Dein erstes Forum » but now were scoring some timely goals

TORONTO - The backwards Toronto Marlies hat on Brandon Kozuns head told a story of where he came from and where he seemed likely to go at some point during training camp.But this was the morning of the final pre-season game and Kozun was sitting at his locker at Air Canada Centre, not Ricoh Coliseum down the street. He was squished in next to the goaltenders, but most importantly he was still in camp with the Maple Leafs.I must be doing something right to still be here, the unassuming five-foot-eight winger said Saturday.Even after capping his standout pre-season with a three-point effort a night earlier, Kozun said he didnt wasnt going to celebrate yet. After all, the opening-night roster doesnt have to be finalized until Tuesday afternoon, but all indications are the 24-year-old hasnt just made the Leafs but could have a prominent role to start the season.Kozun practised on the second line Saturday alongside Joffrey Lupul and Nazem Kadri, and even if hes not there when the NHL regular season begins Wednesday night against the Montreal Canadiens, he can be expected to kill penalties and play some decent minutes.Hes a young player just trying to earn an opportunity to play in the NHL every day, start in the NHL, coach Randy Carlyle said. Hes never done this before.Three weeks ago, Kozun looked like an afterthought, a potential top-six forward in the minors and maybe a call-up down the line. It didnt appear that he had a legitimate chance to make the 23-man roster, but the mind of a pro athlete cant function like that.If you come into a camp with the thought that you have no chance, youre not going to make it, Kozun said. Theres something to be said about positive thinking. It wasnt really about making the roster as it was to try and just improve every day.Kozun did have a leg up because Carlyle remembered watching him last season with the Marlies.He was the player that stood out the most, Carlyle said. It was easy to see his skill-set and his speed because he was a guy that was on the puck and hes transferred that to pre-season and our training camp here.At times in exhibition games it has looked like the puck is magnetically attracted to Kozun. Part of that is the instinct to be in the right place at the right time and another is his speed a€” a quick first step and a burst beyond.He flies up and down the ice, said James van Riemsdyk, who played with Kozun on Friday against the Detroit Red Wings. He makes a lot happen with his speed out there. You see him a couple times, especially on the penalty kill and hes disrupting their breakout and drawing things and making things happen.Kozun acknowledges he has had a longer road than some other guys to get to the NHL. Born in Los Angeles, Kozun began playing hockey when he was three and moved to Calgary with his family when he was 10.Born to a Canadian mother and American father, Kozun chose to play internationally for Canada and won a silver medal at the 2010 world junior championship.I felt like the bulk of my developing came in Canada, Kozun said. I moved to Canada when I was 10 years old, its a pretty young age. When you grow up from 10 on, thats a bulk of your years. I think my mom kind of raised us a bit more Canadian than American.Kozun played for the WHLs Calgary Hitmen and was a sixth-round pick of the Kings in 2009. He played three full seasons in the AHL with the Manchester Monarchs before a trade to the Leafs in January.Its not the easiest thing when youre in the minors for four years and maybe you start to doubt it a little bit when you see other guys that are younger than you getting called up and all that, Kozun said. I think when I first came out of junior I was pretty offensive-heavy. Maybe at that point I thought I was ready, but youre naive. As you get older I think you mature as a person and as a player.That was the big thing for me: Just learning to be a complete player and learning to be a pro.Kozun thinks the time in the minors and the adversity made him a better player.If it werent for that, I wouldnt be who I am today, he said.What Kozun is today is an NHL player. But the rest of the roster remains in flux because of an uncertain injury picture.Centre Tyler Bozak (lower-body injury), winger Josh Leivo (bruised foot) and defenceman Cody Franson (bruised knee) missed Saturdays practice, and star winger Phil Kessel (lower-body injury) left after roughly 15 minutes. Franson skated for a bit at the end and voiced optimism about being ready for Wednesday, but Carlyle didnt finalize anything regarding the status of any of the injured players.I still think we have a couple days before we make that final assessment on everybody, Carlyle said.A handful of jobs could be determined by those injuries, as bubble players like forwards Matt Frattin, Carter Ashton, Colton Orr and Frazer McLaren and defencemen Stuart Percy and Korbinian Holzer await news. Percy looks like a good bet to make it no matter what.Leivos health could factor into where Kozun plays, but just being in the picture has made it a successful camp for him.Hes been noticeable, Carlyle said of Kozun. Weve got lots of decisions to make and theres bodies to fill in and Kozys made it a lot easier to make some decisions.---Follow @SWhyno on Twitter Mychal Givens Jersey . Some members of the U.S. Congress arent so sure. They say Russia isnt doing enough to assure that athletes will be protected at the Feb. 7-23 games, happening not far from an Islamic insurgency that Russias huge security apparatus has struggled for two decades to quell. Russia may run greater risks in towns outside the tightly controlled Olympic zone. Suicide bombs last month a few hundred kilometres (miles) away have increased concerns, and an Islamic warlord has urged his followers to attack the Sochi Olympics, Russian President Vladimir Putins pet project. David Hess Jersey . - Young and old. https://www.cheaporioles.com/1498i-al-bumbry-jersey-orioles.html .Tzavelas opened the scoring in the 11th and Pereyra added another in the 51st. Emmanuel Kone pulled one back in the 80th and Levadiakos missed several chances to level in the last 10 minutes. Dwight Smith Jr. Jersey . 5 Trade Deadline is drawing closer and teams will be deciding on whether to buy or sell while figuring out which players can make the biggest difference and hold the greatest value. Rick Dempsey Jersey . -- Pelicans coach Monty Williams does not expect guard Eric Gordon to play in any of New Orleans final five games this season.While Florida Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo was terrific against his former team earlier this month, he hasnt been very sharp since. Nothing has gotten past Ryan Miller in the Vancouver Canucks last two games. Luongo and the Panthers try to avoid a season-worst fourth consecutive loss when they host the Canucks on Monday night. Catch all the action on TSN Radio 1040 starting at 2:30pm pt. If in goal, this will mark Luongos third matchup against Vancouver since he was sent to Florida in a four-player last March. The four-time All-Star made 32 saves against the Canucks in a 3-1 victory Jan. 8 in his much-anticipated return to Rogers Arena. I havent been back here since the trade so not only for myself, but I think for the fans as well it just closes the chapter and we get to move on now, he said. Luongo went on to stop 31 shots in a 4-2 win at Edmonton three nights later, but hes since posted a 3.59 goals-against average in dropping three consecutive starts for the first time since opening 0-2-1. Luongo had 32 saves in Saturdays 3-2 shootout loss to Edmonton as the Oilers snapped a franchise-worst 14-game road losing streak. Its not a matter of taking the point and moving on, Luongo said. We needed to bounce back and we didnt come up with the win. The Panthers (20-13-10) have been limited to seven goals during an 0-2-2 slide at home, and they could be in for another long night with Miller between the pipes. Miller made a combined 58 saves in blanking Philadelphia 4-0 on Thursday and Carolina 3-0 on Friday, giving Vancouver (25-15-3) back-to-back road wins after dropping five of six away from home. Luongo was the last Canucks goalie to put together three consecutive shutouts from Nov. 4-8, 2008. Miller, who recently missed time with an illness, has won three coonsecutive road starts behind a 0.dddddddddddd33 GAA. I think its important to get these points and important for me to get back after taking a few days, he told the teams official website. Just because you do something one (game) doesnt mean youre going to do it again. You just get to the right mental place and then trust that everything works out. Alexandre Burrows, Derek Dorsett and Shawn Matthias all scored in the second period Friday. Vancouver had managed two goals during a three-game skid before winning its last two. Not too long ago, we couldnt score goals, it seems like, Burrows said. Now everybodys got some bounces going their way. ... We werent really getting any puck luck around the net, but now were scoring some timely goals. The Canucks have lost three of four in the series, but theyre 6-2-1 over their last nine road meetings. Henrik Sedin has 14 points in as many games against the Panthers. Sedin ranks second on the team with 37 points, one behind Daniel Sedin. Miller is 1-3-2 with a 3.24 GAA in his last six starts against the Panthers, yielding three or four goals in each of the last five matchups. Floridas Jonathan Huberdeau scored twice in the Jan. 8 victory over Vancouver and once on Saturday, giving him four goals and four assists over the last six games. Hes tallied two and four during a five-game point streak at home after notching three points in his first 13 games there. The Panthers are 1 for their last 19 on the power play. Game Notes: FLA is 1-0-0 vs VAN this season, winning in VAN VAN was 1-0-0 in FLA last season, SOW Florida: 0-2-1 past 3 games, outscored 14-6, 1/9 on PP Huberdeau (1G, 2A) 3 game PT streak Vancouver: won 2 straight, shutouts in both games, 7/7 on PK Burrows (1G, 1A) past 2 games ' ' '