Basile Sansonnens Memorial Cup performance raises questions for Vancouver Canucks
Canucks prospect Basile Sansonnens faces crucial test at the 2025 Memorial Cup (Image via: Getty Images)
When the puck dropped to start the 2025 Memorial Cup, all eyes were on Vancouver Canucks prospect Basile Sansonnens, who plays defense for the Rimouski Océanic. Expectations were high for Sansonnens to make a strong impression, but his performance left many fans and analysts puzzled.
Paired with 20-year-old defenseman Jack Martin, Sansonnens struggled throughout the game as Rimouski fell 4-3 to the Medicine Hat Tigers. His final plus/minus rating was a disappointing -2, raising questions about his readiness for the next level.
A tough start for
Canucks
prospect Basile Sansonnens
PATRIK ALLVIN MAKES A VERY MYSTERIOUS DECISION… VANCOUVER CANUCKS DRAFT BASILE SANSONNENS
Sansonnens' debut at the Memorial Cup wasn't just below expectations, it was concerning. The 19-year-old defenseman appeared hesitant and out of sync for much of the game, often trailing the play.
For a player who is expected to be a future part of the Canucks' blue line, this was a stark reminder that potential alone doesn't guarantee success.
Adding to the drama, the Medicine Hat Tigers featured familiar connections to the Canucks organization. Former Canucks head coach Willie Desjardins is now coaching Medicine Hat, and Ryder Ritchie, son of ex-Canuck Byron Ritchie, was a standout performer. Ryder scored a goal and took four shots on net, showing a level of confidence and composure that contrasted sharply with Sansonnens' shaky night.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
American Investor Warren Buffett Recommends: 5 Books For Turning Your Life Around
Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List
Undo
What's next for Basile Sansonnens and the Rimouski Océanic?
After the loss, Sansonnens and his Rimouski teammates have a day off before facing the London Knights. The Knights, making their second straight Memorial Cup appearance, boast a roster packed with NHL-drafted talent and are hungry for a championship. Sansonnens will need to quickly bounce back if he wants to prove he belongs among the top prospects in the tournament.
The pressure is definitely building for Sansonnens, with Canucks fans watching every move. One tough game can be forgiven, but continued struggles could hurt his chances of standing out in Vancouver. The Memorial Cup is a place where players make their names or lose them.
Also Read:
Best NHL Bets and Props for Game 2 tonight: Why backing Oilers as underdogs vs. Stars could pay off big
With so much talent and competition in this tournament, Sansonnens is at a crucial crossroads. It's a make-or-break moment, and how he responds could shape the future of his NHL career.
Get
IPL 2025
match
schedules
,
squads
,
points table
, and live scores for
CSK
,
MI
,
RCB
,
KKR
,
SRH
,
LSG
,
DC
,
GT
,
PBKS
, and
RR
. Check the latest
IPL Orange Cap
and
Purple Cap
standings.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
Journeyman defenseman Nate Schmidt surprisingly leads Panthers in scoring in the Stanley Cup Final
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The Florida Panthers' leading scorer through two games of the Stanley Cup Final is not Matthew Tkachuk, Aleksander Barkov or Sam Reinhart. It's Nate Schmidt. Yes, the journeyman defenseman who was bought out last summer and is playing for just above the NHL veteran minimum. Schmidt has four points, three of them primary assists, against the Edmonton Oilers. 'He's been great,' teammate Gustav Forsling said Sunday. 'He's been playing unreal, making some huge, huge plays for us in key moments.' Schmidt is 33 and seven years removed from his first trip to the final, losing with Vegas in the Golden Knights' inaugural season to the Washington Capitals, who he broke into the league. He is one of the newcomers who were not part of Florida's title run last year and are looking to hoist the Cup for the first time. 'It's incredibly hard to get back to this stage, and this time I'm just trying to slow it down and enjoy it,' said Schmidt, who has gone from fresh faced with floppy hair to a shaved head and full beard. 'This is the pinnacle of our sport, and be able to be here at the end is special." Schmidt said it's 'kind of reminding yourself that you have that game in you and you're just unlocking it.' He has reminded coach Paul Maurice of the player he was earlier in his career. 'He's getting up the ice, and he looks like he did when he was a kid when he first came into the league in Washington,' Maurice said. "He was dynamic with the way he'd get up the ice. And then coaches beat that out of you and take the fun out of the game for you, but it looks like he's found his fun again.' At their practice in Sunrise, the Oilers unveiled defense pairs that were all different from the first two games. Darnell Nurse and Evan Bouchard were put together, Swedes Mattias Ekholm and John Klingberg, and Brett Kulak with Jake Walman. They quickly downplayed the impact, saying assistant Paul Coffey, a Hall of Fame defenseman as a player, has been changing things up like this all season. 'Our D corps all year long, it depends on sometimes what day of the week, we could be playing with someone new,' Nurse said. 'Even over the course of a game, you'll be playing with three or four different people, so there's a comfort level everyone has with whoever you're out there playing with.' Ryan Nugent-Hopkins did not skate, with healthy scratch Jeff Skinner taking his place on the top line. Coach Kris Knoblauch started to say he thinks Nugent-Hopkins will be in for Game 3 on Monday night before calling Edmonton's longest-tenured player a game-time decision. Florida's Aaron Ekblad took a puck off his left hand in the second overtime of Game 2 on a shot by Nurse and was writhing in pain on the bench. He missed one shift before returning, practiced Sunday and declared himself good to go. 'It's just a routine blocked shot,' Ekblad said. 'Stick your hand out for it and try and get it knocked down and get off the ice as quickly as possible, because when you get that stinger you can't really grip for a second. But all good now.' Connor McDavid wowed in Game 2 when he deked around Barkov and Ekblad and passed the puck to Leon Draisaitl for a one-timer power-play goal that was still getting talked about two days later. 'That was pretty routine in Erie back in the day," said Oilers winger Connor Brown, who was junior teammates there with McDavid more than a decade ago. "To do what he's doing the stage that he doing it at, we're lucky to have him.' Ekblad said McDavid having multiple options is the biggest challenge in defending the undisputed best hockey player in the world with otherworldly abilities. 'You're trying to block a shot, you're trying to block a low pass, a backdoor pass and a walk-on-water toe drag,' Ekblad said. 'So, yeah, McJesus.' McDavid blushed when asked about what it takes to make that kind of play, fumbling over words like opponents fumble to try to contain him before coming up with, 'A lot goes into that.' Draisaitl, sitting beside him, chimed in: 'You can't learn that. Let me answer it for you. I'll answer it for him.' NHL playoffs: /hub/stanley-cup and /hub/nhl
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart, Leon Draisaitl, and Sam Bennett are back at each other with the Stanley Cup final in between
Image Via Twitter Eleven years ago, four teenagers tried to pose for the perfect picture at the top of the 'Rocky' steps, unaware of what the road ahead held for them. Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart, Leon Draisaitl, and Sam Bennett now stand opposite one another on the rink in the Stanley Cup Final rematch between the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers. Once hopefuls of draft day and now seasoned veterans, the ties that bind them from the 2014 NHL Draft remain strong while they fight tooth and nail for the ultimate prize. The first four: Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart, Leon Draisaitl, and Sam Bennett, a generation In the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, Ekblad, Reinhart, Draisaitl, and Bennett were selected first, second, third and fourth respectively, and immediately joined their franchises in the order they were drafted: Ekblad with the Florida Panthers, Reinhart with the Buffalo Sabres, Draisaitl with the Edmonton Oilers, and Bennett with the Calgary Flames. That week created a fierce bond that would ultimately evolve into a lifelong brotherhood. The famous picture of the four atop the Rocky steps shot back into fame recently, bringing a bittersweet wave of nostalgia to the fans. The four had derided each other's teenage, outdated fashion sense, yet beneath that were brotherhood tales riddled with controversy, trades, and victories. There are now three of them, Ekblad, Reinhart, and Bennett, who are in Florida together, with Draisaitl running the show for Edmonton in a fierce seven-game series that now stands at 1-1. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Beachfront Living in Mumbai at Sunteck Beach Residences Sunteck Realty Learn More Undo With 29 points in 18 playoff games and the massive overtime goal in Game 1 to his name, Leon Draisaitl has developed into somewhat of a postseason powerhouse. He did have those struggles early on in Edmonton when they almost annually failed to make the playoffs. It was that Western Conference Final run in 2022 that truly allowed him to break through. In many ways, Ekblad's road has mirrored Draisaitl, having to wait nearly eight years for worthwhile postseason experience. As a No. 1 pick, his weighty expectations were only somewhat lightened by Florida's tucked-away media scene. Since then, he has been instrumental in getting the Panthers to three consecutive Cup Finals. ` Reinhart's career was reinvigorated after a trade to Florida in 2021. After seven years of enduring a drought of playoff appearances in Buffalo, he clinched a Cup-winning goal last year in the seventh game and stressed patience to the young prospects gearing up for the 2025 Draft. Sam Bennett also found his game post-Florida. Once a struggling forward in Calgary, Bennett is presently tied for first in playoff goals this season with 13. His advice to future stars is to embrace the randomness of their journey and appreciate every second of it. Also Read: "We never quit,' says Leon Draisaitl as Oilers stun Panthers with OT gut‑punch in Stanley Cup Final Game 1 What had started with four youngsters chasing NHL dreams back in 2014 now stands as a rivalry built on mutual respect and shared history. Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart, Leon Draisaitl, and Sam Bennett continue to show how friendship and athletic competition can coexist at the highest level as they chase another Cup.
India.com
4 hours ago
- India.com
He Should Have Slapped Me...: Shashank Singh Breaks Silence On Shreyas Iyers Angry Reaction After Qualifier 2 Of IPL 2025
Punjab Kings (PBKS) batter Shashank Singh has opened up on Shreyas Iyer's angry reaction after his run-out in Qualifier 2 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 against Mumbai Indians (MI) in Ahmedabad. PBKS skipper Iyer played a fantastic knock (87 not out off 41) as his team chased down the target of 204 in 19 overs against Mumbai Indians. However, Shreyas Iyer got extremely furious at Shashank Singh for his lazy running, which led to his run out at a crucial stage of the game. Recently, Shashank said that PBKS skipper should've slapped him. He also revealed that even his father didn't speak to him till the final against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), which Punjab Kings lost by six runs. "I deserve it, Iyer should have slapped me, my father didn't speak to me till the finals. I was casual, I was walking on the beach not even in the garden. It was a crucial time, Shreyas was clear that I didn't expect this from you but later he took me out for dinner," Shashank told the Indian Express. Shashank has also hailed Iyer's captaincy, saying that there is no better skipper than Shreyas in current times in world cricket. "Whatever I have spoken to others and seen, there is no better captain than him in current times in world cricket. He gives us freedom, he treats everyone equally. No one will say, Shreyas has an attitude. The youngsters in the dressing room find him to be a chill bandaa. Shreyas is the only captain, who has told us that if anyone has any suggestion during the game, he can come and convey it to him. If he feels it's the right advice, he will take it. It's rare," he said. When it comes to his performance in the IPL 2025 final, the 33-year-old remained unbeaten on 61 off 30. However, it wasn't good enough as PBKS lost to RCB by six runs. During that innings, the right-hander missed a couple of easy full tosses, including one in the final over. "I had done my calculation of the last two overs, Bhuvi likes to bowl yorkers so I had planned to get at least 16-17 runs from him. My calculation was that in the last over our target should be 24 runs in 6 balls. I got only 13 from Bhuvi's over though, so the final over runs needed was 30," said Shashank. "Mentally, my mind was ready to get a first ball yorker from Hazelwood. So I had positioned myself but I never anticipated a full toss one, that too on my thigh pad. Now I feel, if I would have connected it, even if I got it on the handle of the bat, I would have got maximum, because the fine-leg was near. I was hoping for a wide from him but it never came. When I saw the scoreboard stating the last ball needed 12 runs, I knew it's all over. People appreciated my batting wherever I have gone but all are reminding me of that one full toss miss. Mujhe bahut bura laga. The ball was on my hip, square leg was up, I just had to get that bat in which I couldn't. From hotel to airport to ground to home, everyone had that one point 'bhaiyya woh ball mar dete bas'," he added.
