was the first Memorial Cup in the current franchises short seven-year history.

LONDON, Ont. -- Inspired by their late teammate, the Edmonton Oil Kings went to their seemingly bottomless reserves to win the 2014 MasterCard Memorial Cup. The Oil Kings carried the No. 26 jersey of Kristian Pelss with them Sunday at Budweiser Gardens as they hoisted the trophy following a 6-3 win over the Guelph Storm. Pelss was an Oil King two years ago when Edmonton won a Western Hockey League championship and lost their Memorial Cup tiebreaker in Shawinigan, Que. The 20-year-old Latvian died last year after diving off a bridge in Riga. The loss of Pelss was an emotional touchstone for Edmonton this season and particularly for the eight veterans who were his teammates in 2012. Edmonton won the Memorial Cup playing with a fearless, indefatigable, physical brand of hockey. "Everyone knows about the passing of Kristian Pelss," Henrik Samuelsson said. "He was a good buddy of mine. I know he was watching over us today and he definitely had a part of it." The son of New York Rangers assistant coach Ulf Samuelsson scored a pair of goals, including an empty-netter, and assisted on three goals Sunday. With four goals and three assists, undrafted Latvian left-winger Edgars Kulda was named the tournaments most valuable player. "I kind of got lucky with that," Kulda said. "I dont know how I got it, honestly. Its a pleasurable surprise for me. Im happy to get that one too." Kulda contributed a goal and two assists in Sundays victory. Edmonton also got goals from Cody Corbett, Tyler Robertson and Mitch Moroz. Goaltender and Pittsburgh Penguins prospect Tristan Jarry made 32 saves for the win. Robby Fabbri, Stephen Pierog and Zach Mitchell replied for the Ontario Hockey Leagues Storm, whose only loss of the tournament was the final. Guelph goaltender Justin Nichols stopped 40 shots. Edmontons run to the Cup was a marathon in many ways. Two weeks before Sundays final, they blew a three-goal lead at home in Game 6 of their WHL championship series. The Oil Kings had to travel to Portland, Ore., the following day to win Game 7 less than 24 hours later. Their triple overtime semifinal win over the Val-dOr Foreurs on Friday was the longest game in tournament history at 102 minutes 42 seconds. Add in a double overtime loss to the Foreurs in the preliminary round and the Oil Kings had played the equivalent of two more games in the tournament than Guelph heading into Sundays game. In both overtime games, Edmonton had two-goal leads and third-period leads. "We really did make it quite hard on ourselves, but it shows how much we play for each other," Edmonton assistant captain Curtis Lazar said. Guelph took the most efficient route to the final and were thus the more rested team. The Storm outscored their opponents by a combined 18-7 to go unbeaten through three preliminary-round games and earn the bye to the championship game. Edmonton went 1-2 in the round robin, including a 5-2 loss to Guelph to open the tournament. But the Oil Kings played a strong two-way game Sunday using their size and toughness to both create the space to score goals and make the Storm pay a physical price for the puck. Led by captain Griffin Reinhart, a New York Islanders prospect, they were a punishing team in their own end and were backstopped by the reliable Jarry. "They out-willed us," Storm coach Scott Walker said. "They were big, but we usually use our speed and we werent speedy tonight. When your let their size take advantage by not using your speed, its tough. "I dont think we played our best, but Im not going to take anything away from them. They were the better team tonight. We played in fits and starts. Im proud of the guys, but its a tough tournament to win." The Storm led 2-1 after the opening period Sunday, but the Oil Kings scored three unanswered goals in the second. When Guelph pulled within one in the third, Edmonton restored the two-goal cushion. "Weve got an unbelievable culture built here," said Moroz, an Edmonton Oilers draft pick. "It doesnt hurt when you have a guardian angel upstairs as well. "Its always storybook with us. We always believed in each other and we deserve this." A previous version of the Edmonton Oil Kings won Memorial Cups in 1966 and 1963 before relocating to Portland. This was the first Memorial Cup in the current franchises short seven-year history. The WHL ended a three-year run of Quebec Major Junior Hockey League teams winning the Cup. The Oil Kings were also the first WHL team to claim it since the Spokane Chiefs in 2008. WHL teams have won the most Cups since the tournament went to a round-robin format in 1972 with 19. The OHL has won 14 and the QMJHL 10. The Memorial Cup has been given to Canadas junior hockey champions since 1919 in memory of those who died in the First World War. Sixty teams in the Western, Ontario and Quebec major junior leagues begin play every September. The three league champions join a host team in the annual tournament to determine the Canadian Hockey League champions. The 2015 MasterCard Memorial Cup will be held in Quebec City. Rollie Fingers Jersey . Following the Ford Womens World Curling Championship gold medal match that attracted record-breaking audiences to TSN, the networks exclusive live coverage of the tournament begins Saturday at 7am et/4am pt with Canadas opening draw against Denmark. Reggie Jackson Jersey . - Aroldis Chapman, with two black eyes, has returned to the Cincinnati Reds clubhouse four days after being hit in the face by a line drive. http://www.athleticsrookiestore.com/Athletics-Bruce-Maxwell-Kids-Jersey/ . Showing more spark after not taking enough challenging shots on goal in their 1-0 loss Friday night, the Bruins had 18 shots in the first period after managing just 25 in the entire opener. Luke Glendening cut Bostons lead to 2-1 at 13:20 of the second period before Milan Lucic scored late in the second and Zdeno Chara added a power-play goal early in the third. Blake Treinen Jersey . Niese pitched seven steady innings on a rainy Tuesday night and Daniel Murphy had three hits to lead New York to a 6-1 victory over the Phillies. Walt Weiss Jersey . RAPTORS STRUGGLING: The bottom line is the true test in sports isnt just how you handle failure, but how you handle success.TORONTO -- The Toronto Blue Jays recalled Neil Wagner from the Buffalo Bisons on Wednesday and optioned fellow right-hander Marcus Walden to the triple-A club. Wagner, 30, appeared in 36 games for the Blue Jays last season, posting a 2-4 record with a 3.79 earned-run average. He gives Toronto another hard-throwing right-handed option out of the bullpen. "It made sense to get a little more firepower late (in games)," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said before Wednesdays game against the Houston Astros. Wagner played 23 games with Buffalo in 2013 and had 16 saves with a 0.76 ERA. The six-foot 215-pound Minneapolis native has not allowed a run in two appearances with the Bisons this season, earning saves in both outings. Gibbons said Wagner impressed him last season and again this year at spring training. "He came into his own," he said of Wagners performance last year. "He started out in triple-A and put it all together, came up and did a nice job for us. Hes got that big arm. Thats what you like to see coming late in the game. The key for him was he started finding that strike zone consistently. "Thats something that had deserted him in his career until last year. Yeah, we expect him to fill a big role for us." The Toronto bullpen is missing closer Casey Janssen, whos on the 15-day disabled list with a strain in his left abdominal area and lower back. Gibbons said pitching coach Pete Walker thought Janssen looked "really, really good" in a bullpen session earlier in the day. "Hell throw one more side (session) and then well justt see where hes at," Gibbons said of the veteran right-hander.dddddddddddd. "He may go out on a rehab (assignment) after that. If hes not really good, then hell throw another one." "Pete said he really picked it up today compared to his last one," Gibbons added. Janssen, who went on the DL on March 30, was 4-1 last year with 34 saves and a 2.56 ERA. Toronto shortstop Jose Reyes, whos on the 15-day DL with a hamstring injury, did some light running Wednesday and took some swings in the batting cage. His lone game appearance came in a season-opening loss to Tampa Bay. "Hes making progress," Gibbons said. "This next road trip well get him out there running the bases a little bit. Hes moving along pretty good." Second baseman Maicer Izturis was slotted into the second spot in the batting order against the Astros. Izturis has yet to drive in a run this season but hes batting at a .421 clip. "Hes swinging it," Gibbons said. "Hes been one of our hottest hitters. So well get him up there and see what happens." Izturis batted in the No. 8 position Tuesday when the Blue Jays opened the three-game series with a 5-2 victory at Rogers Centre. In 107 games last season, Izturis had a .236 average with five homers and 32 RBIs. "He came into camp in better shape this year, really focused, and hes done a nice job," Gibbons said. "He made a couple nice plays last night at second base and thats good to see too." Walden did not make an appearance with the Blue Jays after being called up last Saturday. 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