Scouts do not believe this years draft class has the same high-end sizzle and overall depth as last years group that was headed by Nathan MacKinnon, Seth Jones, Jonathan Drouin and Aleksandr Barkov. And it would be fair to say theres more anticipation for the 2015 draft class, headed by highly-touted Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, amongst others, than this year. But the scouts also cautioned that the top-end prospects this year are still excellent talents, just not necessarily potential stars. TSNs No. 2-ranked Reinhart didnt really do anything to "lose" No. 1 status from the pre-season as much as Ekblad simply elevated his game. Reinhart has played very well in the WHL and logged significant minutes for Canada at the WJC. A centre in junior, some scouts believe hell be best suited to wing in the NHL. Reinharts chief assets are an extremely high hockey I.Q. and skill level as both a goal-scorer and playmaker. Hes not physically overpowering and his skating is not dynamic but a seemingly innate ability to be in the right place at the right time to make plays is his trademark. Kingstons Bennett, the only player other than Ekblad and Reinhart to get a No. 1 vote, is No. 3 on the TSN list. The competitive centre who has some of the same qualities as his Kingston general manager Doug Gilmour can be both a productive offensive force but also does quality work without puck, earning rave reviews for his complete approach to the game. Oshawa General winger Michael Dal Colle checks in at No. 4 on TSNs list. The rangy forward has a pro shot and was a top five prospect on eight of 10 scouts ballots, including one vote as the second-best prospect available in this draft. No. 5 on TSNs list is Prince Albert Raider centre Leon Draisaitl, who is destined to be the highest-drafted German player and, for now, the top European prospect on the TSN list. But Draisaitl seems to be trending in the wrong direction. He played poorly at the WJC and didnt perform particularly well in the CHL Top Prospects game. But hes still a big-body, two-way centre. The second half of the season could mean more to Draisaitls ranking than any prospect in the draft. The balance of TSNs Top 10 is top heavy with wingers. Only two-way defenceman Fleury, at No. 6, interrupted a run on wingers: Peterborough Petes power forward Nick Ritchie is No. 7, followed at No. 8 by Niagara Ice Dog Brendan Perlini, whose assets are size, speed and an NHL shot. The No. 9 slot belongs to Finnish winger Kasperi Kapanen, the son of former NHL winger Sami Kapanen, and the Top 10 is rounded out by Calgary Hitmen power winger Jake Virtanen, a strong skater who drives the net and can play the physical game. There appears to be a lot of volatility in this years mid-season rankings. NHL scouts dont seem as fully sold on this years first-round prospects, especially those ranked from No. 11 through to 30. One of the issues is size. Many of the more skilled prospects - Swedish forward William Nylander at No. 11, the son of former NHLer Mikael Nylander, Denmarks Nikolaj Ehlers, a forward with the Halifax Mooseheads at No. 15, No. 22 Russian Nikolay Goldobin, a forward in Sarnia, No. 23 Czech winger Jakub Vrana , No. 24 Swiss forward Kevin Fiala, Sarnia offensive defenceman DeAngelo at No. 26, No. 29 Windsor winger Josh Ho-Sang and No. 30 forward Rob Fabbri of the Guelph Storm - are all listed as sub-6-footers by NHL Central Scouting. And while scouts dont dispute the individual skill level of prospects like Nylander, Goldobin, Vrana, DeAngelo, Ho-Sang and No. 25 ranked Nick Schmaltz of the USHLs Green Bay Gamblers (headed for University of North Dakota), multiple scouts expressed some reservation about those players trying to do too much with the puck or not showing enough consistency and commitment to the team game. "Nylander is the most skilled player in this draft, bar none," one scout told TSN. "But he likes to play the game on his own." Another scout said: "Some nights you watch Schmaltz and hes a dominant player, best on the ice, but then he doesnt even show up a lot of games." A third scout said: "Ho-Sang played a great game at Prospects and showed an ability to play with others but a lot of nights in Windsor, he wants to do it on his own. There seem to be a lot of guys like that this year." No goalie was ranked in TSNs Top 30, but American Thatcher Demko, who plays at Boston College, fell just outside, at No. 31, and should be considered a potential first-rounder. He was the overwhelming consensus top goalie in a year where theres never been so little consensus beyond the top guy. Demko appeared on eight of 10 ballots, but the next highest ranked goalie, Alex Nedeljkovic of the Plymouth Whalers at No. 42, was on only five of 10 ballots. Swedish goalie Jonas Johansson was the only other goalie to crack TSNs Top 50, filling the 50th and final spot. There were, however, three goaltenders getting honorable mention for the Top 50: Finlands Kaapo Kahkonen; Charlottetowns Mason McDonald; and Russian Ivan Nalimov. One note regarding TSNs rankings. The numbers assigned are a projection of when TSN believes a prospect is most likely to be drafted, if the draft were being held now. Its not a subjective analysis - not to be confused with the many scouting services who actually evaluate the prospects - as much as it is a numerical consensus obtained from surveying NHL scouts and where they rank specific players. TSNs next ranking - a revised Top 10 - will be done in April at the same time as the NHL draft lottery. TSNs final rankings come out the week prior to the NHL draft in late June. Don Baylor Jersey .com Tour title, closing with a 6-under 64 for a four-stroke victory. The 22-year-old former North Texas player finished at 12-under 268 at Panama Golf Club and earned $112,500 to jump from seventh to second on the money list with $171,500. Tim Raines Jersey . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Steve Mason, Philadelphia (4) - Mason was brilliant all night long with save after big save on Benoit Pouliot, Carl Hagelin and Derick Brassard. https://www.cheaporioles.com/2138i-richie-martin-jersey-orioles.html .C. - Brent Sutter scored 1:32 into extra time as the Charlotte Checkers came from behind to defeat the visiting Abbotsford Heat 5-4 on Sunday in American Hockey League action.ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis manager Mike Matheny decided at the last minute against giving slumping infielder Kolten Wong the day off on Saturday. It proved to be a smart move. Wong homered and had three RBIs and Justin Masterson won his St. Louis debut as the Cardinals beat the Milwaukee Brewers 9-7 on Saturday night. St. Louis, which had lost three of its previous four, moved two games behind first-place Milwaukee in the NL Central. The Brewers had a two-game winning streak snapped. Wong, who entered the contest mired in a 6 for 36 skid, went 3 for 5. He slammed a bases-loaded single to trigger a five-run outburst in the second inning that put St. Louis ahead to stay 6-1. He also hit a solo homer in the first. "That worked out fine for all of us," Matheny said of the late pre-game move. "It was nice to see him bounce back. With a young player, when he has a couple of rough days, you wonder, can he leave it behind and go back to having a nice approach. He jumped right in and had some big at-bats." Wong was 2 for 3 in his career against Brewers starter Kyle Lohse, a key factor in Matheny leaving him in the lineup. Wong, who entered the game hitless in his previous eight at-bats, spent some extra time studying his approaches at the plate following Fridays 7-4 loss to Milwaukee. "I knew the reason I was striking out as soon as the game finished yesterday," Wong said. "I was swinging way too hard trying to do way too much." Masterson (1-0) gave up five runs on seven hits over six innings. He was acquired from Cleveland on Wednesday for minor league outfielder James Ramsey. "There was a little rust out there," Masterson said. "But with that intense offence that we had, and some solid defence, that makes it fun to be out there." Aramis Ramirez and Scooter Gennett drove in two runs each for the Brewers. Ramirez had three hits for the second successive game. Lohse (11-6) took tthe loss. Paul Fry Jersey. Lohse, who pitched for the Cardinals from 2008-12, gave up nine runs on nine hits over four innings. He struck out two and walked three. Lohse gave up eight earned runs in a 15-5 loss at Pittsburgh on June 6. "It was just a rough one," Lohse said. "I just left too many balls out over the plate." St. Louis closer Trevor Rosenthal recorded his 33rd save in 37 opportunities. He allowed a leadoff double to Jean Segura. Rosenthal then appeared to hit Elian Herrera with a pitch, but the call was overturned by a challenge. Rosenthal then got Herrera to ground out. He struck out Carlos Gomez and Gerardo Parra to end the game. ANCHORS AWEIGH Former US Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell threw out the first pitch. Luttrell was awarded the Navy Cross and Purple Heart for his actions in June 2005 as part of Operation Red Wings. He wrote the bestselling novel, The Lone Survivor, which has been turned into a movie starring Mark Wahlberg. TRAINERS ROOM Cardinals: OF Jon Jay missed his fourth successive game with a sore wrist suffered on a check swing July 29 at San Diego. He says the wrist is improving and he could return to the starting lineup as early as Tuesday against Boston. Brewers: RHP Jimmy Nelson, who was scratched from Saturdays start due to a blister on his finger, will start on Tuesday against San Francisco. ON DECK John Lackey (11-7, 3.60) will make his St. Louis debut on Sunday in the final game of the three-game series. He will be opposed by Matt Garza (7-7, 3.74). The Cardinals obtained Lackey on Thursday from Boston in exchange for OF Allen Craig and RHP Joe Kelly. LONG LASTING The Brewers have been in first place in the NL Central every day since April 5, a streak covering 121 successive days. They lost two of their first three games to open the season and spent two days in third place and one each in second and fourth before taking over the top spot. ' ' '