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 e Blackhawks lost their eighth straight on Saturday night 3-0 at Pho
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Geplaatst op 07-08-2015 08:48
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 Guru  Berichten: 1263 Datum van aanmelding: 28.03.15 |
VANCOUVER -- For the underdog Winnipeg Blue Bombers to end their 21-year Grey Cup drought, the club is likely going to need Chris Garrett, a running back they didnt want until they found out how much they needed him. The 24-year-old, who was cut in training camp and then brought back into the fold, has been all the Blue Bombers could hope for after starter Fred Reid suffered a season-ending knee injury in September. Garrett dazzled in the Bombers 19-3 victory in the freezing cold in the East Division final against Hamilton, where he picked up 190 yards on 29 carries. The Blue Bombers will want him at his crashing, tackle-breaking best again when they move indoors at B.C. Place Stadium for the CFLs championship game Sunday against the B.C. Lions. "You always want the ball in your hands in any situation," Garrett said Wednesday as the Bombers practised for the first time in the refurbished domed stadium. "We have a great offensive line and they did a great job of putting people in places so I could find a hole." "I wasnt surprised. I thought I actually had a little more than was jotted down. But 190 yards, I guess thats a good performance." Garrett played five games for Winnipeg last season but was cut before the 2011 campaign even began. The Bombers brought him back even before Reid was hurt to provide depth at tailback and kick returner. He went home to Utica, N.Y., confident that someone, somewhere would want to sign him. He was glad it was the Bombers "I was at home working out and waiting for my opportunity," Garrett said. "It just happened that Winnipeg called. "I prepared myself and kept a positive attitude, and Im here now. It started with mother and father and immediate family. They always believed in me and said Keep your goals in mind and keep working toward them and thats what i did. I just kept a positive attitude and Im in the Grey Cup now." The five-foot-nine, 190-pound Reid blew out a knee against Toronto but still ended up sixth in the CFL in rushing with 759 yards. The Bombers didnt miss a beat with five-foot-eight 185-pound Garrett, who carried 92 times for 576 yards. His 6.3 yards per carry average was second only to Calgarys Jon Cornish (7.3 yards per carry) among regular running backs. "Theyre pretty similar in stature, but Chris maybe runs downhill a bit harder," quarterback Buck Pierce said of comparisons of the two stocky running backs. "Maybe Chris has a chip on his shoulder. "They released him. Hes a guy we brought in and let go and brought back. He plays with a passion right now that I think is great for our offence." Pierce said Garrett seems to get better the more work hes given. "The offensive line love him -- he never gets tackled by the first guy," he said. "Hes always going north-south." The Bombers ran the ball 40 times against Hamilton in the East final. The arctic weather had something to do with that, but in a league that feeds off the pass, the Bombers are one club thats happy on the ground. They will be up against a B.C. defence that allowed opponents a league-low 4.9 yards per carry. Winnipeg posted two wins over B.C., but they came early in the season when the Lions staggered out to a 1-6 start before finding their game. Both games were before Garrett rejoined the Bombers. "They have film on me and Ive seen film on them, so its an even field until we play on Sunday," said Garrett. Pierce knows about bouncing back from being cut. He was the Lions quarterback until he was let go after the 2009 season and then signed with Winnipeg. The injury-plagued quarterback played only three games before he was struck with a season-ending elbow injury, but he bounced back and managed to get through the 2011 campaign with only a few minor ailments. Lions coach Wally Buono said he was looking at consistency at the most important position on the field when he let go of Pierce, who he liked but felt was injury-prone. It was probably the right choice because since then yet another Buono-developed quarterback in Travis Lulay has emerged as an outstanding player candidate. Pierce has no hard feelings. "Nobody likes to be let go, but I understood the circumstances," he said. "My thing was just getting another shot. "I understood the B.C. Lions situation. They wanted consistency at that position. Thats what you need in this league. I wasnt happy about it, but I decided to go out and get a job, to earn what I knew I could get back. I landed in a perfect situation in Winnipeg." Pierce said he will not be seeking revenge against his former team in the Grey Cup game. "It doesnt matter who I play against," he said. "Im excited for our guys who have a chance to play in this game and win a Grey Cup." cheap jerseys from china . McCullough, a six-foot-two, 220-pound native of Kingston, Ont., has spent 10 seasons with the Riders. He has appeared in 176 career games, including the last 110 straight. wholesale nfl jerseys . -- J.J. Killeen shot a 3-under 69 to win for the second straight week on the Nationwide Tour, two-putting from 90 feet on the final hole to avoid a five-way playoff at the Cox Classic on Sunday. http://www.cheapnfljerseys2015.us.com/ . Then Kidd was arrested on a drunken-driving charge, Lins departure from New York for a "ridiculous contract" in Houston became more realistic, and a position of strength suddenly was one of turbulence for the Knicks. cheap nfl jerseys . Borini scored three minutes in at the Renzo Barbera stadium, collecting a pass from Erik Lamela before coolly slotting the ball past Palermo goalkeeper Emiliano Viviano from the centre of the area. cheap jerseys . Cilic had eight aces and lost only seven points on his first serve while breaking Zeballos three times. The third-seeded Cilic is the highest seeded player left in the last eight. NASHVILLE -- Detroit has the Western Conference standings right in the dressing room right where none of the Red Wings can miss the nightly updates. The way the Central Division teams are playing this season, its a tote board that changes daily and almost hourly. The standings bear close watching because the team that wins the division may very well wind up as the Western Conferences top seed come playoff time. Red Wings general manager Ken Holland says the Central might be the best in the NHL with four of the Wests top six teams and four of the leagues best 12. "We play Nashville three more times, Chicago three more times and St. Louis once more," Holland said. "Ultimately, the record in those games -- which are really four-point games -- will go a long way toward determining the final standings. I think its great that were all pushing each other. Its a great race that adds a lot of intrigue to the last 25 games or so of the regular season." Through Sundays games, Detroit sits atop the West with 76 points followed closely with St. Louis, Nashville and Chicago at Nos. 4, 5 and 6 separated by 11 points. Nashville coach Barry Trotz said the division has been a blessing by forcing the Predators to play at a very high level to chase Detroit and St. Louis once the Blues started winning with new coach Ken Hitchcock. "I talk to Ken Hitchcock quite a bit as a friend and text Babs once in a while," Trotz said of Detroit coach Mark Babcock. "We roll our eyes. He says, Were winning every game, we cant pull away from anybody. Thats what it is. Its great. ... I think all the teams in the Central Division are capable of doing some big-time damage. Youve just got to be good in your division, and so far we have." The Predators had the NHLs best have the best record in the division at 12-2-2 and will be tested starting Tuesday night when they host Chicago before travelling to Detroit on Friday night. The Red Wings just tied the NHL record Sunday night with a 20th straight home win by beating Philadelphia 4-3. The chase means scrapping for every single point. "Its going to be a battle until the end because in the end, we always have to play against St. Louis, Detroitt, and Chicago," Predators forward Martin Erat said.dddddddddddd "Other teams have maybe a bit more free passes." Trotz said he expected St. Louis to be a good team this season and credits his friend Hitchcock with simplifying the Blues approach. "They bought in, and thats their identity," Trotz said. "Chicago is a team thats always there and obviously Detroits there every year. We were probably a question mark in everybodys minds, but weve gotten better. ... Were a lot faster. I think were a lot deeper and were a team thats going to be better not just this year but next year and the following year." The Blues are almost as good at home as Detroit, going 24-3-4. But they are 0-4-0 against Nashville this season, including a 3-1 loss on Feb. 4. Trotz credits goalie Pekka Rinne with stealing two of those divisional wins. Hitchcock has his own theory. "Youre not going to beat Nashville in Nashville on Saturday night. This is like the Coliseum in Rome coming into this place on Saturday night," Hitchcock said. Then theres Chicago, a team that stood atop the West on Jan. 18 with 62 points followed by Detroit, St. Louis and Nashville stacked at Nos. 4, 5 and 6. The Blackhawks lost their eighth straight on Saturday night 3-0 at Phoenix for their longest skid since 2007-08, and they havent won since Jan. 20 when they beat Florida. "No ones running away from it," Chicago forward Jonathan Toews said. "Were looking each other in the eye and were expecting every single guy to be better and pick up the slack and thats what weve got to do. We cant hide from these problems. We have to face them and deal with them." Chicago coach Joel Quenneville said the Blackhawks have given up a lot of ground. "We still have got some big games coming up and some tough games," Quenneville said. "Weve got to find a way to win a game to get some form of confidence back in ourselves and our game." Because winning in the Central Division means being among the NHLs best. ------ AP Sports Writers Larry Lage and Noah Trister in Detroit, Pat Graham in Denver and R.B. Fallstrom in St. Louis contributed to this report. cheap nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys cheap jerseys cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' ' |
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