PHILADELPHIA -- Leading the division for all but one day this season means little to the Philadelphia Phillies at this point. cheap jerseys . Theyre well aware the standings only matter after 162 games. Still, this weekends showdown with the Atlanta Braves is important for both teams. The Phillies are 2 1/2 games ahead of Atlanta in the NL East entering their three-game series at Citizens Bank Park, and theyd like to head into the all-star break with more breathing room. "This is a big series," manager Charlie Manuel said. "Weve just got to go in there and play like weve been playing." The pitching-rich Phillies have their three all-star starters lined up to face Atlanta. Roy Halladay (11-3), Cliff Lee (9-6) and Cole Hamels (10-4) will pitch in that order. The Braves, on the other hand, wont have two of their top three starters. Ace Jair Jurrjens (12-3) and Tim Hudson (8-6) both pitched during Atlantas four-game sweep of Colorado. Instead, Brandon Beachy (3-1) goes against Halladay on Friday night, Tommy Hanson (10-4) starts Saturday and Derek Lowe (5-6) takes the mound Sunday. "I like competing against the best and theyre pretty darn good," Beachy said. "Its a challenge." The Phillies have the best record in the majors at 55-33, but the Braves (53-36) are determined to stand in the way of a fifth straight division title. Both clubs have relied on stellar pitching and each has overcome key injuries and an inconsistent offence so far. Philadelphia is currently without two of its starting five -- Roy Oswalt and Joe Blanton -- and its top three closers -- Ryan Madson, Jose Contreras and Brad Lidge. Five-time all-star Chase Utley was sidelined the first two months and centre-fielder Shane Victorino and catcher Carlos Ruiz also spent time on the disabled list. Victorino (thumb) and all-star third baseman Placido Polanco (back) are both iffy for this series. The Braves began the season without Jurrjens, and were without Beachy and Hanson at various points. Outfielders Jason Heyward and Nate McLouth were sidelined earlier in the year, and left fielder Martin Prado is on the DL. "Were similar in a lot of ways," Manuel said. "If you look at runs scored and hitting, theyre a lot like us. Theyve been doing it mostly with pitching." Going wire-to-wire isnt the Phillies style. Theyve trailed in September in three of the last four years. Last year, the Braves led the Phillies by 4 1/2 games at the break. They were seven games up on July 22, but Philadelphia went 39-19 the rest of the way and finished six games ahead. Atlanta made the post-season as the wild-card entry. In 2007, the Phillies overcame a seven-game deficit with 17 remaining and surpassed the New York Mets on the final day to capture their first division title in 14 years. In 2008, they were 3 1/2 games behind the Mets with 16 to play, before clinching on the next-to-last day of the season and going on to win just the second World Series title in franchise history. Thats why Manuel and his players understand its too early to get caught up in the standings. "The seasons not over. If you think that, it can backfire on you," Manuel said. "Youve got to play every day. We can have injuries, and so far weve been able to get by because our guys emphasize playing that day. We dont look ahead and dont look back. You can have a 10-game lead right now, and that doesnt mean youre going to go to the playoffs. We havent won nothing. Weve been winning some games and we have a good record, but the Braves are right there with us. We aint done nothing yet, really." Having blown a lead last year, the Braves wont be overly concerned if the worst-case scenario happens and they get swept this weekend. "I dont think, this early in the season, you look at it like that," all-star catcher Brian McCann said. "Its a big series. But regardless of the outcome, its still before the all-star break. Were not getting too excited." The Braves have won five of the nine meetings between the teams this season. They took two of three in Philadelphia in early May, beating Lee and Hamels. "If you want to get to the top, youve got to beat the best," Braves third baseman Chipper Jones said. "And theyve been the best for quite some time. Every time we play them, its a measuring stick. You play good teams, they expose your weaknesses, so we need to go out and prove to ourselves once again that we can play with them pitch for pitch." The teams play two series in September, including a three-game set in Atlanta to close out the regular season. By then, the Phillies hope to have things all wrapped up. . Jason Garrison and Henrik Sedin scored third-period goals to help the Canucks overcome a 2-1 second-period deficit en route to a 4-3 victory over the Dallas Stars on Thursday. [url=http://www.cheapjerseysopen.com/]nfl jerseys china .C. - Olympic skicross athlete Julia Murray is retiring from the sport following a long recovery from knee injuries. http://www.cheapjerseysfox.com/ cheap nfl jerseys . -- Jiyai Shin needed only 20 minutes Monday to do what she couldnt in eight hours a day earlier. MLB Jerseys Black Friday Deals . -- Baltimore Orioles left fielder Nolan Reimould was taken to a hospital after he was hit in the left side of the head by a fastball from Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Alex Cobb in the first inning of a 3-3, 10-inning tie on Friday.(Sports Network) - The Flames will try to continue their dominance of the rival Edmonton Oilers tonight, as the Battle of Alberta resumes this evening at Calgarys Saddledome. Calgary is 2-0 this season against the Oilers and the Flames are riding a seven-game winning streak in the series. The Flames, who are boasting a 7-3-0 record against Northwest Division foes this year, have also taken 14 of 15 and 16 of the last 18 encounters with Edmonton. Edmonton has also dropped nine straight in Calgary and the Oilers havent tasted victory at the Saddledome since Oct. 17, 2008. The Oilers hosted the Flames last Saturday and Calgary skated away with a 5-3 victory. Miikka Kiprusoff made 26 saves to earn the victory and improve his career record against Edmonton to 30-12-2 with a tie. Calgary followed last Saturdays win over the Oilers with a 5-1 setback the following night in Vancouver, but the Flames have since rebounded with consecutive home wins against Carolina and Colorado. The Flames, who are 7-5-2 on home ice this year, are completing a three-game residency tonight before heading out for four straight on the road. The Flames have also dominated the recent history with Colorado and Olli Jokinen scored a tie-breaking goal with 4:50 remaining in the third period to lift the Flames to Thursdays 3-2 win overr the Avalanche. jerseys from china. It was the ninth consecutive victory in the series for Calgary. Lee Stempniak and Curtis Glencross also scored in the third while Colorado forward T.J. Galiardi served a double-minor for high-sticking. Kiprusoff needed to make just 16 saves for the win. "Our power play produced tonight, which was very good," said Calgary head coach Brent Sutter. The Oilers, meanwhile, were able to end a two-game slide as they closed a five-game homestand with a 4-1 win over Colorado. It was just the second win in the last seven games for Edmonton. Sam Gagner scored twice and added an assist to help the Oilers post the win over the Avalanche. Jordan Eberle had a goal and an assist while Ben Eager also lit the lamp for the Oilers. Nikolai Khabibulin stopped 28 shots in the win. "It was a big improvement, a better effort and just way more commitment to the little things we need to do to be successful," said Edmonton head coach Tom Renney. Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins enter tonight riding six-game point streaks. Eberle has four goals and four assists during his run, while Nugent-Hopkins has three goals and five helpers. Edmonton has lost five of its last seven road games and is just 5-7-1 as the visiting team this season. ' ' '