Dein erstes Forum » seventh after Xander Bogaerts reached second on Lawr

SOCHI, Russia – Jeff Carter has played alongside the likes of Peter Forsberg, Claude Giroux, Rick Nash, Daniel Briere, and Anze Kopitar, but not one of them stacks up to Drew Doughty in one key department. "Hes probably the most skilled guy Ive ever played with and Ive played with some pretty good players," Carter said after a close 2-1 overtime win against Finland. "When his confidence is going [and] hes feeling good about himself he can do anything out there. Its pretty amazing to watch." Doughty scored both Canadian goals – including the upset-preventing overtime winner – late Sunday evening, lifting his country to top spot in Group-B and a berth in the quarterfinals. On a grand Olympic stage that features the highest caliber of talent this game has to offer, the 24-year-old from London, Ontario stands out as one of the very best. "I forget about everything thats going on around me and Im just focused in on that game and having fun," he said. Third in tournament scoring after the preliminary round, Doughty leads Canada with four goals – including one in each of the three games – and five points, totaling nearly 20 minutes of ice-time against the Finns. No apparent fear or uncertainty seems to exist on his part, no matter the venue. Doughty is willing to force the action and assert himself on centre-stage, if and when the moment presents itself. This was clear again in overtime at Bolshoy Ice Dome when he deposited a Carter feed beyond the pads of the nearly-unbeatable Tuukka Rask. It was perhaps most emphatic during the 2010 Olympics when he proved a revelation as a 20-year-old for the gold-medal winning Canadian squad. "Confidence," said Carter in a word. "When you put all his skill with that confidence its pretty amazing." And maybe his personality has something to do with that no-fear persona on the biggest stages, which also included a Stanley Cup with the Los Angeles Kings in 2012. Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Doughtys defence partner here in Sochi, describes him as "pretty loose" and "funny". A teammate for two-plus seasons with the Kings, Carter agrees, calling him "one of a kind for sure", always with "a smile on his face, bouncing around, laughing, having a good time." Those easy-going qualities seem to translate to the ice. "He plays loose out there," Carter said. "Hes not scared to try and make plays too and I think thats what make him such a dynamic player." Doughty carries a cool about him on the ice that makes every one of his movements seem controlled and purposeful, almost as if nothing else out there matters in the scheme of what he has to offer the game. His passes are crisp and on the tape. His daring rushes look as though they were designed beforehand, each stride, angle and movement carefully calculated. His instincts with the puck make it seem as if he is just a step ahead of what lies next. "Thats what Drew does," said Carter of Doughty, the No. 2 overall pick from the 2008 draft, who is logging 26 minutes per game for the Kings this season. "He does it all year for us [in Los Angeles] and probably doesnt get as much recognition as he should because of the time zone and what not." Doughty doesnt look nor appear nervous on this stage, but says he was four years ago in Vancouver during that first Olympic stint. But the nerves that bubbled there were not for the reasons one might think. It had nothing to do with the pressure of bidding for gold on home soil, but was more about his youthful place on a veteran roster that featured aging stars and future Hall-of-Famers like Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger. "I was just a little young guy there, had so many older guys around me that I didnt know whatsoever," he said. "I was nervous mostly because of that, not because of the fans and the pressure and the country and all that, it was just meeting all these All-Star players." If not leaning on Niedermayer and Pronger for wisdom, Doughty made sure to stash other hints for success. "Just watching them thats all I had to do," he said. "And I learned so many things just watching those guys play and it helped me out for this one for sure." Doughty looks like hes just having fun, like the intensity of all that lays around him has no bearing. Facing a large horde of media after his overtime winner he stepped toward a microphone and began to speak only to be reminded that he needed to actually speak into the microphone. Cool and jovial, he responded with a sarcastic crack, "I actually gotta talk into the microphone?" Cheap Jerseys From China .J. Hardy to avoid a three-game sweep after blowing a big early lead. Odour had a leadoff single in the seventh and scored the tiebreaking run with the help of two errors by Hardy as the Rangers went on to beat the Orioles 8-6 on Thursday night. Cheap China Jerseys . CSKA received the heavier punishment of playing its next European home game behind closed doors, after its supporters displayed racist and far-right symbols in the Czech Republic during a 2-1 loss to Viktoria Plzen on Dec. http://www.wholesalecheapauthenticnfljerseys.com/ . Both moves were announced Tuesday. The Titans had waived Matthews on Saturday when they promoted wide receiver Michael Preston from the practice squad. Wholesale Authentic NFL Jerseys . The move - the latest twist in Greeces nearly three-year financial freefall -- is the first such action by any of the countrys major sports bodies. It immediately halts all domestic track and field competitions, including track meets May 12-13 in several Greek cities. Cheap Baseball Jerseys Authentic . While hell be dialed in to that tournament on a course he loves, you can forgive him if his eyes glance down the calendar just a bit, towards April.BOSTON -- Clay Buchholz feels like hes ready for the postsesason. He just wont have a perfect record when he gets there. Buchholz lost for the first time this season, and the AL East champion Boston Red Sox rested a couple of regulars while falling to Mark Buehrle and the Toronto Blue Jays, 4-2, on Saturday night. Having missed more than three months with a strained neck, Buchholz feels like his strength is where it was before the injury. He just needs to fine tune a few things. "I feel good. Movement on all the pitches is there," he said. "Its just the command and location and where to start it, which is sometimes hard to get better. The velocity is there and the body feels good." Buchholz (11-1) gave up two earned runs on six hits and two walks in six innings. He had pitched 11 scoreless innings in his previous two starts since coming off the disabled list. A day after the Red Sox clinched the division title, they lost for just the sixth time in 21 games. Manager John Farrell didnt start second baseman Dustin Pedroia and first baseman Mike Napoli, and used starter Ryan Dempster for an inning of relief. Buchholz was the first Boston pitcher to start a season 11-0 in his initial 14 starts since Roger Clemens went 13-0 in 1986. "I thought Clay was pretty sharp and pretty crisp for the time he was out on the mound tonight," Farrell said. "He was fighting to get back out for the seventh, but seeing the progression hes on, I think was a comfortable number of pitches for tonight." Buchholz broke into a slight grin when he was asked about how hard it is to go undefeated for an entire season. "It probably could have easily have happened sooner than now," he said. "The guys that play behind me all year have found ways to come back in situations where I came out of the game behind in the game." Bostons lead over Oakland dropped to 1 1/2 games for the ALs best record and home-field throughout the post-season. Dempster made his first relief appearance since 2007, working a scoreless eighth. Boston third baseman Will Middlebrooks shifted to first for the first time in his career. Jonny Gomes and David Ross each drove in a run for the Red Sox. Adam Linds RBI double highlighted a three-run fourth that carried the Blue Jays. Bueehrle (12-9) held Boston to one run for the third time in five starts that hes faced them this year.dddddddddddd He allowed five hits, striking out five without walking a batter. He reached 200 innings for the 13th straight season. "Wish it was in a better situation," Buehrle said of reaching the mark again. Manager John Gibbons was impressed by the left-handers season. "Steady Eddy," Gibbons said. "Doing what he has been doing his whole career. You get 25 Buehrles and you are probably gonna have a good year." Casey Janssen pitched the ninth for his 33rd save in 35 chances. Torontos Munenori Kawasaki was ejected by first base umpire Eric Cooper in the eighth after slamming his helmet when he was called out on a close play. The Blue Jays scored all three runs with two outs in the fourth after Brett Lawrie beat out a routine grounder to short for an infield hit. Lind followed with an RBI double, Rajai Davis added a run-scoring single and Moises Sierra scored from third on Buchholzs errant pickoff throw to first. Gomes RBI single cut it to 3-1 in the sixth. Ross run-scoring grounder sliced it to 3-2 in the seventh after Xander Bogaerts reached second on Lawries fielding error at third base. J.P. Arencibia snapped an 0-for-27 stretch with an RBI single off the Green Monster in the Toronto ninth. NOTES: Pedroia had started 151 of the teams initial 152 games. He pinch-hit in the seventh and struck out. "The hardest thing is hes not going to know what to do," Farrell said, joking before the game. "He may end up back on the field because we want to get him the heck out of the dugout." ... Middlebrooks knew things would be a different in his debut at first. "Ive never played first in my life," he said, standing on the field after batting practice. "The hardest thing for me is going to be how to try and hold the runners on, which way to stand with my footwork." ... Red Sox CF Jacoby Ellsbury, sidelined for his 14th straight game with a broken small bone in his right foot, ran and hit in the cage. The club is planning for his return before the end of the regular season. ... Felix Doubront (10-6, 4.15 ERA) goes for Boston against R.A. Dickey (13-12, 4.21 ERA) in the series -- and Bostons home-- finale Sunday. ' ' '