TRENTON – Matthew Lombardis role with the Leafs is about to expand. The 29-year-old is on the verge of moving up the lineup, set to centre the third line with Colby Armstrong and Matt Frattin against the Flames on Saturday. "Im looking forward to the challenge," said Lombardi, following the teams final day of practice at the RCAF Arena in Trenton. "I think the progression has been good so far. Ive gotten into a bunch of different situations in the last couple of games; whether its on the penalty kill late in the game, wing, centre, Ive had a little bit of everything, so its been good in terms of progression." "Yeah, Ive talked to him and hes starting to feel really good," explained Leafs coach Ron Wilson. "I see him improving every day and he feels better every day." Tentative in his use of Lombardi during the first two games, Wilson admitted he was uncertain of what to expect from the Montreal native in the short-term. "Well just play it by ear," said Wilson, who has the option of using David Steckel in such a role, "[see] how he adjusts during the games and go from there." Lombardi is still trying to shake off whatever rust and timing issues may remain after nearly a year sidelined by a concussion. He began the season with limited ice-time in a fourth line role. In the season opener against Montreal last week, he played just over 11 minutes, notching the shorthanded game-winner and an assist in the Leafs 2-0 win. Two nights later versus Ottawa, he clocked in at 10:28, adding another assist on Phil Kessels eventual game-winner in a 6-5 victory. With good speed, keen offensive instincts, a knack for two-way play and the penalty kill, Lombardi offers an intriguing fit for Wilson in a third line position. Offense beyond the likes of Mikhail Grabovski, Nikolai Kulemin, Clarke MacArthur and Phil Kessel was difficult to locate last season, making the potential of Lombardis contributions all the more interesting. Hes scored more than 14 goals on five different occasions, including a 19 goal, 53 point campaign with Phoenix two seasons ago. When he was acquired from Nashville in July, Lombardi wasnt even able to skate because of concussion symptoms, making his quick comeback all the more surprising. Anxious to return to his old form, hes put the concussion and all of its remnants in the past. "Thats kind of the way Im trying to look at it," he said. "I dont want to dwell on anything. I dont want to sit back and be content in terms of getting one game in – obviously I want to keep getting better and push myself to get back to where I was." -- Cody Franson, another former Predator, is primed for his first game with the Leafs. The 24-year-old is slated to make his season debut against the Flames on Saturday after sitting as a healthy scratch in the first two games. "I want to put my best foot forward and make it tough for them to take me out again," said Franson, who logged 80 games with Nashville last season. "I dont like watching games so Im going to do my best to make it tough on them. "It takes a kick at your pride when something like that happens. They say its a matter of losing jobs or winning jobs back, I dont plan on giving mine up." Franson saw his tentative place on the Leafs blue-line slip in training camp with the rise of 21-year-old Jake Gardiner. "I thought I was going to be one of the guys that kind of helped take charge and make the team go in the right direction early," he said. "It was just one of those things that didnt happen to work out that way. I kind of had to deal with that, bury my chin and keep working." "Hes got to move pucks. Hes got to play well defensively and I know he can help our power-play for sure with the shot that he has," said Wilson. The challenge for Wilson is integrating Franson consistently into the lineup. With three right-handed shot defencemen in Franson, Luke Schenn and Mike Komisarek, but only two slots available – Dion Phaneuf prefers playing the right – Wilson has but two positions for a group of three. With Schenn set alongside John-Michael Liles on the second pairing that number falls to one, making it likely that Franson is suiting up on the left, something hes never done before. "I dont know how were going to handle that," said Wilson. "We have more right-handed defencemen probably than any team in the league so somebody has to play left." Jake Gardiner is the obvious choice to sit on Saturday. Komisarek has logged over 16 minutes in each of the first two games and appears to be regaining the confidence of prior days. cheap jerseys from china . 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Ray Whitney, Phoenixs leading scorer last season, scored a goal in the first game against his former team.Ames, IA (SportsNetwork.com) - A marquee Big 12 Conference showdown is on tap for Monday night at Hilton Coliseum, as the Iowa State Cyclones play host to Canadas Andrew Wiggins and the Kansas Jayhawks. Kansas suffered a 61-57 home loss to San Diego State on Jan. 5 in its final non-conference bout, but since then it has opened up Big 12 play with back-to- back wins at Oklahoma (90-83) and most recently at home versus nationally- ranked Kansas State on Saturday (86-60). The Jayhawks are now 11-4 overall but have won just one true road game in three tries. Iowa State opened up the season with 14 straight wins, its best start in school history as well as its longest-ever winning streak, but its perfect campaign came to an end on Saturday afternoon at Oklahoma with an 87-82 setback to dip to 2-1 in league play. The Cyclones are still perfect at Hilton Coliseum (8-0) and have won 31 of their last 32 games in Ames dating back to the 2011-12 campaign. The Jayhawks have a firm handle on the Cyclones in the all-time series, 174-59, which includes wins in all three outings last season. Hosting their nationally-ranked intrastate rival over the weekend, Kansas made easy work of K-State, outshooting it from the field, 56.1 percent to 44 percent, en route to the 26-point victory. Andrew Wiggins paced all scorers with 22 points, doing so on 7-of-13 from the field (including 3-of-4 from 3- point range) and 5-of-6 from the free-throw line. Wayne Selden Jr. was hot on his heels with 20 points, Perry Ellis netted 12, Joel Embiid tallied 11 points and nine boards and Naadir Tharpe rounded out the balanced attack by handing out nine assists. The Jayhawks offense has been potent all season long, as they shoot greater than 50 percent from the field for 79.1 ppg, which is 10.4 ppg more than tthey allow on the other end of the floor.ddddddddddddWiggins may not be living up to the incredible preseason hype as one of the best incoming freshman in recent memory, but hes still in the midst of a stellar campaign with 15.7 ppg and 5.4 rpg. Fellow first-year player Embiid has manned the paint on both ends of the floor with 10.5 ppg, 7.3 rpg, and 2.4 bpg, all while shooting nearly 66 percent from the field. Ellis (13.7 ppg, 6.7 rpg), Selden (10.3 ppg) and Tharpe (8.0 ppg, 5.4 apg) round out one of the nations best starting lineups. After playing the first half of its most recent contest to a 39-39 tie, Iowa State fell behind Oklahoma by as many as 13 in the second stanza and could not climb back in the game. It shot an impressive 52.3 percent from the field in the win, but only 6-of-26 came from beyond the arc and it was outscored at the foul line, 18-8. DeAndre Kane was outstanding as usual with 23 points, nine rebounds and four assists, but left the game early with an ankle injury and is out indefinitely. Melvin Ejim poured in 21 points, while Georges Niang and Dustin Hogue scored 14 and 13, respectively. The Cyclones have one of the countrys most potent offensive attacks, ranking 11th in field-goal percentage (.495), 12th in 3-pointers per game (8.9) and sixth in scoring (86.7 ppg), but their production is bound to take a dip if Kane (16.5 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 6.1 apg) has to miss significant time. Luckily the squad still has plenty of impressive scorers to rely on, led by Ejim (18.0 ppg, 7.1 rpg), who shoots 52.1 percent from the field and 76.3 percent from the foul line. Niang (15.3 ppg) and Dustin Hogue (12.3 ppg, 9.3 rpg) bring regular contributions to the table, while Naz Long (8.4 ppg) will likely see increased minutes in the backcourt without Kane. cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '