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a situation that you fully understand its a possibility you migh

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SOCHI, Russia - Martin St. cheap jerseys . Louis gets his chance as Team Canadas 13th forward in the first elimination game of the Olympic tournament. St. Louis is in and Matt Duchene is out against 11th-seeded Latvia, which upset Switzerland to reach the quarter-finals. Coach Mike Babcock expects St. Louis to handle the difficult situation as a veteran player. The 38-year-old says he is ready for the mental and physical challenge. "Its a situation that you fully understand its a possibility you might be in, in these tournaments," he said. "Youre trying to go out there and earn another shift." Canada did not do line rushes during Wednesdays morning skate at the Bolshoy Ice Domes practice rink. If the same lines hold from Tuesday, Sidney Crosby will centre Chris Kunitz and Patrice Bergeron, Ryan Getzlaf will centre Jamie Benn and Corey Perry, Jonathan Toews will centre Patrick Marleau and Jeff Carter and John Tavares will centre Patrick Sharp and Rick Nash with St. Louis rotating in. "The reality is we dress 13 forwards each game," Babcock said. "One guy hardly gets on the ice. Its a hard, hard situation for people that play 22 minutes. Thats the way it is. Youve got to find a way to help out when you get a chance." St. Louis offers the ability to make a big play at a crucial time, but so do Matt Duchene and P.K. Subban, who are Canadas health scratches. Dan Hamhuis will be the seventh defenceman, leaving Subban out of the lineup for the third time in four games. Babcock said Subban, last years Norris Trophy winner as the NHLs best defenceman, has been "excellent" in accepting his role. "Hes a proud guy. And hes here and he doesnt get to dress," Babcock said. "Nobody is probably thrilled about that. Those are hard decisions that we make, and in the end theyve got to live it." "That doesnt mean theyve got to like it. But youre here to be a good pro and a good teammate and as its not about me and its not him, its about Canada. As long as we all remember that, were fine." Its about Canada is also this teams approach going into Wednesday nights game against a largely-unknown Latvian opponent. Sault Ste. Marie native and Buffalo Sabres coach Ted Nolan is the most known quantity there, perhaps along with 41-year-old defenceman Sandis Ozolinsh. "I know Sandis Ozolinsh played for me and helped me get to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final and hes their captain," Babcock said. "Theyre better as a sum than they are as parts." Latvia beat Switzerland 3-1 Tuesday night to set up this date with Canada. Winger Patrick Marleau said he noticed from that game that the Latvians were a very "structured" bunch. "Its not going to be that many breakdowns, so when you do get that opportunity youre going to have to make the most out of it," Marleau said. Babcock came away from the Latvia-Switzerland qualification game impressed with how the underdogs held on. "They had good chances on (Swiss goaltender Jonas) Hiller, but they spent a lot of time in their own zone," Babcock said. "Ted called a timeout, they were all bent over and dying. There was a couple more times I thought they might die. They hung in there, hung in there and battled. "If Im a Latvian Im very, very proud. They competed. Thats all you can ask. Youve got to maximize what youve been given." With the exception of Sabres forward Zemgus Girgensons, Latvias only NHL player, most of the team is able to practise together. Theres a benefit in that Latvia can perfect defensive systems to frustrate more-skilled teams like Canada. “Its a team thats similar to the other teams weve played so far, a team that works extremely hard and a team that packs the slot and gives you as little space as possible in that area," Bergeron said in French. "So well have to work very hard and come up with a strategy to get through that system they use." Canadas system involves defending tough and trying to get to the middle of the ice. With Babcock supervising, players worked on power-play and extra-attacker situations during Wednesdays skate. The top power-play unit features Crosby, Tavares and Carter with Sharp and Duncan Keith at the points. The second unit had Toews, Getzlaf and Perry with Drew Doughty and Shea Weber at the points. Through three games, Canada has only four power plays, a point of some frustration. "Hard to get them, eh? We spent half a week practising them, You almost wonder why you spend so much time preparing for them when they never come," Babcock said Tuesday. "I think weve played in the offensive zone for three straight games. When you have the puck, you draw penalties. It hasnt happened." Canada is 1-for-4 on the power play so far. "Maybe we can do a better job of sustaining pressure and wearing them down so it forces the other team to take some more penalties," Marleau said. Carey Price starts in goal for Team Canada, as Babcock announced Tuesday. Roberto Luongo will serve as the backup. "Im just trying to do my job like everybody else," Price said Tuesday. "Im excited. Im grateful for the opportunity." Projected lineup for Team Canadas quarter-final game against Latvia: FORWARDS Chris Kunitz - Sidney Crosby - Patrice BergeronJamie Benn - Ryan Getzlaf - Corey PerryPatrick Marleau - Jonathan Toews - Jeff CarterPatrick Sharp - John Tavares - Rick Nash / Martin St. Louis DEFENCEMEN Duncan Keith - Shea WeberMarc-Edouard Vlasic - Drew DoughtyJay Bouwmeester - Alex PietrangeloDan Hamhuis GOALIES Carey PriceRoberto Luongo SCRATCHES Matt Duchene P.K. SubbanMike Smith cheap jerseys from china . The 22-year-old from Notre Dame started 29 games and had five goals and six assists this season. The league announced Monday that Powers received 93 per cent of team, media and player votes. cheap nfl jerseys . 31 as the deadline to submit an Olympic hockey roster, the deadline has changed. After appeals from some top European countries - namely Russia, Sweden, Finland and Czech - over the past 24 hours, the National Hockey League, NHL Players Association and the IIHF agreed to move the date to Jan.PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby says hes been free of concussion-like symptoms since being cleared for contact earlier this week but remains in no rush to suit up for a game for the first time in more than three months. "I only want to go through this one more time," Crosby said Friday. The 24-year-old captain hasnt played since the symptoms resurfaced following a loss to Boston on Dec. 5. Doctors allowed him to return to full practice on Tuesday and while Crosby is pleased with the way his body is responding he refuses to put on his return. The Penguins host Florida on Friday night and face the Bruins on Sunday. "Everything has been good but like I said, I dont think Ive really tested (myself) a ton," he said. The Penguins are in the midst of a four-game homestand thats limited the teams practice time. Coach Dan Bylsma cancelled Thursdays session, though Crosby managed to squeeze in a workout with a couple of teammates. He called the bumping hes endured over the last three days "minimal," but hasnt had any setbacks. Crosby said there is no chance hell play before Sunday and wont make that determiination until he skates on Saturday. nfl jerseys china. While he knows its impossible to get the same kind of contact in practice that hell experience in a game, hes going to continue to push himself as far as he can go. "Youre not going to be able to simulate a game anyway, but you have to make sure youre as tested as you can be," he said. Pittsburgh has been the hottest team in the league even without Crosby. The Penguins entered Friday on a seven-game winning streak to creep within six points of the Eastern Conference-leading New York Rangers. Crosby waited six weeks between getting cleared for contact and suiting up during his last attempt at a comeback in the fall. He collected 12 points in eight games before returning to the injured reserve. He doesnt anticipate needing six weeks to get ready this time because the headache and dizziness issues he was dealing with last fall have abated. "Well, last time it was more to do with symptoms and Ive been symptom free," he said. "Its more about the amount of contact than the duration." The Penguins host the Bruins Sunday at 12:30pm et/9:30am pt on TSN and TSN Mobile TV. cheap jerseys cheap jerseys from china ' ' '
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