Shows » Emery said that allowed the Bears to have "less-rushed

(SportsNetwork.com) - The Vancouver Canucks hope an upcoming stretch of home games will be enough to get the club into the postseason. That span begins on Saturday night, when the Canucks welcome the Anaheim Ducks to Rogers Arena. The Canucks have been to the postseason in each of the past five seasons, each time going in as champion of the non-defunct Northwest Division. Vancouver has had a tougher go in the new-look Pacific Division, where it sits fifth overall with 79 points. That leaves the Canucks hoping for a wild card spot and it trails the Phoenix Coyotes by five points for the second extra playoff berth. The Coyotes, though, have played one fewer game and play host to the Minnesota Wild on Saturday. Vancouver does have a point in four straight games. The Canucks opened a quick two-game road trip with a 5-2 win over the Wild on Wednesday, claiming a third straight victory, but dropped an overtime decision the following night to the Colorado Avalanche. The Avs got the winner 55 seconds into overtime. Matt Duchene circled around the left boards to get clear of defenders before firing a pass to the front of the net where Tyson Barrie tipped it home for the win. Yannick Weber and Zack Kassian scored for the Canucks, while Eddie Lack turned away 25 shots in the loss. "We out-played them in the third, but it was not good enough," said Kassian. "We got the point and had a good road trip." The Canucks played both games on the road without leading scorer Henrik Sedin and his status for this contest is unknown because of a lower-body injury. Sedin leads Vancouver with 36 assists and 46 points. Vancouver fell to 16-19-5 on the road with Thursdays loss and will play five straight and six of its final seven games this season at home. The Canucks are 18-11-6 at Rogers Arena on the campaign. Lack is 0-2-1 with a 3.65 goals against average in his career versus the Ducks, who have won all three of their games versus the Canucks this season. That has pushed Anaheims series winning streak to four straight overall and it also has won seven of the previous 10 meetings. The Ducks have won two straight and four of their last five in Vancouver, a trend they look to continue as they chase the Pacific Division crown. Anaheim is one point back of the first-place San Jose Sharks, who visit Colorado on Saturday afternoon and have played two more games than the Ducks. Anaheim did fail to pull into a tie with San Jose last night as it lost a 4-3 decision to the Edmonton Oilers in overtime. Edmonton had taken two penalties earlier in the overtime, leading to a brief 5-on-3 for Anaheim, but the Ducks took a whistle and the teams wound up skating 3-on-3. With a lot of ice to work with, Edmontons Andrew Ference grabbed the puck in the neutral zone and skated down the middle, winding up for a big blast that ticked off the right post and in with 1:09 left on the clock. Jonas Hiller made just 19 saves in defeat, outdueled by Edmontons Ben Scrivens, who posted 48 stops. "Yeah, he was pretty good tonight," said Anaheim head coach Bruce Boudreau about Scrivens. "Anytime you get over 50 shots on a goal and you lose, youve got to tip your hat a little bit to the goalie." Nick Bonino, Mathieu Perreault and Patrick Maroon all scored for the Ducks, who had won two straight entering the contest and fell to 4-4-3 in their past 11. Perreault has five goals and three assists over a seven-game point streak. Hiller was making his third straight start and could give way tonight to backup Frederik Andersen. It helps that Andersen has won both of his previous career starts with the Canucks while allowing just two goals on 68 shots. Nate Davis Jersey . -- Washington Capitals forward Brooks Laich is expected to miss the rest of the regular season after having an operation on a groin muscle. A.J. Brown Jersey . -- The Atlanta Braves are facing the possibility of losing another pitcher for the season after general manager Frank Wren said Saturday that Cory Gearrin has a serious injury to his right elbow. http://www.cheaptitansjerseyselite.com/ . The Maple Leafs will play on the road for the first time this season after dropping home contests to Montreal and Pittsburgh to begin the campaign. After losing a one-goal decision to the Canadiens on Wednesday, they were bested 5-2 on Saturday by the Penguins. Cheap Tennessee Titans Jerseys .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final. Cheap Titans Jerseys China .S. routed Sweden 7-0 Sunday to win its fourth straight title and seventh overall under-18 world championship. Olson earned his third shutout of the tournament and the Americans allowed only four goals in six games to set an International Ice Hockey Federation under-18 record.LAKE FOREST, Ill. - Chicago Bears general manager Phil Emery was so busy in free agency he didnt mind having a few extra weeks to prepare for the draft. Times just about up. The three-day proceeding starts with the first round Thursday and the Bears, owners of the 14th pick, still need help on defence even after some big moves. So a little extra time to study the prospects suited Emery just fine. "I love it, honestly. Ive heard reports of people complaining about it," he said. "I dont know what theyre complaining about." The draft was pushed back about two weeks because of a scheduling conflict at New Yorks Radio City Music Hall. Emery said that allowed the Bears to have "less-rushed conversations" as they try to weigh short-term gains against long-term benefits. The defence ranked among the leagues worst a year ago and was the biggest reason the Bears missed the playoffs for the sixth time in seven years at 8-8. The Bears have been busy addressing that, bringing in Jared Allen and parting with Julius Peppers in an effort to spark a defence that ranked 30th overall, last against the run, and tied Jacksonville with a league-low 31 sacks. They still need help on the line, at linebacker and in the secondary, particularly at safety. Chicago has one pick in each of the first five rounds (Nos. 14, 51, 82, 117 and 156) and two in the sixth round (183 and 191). With that in mind, here are five things to know about the draft. STILL ON THE DEFENSIVE: Emery said he has six candidates for the 14th pick assuming the Bears keep it, and theres a good chance hell go with a defensive player even though he wasnt ruling out offence. Pittsburgh defensive tackle Aaron Donald, Alabama free safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and Oklahoma State cornerback Justin Gilbert could be strong possibilities for Chicago. ROLL THE DICE: Emery showed in his first two drafts hes not afraid to take a chance on a first-round pick. He gambled on Shea McClelllin in 2012 and did it again with Kyle Long last year.dddddddddddd The results? Hes batting .500 so far. Long was a hit at right guard even though he made just five starts in his lone season at Oregon. McClellin is a swing and miss so far and is moving from defensive end to linebacker. At least Emery hit it big in the second round in 2012 with receiver Alshon Jeffery, who broke out last season with 1,421 yards receiving. PASS ON QB?: Emery insisted hes comfortable with Jordan Palmer backing up Jay Cutler and that hes not in favour of grooming a quarterback drafted in the later rounds as a potential starter down the line. "That developmental theory doesnt hold a whole lot of water," he said. Starting with the 2006 class, Emery examined how quarterbacks drafted after the third round fared. He didnt find a long-term starter, let alone another Tom Brady. Mostly, it was a collection of third-stringers, many of whom did not last long in the league. "Most of the starters in this league come from the first and second round. So thats where you need to take a quarterback," he said. The idea of pairing a late-round QB with coach Marc Trestman doesnt seem to interest him. "Im more intrigued with how Marc matches up with Jay and Jordan and Jerrod (Johnson)," he said. PLAYING IT SAFE-TY: Emery declared the starting safety spots "wide open" with the struggling Chris Conte back and Major Wright gone. Theyve brought in Ryan Mundy and M.D. Jennings and figure to add more help in the draft. The Bears have also scouted college cornerbacks with length with the idea of converting them to safeties, although that carries some risk. MAKING A MOVE: Emery said hes fielded calls from teams looking to move up to No. 14. He also indicated trading up is unlikely, saying such moves are "expensive." ___ Online: AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL Cheap Buffalo Sabres Gear Wholesale Calgary Flames Jerseys Cheap Adidas Colorado Avalanche Jerseys Montreal Canadiens Outlet Store Wholesale New Jersey Devils Jerseys Adidas Arizona Coyotes Jerseys Cheap Adidas Boston Bruins Jerseys Cheap Adidas Carolina Hurricanes Jerseys Chicago Blackhawks Shop Free Shipping Wholesale Columbus Blue Jackets Jerseys Dallas Stars Shop Free Shipping Cheap Adidas Detroit Red Wings Jerseys Anaheim Ducks Jerseys China Wholesale Edmonton Oilers Jerseys Florida Panthers Shop Free Shipping Wholesale Los Angeles Kings Jerseys Minnesota Wild Outlet Store Cheap Adidas Nashville Predators Jerseys Cheap Adidas New York Islanders Jerseys New York Rangers Winter Classic Jerseys Cheap Adidas Ottawa Senators Jerseys Cheap Adidas Philadelphia Flyers Jerseys Wholesale Pittsburgh Penguins Jerseys Cheap Adidas San Jose Sharks Jerseys St. Louis Blues Winter Classic Jerseys Wholesale Tampa Bay Lightning Jerseys Toronto Maple Leafs Outlet Store Vancouver Canucks Outlet Store Cheap Adidas Vegas Golden Knights Jerseys Cheap Adidas Washington Capitals Jerseys Cheap Adidas Winnipeg Jets Jerseys ' ' '