MLS Wednesday June 11th, 2014

This is it for MLS action before the World Cup. We will be back at the conclusion of the international event. Keep an eye on the US Open Cup in the meantime, although I will not be covering those games. First off...

The Montreal Impact host DC United. Andrew Dykstra and Troy Perkins are the keepers. DC began in the sixth minute with a Luis Silva goal, set up by Fabian Espindola. Montreal tied it in the twelfth minute on a Jack McInerney goal, coming off of Hassoun Camara. The Impact took the lead with an unassisted goal by Andres Romero in the twenty-first minute. United tied it in the twenty-third minute on a Nick DeLeon goal, again set up by Espindola. Romero digressed from being productive by taking a yellow card for a foul in the twenty-fifth minute. Espindola also had a transgression, earning a yellow card for unsporting behavior in the thirty-third minute. DC took the lead back in the thirty-ninth minute as Silva scored his second of the game, via Espindola. Silva netted the third goal in his hat trick in the fifth minute of first half stoppage time, on a penalty kick. Late in the game, the teams exchanged another set of yellow cards, as Montreal's Wandrille Lefevre and Davy Arnaud of DC each had fouls, in the eighty-first and eighty-seventh minutes, respectively. The scoring was long done, as United won 4-2. Silva was the man of the match, although Espindola gets an honorable mention.

Tonight's other game has the Portland Timbers hosting FC Dallas. Raul Fernandez and Donovan Ricketts are manning the nets. Dallas led off in the twenty-seventh minute with a Fabian Castillo goal, assisted by Blas Perez. Dallas added on as Perez scored, thanks to Tesho Akindele. The teams traded yellow cards early in the second half, as Fanendo Adi got one in the fifty-fourth minute for Portland and Stephen Keel answered with his own in the sixtieth minute, both for fouls. Dallas' goalie Fernandez was given a yellow card in the seventy-seventh minute for time wasting. Portland got on the board with a seventy-ninth minute penalty kick goal by Will Johnson. The bookings continued for Dallas, as Moises Hernandez was shown a straight red card in the eighty-seventh minute for a serious foul, followed by Perez getting a yellow card in the ninetieth minute for a foul, and then he had a more serious offense two minutes into stoppage time, giving him a red card and putting Dallas at nine men. Pa Modou Kah cashed in for the Timbers, scoring in the fourth minute of stoppage time to pull level, with an assist by Maximiliano Urruti. The game ended in a 2-2 draw, and the man of the match was Kah for his late equalizer to eke out a point for Portland.

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MLS Sunday June 8th, 2014

Two games on this afternoon, beginning with...

The New England Revolution hosting the New York Red Bulls. Luis Robles and Bobby Shuttleworth are the keepers. New York opened in the seventeenth minute on an Eric Alexander goal, set up by Lloyd Sam. New England had the first yellow card three minutes into first half stoppage time, as Chris Tierney was given one for a foul. The Red Bulls picked up yellow cards in the sixty-third minute for Robles' time washing and in the sixty-ninth minute on a Matt Miazga foul. Peguy Luyindula scored in the seventy-sixth minute for New York, an unassisted goal. The Red Bulls had two more yellow cards, as Ibrahim Sekagya was booked in the eighty-sixth minute for persistent infringement and Andre Akpan was shown one for a foul in stoppage time. The game ended 2-0, and the man of the match was Robles, who was kept busy but stayed up to the task in stopping all ten shots directed on goal for a clean sheet.

The other game is in Los Angeles, as the Galaxy host Chivas USA. Dan Kennedy and Jaime Penedo guard the nets. Chivas began in the twentieth minute with an Erick Torres goal, via Martin Rivero. Los Angeles tied it in the thirty-fifth minute with a Gyasi Zardes goal, fueled by Marcelo Sarvas and Stefan Ishizaki. This was it for the action, as the game ended in a 1-1 draw. Kennedy was the man of the match, making six saves to preserve the tie.

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MLS Saturday June 7th, 2014

Six games on today, beginning with...

Toronto FC hosting the San Jose Earthquakes. Jon Busch and Joe Bendik are the keepers. Toronto picked up a yellow card in the seventeenth minute for unsporting behavior by Doneil Henry. Toronto opened the scoring in the twenty-seventh minute as Jermain Defoe scored on a penalty kick. San Jose picked up two yellow cards in the second half as Sam Cronin committed a foul in the sixtieth minute and Clarence Goodson had a handball in the sixty-sixth minute. Toronto picked up two yellow cards of their own afterwards, as Nick Hagglund had a foul in the eighty-fourth minute and Defoe was booked for wasting time in the third minute of stoppage time. Toronto won 1-0, and Defoe was the man of the match for his goal.

Down in DC, United welcomes the Columbus Crew. Steve Clark and Bill Hamid play goal. DC had the first action in the game, a yellow card issued to Bobby Boswell in the forty-second minute for a foul. United picked up another yellow card on Cristian foul in the seventy-eighth minute. Columbus also found themselves in the book for a Justin Meram foul in the eighty-eighth minute. The Crew picked up a second yellow card as Eric Gehrig was booked for dissent during the fourth minute of stoppage time. The scoring just was not there, as the game ended 0-0. The man of the match was Clark for his three saves and a clean sheet.

Along to Philadelphia, as the Union bring in the Vancouver Whitecaps. David Ousted and Zac MacMath are in the six yard boxes. Vancouver started with an Erik Hurtado goal in the eighteenth minute, set up by Nigel Reo-Coker and Russell Teibert. The Whitecaps added on in the forty-first minute as Nicolas Mezquida scored, thanks to Hurtado. Philadelphia's Raymon Gaddis was the first to be shown a yellow card for his foul in the fifty-third minute. The Union got on the board with a Conor Casey goal, assisted by Cristian Maidana and Fabinho in the sixty-third minute. In the sixty-eighth minute, Sebastien Le Toux tied it for Philadelphia on a goal made possible by Vincent Nogueira and Maidana. The Union gained the lead with a Casey goal in the seventy-first minute, courtesy of Maidana for his third assist. Philadelphia's goalie MacMath was given a yellow card in the eightieth minute, and doubled down with his mistake by conceding the ensuing penalty kick a minute later to Pedro Morales, as Vancouver tied the game, and Darren Mattocks was credited with an assist. The Whitecaps' Johnny Leveron and the Union's Michael Lahoud received a yellow card each in stoppage time for unsporting behavior. The game ended in a 3-3 draw, with Casey being the man of the match for rallying Philadelphia with a brace. 

South to Dallas, where FC Dallas hosts the Colorado Rapids. Clint Irwin and Raul Fernandez man the nets. Colorado's Dillon Serna was shown a yellow card in the eighteenth minute for a foul. Deshorn Brown put the Rapids on the board first with a goal in the twenty-fifth minute, thanks to Drew Moor and Jose Mari. Dallas tied it in the thirty-third minute on a free kick goal by Jair Benitez. Dallas took the lead in the second minute of first half stoppage time on an unassisted Zach Loyd goal. Dallas' Peter Luccin was booked for a foul in the forty-ninth minute, good for a yellow card. Colorado tied it in the fifty-second minute as Mari scored, with the help of Dillon Powers. Dallas retook the lead on a Fabian Castillo goal in the sixty-second minute. The Rapids had a yellow card shown to Nick LaBrocca in the seventy-sixth minute for a foul. The game ended 3-2, and the man of the match was Castillo for the game winner.

Back north, the Chicago Fire welcome the Seattle Sounders FC. Stefan Frei and Sean Johnson protect the nets. The game began chippy, with things boiling over in the eighth minute, as Chris Ritter of Chicago and Obafemi Martins of Seattle both picked up yellow cards for unsporting behavior. Jhon Kennedy Hurtado had the next yellow card for the Fire in the twenty-fourth minute for a foul. The Sounders got on the board as Martins scored in the thirty-first minute. Hurtado was shown another yellow card in the thirty-seventh minute, his second yellow resulting in a red card that put him out of the game and his team down a man. To make matters worse for Hurtado, Martins buried the penalty kick a minute later to extend the Seattle lead. Chicago cut into the lead in the forty-first minute on a Harrison Shipp goal, passed from Quincy Amarikwa. The Sounders' man advantage disappeared in the forty-second minute, as Martins was shown a straight red card for a fight, and the teams were evenly matched again at ten men each. Seattle extended their lead with a goal in the seventy-eighth minute by Lamar Neagle, made possible by Kenny Cooper and Marco Pappa. The Fire got one back in the eighty-second minute as Shipp scored his second of the game, again assisted by Amarikwa. The chippiness returned in stoppage time, with Amarikwa picking up a yellow for unsporting behavior, Leo Gonzalez being booked a yellow card for a dive, and Frei being shown the yellow card for time wasting. The eventful game ended 3-2 favoring Seattle, and Martins was the man of the match for a crucial brace despite playing less than a half of the game.

Finally, Real Salt Lake brings in the Portland Timbers. Donovan Ricketts and Jeff Attinella are guarding the woodwork. Salt Lake began in the twenty-third minute on an unassisted Luke Mulholland goal. Portland tied it on a Fanendo Adi goal, guided in by Diego Valeri. The Timbers took the lead on an Adi goal in the forty-fifth minute, an unassisted effort. Real went down a man in the second half, as Tony Beltran committed two fouls for yellow cards in two minutes, beginning around the fifty-third minute. Salt Lake had another yellow card dished out to Olmes Garcia in the seventieth minute. Portland scored again as Will Johnson deposited a penalty kick in the seventy-third minute. Real's fourth yellow card was shown to Mulholland in the eighty-fourth minute for his foul. Portland's Diego Chara was given a yellow card in the first minute of stoppage time for a foul as well, but the Timbers still won 3-1. The man of the match was Adi for his brace.

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MLS Friday June 6th, 2014

One game tonight, as the Houston Dynamo host Sporting Kansas City. Eric Kronberg and Tyler Deric draw the starts in goal. Things got heated in the twenty-first minute, as Alexander Lopez was given a yellow card for his role in argument on the Houston side, while Kansas City's Toni was shown the red card for a fight, putting his team down to ten men. The Dynamo had another yellow card in the twenty-ninth minute on a foul by Andrew Driver. Sporting got on the board in the forty-fifth minute with a Soony Saad goal, set up by Benny Feilhaber. Houston returned to the referee's book in the second minute of first half stoppage time on an off the ball foul by Eric Brunner that brought out another yellow card. Kansas City added on to their lead as Dominic Dwyer deposited a penalty kick in the seventieth minute. The teams exchanged yellow cards later, as Jermaine Taylor and Saad had fouls worthy of being booked in the seventy-ninth and eighty-seventh minutes, respectively. Sporting picked up one more yellow in the fourth minute of second half stoppage time, as Kronberg was booked for time wasting. Still, the shorthanded side from Kansas City won 2-0, and Saad was the man of the match for the game-winner.

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MLS Wednesday June 4th, 2014

Two games on tonight, beginning in...

Columbus, as the Crew host Real Salt Lake. Jeff Attinella and Steve Clark are in the six-yard boxes. Columbus picked up a yellow card for an Eric Gehrig foul in the sixteenth minute. Salt Lake opened the scoring in the fifty-sixth minute on a Luis Gil goal, going in unassisted. The Crew tied it in the eighty-eighth minute as Ethan Finlay scored, thanks to Ben Speas. This made it a 1-1 draw, and Attinella was the man of the match for making six saves to garner a point for Real.

The other game is in Colorado, as the Rapids host the Chicago Fire. Sean Johnson and John Berner are the keepers. Chicago's Benji Joya picked up a yellow card for a foul in the twentieth minute. The Fire got another yellow card in the seventy-eighth minute for a Matt Watson off the ball foul, but Colorado had a yellow card shown to Jared Watts just seven minutes later for a foul of his own. The game ended in a scoreless draw, with Johnson being the man of the match by stopping the two shots directed on his goal to help the Fire earn their point.

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Western Conference Final: Chicago Blackhawks VS. Los Angeles Kings

This post is a reference for the above referenced series, so check back here for each game.

Game 1: United Center, Chicago, Illinois. In goal: Jonathan Quick and Corey Crawford. Chicago opened in the first period with a Brandon Saad goal, his third of the postseason, courtesy of Nick Leddy and Marian Hossa on the power play. Los Angeles tied it in the second period on a Tyler Toffoli goal, his fourth of the playoffs, guided in by Tanner Pearson and Jeff Carter. The Blackhawks took the lead back with a Duncan Keith goal, his third of the postseason, assisted by Saad and Marcus Kruger. Chicago added on in the third period with a Jonathan Toews goal, his sixth of the playoffs, fueled by Johnny Oduya and Hossa. This made it 3-1, the final, with the three stars going to Saad, Crawford (25 for 26 in saves), and Hossa. Chicago begins the series ahead 1-0.

Game 2: United Center, Chicago, Illinois. In goal: Jonathan Quick and Corey Crawford. Chicago began in the first period on a Nick Leddy power play goal, powered by Duncan Keith. The Blackhawks added on as Ben Smith scored his second of the postseason in the second period, assisted by Brandon Bollig and Johnny Oduya. Los Angeles got on the board as Justin Williams scored his sixth of the playoffs, thanks to Mike Richards and Dwight King. The Kings tied it in the third period on a Drew Doughty power play goal, his second of the postseason, via Slava Voynov and Marian Gaborik. Los Angeles took the lead with a Jeff Carter power play goal, his fifth of the playoffs, fueled by Jake Muzzin and Alec Martinez. The Kings extended the lead with a Tyler Toffoli goal, his fifth of the postseason, coming off of Tanner Pearson and Carter. Los Angeles padded the lead as Carter scored his sixth of the playoffs and second of the game, courtesy of Pearson and Matt Greene. The Kings iced it at 6-2 when Carter completed his hat trick with his seventh of the postseason, an empty net goal going in unassisted. The three stars were Carter, Pearson, and Toffoli. The series heads west tied at 1.

Game 3: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California. In goal: Corey Crawford and Jonathan Quick. Chicago was first to score in the first period on a Jonathan Toews goal, his seventh of the postseason, going in shorthanded and unassisted. Los Angeles tied it on a Slava Voynov power play goal, his second of the playoffs, powered by Jeff Carter and Drew Doughty. The Blackhawks retook the lead on a Toews goal, his second of the game and eighth of the postseason, via Michal Rozsival and Marian Hossa. The Kings tied it in the second period with a Carter goal, his eighth of the playoffs, assisted by Tanner Pearson. Los Angeles took the lead on a Tyler Toffoli goal, his sixth of the postseason, coming off of Carter and Willie Mitchell. The Kings added on in the third period with a Doughty goal, his second of the playoffs, made possible by Jake Muzzin and Justin Williams. Chicago got one back late on a Patrick Sharp goal, his third of the postseason, with a lone assist by Nick Leddy. This only made it 4-3, the final, with the three stars being Carter, Toews, and Doughty. The Kings now have a 2-1 series lead.

Game 4: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California. In goal: Corey Crawford and Jonathan Quick. Los Angeles led off in the first period on a Jake Muzzin goal, his fifth of the postseason, a power play goal powered by Drew Doughty and Tyler Toffoli. The Kings added on as Marian Gaborik scored his tenth of the playoffs, with a lone assist by Anze Kopitar. Los Angeles extended the lead on a Dustin Brown power play goal, his third of the postseason, fueled by Justin Williams and Muzzin. The Kings padded the lead with a Doughty goal, his third of the playoffs, guided in by Kopitar and Williams. Chicago got on the board with a Brandon Saad goal, his fourth of the postseason, passed from Michal Rozsival. The Blackhawks pulled closer in the third period on a Bryan Bickell goal, his seventh of the playoffs, set up by Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews. Los Angeles iced it at 5-2 with a Tanner Pearson empty net goal, his fifth of the postseason, helped along by Jeff Carter. The three stars were Muzzin, Kopitar, and Doughty, while Williams gets an honorable mention. Los Angeles travels with a 3-1 series lead.

Game 5: United Center, Chicago, Illinois. In goal: Jonathan Quick and Corey Crawford. Chicago started in the first period on a Brent Seabrook power play goal, his third of the postseason, powered by Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. The Blackhawks added on with a Johnny Oduya goal, his second of the playoffs, guided in by Kane and Andrew Shaw. Los Angeles got on the board with a Jarret Stoll goal, his second of the postseason, with a lone helper from Dwight King. Chicago shot back on a Brandon Saad goal, his fifth of the playoffs, assisted by Shaw and Kane, the latter getting a sock trick. The Kings pulled back with a Marian Gaborik goal, his eleventh of the postseason, made possible by Anze Kopitar and Dustin Brown. Los Angeles tied it in the second period on a Brown goal, his fourth of the playoffs, passed from Gaborik. The Kings took the lead on a Tanner Pearson goal, his fourth of the postseason, coming off of Jeff Carter. The Blackhawks tied it in the third period on a Ben Smith goal, his third of the playoffs, thanks to Saad and Oduya. Chicago won 5-4 in the second overtime on a Michal Handzus goal, his second of the postseason, courtesy of Saad and Kane. The three stars were Kane, Saad, and Shaw, while Brown, Oduya, and Gaborik were the honorable mentions. Los Angeles will head home with a 3-2 series lead after this setback.

Game 6: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California. In goal: Corey Crawford and Jonathan Quick. Los Angeles struck first in the first period with a Dwight King goal, his second of the postseason, via Jarret Stoll and Justin Williams. Chicago tied it in the second period on a Patrick Kane power play goal, his seventh of the playoffs, powered by Jonathan Toews and Brent Seabrook. The Blackhawks took the lead on a Ben Smith goal, his fourth of the postseason, guided in by Patrick Sharp and Seabrook. The Kings tied it on a third period Drew Doughty goal, his fourth of the playoffs, assisted by Dustin Brown and Mike Richards. Los Angeles regained the lead as Alec Martinez scored his third of the postseason, a power play goal made possible by Doughty. Chicago evened the score on a Duncan Keith goal, his fourth of the playoffs, set up by Kane and Andrew Shaw. The Blackhawks pulled ahead on Kane's second of the game and eighth of the postseason, thanks to Brandon Saad and Niklas Hjalmarsson. They held on for a 4-3 win, with the three stars being Kane, Seabrook, and Doughty. The series heads to Chicago to be decided in Game 7.

Game 7: United Center, Chicago, Illinois. In goal: Jonathan Quick and Corey Crawford. Chicago got going in the first period on a Brandon Saad goal, his sixth of the postseason, coming off of Patrick Kane and Andrew Shaw. The Blackhawks added on with a Jonathan Toews power play goal, his ninth of the playoffs, powered by Kane and Brent Seabrook. Los Angeles got one back with a Jeff Carter goal, his ninth of the postseason, passed from Dustin Brown and Tyler Toffoli. The Kings tied it on a Justin Williams goal, his seventh of the playoffs, guided in by Slava Voynov and Dwight King. Chicago retook the lead as Patrick Sharp scored his fourth of the postseason, thanks to Marcus Kruger. Los Angeles tied it in the second period on a Toffoli goal, his seventh of the playoffs, via Matt Greene and King. The Blackhawks got the lead back on a Sharp goal, his second of the game and fifth of the postseason, helped along by Saad on the power play. The Kings tied it on a Marian Gaborik goal in the third period, his twelfth of the playoffs, with assists provided by Brown and Anze Kopitar. Los Angeles won with an Alec Martinez goal in overtime, his fourth of the postseason, dished from Williams and Greene for the 5-4 win. The three stars were Williams, Saad, and Sharp, while Kane, Brown, Greene, King, and Toffoli are the honorable mentions. The Kings take the series 4-3 and face the New York Rangers for the Stanley Cup, beginning on Wednesday. 

MLS Sunday June 1st, 2014

Three games on to close out this week in the league. First...

The Chicago Fire host the Los Angeles Galaxy. Jaime Penedo and Sean Johnson are the keepers. Chicago picked up an early yellow card as Jhon Kennedy Hurtado was booked for a foul in the seventh minute. The Fire started the scoring in the sixty-eighth minute on a Jeff Larentowicz penalty kick conversion. Los Angeles tied it on a Landon Donovan goal in the seventy-fourth minute, set up by Robbie Rogers. In the seventy-sixth minute, Donovan found himself in the referee's book with a yellow card for a foul. This was the end of the action, with the game ending in a 1-1 draw. The man of the match was Penedo, stopping three of the four shots sent his way.

Out west, the Colorado Rapids welcome the Houston Dynamo. Tally Hall and Clint Irwin play goal. Colorado opened in the fifth minute with a Deshorn Brown goal, assisted by Marvell Wynne. The Rapids added on in the thirty-fifth minute as Brown scored again, this time with an assist from Dillon Powers. Houston was shown a yellow card in the fortieth minute for a Warren Creavalle foul. Colorado extended their lead in the fifty-first minute as Kamani Hill scored, and Powers was credited with the assist. This was good for a 3-0 win, and Brown was the man of the match.

Finally, in Portland, the Timbers host the Vancouver Whitecaps FC for a Cascadia Cup battle. David Ousted and Donovan Ricketts protect the nets. Portland quickly began in the third minute with a Maximiliano Urruti goal, set up by Diego Valeri. Vancouver took the lead as Pedro Morales put two penalty kicks in the back of the net, in the sixteenth and twenty-sixth minutes. The Whitecaps also saw Kekuta Manneh booked on a yellow card in the twenty-eighth minute for a foul. In the forty-fifth minute, each team received a yellow card, as Pa Modou Kah of the Timbers was called for unsporting behavior and Sebastian Fernandez committed a foul. Vancouver added on to their lead with a goal by Erik Hurtado in the fourth minute of stoppage time, with assists by Hurtado and Matias Laba. The Whitecaps extended the lead with a Jordan Harvey goal, passed from Morales. Portland pulled closer on a Gaston Fernandez goal in the seventy-seventh minute, courtesy of Valeri. The Timbers chipped away with a Will Johnson goal in the eighty-sixth minute, via Fanendo Adi. They failed to pull level, losing 4-3. The man of the match was Morales for a brace and two assists, having a part in each Whitecaps goal.

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