Author: David Shama

Jake Gardiner of Minnetonka is likely to be the first Minnesotan picked in the June 20-21 NHL Entry Draft but Aaron Ness of Roseau could be the better pro, according to a scouting authority who spoke to Sports Headliners this week but requested anonymity.

Gardiner and Ness are 17 and 18-year-old defensemen.  Gardiner is 6-foot, 170-pounds, while Ness is 5-10, 157, according to www.nhlentrydraft2008.com. “My guess is this kid (Gardiner) will go higher because he’s bigger,” the source said.

He also said Gardiner “just flies” across the ice. “He could be the best skater in the whole draft,” the source said.  He also thinks Gardiner will be drafted in the first round while Ness may have to wait until the second to be chosen because he’s small, but that could be a mistake.  “Ness is so spectacularly smart and quick,” the source said.

He likes Ness’s ability to score and his “instincts for the game.”  He likens Ness to former Gopher Paul Martin, now New Jersey’s best defenseman.  “If I was picking (for an NHL team), I would take Ness (over Gardiner) because he has a chance to be a really elite player,” the source said.

Ness is headed for the Gophers where he’s likely to be an impact player as a freshman, including on the power play.  He is ranked No. 27 among the draft prospects by the NHL Web site.  Gardiner, who is ranked No. 23, is expected to play at Wisconsin next fall.

The source said a third Minnesotan probably will be selected in the first three rounds of the draft, defenseman Cory Fienhage of Eastview High School.  He is ranked No. 36 by the NHL Web site.

The Twins’ Class A Beloit farm team has the tall and the small.  Pitcher Loek Van Mil is 7-foot-1, shortstop Chris Cates is 5-foot-3.

Dave Mona, one of the local organizers for the 2008 U.S. Women’s Open, was elated with the news earlier this week that Michelle Wie has qualified for the June 23-29 championship at Interlachen Country Club.  He said fans have been anxiously asking whether Wie, 18, will play here.

Mona said daily capacity for the Open will be 22,500. Although he didn’t have figures available, he said advance ticket sales are fairly balanced for the championship’s last four days.

Trick-shot artist Dennis Walters, who is paralyzed below the waist, will headline an exhibition for the Catch the Spirit program at the Open on Monday, June 23 at 1 p.m. on the driving range at Interlachen.  Walters will be joined by Minnesota Lynx guard Seimone Augustus, Vikings kicker Ryan Longwell, ESPN analyst Michele Tafoya and Tim Laudner, a member of the Twins’ 1987 World Series Championship team.

Catch the Spirit began in 1991 as an effort to attract more youth and families to golf and USGA championships.  As a part of Catch the Spirit, anyone 17 and younger receives free admission to the Open when accompanied by a ticketed adult.  Kids receive a front-row seat in all grandstands during the week.  More information is available at www.2008uswomensopen.com.

Long time Lakers’ fan Dana Marshall sent a trivia note via e-mail that the franchise’s last game as the Minneapolis Lakers was played on March 26, 1960 at Washington University in St. Louis.  The Lakers are celebrating 60 years of the Minneapolis-Los Angeles Lakers franchise.

The Minnesota Thunder host Atlanta on Saturday starting at 6 p.m. in another game that will be played at Field U2 at the National Sports Center in Blaine.  Fans are encouraged to bring their own chairs and blankets, according to the team’s Web site, www.mnthunder.com.  The track at the NSC stadium field is being removed so the playing surface will be 80 feet closer to the grandstand. The facility will be ready for the Thunder in July.

Glen Taylor told Sports Headliners last week it’s “fair” to say assistant general manager Fred Hoiberg is being developed to succeed Kevin McHale as the Timberwolves’ basketball boss. McHale, 50, has been Taylor’s top basketball operations guy since 1995 when the Mankato businessman bought the team.  Hoiberg, 35, joined the front office after his playing career with the Wolves ended in 2006.

“What we’re doing with Fred is that each year we put him in a different area so that he can learn it, so that if and when Kevin decides to step down then you know Fred is there as a candidate for that job,” Taylor said. “That’s been said openly in front of Kevin, and in front of Fred, so this isn’t anything that’s being done in the secret or anything like that, and Kevin’s been very supportive of it and Fred’s been learning a lot. …”

There’s speculation a change could come as early as next year but Taylor said that timeline hasn’t been discussed and Hoiberg isn’t “pushing” for that.  “I think that will just weigh upon how well we do,” he said.  “I think that will be determined by the decisions we make this year and how well we play this year.”

When McHale took over with the Wolves he was inexperienced.  Taylor said he wants to avoid “trial and error” in the future and that’s why there’s a plan to develop Hoiberg, although it’s possible there could be a McHale successor other than Hoiberg.

Meanwhile, the Wolves are having a lot of meetings, including ones attended by Taylor, trying to determine what to do with the No. 3 overall pick in the June 26 NBA draft.  Taylor is open to either keeping the No. 3 pick, or trading it away (for perhaps a lower draft choice packaged with veteran players).

There’s a consensus that Derrick Rose of Memphis and Michael Beasley of Kansas State are the two best draft prospects.  “I don’t think it’s just obvious this year who would be No. 3,” Taylor said.  “I know our guys don’t have a person in mind yet.  I know that will be determined after these tests and bringing the players in and meeting them.”