Stars und Sternchen! » hes in the second ro

Following three years serving as the back-up in Los Angeles, newly acquired Maple Leafs goaltender Jonathan Bernier says hes "ready for the challenge" of battling James Reimer for the number one spot in Toronto. Speaking on Leafs Lunch with Bryan Hayes and Jamie McLennan on Thursday, Bernier said it was "very hard" at times being entrenched behind Jonathan Quick and is now excited at the prospect of getting an opportunity to compete with Reimer for the top spot with the Leafs. "Im ready for the challenge," Bernier said. "Ive been waiting three years for that and now I finally get some playing time so Im very excited to come and Ill be ready." The 11th overall pick in the 2006 draft explained he learned a lot from backing up the 2012 Conn Smythe Trophy winner for three seasons and although it was frustrating, he used it as a learning tool. "It was very hard. Sometimes motivation was pretty low but I know at the end of the day, when I look back at this, its going to make me a stronger person and a stronger player and it was good for me to learn from one of the best goalies in the league." Coming off his best year statistically, in which he posted a 9-3-1 record to go along with a .922 save percentage and 1.88 goals against average, Bernier said he welcomes the competition with the Leafs incumbent goaltender and believes in having a supportive relationship with his fellow netminder, similar to what he had in L.A. "Im very happy, its a great opportunity to come to Toronto with James I think its going to be a good battle," Bernier said. "It reminds me a little bit of when I got to the Kings. We kind of grew up together. Obviously the chemistry is key when you want to win and you want to play for each other, so thats the right way to do it." Reflecting on his most recent season, Bernier said he was excited to embrace a larger role with Quick nursing a back injury. "This year was really good for me. Johnny had back surgery so I kind of stepped in and played a little bit more at the start and it was nice to play some back-to-back games and start feeling like you still got it." Talking about Berniers 2012-13 season, Kings general manager Dean Lombardi told Dave Naylor on TSN Drive that "without Jonathan Bernier, I dont think we make the playoffs." He went on to say that Berniers play this season proved he was ready to make the leap to being a starting goaltender in the NHL. "Clearly, (he has) the upside of a number one goalie," Lombardi said. "If you look at his pedigree to date, I dont think you could find another unproven number one who has done everything possible to prove he was a number one. Everything from what he did in the minors, to how he progressed at the NHL level and then certainly this year I think put him over the hump because not only did he play well, but he won big games." Maple Leafs general manager Dave Nonis reflected on how he expects Bernier will fit into the Leafs plans going forward earlier in the week when he spoke with Dave Naylor on TSN Drive, Tuesday afternoon. "From our standpoint, it was the excitement about bringing in another top young goaltender into the organization and have Jonathan and James (Reimer) together," Nonis said. "I think it gives us probably, in my opinion, one of the top two punches of potential in the National Hockey League." Nonis said he expects both goalies to compete for the number one spot and isnt worried about a potential conflict between the two. "Well I think thats always a risk at any position," Nonis said. " Its a situation where we feel we have two guys with great potential and great character and theres no reason why they cant both compete hard for that job and push as hard as they can to keep control of the net." Bernier said hes simply looking for an opportunity to challenge for a starting spot and believes Maple Leafs head coach Randy Carlyle will give him that. "From what Ive heard, theyre kind of similar in a way because theyre fair coaches and as a player thats what you want," Bernier said when asked about the similarities between Carlyle and his previous coach, Darryl Sutter. At 5-foot-11 and 186 pounds, the 24-year-old is not among the bigger goalies in the NHL, but said he makes up for it with his hockey instincts. "Im not a very big goalie, so I need to be in good position. So Id say reading the game is probably my biggest strength. When Im on top of my game I can read two, three plays before its going to happen and thats probably got me to where I am now." Christian Miller Jersey . The 26-year-old slider from Calgary posted a time of 50.464 seconds, 0.573 seconds back of leader Natalie Geisenberger. The German led the overall World Cup womens standings this season and continued her dominance by putting down a track record time of 49. Cam Newton Jersey . Colorado came up big against Chicago last spring, and repeated that performance Tuesday night. Varlamov stopped 36 shots and Paul Stastny had a goal and an assist for the Avalanche in a 5-1 victory over the Blackhawks. http://www.cheapcarolinapanthersjerseysauthentic.com/?tag=authentic-sam-mills-jersey . The Calgary skip fell 10-8 to Swedens Oskar Eriksson in semifinal action Saturday and will face Switzerlands Peter de Cruz for the bronze medal (Saturday at 10pm et/7pm pt on TSN2). Brian Burns Jersey . Messis father, Jorge Horacio Messi, is apparently still under investigation for an alleged 4 million euros ($5.3 million) in unpaid taxes from Messis image rights from 2007-09. Messis public relations firm confirmed Spanish media reports that the state prosecutor has asked for Messi to be dropped from the investigation that began in June 2013. Cheap Panthers Jerseys Authentic . - Their offence is underperforming.ANAHEIM – It would have been a heck of a story. On Saturday night, Teemu Selanne was poised to become the hero in Game 1 of the first-ever Freeway Series between southern Californias two NHL teams. The long-time Anaheim Duck, who wears No. 8, had scored at 8:08 of the third period to put the home team up. It was a script worthy of Hollywood. But the Los Angeles Kings provided a twist ending, scoring with seven seconds left and winning in overtime. Only hours before his goal the 43-year-old Selanne, who is nearing the end of a Hall of Fame career, sat in his dressing room stall and expressed genuine excitement at the prospect of experiencing another first this late in his decorated career. This is the first time in any sport that two teams from this area have battled in the playoffs. "This is something that even I havent faced before so Im very happy that this happened, because even last year was very close, but now its real and its going to be another great experience in my career," Selanne said with a big smile. The Ducks missed out on a date with the Kings last season, because they were upset in the first round of the playoffs by the Detroit Red Wings. "I was just thinking about that the other day and its funny that its never happened," said Selanne. "Theres something special about this." Only days ago it appeared as if Selannes career was headed toward an inauspicious end. He was made a healthy scratch in Game 4 of Anaheims first-round series against the Dallas Stars. It was a bitter pill for the proud Selanne to swallow, but he has responded the right way. "He sat out that one game in the Dallas series and I dont think he was very happy about it, which was natural," said Ducks captain Ryan Getzlaf. "Thats what you want to see out of guys. You dont want him to be satisfied by that. He upped his game and hes been great ever since." Selanne had two assists in the thrilling Game 6 come-from-behind win in Dallas. His goal in Game 1 against the Kings snapped a 13-game drought dating back to the regular season. He has put eight shots on net the last two games as his playing time has increased (more than 14 minutes in each of the last two games after posting a high of 11:31 in the Dallas series). Even more impressive than the points has been his physical play. The 6-foot, 198-pound Selanne was last on the Ducks during the regular season with just 15 hits, but you wouldnt have known it based on the last couple of games. "I thought the last two games hes been really good," said Anaheim head coach Bruce Boudreau. "Hes found a little bit of a fountain of youth, hitting guys, which really isnt his game, but hes committed to the cause and hopefully he gets enough rest where he can do the same thing in Game 2." It was Selannes hit on Robyn Regehr that forced the 6-foot-3, 222-pound Los Angeles defenceman from the game in the Ducks-Kings curtain raiser. "He hit Regehr, knocked him over and Regehrs one of the biggest guys in the league," said Ducks forward Nick Bonino. "Thats what the playoffs are all about: getting out of your comfort zone, hitting guys, making physical plays and thats why teams win." "Im strong too, you know," Selanne quipped while flexing when asked if he was surprised he was able to knock Regehr down. So, is Selanne getting his second wind now that hes in the second round for the first time since 2009? "I think so," he said. "Playoffs, you know, is more physical hockey. Thats not really my style, but I can play physical too." But even with Selannes contribution the Ducks still ended up on the wrong end of a 3-2 overtime result in Game 1. Boudreau said the Ducks internal statistics showed they held the Kings to just three scoring chances during five-on-five play. "I dont know when weve ever held a team to that," he said. "Were not depressed. Id be more depressed if we didnt play any good and we lost. I liked the way we did a lot of the things." Corey Perry had a glorious chance to end it in overtime. With Kings goalie Jonathan Quick out of position, the 43-goal scorer in the regular season had an open net to shoot at, but was foiled by a sliding Alec&nbssp;Martinez, who was able to block the shot.dddddddddddd Needless to say, Perry had trouble sleeping Saturday night. "Yeah, I was up for awhile. You think about what it couldve been," he said. "Ive seen it a few times. I thought about it ... He made a great play." Selanne, a veteran of 22 NHL seasons, has been around long enough to know how a team can collect itself after a disheartening defeat. "You just cant get too high even if you win," said Selanne, who won a bronze medal with Finland during Februarys Sochi Olympics just one day after a crushing loss to rival Sweden in the semi-finals. "Enjoy a little bit or be down a little bit, but then just forget it and keep going. You can always learn something win or lose and just go from there." There was a clear lesson for the Ducks in Game 1: their power play, which generated six shots while failing to score on four chances, can be much better. "Thats one area we want to fix, because all great teams they have a great power play and that can make winning so much easier. Our power play, the whole year, has been a little bit up and down," said Selanne. Anaheim finished 22nd in power-play efficiency during the regular season converting on 16 per cent of its chances. The Ducks do have seven power-play goals in the playoffs, which is tied for the league lead, but four of the goals came during one game (Game 5 against the Stars). "We got to generate some opportunities," said Getzlaf. "We moved the puck around pretty well, but we didnt really generate a whole lot. I think that starts with getting some shots through against a team where its not easy to get pucks to the net. Their D do a good job blocking shots and we just got to get that mindset that were going to take it to the net a little bit more." And while the Ducks believe they can do a better job with the man advantage they werent about to get down on themselves even though they have squandered home-ice advantage. "I dont think we had a weak link [Saturday] night," said Selanne. "We deserved better than that, but its hockey and the goals matter and we couldnt put the game away. Game 2 is a new opportunity." Theres a reason Anaheim has a healthy confidence when it comes to battling Los Angeles. The Ducks won four of the five games against the Kings in the regular season and the one loss came in a shootout. "Theres no secrets between these two teams," Selanne explained. "Theyre very, very close matches, tight-checking, low-scoring and whoevers going to do the little things better [will win]. It could go either way." This is a burgeoning rivalry. Bad blood is building, but there is also a healthy respect between the clubs. The Ducks were impressed, for example, watching the Kings dig out from an 0-3 hole against the San Jose Sharks in the first round. "It was actually fun to watch. Its remarkable, unbelievable so, you know, you got to give a lot of credit to those guys," said Selanne. "They have a team that just keeps coming and, it was funny, even though they lost Game 3 you could see the confidence level building higher and higher and then they really started believing and they almost had another gear and the Sharks they didnt have that." Bottom line: the Kings are more than a worthy adversary even though Anaheim finished 16 points ahead of them in the regular season standings. "You need everyone to play 60 minutes at least at your own level and sometimes you need to over-achieve to win the game. Every team is as good as their weakest link. Thats the beauty of team sports," said Selanne, outlining the recipe for success. So the stage is set for an epic battle as a savvy veteran aims to keep his NHL career alive and help Anaheim win the first-ever Freeway Faceoff. And if Game 1 was any indication its going to be a special series. On Saturday, fans from both sides chanted proudly at the Honda Center. They were rewarded for their passion with a thrilling finish. "It was unbelievable. Cant ask more than that," Selanne said when asked about the atmosphere. "Both teams and the fans have been waiting for this matchup for a long time so lets enjoy it." Cheap Buffalo Sabres Gear Wholesale Calgary Flames Jerseys Cheap Adidas Colorado Avalanche Jerseys Montreal Canadiens Outlet Store Wholesale New Jersey Devils Jerseys Adidas Arizona Coyotes Jerseys Cheap Adidas Boston Bruins Jerseys Cheap Adidas Carolina Hurricanes Jerseys Chicago Blackhawks Shop Free Shipping Wholesale Columbus Blue Jackets Jerseys Dallas Stars Shop Free Shipping Cheap Adidas Detroit Red Wings Jerseys Anaheim Ducks Jerseys China Wholesale Edmonton Oilers Jerseys Florida Panthers Shop Free Shipping Wholesale Los Angeles Kings Jerseys Minnesota Wild Outlet Store Cheap Adidas Nashville Predators Jerseys Cheap Adidas New York Islanders Jerseys New York Rangers Winter Classic Jerseys Cheap Adidas Ottawa Senators Jerseys Cheap Adidas Philadelphia Flyers Jerseys Wholesale Pittsburgh Penguins Jerseys Cheap Adidas San Jose Sharks Jerseys St. Louis Blues Winter Classic Jerseys Wholesale Tampa Bay Lightning Jerseys Toronto Maple Leafs Outlet Store Vancouver Canucks Outlet Store Cheap Adidas Vegas Golden Knights Jerseys Cheap Adidas Washington Capitals Jerseys Cheap Adidas Winnipeg Jets Jerseys ' ' '