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WINNIPEG -- Ondrej Pavelec of the Winnipeg Jets isnt on ESPNs list of top 25 NHL goaltenders and, given his numbers last season, his coach isnt surprised. "Players get ranked a lot of times according to numbers and I think its probably fair," Claude Noel said Monday at training camp. Pavelec, a workhorse who played in a league-high 44 games last season, ranked 10th over all in wins with 21. But his save percentage of .905 ranked 51st in the NHL and his 20 losses were the second worst. His goals-against average of 2.80 ranked him 52nd overall and he allowed a league high 119 goals. Noel says the Jets have to improve in many areas this season, including goaltending. But he still says he believes they have goaltenders who can get them to the playoffs. "Im confident in our goaltending and I think our goaltending can help us get in the playoffs," said Noel. "Were going to have to play a good team game and our goalies are going to have to do their part. "Thats part of the solution. Your players have to check better. You have to do some things, we have to do some things better from the previous two years to get in the playoffs and goaltending also going to have to pick up a little bit more." The Jets showed their confidence in Pavelec last season, when they signed the Czech native to a new five-year, $19.5-million deal. His numbers arent just a reflection of Pavelecs efforts in goal. In fact, he got a lot of credit from his coach and teammates last season for keeping the Jets in games when not much else was working. There were also times when he could have used a little more help in front of the net. He was second only to Buffalos Ryan Miller in the number of shots faced at 1,251. Training camp is a time when a lot of players get ice time who likely wont see much, if any, action with the Jets this season. That has included goaltenders. But that should start to change Tuesday night when the Edmonton Oilers visit, as the focus in goal at last turns to Pavelec and perhaps backup Al Montoya as well. "The important thing for us is to get the two goalies that we have prepared to play and thats going to be the biggest thing moving forward here with these next exhibition games," said Noel, although he refused to go into more detail. "Ive been told Im going to play, I dont know exactly what the plan is, but Im excited to get to the game and get things going," said Pavelec. The franchise has made the playoffs exactly once since it started in Atlanta. After a promising start last season that made them look like a safe bet, the Jets crumbled down the stretch. This season, their third in Winnipeg, the pressure to qualify has increased and the players say they know what they must do. Pavelec is no exception. He says its time to start making good on expectations and he says the team has added players and gotten better in the off-season. They will also have less travelling to do now that theyre in a division composed largely of Central time-zone teams, although those teams look a lot tougher for the most part than their old Southeast rivals. "You know first year, we just moved from Atlanta, last year was the lockout, this year . . . its time to make it. I think we have the team to make it," said the goaltender. "We just have to stop talking about it and just make it." 17:37ET 16-09-13 Dion Lewis Patriots Jersey . Those lessons were more than enough to overwhelm the Utah Jazz. Lou Williams scored 25 points and the Hawks continued their offensive upswing as they rolled to an easy 118-85 victory over the Jazz on Friday night, winning their third straight and for the fourth time in five games. Tedy Bruschi Patriots Jersey . Lack made 20 saves for his third shutout of the season as the Canucks blanked the St. Louis Blues 1-0 in the first post-Olympic game for both teams night. http://www.patriotsjerseysauthentic.com/Tom-Brady-...wl-Jers ey/ . The players spoke Jan. 13 during a Major League Baseball Players Association conference call after Rodriguez sued the union and Major League Baseball to overturn an arbitrators decision suspending him for the 2014 season and post-season. Patriots Jersey . Aside from the trilogy main event title fight, there are a number of intriguing matchups in the heavyweight, welterweight and lightweight divisions. Tom Brady Patriots Jersey . -- Mike Smith never saw his first NHL goal go in.Ontario and British Columbia are the traditional lacrosse hotbeds in Canada, but the best professional indoor team in the country right now calls Alberta home. The undefeated Edmonton Rush improved to 5-0 over the weekend, the only National Lacrosse League team yet to taste defeat so far this season. In fact, the Rush are the only Canadian club with a winning record as Toronto (2-3), Calgary (2-3) and Vancouver (2-5) all lag behind Edmonton. "Its early still and you dont want to get too high or too excited but were playing well," said Rush head coach and general manager Derek Keenan. "Its a process of maturity." Edmontons defence was been exceptional so far, led by Kyle Rubisch. "Hes a bulldog," Keenan said of the two-time reigning NLL defenceman of the year. "He takes away opponents space, he picks off passes and hes a beast when the ball is on the turf. His gap closure is scary good. Guys think they have a step on him or an opportunity to get by him and hes in their face and theyre on their butt. "Hes a shut-down guy. Hes got great vision and good hands, too. He fits our system so well. Hes a good team guy. Were lucky to have him." Meanwhile, Chris Corbeil was named captain when Jimmy Quinlan moved behind the bench as an assistant coach this year. "I loved the kid when I watched him play in junior and I continued to watch him when he was in Buffalo," added Keenan. "Hes a real quality person, a great teammate, and hes super fit. He sets an example on the floor both in games and practices. And hes young, too. "Thats the M.O. of our whole group. Were a young group, but pretty experienced for a team so young -- a lot of Canadian championships (in summer lacrosse), a lot of experience in big-game situations." Rubisch, Corbeil and Brett Mydske were good enough to be on Canadas team that won the most recent world indoor championship. "Weve got all three of them on our back end and theyre three of the best in the business," said Keenan. The whole defence-transition corps has been together for three years now, with the addition this year of Nik Bilic, and that continuity has resulted in a league-best 7.8 goals-against average. Top-notch goaltending is a must in lacrosse and Aaron Bold, who gets most of the starts, and Brodie MacDonald supply it for the Rush. "Hes been awesome," Keenan said of Bold. "Hes made big saves at key times. Last game, Rochester tied the score late and he made two big saves on Dan Dawson in the closing minute of regulation time. Hes really raised the level of his game." Up front, second-year forwards Mark Matthews, who was 2013 rookie of the year after being the No. 1 overall draft pick, and Curtis Knight are maturing impressively in the pro game. The former Whitby, Ont., junior teammates share the team goal scoring lead with 12 each. It was Matthews who scored the overtime winner in a thrilling 8-7 home triumph last Saturday over two-time defending champion Rochester. At six-foot-five, hes a superstar in the making. "Hes got a great passion for the game," said Keenan.dddddddddddd. "One thing about him Ive found different from so-called premier players is that hes willing to do a lot of the dirty work, too. A lot of his big plays in games are without the ball. Hes willing to do that. I look at (Buffalo forward) John Tavares who is 45 but who can still play because hes changed his game 10 times. You can constantly try to get better, and Mark is willing to do that." Add it all up and it is clear to see that Keenan has been putting a complete package on the green carpet. "Its my fifth year in Edmonton and weve had ups and downs," he said. "This is the first year you feel such positive vibes. You hear people talking about us. Everybody loves a winner. Winning consistently was a problem for us in the past. We were 2-6 at home last season. That was a problem. This season were 3-0 at home so far. You can feel a different kind of vibe in the city -- that theres some belief in us. Again, its early in the season, but theres progress there." Average attendance in Rexall Place is 7,695 through three home games, which is less than what owner Bruce Urban needs to break even. So, everybody in the Rush organization is hoping the winning ways will fill more seats. "We play an exciting brand of lacrosse people should want to see," said Keenan. "Bruce is a committed owner. Weve worked together on finding the right formula and we seem to be getting there. "The tempo of play is so fast these days. We dont designate one or two or three guys as transition players to move the ball quickly up the floor. We expect our entire defence group to contribute that way because we think they are capable of that. Skill levels across the league are phenomenal now and we fit that mould well." Edmonton began NLL play in 2006 but it wasnt until 2010 that the Rush won more games than it lost. Last years 9-7 record was the teams second .500-plus showing, although the 2012 lineup managed to get as far as the title game despite a 6-10 regular season. Winning the Champions Cup that year would have been a colossal upset. Now, Keenans crew looks more ready than most other NLL teams to push Rochester off the top of the heap. Rush players are from either Ontario or B.C. except for defenceman John Lintz, a local who attends the University of Alberta, and faceoff specialist Jeremy Thompson, who is a First Nations player from upstate New York. A home playoff date for the first time in franchise history seems likely come spring. "Weve established a fan base and, to get more people out to games, they just need to see some results," said Lintz. "Getting a home playoff date would be amazing. If we get that, it would really cement us in the eyes of a lot of fans." The West Division leaders play in Philadelphia on Saturday and at Minnesota on Feb. 15. They are at home against Toronto on Feb. 28 and against Vancouver on March 8. A March 14 game in Calgary precedes a March 21 home game against the Buffalo Bandits (5-1), who currently hold down first place in the East Division. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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