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PARIS – Eugenie Bouchard grew up admiring Maria Sharapova. "First, I noticed her cute dresses and things like that when I was young," said the 20-year-old Canadian, who met Sharapova when she was just eight-years-old at a tournament in Miami. "As a child, I looked up to her and I remember watching her in the finals of Wimbledon and thought what she was doing was so cool and I wanted to do the same thing." Bouchard and Sharapova will play on Thursday in the French Open semi-finals. It is the second straight year that the two have met at Roland Garros with the Russian prevailing in straight sets in the second round a year ago. "For sure I respect her," said Bouchard. "But now were in the semis of a Grand Slam, so Im going to respect her but not put her too high on a pedestal and really just battle. Thats what its going to be." Sharapova may be seeded seventh, but she has been widely considered the favourite to win the title since the top three seeds – Serena Williams, Li Na and Agnieszka Radwanska – all lost in the first three rounds. And Sharapova is favoured to beat Bouchard (-325, 4/13 per BoDog) for the same reason she is expected to hoist the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen on Saturday: she has the experience. She made the finals here a year ago. She won the whole thing just two years ago. At the age of 27, she has already won the career slam and has an Olympic silver medal on her resume. "Achieving what she has, she is of course very strong mentally," said Bouchard. "It is one of her strengths. Im going to be ready for another battle. You know, the semis of a Grand Slam, thats what you have to expect. "Im just looking forward to the challenge." Bouchard is earning her own reputation for poise under pressure. She overcame a 2-5 deficit (two breaks) and a set point to win the opening frame against clay-court specialist Carla Suarez Navarro in the quarterfinals on Tuesday. Then, after dropping the second set 2-6, Bouchard dug out of a 1-4 hole in the deciding set by winning 12 straight points. She then served to stay in the match at 4-5, holding easily. "At the end of the day, whether I win or lose, I want to at least leave it all out there and try and at least battle. Im proud of the way I did that in both the first and third. Shes a great player and a really good clay courter, as well. I knew it was a tough battle, and thats exactly what it was today. Im just proud of the way I stayed in there." Bouchard appeared to show some nerves after wasting a match point, serving at 6-5, with a double fault. She was asked if that was a sign she is, after all, human. "I show Im human all the time," Bouchard noted with a smile. "Yeah, you know, its one of those things. I didnt really worry about it. I think thats the most important thing: I didnt see it as a big deal, and I just regrouped for the next point, which allowed me to just give me a chance to get in a position to have a match point again. "Even on the second match point I missed a ball, but I was trying to go for it, so I didnt worry too much, either. "I think that was a bit the theme the whole match: even if I was down 5-2 or 4-1 in the third, not to worry too much, keep going, keep going, keep going, and it paid off in the end." Bouchards mental toughness and aggressive play have earned her comparisons to Sharapova. Does she like that? "There are positives and negatives," Bouchard said. "Of course shes a great champion, so to be seen as the next of someone who has won four slams and has been No. 1 in the world, its a compliment. "But at the same time, of course, Im my own person and I just want to be myself on the court, and you know, try and achieve what I want to achieve and just be seen as that." Bouchard is the only womens player to make the semis at both slams this season. She is part of the future of womens tennis and looking to prove the future is now. Bouchard readily admits that back in January when she made that magical run to the Australian Open semis, she suffered from a bit of stage fright at the start of a straight-sets loss to Li Na. "I was maybe a little bit frozen at the beginning of that match," she said. "Ill be much more ready this time." Duncan Keith Jersey . According to a report from CSN Bay Area, the 49ers are bracing for 6-8 game suspension for their outside linebacker. Clark Griswold Jersey . -- Canadas Milos Raonic defeated Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France on Saturday to advance to the third round of the BNP Paribas Open. http://www.officialblackhawksfanstore.com/authentic-denis-savard-blackhawks-jersey/ . That little deal worked out in a big way for the Mavericks. Nowitzki had 21 points Tuesday night to pass Oscar Robertson for 10th on the NBAs career scoring list, leading the Mavs to a 95-83 victory over the Utah Jazz. Keith Magnuson Jersey . His recovery time is expected to be six to eight months. Seidenberg was injured in the third period of Fridays 5-0 victory over the Ottawa Senators, when he got his leg tangled with forward Cory Conacher. Bobby Orr Jersey . -- The Sacramento Kings have claimed forward Travis Outlaw off waivers under the NBAs new amnesty provision, filling out the frontcourt with another veteran.From Jack Johnson to David Bolland and from Jakub Voracek to Mikael Backlund, they are the punching bags and poster boys of analytics. TSN.cas Travis Yost provides his lists of the top 10 in each category and why, in particular, Andrew MacDonald, Ryan Callahan, Chris Tanev and Jimmy Howard deserve to be singled out. Analytic Poster Boys: Players whose actual value exceeds perceived value 1. F Jakub Voracek, Phi: Excellent scorer, quietly a massive positive possession player at even-strength. 2. D Marc-Edouard Vlasic, SJ: Blueline rock has morphed into reliable first-pairing type at reasonable cost. 3. F Max Pacioretty, Mon: Only Ovechkin, Kane & Neal had more shot attempts than Pacioretty last 3 years. 4. F Patrice Bergeron, Bos: Almost certainly the best two-way forward in the sport. Enough said. 5. D Mark Giordano, Cgy: Giordano led Calgary to respectable offensive zone time numbers in Norris-calibre 2013-2014. 6. F Benoit Pouliot, Edm: Among 16 forwards to have Goal% in excess of 60% over last 3 years. Same class as Toews & Crosby. 7. G Jimmy Howard, Det: Excellent even-strength goaltender who looks like lock to bounce back in 2014-2015. 8. D Chris Tanev, Van: Numbers suggest reliable, effective (and underrated) top-four defender. 9. F Mathieu Perreault, Wpg: Quality possession player with gift for generating shot attempts in home plate scoring area. 10. F Mikael Backlund, Cgy: Only 1000-plus minute forward on Flames to record better-than-even Corsi% (51.4%) last 3 years. Analytic Punching Bags: Players whose perceived value exceeds actual value. 1. D Jack Johnson, CBJ: Columbus significantly better team with JJ off the ice since assuming top-four role. 2. D Andrew MacDonald, Phi: A magnet for consistently negative shot and goal differentials. 3. G Jonathan Quick, LA: Cup- and Conn Smythe-winning goalie just 14th in EVSV% last 3 years. 4. F Tyler Bozak, Tor: A passenger who has earned first-line role as by-product of Kessels success. 5. G Marc-Andre Fleury, Pit: EVSV% last 3 years sits behind Neuvirth, Garon, Budaj & Bryzgaolov. 6. D. Brooks Orpik, Was: Defensive defenseman ineffective at deterring scoring chances or zone time against. 7. F Ryan Callahan, NYR: Decent, hard-working second-line winger paid to contribute like a top-tier goal-scorer. 8. F Milan Lucic, Bos: Negative possession player in Bruins even-strength machine. 9. F Chris Stewart, Buf: Weak 5-on-5 player whose only discernible value is raw shooting talent. 10. F David Bolland, Fla: A third or fourth line center being paid to log first or second line minutes. Anlaytic Punching Bag: F Ryan Callahan, Tampa Bay Lightning Ryan Callahan seems to be the player that every hockey executive likes. He gives fantastic effort, he plays physical, hea€?s got a decent skill set, and you sense hea€?d rather die than lose a hockey game. These all, of course, are desirable qualities. And yet, many of them are intangible in nature. It doesna€?t render any of the above meaningless. But, if a playera€?s effort and physicality and will to win are so prominent, theya€?d likely factor into his underlying numbers. Therein lies the problem with Ryan Callahan. His underlying numbers scream mediocrity, particularly so for a player who the Tampa Bay Lightning decided to give a six-year, $34.8 million contract to this summer. Thata€?s first-line winger commitment, though Ia€?m extremely skeptical Callahan will ever produce to the level commensurate to his pay. Leta€?s really isolate on the forwards from 2011-2014 who compare closely to Ryan Callahana€?s level of production. I circled a bunch of forwards with similar Corsi%, Goal%, and per-sixty scoring rates, along with individual per-sixty shot-attempt rates. This is where Callahan sits: Anlaytic Punching Bag: Callahan Player Corsi% Goal% Points/60 Indiv. Attempts/60 Jason Chimera 48.3% 49.5% 1.7 14.1 Erik Cole 49.4% 49.5% 1.6 14.8 Jamie McGinn 48% 47.1% 1.6 14.5 Mason Raymond 47.3% 48.7% 1.6 13.2 Ales Hemsky 48.9% 46.7% 1.5 12.5 Ryan Callahan 49.6% 50.5% 1.5 15.5 Michael Frolik 53.1% 49.7% 1.5 17.0 Lauri Korpikoski 46.7% 48.4% 1.5 13.6 Antoine Vermette 49.7% 50.5% 1.5 10.0 Daniel Winnik 50.3% 49.7% 1.4 13.1 T.J. Galiardi 50.0% 42.9% 1.2 13.4 Tomas Kopecky 49.3% 43.4% 1.1 13.2 I think this is a decent crop of comparables for Callahan. As you can see, therea€?s no real difference in any of these players a€“ well, except for salary. Other than maybe Shane Doan and Erik Cole, most of these guys are signed to fairly reasonable contracts. None compare to Callahana€?s individually, of course. Naturally, ita€?s tough to figure out how Callahan took Tampa Bay for so much money. If the intangible aspect of Callahana€?s game was so impactful, wea€?d likely see something better than more or less breaking even in the shot and goal department for three years a€“ on good hockey teams, too. Analytic Punching Bag: D Andrew MacDonald, Philadelphia I thought about not even including MacDonald in this piece, because hea€?s a player the analytics community has been sort of hounding with a relentless fury that only Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Jack Johnson probably knows. The problem with MacDonald is simple: his team is exceptionally better with him off of the ice than on. This is, as youa€?d anticipate, abnormal for well-paid, big-minute defenders. We can illustrate this in the most basic of graphs, a Corsi On v. Corsi Off comparison for Andrew MacDonald over the last three seasons. Reeading this is pretty simple: MacDonalda€?s teams at even-strength were significantly better with him off of the ice, and significantly worse with him on the ice.dddddddddddd MacDonald was basically a magnet for opposition territorial domination. What makes this particularly concerning is that ita€?s hard to come with a legitimate defence for why MacDonald was so bad. He started over 48% of his shifts in the offensive zone over this stretch, a higher number than fellow defenders Marc-Edouard Vlasic, P.K Subban, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson. His competition level (a weighted metric that takes into consideration the Corsi% of all opposition faced) was higher than average, but failed to crack the top-forty, and ranked lower than names like Duncan Keith, Victor Hedman, and Drew Doughty. I think therea€?s a fascinating discussion to be had about how to optimize Andrew MacDonald going forward, but Ia€?m almost certain it doesna€?t involve playing first-pairing minutes through the 2020 season. Analytic Poster Boy: D Chris Tanev, Vancouver Canucks Chris Taneva€?s an interesting player in that his underlying numbers scream full-time, top-four NHL defender, and yet the Vancouver Canucks appear a bit reluctant to commit to him long-term. I think part of it is due to the fact that he only has one full year of NHL experience, and the other part of it is probably tied into him sitting behind names like Alex Edler, Kevin Bieksa, and Dan Hamhuis. All three of those are household names. Chris Tanev, on the other hand, went undrafted and has logged all of 156 games at the NHL-level. The last three years of Tanev have been quietly excellent, though. Leta€?s go ahead and grab a quick list of defenders who have played at least 2000-minutes at even-strength over the last three years. We will set three parameters: the defender must have enjoyed better than break-even possession (i.e., a Corsi% above 50%), the defender must have enjoyed better than break-even goal-scoring (i.e., a Goal% above 50%), and the defender must have been a decent point-producer -- the average NHL defender from 2011-2014 averaged about 0.70 points per sixty minutes, so we will set our floor there. If we isolate for defensemen who only meet the above criteria, who are we left with? Poster Boy: Tanev Player Corsi% Goal% Points/60 Zdeno Chara 56.4% 60.5% 1.0 Erik Karlsson 55.1% 52.1% 1.5 Slava Voynov 55.1% 55.7% 0.9 Nick Leddy 54.9% 52.3% 0.9 Kevin Shattenkirk 54.8% 57.1% 1.0 Brent Seabrook 54.5% 55.1% 1.0 Alex Pietrangelo 54.3% 56.4% 1.0 Matt Niskanen 54.1% 59.8% 1.0 Duncan Keith 54% 54.7% 1.1 Kimmo Timonen 54% 52.5% 0.9 Dan Hamhuis 53.4% 58.7% 0.9 Jakub Kindl 53.3% 59% 0.9 Niklas Hjalmarsson 53.1% 53.9% 0.8 Dan Boyle 53.1% 53.2% 0.8 Joe Corvo 53% 52.7% 0.9 Niklas Kronwall 52.9% 51.2% 0.8 Paul Martin 52.6% 51.3% 0.8 Kris Letang 52.5% 58% 1.4 Kevin Bieksa 52.5% 51.7% 0.9 Jason Demers 52.4% 50.3% 0.8 Alex Goligoski 52% 53.6% 1 Christopher Tanev 52% 57.9% 0.7 Keith Yandle 51.8% 51.7% 1.1 P.K. Subban 51.2% 55.1% 0.9 Ryan McDonagh 51% 55% 0.9 Oliver Ekman-Larsson 50.5% 52.9% 0.9 Victor Hedman 50.3% 52% 1.2 This is where Tanev shines. With Tanev on the ice over those 2000-minutes, Vancouver earned 52% territorial control and nearly 58% of the goals. And, the decent scoring rate further suggests hea€?s positively involved in the run of play. Now, look at his comparables based on the parameters established. Ita€?s a group of first-pairing defenders and/or first-pairing defenders who have won a Norris Trophy. Any bets on whether or not Vancouvera€?s going to have to pay a lot more next summer, when they are back at the negotiating table with Taneva€?s agent? Analytic Poster Boy: G Jimmy Howard, Detroit Red Wings Jimmy Howarda€?s been recognized as a respectable starting goaltender for years now, but I think some ignore just how impactful hea€?s been for the Detroit Red Wings over the years. The teama€?s aging process hasna€?t been kind to some of their star players over the years, and I anticipate that they are going to have to rely a bit more on their goaltending prowess until they get back to where things once were at five-on-five. Howard, like Tanev above, compares extremely well to his peers over the last few seasons. In fact, other than the venerable Tuukka Rask and Henrik Lundqvist, no active goaltender with at least 2,400 minutes logged over the last three seasons has enjoyed a better even-strength save percentage than Jimmy Howard. For quick comparisons, note that Howarda€?s .936 fellow Team USA goaltenders Ryan Miller (.926) and Jonathan Quick (.931) both trail the Red Wings netminder. Now, Howard did experience a bit of a drop in performance in 2013-2014 by raw SV%, chiefly due to his .866 penalty kill SV% burying a very respectable .931 EVSV%. But, knowing what we know about the volatility of special teams and goaltendersa€? regular regression to the averages on the penalty kill, we can assume that Howarda€?s middling 2013-2014 SV% will likely return to his 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 numbers -- primarily because hea€?s still such a rock at even-strength. ' ' '