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PHILADELPHIA - Ask coaches and GMs about Cyle Larin and theyll tell you hes a big talent with a big future.But the 19-year-old Canadian forward, who could go No. 1 in Thursdays MLS SuperDraft, also wins kudos for his demeanour off the field.Hes a great kid, we were very fortunate to have him said UConn coach Ray Reid, who worked with Larin for two seasons. As much as Im going to miss him as a player, if you want the truth Im going to miss him more as a guy. Hes a very good guy.Hes a terrific lad, first and foremost, echoed Canadian under-20 coach Rob Gale. Hes a very level-headed kid.Orlando City SC has first crack Thursday at the six-foot-two 190 pounder from Brampton, Ont. Fellow expansion team New York City FC picks second, ahead of the Montreal Impact, San Jose Earthquakes and Portland Timbers.With three picks in the first round — sixth, ninth and 11th — Toronto FC will be an active player whether it opts to trade some of its selections or not.The Vancouver Whitecaps pick 13th. Its the lowest selection the team has had since joining MLS and, with five picks in the third and fourth rounds, the Whitecaps will be looking for some diamonds in the rough.The first two rounds go Thursday at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Rounds 3 and 4 will be done by telephone Jan. 20. Larin will learn his future before Canadas game against El Salvador on Thursday at the CONCACAF U-20 Championship in Montego Bay, Jamaica. He has already won three caps under Benito Floro for the senior national side and is still kicking himself for a missed scoring opportunity against third-ranked Colombia.I rushed the shot, he lamented. If I hit it properly, I think I would have scored.Larin, who like Toronto FC midfielder Kyle Bekker grew up playing for the Sigma FC academy in suburban Mississauga, scored 23 goals and added six assists in 39 career games for Connecticut.He was named American Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year in 2013 after collecting 14 goals and three assists. This season, he won AAC Offensive Player of the Year honours with a conference-best 0.56 goals a game.Canadian MLS team officials speak as one when Larins name is raised.Exceptional talent, said Toronto FC GM Tim Bezbatchenko.He obviously has talent, added Vancouver Whitecaps president Bob Lenarduzzi.There was speculation Larin would enter the draft after his freshman year. But he wanted to prolong his college experience — at least for another season.He made up his mind last October, after coming in the 82nd minute of Canadas game against Colombia at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, N.J.That just opened my eyes and I knew I wanted to leave that year, Larin said. That was the decision right there.Larin, who trained briefly with clubs in Belgium and Germany, mulled over going back to Europe but decided the MLS was the best place to begin his pro career.He is diplomatic about where he might end up.Going No. 1 is always nice, he said. New York or Orlando would be nice.Receiving passes from Frank Lampard or Kaka would be fun, admitted Larin — a Chelsea fan who counts veteran Ivory Coast striker Didier Drogba as another of his favourite players. There are no nerves, just excitement. Polite and soft-spoken, Larin says his goal in his MLS rookie season is to do my best and hopefully help out the team and see where it takes me. Larin can play as a forward or tucked in behind a striker and likes both roles. He is fast, deft at controlling the ball and has vision — able to pick out a teammate with a pass. His tool box is full.His college coach sees him flourishing at centre forward.Hes mobile, he can get out to the flanks. Good with his back to the goal, said Reid. Hes dangerous in the box.Reid says the best is yet to come.I think Cyles just scratching the surface, he said. Hes athletic, hes a wonderful kid, hes got talent. But hes still young. Hes still learning how to use it every day, how to be ready mentally every day. Physically, hes a work in progress. But hes got a lot of talent. Hes got a huge up-side if he can get it right. Reid knows his stuff.In his 18 years at the UConn helm, he has seen 32 of his players taken in MLS draft. Thirteen of those went in the first round with Chris Gbandi (2002) and goalkeeper Andre Blake (2014) going first overall.Reid, who recorded his 400th coaching win last October, is to be honoured Thursday as 2014 NSCAA East Regional Coach of the Year on Thursday as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America national convention in Philadelphia.Gale has also mentored Larin, helping him deal with the hype. Gale is quick to note that on his team Larin is one of 20.Were very realistic as a staff in that the lad is a talented boy but he has yet to go through the test of professional football ... Theres no doubt hes a talented footballer. Hes got great feet, he can finish. So the tools are there.But these next couple of years are going to be a great test for the lad, he added.Larin wore No. 9 as a youngster, switching to No. 10 at college. Asked what number hell wear as a pro, he shows a measure of his maturity.Im going to have to earn that, to try to get the number I want, he said. Larin enters the draft as one of five underclassmen with Generation Adidas contracts. That increases his appeal to clubs since his deal wont count against the salary cap.He is the first Canadian to sign a Generation Adidas contract. Teal Bunbury, who has U.S. and Canadian citizenship, got a GA deal before electing to play internationally for the U.S.NOTES: MLS has signed four more college seniors ahead of the draft. The latest to get contracts are forwards Andy Craven (North Carolina) and Akeil Barrett (Tulsa), midfielder Connor Hallisey (California) and defender Saad Abdul-Salaam (Akron) ... 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Rick Martin Jersey . - Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr has nothing but good problems right now. Derek Roy Jersey .com) - Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer were among the third-round winners Friday at the French Open.The Rangers force Game Seven, the Blackhawks hold on home ice; notes on Martin St. Louis, Sidney Crosby, Rick Nash, Ryan Suter, Jonathan Toews, Bryan Bickell and more. RANGERS PUSH BACK Facing elimination once again, the New York Rangers took a 3-1 decision against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game Six, forcing the series to Game Seven. In the wake of his mothers sudden passing this week, Rangers RW Martin St. Louis has been put more in the spotlight, particularly with Sundays game falling on Mothers Day, and St. Louis got the Rangers on the board first, scoring 3:34 into the game. It hasnt been a glorious run for St. Louis with the Rangers, scoring four goals and 15 points in 32 (regular season plus playoff) games, but this was his first goal since Game Three against Philadelphia. If hes able to perform through this adversity, thats a real credit to him in what is surely a difficult time. Pittsburghs lone goal of Game Six came from C Brandon Sutter, who now has five goals in the playoffs; only Evgeni Malkin and Jussi Jokinen, both with six, have more for the Penguins. Penguins C Sidney Crosby was held off the scoresheet again, despite playing 24:23. Crosby has been a dominant player in the playoffs, even though his point totals havent followed. He has three points in the series, and one goal in a dozen playoff games, but the Penguins ultimately need goals when Crosby is on the ice and, to this point in the postseason, Crosby has been on the ice for eight goals for and eight goals against during 5-on-5 play. That frustration appeared to boil over in Game Six, with Crosby getting into a confrontation with Rangers C Dominic Moore, which then led to Rangers G Henrik Lundqvist squirting Crosby with a water bottle in the ensuing pile-up. The best of the Rangers in terms of Game Six possession stats was D Kevin Klein, on for 11 5-on-5 shot attempts for and five against. Klein is getting limited ice time, ranking sixth among Rangers defencemen in the postseason, but he has the best possession stats among Rangers blueliners and the second-best on the team. The one player with better possession stats than Klein, RW Rick Nash, maintains that lead despite getting overrun Sunday. With Nash on the ice, at 5-on-5, the Rangers had four shot attempts for and 22 against (15.4%); with Nash off the ice, the Rangers had 52.1% of the 5-on-5 shot attempts. A bad possession game puts the exclamation mark on Nashs postseason struggles -- he has no goals in his 51 shots on goal. Hes now seven away from the playoff record for most shots on goal without scoring, set last year by Jaromir Jagr. That the Rangers are taking this series to Game Seven, despiite Nashs ongoing struggles and limited production from St.dddddddddddd. Louis, is a testament to the rest of the club but, to some degree, the same can be said for the Penguins, who are still waiting for Crosby to break out offensively. With Game Seven all thats left to decide which team goes to the Eastern Conference Final, its a prime opportunity for the stars on either side to make the difference. BLACKHAWKS HOLD HOME ICE After a slow start at home in Game Five, the Chicago Blackhawks picked up their game, and won 2-1 over the Minnesota Wild, taking a 3-2 lead in a series in which the home team has won every game. Minnesotas first-period goal came from rookie C Erik Haula, who has been a nice playoff contributor with three goals and six points in a dozen games, and the line of Haula, Matt Cooke and Justin Fontaine had the best possession stats among Wild forwards. D Jared Spurgeon had the best possession stats for the Wild, on the ice for 19 5-on-5 shots for and and nine against (67.9%). On the other hand, Wild D Ryan Suter, who played a game-high 28:32, was on the ice for 14 shot attempts for and 28 against (his most against in the playoffs). Suter gets charged with facing both of the Blackhawks top scoring lines but, on this night, he was getting stuck in his own end all too often. Chicagos second-period rally brought goals from LW Bryan Bickell and C Jonathan Toews. Bickell scored his team-leading sixth goal of the playoffs, on the power play, but was part of a very effective line with Peter Regin and Kris Versteeg; all three were on the ice for at least 68.8% of the 5-on-5 shot attempts. The game-winner came from C Jonathan Toews, who was re-united with LW Patrick Sharp and RW Marian Hossa, as Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville was shuffling lines. Toews had a dominant game, with 76.0% of shot attempts. Chicago set the pairing of Niklas Hjalmarsson and Johnny Oduya out, primarily, against Zach Parise, Mikael Granlund and Jason Pominville, and Oduya had the games best possession stats, on the ice for 16 shot attempts for and four against. The Blackhawks controlled play significantly, but the win didnt come easily for them, and isnt really a surprise given how the first four games of the series played out. Theyll have a chance to finish off the Wild in Minnesota for Game Six but, considering that the Wild are 5-0 at home in the playoffs, outscoring opponents 16-5, it will come as no surprise if this series has to go the distance. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. 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