Allgemein » presence in the crease.Speaking of Toews, he hit

NSW Swifts will take confidence from their dazzling semi-final performance ahead the formidable assignment of trying to beat the Queensland Firebirds in next Sundays trans-Tasman competition netball final in Brisbane.The Swifts speedy passing and relentless defence were highlights of their crushing 64-45 win over the Magic in Hamilton on Monday.It represented a lift in form after they lost 63-52 to the Firebirds in the Australian conference final the previous week.The challenge for the Swifts will be trying to get their first win over the Firebirds in Brisbane after 11 losses.Coming off the back off todays performance I think we can take confidence from that going into next week, Swifts shooter Caitlin Thwaites told AAP after the game.Well look at the way that we played this week and try and put some of those things into practice again for next week.Diamonds representative Thwaites was a big contributor to the semi-final win, nailing 43 of her 46 shots.Her cause was helped by silver platter service from captain and midcourt ace Kim Green, who racked up 20 goal assists.Green played out a full game for the first time since round five, after which fitness issues forced her to miss some games and play limited minutes in others.Its a great sign for her to be putting out four quarters again, so its great timing for us, Thwaites said.Another key Swifts player displaying great form at the business end of the season was Diamonds defender Sharni Layton.The irrepressible goalkeeper made a stack of big plays in her 100th competition appearance and was named game MVP.Shes just an absolute solid rock back there for us, Thwaites said.Its awesome just to be able to be up the other end of the court and see her do her work, because shes an absolute legend.Thwaites ensured many of the turnovers the Swifts forced were converted into goals, something she said they had focused on and done better than the previous week.Wing defence Abbey McCulloch came off late in the game with an ankle issue, though team officials were not immediately worried about her missing the grand final.Swifts coach Rob Wright pulled a minor surprise by starting McCulloch and putting Laura Langman at centre and leaving Diamonds midcourter Paige Hadley out of his run on side. Stitched Angels Jerseys . LOUIS -- Mike Smith is used to facing plenty of shots, so this was nothing new. Cheap Angels Jerseys . "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in the AL wild-card race. https://www.cheapangels.com/ . Oyama had six birdies and two bogeys at Kintetsu Kashikojima in the event also sanctioned by the Japan LPGA Tour. "I have been having this neck ache thats been affecting my golf recently," Oyama said. Los Angeles Angels Pro Shop .J. -- Pitcher Carl Pavano is retiring after 14 major league seasons. Fake Angels Jerseys . He was followed closely by David Clarkson, donning red, seconds later. Clarksons actions one night earlier, leaping off the bench in defence of Kessel during a pre-season game against the Buffalo Sabres, will cost him the first 10 games of the regular season. Fantasy hockey is not above dualism. While we had a rough week in mid-November in which fantasy superstars were injured left, right and center, this past week seems to have made up for the negativity.We saw both Taylor Hall and Johnny Gaudreau return earlier than anticipated from their injuries, in addition to the return of Alexander Steen and Jack Eichel. Thats not to mention the return of less-heralded contributors Chris Kunitz and Bryan Little. Heres more on the fantasy impact of each respective players return:Hall returned to a team that had recently found a scoring line groove featuring Travis Zajac, Michael Cammalleri and Kyle Palmieri. That allowed Hall to play on a second line with Adam Henrique and P.A. Parenteau. Hall notched a goal and two assists -- including a helper on Cammalleris overtime winner -- as the Devils clawed their way back to beat the Nashville Predators on Saturday. These two line combinations look very friendly to fantasy owners and, outside of Hall and Palmieri, the four other forwards are available in 37 percent or more of ESPN leagues.Gaudreau returned with a flourish, and has given coach Glen Gulutzan plenty to think about going forward. In an effort to ease Gaudreau back into the lineup, he returned to the second line instead of the first. The result? The Flames exploded for eight goals against the Anaheim Ducks. Gaudreau looked inspired playing with Sam Bennett and Alex Chiasson. Including power-play points, the trio combined for eight points in the win. Meanwhile, Sean Monahan, Troy Brouwer and Kris Versteeg stayed involved, accounting for six points of their own. Perhaps the solution all along to the early-season doldrums of Gaudreau and Monahan was to separate them. Well have to wait to see if Gulutzan keeps them apart; if so, that changes how we view those other forwards in fantasy.Steen took off a couple of weeks with an undisclosed upper-body injury, which wed wager had something to do with his offseason shoulder surgery that originally came with a timetable for a December return. As we know, he returned in time for the start of the season -- the early end of his recovery schedule -- and struggled through the first month and a half of the campaign. Now two games back, Steen has four points and is flying on a line with Vladimir Tarasenko and Robby Fabbri. Heres hoping his return from an injury, coupled with a return to form, means hes healthy and back in business for fantasy owners.Eichel returned to the Sabres on Tuesday and had two points in his season debut. He followed it up with a two-goal performance on Thursday, before finally being silenced on Saturday against the Boston Bruins. Still, the quality performances in his return signal good times ahead for the fantasy owners. Sam Reinhart and Evander Kane are playing with Eichel at even strength, while Reinhart, Ryan OReilly and Kyle Okposo join him on the power play. That should give owners a good idea of who to consider while Eichel helps drive production for his teammates.Kunitz missed six games with a lower-body injury and was back on the ice Saturday with Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel. His fantasy contributions may be muted while compared to a few seasons ago, but dont underestimate his periphery stats. Last season was far from a banner campaign for Kunitz, yet he finished among the top 100 fantasy skaters on the ESPN Player Rater. Hes available in 75 percent of ESPN leagues.Littles return gives the Winnipeg Jets a much more legitimate No. 1 and No. 2 center combination, assuming Mark Scheifeles injury is short term. When Little and Scheifele were in the lineup together briefly last week, it was Scheifele with fellow youngsters Patrik Laine and Nikolaj Ehlers, while Little was flanked by Blake Wheeler and Drew Stafford. With Scheifele out the past two games, Little is playing with Laine and Ehlers. The result has been four points in four games for Little. While he was drafted late (179.7 ADP), Little was drafted in most leagues for a reason. Hes now available in 60 percent of ESPN leagues following his extended absence.Forwards rising and fallingLeon Draisaitl, C, Edmonton Oilers (up 22 spots to No. 183): Our bad. It turns out that nobody should be declared dead to us for fantasy in an Oilers lineup that can move a player from third line to Connor McDavids side with the stroke of a pen. Draisaitl, who had quietly sunk into fantasy irrelevance for an entire months stretch from mid-October to mid-November, is back in business and racking up points next to McDavid on the top line. Weve seen a gamut of wingers move in and out of the plum spots next to McDavid, including Jordan Eberle, Milan Lucic, Patrick Maroon, Jesse Puljujarvi and now Draisaitl. If theres one takeaway, it would be that none of the wingers have quite as much value as you might first perrceive, but they have more value than they might otherwise deserve.dddddddddddd In other words, ride the hot hand and dont drop any of them just because they arent playing with McDavid right now.Josh Bailey, LW/RW, New York Islanders (up 18 spots to No. 218): Already coming on strong as John Tavares settled into a groove, Bailey has maintained his recent hot play as Brock Nelson settled in as the the third member of the top line. Bailey has seven points in the past seven games, including a goal and two helpers in the past three with Nelson at his side. Bailey can keep up respectable scoring numbers as a member of the top line, a status which will not be in question this season.Defensemen rising and fallingTorey Krug, D, Boston Bruins (up 22 spots to No. 97): Patience has paid off for Krug owners, with the Bruins top rearguard getting back down to business of late. Hes peeled off just shy of two-thirds of his points this season in the past eight games alone. We knew the dam would break for Krug eventually, as he has been playing all the important minutes and driving more than enough offense at the opposing net. Although teammate Patrice Bergeron still slides a bit on our rankings this week, we expect a similar turnaround for him sooner than later.Dougie Hamilton, D, Calgary Flames (up 25 spots to No. 164): Its been a little over three weeks since Hamilton switched defense partners and started playing with Mark Giordano on a regular basis. So its no coincidence that Hamilton is the No. 2 fantasy defenseman overall in the past 15 days. Playing more minutes, taking more shots and getting enough points to make a difference has Hamilton behind only Brent Burns on the ESPN Player Rater for the past 15 days among defensemen. Hamilton has been on a see-saw in our rankings this season, as we try to cling to hopes of a breakout campaign. His play in recent weeks may be indicative that the breakout will stick.Goaltenders rising and fallingCam Ward, G, Carolina Hurricanes (up 13 spots to No. 140): This run of exceptional ratios from Ward of late came as no surprise, as the Hurricanes were playing a dominant possession game against opponents since the start of the season. A little bad luck and a bad bounce here or there led to Ward struggling out of the gates. But after posting a 3.64 goals-against average in October, Ward just closed the books on a November with a 1.74 GAA. The goal support will be lacking for his wins column at times, but overall Ward makes a nice addition to your fantasy tandem -- and hes available in 60 percent of ESPN leagues.Steve Mason, G, Philadelphia Flyers (up 31 spots to No. 190): Masons numbers while Michal Neuvirth was healthy and competing with him for starts: a 2-5-2 record, with a 3.56 goals-against average and .874 save percentage. Masons numbers since Neuvirth was injured and hes had the crease all to himself: a 7-3-1 record, with a 2.14 GAA and .927 save percentage. Some guys are better being pushed, some guys are better when they know the job is theirs to keep. Put Mason in the latter camp, and get him on your fantasy rosters while Neuvirth remains out of the picture.Quick hitsWith Corey Crawford sidelined for up to three weeks, his owners should feel comfortable leaning on backup Scott Darling. The Chicago Blackhawks two losses this past weekend likely have more to do with missing Jonathan Toews than Darlings presence in the crease.Speaking of Toews, he hit the injured reserve with his back ailment, but it doesnt sound like hes expected to miss much beyond another week. Marian Hossa owners can bench him in shallower leagues until Toews returns.Rickard Rakell is on the shelf for the Anaheim Ducks, which means Nick Ritchie gets another run on the top line with Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf. If we get word that Rakell will miss more than a couple games, Ritchie becomes interesting as a short-term asset.The Los Angeles Kings are giving Marian Gaborik every opportunity to succeed, placing him on the top line with Anze Kopitar and Trevor Lewis. Gaborik has a couple of assists to show for his efforts in four games, and has 14 shots in the past three of those games. His ice time has also increased every outing and was at a nice 17:25 in Sundays matchup.Top 250 rankingsHere are the updated rest-of-season, top 250 rankings of forwards, defensemen and goalies, including position ranks.Note: Sean Allens top 250 players are ranked for their expected performance in ESPN standard leagues from this point on. ESPN standard stats include goals, assists, power-play points, shots on goal, plus/minus, penalty minutes and average time on ice for skaters, and wins, goals-against average and save percentage for goalies. ' ' '