COLUMBUS, Ohio -- David Clarksons debut was supposed to help the Toronto Maple Leafs establish an identity.
Josh
Williams Toronto Jersey . Instead, he and his teammates were outworked by
the Columbus Blue Jackets in a penalty-filled 5-2 loss Friday night at
Nationwide Arena. Clarkson took the first of eight minor penalties in a choppy
game that left players searching for answers. "We know weve got better, we know
we have to do the right things to be an A-team in this league and we didnt do
the right things tonight," said forward Dave Bolland, who scored the Leafs
second goal and took two penalties. Special teams play was a major reason
Toronto entered the game 7-3-0 despite coach Randy Carlyle lamenting his teams
lack of an identity early this season. The Leafs only gave up one power-play
goal to Columbus, but the parade to the penalty box still hurt them. They spent
11 minutes 32 seconds shorthanded, forcing goaltender Jonathan Bernier to take
on a heavy workload and disrupting the flow of the game. Six of the minor
penalties were stick infractions, in part the result of what Blue Jackets coach
Todd Richards figured was his groups best skating game of the year. "Theyre a
good team, they work hard, they had a good forecheck on us," said Bernier, who
stopped 31 of the 35 shots he faced. "We had some scoring chances, we just didnt
put it in the net." The Blue Jackets got on the board on the power play, as
defenceman Ryan Murray scored his first NHL goal just 39 seconds after Clarkson
was penalized for hooking Nick Foligno. Marian Gaborik scored in the third not
long after Nazem Kadri was released from the box after the second of his three
penalties, and Brandon Dubinsky scored the game-winner with Columbus shorthanded
later in the period. "The power plays were definitely lopsided, and then we get
a break to go four-on-three and we give up a short-handed (goal)," Carlyle said.
"Kind of set the table for what happened tonight." It was an uneven performance
from the get-go for the Leafs, who were outshot 16-5 in the first period and
didnt get on the board until Phil Kessel scored 40 seconds after the first
intermission. Penalties piled up after that, and Bernier did his best to keep
his team in the game. "Weve got to get a better effort," said Clarkson, who had
four shots, two penalty minutes and a minus-1 rating in 15:10 of ice time.
"Especially Bernies been playing that well for us, and we kind of hang him out
to dry there a little bit." Bernier said the Leafs didnt bring their "effort"
against the Blue Jackets, but that wasnt lacking from Clarkson, who missed the
first 10 games of the season while serving a suspension for leaving the bench to
enter a pre-season fight. Carlyle figured Clarkson looked "rusty" but expected
that after so much time away from game action. "Hes going to try, hes going to
work," Carlyle said. "The other things as far as the stick-handling and the
turnovers and stuff, I think youve got to give the guy some slack. He hasnt
played any games this year. Everybody else is about 10 games ahead of him."
Clarkson didnt feel rusty but wasnt giving himself any glowing reviews, in part
because of the final result. "Any time you lose, you dont feel good," Clarkson
said. "I felt like on the forecheck my jump was there, I felt OK. ... (But) its
all about winning right now, and it doesnt matter how anyone feels weve got to
find a way to win it, weve got to play better than that." After signing a
US$36.75-million, seven-year deal with the Leafs in the off-season and taking on
the expectations that went with it, Clarkson was anxious to make an impact.
Weeks of bag skates prepared him for this moment, but once the puck dropped he
tried to forget about all that. "I think Ive played in the league long enough
that its not just another game, but when youve been out that long, you want to
get out there and get some hits and get on the forecheck and make some plays,"
he said. "All that stuff, hopefully one down and now well get going." Clarkson
wasnt to blame for the Leafs third-period meltdown, which included Gaboriks
fifth goal of the season and Dubinskys shorthanded that came on a bad break. In
his third straight start, Bernier faulted himself for not making enough saves,
but the ex-New York Rangers forward made just about the perfect shot. "Youve got
to give the shooter credit sometime," Bernier said. "He put it right under the
bar. It was a good shot." Clarkson and his teammates must try to rebound
quickly, with Sidney Crosby (18 points in 10 games) and the Pittsburgh Penguins
visiting Air Canada Centre on Saturday night. Just like the Penguins after a 4-3
loss to the New York Islanders, the Leafs have little time to dwell on this
performance. "Were going to be fine, weve got to bounce back," Clarkson said.
"This is the game of hockey, youre not going to win every game. I think we know
what weve got to be better in." Follow Stephen Whyno on Twitter at (at)SWhyno
NOTES - Blue Jackets goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, last years Vezina Trophy
winner, stopped 23 of the 25 shots he faced. ... Foligno scored the Blue Jackets
fifth goal against Bernier with seven seconds left after Ryan Johansen put the
puck into an empty net 20 seconds earlier. ... Kessel left the game briefly late
in the second period and went down the tunnel toward the locker-room but
returned at the start of the third and finished with 16:20 of ice time.
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http://www.torontofcshop.com/c-7-benoit-cheyrou-toronto-mls-jersey.aspx . The start of the seasons fifth and final major was delayed two hours due to
heavy rain in the area. The tournament eventually began, but with water on the
greens and the rain persisting, players were called back to the clubhouse less
than an hour after the first group teed off.ST. LOUIS - The New York Giants are
peaking behind a rookie that no one can cover. They all have Odell Beckham Jr.s
back, too.Beckham caught two touchdowns and rolled up 118 of his 148 yards
receiving in the second half after absorbing two late hits in a 37-27 victory
over the St. Louis Rams on Sunday. The Rams hadnt allowed a TD in three straight
games.Absolutely, they played dirty, Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul
said.Man, they are a dirty team, linebacker Jameel McClain yelled as he entered
the locker room.Rams coach Jeff Fisher blamed the Giants.Very disappointing in
the actions on the other side, Fisher said. Theres no place for it in the game.
Its unfortunate it got out of hand.Beckham set a franchise rookie record with
his 10th and 11th TD catches, shattered another rookie mark for receptions and
topped 1,000 yards. The second late hit by linebacker Alec Ogletree led to a
brawl and three ejections, none of them to starters.Emotions got into the game,
said Rams safety T.J. McDonald, whistled for taunting after a sideline hit on
Beckham earlier in the second quarter. We took it a little too far.Ogletrees hit
finished with some back-and-forth with Beckham — football to the face, slap to
the facemask, attempted kick — that led to fisticuffs. Wide receiver Preston
Parker jumped Ogletree as he was backing away.Before the penalties were
announced, Beckham returned to the field clapping his hands. He thought Ogletree
had been trying to dunk him.I love it. As a team, thats playing for the man next
to you, Beckham said.Eli Manning was 25 for 32 for 391 yards and three
touchdowns, rookie Andre Williams had 110 yards rushing on 26 carries in place
of the injured Rashad Jennings, and Rueben Randle also topped the century mark
with six catches for 132 yards and a score.New York won handily despite
committing 12 penalties for 141 yards — 96 of them in the first half. The Giants
excelled in every other phase, scoring 10 points off two first-half turnovers
while committing none and dominating in time of possession.Shaun Hill was 24 for
32 for 290 yards with TD passes to Lance Kendricks aand Chris Givens in the
second half.
Quillan
Roberts Jersey. Tre Mason had 13 carries for 76 yards and a score, and
Kenny Britt had nine receptions for 103 yards.Their defence riled up the wrong
guy, too.That stuff after the play, we just have to give that up, tackle Michael
Brockers said.Beckham has 79 receptions, most in NFL history for a player in his
first 11 career games and five more than the previous franchise rookie mark by
Jeremy Shockey in 2003. Hes had at least 90 yards receiving in eight consecutive
games and could tie the NFL record of nine straight by the Cowboys Michael Irvin
in 1995 in the finale against Philadelphia.The 11 touchdown catches broke a team
record set in 1948 by Bill Swiacki.Beckhams 9-yard TD catch in the first quarter
capitalized on a fumble by Benny Cunningham on a kickoff return and put the
Giants up 10-0 along with ending the Rams 12-quarter streak without allowing a
TD.The Giants had a short field after rookie Orleans Darkwa forced the fumble
while Cunningham attempted to spin free. Defensive end Kerry Wynns first career
interception — on a pass in and out of the arms of Tavon Austin — set up a
first-half field goal.The Rams allowed four field goals in their last game, a
12-6 loss to the Cardinals. They shut out the previous two opponents, Washington
and Oakland.Attendance was announced as 55,851, but there were thousands of
empty seats at the Edward Jones Dome, which holds 66,000. Players heard some
boos at the end of the game.Its pretty disappointing, but youve got to also
understand where theyre coming from, Mason said. We have to give them a good
show.Notes: Giants OT Will Beatty had a rough day with four holding penalties,
one in each quarter. ... Fisher said rookie DB E.J. Gaines had a concussion from
getting his helmet knocked off in a collision with McDonald in the third
quarter. Gaines also had a lacerated lip. ... Giants K Josh Brown, who played
four seasons with St. Louis, was whistled for a personal foul after tangling
with the Rams Cody Davis on a kickoff.___AP NFL websites:
http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP_NFL
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