teammate. Grabner added two goals in the third period for his hat trick. "I like the big ice, and I | Forum

What is the Olympic readiness of Canadas champions after their first Grand Prix event? Are they on track or in trouble early in this Olympic season? The results from Skate Canada International in Saint John, New Brunswick, though mixed, bode well and while we are still over three months out, there are some encouraging signs and lots of reasons for optimism heading to Sochi. Kerry Wood Cubs Jersey . The one thing we know for sure is that Tessa Virtue and Scott Moirs new free dance has Olympics written all over it. Their music is by Russian composer Alexander Glazunov, who is described as a Romantic Classicist. It is an emotionally poignant and uplifting piece that plays to Tessa and Scotts strengths and is bound to captivate the Sochi audience. Last year, the reviews for their provocative Carmen free dance were mixed. The daring darkness of the dance brought either "love it or hate it" kind of reactions. The reviews of the new Olympic free dance have been universal in their praise. Artistically and creatively, it is a winner and a crowd pleaser that is vintage Virtue and Moir. The gold will demand endless hours now of drilling and refining in preparation for challenging U.S. rivals Meryl Davis and Charlie White. The stage is set for an intriguing showdown. In an Olympic year, one cannot underestimate the value of a stable and supportive training environment and Patrick Chan has found that place in Detroit with coach Kathy Johnson. In his words, he is "happy" and it shows. He is patient and confident in practice, not perfect by any stretch but unfazed by any stumbles or jumping errors. In a warmup at Skate Canada, he had a jarring fall on a quad, shrugged, circled and did it again as it was intended. It was a decisive win at Skate Canada. His demeanour spoke of confidence, preparedness and experience, qualities that were missing heading into Vancouver. As he builds to Sochi and expectations rise and demands on him increase, it is the balance he has built in his life outside the rink and the foundation he has built in it that will, he hopes, make the difference. For Canadian pairs champions Meagan Duhammel and Eric Radford, it was a bit of a case of, youd better "dance with the one who brung you". In the past, it was their feisty ability to maximize technical risk and capitalize on it that got them to the world podium and it is the technical mark that let them down at Skate Canada International. In what Meagan called their lowest technical score ever, they dropped to third in their long program. Their focus in Saint John was on artistry and character development and, while they delivered emotionally charged performances, their new focus distracted them from what they do best and their challenge over the next few weeks will be to bring the old and new together. The one thing I know about these two is that they are fighters and, with the less than stellar start and their backs to the wall, they will come out swinging. Dont drop your hands, dont count them out. Just when Kaetlyn Osmond thought she could begin her Olympic quest in earnest, she suffered another setback. Having missed a number of weeks due to an injured foot heading into Skate Canada, Kaetlyn woke up after the short program with a sore hamstring and was unable to compete in the free skate. The word is, she has tears in two tendons in her hamstring and will see limited ice and training time for the next 7-10 days, at which time it is expected to have healed. It adds up to a lot of training missed and can set up the cycle of overtraining to catch up and then reinjuring. She is young and has a bubbly personality so it will be tough to contain her. Kaetlyn has three weeks until her next Grand Prix and it is their plan that she will compete. Other Canadian honorable mentions and notable performances were those of Kaitlyn Weaver and Andrew Poje who finished second in the Ice Dance event, Amelie Lacostes short program and Eladje Baldes quad in the short. One of the most compelling performances for me at Skate Canada International was that of 28-year-old Akiko Suzuki from Japan, who critics often dismiss as being too old and past her prime. Her performances were captivating and her joy was palpable every time she took the ice. Watching her compete, I was reminded of a conversation I had with Elvis Stojko before one of his Olympic Games. When discussing dealing with Olympic pressure, he said, "I just want to remember why it is I love to skate and, if I can think of that, I will have the right frame of mind to compete." Canadas skaters would do well to take that phrase to heart. Through all the hype and the weight of pressure and expectations of an Olympic season, it is remembering the pure joy of skating that can keep things in perspective, calm the nerves and inspire break-out performances on the road to Sochi. Sammy Sosa Cubs Jersey .Y. - General manager Billy King says the Brooklyn Nets are looking to add a big man and confirmed the team worked out centre Jason Collins, who would become the first openly gay active NBA player if signed. Ben Zobrist Cubs Jersey . The Vancouver coach and an announced sellout crowd of 18,910 watched in dismay as the Canucks lost 7-4 to the New York Islanders on Monday night by squandering a 3-0 lead in the third period. http://www.baseballgreet.com/Chicago-Cubs-Andre-Dawson-Jersey/ . PAUL, Minn.Finland had more than enough offensive talent to overcome its slow start against Austria, even with Teemu Selanne back in the dressing room. Jarkko Immonen and Mikael Granlund scored two goals apiece as Finland opened preliminary-round Olympic play with an 8-4 victory over Austria on Thursday. Jussi Jokinen and Petri Kontiola each had a goal and an assist for the Finns, who put 52 shots on beleaguered Austria goalie Bernhard Starkbaum despite playing the final two periods without Selanne, their captain and the leading scorer in Olympic history. The 43-year-old "Finnish Flash" had an assist in the first period of his record-equaling sixth Olympics before sitting out with an upper-body injury. Selanne should be fine for the Finns next game, team spokesman Janne Lahti said. "Hes an old man, so he needs some rest, more than the other guys," Kontiola said. Sami Lepisto and Olli Maatta also scored for Finland, which has never lost to Austria at the Olympics. Granlund had a three-point game and defenceman Sami Vatanen had three assists in their Olympic debuts. Selanne got just eight shifts before apparently having problems with his neck or shoulders. Finlands trainers massaged Selanne on the bench late in the first period, and he didnt return from the first break. "Maybe he got the bad pillow!" said Sami Vatanen, Selannes teammate with the Anaheim Ducks. Even with Selanne ailing, Finland took control with two goals in 8 seconds during the final minute of the first before taking a four-goal lead in the second. "Its tough to see him get injured, but hell be OK," Olli Jokinen said of Selanne. "Hes a big part of this team, and hes our leader. Its never easy when you lose a guy like him." Finns recover The Finns also survived a shaky Olympic debut from Tuukka Rask, the vaunted Boston Bruins goalie who yielded four goals on just 20 shots. "The firsst goal, everybody was caught sleeping there," Rask said. Custom Chicago Cubs Jersey. "After that second goal, everybody kind of woke up and got back to playing again." Michael Grabner had three goals in his Olympic debut for Austria. The New York Islanders forward scored 36 seconds into the first period, and Austria had two early leads before Finland took control. "In case we didnt know what we were up against, we got a reality check," Austrian forward Thomas Vanek said. "Youve got to play a certain way, and I think we didnt do it. Our goalie needs to be our best player, and we need to help him more." Finland is the most consistently successful Olympic nation of the NHL era while winning medals in four of the last five Olympics overall. The Finns have a solid shot at medals again despite placement in Canadas preliminary-round group, and an eight-goal performance in their opener will help their cause. Austria, which qualified for its first Olympics since 2002, surprised the Finns in the opening minute when Grabner converted a cross-ice pass from Michael Raffl. Granlund got Finlands first goal on a play set up by Selanne, who took Vatanens outlet pass and fed Granlund while screening Starkbaum. Austria went back ahead when Thomas Hundertpfunds shot from behind the net went off Maattas skate in front and beat Rask, but Lepisto equalized 2:04 later. Maatta put the Finns ahead with a vicious slap shot from the blue line with 35 seconds left in the first period — and Immonen scored 8 seconds later. Six Austrians are back from their Salt Lake City team along with the Olympic debuts of Grabner and Vanek, his Islanders teammate. Grabner added two goals in the third period for his hat trick. "I like the big ice, and I just tried to get into open space for my teammates," Grabner said. "Against a good team like Finland, its tough to come back." Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '