Team Sweden should be considered one of the favorites to win the World Cup of Hockey.At the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, the Swedes advanced to the gold-medal final, and this time around, their defense is, if possible, even better. They have playmaking magic in the Sedins and Nicklas Backstrom, firepower in?Patric Hornqvist, Loui Eriksson and Filip Forsberg, and, of course, goalie Henrik Lundqvist.Then, to make the team complete, they have Marcus Kruger.In 2013, the Chicago Blackhawks tied Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals with 1:16 remaining in the third period. Coach Joel Quenneville was looking to get the game to overtime, so he sent?Michael Frolik, Dave Bolland?and Kruger on the ice to keep the Boston Bruins in check. Seventeen seconds later, Bolland scored the Stanley Cup-winning goal. That was not the plan, but thats why its one of the most memorable shifts in Krugers career.He didnt get an assist on the goal, but it was Kruger who got the puck to Johnny Oduya, whose shot Frolik deflected so that Bolland could slam the loose puck in.These days, Kruger is Coach Qs go-to defensive forward, even if Krugers 2015-16 season was forgettable because of the wrist injury he suffered in December. The way Quenneville uses Kruger is reason to ponder why the 26-year-old Swede has gotten only one third-place vote in the Selke Trophy voting in his career (in 2013). In the same time span, 124 other players, including Ilya Kovalchuk, have gotten votes to win the award given to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game.Last season, Krugers offensive-zone starts were a team-low 19 percent, according to hockeyabstract.com. The year before, when the Blackhawks won their third Cup in six years -- and Kruger his second in three -- his offensive-zone starts were 25 percent. Yet his Corsi has been consistently over 50 percent -- between 51.6 and 55.1 -- except for last season, when it slipped to 48.4.Even last season, when Kruger missed 41 games because of the injury, he was only 16 total minutes behind captain Jonathan Toews in shorthanded minutes on the Blackhawks, and he led the teams forwards in shorthanded minutes per game by 23 seconds. In 2014-15, he played almost 70 more shorthanded minutes than Toews.Of course, the quiet Swede is the last person in the world to put his name in the same sentence as the Selke Trophy.When I got to Chicago [in 2011], that was the role that was available, he told ESPN.com recently. So thats what I needed to be able to do if I wanted to play in the league.Like so many other conscientious defensive forwards, Kruger hasnt always been just a defensive specialist. In 2009, when he broke through in the Swedish league, he scored at a point-per-game pace through the fall -- on pace with the best in the league. He scored six points in six games for Sweden at the World Juniors before suffering an ankle injury. He ended up scoring 31 points in 38 regular-season games and adding another 10 in 16 postseason games as a 19-year-old.Its not like Ive had to reinvent myself or see myself as a different player. Ive always tried to play solid, two-way hockey, he said. I learned early on to always do what the coach asks you to do, and if this is what the coach wants me to do, Ill try to be as good at it as I possibly can.Its not always easy, and there have been times when [having the defensive role] has been frustrating since Im used to contributing even at the other end of the rink. And I think its important to keep on pushing ones self to do that and not get too comfortable with being a defensive specialist.Last season, Kruger collected just four assists in 41 regular-season games and one assist in seven playoff games. All in all, hes scored 28 goals and 88 points in 328 games, so theres room for improvement in his stats. But though the goal celebrations have been few and far apart, Kruger has learned to get his kicks from other aspects of the game.Basically, the way I feel depends on how well the teams doing, he said. If were not winning, its harder for me to get up for defense and not contribute in the offensive zone. But its rewarding to get to play the last shifts of a game because often it means that if we can keep the puck out of our net, well win. Thats a little boost for me. Things like that may mean more to me now than they used to.The coach seems to trust me, and obviously, I want to be on the ice at the end of the games. Everybody wants to contribute to the team success, and this is a pretty cool way too. Air Max 720 Destockage . The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling "puts an end to my dreams of being a top player," the 27-year-old Troicki said in a statement. "I worked my entire life for it, and it has been taken away from me in one afternoon by a doctor I didnt know," said Troicki, whose ranking peaked at No. Chaussures Pas Cher Livraison Rapide .J. Jefferson has been charged with assaulting his girlfriend. https://www.grossistechaussurepascher.fr/ . Speaking Thursday on TSN 1050 Thursday, the Leafs GM also touched on the questions surrounding the teams leadership and the struggles of his big-name free-agent signing. “Its not from lack of effort from the coaching staff. Chaussure Pas Cher Destockage . However, he did make them miss him a little less. Cundiff, who had the unenviable job of replacing Dawson last season, agreed Thursday to a one-year, $1. Air Max 720 Pas Cher Femme . - Levi Browns tenure at left tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers is over before it even began. FRISCO, Texas -- Tony Romo is healthy enough to play, but the Dallas Cowboys quarterback is not expected to be active Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers, sources told ESPNs Adam Schefter and Adam Caplan.Romo went through his second straight full practice Thursday, working with the scout team. He returned to practice last week on a limited basis as he comes back from a compression fracture in his back suffered during a preseason game Aug. 25.Coach Jason Garrett has been noncommittal on Romos return this week. On Wednesday, ESPNs Ed Werder reported Romo had been medically cleared and that the decision to be active is now in the hands of the coaches.With Tony, its just a day-by-day evaluation, Garrett said. He had a good [Wednesday]. It followed with what he had done last week. Hes moving around well. Hes throwing the ball well. Well just see what hes able to do [Thursday] and make our evaluation from there.Offensive coordinator Scott Linehan said the Cowboys would go over the game-day roster on Saturday as a staff.I think hes able to do everything, Linehan said. Again, we evaluate it after the day and see how [Thursday] went. Each day I think he does a little more. Weve been encouraged with the response hes been able to have physically coming back the next day. Hes getting better and getting stronger. Were real encouraged where he is right now.Rookie Dak Prescott will remain the Cowboys starter against the Steelers. He has Dallas atop the NFC with a 7-1 record, and the Cowboys can match a team record Sunday with their eighth straight win.dddddddddddd. Prescott has 12 touchdown passes and two interceptions. He has also run for four TDs.Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones position has evolved regarding who will be the teams starting quarterback when Romo is fully healthy. Jones said Romo is the No. 1 quarterback as recently as Oct. 9 but acknowledged the team will take into account the chemistry of the club during its ongoing winning streak.Speaking on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas on Tuesday, Jones said the Cowboys might never have a final answer on the quarterback decision.Anybody with any sense knows that Tony would like to be playing, Jones said. You understand what a competitor he is. Thats that. The key thing that I want to emphasize [is] that we probably are never going to have this totally sorted out. Were going to play it by ear, play it as it comes. We can do that, and to do it really right for the advantage of the team, which we deserve, hes really got to be ready to go at the top of his game. We have the luxury of getting him that ready. And when we do that, weve got an edge that can take us a long way. I think what youre going to have is, youre going to see Tony playing really well at practice, really being what he can be, which is in my mind, when hes healthy, I dont know that I would trade him for anybody. ' ' '