The biggest narrative of the Olympics so far -- not related to doping, cupping or tweeting dramatic before-and-after pictures of the Slimer-colored diving pool -- is the story of American female excellence.From Day 1, when Ginny Thrasher lived up to her name by wrecking the air rifle competition, the U.S. women have steamrolled these Games. The countrys gymnasts have soared higher, its swimmers have stroked faster and one of its road cyclists ... won the time trial by several seconds.Now, as the first full week of competition wraps up, its the track athletes turn to take a (hopefully literal) victory lap in Rio. At a press conference on Wednesday, Brittney Beast Reese, a laidback long jumper who won gold in London, said shes enjoyed watching the American women steal peoples souls this week.Its been intimidating, Reese admitted. But its great to see the women dominate like we did four years ago. I feel like track will go in and handle business the same way.The U.S. squad, which is teeming with more favorites than a timely, well-crafted tweet, appears poised to replicate the success of the 2012 Games. That year, the women won six gold medals. According to the 2016 world rankings released last month by the IAAF, theres at least one American woman ranked in the top three of 12 Olympic track events. U.S. runners posted multiple world-beating times at the Olympic track and field trials in Eugene, Oregon, this summer.Americas womens gymnastics team was eventually christened The Final Five. Perhaps we should call the American female track stars the Scintillating Sixty-Five. Or dont. Seriously, dont.Reese, the long jumper, seems like a sure bet to win gold next week. In addition to finishing first in London, shes taken three world championships, most recently in 2013. The U.S. track teams marketing person introduced her as a human wind chime because shes won so much hardware. After suffering an injury in 2013, Reese bounced back big time, jumping 7.31 meters at the trials -- the longest distance posted by anyone since 2004.When asked if she felt any pressure, Reese scoffed, flicking away the question like so many languid mosquitos. I know what Im capable of, she said. If I go out there and do what Im supposed to do, everything else will fall into place.Allyson Felix, another 2012 gold medalist, confessed that shes still a little heartbroken over missing the cut for the 200-meter sprint since she won the event in the last go-round. Itll be tough for me to watch, she said.But Felix is favored by gamblers -- yes, you can bet on Olympic track and field -- to win the 400m race after she posted the second-best time in the world in Oregon after recovering from an injury.I feel a lot better than at the trials, said Felix, who is eerily modest for a woman who could overtake Jackie Joyner-Kersee as the most decorated female Olympian in U.S. track history (theyre currently tied at six medals apiece). I feel confident that Ill be close to my best.Medaling opportunities abound. While Jamaicas Elaine Thompson is favored to take the 100m race, a trio of Americans in English Gardner, Tianna Bartoletta and Tori Bowie barely lagged behind her this year.All three women will probably race in the 4x100 relay, which America has a solid chance of winning next week. The U.S. women are also likely to take gold in the 4x400 relay, which Felix might be a factor in, but the rosters arent set until last minute.Nineties babies Brianna Rollins and Dalilah Muhammad, both first-time Olympians, own the worlds top times in the 100m and 400m hurdles this year. Jenn Suhr, the worlds reigning pole vault champion, recently broke her own record in the event. The U.S. has a high jumper, a shot putter and a hammer thrower who could easily medal, or perhaps form some sort of crime-fighting unit. Simply put, this team is stacked.And then theres the delightfully confident Reese, who said her goal is to accomplish three in one. Translation: she wants to win the Games, shatter the Olympic record, and break the world record.Thats something Im gunning for, Reese said.No big deal, right? Cheap Adidas Shoes China . The Islanders dealt Thomas Vanek to the Montreal Canadiens after less than a year on Long Island. Meanwhile, the Oilers dealt long-time sniper Ales hemsky to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday for a fifth-round pick in 2014 and a third-rounder in 2015. Cheap Puma Shoes China . Q: Team Canada announces their Olympic roster three weeks from today. Who is general manager Steve Yzerman watching? LeBrun: Over the last 48 hours, hes taken in the home-and-home between the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche with Jamie Benn and Matt Duchene being the obvious targets. http://www.cheapshoeschinaonline.com/ . The catch: It needs a lot of money, and it needs it fast. Cheap Ecco Shoes China . The Canadian squad, skipped by Jennifer Jones of Winnipeg, got on the board first with two in the second end, and followed that with two more apiece in the fourth and sixth ends. Cheap Shoes From China Fast Shipping .S. -- Nikolaj Ehlers registered a hat trick for the third straight game and Jonathan Drouin had a goal and five assists as the Halifax Mooseheads hammered the host Cape Breton Screaming Eagles 10-1 on Tuesday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. While we wait until next year, which isnt so far off, its a good time to reflect on what we witnessed in 2016.Our panel members discuss their favorite rounds and majors of the year and share their top memories -- from on and off the course -- of 2016.?What was your favorite pro golf round of the year?SportsCenter anchor Jonathan Coachman: For me its not close. The final round at The Open was absolutely mind-blowing. And I dont think Phil Mickelson will soon forget the year that he would have won another major if Henrik Stenson hadnt decided to have the round of his life. I dont think I ever have enjoyed a two-man battle more than that one.ESPN.com senior golf writer Michael Collins: Complete round for me had to be the final round of The Open. Stenson and Mickelson going toe-to-toe for 18 holes for a major made me think, This is what reporters watching Jack Nicklaus vs. Tom Watson must have felt during 1977s Duel in the Sun.ESPN.com senior golf writer Bob Harig: Stensons final-round 63 at Royal Troon to capture The Open. Only once before had a player shot such a score in the final round of a major to win, and that was Johnny Miller at Oakmont Country Club in the 1973 U.S. Open -- generally regarded as the best round in the games history. Troon is not Oakmont, but it was nonetheless an incredible score.ESPN.com senior golf writer Jason Sobel: With everything that took place in golf this year, the victory of Billy Hurley III at his hometown Quicken Loans National event has been too overlooked. This is a man who less than a decade earlier was navigating a Navy ship through the Suez Canal. During this same tournament in 2017, Hurleys father went missing, later found to have committed suicide not far from the tournament site. For Hurley to win that title, on that week, is beyond remarkable.Which was the best major of the year?Coachman: The Masters. It had everything: domination, for 63 holes; collapse, for three holes; beautiful golf for about nine holes. Danny Willetts good fortune will always be connected to the emotional devastation for Jordan Spieth. On top that what it gave us, it also set up for some serious drama come 2017. Cant wait.Collins: This years U.S. Open had everything youd expect in a big-budget movie! High tension, drama, a plot twist, a villain no one saw coming (the USGA) and a hero (Dustin Johnson)?with a happy ending everyone was good with. It was another one of those stories that no one would believe if it hadnt actually happened.Harig: The Open. Mickelson opened the tournament with a 63, closed it with a 65, made just four bogeys for the week and shot 17 under in a major -- and still lost. His duel with Stenson will long be remembered as one of the games greatest, not just in 2016.Sobel: There was plenty of drama on the back nine of the Masters, but The Open provided the best entertainment of any major this year. Unlike at Augusta, this wasnt one player faltering down the stretch while another took advantage; this was two terrific players with their best stuff, as Stenson outlasted Mickelson in a battle for the ages.What was your favorite pro golf memory -- inside the ropes -- from 2016?Coachman: Ill go with the Tour Championship and Rory McIlroy holing out for eagle en route to an improbable comeback and the $10 million dollar prize. All I could think about was the time he said that the prize money didnt really mattter to him.dddddddddddd But it sure did look like that moment meant a lot to him. McIlroy showed the world once again that when he is on he has the most firepower of anyone, and its not close.Collins: When McIlroy and Patrick Reed went at it on the front nine at the Ryder Cup, I walked off the sixth green and saw a friend (who was doing the telecast) and told him what had just happened as the two players walked off the green -- Reed doing the finger wag after McIlroy mocked the finger shush. He said, I dont like that. Its bad for golf. I replied, What?! Its great for golf! When the players walked off the eighth hole, the same guy said to me, This is awesome! Converted quickly.Harig: The Sunday singles match between Mickelson and Sergio Garcia at the Ryder Cup. I watched every shot inside the ropes, and while it ultimately did not decide the outcome of the Ryder Cup, it was riveting nonetheless. Both players shot 63 on their own ball, with Mickelson making 10 birdies and Garcia nine. Down the stretch they continued to match each other, barely uttering a word. It was pressure-packed, intense and ended in a tie, but the golf was as good as it gets.Sobel: If the USGAs nonruling/ruling about a ball moving on the green had occurred with any other golfer at the U.S. Open, it could have provided enough of an unknown to keep him from winning. Johnson, though, merely shrugged it off, won by four, was later ruled to have won by three, didnt care and took home the trophy -- even though he still wasnt sure why hed been penalized.What was your favorite pro golf memory -- outside the ropes -- from 2016?Coachman: It was a trip that I wasnt even a part of. I sincerely was worried for Spieth after his collapse on the back nine at Augusta. So when he followed through on an island vacation with Justin Thomas, Rickie Fowler and Smylie Kaufman, it showed me that he had golf in the right perspective. Many golfers would have gone home and hid after that. Spieth didnt. It was a moment I wont forget, and I believe Spieth will be rewarded for it in the long term.Collins: After The Players Championship had ended, I was waiting to get a quick interview with Jason Day when PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem came through the volunteer area. I walked over to greet him. As we did the bro hug, he whispered in my ear, Youre a big pain in my ass. After breaking the embrace, I said, Thats the biggest compliment you could have ever given me, sir. Thank you. I honestly believe he knew it, too.Harig: Just a few weeks ago in the Bahamas, I lucked into watching a Tiger Woods practice session at Albany several days before the Hero World Challenge, his return to competitive golf after 15 months. What I witnessed was an impressive display, made more so by the low bar many of us had set after so much negativity. For more than two hours, Woods hit all the shots, with plenty of power and length. It was but one day, and yet it was a rare opportunity that will have far more meaning if Woods is able to build on his comeback.Sobel: Too many to count, too many to narrow down into one memory right here. Not to get all sappy, but Ill say this much: The privilege of covering this game has never been greater -- and Ive never enjoyed it as much as I did this year. ' ' '