ar Figueroa earned a 10-round decision over Dominic Salcido

• EDMONTON -- He has just one NHL practice under his belt, but defenceman Justin Schultz has already impressed the Edmonton Oilers coaching staff. cheap jerseys china . "I see a hockey player who has moxie, who has the ability to step up into the play when needed, he has the ability to play strong defensively, he skates strong, he loves the game," said Oiler assistant coach Steve Smith, who has seen virtually every one of the 34 games Schultz played this season with the Oklahoma City Barons of the American Hockey League. "From all accounts from the coaches Ive talked to he wants the puck, he wants to be on the ice, he wants to be a game-changer. Theres just so many positives Ive seen to this point." Schultz was one of the most sought-after free agents last summer, and he showed while playing on a talented Barons team including Oiler forwards Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. He left the AHL with 18 goals -- two shy of the AHL record for defencemen -- and 48 points, second in league scoring only to Eberle. The 23-year-old native of Kelowna, B.C., who spent the previous three seasons with the University of Wisconsin, said having the three Oilers in the AHL was definitely an advantage for him. "We played a lot together a hopefully we can bring that chemistry up here," he said Monday. He was put to task right way as the Oilers training camp got into full swing with a two-hour, up-tempo practice full of drills. "It seemed like it went by pretty quick," Schultz said. "It was awesome, from drill to drill real quick, a well planned practice. I really enjoyed myself out there. It was a fast-paced practice, guys were flying around there so it was good to get that first one out of the way." With only one week before the season opens on the weekend, head coach Ralph Kruger elected to pair Schultz with his namesake: NHL veteran Nick Schultz who has played 763 NHL games, all but 20 of those with the Minnesota Wild. "He just makes it easier," Justin Shultz said of his defence partner. "Hes been in the league a long time so its nice to have someone back there to talk to me a lot, kind of ease me into the NHL." Theres no doubt the rookie defenceman will have to adjust to life in the NHL. After electing not to sign with Anaheim after the Ducks drafted him in 2008, he joined Wisconsin where he played a high of 43 games in a season. The Oilers will be playing 48 games in 98 days and hes already played almost a full varsity season in the AHL. "I know he did come out of about a 40-game schedule last year playing college hockey and hes probably played close to that already this year," Smith said. "He seems fresh, his fitness test results are very high, he hasnt complained about bodily injuries and everything seems to be functioning well. I think its going to be no different for him than anyone else." Schultz said he feels just fine after the AHL games and Mondays quick-paced practice, but agrees he has to remember to do "all the little things a to make sure you dont wear out." "I just have to be smart and I think Ill be just fine," he added. At six-foot-one and listed on the Oilers website at 163 pounds, Schultz will now be playing regularly against NHL players bigger and stronger, a factor he plans to offset with smarts. "You have to be stronger, guys up here are bigger. For me I have to be smarter, have good sticks and make sure Im in good position all the time," he said. "I have to think the strength of the game here is going to be different, guys are not going to be so easy to push off the puck," said Smith who played 803 NHL games, mostly with the Oilers. "Its going to be the battles in the trenches that are always so difficult on young defencemen, and angles because of the speed of the game changes for him as well. "Certainly the level of play, the quickness is going to change from the American League to here so we wont know until that happens. But from what Ive seen he skates well enough, hes agile enough, laterally has plenty of ability to move." The Oilers open their schedule Sunday in Vancouver and have their home opener next Tuesday against the San Jose Sharks. cheap jerseys . Headley hit .306 with a league-best 31 RBI in 28 games in August to win his first monthly award. He scored 20 times and slugged .611, eighth in the league. Stitched NFL Nike Jerseys . With only 1:26 left in regulation time, Campagna spun around his defender and put a high shot past Sudbury goaltender Mike Morrison from the face-off dot. http://www.cheapchinajerseysmall.com/ . PETERSBURG, Fla. cheap jerseys 2013 . Hossa, who led the Blackhawks with 77 points last season, was knocked out and suffered a concussion when the Coyotes Raffi Torres left his feet to deliver the high, hard blow in the first period of the game on April 17. cheap jerseys wholesale . 3 in Montreal. Bute (30-1, 24 knockouts) is coming off a one-sided loss in May to Carl Froch that cost the Montreal fighter his International Boxing Federation super-middleweight title. CINCINNATI, Ohio -- Adrien Broner was stripped of his WBO junior lightweight title on Friday when he weighed in more than 3 pounds overweight. But following his fifth-round technical knockout of Vicente Escobedo on Saturday night, Broner promised there would be many more title chances as he moves up to the 135-pound class. "Im going out of my weight class, and Ill take on anyone," said Broner moments after his TKO of the top-ranked WBO contender at 2:32 of the fifth. "Vicente is a world-class fighter. I cant take anything away from him. But he didnt hit me with anything significant. I make all my work easy." Broner improved to 24-0 with 20 knockouts. Saturdays fight was billed as Broners second WBO title defence, but he was stripped of his title on Friday after weighing in 3 1/2 pounds over the 130-pound limit. Broner weighed in again on Saturday, this time tipping the scales at 143 1/2, which Escobars camp said was over the newly agreed-upon 140-pound limit. Both sides came to an agreement on Saturday afternoon to fight as scheduled. Escobedo, who fell to 26-4, said he didnt regret the decision to fight. "I had to keep to my decision," he said. "I came in on weight like a professional. And he didnt." Broner, wearing fluorescent greeen shoes and trunks with his nickname "The Problem" stitched on the front, remained patient with Escobedo until the fifth when he finished off the California native.dddddddddddd "He definitely felt stronger," Escobedo said. "I felt his power. Hes fast and hard to hit. Hes too quick." Broner, 22, was fighting in his hometown for the first time since November when he knocked out Vicente Rodriguez to earn the WBO title. Also on Saturday at U.S. Bank Arena, Raeese Aleem earned a six-round decision over DeVonte Allen in the junior lightweight division. A pair of Cincinnati natives earned victories with heavyweight David Long earning a technical knockout of Quincey Palmer at 2:09 of the first round and Brandon Bennett winning by majority decision over John Nater. Middleweight Chris Pearson improved to 7-0 with a second-round win TKO of Angel Hernandez. Omar Figueroa earned a 10-round decision over Dominic Salcido. In the co-main event on Saturday, Clearwater, Fla., native Keith Thurman improved to 18-0 with a TKO of Orlando Lora at 1:37 of the sixth round. Lora lost for just the third time in 32 bouts. "I wasnt in a rush," Thurman said. "I worked him round by round. Im young and hungry. Im bringing the thunder." ' ' '

  Send Message Reply Permalink

  Posted 2013-07-13
  tiantang 5

  Lieutenant

  

If you were logged in you would gain 3 XP for posting a reply.