by Fran Stuchbury
June 21, 2022 – Major League Soccer (MLS)
This past week the Colorado Mammoth won its third National Lacrosse League Championship, Apple TV became the future home of Major League Soccer with a 10-year deal for every game, and Russia announced it will hold WNBA player Brittney Griner in detention for at least two more weeks. Highlights from this week come from the National Lacrosse League, Major League Soccer, National Women’s Soccer League, United Soccer League Championship, Women’s National Basketball Association, NBA G League, BIG3, United States Football League, Canadian Football League, XFL, Fan Controlled Football, American Hockey League, Western Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League, Texas League, Major League Rugby and American Ultimate Disc League.
LACROSSE
National Lacrosse League
Dillon Ward recorded 55 saves in net, Zed Williams scored four goals, and Chris Wardle added five assists as the visiting Colorado Mammoth took the decisive Game 3 of the National Lacrosse League Finals, 10-8, to claim the NLL Cup in front of a sellout crowd of 19,070 at KeyBank Arena and nationwide television audiences in the U.S and Canada on ESPNU, ESPN+ and TSN. For his efforts, Ward was named NLL Finals MVP. With the triumph, Colorado claims its third NLL title, winning the series, two games to one; the franchise also won NLL championships in 1987 (when located in Baltimore) and 2006.
Here are the highlights.
The final seconds and the celebration from game three of the NLL Final. The Colorado Mammoth are your 2021-22 NLL champions:
SOCCER
Major League Soccer
Apple and Major League Soccer announced that the Apple TV app will be the exclusive destination to watch every single live MLS match beginning in 2023. This partnership is a historic first for a major professional sports league and will allow fans around the world to watch all MLS, Leagues Cup,1 and select MLS NEXT Pro and MLS NEXT matches in one place — without any local broadcast blackouts or the need for a traditional pay TV bundle. “Apple is the perfect partner to further accelerate the growth of MLS and deepen the connection between our clubs and their fans,” said MLS Commissioner Don Garber. “Given Apple’s ability to create a best-in-class user experience and to reach fans everywhere, it’ll be incredibly easy to enjoy MLS matches anywhere, whether you’re a super fan or casual viewer.”
In a historic first for sports, fans can stream every single MLS match through the Apple TV app, without any local blackouts or restrictions.
National Women’s Soccer League
Angel City Football Club (ACFC) confirmed that forward Christen Press tore her right ACL and has been placed on the season-ending injury list. The injury was sustained on Saturday, June 11 against Racing Louisville at Lynn Family Stadium in Louisville. Prior to the injury, Press scored the team’s first goal of the night and assisted on the second goal by Savannah McCaskill.
The Houston Dash have named Juan Carlos Amoros as the interim head coach and he is expected to join the Dash at the end of June pending visa approval, the team announced today. Until that time, Sarah Lowdon will remain acting head coach. Amors brings significant international experience to the Dash after coaching in both the top Spanish and English women’s leagues. The Spaniard comes to the Dash after serving as the head coach of Real Betis Feminas from 2021 to 2022, where he led the club to its longest unbeaten run in Spain’s top division.
Budweiser Player of the Week – Taylor Kornieck, San Diego Wave FC – Week 7
Verizon Save of the Week – Jane Campbell, Houston Dash – Week 7
United Soccer League Championship
The USL Championship announced the Team of the Week for Week 14 of the 2022 regular season, with Atlanta United 2 midfielder Raimar voted the Championship Player of the Week presented by Konami eFootball after recording a two-goal outing to lead his side to a 2-0 victory against Loudoun United FC at Fifth Third Bank Stadium, earning Atlanta its first victory in more than two months.
BASKETBALL
Women’s National Basketball Association
Russia announced it will hold WNBA player Brittney Griner in detention for at least two more weeks. Angela Rye joins Stephen A. Smith, Michael Wilbon, Mike Greenberg and Jalen Rose on NBA Countdown to detail the latest on Brittney Griner’s detention in Russia.
NBA G League
Cleveland Charge’s Top 10 Plays of the 2021-22 Season
Maine Celtics’ Top 10 Plays of the Season
Iowa Wolves’ Top 10 Plays of the 2021-22 Season
BIG3
Triplets v Trilogy Highlights – BIG3 Season 5 – Week 1
FOOTBALL
United States Football League
Heading into the final regular-season weekend and then the playoffs in Canton, Ohio, the United States Football League today announced the inaugural All-USFL Team. From a league of nearly 400 players, 25 were selected (for 27 positions) because of their consistently exceptional on-field play that inspired millions of football fans across America and around the world.
Every touchdown from the final week of the regular season
Houston Gamblers’ defense showed up BIG in their final game of the season
Canadian Football League
CFL Plays of the Week
XFL
As we count down the final hours until the first of our XFL showcases. we checked in with our head coaches to see what advice they have for prospective players.
Football Gameplan’s 2022 XFL Showcase Interview – Executive Vice President of Football Operations Marc Ross
Top 10 Plays from The People’s Championship |
HOCKEY
American Hockey League
The LA Kings have named Marco Sturm as head coach for the Ontario Reign of the American Hockey League (AHL). He becomes the sixth head coach to serve for the AHL affiliate in Manchester or Ontario. The remaining coaching staff for the Reign – Chris Hajt, Craig Johnson, Brad Schuler and Matt Millar – will all return as well. Sturm joins the Reign after spending the last four seasons (2018-22) as an assistant coach with the Kings. This past season, Sturm helped the Kings earn their first playoff berth since 2017-18 with a third-place finish in the Pacific Division standings. The team’s 99-point regular-season total (44-27-11) was the sixth-most points earned by a Kings team in franchise history.
ECHL
The Reading Royals, proud affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers and Lehigh Valley Phantoms, announced that Kirk MacDonald has resigned as the team’s head coach and director of hockey operations. “Kirk has been an intricate part of our team and community as both a player and coach for nine seasons,” said Royals’ general manager David Farrar. “His dedication to his players, team personnel, and the game of hockey is second to none.” MacDonald has accepted a position as head coach of the Dubuque Fighting Saints in the United States Hockey League.
The Jacksonville Icemen, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers and the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, are pleased to announce today that the team has agreed to terms on a multi-year contract extension with Head Coach Nick Luukko. Luukko, 30, helped guide the team to a club-best 40 wins in 2021-22 during his first head coaching season. In addition, the Icemen won a playoff series for the first time in their short five-years in Jacksonville to date.
Western Hockey League
The Edmonton Oil Kings got a 27-save shutout from Sebastian Cossa as the Edmonton Oil Kings laid claim to the Ed Chynoweth Cup with a 2-0 win over the Seattle Thunderbirds in Game 6 of the WHL Championship Series. Kaiden Guhle was named the WHL Playoffs MVP after putting up 16 points (8G, 8A), 10 penalty minutes and a +17 plus/minus rating.
Here are the highlights
Edmonton Oil Kings Receive Ed Chynoweth Cup As 2022 WHL Champions
Ontario Hockey League
An Ontario Hockey League season like no other drew to a close on June 15th, at FirstOntario Centre in Hamilton as the Bulldogs hoisted the J. Ross Robertson Cup as OHL Champions, defeating the Windsor Spitfires by a score of 6-1 in Game 7. The Hamilton Bulldogs became the third team in OHL history to start the playoffs with a perfect 12-0 record before dropping Game 1 of the OHL Championship Series in overtime to Windsor. The Bulldogs went 16-3 in the postseason, eliminating the Peterborough Petes, Mississauga Steelheads and North Bay Battalion before besting Windsor in seven games, coming back from a 2-1 series deficit.
Next stop: Saint John! The Hamilton Bulldogs are OHL Champions! Relive the sights, sounds, and cheers from a historic crowd in front of a national audience on TSN for Game 7 in The Hammer.
United States Hockey League
The Dubuque Fighting Saints are proud to announce that Kirk MacDonald has been officially named head coach. MacDonald will be the sixth head coach in the organization’s Tier I history, as he will succeed Greg Brown in the role. The 38-year-old former pro brings four full seasons of head coaching experience at the ECHL level to Dubuque, all with the Reading Royals, the AA affiliate of the Philadelphia Flyers.
Quebec Major Junior Hockey League
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League today released the 2022-23 regular season schedule. The 613-game campaign will kick off on September 22, 2022 as the President Cup Champion Shawinigan Cataractes will host the Gatineau Olympiques at Centre Gervais Auto.
Including the Holidays, teams will play 88% of their games between Thursdays and Sundays, including more than half of the games that will be played on Fridays and Saturdays.
BASEBALL
Texas League
Get to know the latest St. Louis Cardinals top prospect and current Springfield Cardinals infielder, Jordan Walker!
West Coast League
The West Coast League’s Port Angeles Lefties announced that ex-NFL wide receiver Golden Tate has signed as a Lefties player for the remainder of the 2022 season. While Jake Locker and Jordan Poyer both played for WCL teams before their NFL careers, Tate will become the first former NFL player in the league. “I am extremely thankful,” Tate said, “to the West Coast League and the Port Angeles Lefties for allowing me to join their league. As some might know, I was drafted twice in baseball. As a child, my first love was baseball, so I’m excited about the opportunity to compete against some of the best young players in the league. I look forward to having a lot of fun and exploring baseball more.”
Ex-Giants receiver Golden Tate giving baseball a shot: ‘First love’
Top Plays of the Week
OTHER SPORTS
Major League Rugby
Duncan Matthews put on a show in the Western Conference Final helping his team advance to the Championship Final. The Rhino Rugby Try of the Week goes to Matthews for his across field kick to finish off the chase to down the ball against the Houston SaberCats.
The Houston SaberCats hosted the Seattle Seawolves for the 2022 Western Conference Finals. Strong offensive showings from both sides saw the Seawolves secure the victory and the title of Western Conference Champions.
The New England Free Jacks hosted Rugby New York for the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals. This East Coast rivalry did not disappoint with strong showing from both sides but it was Rugby New York that secured the win and the title of Eastern Conference Champions. Rugby New York will host the Seattle Seawolves for the 2022 Championship Final on Saturday, June 25th at 12:00pm ET on FOX.
American Ultimate Disc League
The Top 10 plays from Week 7 of the 2022 AUDL regular season!
Did we miss anything newsworthy or downright fun? Have a nomination for next week’s column? Contact us today and let us know.
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The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
