eclined to talk to the media and met privately wit...
Please login or register free to be able to post.
View forum:
eclined to talk to the media and met privately with team chairman Ed
Started by
wff0605,
2014/09/26 07:15AM
Latest post: 2014/09/26 07:15AM, Views: 247, Posts: 1
Latest post: 2014/09/26 07:15AM, Views: 247, Posts: 1
wff0605
WINNIPEG -- Getting an NHL team back was enough of a high for 2011-12, but fans and the team are expecting more as the Winnipeg Jets enter their second season. Wholesale Jerseys Free Shipping . Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff made that clear months ago when his team finished out of the playoffs last season. "Its a sport that we play for the fans. . . We would expect nothing less than expectations continue to grow each and every day," he said. This season, they want to snag the playoff berth that seemed tantalizingly close at times last year. Theyve added a little size and little experience, but Jets version 2.2 doesnt look a lot different from last year, so whether they achieve that goal or not remains a big question mark. It likely doesnt hurt their chances that realignment has been shelved for another season. Although the Jets finished fourth in the Southeast Division, they had a division-leading 32 points and 14-6-4 record against Southeast rivals. And they arent particularly bummed out by travel prospects in what is already a very tight schedule. "It is what it is and its not that bad," coach Claude Noel said. "I really like the way it closes up in April with the homestand." The Jets play six straight home games from April 6-April 20, two on the road and then return for their final regular-season game April 25 against Montreal. The Jets have to look inside, not outside, as they prepare for this season, Noel suggests. "When you look at all the numbers and you look at the way we performed last year, there were some glaring areas that we have to be better. . . "If were going to find solutions to the problems that we have, then lets address the problems and lets find solutions to these problems, the schedule is what it is." So what are the problems? No. 1 on the list seems to be defence. The Jets allow too many shots -- quality shots -- on their own net. Their defence, in particular Dustin Byfuglien, is great on offence. Byfuglien tied for second in the league in scoring by a defenceman and overall the defence was No. 5 in scoring in 2011-12. Despite ranking near the top of the list in the number of saves he managed, goalie Ondrej Pavelecs percentages were well down in the pack, in part because he just faced too many shots. There are no big changes in personnel this season on defence, although the Jets have a hole to fill early with Zach Bogosian still recovering from wrist surgery. Instead, Noel is trying to make the players he has more alert to whats going on around them when coming back and in certain key areas to prevent quality shots. Problem No. 2, home versus away. The Jets were a solid 23-13-5 at home last season. The MTS Centre is sold out for every game, fans are loud and proud and the energy is palpable. Almost every team does better playing at home but 14-22-5 on the road isnt a path to the playoffs. Washington (16-21-4) and Detroit (17-21-3) were the only sub .500 road teams that qualified last season. The Jets scored 122 goals at home last season, good enough for eighth in the league. They let in 100 and their power-play was ranked No. 2. On the road, they scored 99 goals but, perhaps even more telling they gave up 142, the second worst number in the league, which again points to the need to improve defensively. Their power play ranked a dismal 28th. With four players scoring 50 points or better last season, the Jets clearly have an offence, but they also need to perform well no matter where they play. New addition Olli Jokinen had 61 points with the Flames, so he improves the odds significantly. Problem No. 3, youth. With youth comes inexperience and the Jets were a fairly young team. Now, not quite so much. Evander Kane may be just 21 but it looks like hes on a line with Jokinen, whose 34 years and more than 1,000 NHL games help tilt the scales. Not that Kane was ineffective last year as Winnipegs No. 2 scorer, with a personal-best 30 goals. But the Jets need even more from him if they want to play past April. Alexei Ponikarovsky, 32, also has been added to the offence and could be playing alongside Alex Bumistrov, 21, on the teams third line. Mark Scheifele, still just 19, is trying to crack the lineup but the field is getting pretty crowded with the addition just this week of husky fourth-line winger Anthony Peluso. Players like Blake Wheeler, last years scoring leader in Winnipeg, just seem to keep getting better but Noel also wants to see a mental change in the rest of his team this season. "I would just like us to start walking and behaving like winners," he said. "Weve got to go in expecting to win on the road, expecting things, more from each other on the road. Thats the attitude difference that Id like us to start thinking about. "But a lot of that is earned. Teams that are constantly above the line and in the playoffs, that just becomes a normal every-day existence for them. We havent reached that point yet." cheap nfl jerseys . Tsonga fired 11 aces and didnt drop a service game in the match to improve his record to four wins in five tour-level matches against his French compatriot. After Tsonga got the decisive break of the first set in the second game, the second set went with serve until the tiebreaker. cheap football jerseys online . Priscilla Lopes-Schliep and Perdita Felicien both failed to qualify for Canadas team bound for London in a dramatic womens 100-metre hurdles final that saw heptathlete Jessica Zelinka emerge the winner. http://www.nfl-jerseyscheap.com/ . Second-seeded Sloane Stephens of the United States made lighter work of her day as she beat 2009 champion and Swiss wild card Timea Bacsinszky 6-3, 6-3. Two seeds fell: No. 4 Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium lost to Katarzyna Piter of Poland 6-4, 6-2, and No. nfl jerseys china authentic . Vickerson was injured in the Broncos loss at New England Sunday night. Hes the second Denver defensive starter to get hurt this month, joining safety Rahim Moore (leg), who was put on recallable IR. nfl jerseys china . -- Its unusual for the Trail Blazers to talk about being frustrated with a win.PHILADELPHIA -- Martin Brodeur has blanked all types of Flyers teams over two decades. He never had a shutout against one this bad. Brodeur was flawless in his 12th career shutout against Philadelphia, and Adam Henrique and Cam Janssen each scored goals to lead the New Jersey Devils to a 3-0 win over the Flyers on Thursday night. "Ive played the way I feel capable of playing, and I feel comfortable," Brodeur said. "Ive been working hard in practice, knowing I dont get as many starts as I would like." The Flyers beat the Devils 1-0 on Saturday in New Jersey. Henriques first-period goal would have been enough to stand in this one. Brodeur was never seriously challenged against the NHLs weakest offence and posted his 122nd career shutout. The Flyers have scored two goals in their last four games and have twice been shutout over that span. The anemic Devils havent been much better. They were blanked in their last two games, snapping the scoreless drought on Henriques goal only 1:57 into the game. Janssen scored in the third period. "Obviously the men went seven periods, and I think regardless of what you say, there are seeds planted in the back of your mind," Devils coach Peter DeBoer said. "To get a break early like that, I think it relieved a little bit of pressure. I thought we played a really good road game." Jaromir Jagr added an empty-netter with 1.3 seconds left. Both teams lived up to their billing as the worst offences in the NHL. The Devils entered next-to-last in the league with 27 goals while the Flyers were at the bottom with 22. The Flyers fell to a woeful 4-10-1 and held a closed-door team meeting for about 15 minutes. "Ive got to get them to play better, thats my job," coach Craig Berube said. "Its not a hard game. Its about competitiveness and a will to win and to do all the little things right to win." For as punchless as the Flyers offence has been, they were 52.3 seconds away from consecutive 1-0 wins after beating the Devils and holding a late lead against Carolina on Tuesday night. But the Hurricanes tied it in the final minute and won the game in overtime.. cheap nfl jerseys. . The victory did make it another big night at the Wells Fargo Center for New Jersey owners Joshua Harris and David Blitzer. They bought the Devils in August, giving them duel ownership with the NBAs Philadelphia 76ers. The rebuilding Sixers stunned Miami and Chicago in the building last week. The Devils scored first when Eric Gelinas shot was deflected from the high slot by Henrique past Ray Emery. "We did a lot of things that we talked about; trying to get to those dirty areas and get those dirty goals," Henrique said. Emery got the start after the 1-0 shutout win over the Devils on Saturday. He stopped 14 shots in the win and 22 on Thursday. Janssen redirected Adam Larssons shot early in the third for the 2-0 lead. Emery has only one win this season. "We definitely have the resolve, have the guys in the room that want to get it going and theyre willing to do whatever we have to, to get it going," he said. The Flyers offence put almost no pressure on Brodeur, taking just six shots in the second period. He scored just his fourth NHL goal in 313 games. "He thinks he belongs here. Dont tell him that he doesnt belong here," DeBoer said. "Thats just the attitude that he has, and people feel that. Hes a good kid. He takes care of himself, and he works really hard at the game, because he needs to. Its all good for him to be here." Flyers centre Claude Giroux, the team captain, has not scored a goal in 15 games this season. Hes twice scored 25-plus goals and averaged a point-per-game in last years lockout-shortened season. He declined to talk to the media and met privately with team chairman Ed Snider. The Flyers were booed off the ice between each period by a crowd that thins out with each defeat. "You hear the boos," Flyers forward Wayne Simmonds said. "That just means youre not doing your job. The fans react to what they see." NOTES: Flyers F Steve Downie (concussion) did not play. ... Brodeur has 47 wins against the Flyers. ... The Flyers have lost seven of nine home games this season. ... The Devils won for the second time in 10 road games. ' ' '
Please login or register free to be able to post.
- Links allowed: yes
- Allow HTML: no
- Allow BB code yes
- Allow youTube.com: yes
- Allow code: yes
- Links visible: no
- Quick reply: yes
- Post preview: yes