TSNs Jack Armstrong offers his thoughts on the Christmas Day extravaganza, including the Nets struggles, the improvement of Serge Ibaka, the feisty Mario Chalmers, the performance of Chandler Parsons and the lane presence of DeAndre Jordan. 1. BROOKLYN NETS: I know Brook Lopez is a good player but come on now. The Chicago Bulls didnt have Derrick Rose and Luol Deng wasnt suited up and they get their tails kicked at home. What I see is a team thats disjointed and just not on the same page in terms of what the plan is. Injuries and the lack of practice time with a healthy group have been factors no doubt but when I see inconsistent effort and lack of fire/passion, then I wonder. I think we all thought this team would be so much better. Now what? Tough decision for GM Billy King. Theyve gone all in with this group and it will be a difficult fix. 2. SERGE IBAKA (Thunder): Each time I watch him, Im more and more impressed with what I see. Hes continuing to improve his game and has become a very nice third piece to compliment Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Plays the game very hard. Relentless in his rebounding effort, finishes in the lane and has become so much more confident in his face-up game and jump shot. He was so raw when he first entered the league but not anymore. Its a true testament to his work ethic. 3. MARIO CHALMERS (Heat): Doesnt get a lot of attention on this team yet hes a feisty perimeter defender and gets the ball to the right places at the right time. Is a guy that can hurt you with the 3-point shot and loves the big moment. Perfect complimentary fit for this club. You dont need to run a lot of plays for him and the style of play is good for his game. Has a really good motor and compete level and playing with such great players has taught him to slow down and concentrate on making the smart play which he does with better consistency. 4. CHANDLER PARSONS (Rockets): Never thought hed be this good as a pro when he came out of the University of Florida. Not a big, strong guy and when you look at him, hes far from a physically imposing figure yet at an explosive/demanding position, hes more than held his own. His performance yesterday against the Spurs was one of pure efficiency and productivity with 21 points, six rebounds and six assists. He makes you guard him from deep (5- 3 Pointers) and has a neat change of pace with his ball skills. Plays the game at a controlled speed yet with superb energy and awareness. A keeper. 5. DE ANDRE JORDAN (Clippers): He gives his team the lane presence that is so important to win consistently in the NBA. Gets 13 rebounds and six blocks against the Warriors and takes only terrific high percentage shots in the lane, usually on offensive rebounds or off of Chris Paul penetration for dunks. As we get into the playoffs in April, Ill be curious to see if Doc Rivers continues to play him major minutes, particularly late in games with his shaky free-throw shooting. Rivers has made it a point of emphasis to play him and boost his stock and compliment him and its paid dividends in an improved player. With coaches leaning towards playing small and adding skill to the court in bigger games, this will be an interesting dynamic to watch develop. . Already owning gold from competition in Vancouver in 2010, Loch posted a combined four-run time of 3:27.526. That included a track-record third run of 51. [url=http://www.shopbrownsofficialjerseys.com/women-michael-bowie-browns-jersey-... Bowie Browns Jersey .C. -- Manny Malhotra had two goals and an assist, leading the Carolina Hurricanes to a 6-3 win over the Ottawa Senators on Saturday. . -- Matt Kuchar and Harris English ran away with the Franklin Templeton Shootout, shooting a 14-under 58 on Sunday in the final-round scramble to break the tournament course record. [url=http://www.shopbrownsofficialjerseys.com/women-nate-orchard-browns-jersey-s... Orchard Youth Jersey .Y. -- The Buffalo Sabres have placed centre Cody Hodgson on injured reserve and recalled two players from their AHL affiliate in Rochester.NEW YORK -- When you have only 10 wins all season, every one is big. So dont ask the New York Islanders to rank them. Whether the moment struck them in the immediate aftermath of a 5-3 victory over the rival New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden, the Islanders werent letting on. They were just happy to come away with a regulation win on Friday night. "I dont think we had won too many games overall," said forward Michael Grabner, who scored two goals. "Weve got to work ourselves back into the playoff picture. Today was a good start, but tomorrow is another test." The Islanders (10-19-7) will host the Pacific Division-leading Anaheim Ducks on Saturday. New York is still a ways away from the playoff race, but it closed within seven points of the sliding Rangers (16-18-2). Thomas Vanek snapped a tie with a power-play goal early in the third period for the Islanders, who earned their first regulation victory in over a month. Vanek scored during a two-man advantage at 1:18 of the third to give the Islanders their second win in 15 games and first in regulation since Nov. 12 against Nashville. They were 2-10-4 since then, including losses after regulation in their previous two. The one that really stung was a home defeat against Tampa Bay on Tuesday in which they blew a late 2-0 lead and were beaten in a shootout. "Weve lost some heartbreakers, there is no doubt about it," Islanders coach Jack Capuano said. "For them to come into this building, on this stage -- its a big win for us." Cal Clutterbuck scored a short-handed, penalty-shot goal, and Grabner added a short-handed tally in the first period. Defenceman Brian Strait scored in the second, and Grabner added an empty-netter with 50.3 seconds left for the Islanders, who scored as many as four goals for the first time in 15 games. "Its good. We scored more than two goals," Capuano said. "Its been a long time." Evgeni Nabokov made 21 saves for the win. The Rangers got goals from Benoit Pouliot, Derek Dorsett and Derek Stepan, but Henrik Lundqvist stopped only 15 of 19 shots as New York fell to 1-4-2 on its team-record, nine-game homestand. "This was definitely a frustrating game. There is no question we beat ourselves," Lundqvist said. "We kept making some simple mistakes, and I was not there to clean it up." The Rangers tied it 2-2 just three minutes into the second when Dorsetts shot from the side boards hit Isllanders defenceman Thomas Hickey in front and caromed in.dddddddddddd The Rangers then grabbed their first lead, but not before Grabner almost scored his second short-handed goal. His drive struck the crossbar. "I had a pretty good move, and I guess I put it a little too high," Grabner said. The Rangers then cashed in at the other end. Rick Nashs pass from the boards struck Hickey and caromed to Stepan for a quick shot that produced the power-play goal at 7:58. However, the Islanders responded with 8:34 left in the second on Straits first regular-season NHL goal, off a feed from Josh Bailey. Prized prospect Ryan Strome earned his first NHL point in his third game. The teams combined for three goals in a span of 2:57 late in the first period -- all during Rangers power plays, but only one scored by the home team. With Islanders teammate Andrew MacDonald off for high-sticking, Clutterbuck made it 1-0 when he scored on a questionable penalty shot. Clutterbuck was awarded the attempt after he got free for a breakaway with defenceman Ryan McDonagh chasing. McDonagh gave a light check with his stick, and that was enough for the penalty shot to be called -- much to the dismay of incredulous Rangers coach Alain Vigneault. "I just felt that I got a little tug," Clutterbuck said. "Obviously, it impeded me from making a play. Thats what the ref saw, I guess." Clutterbuck netted his fourth of the season when his shot eluded Lundqvists glove. The Rangers went on their third power play of the period 2:27 later, and again the Islanders took advantage. The puck got past McDonagh at the point, and the speedy Grabner took off alone. He cut from right-to-left and tucked the puck inside the left post with 2:51 left in the first. Grabner had gone 31 games without a goal since he netted two on opening night at New Jersey on Oct. 4. The Rangers got one back 30 seconds later on that power play when Pouliot scored from in-close off a pass from Chris Kreider. New York went 2 for 7 on the power play, allowing two goals in the process and failing to score on two opportunities in the games final 6-plus minutes. "When you outwork teams, you will find the bounces going your way," Nash said. "When you get outworked, thats when they seem to go against you." NOTES: Bailey had gone 12 games without a point. ... Rangers forward J.T. Miller was in the lineup after being recalled from Hartford (AHL) on Thursday. Cheap Jerseys nfl jerseys cheap authentic wholesale jerseys jerseys from china authentic Cheap Jerseys wholesale stitched jerseys ' ' '