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With three of those fights being short

in Balance Discussion Tue Oct 23, 2018 8:36 am
by jinshuiqian0713 • Farseer | 1.260 Posts | 12600 Points

ALAMEDA, Calif. Willie McCovey Jersey . -- For a franchise with a frustrating history of post-season flops, the latest collapse sent the San Jose Sharks to a new low. The Sharks became the fourth team in NHL history to lose a best-of-seven series after winning the first three games, getting overwhelmed at home in a 5-1 loss in Game 7 on Wednesday night to start a pivotal off-season for a team looking to shed the label of playoff underachievers. "We obviously dont want to hear that kind of stuff, but what are we going to say? We were on the wrong side of history tonight," defenceman Brad Stuart said. "Its tough for us to argue with anything thats said. We let ourselves down, we let the fans down, we let everybody in our organization down. Its not a good feeling. Theres not really much else you can say about it." San Jose has the second most regular-season wins in the NHL the past 10 seasons but has never made it past the conference finals. There was the first-round loss to Anaheim in 2009 after posting the best record in the league in the regular season, second-round losses to inferior teams like Edmonton in 2006 and Dallas two years later, and three defeats in the conference final when that elusive Stanley Cup seemed so close. Yet this might have been the most bitter of all, considering it came against a fierce rival and after the Sharks looked so strong in taking a 3-0 series lead. "Every year you lose is pretty low, but this one is a type of series that will rip your heart out," forward Logan Couture said. "It hurts. Its going to be a long summer thinking about this one and what we let slip away." San Jose outscored the Kings 17-8 to win the first three games but was barely competitive in the final four contests. The Sharks were outscored 16-3 over the final 3 1/2 games to join Detroit (1942), Pittsburgh (1975) and Boston (2010) as the only teams to blow a 3-0 series lead. The only bright side might be that Detroit and Boston both won it all the year after their collapses. "Its just so disappointing that we were able to go up 3-0 and not find a way to have that killer instinct, to find a way to scrape and claw and win games like they did," Couture said. "Its tough saying it, but I think the better team won the series. They were better than us." The Sharks took the day off Thursday to regroup before going through the annual routine of exit meetings and cleanup on Friday where they will start looking for answers for why they fell short once again. Defenceman Dan Boyle might leave as a free agent and forward Marty Havlat could have the final year of his contract bought out. But the biggest questions will be about the status of coach Todd McLellan and general manager Doug Wilson. While the Sharks did a good job dealing with injuries to finish tied for the fourth-most points in the regular season, they couldnt get it done in the playoffs. "Im in charge, Im responsible for the group that performs on the ice," McLellan said. "I have to accept that responsibility. When we break down the series, Im not going to throw any individuals or group of individuals under the bus, because we lost it collectively. But Im responsible for that group." The biggest issue was the lack of production from the top players in the final four games. Captain Joe Thornton, linemate Brent Burns and Couture had no points in the final four games and Patrick Marleau and Joe Pavelski didnt have a goal or an assist in the last three. The power-play went 0-for-15 in the final three games, including four blown chances in the second period of Game 7 when the Sharks were either ahead or tied. It added up to a second straight Game 7 loss to the Kings. "We were a lot closer last year than we were this year," McLellan said. "Were kidding ourselves if we think we were closer this year, just because it went seven games. ... It wasnt even close. We had a core group of individuals that didnt get on the score sheet. Last year was a lot closer than it was this year." Duane Kuiper Jersey . Atletico Madrid made it three wins from three thanks to a double from in-form striker Diego Costa in a 3-0 victory at Austria Vienna, leaving the Spanish side on the brink of the last 16 already to continue its brilliant start to the season. Matt Williams Jersey . Second-seeded Sloane Stephens of the United States made lighter work of her day as she beat 2009 champion and Swiss wild card Timea Bacsinszky 6-3, 6-3. Two seeds fell: No. 4 Kirsten Flipkens of Belgium lost to Katarzyna Piter of Poland 6-4, 6-2, and No. http://www.sfgiantsrookiestore.com/Giants-Buster-Posey-Kids-Jersey/ . Mueller is the grandson of the late Ron Lancaster, the Hall-of-Fame quarterback and longtime head coach in the CFL. Last season, Mueller was quarterbacks coach of the University of Regina Rams, his alma mater.With elite wrestling skills and a sledgehammer for a left hand, Johny (Bigg Rigg) Hendricks represents a real threat to UFC champion Georges St-Pierre. "Ive never fought anybody like him. But hes never fought anybody like me," St. Pierre told The Canadian Press. "So were both unique. Were going to clash and see whos the best man." For those who have followed the career of the MMA star from Montreal, its a familiar refrain. As is St-Pierres comment that while the No. 1 contender poses a lot of problems, the champion has the solution. "Im ready. Im very well-prepared. Im at my best. Im the best I can be," said St-Pierre. The world will find out Nov. 16 in Las Vegas when St-Pierre (24-2) meets Hendricks (15-1) at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. It will mark St-Pierres 10th title defence. He lost the first, knocked out by Matt (The Terror) Serra at UFC 69 in April 2007, but reclaimed his championship belt by beating Serra two years later at UFC 83. Since then, he has defeated Jon Fitch, B.J. (The Prodigy) Penn, Thiago (Pitbull) Alves, Dan (The Outlaw) Hardy, Josh Koscheck, Jake Shields, Carlos (Natural Born Killer) Condit and Nick Diaz. St-Pierre has won 11 straight since that 2009 loss to Serra and currently ranks second in the UFCs pound-for-pound rankings, behind only light-heavyweight champion Jon (Bones) Jones. That record and reputation has made GSP a 2-1 favourite to beat Hendricks, odds more respectful of the challenger than in many of the Canadians previous fights. A southpaw, the 30-year-old Hendricks has won six straight since dropping a decision to Rick (The Horror) Story in December 2010. And three of those wins (T.J.Waldburger, Jon Fitch and Martin Kampmann) were emphatic first-round knockouts. A former NCAA champion wrestler at Oklahoma State, Hendricks registered just three takedowns in the five fights after Story. With three of those fights being short, he did not need to dig deep into his arsenal. But last time out, he landed 12 of 15 takedowns in neutralizing the striking game of Condit. According to FightMetric, St-Pierres numbers are much better than Hendricks. The champion is accurate on a UFC-record 76 per cent of his takedowns (compared to 50 per cent for Hendricks) and is successful defending them 86 per cent of the time (63 per cent for Hendricks). St-Pierres significant striking accuracy rate is 55 per cent (50 for Hendricks) while his striking defence rate is 75 per cent (58 for Hendricks). Andrew McCutchen Jersey. Both men have beaten Josh Koscheck, a fighter who has also has good wrestling and power in his hands. Hendricks won a decision in May 2012 while St-Pierre earned decisions in August 2007 and December 2010. "They are similar but different," said St-Pierre. "He (Hendricks) is a leftie, he has a different style and different game. Its going to be a good fight. I look forward to it." Last time out against Koscheck, St-Pierre literally broke his face with a punishing jab and landed four of nine takedown attempts. St-Pierre landed 110 significant strikes to just 16 for Koscheck. The champion has prepared for Hendricks in his native Montreal. It has gone smoothly although his camp was forced to deny reports that he might be thinking of retirement after the fight. Trainer Firas Zahabi said his comments were misconstrued. Asked about the issue, the 32-year-old St-Pierre said he is planning his next fight rather than his retirement. "I always take it one fight at a time but Im happy with my life right now." He says there will be no shortage of challenges after Hendricks. "There are always going to be challenges," he said. "Im not above the sport. "Everybodys beatable and I always have to keep my head straight and stay humble and train hard." St-Pierre knows from experience. After dethroning future Hall of Famer Matt Hughes at UFC 65 in November 2006, his first title defence followed a truncated training camp marked by distractions that included family illness. He was knocked out by Serra in a shocking upset. St-Pierre has never made the same mistake again. As his training goes, so does his fighting. It has been a rough year for champions with Anderson Silva, Junior dos Santos and Benson Henderson losing their title within the last 12 months. "It makes you remember no matter how great you are, no matter how good youre doing, one mistake and you lose everything," St-Pierre said. He is realistic about the target on his back. "Ive been the target since I became champion because everyone wants what you have," St-Pierre said. "And its OK. "Its hard to become champion, its even harder to stay champion. 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