Die Planung » nt $1 billion transformation, and yet it will have anoth

NEWARK, N.J. -- On a day that was marked by movement, there simply wasnt a trade available for Bryan Murray. So the Ottawa Senators general manager was only too happy to use the 17th overall pick on Edmonton Oil Kings centre Curtis Lazar on Sunday. "Obviously the biggest thing Curtis that is, is a competitive person," Murray said Lazar. "Hes been compared to me as a hard-nosed, competitive guy in the National Hockey League. He scores. Hes had a real good career doing that." Lazar recorded 61 points (38 goals and 23 assists) in 72 games with Edmonton last season. Fourteen of his 38 goals came in the final 20 games of the regular season. While the offensive numbers are strong, the organization views him as an all-around forward. "(Hes) the type of player we were looking for," said assistant general manager Tim Murray. "Hes a complete player. Hes gritty and competitive. He can play the game. "I think he has a very good offensive game. I think hes compared to those competitive guys like (Los Angeles Kings captain) Dustin Brown because they are complete players and have an offensive game to them, and they play with an edge. Added Tim Murray: "Hes not being compared to the energy players of the world of the National Hockey League. Hes being compared to guys with energy and grit and determination, but also the guys that score goals. I expect hes going to score 30 goals, for sure, for us. Hes certainly going to score skill goals. Hes going to fit into the mould that were trying to represent." Along with Lazar, the Senators took goaltender Marcus Hogberg, right-winger Tobias Lindberg, defenceman Ben Harpur, centre Vincent Dunn, right-winger Chris LeBlanc and centre Quentin Shore. More than being good fits for the Senators, the primary reason that all seven players are headed to Ottawa for prospect development camp is that nothing materialized over the weekend despite a hyper-charged marketplace. "As happens very often, and in particular the first round, if you have a decent position youre very reluctant to give that position up," said Bryan Murray. "I talked to some people that would have had to move a number of picks back to make it work for them. The price was quite substantial. I had a couple offers to move down as the draft was going on. We felt there was a player there that we didnt want to pass on, so we didnt move backwards. Its totally understood its tough to move." One area in which he made headway was with Daniel Alfredsson, as the Senators general manager said he spoke with Alfredssons agent, J.P. Barry over the weekend on a new deal for the Senators captain. "We talked about how we could get a deal done," Murray said. "We talked about term, threw numbers back and forth slightly. Nothing firm. Hes going to go back to Alfie and talk to him again. I will do the same thing on my part. Hopefully well talk in the next couple days." When pressed on the word term, Murray acknowledged the possibility of a multi-year contract for the 40-year old. "Not necessarily one year," Murray said. "I mean he might want to play 10 more years. Hes a guy that just seems to thrive on playing. It doesnt necessarily have to be a one-year deal. It may well end up being that but we may talk a little more." Teoscar Hernandez Jersey . Jeff Carter had two goals and an assist as the Kings stretched their streak to seven wins in a row with a 4-2 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday. Clayton Richard Jersey . The Canadian skicross racer appeared to have the bronze medal locked up in the mens final at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, only to wipe out while trying to make a pass in the biggest moment of his career. http://www.bluejaysonline.com/blue-jays-george-bell-jersey/. Al Harrington, another former Knicks forward, scored 22 of his 24 points after halftime for the Nuggets, allowing them to withstand Anthonys attempt to rally the Knicks after his poor shooting had them behind until the final minutes of regulation. Anthony finished with 25 points and 10 rebounds, missing 20 of 30 shots in the Knicks sixth straight loss. Paul Molitor Jersey . At a news conference Tuesday where it was thought that the fiery Schallibaum may be shown the door after a dismal finish to the Major League Soccer season, team president Joey Saputo said no decision has been made on whether the Swiss Volcano will be back in 2014. Justin Smoak Blue Jays Jersey . The 29-year-old from Port Colborne, Ont., who trains out of San Diego, will fight bantamweight champion (Rowdy) Ronda Rousey on July 5 in the co-main event of UFC 175 in Las Vegas.NEW YORK -- Madison Square Garden underwent a recent $1 billion transformation, and yet it will have another completely different feeling once the New York Rangers hit the ice in the Eastern Conference finals. Gone will be the fear of impending doom that enveloped the club during its second-round comeback against Pittsburgh. Missing will be the nerves that any goal or loss could mean the end of the season. Suddenly, the Rangers are the front-runners against the Montreal Canadiens, and their fans now have the chance to celebrate the ride with them. "Having fan support is obviously huge," Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said. "Unconditional love, its something thats really beneficial to a team." New York is riding a five-game winning streak, but four of those victories came on the road -- two in Pittsburgh when the Rangers erased a 3-1 series deficit, and the first two in this matchup with Montreal. The Rangers will skate at the Garden on Thursday night with a series lead for the first time since Game 2 of the first round against Philadelphia 15 games ago. "Its a good feeling, but we know weve accomplished nothing yet," forward Martin St. Louis said. "Were trying to prepare for a Montreal team thats going to come out with a lot of energy. We know that. This is a big game for everybody. We know where the series is, and its a big opportunity for us." Nothing is a guarantee, but to take a 3-0 series lead would set the Rangers up for their first trip to the Stanley Cup finals since 1994. Since New York fell way behind Pittsburgh with a dispirited home loss in Game 4, the Rangers have been playing with a sense of desperation. It didnt reset once they eliminated the Penguins, and so far they have shown no signs they will let the Canadiens recover. "I feel every game is a must-win in the playoffs," St. Louis said. "You go into every game understanding what can happen with a loss and what can happen with a win. Its a lot of momentum shifting, a buildup in the playoffs, and you want to make sure you keep it as long as you can." The Canadiens mindset is to regroup and play the kind of road game the Rangers did by jumping on them. Montreal is still dealing with the loss of No. 1 goalie Carey Price, who was knocked out of the series by injury in the opener, but now is trying to rally around third-stringer Dustin Tokarski. The iinexperienced goalie, who has played in only 11 career NHL games, got the surprise nod by coach Michel Therrien in Game 2 over regular backup Peter Budaj and was tabbed again Wednesday to start in Game 3.dddddddddddd. Struggled forward Thomas Vanek was dropped to the fourth line in practice on Wednesday alongside Danny Briere and Brandon Prust in another potential shake-up. "Dont read too much, OK?" Therrien said. "They might change tomorrow." Whatever the lineup looks like, the Canadiens have adopted a motto of no excuses as the series shifts to New York. "We lost the first two games. Weve got to do something different," Canadiens captain Brian Gionta said Wednesday in Montreal before the team flew south. "But at the same time, we had a pretty good game in Game 2. Weve just got to find ways to get more goals and get to them a little more offensively." They netted only two in a blowout loss in the opener, and then scored one on Monday in a 3-1 loss. The Canadiens grabbed what had been an all-important first goal, but they lost the lead just 17 seconds later and were trailing 2-1 before the first period ended. Henrik Lundqvist was the main reason the Rangers were ahead, holding off an early attack and then a third-period surge in which he stopped all 19 Canadiens shots. He made 40 saves overall. "We are down two, and we are going on the road," said forward Max Pacioretty, who scored the lone Montreal goal in Game 2. "Obviously, we would have liked to have Game 2, but we can only worry about Game 3. Weve got to be better. "We have to make life difficult for their goalie, and if we do that, I like our teams chances." Pacioretty, a Connecticut native, is also looking forward to the atmosphere at the Garden, even though he will be wearing an enemy sweater. "I love MSG," he said. "I grew up watching games there. I love going there. I havent played in the finished building yet, so this will be fun for me." One person who hopes to be back on the ice on Thursday is Rangers forward Derick Brassard, who was injured early in the opener and missed all of Game 2. He went through a full practice on Wednesday and was waiting to meet with the medical staff and Vigneault to see if he would rejoin the lineup. Fellow forward Benoit Pouliot sat out for a maintenance day. ' ' '