lingzi
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From the time Justin Schultz opted to make himself an unrestricted free agent
and not sign with Anaheim, the team that drafted him, the Edmonton Oilers were
always considered a prime potential landing spot. Eric Weddle Jersey . Schultz is a talented
offensive defenceman and, at age 22, is in the same new age wheelhouse as the
other bright Oilers offensive stars – Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle,
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Nail Yakupov – and having a chance to grow old together
obviously appealed to Schultz. Boys on the Bus, part two if you will. And while
many made note of ex-Oiler greats Wayne Gretzky and Paul Coffey lobbying Schultz
on behalf of the Oilers, its believed the presence of new head coach Ralph
Krueger and Taylor Hall at the Schultz meeting really helped to cement Edmonton
as his choice. But as a prospect who hasnt played a game in the NHL, Schultz
still has a lot to prove, as do the cellar-dwelling Oilers, for that matter, who
really need to at least contend for a playoff spot this season. Many were miffed
Schultz didnt just sign with Anaheim and hell obviously be public enemy No. 1 in
Duck Country for rejecting them while exercising his rights within the CBA. But
Oiler fans might say turnabout is fair play after Chris Pronger bolted out of
Edmonton and Anaheim was the beneficiary of that in 2006. In any case, the focus
will now shift to the big free-agent fish expected to be available on Sunday,
the first official day of the 2012-13 season and Free Agency. Nashville
defenceman Ryan Suter will be home in Wisconsin on Sunday while his
Minnesota-based agent Neil Sheehy will be fielding offers. Sheehy said Suter
will go to market but Nashville still hopes to be in the mix. New Jersey Devil
captain Zach Parise flew into Toronto on Saturday and is expected to be camped
out at his agents at Newport Sports in Mississauga. But New Jersey GM Lou
Lamoriello was scheduled to meet with Parise Saturday night in hopes of perhaps
signing him before he goes to market at 12 noon ET Sunday. New Jersey, what with
its ownership and economic issues, may simply not be in a position to close a
deal with Parise. In a year where quality greatly trumps quantity for this
free-agent crop, all eyes will be on Suter and Parise. Antonio Gates Jersey . But considering how
much the Miami Marlins are struggling, maybe its not all that surprising. “Its
just a tough time right now for me and a lot of people,” Nolasco said. Philip Rivers Jersey . Montreals 4-2 win
Saturday night left the Bruins languishing in 15th place in the East and 29th in
the league overall. Only the Columbus Blue Jackets sit below them. http://www.nikesandiegochargersjerseyssale.com/philip-rivers-jerseys?women=18
. Ty Lawson scored 32 points, fellow spark plug Corey Brewer added 18 and the
free-wheeling, too-young-to-scare Nuggets forced a Game 7 in their first-round
playoff series with a dominating 113-96 win Thursday night. Ryan Mathews Jersey . In other moves Tuesday,
they activated outfielder Daniel Nava and reliever Vicente Padilla from the
disabled list and optioned third baseman Danny Valencia to Triple-A Pawtucket.
Eric Weddle Womens Jersey . World champion
Catharine Pendrel of Harvey Station, N.B., is the headliner on the team unveiled
Wednesday. Rising star Emily Batty of Brooklin, Ont.EDMONTON—If the Edmonton
Oilers win their final two games this season, theyll finish with 15 more points
than they did last year and the year before that. But before the Oilers can plug
those numbers into the equation, theyll have to beat the Anaheim Ducks at Rexall
Place on Thursday and the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena on Saturday. Is that
progress? Sure. The debate is in the degree. “I think weve already made progress
to tell you the truth, regardless of what happens,” captain Shawn Horcoff said.
“Weve had great leaps and strides forward with our young guys and were going to
get another good (draft) pick. Were going to be older and a little more
experienced next year. I think experience goes a long way.” After finishing 30th
overall in back-to-back seasons with 62 points, the Oilers face the Ducks in
their final home game with a record of 32-39-9 for 73 points. At worst, the
Oilers will be 11 points better when theyre done with the Ducks and the Canucks.
The Oilers are locked into 14th place in the Western Conference. Theyll miss the
playoffs for the sixth straight season and fall well short of being post-season
contenders, which is where GM Steve Tambellini set the bar when the season
began. “Our goal is to make the playoffs and thats it, really,” said Sam Gagner.
“You can talk about improvement or different things like that, but, at the end
of the day, that has to be our focus. “You have to have that fire that, you
know? We are improving, but we have to continually get better if were going to
make the playoffs. Its an exciting challenge for us next year. We want to finish
this season as good as we can and focus on the right things.” When the Oilers
jumped out to an 8-2-2 start and briefly sat atop conference standings, they
were the surprises of the NHL and the playoff push Tambellini talked about
seemed possible. Theyd win just eight times in the next 29 games and wouldnt
recover, hitting the halfway mark of the season at 16-22-3. “Its the long
stretches of poor hockey we have to stay away from,” Horcoff said. “We had a lot
of injuries to significant players during that time, so it would be nice to stay
a little bit healthy for onne season, too. Antonio Gates Womens Jersey. ” While the
playoff push went bust by the end of December and theres been minimal
improvement in terms of moving up in the standings, theres are some obvious
signs of progress. Jordan Eberle sits 14th in league scoring with 75 points.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is tied for the rookie lead with 51 points despite missing
20 games because of a shoulder injury. Taylor Hall had 53 points in 61 games
before his second season was ended by a concussion and shoulder surgery. “I know
weve made progress as far as being a better team,” Eberle said. “A lot of things
show it. I know were making progress and thats all that matters. “We wanted a
little more. We wanted to be in that hunt for a playoff spot, so the season
definitely hasnt gone the way we wanted it. That puts more expectations on next
year.” The Oilers have scored 210 goals and allowed 233, leaving them minus-23
in goal-differential. Last season, they were minus-76 and in 2009-10 they were
minus-70. The power play, ranked second, is greatly improved. The penalty
killing has been better. “Everyone in here is a competitor. Thats why we made it
to the NHL,” Eberle said. “As hockey players, you want to win. “A winning
attitude is huge for us. You cant let a losing mentality creep into your game
because thats when it really starts to hurt. For the most part, weve kept that
out. With inconsistent play and injuries, we havent had the season we wanted.
Weve definitely made progress, but we have a lot of work to do.” How far the
Oilers have come and how far theyve got to go is up for debate. Gagner, without
a taste of playoffs as he completes his fifth NHL season, has his own
perspective. “Theyre starting to show commercials again for the playoffs at this
time of year,” Gagner said. “When youre not part of it for another year, to be
out of it, its disappointing.” Hes hoping next season will be different. “There
is progress, but we cant have another year where we look back and say, Theres
always next year. It has to be a situation where were ready to go, were focusing
on the right things and we dont let the little things get in our way.” ’ ’ ’
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