ow on Chivas defender Carlos Bocanegra in t | Forum

PHILADELPHIA -- Steve Mason was about to tee off on the back nine when Brayden Schenn interrupted with a breaking report. Swingman Shaquille ONeal Jersey . "Have you heard the news," Schenn asked. A puzzled Mason had no clue what Schenn was about to spill: Ilya Bryzgalov had his contract bought out by the Philadelphia Flyers. When it comes to Flyers goaltenders, Mason is suddenly the leader in the clubhouse. Mason finished his round with a solid day on the course and the realization that he is, for now, Philadelphias No. 1 goalie entering next season. Sure, his solid month as a Flyer after he was acquired from Columbus merited a deeper look from the organization. But the Flyers mostly wanted to get rid of the flaky Russian who never performed up to the $51 million, nine-year deal he signed in 2011. Mason has the chance to prove hes more the goalie who was the NHLs rookie of the year in 2008-09 and not the one who posted a goals-against average of 3-plus each of the next three seasons. "Im prepared to be the No. 1 guy," Mason said by phone from Toronto. "I feel Ive come a long way in the last few years in the growing-up process of being a goaltender in the NHL." Mason had it all figured out when he went 33-20-7 with 10 shutouts and won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year in 2008-09, the only season the Blue Jackets have made the playoffs. But Mason and Columbus could never recapture that fleeting success again. He fell to 20 wins and five shutouts the next season, and hasnt had a winning record since he was a rookie. He bottomed out in 2011-12 with a 16-26-3 mark. Mason lost his job to eventual Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky, a former flyer, and was traded away by Columbus in April. He called the last few years "extremely humbling." "You almost hit rock bottom in terms of the way you feel about yourself as a goaltender," Mason said. "It got to the point in Columbus where I was struggling to find my confidence and also, struggling to come to the rink happy about playing hockey." Only 25, Mason appreciated a fresh start in Philadelphia. He instantly bonded with goalie coach Jeff Reese, and a 4-2 record with a 1.90 goals-against made him a hit with his teammates and management. He signed a $1.5 million, one-year extension shortly after the trade. "Im a big Steve Mason fan," Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said. "I know theres a short window that we got to watch him here, but he played very well. Even the game he lost, he played well." Holmgren has to add another goalie to play with Mason. But he expected the bulk of the playing time to be thrust on Mason. The Flyers went 23-22-3 and were 10th in the Eastern Conference with 49 points in this lockout-shortened season. "I looked at coming to Philadelphia as a great new challenge," Mason said. "Regardless of the length of Bryzs contract, I was confident that if I played well, I was going to get an opportunity to play a lot of hockey games." Theres been a revolving door in net for Philadelphia for decades. They Flyers -- and their fans -- thought that was solved with Bryzgalovs arrival. Perhaps Mason can finally take that honour. "I was going to prepare myself this summer," Mason said, "to have the mindset of being able to handle the pressures of playing in Philadelphia and the pressures of being a No. 1 goaltender again in this league." Bryzgalov was 52-33-10 with a 2.61 goals-against and a .905 save percentage in the two seasons for Philadelphia, which failed to make the playoffs this year. Bryzgalovs quirky personality and sometimes brutal honesty with the media didnt always endear him to teammates. But the Flyers say that didnt factor into this decision. Coach Peter Laviolette and Holmgren have each checked in with Mason this summer, though not since the trade. "It was an extremely easy team to come into," Mason said. "and feel welcomed." Example? Mason was invited along with captain Claude Giroux and other Flyers to play in Scott Hartnells charity golf tournament in Canada. Thats when word hit that Bryz was out -- and Mason was in. "It wasnt a celebration," Mason said. "It was, heres an opportunity and go with it." Jason Kidd Suns Jersey . Artturi Lehkonen, Joni Nikko and Ville Leskinen had the other goals for Finland (1-0) while Juuse Saros stopped 28 shots. Tim Robin Johnsgard had the lone goal for Norway (0-2). Brandon Knight Suns Jersey . Nigeria beat surprise package Ethiopia 2-0 in the second leg of their playoff for a comfortable 4-1 aggregate victory. Victor Moses converted a 20th-minute penalty after an Ethiopian handball, and Victor Obinna made certain of Nigerias place in Brazil with his powerful free kick in the 82nd at UJ Esuene Stadium. http://www.sunsofficialshop.us/devin-booker-suns-jersey/ . Despite dominating possession, Schalke needed an own goal from Nicolas Hoefler for the breakthrough a minute before the interval. The Freiburg midfielder misjudged Jefferson Farfans corner and bundled the ball into his own net.Carson, CA (Sports Network) - David Ferreira and Ramon Nunez came off the bench in the second half to spark FC Dallas to a 3-1 win over Chivas USA at the StubHub Center on Wednesday. The result brings an end to FCDs 11-match winless streak, and is even more impressive considering that the visitors played the final 10 minutes a man down. Chivas took a 1-0 lead late in the first half when Bryan de la Fuente scored his first career MLS goal by bringing down a chip from Marco Delgado inside the penalty area and beating goalkeeper Raul Fernandez. Dallas then brought on both Ferreira and Nunez in the second half, and the result was three goals in the final 20 minutes. The equalizer wwas started by Ferreira, who played Fabian Castillo down the wing, where he dropped the ball back to Blas Perez, whose shot took a deflection on its way past goalkeeper Dan Kennedy. Swingman Kevin Johnson Jersey. It looked like Dallas would be happy to get a point when Jackson was sent off after picking up a second yellow card for an elbow on Chivas defender Carlos Bocanegra in the 81st minute. However, Nunez played Ferreira into the area on the left five minutes later, allowing him to chip the ball past Kennedy and watch it settle inside the far post. With Chivas pressing for an equalizer, Nunez got behind the defense and lashed a shot into the upper right corner to seal the win. Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '