BARCELONA, Spain -- Barcelona forward Neymar has taken a big step toward returning to action, practicing with the first-team on Monday. Barry Sanders Lions Jersey . The Brazil striker has been sidelined since badly spraining his right ankle in a Copa del Rey match at Getafe on Jan. 16. He has missed a total of seven games. Barcelona says Neymar is "in the final phase of his recovery" with the Catalan club travelling to Real Sociedad on Wednesday for the return leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal series, which Barcelona leads 2-0. Neymar has scored 10 goals in 24 appearances since his summer move from Santos, which has also caused off-field distractions as a Madrid court investigates irregularities in the players contract. Laken Tomlinson Lions Jersey . Still, after the starts theyve had the last couple of seasons, they cant help but feel good about it. Brian Bogusevic drove in the go-ahead run after Jose Altuve scored on Jordan Pachecos throwing error to tie it in the eighth inning and the Astros beat the Colorado Rockies 3-2 Sunday to win their opening series. T. J. Jones Lions Jersey . Currently, the Stars hold down the second and final wild card spot with 87 points while the Coyotes are one point back and the Predators are six points behind the Stars. All three teams have four games remaining.With the Super Bowl over for another year and our mighty hockey teams about to chase after Olympic gold yet again, it seems a little strange to be talking about “team” when it comes to figure skating. When you think teams you imagine a group of people who all shop at the same jersey store and move together in a large pack with a common goal, which is usually scoring goals. But at these Olympic Games the idea of becoming a team in figure skating makes perfect sense because of a new event called, shockingly, the Team Event. Now before you get your mind all fired up with images of Patrick Chan spinning through the air and passing off a baton to Tessa Virtue as she floats by on the back of Scott Moir, I must tell you that it is not quite that interactive. And there are a few rules. First, teams are made up only of skaters who have qualified in their own discipline and will be competing at the Games. Canada will be able to choose its team members from the three men, two women, three pairs and three dance teams that it is sending to Sochi. One man, one woman, one pair and one dance couple from each qualified country will skate their short programs. Before the long program, two of the disciplines can be changed out. For example, Canada might choose to have different skaters compete in the long in the mens and womens events, meaning the pair and dance teams could not be changed. They skate, scores are given, math happens and voila, medals are handed out to the team with the highest total. If that sounds like it lacks a tad in the creative aspect of team play you would be right. Skaters are expected to pretty much repeat the exact same program, with maybe a few new elements, when they compete inn their non-team events for the individual medals. Josh Bynes Lions Jersey. Just for fun imagine the six members of the “team” all skating at once wearing matching uniforms... oh wait, thats hockey. If it all seems like it needs some intrigue, then consider that when picking the team certain questions of strategy come to mind. If you use only your best skaters, do you risk taking away from their chances for individual medals? With two possible changes before the long programs, do you split the duties up for the pair teams because they have their individual event first and have the least amount of time to recover ? Ice dancers Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir won Olympic gold in Vancouver but lost recently to the Americans at the Grand Prix Final. Do you keep them away from a head-to-head before their actual event? If youre Patrick Chan, reigning world champion in search of a gold medal, do you throw all those quads and hope you have some more left when your individual event begins on Day 6? I bet you that it would be a tad easier to make these decisions if you already knew who the other teams were... hmm? Personally, I am very excited for this team event. Not only is it more figure skating for fans and another chance at an Olympic medal for these athletes and the country they love, but it is going to be fun. It will bring the skaters together in a way that has never happened before in our sport. Those key decisions I mentioned will keep the water cooler conversations rolling. Oh, and I can hardly wait for the inevitable team chants. " Jump up high / Spin down low / Go Team Canada / Go! Go! Go! " Hey, its our first time at this team thing, give us a break. Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys ' ' '
