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LONDON, Ont. – They were three years old at the time, sitting in the dressing room of a West Toronto rink, about to learn to skate. They wore matching jerseys that day, the same one with the little hockey player on the front. That was all it took for the two to become friends, friends who are one step closer to a shared dream of playing in the National Hockey League. Best buddies and teammates for the better part of the seventeen years that followed that first chance encounter, Connor Brown and Matt Finn have seen their paths converge once more – their two junior teams recently collided in the OHL playoffs. They are both prospects of the same organization, both picks of the same draft, both likely to become teammates as professionals with the Marlies and maybe one day, the Maple Leafs. "Its a pretty cool story," says Brown, the elder of the two, but still the younger looking with short red hair. "We dream about it," Finn continues, "but it takes a while for a dream like that to develop into something tangible, something real." It was something they could only imagine all those years ago, all the hours spent playing street hockey and mini-sticks with an Etobicoke squad of friends that also included Flyers first rounder Scott Laughton. Finn calls it "one in a million" that he and Brown would be drafted to the same team. "Youre a kid and youre optimistic, you think that you both have a chance to get to the next level," Brown says. "I couldnt predict that were both going to be in this organization, though." Finn was picked in the second round of the 2012 draft, 31st overall by the Leafs. He was joined a few rounds later by Brown, his name called with the 156th overall selection. "He called me right away," Brown says of Finn. "He was pretty excited about the whole thing. We both were ecstatic. I saw him go to the Leafs [and] I was like Oh wow, thatd be awesome." They had been teammates for a span of 10 years or so they figure, right up until minor midget. "He was tiny," Finn says of Brown, whom he guessed was "barely" 5-foot and 120 pounds, but still a force. "You could see how smart he was with the puck and his playmaking ability and patience and how competitive he was, but he got overlooked because everyone just thought he was small – he was getting pushed off the puck – he cant play. But everyone grows, everyone is going to get bigger and once he did that, you could really see that part of his game come back full circle." Brown has been the constant underdog, overlooked time and again for one reason or another. Listed at 5-foot-7 and 130 pounds back then, he was picked in the 13th round of the 2010 OHL priority draft – 251st overall. "A lot of people always try to doubt Connor Brown," says Leafs assistant general manager and former Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds GM, Kyle Dubas. It became harder to doubt or even ignore Brown this past season. The 20-year-old captain of the Erie Otters led the OHL in scoring, pried away the Red Tilson trophy as the leagues MVP and guided his team to 52 wins and a berth in the Western Conference Finals (they would fall to Finn and the Guelph Storm in five games). He has since sprouted up to 5-foot-11, continuing to add heft and strength to a listed frame of 170 pounds. "He definitely just blew expectations out of the water," Finn says, labeling Brown as a "very sneaky" offensive talent. "I dont think anybody would pinpoint him as a guy to do it, but thats been Brownie the whole way. Nobodys ever chosen him to do anything; hes always been small, hes always been kind of an underdog and hes done a great job." Finn was more the sure thing to get to this point. In that same 2010 OHL priority draft, he was gone early, off the board with the 12th overall selection, nearly 240 picks before Brown. He, too, was the captain of his OHL team, steering Guelph to the leagues best record, an OHL championship and a berth in the Memorial Cup last season. Listed at an even 6-foot and nearly 200 pounds, Finn tallied 61 points in 66 games, second amongst all OHL defenders in scoring. The Leafs were surprised to find him there for the taking in the second round of that 2012 draft, hopeful of his future as a capable two-way defender. "We were not on the strong side of that too often in the Sault, playing against Matt and playing against the Storm," Dubas says. "Hes proven himself over his time in the OHL to be a really strong prospect and its exciting to be on the same side as him versus having him torch us in the Sault with the Storm." Brown and Finn still live five minutes apart from each other in Etobicoke and remain the closest of friends. Their families, too, continue to be tight to this day. And after a four-year hiatus, they are likely to become teammates once more in the AHL, one step closer to reaching their shared goal of playing in the NHL – together. "To be able to play with each other at a pro level as opposed to being three-year-olds on a backyard rink is pretty cool," Finn says. Pretty cool, indeed. Jason Verrett Jersey . Calgary finished atop the CFL standings with a 14-4 record and earned the right to host the West Division final at McMahon Stadium on Nov. Denzel Perryman Jersey . -- Oakland Athletics starting pitchers Jarrod Parker and A. http://www.officiallosangeleschargersfoo...p-jersey-womens. Paul, MN (SportsNetwork. Kyzir White Jersey .ca! There is plenty of blame to be shared as a result of the most recent NHL player (Pittsburghs Brooks Orpik) to be evacuated from the ice on a stretcher following an ugly incident Saturday night in Boston. Antonio Gates Jersey . - The Pittsburgh Pirates plan on keeping promising left fielder Starling Marte playing alongside National League MVP Andrew McCutchen for years to come.Ryan Giggs will leave Manchester United this summer due to his strong desire to become a manager, Sky Sports News HQ has been told. Jose Mourinho was last week reported to be prepared to offer Giggs a place on his coaching staff - although not as assistant manager, with Mourinhos loyal and trusted assistant Rui Faria set to take up that role. Giggs is expected to leave Manchester United to pursue a managerial career But Sky sources have indicated Giggs is set to end his 29-year association with the club as he does not want to accept a reduced role at Old Trafford, instead preferring to explore opportunities in management. Sources have also claimed Giggs is so frustrated at having been overlooked for the job in favour of Mourinho, he would rather leave than remain at the club in a lesser role. Rui Faria (left) is set to take up the role as Mourinhos assistant at Old Trafford Sky Sports News HQ also understands reports that Giggs has been offered a role as a bridge between the first team and the U21s are inaccurate. 25 years of Giggs A look back at Ryan Giggs 25 years at Old Trafford The former winger remains on holiday in Dubai and is scheduled to return at the weekend - although we understand that as of Thursday, no meetings had been scheduled to clarify the situation and Giggs is yet to receive any information from Manchester United as to his future at the club. Giggs is frustrated at being overlooked for the Man Utd job in favour of Mourinho, according to sources Mourinho will take Silvinho Louro to Old Trafford as his goalkeeper coach.dddddddddddd Carlos Lalin, who worked with Mourinho at Real Madrid and at Chelsea in his second spell, was with Mourinho when he visited Carrington on Monday and is also expected to follow him to Old Trafford. Sky Sports hears from those who worked with Ryan Giggs closely, including David Beckham and Sir Alex Ferguson, regarding his managerial credentials Win a trip to Kansas City, USA! Win a trip to Kansas City, USA to watch Sporting KC take on LA Galaxy in the MLS. Also See: What would Ibra bring? 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