Clan-Members » n a row, he was winning a lot of rac

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Just as soon as the Buffalo Sabres get some positive injury news, they receive another setback on the injury front.After Evander Kanes long-awaited return on Wednesday, the Sabres announced Thursday that center Tyler Ennis is expected to miss several weeks after undergoing surgery to repair a groin injury.Its disappointing for Tyler, said Sabres head coach Dan Bylsma, according to the teams website. This is a situation hes been dealing with for the past little while, days, maybe a week. Im kind of just extremely disappointed to get the news that hes going to be out for a bit of time, have the surgery which he had this morning. Hes had a tough go getting on the ice and playing games for the last nine months.The skilled playmaker has been struggling with injuries going back to last season, when he played in just 23 games.Top center Ryan OReilly and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov missed practice on Wednesday and their status is up in the air for Fridays game against the New Jersey Devils (6-3-3). OReilly was unable to play in Buffalos 2-1 shootout loss to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday, and the Sabres missed his presence in the offensive zone. Both teams struggled to put together any offense in a defensive-minded clash.Sabres goalie Robin Lehner (4-4-0, .929 save percentage) has gotten off to a fine start to the season but is expected to take Fridays game off before returning in the second half of a home-and-home series against the Devils. In his place is Anders Nilsson, who has exceeded early expectations with a save percentage of .937 in three games.No matter who is between the pipes, the Sabres will need a better offensive effort. Aside from an overtime period in which Buffalo held the upper hand (outshooting Ottawa 8-0), neither team had much offense in the shootout defeat on Wednesday.The Devils are coming off back-to-back wins over the Carolina Hurricanes. New Jersey defeated Carolina 4-1 on Sunday before a 3-2 win shootout win over the Hurricanes on Tuesday.Left winger Michael Cammalleri had a hat trick in the 4-1 victory over Carolina, recording his first three goals of the year. Waiver-wire acquisition P.A. Parenteau came up big in the shootout win over Carolina, scoring in both regulation and the shootout.Parenteau was claimed off waivers just before the start of the season from the New York Islanders and has been a difference-maker. Hes currently tied for the team lead in goals with five.I dont know if I want to prove something, to be honest, Parenteau said, according to The Record. I just want to put that behind me. Im happy where I am right now and things are working out, and this is a good hockey team that Im part of and the boys have made it easy for me.He brings a lot of skill, left winger Taylor Hall said, according to The Record. Hes a guy thats always looking to make a play. Were trying to get him to shoot more and have more of that. USWNT Store . Traditional contenders Brazil, Greece and Turkey drew the other three spots to complete the 24-team field for this summers tournament in Spain, basketball governing body FIBA announced Saturday at its meeting in Barcelona. Wholesale USWNT Jerseys . The veteran safety was a starter for the Bengals from 2008-2012. He totaled 41 tackles and three interceptions while starting all but four of the 13 games he played last season. https://www.cheapuswnt.com/ . Colin Wilson had two goals and an assist, and Mike Fisher scored a goal and helped set up two others in the Predators 6-4 victory over the Red Wings on Monday night. Cheap USWNT Jerseys .ca look back at each of the Top 10 stories of 2013. Today, we look back at Boston Strong - a citys recovery from tragedy. USWNT Jerseys 2021 . PAUL, Minn. HOMESTEAD, Fla. -- On the eve of Jimmie Johnsons attempt to make NASCAR history, the six-time champion planned to go for a little run.How many miles?Seven, of course.Ive just got something with that number, Johnson said.His race for a record-tying seventh NASCAR championship is Sunday at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Hes been chasing Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt in the history books for three years and finally has a shot at that magical mark.He may have even sensed months earlier that this would be his year. He had failed the last two years to advance to the championship-deciding finale, yet picked this year to wear a commemorative helmet during the 10-race Chase.The helmet is a tribute to Earnhardt and Petty. It reads Chasing 7.We just wanted to pay respect to Dale and to Richard, Johnson said. Its been cool to wear it. Its definitely been getting some attention, and honestly, its just out of respect to those two guys.Johnson has been stuck on six titles since 2013, the last year the Chase was decided on points. The elimination format introduced the next year was not kind to Johnson, and he failed to make it into the round of eight the last two seasons. He broke though this year and now just need to finish the finale higher than reigning champion Kyle Busch, Carl Edwards and Joey Logano to join the exclusive club.I never thought Id ever see a seventh championship in my lifetime by any driver, said three-time champion Darrell Waltrip. At the time, what Dale Earnhardt and Richard Petty did was sort of unheard of.Petty is neutral on Johnsons potential milestone. He said he won his championships against Hall of Famers David Pearson, Bobby Allison and Cale Yarborough, while Earnhardt raced against Waltrip, Rusty Wallace, Terry Labonte and Bill Elliott.Theres no way to compare with what Ive done or what Earnhardts done or what Jimmies doing against each other, he said. I aint got a dog in this fight, you know what I mean? Probably from the PR standpoint, it would be great if he could win it. Because then every time they say something about him, theyre going to say something about me and Earnhardt.Johnson has been quite dominant in an impressive crowd during his illustrious career. Although all his titles were won after the 2004 introduction of the Chase, hes won in various formats and set a record with five-consecutive titles.Johnson has raked in 79 wins -- seventh all time, ahead of Earnhardts 76 -- and collected them against Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Kevin Harvick and the Busch brothers. Yes, hes done it in amazing equipment fielded by Rick Hendrick, and sure, crew chief Chad Knaus ranks in the top three crew chiefs of all time.But Johnson puts in thee work and has honed in on a clean, professional career in what ranks him on former teammate Gordons list of all-time greats.dddddddddddd.I think he is the best that Ive ever raced against and possibly the best that there has ever been, Gordon said. Even days where I felt like I had a car that could compete with him, he did extraordinary things to get more out of it. He is a pretty calm, cool guy, but boy when you put that helmet on him and you get him in the racecar, he just becomes another person and takes it to another level.Yet for some reason, Johnsons accomplishments arent feted the way others have been. Johnson has often been referred to as too vanilla, and fans have cited his dominating stretch from 2006 to 2010 as a reason for NASCARs decline in popularity.Only the California native leads a very active life and, with personal fitness his cause, has created a wellness challenge for the community. He and his wife also have donated $4.8 million since 2009 in annual grants to schools in California, North Carolina and Oklahoma.He dressed as a handsome prince for Halloween to the delight of his two young daughters, and you would be hard-pressed to find a single person speak ill of Johnson.Jimmie is everything but vanilla, Hendrick said. I mean, he may come across at the track that way because hes so focused and driven, and he thinks like a computer when hes in the car. The way he eats, the way he exercises, everything is about physical and mental fitness for the race car.I think when he won five in a row, he was winning a lot of races and a lot of championships, and people maybe got a little tired of it. But I think then after the sixth one and we had a lull, I think they respect him now, and they look at what hes accomplished.Jimmie is going to get more credit when hes done than hell get when hes driving.Johnson remains immune from the discussions. Oh, he desperately wants that seventh title, but he doesnt worry about rankings or respect. Hes noticed more cheers in the last few years, but he doesnt need any approval.The way people talk about me, I feel like Ive received a lot of respect, he said. I think anybody thats winning gets booed. I watched Earnhardt get booed. I watched Gordon get booed. When you get older and dont win as much, you get cheered a bit more. I watched that for both of those guys.I get more cheers now. I feel Ive been very respected for what I do and what Ive accomplished, so I dont have a negative (feeling) on the way people think of me and what Ive done.---More AP auto racing: www.racing.ap.org ' ' '