SOCHI, Russia – You could feel electricity in the air between Ryan Callahan and Yevgeni Medvedev as they stood nose to nose exchanging verbal jabs just outside the crease of Sergei Bobrovsky. Nick Rimando USA Jersey . You could feel it when the capacity crowd at Bolshoy Ice Dome roared as Pavel Datsyuk exploded past the American defence and beat the glove of Jonathan Quick for the first Russian goal. You could feel it when T.J. Oshie jumped off the bench not once, twice, three, four or even five times in the shootout, but six glorious times, the St. Louis Blues excitable winger finally ending it an exhilarating eighth round. Thirty-four years after the Americans and Russians made history in Lake Placid with the Miracle on Ice did another classic emerge at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi. Albeit of less weight, both in the tournament (it was a preliminary round game) and on a global stage (the Cold War has long since ended), the proceedings on a sunny Saturday afternoon were about as entertaining and exhilarating as hockey can get and a delightful reminder of what the NHL has to offer the Olympics. "It was awesome," said Joe Pavelski, still beaming afterward. "Whatever type of game you want to explain it as, it was that." "Obviously we know the history between the Americans and the Russians," added Patrick Kane, "and you know this one kind of had a different story of its own, obviously. But being in Russia here, playing here, seeing how the crowd was into the game and being able to come up with the win is nice." The buzz in the rink, the fierce competitiveness, the relentless tempo, the tension and hostilities, the exuberant chants of the mostly Russian crowd any time Datsyuk, Malkin, Ovechkin rushed up the ice, there was something different about the air in this one. "It was amazing," said Kane. "I dont think anyone could have asked for a better game." "Great hockey game," added Ovechkin. And it went to the Americans. Oshie, with a seemingly unending toolbox of moves, scored on four of six shootout dangles, beating Bobrovsky (and the scary duo of Datsyuk and Ilya Kovalchuk) one last time to capture the 3-2 victory for Team USA, all but sealing Group A and a trip to the quarterfinals. The gripping, edge-of-chair shootout, which saw Datsyuk, Oshie and Kovalchuk bounce up and off the bench time and time again, was just the icing on a spectacular cake though. In fact, there was so much more. Start with Kanes heart-stopping overtime breakaway, the one Bobrovosky stopped by closing the pads on a five-hole attempt. Circle back to Datsyuk tucking one under the glove of Quick for the games first goal, a shockwave of emotion and energy pulsating through the crowd. Continue on with the pockets of red, white and blue that stood tall when Cam Fowler – Canadian-born, American-raised – tied the score on a power-play. Recall the balloon of home turf enthusiasm burst when Pavelski popped the air out, blasting Kanes remarkable cross-ice feed for an American lead. "I tried not to look around," said Fowler afterward, "but you could feel the buzz in the air. It was such high intensity out there." There was Malkin angrily dumping Callahan with an emphatic cross-check in front of the Russian bench. There was the scrum that ensued after nearly every whistle. There was NHL defector Alex Radulov taking not one but two penalties, with the Americans scoring on both power-plays. There were the extra jabs, spears, slashes, punishing collisions, nose-to-nose confrontations, everything one would imagine in a smoldering rivalry suddenly renewed. There was David Backes charging like a train through Fedor Tyutin in the neutral zone. There was Ryan Kesler standing in the way of a dangerous point shot on the penalty kill, his stunned left hand requiring attention on the bench and in the dressing room, but not enough to keep him from returning. There was Ryan McDonagh sacrificing with another blocked shot shortly thereafter, the St. Paul, Minnesota native limping off in discomfort only to get back moments later. There were the undercurrents of history, two powerhouses pining for gold that has long since eluded both. There was that fiery U.S. penalty kill stonewalling an incredible array of power-play talent – Ovechkin, Malkin, Kovalchuk, Datsyuk – only to have Datsyuk tie it on the final man advantage with Dustin Brown in the box for a second time. There was Radulov, who screened Quick on the goal, smack-talking Brown as he exited the box. Not to be forgotten was the Tyutin point shot that beat Quick with less than five minutes left, nor the smattering of disapproval that followed when the goal was called back (the net was dislodged, however slightly). "I dont know what happened there, but definitely was a goal," said Ovechkin. And finally there was the shock, delight and awe of Oshie hopping onto the ice again and again. There was the joy on the American bench at the unlikely nature of it all. "At some point you think does he have any more moves left?" said American captain Zach Parise. All in all it was a game that wont soon be forgotten. "That one – in an atmosphere like that – is something youll remember for the rest of your life," said James van Riemsdyk. Karim Bellarabi Germany Jersey . The loss completed Ottawas opening round series victory and sent the Northeast Division-winning Habs to the dressing room to pack after just five games. Emre Can Jersey . The Detroit Tigers turn to baseballs lone 20-game winner this season tonight as they try to leave Boston with a 2-0 edge over the Red Sox in the best-of-seven American League Championship Series.MILWAUKEE -- Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau favours wins over style points. Given that two starters were getting over illness or injury and a third was lumbering through the second half with a new leg injury, Chicagos 81-72 win over the Bucks on Friday suits him just fine. Carlos Boozer had 19 points and 13 rebounds in his first game back from a right knee injury and Mike Dunleavy Jr. added 18 points for the Bulls, who won their fourth straight. Joakim Noah had eight points, 10 boards and seven assists after missing practice while feeling under the weather. "You guys are into the esthetics. Im into the wins," Thibodeau said when asked about the scratch-and-claw victory after the Bulls nearly squandered a 15-point lead. Jimmy Butler finished with 10 points and said he was fine afterward after getting hit in the thigh. The Bucks opened the fourth quarter with a 7-0 run to get to within three. A long jumper from Ersan Ilyasova (14 points) got the Bucks to 71-70 with 5:42 left. But the Bulls hung on, even after Boozer missed two foul shots with 3:42 left with his team up by three. The Bucks missed their final 11 shots, failing to hit after Brandon Knights bucket with 5:09 left. The Bulls havent allowed an opponent to score more than 87 in the four-game streak. "Tried to contest shots, trying to rebound, making them shoot over our hands and it worked out," Boozer said in relaying the reasons for the late defensive stand. He didnt look bothered by the sore right knee that kept him out two games. The Bucks missed two opportunities to tie it after Knight (12 points) and O.J. Mayo (16 points) misfired on open 3s on back-to-back possessions with under 3:30 left. Dunleavy answered with an off-balance layup to get the lead back to 77-72, then hit two foul shots to get to a seven-point lead with about 1 minute left. "We had some good looks but they just didnt fall for us," coach Larry Drew said. "We forced a couple down the stretch that probably werent the best selection but going down the stretch, if you make plays youll win if you dont, you wont win.. Blank Belgium Jersey. " After a slow start, Chicago gained traction in the third behind the bullish Boozer. With both knees heavily wrapped in ice after the game, Boozer said he felt great and made it a point to thanks the trainers. Boozer grabbed eight rebounds alone in the quarter. Larry Sanders finished with one point and nine boards before fouling out with 1:16 left in the game. He was in foul trouble most of the night in large part due to the active Boozer. Boozer rebounded a missed 3 and saved the possession just before landing out of bounds. Chicago whipped the ball around the perimeter and Jimmy Butler (10 points) hit a 3 from the wing to make it 59-47 with about 6:50 left in the third. The energy and offensive rhythm that Milwaukee had in building a seven-point lead after the first quarter disappeared in the third before re-emerging to start the fourth. But once again, the NBA-worst Bucks (7-28) fell short trying to rebound from a second-half deficit. "Everybody might be a little down as far as the season has gone for us. Weve lost a lot of close games and it is building up on us right now but you cant think about that," forward Epke Udoh said. "We just have to be ourselves and be better the next game." Foul shooting and the long-range touch of former Dunleavy, who went 3 for 3 from 3-point territory in the second quarter, helped the Bulls turn a 27-20 deficit in the first quarter into a 47-45 halftime lead. Boozer had 15 first-half points and went 7 of 8 from the foul line. NOTES: Asked if he had spoken to injured guard Derrick Rose since the trade this week of Luol Deng, coach Tom Thibodeau said the two talked about the team in general all the time. "Derricks good. Derricks good. Hes locked into his rehab, dealing with things as he should be." Rose is out for the year with a right knee injury. ... Bucks C John Henson, who missed his sixth straight game with a sprained left ankle, is expected to join the team on a two-game road trip to Oklahoma City and Toronto. Henson leads the team in rebounding (8.0 per game) and blocks (2.3). wholesale jerseys cheap jerseys cheap jerseys cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '
