VANCOUVER -- Brad Knighton has a problem with follicles. "I dont enjoy hair," the Vancouver Whitecaps backup goalkeeper said recently. "Youre doing your taping and putting your shin guards on. Its not a very good feeling." Accordingly, Knighton regularly shaves his legs his legs prior to games. He will continue the ritual before Wednesdays opening leg of an Amway Canadian soccer championship semifinal series in Edmonton, where he is expected to make his first start of the season. "I wouldnt say it makes me play better or stronger," he said. "Its like a lucky penny in your pocket." If all goes as planned, the Whitecaps will bank on Knighton to help them advance closer to a Canadian title that they have never won. The two-game, home-and-home series will be decided by total goals. The return leg goes May 9 in Vancouver with the winner advancing to the Canadian finals against the winner of the Toronto-Montreal series. The Whitecaps enter the game with a 4-2-2 record, including a league-leading six shutouts, in Major League Soccer play. Meanwhiile, Edmonton (0-3-1) has gone winless in four games in the lower-tier North American Soccer League. Knightons first start is designed to give No. 1 Joe Cannon a rest as the Whitecaps deal with a heavy schedule of four games in 10 days. However, Knighton, a 28-year-old Hickory, N.C., native who grew up in Richmond, Va., also offers a strategic advantage. His former Carolina RailHawks squad went unbeaten against Edmonton (3-0-1) in four NASL meetings in 2011. Knighton was in goal for every game and only allowed one goal on a penalty kick. "They like to possess the ball," said Knighton. "Theyve done very well possessing the ball. Scoring goals was one of their issues last year." In other words, Edmonton did not score often enough, and it is still having difficulty putting the ball in the net this season. The squad from the Alberta capital, which still has many holdovers from 2011, has scored only three goals to date while allowing six. But Knighton expects the host club to put on a good show at Commonwealth Stadium. "Theyre going to be up for an MLS team," said Knighton. "And, playing for a Canadian championship, theyve got something to play for." So does Vancouver. Last year, under then coach Teitur Thordarson, the Whitecaps played Toronto to a 1-1 draw in the first game and were leading 1-0 on the aggregate through 60 minutes of the second leg when torrential rain and a thunderstorm struck. In accordance with tournament rules, the game was abandoned and a replay ordered. In the meantime, the Whitecaps went through upheaval as Thordarson was fired and replaced by interim coach Tommy Soehn. Vancouver lost the replay 2-1. In 2009, the Whitecaps were in strong contention to win the tournament, when the Montreal Impact lost 6-1 to Toronto. "I havent heard a tonne about it," said Knighton. "But from what I know, its a tournament that this organization looks forward to winning." The Whitecaps will have to prevail with a revamped lineup. Captain Jay DeMerit and fellow defender Young-Pyo Lee, who have played all eight regular-season games, did not make the trip in order to rest before Saturdays MLS contest against the San Jose Earthquakes. Brazilian striker Camilo remains sidelined with a thigh injury that forced him to miss last weekends 1-0 victory in Columbus. But Knighton insisted the club will still strive to put out their best effort against an apparently weaker team. "(Coach Martin Rennie) is not going to take this game lightly," said Knighton. "Thats not Martins mentality. I dont think its the organizations mentality. Itll be interesting to see which players he mixes in there. But every player who is in there knows what Martin wants." Rennie decided Knighton was the keeper he wanted last season. Then with Carolina, Rennie recruited Knighton after he was released by Philadelphia after the 2010 season. Knighton, a former University of North Carolina-Wilmington standout who was never drafted by an MLS team, had gone up and down between MLS, with New England and Philly and lower-tier Indiana Invaders and Portland Timbers teams the previous four seasons. He posted a 17-3-8 record in the regular season and then went 1-1 in the post-season, earning a promotion to MLS when Rennie moved to the Whitecaps and brought him along. "Its a difficult situation going from playing 30 games a season to being the backup here," said Knighton. "But (Cannon) has done a fantastic job and, defensively, weve been pretty good." Knighton shared in one clean sheet against Chivas USA on March 17, and also got credit for the win, after Cannon left the game in the first half with a quadriceps injury. The backup approaches every game with "a chip" on his shoulder, aiming to prove that he deserves to start more often. "I just keep my head down and push (Cannon) and be a team player and wait for my opportunity," said Knighton. Notes: Vancouver defender Alain Rochat, who has missed five games with a knee injury suffered March 24 against D.C. United, made the trip and is expected to see action. ... With Lee also out, defender Carlyle Mitchell, who excelled after joining the team late in the 2011 season, has a good chance of playing his first game of the current campaign. ... Whitecaps rookie striker Darren Mattocks has returned to practice after being sidelined with shoulder burns sustained in a cooking accident at home six weeks ago. He is expected to be cleared Wednesday. ... Away goals serve as the first tiebreaker. If the series is still tied after overtime in the second game, it will be decided by penalty kicks. 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Bringing his multifaceted game to a new audience in England, Forte ran for 145 yards and a touchdown, and the Bears held on to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-18 on Sunday in the fifth annual NFL regular-season game at Wembley Stadium. Eric Dickerson Jersey . The owners that will take part in the meeting are Jeremy Jacobs of the Boston Bruins, Ronald Burkle of the Pittsburgh Penguins, Mark Chipman of the Winnipeg Jets, Jeffery Vinik of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Murray Edwards of the Calgary Flames and Larry Tanenbaum of the Toronto Maple Leafs.Team Canadas selection camp roster for the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship is set and 16-year-old Connor McDavid is on it. Hockey Canada announced the roster on Monday, naming 15 forwards, eight defencemen and two goaltenders to the team. For additional coverage, watch SportsCentre and Thats Hockey for in-depth reports and analysis. You can also visit TSNs official Facebook and Twitter accounts for breaking news on the tournament and join the conversation by using the #TSN and #2014WJC hashtags. As well as McDavid, notable selections include Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart, Jonathan Drouin, Bo Horvat and Zachary Fucale. McDavid is considered an OHL phenom, who was drafted first overall in the 2012 OHL entry draft and scored 66 points for the Erie Otters in 63 games during his rookie season. The 16-year-old already has 45 points in 27 games with the Otters this season. "Hockey Canada is looking forward to an extremely competitive camp in December, as we look to assemble a team that will make all Canadians proud," said Hockey Canadas senior director of mens national teams and hockey operations Scott Salmond in a statement. "This is a first step towards naming our roster for the IIHF World Junior Championship. We look forward to the camp getting underway." Ekblad is a 17-year-old defenceman playing for the Barrie Colts. In his 2012-2013 season, Ekblad totaled 34 points and a plus-minus rating of plus-29 in 54 games. Ekblad is now captain of the Colts and leads the teams defence with 23 points. Reinhart, currently captain of the WHLs Kootenay Ice, has 15 goals and 30 assists in 28 games this season. Reinhart was captain of Canadas gold medal World Under-18 Championship team earlier in 2013. Drouin totalled four points in six games at last years World Juniorr Hockey Championship.dddddddddddd Drouin, who was selected third overall in this years NHL Draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning, has 46 points in 19 games this year for the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL. Other players who were on last yaers roster include Charles Hudon, Griffin Reinhart and goaltender Jake Paterson, although Hudon missed the tournament due to injury. Horvat was selected ninth overall in the 2013 NHL Draft by the Vancouver Canucks. The 18-year-old forward has 34 points in 23 games with the Knights season. Horvat had 16 goals in 21 OHL playoff games last season. Fucale was selected 36th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2013 NHL Draft. The 18-year-old goaltender posted a .909 save percentage in 55 games for the Mooseheads last season. This year, he has posted a 2.62 goals against average and an .897 save percentage in 23 games. Mathew Dumba is the only NHL player on the selection camp roster, the Minnesota Wild agreed to loan him to Canada. Notable players who were not named to roster include Max Domi, who was selected 12th overall in the 2013 NHL Draft by the Phoenix Coyotes, and Darnell Nurse, selected seventh overall by the Edmonton Oilers in this years draft. Coach Brent Sutter will need to release two forwards and one defenceman from the selection camp roster before the tournament begins. TSNs World Junior coverage continues on Wednesday with the World Junior Countdown Show at 10:30pm et/7:30pm pt, following the NHL on TSN game between the Montreal Canadiens and New Jersey Devils. TSN has complete live coverage of the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5, with pre-competition games beginning Friday, Dec. 20. Follow the World Juniors tournament with multi-platform coverage on TSN, TSN.ca, and TSN Radio. cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '