Torontos training camp without a contract and earned a one-year deal

CALGARY - Mason Raymond will have to adjust on the fly to his new team.Limited to a pair of pre-season games with the Calgary Flames because of a lower-body injury, Raymond says the first few games of the NHL season will be a lesson in adaptation.Would I have liked a few more pre-season games? Sure, Raymond said. Coming to a new team, theres new things to learn, theres new systems, new everything kind of walk of life. I try to pick that up as much as I can, but in saying that I think actually being on the ice and in those situations is the best way, quickest way to learn those.Part of being a professional is being able to adapt. Ive been a pro in this long enough. You have to learn, you have to adapt, thats just part of the way it is.The Flames signed Raymond to a three-year, $9.5-million deal when unrestricted free agency opened July 1. Mike Cammalleri, Calgarys leading scorer last season, departed for the New Jersey Devils the same day.Looking to fill the void on offence, the Flames came to terms with Raymond, who is from Cochrane, Alta., just northwest of Calgary. The six-foot, 185-pound left-winger had 19 goals and 26 assists and played all 82 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2013-14.What was a bounce-back season with the Leafs made Raymond attractive to the Flames. Hed gone to Torontos training camp without a contract and earned a one-year deal.Raymond spent his first six NHL seasons with the Vancouver Canucks and posted a career-high 25 goals and 28 assists in 2009-10. He suffered a broken vertebra in Game 6 of the 2011 Stanley Cup final against the Boston Bruins.The long recovery from the injury hampered his output in subsequent seasons. The Canucks did not re-sign him in 2013. No other teams showed interest until the Leafs took a flyer on him and invited him to training camp.Truth be told, I couldnt get a contract, so I was there on a tryout, Raymond said. Im grateful for the opportunity that Toronto gave me and to be able to succeed.Its satisfying for me coming off a good season, playing well and proving you still deserve to play in this league. I think I proved it to myself, first and foremost, but proved to others I deserve to be here.Goal scoring is a question mark for the Flames to start this 2014-15 season and predicted to be by committee. Raymond, 29, is expected to be a significant producer on that committee.The reason why we went to get Mason is that we had two priorities . . . to get us bigger and to get us faster, Flames head coach Bob Hartley said during training camp. Mason fits in in the second category. Hes been through battles. When youre stuck in a corner and feel like none of the 30 teams want you anymore, youre facing adversity. He did this with flying colours. Last year he had a great season in Toronto and now hes with us.He wanted to be a Flame so its my job, its all our job and his job to make sure we come up with a plan that will make him feel good and make him feel hes going to be a big contributor for us.Raymond relishes the idea of increased responsibility on a re-building hockey team.The work ethic thats been going on here, its something very intriguing for any player to come into, he said.You want to contribute wherever you can for sure. Ultimately, you want to be a part of the solution. I love playing in the O-zone and producing. In saying that you have to be responsible at both ends of the ice.Its easy to romanticize a local hockey product playing for the hometown NHL team. Raymond did go to Flames games as a youngster and recalls once meeting Lanny McDonald, who was captain of the Flames in 1989 when they won the Stanley Cup.Raymond says its cool to play for the Flames and having immediate family close by was attractive for him, his wife and young son.But he hasnt spent his career plotting a return to southern Alberta. Raymonds interests and those of the Flames happened to align to bring it about. The hometown thing for me, its kind of there, but its not there, Raymond said. Family come visit you in every city. Because Im here, is there more? Not necessarily. They know that youre here, this is my job, this is my business and to be quite honest, I was gone from here for 10 years. Did I know I was going to be a Calgary Flame five days before free agency? No, not really. The process is interesting and how it works and theres that grace period where you can start to speak with teams and the Flames showed interest.Returning to an NHL market in western Canada was high on his wish list as a free agent. That was also a box the Flames were also able to check off.For me, Ive been fortunate enough to play in Canadian markets and to be honest, I really wouldnt want it any other way, Raymond said. Fans are passionate. They pay close attention to their teams. Ronnie Lott Youth Jersey .com) - The Buffalo Bills will return to the friendly confines of Ralph Wilson Stadium on Sunday when they welcome the upstart Cleveland Browns to town. Marcus Allen Womens Jersey . -- Chad Labelle scored the winner 17:36 into the third period to give Medicine Hat a 2-1 victory over the Swift Current Broncos on Sunday and lift the Tigers into the second round of the Western Hockey League playoffs. https://www.raiderssportsgoods.com/Womens-Dave-Casper-Inverted-Jersey/ .com) - Devon Johnson ran for a school record 272 yards with four touchdowns and No. Ronnie Lott Raiders Jersey . The teams all-time leading scorer, DeRo has won everything there is to win in MLS. Art Shell Youth Jersey . The Mercedes duo of three-time Canadian Grand Prix champion Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg has won all six races to start the season, finishing one-two in the last five.The World Cup can be glorious for many reasons. On Sunday it stepped up to educate viewers. Arjen Robben was fouled in the box deep into added time in the match against Mexico. The key word in that sentence is fouled. Defender Rafa Marquez stepped in and stood on the foot of Robben in the penalty area. At no level of this sport, from youth football to the World Cup, is a defender allowed to step on an opponents foot. None. It was a clear penalty. 100 times out of 100 a referee should give it. However, there was a huge outrage on social media once the decision was made. Just after contact, Robben kicked his left foot into the air and threw his arms back, flopping to the floor. Robben cheat then was trending. But is he a cheat? Let us look at the facts from Sunday, ignoring what some people think he is like as a professional. Robben, who earlier in the game was fouled and didnt get a penalty for staying on his feet, falls to the ground theatrically. However, as he is falling to the ground the real incident has already happened. The defender, Marquez, has misjudged his duties; he is too late and has dived in late and connected with the foot of Robben. It is the referees duty at this time to decide if this is a foul. His decision should not be clouded by Robbens reaction. This, of course, is easier said than done. A football referees job is one of the hardest in professional sports yet, for some, there is an expectation for him to be judge and jury in cases such as this. Was it a foul? Did the player dive? Here is what you need to know about these questions. Referees are VERY good at deciding what is and what is not a foul. They are not, and should not be, VERY good at deciding if a player is diving. To come up with this verdict you have to measure intent. This is VERY dangerous territory. For some, Robben was cheating in this scenario. For some, his actions are worse than Marquez, even though the skipper of the Mexican national team rashly DIVED in and committed a foul in the final minutes of a monumental football match. The verdict is in on Marquez. It was a foul. So, what of Robben? Those throwing around the word cheat must be sure the player had intent and desire to cheat the referee or opponent. Whenever someone is guilty of something those accusing must always be clear of the rule itself and it is worth quoting the rules on simulation which comes under FIFAs Law 12 on fouls and misconduct. Unsporting Behaviour (Simulation) Directive: If blatant simulatiion, caution.dddddddddddd. If minimal contact, consider cautioning player. For the worst part of the crime - something they call blatant simulation - the guardians of the game instructs referees to give a yellow card; exactly the same card that players receive for a poor challenge or time wasting, for example. When such a moment happens, that directly impacts a match it is worth noting UEFAs stance explained in article 10 under 1C on suspensions applied to misconduct: Suspension for two competition matches or for a specified period for acting with the obvious intent to cause any match official to make an incorrect decision or supporting his error of judgement and thereby causing him to make an incorrect decision. That rule was applied in 2009 when UEFA banned Arsenals Eduardo for simulation against Celtic in the Champions League. However, as this case proved, it is very difficult to judge whether a player has obvious intent to dive. Arsenal rightly challenged the two game ban applied to their striker and it was overturned. We are now at a stage in 2014 where we are evaluating how every footballer goes down to the ground under a challenge with many rushing to the assumption that they are diving cheats. This is not helping anyone. As Arsenal proved when they overturned the Eduardo ban, accusing someone of intentionally trying to simulate is very dangerous. Asking a referee to do the same is even more moronic and the game is already at a crossroads with this as fouls are now being missed based on what happens directly afterwards. And this is the biggest concern. Fouls, seen by referees, are being missed because of the outrage over simulation. Fouls are already being missed as it is. Not through incompetence but because the game is so difficult to officiate. Referees rely on players to help them with this and if a player falls down theatrically under a legitimate foul, no ones attention should be turned to the latter. This, of course, is as likely as officials missing clear penalties and players simulating. The clear obsession with this area of the sport is growing and growing, particularly from a crowd who dont watch the game as often. Despite the obsession, the crime remains a difficult one to judge. Perhaps, then, energy is better used elsewhere? Dont count on it. For example, if Robben had been booked for diving, would there have been such an outrage when Netherlands would have been denied a clear penalty in the dying minutes? Not even close. ' ' '