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DENVER -- The Colorado Avalanche are off to a soaring start, even if they pretend theyre nothing more than an average team. Jared Goff White Jersey . Little mind games in order to keep winning them. "Were playing like were a .500 hockey team and not a 14-2 team. Thats the key," Matt Duchene said. "You stay grounded and you stay humble and hungry." Semyon Varlamov stopped 33 shots and Nick Holden scored his first NHL goal to break a second-period tie, lifting the Avalanche to a 4-1 win over the Washington Capitals on Sunday night. Patrick Bordeleau, P.A. Parenteau and Gabriel Landeskog also added goals for the Avalanche, who are off to a franchise-best 14-2 start under new coach Patrick Roy. Before this season, the best mark through 16 games was 13-3 by the 1994-95 Quebec Nordiques, a season before the organization relocated to Denver. "Theyre one of the upper echelon teams, in regard to skating," Capitals forward Brooks Laich said. "They have a quick group." Not too bad in goaltending, either. Varlamov once again came up big against his former team, especially on a 5-on-3 early in the final period to preserve the lead. Varlamov also made 40 saves in a 5-1 win at Washington on Oct. 12. Asked why Varlamov seemed to play so well against Washington, coach Adam Oates said: "Hes been in a zone against everybody so far." The turning point of the game was early in the third period when Cory Sarich was called for hooking to give Washington, the top power play team in the league, a man advantage. And then the Avalanche were whistled for too many men on the ice, setting up a 5-on-3 situation for 56 seconds. But Varlamov turned back shot after shot, the crowd serenading him with "Varly, Varly" over and over. "The guys did an unbelievable job for me," Varlamov said. "This team, theyre unbelievable right now, on the (penalty kill) especially. I appreciate what theyre doing for me. We start this game very well, the guys give me confidence and scored a couple of good goals." Joel Ward had the lone goal for the Capitals as they lost for a second straight night. Alex Ovechkin thought he had a goal late in the third, but it was disallowed when replay showed he kicked it in with his left skate. "We played a decent hockey game," Oates said. "We let it get away at the end, but it was a decent game." Ward tied the game at 1 in the second period when a puck caromed off the boards on a faceoff and right to his stick. With no defenders near him, Ward faked Varlamov one way and then shot it in for his eighth goal of the season. Just 28 seconds later, Holden gave the Avalanche back the lead when the defenceman took a pass from Landeskog and lined a shot past a screened Braden Holtby. The Capitals received a scare late in the second when Ovechkin slipped while chasing a puck and crashed into the boards, with Jan Hejda falling on top of him. Ovechkin stayed down on the ice for several minutes, before skating to the bench and dabbing at his head with a towel. He also began yelling at the officials. "It was a trip. Hit my head in the board," Ovechkin said. "It was a clear two minutes (penalty) and a dangerous play." Hejda didnt quite see it that way. "He fell and then I fell over him," Hejda said. "This is an elite (player). I was going to step (on) the brakes." Colorado got on the board early in the opening period when Cody McLeod lined a backhand shot toward the goal that Bordeleau redirected past Holtby. The officials reviewed the play to see if Bordeleaus stick was below the level of the crossbar and then announced to the crowd the call on the ice stood. The Capitals struggled to generate much offence in the first period and didnt take their first shot until halfway through, when Ovechkin laced a slap shot that Varlamov turned aside. Roy has a good thing going in goal these days, with Varlamov and backup Jean-Sebastien Giguere both playing well. The duo entered the game with a league-best 1.79 goals-against average. "We trust our two goalies," Roy said. "We have a lot of confidence."NOTES: Unhappy with an offside call, the Capitals argued with officials and were assessed an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, which was served by F Jason Chimera. ... The Avalanche were without F Alex Tanguay (knee) and D Ryan Wilson (back). ... Colorado is 8-1 against the Eastern Conference this season. Womens Eric Dickerson Jersey . Westbrook has missed 27 games since having a procedure on Dec. 27 to deal with swelling in his injured right knee — the third operation on the knee in nine months. Los Angeles Rams Jersey . The International Olympic Committee released the official list of bid cities on Friday after the deadline for applications had passed. The candidates -- all previously announced in their own countries -- are: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; and Stockholm. http:///...well-rams-jersey-kj/ . "We have always prided ourselves on the way we play defence. Having two big pieces back is going to be a key for us moving forward for years to come," said Knighthawks head coach Mike Hasen.CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- With a chance to start over and maybe drive in any series he wanted, Juan Pablo Montoya thought long and hard about what mattered most at this stage of his career. The answer was simple: Winning. So when a team owner synonymous with winning put an offer in front of him, Montoya snapped at the opportunity. Hell leave NASCAR behind for a return to open-wheel to drive for Roger Penske -- the IndyCar Series rival of Montoyas longtime boss, Chip Ganassi. "Hes very excited for me," Montoya said Monday after texting with Ganassi, who is in Europe. "Something that we have with Chip is that were very good friends. We have a lot of respect for each other. He had to make a decision this year to go in a different direction. I had to do the same thing. I had an opportunity and a great chance with Penske. Were going to be competitors and Im looking forward to the challenge." Ganassi decided in August not to bring Montoya back next year to his NASCAR program. It put the Colombian on the free agent market, and even though Ganassi has said hed not ruled out using Montoya in his other programs, Montoya considered everything. He spoke with Michael Andretti about an IndyCar ride, and Furniture Row Racing about replacing Kurt Busch at the end of the NASCAR season. There were calls to Europe, and a new rumour about a possible test with Lotus in Formula One. Then came discussions with Penske and all bets were off with the other teams. Montoya will team next season with current IndyCar points leader Helio Castroneves and Will Power while driving for Penske, winner of 15 Indianapolis 500s. He could also drive in some NASCAR races as part of the deal. "My No. 1 choice was going to be in a winning car. I really wanted to be in a winning car," he said. "It came down to I wanted to race for Roger. In a way its always been one of my dreams to be able to be part of his organization. Being here, its unbelievable. Im so excited. Im like a 5-year-old kid right now." Some could also consider the move a big piece of gamesmanship in the racing rivalry that spans two series between Ganassi and Penske. Castroneves and Ganassi driver Scott Dixon are currently locked in a fierce battle for the title, and the competition has heated up over the last two races as Dixon has been involved in incidents with Power and the Penske organization. "Hes a great driver and deserves a great drive," Ganassi told The Associated Press. "He will have that there at Penske Racing." Montoya won the 1999 CART title, the 22000 Indianapolis 500 and 11 races driving open-wheel for Ganassi. Eric Dickerson Lights Out Jersey. He then moved to Formula One, where he had seven wins and 30 podiums, before reuniting with Ganassi again in 2006 to compete in NASCAR. But results in NASCAR have been sporadic. Montoya has just two wins in 244 career starts and his best season finish was eighth in 2009. Hes 20th in the standings this season. The program has been through several rebuilds since Montoya came aboard, and it was a middle-of-the-road organization when he signed on in 2006. Their first NASCAR season was decent and gave the organization a boost with a win on the road course at Sonoma, six top-10s and rookie of the year in 2007. But 2008 was the first sign of trouble as Montoya had two crew chief changes in the first 16 races. Montoya made the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship in 2009 with crew chief Brian Pattie behind a career-best 18 top-10s, and he was third in points with six races to go in the season before fading to eighth in the final standings. He won on the road course at Watkins Glen in 2010, but Pattie was let go before Indianapolis in 2011 for Montoyas fourth crew chief change. The Ganassi team began another overhaul that winter and Chris Heroy was hired as Montoyas fifth crew chief before 2012. That entire season was spent trying to get the Ganassi cars up to speed. With the hiring, Montoya is now stuck in the middle of a spat between Penske and Ganassi drivers over in IndyCar. Ganassi driver Dixon was penalized in Sonoma when his car made contact with a crew member for Power, Castroneves teammate, on the final pit stop. IndyCar race director Beaux Barfield said Dixon had driven into the Penske Racing work space, but Dixon alleged the crew member walked into his car. The penalty cost Dixon a chance to race for the win, and opinion was split through the paddock as to who was at fault and if race control perhaps should not have penalized anyone. Dixon and Power collided at the next race at Baltimore, and the contact ended Dixons day when IndyCar officials did not tow his car back to pit lane for repairs. He then said Barfield should be fired, comments that earned him a $30,000 fine from IndyCar. Montoya said hell try to stay out of the fray. "I think Im going to have a little white flag, Im going to be very neutral there," Montoya said. "For one side, Im still committed with Chip and the NASCAR program for the next nine races. But I think its going to be fun. Its going to be like mixed emotions watching the last few IndyCar races." Cheap JerseysWholesale Jerseys Wholesale JerseysCheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys' ' '