#1

owed with Chicagos third homer in three innings, a two-run sh

in Here is your first Forum Sat Oct 26, 2019 6:43 am
by sakura698 • 630 Posts

SOCHI, Russia – Even before the Olympic tournament began, before the under-looked and under-appreciated Fins would stun the entire nation of Russia, Olli Jokinen prescribed the formula that would get it done. Andre Dawson Jersey . “I think we have the best goaltending out of all the other countries,” Jokinen said. “We play a good team game. Plus, we feel that at the end of the day it doesnt matter who puts the Finnish jersey on the team is going to play the same game anyways. For us its not so much about the names on the back, its about the good, solid team game and good goaltending.” That was what it took to bring down Alex Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin and the home country at Bolshoy Ice Dome on Wednesday night: spectacular goaltending from Tuukka Rask, a few timely goals and continued adherence to a team game, despite injury losses that seemed too burdensome to overcome. Ever the underdog, Finland has altered the face of these Games in Russia and reminded the hockey world, yet again, why only one country has medaled in three of the four Olympics involving NHL players. “You know that nobody ever believed that we could win, but it doesnt matter,” said captain Teemu Selanne, who had a goal and an assist in the 3-1 upset over Russia. “The experts are wrong many times. We have to believe in our team.” There was no Ovechkin on this team, no Malkin, not even the injured and more recognizable likes of Mikko and Saku Koivu, Valtteri Filppula, or even Aleksander Barkov, the second overall pick in last summers NHL draft. For star power, it came down to Rask, who was terrific with 37 saves, and Selanne, playing in his final Olympics at age 43. “Weve got good team spirit and our style to play,” said Leo Komarov, who played in the NHL with the Maple Leafs last season. The Finns, who won bronze in 1998 and 2010 and silver in 2006, were a determined and youthful bunch on this night, led, however, by the aging Selanne, the unsolvable Rask and 21-year-old Mikael Granlund, who set up Selannes go-ahead goal and eventual game-winner before scoring the third and final marker himself. “I think this is a great business card for Granlund to show how good he can be,” Selanne said of Granlund, who has 28 points in his second season with the Minnesota Wild. In upsetting the Russians and holding Ovechkin and Malkin off the score-board entirely – the pair combined for two goals all tournament – Finland gets an opportunity to play in Fridays semi-final against Sweden with another medal chance close at hand. Mindful of a rest advantage – Russia was playing for the fourth time in five days – Selanne believes a turning point for his country came in their final preliminary round match against Canada during which they lost 2-1 in overtime, hanging around despite an overwhelming talent disparity. “My young teammates, when they realized that they can compete against the best players in the world it felt great,” said Selanne, who played in his first Olympics in 1992. “I dont know how many people saw that, [but] I saw it very [closely]. I was very proud of those guys. I think thats the carryover from that game. Its a good feeling when you realize that you can compete against the best.” Yet again it was a sum of parts defeating what was ultimately an incredibly talented and yet flawed Russian squad, one that buckled under the strain of a countrys worth of pressure. They fell in the quarterfinals for the second straight Olympics. “It sucks,” said Ovechkin, who had just a single goal all tournament, held to three shots by Finland and singled out by his head coach afterward. Rask was there all night to turn aside whatever Ovechkin and the Russians could muster. The 26-year-old got stronger as the game wore on, stopping all 27 shots in the final 40 minutes, including one on Alexander Radulov in the waning moments of victory. “Tuukka?” said Komarov with a grin. “Hes okay.” And ultimately it was Rask, who summed up the under-looked and under-appreciated Finns. “Even though nobody ever picks us to win medals,” he said, “we always seem to find a way to get there and win one.” Xavier Cedeno Jersey . Johansen scored twice and Derek MacKenzie, Brandon Dubinsky and Cam Atkinson also had goals to lead the Blue Jackets to a 5-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Thursday night, ending a three-game losing skid. Fake Cubs Jerseys . -- The Denver Broncos locked up a shutdown cornerback, only his name wasnt Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. https://www.cheapcubs.com/2290t-mark-grace-jersey-cubs.html . -- Blake Griffin scored 32 points and grabbed eight rebounds, DeAndre Jordan had 14 points and 22 rebounds and the Los Angeles Clippers outlasted the Golden State Warriors 98-96 on Thursday night to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round series.KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko simply scoffed when he was asked to summarize in a paragraph Monday nights wild 7-6 victory over the Kansas City Royals. "I dont know if a paragraph is enough," he said. Well, first came the five-run lead that the Royals established in the first inning. Then a frantic comeback by Chicago, capped by Konerkos two-run homer. And finally, clutch pitching by relievers Scott Downs and Jake Petricka to save the series-opening win. All in a nice, tidy paragraph. "We got behind big early, like a lot of games here in the past," Konerko said. "But guys started taking pride in their at-bats and we started to chip away." Alexei Ramirez homered and drove in four runs, and Dayan Viciedo went deep before Konerko -- starting in place of injured slugger Jose Abreu -- hit his go-ahead homer in the fifth. Zach Putnam (2-0) worked two shutout innings in relief of Scott Carroll, and Ronald Belisario also threw two scoreless innings before Downs and Petricka bailed out Matt Lindstrom. Lindstrom, normally the White Sox closer, gave up a leadoff single to Nori Aoki in the ninth, then appeared to step awkwardly fielding a sacrifice bunt by Alcides Escobar that resulted in an error. Downs entered and struck out Eric Hosmer, and then Petricka picked off pinch-runner Jarrod Dyson at second base before getting Billy Butler on a groundout for his first save. "The bullpen was great. They just continue to shine," said White Sox manager Robin Ventura, who was still awaiting word after the game on the severity of Lindstroms right ankle injury. "It didnt look good," he said. Jason Vargas (4-2) squandered the rare five-run lead the Royals pop-gun offence gave him. He allowed all seven White Sox runs in 4 2-3 innings, his shortest outing of the season. "I dont get too mad about a lot of things, but given a five-run lead in the first inning and coughing it up halfway through the fifth inning -- thats not good enough to get it done," he said. Carroll, who grew up just north of Kauffman Stadium iin Liberty, had a rude homecoming for the White Sox. David Bote Jersey. He allowed the first five batters he faced to reach base, failed to get an out on his first 30 pitches and trailed 5-0 by the second inning. "I was making good pitches," he said, "and they were just finding holes." The White Sox got three runs back in the third, when Ramirez hit a 2-2 pitch for his sixth homer, matching his total from last year. They got another back in the fourth, when Viciedo sent a 1-2 pitch over the wall to make it 5-4. Kansas City scraped out a run in the bottom half on Hosmers RBI single, but the White Sox completed their comeback during a messy fifth inning that ended with Vargas on the bench. It began with a single by Adam Eaton and another by Gordon Beckham, who was thrown out trying to reach second. Ramirez made it 6-5 with a groundout, but apparently thought he was safe as he was tagged sliding past the bag. Replays showed he missed the base by about 2 feet. It turned out to be a moot point. Adam Dunn walked moments later, and Konerko followed with Chicagos third homer in three innings, a two-run shot that gave the White Sox the lead. That was it for Vargas, who had been on a roll coming into the game. He won his previous two starts and held high-powered Colorado to two runs in a 3-2 victory his last time out. "Its just a tough one," Butler said. "We had that big first and then we tacked on a run and Konerko hits a home run to put them ahead. You feel like at that point, thats not going to win the game, that there is going to be more scoring. Give their bullpen credit, they came in and did a great job." NOTES: Abreu had an MRI that revealed no structural damage. Ventura characterized it as "good news." ... Royals LHP Bruce Chen (bulging disk) and White Sox LHP Chris Sale (left flexor muscle strain) plan to throw bullpen sessions Tuesday. ... Royals C Salvador Perez left in the eighth inning with a jammed right hand. Hes expected to miss a couple days. ... RHP Yordano Ventura starts for Kansas City on Tuesday night. RHP Andre Rienzo pitches for Chicago. ' ' '

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