(SportsNetwork. http://www.authenticpanthersshop.com/Elite-Cam-Newton-Carolina-Panthers-Jersey-Mens-Nike-Nfl-1-Autographed-Black-Home-45 .com) - The Winnipeg Jets hope to set into motion a losing streak for the Colorado Avalanche this evening. You can catch all of the action on TSN Jets and TSN 1290 at 7pm ct. Winnipeg continues to lose ground in the Western Conference playoff race as it sits six points out of the second wild card position. The Jets snapped a six- game slide with a 7-2 win over Dallas on Sunday, but fell in defeat the following night 3-1 to the St. Louis Blues. Eric ODell scored the Jets lone goal and the clubs were tied until the Blues David Backes scored a power-play goal with 6:51 to play. Winnipeg went down a man when Evander Kane went off for slashing. "We just cant be in the box there," Winnipeg head coach Paul Maurice said of Kanes penalty, which occurred in the offensive zone. "Thats the bottom line on that play." Al Montoya allowed two goals on 25 shots for the Jets. It is unknown when Ondrej Pavelec will be ready to return from a lower-body injury, so Montoya will get the start again tonight. He has good numbers versus the Avalanche, going 2-1-2 with a 2.14 GAA and one shutout. Dustin Byfuglien will miss his first game of the season tonight due to a lower-body injury. Head coach Paul Maurice hopes hell be able to play Saturday against Carolina. Eric Tangradim, who has been a healthy scratch for the last four games, replaces Byfuglien. The Avs are coming off just their third setback in the past 10 games, losing in head coach Patrick Roys return to Montreal. Roy starred for the Canadiens franchise for 10-plus seasons before a trade to the Avalanche in 1995 and received a warm reception during the game. The home cheers eventually went to Montreals Thomas Vanek, who notched a hat trick to help hand Colorado a 6-3 loss. Jamie McGinn had a goal and an assist for the Avalanche, who also got goals from Nathan MacKinnon and Maxime Talbot. Jean-Sebastien Giguere turned aside 30-of-35 shots. "I didnt want them to feel pressure of winning a hockey game for their coach. Its all about our team here," Roy said. The Avs fell into a tie with the Chicago Blackhawks for second place in the Central Division, eight points back of the first-place St. Louis Blues. Theyll try to avoid losing two straight for the first time since Feb. 4-6. Reto Berra, the third goaltender on Colorados roster, will get the start tonight and it will be his first with the Avalanche since they acquired him from the Calgary Flames. Berra, signed to a three-year extension by the Avs last Friday, was 9-17-2 with a 2.95 goals against average in 29 games (27 starts) with the Flames. That includes a 1-1-0 mark versus the Jets with a 4.32 GAA. The Avs have won three of four versus the Jets this season, including a 4-3 shootout decision on Dec. 12 in the lone encounter in Winnipeg. Jon Beason Black Jersey . Jacob Jacques, Andrew Ryan and Jonathan Drouin also scored for Halifax (37-18-3), who outshot the Islanders 40-26. Kevin Darveau stopped 25 shots. Bradley Kennedy had the lone goal for Charlottetown (18-33-5), which has nine losses in its last 10 games. Kawann Short Black Jersey . The former Los Angeles Lakers forward has a two-month contract, the club said on Tuesday. Odom, an NBA free agent who hasnt played since finishing out last season with the Los Angeles Clippers, is filling a roster spot that opened up because of injury.DENVER -- The Denver Nuggets are one-and-done in the NBA playoffs again. Only this ouster has a much different feel. The young team grew up in a hurry in taking the star-studded Los Angeles Lakers to the brink before losing a thrilling Game 7 at Staples Center on Saturday night. They even impressed Kobe Bryant, who said the Nuggets "showed a lot of heart." Along with plenty of promise. Ty Lawson established himself as a bona fide difference-maker, and joining him with flashes of brilliance at various points were rookie Kenneth Faried, speedster Corey Brewer, forward Danilo Gallinari, big man JaVale McGee, guard Arron Afflalo and centre Timofey Mozgov. Al Harrington and Andre Miller provided the veteran leadership, and they nearly pulled off the upset. "Im proud of the team," coach George Karl said. "Ive never been in a locker room after the season where every guy in front of me Im happy with and Im content with. Were staying with the same crew and going to work next year." Well, not entirely. Miller is an unrestricted free agent this summer and he suggested after the game that if hes going to be a backup like he was this season for the first time in his stellar career, it might as well be with a championship contender. The Nuggets arent quite there yet. But they are showing signs of moving in the right direction after general manager Masai Ujiris second major makeover in 15 months brought in the raw but promising McGee -- who will be a restricted free agent this summer -- in place of Nene, the oft-injured big Brazilian who never seemed productive or healthy enough to get the Nuggets over the hump. Denver has advanced past the first round just once since 2003, but this time theyre building with a young core thats sure to benefit from the stretched-out series that was knotted up at three games each and tied 78-all with 6:27 left Saturday night before the Lakers big men secured the 97-88 win. The Nuggets had trailed by 16 midway through the third quarter before going on a 27-7 run with a small lineup against the Lakers star-studded cast of Bryant, Pau Gasol, Metta World Peace, Andrew Bynum and Steve Blake to take a four-point lead early in the fourth quarter. It didnt last, and the Lakers advanced to the second-round against Oklahoma City, while the Nuggets went home as first-round fodder again. "Its tough," Lawson said. "We played together and played as a team. Just the way it went doown is kind of tough for us. Jason Avant Black Jersey. We fought hard and we showed a lot of energy. Next year were going to be even better." The Nuggets jumped out to a fast start this season but were done in by injuries and had to quickly adjust to McGee after Nene was dealt at the trade deadline. They finished strong, securing the sixth seed in the Western Conference. They were smoked twice in L.A. to start the series, then bounced back to win three of four and put a scare into the Lakers. "Weve been dealing with all the injuries and the trades, and this team just became so close-knit and tight," said Harrington, who played through a bum knee down the stretch and a broken nose in the playoffs. "I think thats the only reason we had a chance to get out of this series. We went in expecting to compete, to have a chance to win, but we really came together in this series and proved we could win. "Its only going to help us next year to be even better and even tougher." The Nuggets have plenty to build on and now the young core has a taste of the intensity playoff basketball brings. "It was a valiant effort in the second half," Karl said. "We had a lot of opportunities. The game was so physical, and I think their size won over our speed. We gave a great effort. We made them miss enough shots to win the game, but we just didnt rebound the ball. And when you have two guys (in Gasol and Bryant) that put their mind to rebounding the ball, theyre damn good. Im sure there are things we could have done better, but some of it is theyre damn good, too." Power won over pace, Karl said, and size beat out speed. "We need to get stronger. We need to understand how to beat this type of team," Karl said. "The numbers will say we were a push in rebounding, but we didnt put ours back in the basket. They were laying theirs back in the basket." There was plenty to celebrate about this team, too. "All year long, I enjoyed their belief that they could win when no one else believed in them," Karl said. "From the (lack of a) closer to not having a star player and all the things written, I just think theyre pretty mentally tough for a young bunch of guys. "Theyre enjoyable to be around. Theyre enjoyable to coach. I dont think there are 30 NBA coaches saying that right now. In that sense, Im blessed with a good situation. Their heart is bigger than people think it is." ------ AP Sports Writer Greg Beacham contributed from Los Angeles. cheap jerseys ' ' '
