Begrüßung » Jake Virtanen and Ben Thomas added

SOCHI, Russia – Jeff Carter has played alongside the likes of Peter Forsberg, Claude Giroux, Rick Nash, Daniel Briere, and Anze Kopitar, but not one of them stacks up to Drew Doughty in one key department. Bob Cluggish Jersey Signed . "Hes probably the most skilled guy Ive ever played with and Ive played with some pretty good players," Carter said after a close 2-1 overtime win against Finland. "When his confidence is going [and] hes feeling good about himself he can do anything out there. Its pretty amazing to watch." Doughty scored both Canadian goals – including the upset-preventing overtime winner – late Sunday evening, lifting his country to top spot in Group-B and a berth in the quarterfinals. On a grand Olympic stage that features the highest caliber of talent this game has to offer, the 24-year-old from London, Ontario stands out as one of the very best. "I forget about everything thats going on around me and Im just focused in on that game and having fun," he said. Third in tournament scoring after the preliminary round, Doughty leads Canada with four goals – including one in each of the three games – and five points, totaling nearly 20 minutes of ice-time against the Finns. No apparent fear or uncertainty seems to exist on his part, no matter the venue. Doughty is willing to force the action and assert himself on centre-stage, if and when the moment presents itself. This was clear again in overtime at Bolshoy Ice Dome when he deposited a Carter feed beyond the pads of the nearly-unbeatable Tuukka Rask. It was perhaps most emphatic during the 2010 Olympics when he proved a revelation as a 20-year-old for the gold-medal winning Canadian squad. "Confidence," said Carter in a word. "When you put all his skill with that confidence its pretty amazing." And maybe his personality has something to do with that no-fear persona on the biggest stages, which also included a Stanley Cup with the Los Angeles Kings in 2012. Marc-Edouard Vlasic, Doughtys defence partner here in Sochi, describes him as "pretty loose" and "funny". A teammate for two-plus seasons with the Kings, Carter agrees, calling him "one of a kind for sure", always with "a smile on his face, bouncing around, laughing, having a good time." Those easy-going qualities seem to translate to the ice. "He plays loose out there," Carter said. "Hes not scared to try and make plays too and I think thats what make him such a dynamic player." Doughty carries a cool about him on the ice that makes every one of his movements seem controlled and purposeful, almost as if nothing else out there matters in the scheme of what he has to offer the game. His passes are crisp and on the tape. His daring rushes look as though they were designed beforehand, each stride, angle and movement carefully calculated. His instincts with the puck make it seem as if he is just a step ahead of what lies next. "Thats what Drew does," said Carter of Doughty, the No. 2 overall pick from the 2008 draft, who is logging 26 minutes per game for the Kings this season. "He does it all year for us [in Los Angeles] and probably doesnt get as much recognition as he should because of the time zone and what not." Doughty doesnt look nor appear nervous on this stage, but says he was four years ago in Vancouver during that first Olympic stint. But the nerves that bubbled there were not for the reasons one might think. It had nothing to do with the pressure of bidding for gold on home soil, but was more about his youthful place on a veteran roster that featured aging stars and future Hall-of-Famers like Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger. "I was just a little young guy there, had so many older guys around me that I didnt know whatsoever," he said. "I was nervous mostly because of that, not because of the fans and the pressure and the country and all that, it was just meeting all these All-Star players." If not leaning on Niedermayer and Pronger for wisdom, Doughty made sure to stash other hints for success. "Just watching them thats all I had to do," he said. "And I learned so many things just watching those guys play and it helped me out for this one for sure." Doughty looks like hes just having fun, like the intensity of all that lays around him has no bearing. Facing a large horde of media after his overtime winner he stepped toward a microphone and began to speak only to be reminded that he needed to actually speak into the microphone. Cool and jovial, he responded with a sarcastic crack, "I actually gotta talk into the microphone?" Wayman Britt Jersey Signed .ca presents a week long look at some of the teams and stories that will shape the up coming campaign. Jack Coleman Jersey Signed .com) - Stephen Currys jumper with 3. https://www.cheapnbajerseysjustwholesale.com/ . The premature end left 26 players still to finish the round in the Asian Tour event. Siddikur, who shot a bogey-free first round to share the lead with five others, eagled the par-5 first hole before bogeying twice and rebounding with six birdies.RED DEER, Alta. - Henrik Samuelsson and Curtis Lazar each had two goals and two assists as the Edmonton Oil Kings secured top spot in the Eastern Conference by defeating the host Red Deer Rebels 7-4 on Saturday in Western Hockey League action. Cody Corbett scored once and set up three more for the Oil Kings (50-18-3) while Edgars Kulda and Mitchell Moroz added single goals. Haydn Fleury, Rhyse Dieno, Vukie Mpofu and Aspen Sterzer scored for the Rebels (34-32-5), who sit ninth in the East two points behind Prince Albert for the final playoff position. Edmontons Tristan Jarry made 26 saves for his league-leading 44th win of the season. Red Deers Patrik Bartosak stopped 35-of-42 shots in a losing cause. The Oil Kings went 5 for 8 on the power play while the Rebels failed to score on five chances with the man advantage. --- WHEAT KINGS 6 PATS 3 BRANDON -- Peter Quenneville scored three times and Jordan Papirny made 35 saves as the Wheat Kings doubled up Regina to clinch the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. Ryan Pulock, Nolan Patrick and Jens Meilleur also scored for Brandon (34-29-9) while Tim McGauley tacked on three assists. Dmitry Sinitsyn, Boston Leier and Connor Gay supplied the scoring for the Pats (39-26-7). Reginas Dawson MacAuley and Tyler Fuhr combined to stop 26-of-31 shots in a losing cause. --- HITMEN 6 ICE 3 CALGARY -- Greg Chase had two goals and two assists as the Hitmen downed Kootenay for its fourth win in a row. Mike Winther and Pavel Padakin each had a goal and two assists for Calgary (48-17-7) and Jake Virtanen and Ben Thomas added single goals. Luke Philp, Jaedon Descheneau and Austin Vettrl scored for the Ice (39-28-5), who are on a four-game slide. Chris Driedger made 26 saves for the Hitmen. Kootenays Mackenzie Skapski stopped 8-of-12 shots before giving way to Wyatt Hoflin, who made 10 saves in 32 minutes of relief. --- BRONCOS 3 WARRIORS 1 MOOSE JAW, Sask. -- Eetu Laurikainen stopped 29 shots and Coda Gordons goal at 10:18 of the first period stood up as the winner as Swift Current slipped past the Warriors. Nathan Burns and Jay Merkley also scored for the Broncos (38-25-9) while Gordon tacked on an assist for a two-point outing. Jack Rodeald scored the lone goal for Moose Jaw (21-42-9), which finishes the regular season 18 points out of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Justin Paulic stopped 31-of-34 shots for the Warriors. --- RAIDERS 6 BLADES 4 SASKATOON -- Jayden Hart had a pair of goals as Prince Albert defeated the Blades to keep its playoff hopes alive. Collin Valcourt scored once and set up two more for the Raiders (35-32-5), who sit eighth in the Eastern Conference standings, while Dakota Conroy, Carson Perreaux and Leon Draisaitl added a goal apiece. Chase Clayton scored twice for Saskatoon (16-51-5), which finishes its season on a 12-game slide. Nick McBride made 39 saves for Prince Albert as Troy Trombley kicked out 25-of-30 shots for the Blades. --- TIGGERS 6 HURRICANES 3 MEDICINE HAT, Alta. Jimmy Darden Jersey Signed. -- Curtis Valk had two goals and two assists and Cole Sanford scored once and set up three more as the Tigers topples Lethbridge. Trevor Cox also scored twice for Medicine Hat (43-24-4) while Alex Mowbray added a single goal. Reid Duke, Bryton Sayers and Tyler Bell scored for the Hurricanes (12-54-5), who are on a 13-game skid with one game remaining on schedule. Marek Langhamer made 32 saves for the Tigers as Lethbridges Stuart Skinner turned away 35-of-41 shots in defeat. --- WINTERHAWKS 7 THUNDERBIRDS 0 PORTLAND, Ore. -- Oliver Bjorkstrand scored three times and Brenden Burke made 28 saves as the Winterhawks blanked Seattle. Mathew Dumba scored once and assisted on three more for Portland (53-13-5), which extended its win streak to six games, while Paul Bittner, Adam Rossignol and Taylor Leier added the others. Defencemen Jared Hauf and Evan Wardley were both a team-worst minus-3 for the Thunderbirds (40-25-6). Seattles Danny Mumaugh turned aside 37-of-44 shots in defeat. --- COUGARS 8 BLAZERS 3 PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. -- Todd Fiddler scored four times and Troy Bourke had a goal and three assists as the Cougars downed Kamloops. Sam Ruopp scored once and set up two more for Prince George (27-37-8), which halted a six-game slide, and Brad Morrison and Klarc Wilson added single goals. Deven Sideroff, Matt Needham and Jesse Shynkaruk scored for the Blazers (14-53-5). Ty Edmonds made 28 saves for the Cougars while Bolton Pouliot stopped 43-of-51 shots for Kamloops. --- SILVERTIPS 3 ROYALS 2 EVERETT, Wash. -- Austin Lotz made 22 saves and Carson Stadnyk broke a 2-2 deadlock at 18:32 of the third period as the Silvertips edged Victoria. Mirco Mueller and Ben Betker also scored for Everett (39-23-9), which is 11-0-1 in its last 12 contests. The Royals (48-20-4) got goals from Tyler Soy and Logan Nelson. Coleman Vollrath turned away 22-of-25 shots for the Royals, who have dropped three games in a row. --- ROCKETS 5 GIANTS 3 KELOWNA, B.C. -- Carter Rigby had a pair of goals and Nick Merkley had a goal and two assists as the Rockets downed Vancouver. Rourke Chartier and Madison Bowey also scored for Kelowna (57-11-4) and Ryan Olsen tacked on two assists. Jackson Houck scored twice for the Giants (32-29-11) and set up Joel Hamilton as well. Jordon Cooke made 29 saves for the Rockets. Vancouvers Payton Lee stopped 35-of-40 shots in defeat. --- AMERICANS 3 CHIEFS 0 KENNEWICK, Wash. -- Eric Comrie only had to make 18 saves as Tri-City snapped a five-game losing streak by blanking Spokane. Beau McCue, Parker Bowles and Jessey Astles registered a goal apiece for the Americans (29-32-10). Eric Williams allowed three goals on 14 shots for the Chiefs (40-26-6) before getting pulled for Garret Hughson at the 9:27 mark of the second period. Hughson stopped all 11 shots he faced in relief. Comries shutout was his fourth of the season and ninth of his WHL career. ' ' '