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The NCAA drops the puck today on their mens hockey tournament and there will be no shortage of Canadians on the ice as 16 teams try to make their first step to becoming National Champions. Matt Kemp Jersey . The tournament includes a total of 109 Canadian players. There are 35 players from Ontario, 35 from British Columbia, 18 from Alberta and seven each from Quebec, Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Many of those players are trying to follow in the footsteps of several successful Canadian NHLers who went to college, including four members of the gold-medal-winning Sochi Olympic team: Jonathan Toews (North Dakota), Martin St. Louis (Vermont), Patrick Sharp (Vermont) and Chris Kunitz (Ferris State). "I think that if more Canadian families were exposed to what college can do — as parents for your kid socially, athletically and academically ... I think more people would be doing it," said University of Denver coach Jim Montgomery, a Montreal native who went to Maine and ended up playing 122 NHL games. Among the 945 players to see NHL action this season, 100 were Canadians who played at a U.S. college. Naturally, many went the more traditional road, through the QMJHL, OHL or WHL. But the NCAA is slowly becoming another acceptable way to get there. "Theres no wrong path," Phoenix Coyotes assistant general manager Brad Treliving said. "I think as a Canadian guy you grew up and youre around major junior hockey more, so ... youre closer to it than you are U.S. colleges, but, jeez, theres no wrong answer. Its an individual choice and theres benefits to both." Treliving said major junior hockey is the "quicker" path to the NHL because it has more of a pro-style schedule and grind. But others point to colleges 40-game season as a better chance for some players to develop. Theres more opportunity to lift weights and practice. "Theres the Sidney Crosbys and the Ovechkins and the Malkins of the world that could grow under a rock and are going to play in the NHL," Montgomery said. "Theres other perfect examples — elite players like the Paul Kariyas of the world. Those are the ones everyone knows but its like, did he really need to go to college? Well, Paul Kariya needed to go to college because he was 155 pounds and in 18 months of college he was 175 pounds ready to play against 30-year-old men that are 225 pounds. "It teaches you how to be a man quick." Perhaps some notoriety can come from watching this NCAA tournament. Boston College defenceman Michael Matheson (Pointe-Claire, Que.) is a first-round pick and top prospect for the Florida Panthers, while Quinnipiac has Connor and Kellen Jones (Montrose, B.C.) and Matthew Peca(Petawawa, Ont.). Wisconsin goaltender Joel Rumpel (Swift Current, Sask.) has been one of the best in the country this season and could soon follow in the footsteps of other recent Canadian college players like Matt Read, Ben Scrivens and Cory Conacher who have signed NHL contracts. Hamilton brothers Greg and Matt Carey recently signed deals with the Coyotes and Chicago Blackhawks, respectively, after playing at St. Lawrence University in upstate New York. Greg Carey came away satisfied with his direction, which was only possible because playing tier-2 junior hockey opened him up to the world of U.S. colleges. "You have friends, older friends on your team who have the ability to go and to head down to the States and play and it looks like a lot of fun," Carey said in a phone interview. "And then you get to go on your visits and you get exposed to this world that you really dont see as a Canadian kid growing up. We see a lot of the major junior with the Dub and the O and the Q and the NHL is right there, front and centre, so we dont really get the NCAA." Looking at the tournament from an NHL draft perspective, the top eligible player in the tournament, according to Craig Buttons rankings, is Boston Colleges starting goalie Thatcher Demko. Demko posted a .921 save percentage and 2.13 goals against average in 21 starts this season. Kurt Suzuki Jersey . Founding members of the Genie Army, a group of Eugenie Bouchard supporters who cheered for the rising tennis star during the Australian Open in January, will be in the city for the Rogers Cup, beginning this weekend. Atlanta Braves Jerseys . -- With Tony Allen back, the Memphis Grizzlies were able to turn up their defence pressure and hold off the Los Angeles Clippers down the stretch. http://www.bravesapparelsshop.com/customized-c-4/ . Various media outlets, including the Detroit Free Press, indicate a deal is close, while USA Today cited an unidentified person directly involved with the negotiations as saying the pact is for two years.Romanian runner Elena Mirela Lavric tested positive for meldonium at last months world indoor championships, the Romanian Athletics Federation said on Tuesday Lavrics result is the first failed drug test from the championships and comes at a time when track and fields governing body is under pressure over its management of doping issues.Romanian federation chairman Ion Sandu told the online publication ProSport that Lavric had stopped taking meldonium, which boosts stamina, in December, before it was banned, but that the federation only found out on March 7 that it was no longer legal. That was the same day that Maria Sharapova revealed she had failed a doping test for the drug.I dont know how long this medicine stays in the organism. I consider there is a lack of communication between medics and athletes, Sandu told PrroSport. Sean Rodriguez Jersey. Maria Sharapova addresses the media to reveal she had failed a test for meldonium Lavric could be banned for up to four years, while Romania could lose its bronze medal in the 4x400m relay, for which Lavric ran the second leg in the final.Lavric is a former European and world indoor champion in the 800m and also competed at the 2012 Olympics, reaching the semi-finals.Nataliya Lupu of Ukraine, withdrew before the championships in Portland after testing positive for meldonium, while former 1,500m world champion Abeba Aregawi of Sweden has also been provisionally suspended after testing positive. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '