to bring a level of consistency and
to bring a level of consistency and
CALGARY -- Martin Jones made a habit of winning big games at the Scotiabank Saddledome during his Western Hockey League career. Four years after guiding the Calgary Hitmen to a WHL championship and a berth in the 2010 Memorial Cup, Jones made a triumphant return to the Saddledome with the Los Angeles Kings. "I was excited to play here for sure," said Jones, who made 24 saves to backstop the Kings to a 3-2 win over the Calgary Flames on Monday. "I had four great years here. It was a good road win. It wasnt pretty." Anze Kopitar had a goal and an assist for the Kings (38-22-6), who have reeled off eight straight wins. "Definitely we didnt want to make it as interesting as it was, but yeah I guess it was pretty big," said Kopitar of his third-period goal that put the Kings up 3-0 and eventually stood up as the game winner. "It wasnt the prettiest win tonight, but at the end of the day we got the two points." Kopitar commended Jones for his play in between the pipes for the Kings. "He put on a really nice show tonight," Kopitar said. "Hes been stellar for us. Every time hes been in the net, hes been really good for us." Justin Williams and Trevor Lewis also scored for the Kings. Mike Cammalleri and Brian McGrattan scored for the Flames (25-33-7), who lost for just the second time in their past nine games at the Saddledome. Coincidentally, it was the Kings who last beat the Flames at home on Feb. 27. "The way we played the last seven-eight minutes of the game, if we had played the whole game like that, the outcome might have been different," said McGrattan, who has goals in back-to-back contests after going 29 games without scoring. "We hung around the whole game. We came on at the end. We didnt give up." Playing in his fourth straight game, rookie Calgary goalie Joni Ortio made 20 saves in a losing cause. With the win, Jones improved his record in his rookie season with the Kings to 10-4. "Its a totally different animal being here and at this level and in this dressing room, on this side of the ice," said Jones, who played his entire WHL career with the Hitmen. "I just wanted to make sure I stayed focused. I was excited to be here but wanted to make sure I was focused on the task at hand here." Never drafted by an NHL team, Jones was invited to L.A.s training camp in 2008 and subsequently signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Kings. With Jonathan Quick out of L.A.s lineup due to a groin injury earlier this season, Jones was called up by the Kings and promptly won his first eight NHL starts, three of them shutout victories. He lost his next four decisions before making 25 saves in L.A.s 6-4 road win over the Colorado Avalanche on Feb. 26. Quick played the next five games in net for the Kings, all wins, before L.A. coach Darryl Sutter decided to give Jones the start against the Flames. "He was really solid," Sutter said. "To be quite honest, when we came back from the Olympics we started in Colorado and he won that game also. We were down 4-2 and he hung on and he won that game also. He did a good job in there tonight." The Kings scored on their first shot on goal at 4:05 of the first when Williams redirected a pass from Anze Kopitar past Ortio. Williams drove hard to the net and attempted to get his stick on the pass from Kopitar, but the puck instead bounced off his shin and into the net behind Ortio. "Theyre a bigger, more physical team than us and I thought they imposed their rhythm right from the start," said Calgary coach Bob Hartley. "They got that early goal and that kind of put us on our heels." The Kings then went up by a pair at the 10-minute mark of the first when Lewis tipped Slava Voynovs point shot into the top corner behind Ortio, who lost his stick on the play when his own defenceman Kris Russell accidentally knocked it out of his hands. The Flames had a great chance to pull within one in the dying moments of the first, but Jones made a shoulder save to stop a shot fired his way by former Hitmen teammate T.J. Galiardi before sticking out his left pad to stop a backhand attempt by McGrattan. Jones also had to be sharp early in the second period as he stood his ground to turn aside back-to-back shots of the stick of Calgary forward Paul Byron. Early in the third period, Jones made a shoulder save to stop Calgary forward Mikael Backlund from scoring on a partial breakaway with the Kings on a power play. Kopitar added an insurance marker for the Kings at 7:01 of the third when he tipped Drew Doughtys point shot past Ortio. A short time later, Jones lunged forward to stop a point blank shot by Cammalleri to keep the Flames off the scoresheet. With Mike Richards serving a delay of game penalty, Cammalleri finally scored at 15:29 of the third to break Joness shutout bid. Cammalleris shot appeared to deflect off Voynov before trickling through Joness legs. McGrattan made things interesting by scoring with 2:22 remaining in regulation when he spun around and fired a slapshot from the slot past Jones. Notes: Injury woes for the Flames continued as a pair of rookies were forced to leave the game. Markus Granlund played just 12 seconds early in the first period before taking a hit from L.A. forward Jarret Stoll, forcing him to leave the game with an upper-body injury. Defenceman Tyler Wotherspoon also sustained an upper-body injury in the third period and didnt return. a The Kings played without forward Jordan Nolan, who was assessed a one-game suspension for sucker punching Edmonton Oilers forward Jesse Joensuu on Sunday. Tanner Pearson drew into the lineup in place of Nolan. a After being acquired by the Kings from the Columbus Blue Jackets at the NHL trade deadline last Wednesday, forward Marian Gaborik is still looking for his first point with the Kings. Gaborik played on a line with Kopitar and Williams. a The Kings improved their record when leading after two periods this season to a perfect 21-0. Discount Air Jordan 11 Sale . According to the sportsbook BoDog, the Stampeders are 8/5 favourites to take home the Grey Cup at Mosaic Stadium in Regina on November 24. Discount Air Jordan 11 . He was with the New York Jets in 2011 when the NFL locked out their players after they failed to agree on a new contract. Willy went undrafted but was given a look by four NFL teams before heading north. http://www.discountairjordan11.com/. While Chelsea stayed two points behind leader Arsenal courtesy of Etoos hat trick, seventh-place United slipped 14 points from the summit this weekend. And the gap from the Champions League places is growing as well, with Liverpool six points ahead in fourth. Air Jordan 11 Retro Cheap . The 10-year deal the league and players agreed to that ended the 2011 lockout gave either side the right to opt out after six years. With the league projecting financial growth, there has been speculation that players will take that option in three years, especially since a new national TV contract will be in place by then. Jordan 11 For Sale Cheap . As the schedule flipped from November to December, they would go on to drop five straight, falling six games below the .500 mark before a franchise-altering trade turned them into an unrecognizable team.MONTREAL -- Coach Tom Higgins calls working with general manager Jim Popp "a match made in heaven." And the pleasantries exchanged between the two men on a conference call on Tuesday made it hard to imagine they were rivals for the Montreal Alouettes head coaches job. That was settled when team owner Bob Wetenhall insisted that the jobs of coach and general manager be kept separate, and that Popp would have to stick to his GM duties. "This is the model that has made us successful," said Wetenhall. "This has given Jim the time and the freedom to go out and build our team, year after year, always with a few new players added. "To have a GM with the freedom and the time to do this is the model we really wanted to go back to." In the 59-year-old Higgins, the Alouettes hired a CFL veteran who spent seven years as a head coach in Edmonton and Calgary, winning a Grey Cup with the Eskimos in 2003. The Woodbridge, N.J., native spent the last six years as the leagues director of officiating. "Tom brings a winning record and a tremendous reputation as a stand-up, high class guy," said Wetenhall. Popp, the teams general manager since it returned to Montreal in 1996 who is considered among the CFLs best, had hoped to continue in both jobs after taking over from the fired Dan Hawkins, who had no previous CFL experience, only five games in to the 2013 campaign. When Higgins was confirmed in the job on Monday, it raised speculation that Popp may be on his way out. Wetenhall would not confirm Popps long-term status with the club, but made it clear he wanted his GM to stay. And Popp, whose name has been linked to NFL jobs in recent years, said hes wants to carry on. "Ive been with the Alouettes for 18 years -- I plan on being there, its my other home," said Popp. "Ive had six children that were all born in Montreal and I really have no interest in leaving. "Circumstances come up, but the organization knows how loyal I am. Im a company man and its a place I enjoy being. Theres a lot that gets thrown around out there, a lot of it thats not true. But Im very happy." That Popp joined in the conference call was a surprise. His name wasnt mentioned in the Higgins announcement. And it was uunusual that the general manager was not involved in the decision to hire the head coach.dddddddddddd Wetenhalls son Andrew, a team governor, said that as a candidate for the coaching job, Popp would have been in conflict of interest if he had a say in who the next coach would be. But Popp had provided the owners with a list of potential coaching candidates with an assessment of their abilities. "This is a case where two people can work together who didnt select one another," said Andrew Wetenhall. "We have the added benefit of two guys who know each other and have a heck of a lot of respect for each other." Higgins said he didnt feel awkward at all working with Popp. "I couldnt be happier," he said. "I think our personalities complement one another. "We both want the same thing. This is an opportunity for myself to get back on the field where I belong. This is not a challenge whatsoever." Higgins first job will be to hire an offensive co-ordinator and fill out the coaching staff, which he expects to complete within 10 days. The Alouettes had already signed defensive co-ordinator Noel Thorpe to a two-year contract extension on Dec. 4, with the added title of assistant head coach. They also confirmed that Andre Bolduc, a former CFL player and head coach at Sherbrooke University, was signed as a defensive assistant coach. Wetenhall said one of Higgins assets was his ability to work with young quarterbacks, which will be needed in Montreal this season. For the first time since 2000, they will not have Anthony Calvillo as the starter as the CFLs all-time passing leader has retired. Troy Smith, the 2006 Heisman Trophy winner, and youngster Tanner Marsh are expected to compete for the starting job, with Alex Brink also in the picture. Higgins said he has worked with gifted young pivots before in Henry Burris and Ricky Ray. He feels the Alouettes can improve on last years 8-10 season. "Ive always marvelled at the level of talent in Montreal," he said. "I hope to bring a level of consistency and discipline. "We are going to be competitive and entertaining. And when you start doing that and playing disciplined football, usually you win more than you lose." Wholesale Hoodies NFL Shirts Outlet Jerseys NFL Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Cheap NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '