Task 1) Vancouver versus Kelowna was a mismatch on paper, but despite the sweep, the games were all close. This leads me to believe that Kelowna could have given Detroit a good run for their money. Kelowna actually won the season series against Detroit, and most of those games were close. So instead of losing in 4 games, I think the Knights would have won in a long, hard fought series against Detroit. That leads the other series to be Vancouver versus Prince George. Prince George won the series against Detroit in just 5 games, limiting the Falcons to just 3 goals in those 4 wins. This could mean they could handle the high flying Whalers offense. The season series between the two teams was a tight one, with Prince George winning the last game 3-1. Vancouver scored 19 goals in their four game sweep over Kelowna, so their offense was definitely on fire. I think PG would have made it tougher for Vancouver, pushing them to a game 7. However, the Whalers are just too skilled and would still advance. So if the matchups were different, both series would have been closer and longer, with Vancouver still moving on, but Kelowna would go from being swept to playing in the next round.

Task 2) Top 5 fan Bloopers:

1) In Vancouver, a man went to kiss his girl on kiss cam, but she kissed the other man next to her...ouch
2) In St.Louis, a man cheered after a goal, but knocked over his full beer.
3) In Vancouver, they were trying to do a wave, but one section was standing the entire time because they wanted free chips...bad timing.
4) In Vancouver, a man was walking back to his seat with a plate full of nachos, but tripped and fell and had the nacho cheese engulf his hair. Other than his dignity, he was alright.
5) In St.Louis, a little girl kept saying that each player was her favorite; not a true blooper, but pretty cute.

Task 3) Shooter joined the Raiders mid-season, but couldn't help them get out of the basement and into the playoffs. We sat down with the scoring winger to ask about his team's season:

Interview guy: Hello Shooter, thanks for taking the time to do this.

Shooter McGavin: Hello, no problem.

IG: So it was a rough season for Halifax, tell me what you saw?

SM: Yeah it was a tough season. It just seemed like we couldn't get everyone going at the same time; we would get solid goaltending, but not score, then we would score a lot, but let in a bunch of goals. I guess that's part of being a young team.

IG: You mention being a young team, does that allow for some optimism for next year's chances?

SM: I think so. We are a hard working group of guys, and a lot of us should be entering our prime. I think you'll see a huge turnaround, and we'll be up on top of the standings next year. This year we scored the fewest amount of goals and allowed the most, but with the depth we have, and the core we can build around, we will definitely be one of the better teams...as long as we work hard.

IG: Which returning player do you think will have a rebound year or will surprise the league?

SM: I think Conor McGregor will take over for sure. I've seen his commitment to improving, and his training is crazy. He was extremely upset with last year's numbers (14 points), but I think you'll see him with a 20-20 (20 goals, 20 assists) season, as he is an all-around player with good play-making ability.

IG: Finally, I'll ask about you and your expectation for next season.

SM: Yeah, I was late to the game last year, and it definitely took me awhile to catch up to the rest of the league. That said, I'm pushing hard to make up for lost time and am expecting a much better year, especially since I got better down the stretch last season. I have a certain number I want to hit for goals, and it's above 20, but I also want to be a more reliable player in the d-zone, which is where I want to make my most improvement. Biggest thing is to just make the playoffs though.

IG: Thanks shooter

SM: Shoot ya later.


Task #5 - Write a goals highlight play by play for one series winning game
Requirements: At least 200 words for written /

Game 4 in the Conference Semi-finals between Vancouver and Kelowna. Vancouver is up 3-0 in the series, and came back to force O.T. after trailing 5-2 in the game, and then magic happened to complete the comeback. "Poulin has the puck for Kelowna. He skates out of the zone...and passes the puck...it's intercepted by Picard! Jean-Luc Picard enters the zone and feeds Eri Arai. Arai drops the puck back to Stephens. He speeds in and loses the puck in the corner, but he's got along the boards. He goes down low to Tommy behind the net. He holds it, looking for an open man. Passes back to Stephens, back to Picard at the point. Picard finds Barlow behind the net again. Barlow passes it in front...Arai sneaks in and shoots!!!!!!!!!! Oh he just missed wide...Stephens retrieves the puck down low, the Whalers are dominating this shift! Stephens still with the puck behind the net...he tries a wraparound!!!... and....YESSS!!!!!!!!!!!! HE SCORES!!!!!!!!!!!! STEPHENS SCORES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HE TUCKED IT IN UNDERNEATH BLACKFYRE'S PAD AND IN!!!!!!!!!!!!! HIS SECOND OF THE GAME HAS WON THE GAME AND THE SERIES FOR VANCOUVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WHAT A SHIFT, WHAT A GOAL, WHAT A COMEBACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This whole shift started with the turnover in the neutral zone, and once Vancouver entered the zone, they were the hungrier team and their skill shined through. The awareness of Arai to sneak in from the blue line for the first chance also played a big part, and you could tell the Knights were having issues setting up defensively. Then Stephens gets the puck, but he doesn't force a pass, instead he holds onto the puck and waits for something to get open. Nothing opens up and he just tries a wraparound...and I think he's as surprised as we are that it went in. What a night, but the fans here are devastated."