TORONTO – They will often sit at the back of the bus or assemble on the ice after practice, the defined leadership core of the Maple Leafs trying to figure out where exactly the season has gone wrong and how to reverse course before its too late.
[b]Robinson Cano Jersey[/b] . “Its happened more and more lately because were obviously at a bit of a turning point right now,” Jay McClement told the Leaf Report, one-third of an assigned leadership group in Toronto that includes Dion Phaneuf and Joffrey Lupul. “Its frustrating – its hard to put a finger on obviously.” Now beyond the midway point of the season, the Leafs remain a club that is still searching for an identity, still trying to rediscover the feisty magic that infused the group en route to a long-starved playoff appearance last May. Though they did some good in a tilt with the Islanders on Tuesday night, victory was ultimately denied. In fact, they have just five wins in regulation since the start of November – a string of 30 games – crammed amongst a slog of teams vying for the final playoff seeds in the East. To this point, the only identity thats stuck with the team in Toronto is that of an unpredictable, inconsistent sort. One good night has rarely morphed into two. “All year, weve been very inconsistent with it,” McClement said of the desired identity, which hinges on aggression and a physicality thats been lacking. “I dont even think its game to game, its period to period or shift to shift even. A lot of times its period to period. We have a good period and then we cant follow it up. “Weve obviously talked it to death trying to figure it out and if we had an answer then it wouldnt happen … Its been frustrating for sure for all of us.” Randy Carlyle has seen starts and stops with his hockey club, signs here and there – a dominant win against Chicago, a hearty defeat against Los Angeles – but nothing consistently with the schedule now rolling feverously into the Olympics. Over the weekend he was alarmed by the insufficient compete of his team in an embarrassing 7-1 loss to the Rangers. And though the urgency improved three nights later against another New York opponent, enough went wrong for yet another defeat, including a rare off-night in goal and on special teams. It was the 19th loss during the aforementioned 30-game stretch. “I just think weve got to get a lot more aggressive,” said Carlyle following Tuesdays 5-3 defeat. “Were not skating and being the tenacious Toronto Maple Leafs that I expect or everybody expects, from the coaching staff, management. We dont seem to have enough tenacity in our game right now.” No team in the league allows more shots against than the Leafs – they held the Islanders to just 25 – but because of terrific goaltending, a strong power-play, and some shootout success, the club has managed to pick up points and hang in the playoff race. Those at the front of the ship know, however, thats it not been near good enough and cant continue if further success is to be attained this season. “We look at the body of work and I think that we have another level we can play to,” Carlyle said. “Its very frustrating right now because were not getting it. Were pushing, pushing, pushing and just trying to find an answer to why we have that sort of malaise about us at times.” Five Points 1. Berniers Night Rather than turn to James Reimer for the first time since Dec. 21, Carlyle opted to revert back to Jonathan Bernier for the sixth consecutive game after the 25-year-old allowed five goals on 32 shots against the Rangers. “This was not an easy decision,” said Carlyle afterward, “and obviously it wasnt one that worked out in our favour.” Bernier allowed four goals on 24 shots in one of his worst showings of the season. “You could say that it wasnt one of his better nights – thats for sure,” said Carlyle, unwilling to point the finger entirely in his goaltenders direction. Of the four goals, three stood as questionable; the first from Kyle Okposo was one that snuck under his right arm; the second from Michael Grabner was misplayed behind the goal, and ended in a wrap-around for the Islanders forward; the fourth and ultimately decisive goal was a weak attempt by Calvin de Haan from outside the blue-line that crept off the stick of Phaneuf and through a surprised Bernier. “Those are three goals that Im sure Bernie would like to have back,” Carlyle said. “Personally I thought I did some good things,” Bernier added, “[but] it was one of those games that they got those bounces and they won the game.” 2. End of a Slump? Nazem Kadri had his first multi-point night in more than a month, totaling two assists against the Islanders. Speaking prior to the game, the 23-year-old stressed that his recent slump was just another hurdle to overcome. “Realistically, this has happened to me since the first year I came into this organization so its been the same story over and over again,” said Kadri, who sits fourth in team scoring with 25 points. “Its getting easier to deal with.” Quiet since an explosive opening month – 13 points in 14 games – Kadri had just one point in nine games before Tuesdays mild breakout. He had just two assists total in the previous 19 games. “Nazzies full of confidence and thats a great thing,” said Carlyle on Monday afternoon. “[But] when your confidence leaves you, you have to find a way with our help to re-energize and thats what were trying to do with Nazzie. “My message to him was find a way to do something a little different. Go out there, look at it a little differently. Be a little bit stronger on the defensive side; focus on the defensive side because if you play good defence usually theres going to be offence that youre to be provided with. Do a little extra in the weight room. Do a little bit extra on the bike. Push yourself through the lull thats happening and sharpen yourself up.” Kadri also won 11 of 14 draws in 18-plus minutes on Tuesday. “I thought Nazzie was a lot more noticeable around the puck,” said Carlyle after the game. 3. Underlying Issues Shootout victories have often masked the deeper inconsistencies that remain with the Leafs – even to those in the room. A recent stretch saw the club pick up points in six consecutive games (4-1-2) – five of those outings concluding in the shootout – while not performing exceedingly well in consistent doses. “Everyone says were doing terrible,” said Tyler Bozak, who extended an eight-game point streak, “but our last seven games we were 4-1-2 before tonight. If we did that all year I think wed have a pretty good record. Weve just got to stay as confident as we can and build off the wins we do get.” 4. Olympic Downside The Maple Leafs will have three representatives at the upcoming Olympics in Sochi – Phil Kessel and James van Riemsdyk with the Americans and Nik Kulemin with the home-side Russians. And while there is an obvious degree of pride for the organization there is an admitted challenge and potential downside for head coach Randy Carlyle. “We think its a positive obviously,” said Carlyle late last week. “But on the other hand if we wanted to be selfish about the Toronto Maple Leafs, sometimes those things dont work out the way youd like them to work out … Theres going to be three weeks or the better part of two weeks anyways for them to commit to that team and then coming back to here after sometimes the emotions are flat. Some people dont have anything left.” Carlyle observed such a thing with Anaheim following the 2010 Olympics. The Ducks had seven Olympians in Vancouver, including three from the gold-medal winning Canadian squad. “They didnt have any emotion left when they got back,” he said of a group which included Scott Niedermayer, Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf. “Its two or three weeks of high emotion and the last thing on their mind is where they came from. Theyre playing for their country and you can understand that.” 5. Gleasons Debut/Gunnarssons Injury Playing nearly 16 minutes on the top pair with Phaneuf, Tim Gleason made his Leaf debut against the Islanders. “I thought he played the way we expected him to play,” Carlyle said, noting the adjustment for Gleason to playing top minutes once more after seeing his role dwindle in Carolina. Gleason stepped into the lineup for Carl Gunnarsson, who missed his first game of the season with a hyper-extended left elbow. Gunnarsson had his arm bend awkwardly from a hit by the Rangers Carl Hagelin on Saturday. “I can tolerate the pain,” said the 27-year-old before the game, “but sometimes youve just got to try to be a little bit smart here. You can only do so much and tape it up so much and sometimes its not enough.” Gunnarsson actually suffered the same injury in 2010, but with increased severity – he missed 22 games. Stats-Pack 8 – Consecutive games with a point for Tyler Bozak, who has three goals and eight assists in that span. 6 – Consecutive starts for Jonathan Bernier. 5 – Regulation victories for the Leafs since the start of November. 15:55 – Ice-time for Tim Gleason in his Toronto debut. 6 – Points in the last 15 games for Nazem Kadri. 2 – Goals in the past 16 games for Mason Raymond, who scored his 12th of the year against the Islanders. 13 – Goals this season for Joffrey Lupul, who scored for the second straight game on Tuesday. 2 – Penalties drawn by Jerry DAmigo against the Islanders. Special Teams Capsule PP: 1-5Season: 21.7% (5th) PK: 0-1Season: 77.3% (27th) Quote of the Night “Weve obviously talked it to death trying to figure it out and if we had an answer then it wouldnt happen.” -Jay McClement, on the Leafs ongoing struggles. Up Next The Leafs head to Raleigh for a Thursday date with the Hurricanes.
[b]Mo Vaughn Jersey[/b] . Niese pitched seven steady innings on a rainy Tuesday night and Daniel Murphy had three hits to lead New York to a 6-1 victory over the Phillies.
[b]Mets Jerseys China[/b] .com) - Longtime Senators star Daniel Alfredsson returned to Ottawa on Thursday to officially announce his retirement.Heres a new tradition unlike any other — the race to see if the Masters can keep its field under 100 players by April.For the fourth time in the last five years, at least 90 players already have qualified for the Masters at the end of the year with three months of opportunities remaining before the field is set. Each time, Augusta National managed to achieve its objective of keeping the number of competitors in double digits.By far the smallest field of the four majors, the Masters has not had more than 100 players since 1966.Thats what Augusta National prefers. Club chairmen have talked about a small field creating a better experience. Remember, the original name of the Masters was the Augusta National Invitation Tournament.But if the last eight months were any indication, this could be the closest call yet.Of the 90 players who are eligible and expected to compete, 17 earned invitations by winning PGA Tour events that award full FedEx Cup points. Thats up from 12 a year ago, a reminder not only that winning is difficult for everyone but that the PGA Tour is stronger and deeper than ever.There are 13 chances for players not already in the Masters to win a full PGA Tour event and get in. And because the Match Play Championship has been moved from its traditional late February slot, top international players such as Rory McIlroy, Henrik Stenson and Adam Scott are not expected to play much (if at all) before the Florida swing.The other way to qualify is to move into the top 50 in the world ranking published on March 30. Among those on the outside is Brandt Snedeker (No. 58) from the PGA Tour. Tommy Fleetwood (51), Alexander Levy (53) and Francesco Molinari (55) are also outside the top 50, though they will face some of the European Tours stronger fields during the Middle East swing.Also, the Masters had created a new spot for the winner of the Latin America Amateur Championship, to be played in January in Argentina.A year ago, 90 players were eligible after the first cutoff in December. Seven players not already eligible won PGA Tour events, and Stephen Gallacher was added from the world ranking. Then again, one spot was reduced when Tiger Woods had back surgery a week before the Masters.This year? Stay tuned. It starts with the Tournament of Champions at Kapalua, a field that includes four players who won before last years Masters — Scott Stallings, Matt Every, Steven Bowditch and Matt Jones — and are not yet eligible at Augusta.___FALL OPPORTUNITIES: Two years into a wraparound schedule is too soon to analyze trends, though there was one significant change this year.A year ago, Chris Kirk had the worst world ranking of the six winners in the fall. He was at No. 93 when he won the McGladrey Classic. Dustin Johnson had the highest ranking (No. 23 when he won he HSBC Champions), and the others were scattered in between. Jimmy Walker at the Frys.com Open was the only first-time winner.This year provided more opportunity.There were three first-time winners — Ben Martin, Robert Streb and Nick Taylor — among the seven tournaments. The player with the worst ranking? That would be Taylor at the Sanderson Farms Championship (played opposite Shanghai), who checked in at No. 594.Bae Sang-moon was at No. 195 when he won the Frys.com Open, while Streb was No. 177 before winning at Sea Island.The best ranking belonged to Bubba Watson, who was No. 7 when he won the World Golf Championship in CChina.
[b]Edwin Diaz Jersey[/b]. ___SCHEDULE SWAP: Its always good to have solid title sponsors, even better to have sponsors who are flexible.The European Tour discovered that anew when the Turkish Airlines Open — typically the third of four events in the Race to Dubai final series — ran into problems for 2015. The G20 Summit starts in Turkey on Nov. 15, the same day as the final round of the golf tournament. The Turkish Golf Federation feared it would be exceedingly difficult for the events to clash and asked to change the date.The BMW Masters in Shanghai — typically the Final Series opener — agreed to swap.That means the Turkish Airlines Open will be the opening Final Series event, followed by the HSBC Champions in Shanghai and then the BMW Masters. The final event is the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai.We are a dedicated partner of golf worldwide, and we were keen to act in the interest of golf, Thorsten Mattig of BMW said.BMW also sponsors European Tour events in Germany and at Wentworth, along with a FedEx Cup event on the PGA Tour.___REACHING OUT, GIVING BACK: The PGA Tour already is involved with military outreach with its Birdies for the Brave program. It added another layer for 2015 by offering military members complimentary or discounted tickets to its tournaments.Starting with the Tournament of Champions in Kapalua, the Birdies for the Brave Military Ticket Program allows active duty and reserve military members, retired military and their dependents to get free admission to 30 PGA Tour events.Discounted tickets to other tournaments also will be available to nonretired veterans.The program is supported by Quicken Loans, the Detroit-based company that sponsors Tiger Woods tournament in the Washington area in the summer. Military personnel only have to visit
www.birdiesforthebrave.sheerid.com to access tickets to various tournaments.The Military Ticket Program ... is just one way we express our gratitude to those who put their lives on the line every day to keep America safe and free, said Charlie Zink, the co-chief operating officer for the PGA Tour.Zink is a former Navy officer.___DIVOTS: Waialae Country Club has agreed to host the Sony Open for four more years. This will be the 50th straight year at Waialae. Only Colonial and Augusta National have hosted PGA Tour-sanctioned events for more continuous years. ... Bubba Watson donated his winnings from the Thailand Golf Championship to the Thongchai Jaidee Foundation, which is helping children with scholarships, golf lessons and accommodation. Watson tied for 25th and sent Thongchai a check for $9,250. ... Half of the 84 professionals who already have qualified for the Masters are Americans. ... Medinah Country Club has approved a $3.6 million project to restore the No. 2 course to its original character and upgrading standards of greens, bunkers and drainage. That means Medinah will have invested $14 million since 2008 to upgrade three courses, including the No. 3 course that has held majors and the Ryder Cup.___STAT OF THE WEEK: The Masters currently has 23 players from outside the top 100 in the world — 12 are former champions and six are amateurs.___FINAL WORD: Its as good. I cant believe that Im saying that, comparing it to my lifetime goal to win on the PGA Tour. ... Because the way things went the last two years, I didnt think I would play again or compete again. — Arjun Atwal after winning the Dubai Open. ' ' '
Find in Directory
Find in Events
Find in Marketplace