pairing. Johnson led the defence with 39

WASHINGTON -- Julio Teheran allowed two runs in seven solid innings and had two hits, and Atlanta knocked out Stephen Strasburg in the fifth inning, as the Braves beat the Washington Nationals 6-2 on Saturday night. Dan Uggla had a two-run single for the Braves and Freddie Freeman reached base five times with two hits and three walks. Teheran (1-1) limited Washington to three hits, including a two-run home run by Adam LaRoche. The Braves right-hander was aided by a spectacular throw by B.J. Upton, who caught a liner to medium centre by Bryce Harper and threw out Jose Lobaton at the plate for an inning-ending double play in the fifth. Strasburg (0-1) allowed eight hits, three walks and three earned runs in 4 1-3 innings. Teheran walked four and hit a batter, but he compensated with six timely strikeouts and two solid singles to right field, the first of which drove in the tying run with two out in the bottom of the fourth inning and contributed to the early exit for Strasburg) It was the second shaky outing of the year for the Nationals right-hander. Strasburg allowed a pair of home runs in a no-decision in Washingtons 9-7 opening day victory over the Mets. Against the Braves, Strasburg had a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning, but third baseman Ryan Zimmermans two-out, two-run throwing error paved the way for two unearned runs. In the next inning, Strasburg was sent to the dugout after allowing a walk and four straight singles. The hits were supplied by Chris Johnson, Justin Upton, Uggla, and Ryan Doumit. Andrelton Simmons brought home the final run with a sacrifice fly off reliever Aaron Barrett. Notes: In the final game of the series on Sunday, Braves lefty Alex Wood (1-0, 1.29 ERA) will oppose Nationals right-hander Taylor Jordan, who gets his first start of the season. . Nationals P Doug Fister, who is out with a lat strain, may get some throwing in on Sunday for the first time since he was placed on the 15-day disabled list on March 29. "Through exercise he feels pretty good," manager Matt Williams said. "The test is going to be throwing and extending in a controlled environment." ... Illness is going around both clubhouses. Braves C Evan Gattis, who homered on Friday, was out with flu-like symptoms, but was available to pinch hit. Nationals P Gio Gonzalez is battling illness. His next start is set for Tuesday against the Marlins. .. Wood is the first left-hander the Nationals will face this year. Fake Padres Jerseys . The native of Mont-Tremblant, Que., captured a World Cup downhill event Saturday, his second this year and fifth career victory on the circuit. San Diego Padres Store . - Andrew McCutchen went 4 for 5 and finished a home run short of a cycle, and Jordy Mercer drove in a career-high four runs to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to an 8-2 rout of the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday. https://www.cheappadresjerseys.us/. The Gatineau Olympiques head coach will lead Canada in its quest to end its gold medal drought at the 2015 world junior hockey championship held in Montreal and Toronto at the end of this year. Wholesale Padres Jerseys . -- Adam Tambellini scored three times and set up one more as the Calgary Hitmen won their sixth in a row by crushing the host Lethbridge Hurricanes 8-1 on Saturday in Western Hockey League play. Padres Jerseys China . LeBron James and Chris Bosh didnt need any more. Williams scored 11 points in 10 minutes, Alan Anderson scored 17 points, and the Brooklyn Nets finished the exhibition season with a 108-87 win over the Miami Heat on Friday night.Division: Central GM: Joe Sakic Head Coach: Patrick Roy 2013-14: 52-22-8 (1st in Central) Playoffs: Lost in First Round Goals For: 245 (4th) Goals Against: 216 (T-14th) PP: 19.8% (5th) PK: 80.7% (24th) That Was Then: Starting anew with Patrick Roy behind their bench, the Avalanche got off to a torrid start to the 2013-14 season, earning wins in 12 in their first 13 games. Led by their young core of Matt Duchene, Gabriel Landeskog, Ryan OReilly and rookie Nathan MacKinnon, along with strong goaltending from Semyon Varlamov, the Avalanche quickly went from second-last in the league a year earlier to a team to be feared. The Avalanche cooled in December going 5-9, including a season-worst four-game losing streak, which left the team at 24-15 entering the new year. From there, the Avalanche rediscovered their form and entered the Olympic break at 37-21. The Avalanche finished their season on a 7-1-2 run, allowing the team to edge the St. Louis Blues by point for first place in the Central Division. Duchene, despite missing 11 games with injury, led the Avalanche 70 points. Landeskog was second with 65, while OReilly and Mackinnon finished third and fourth with 64 and 63 points, respectively. OReilly led the Avs in goals with 28 and veteran centre Paul Stastny finished third on the team with 25 goals. In total, five forwards cracked the 20-goal plateau. Varlamov finished the regular season with a 41-14-6 record, posting a .927 save percentage and a 2.41 goals against average. He finished second in the Vezina Trophy vote for the leagues top goaltender and fourth in voting for the Hart Memorial Trophy, awarded to the play judged most valuable to his team. The Avalanche drew the division-rival Minnesota Wild in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Despite starting the series without the services of Duchene, who suffered a late season knee injury, the Avalanche jumped out a 2-0 series lead on home ice. However, the Wild also held their ground at the Xcel Energy Center, sending the series back to Colorado tied 2-2. The Avalanche won Game 5, in overtime but a€“ despite Duchenes return a€“ the Avalanche lost Game 6 convincingly, 5-2. In Game 7, the Avalanche had four one-goal leads erased before losing 5-4 in overtime, ending their hopes of winning their first playoff series since 2008. Stastny led the Avalanche in playoff goals with five, he also tied MacKinnon for the lead in points with 10. Varlamov posted a .913 save percentage and a 2.78 GAA in the seven-game series. Scott Cullens Analytics Avalanche 2013-14 Stats by Quarter Games GPG GAA SH% SV% SAF% PTS% 1-20 2.95 2.05 9.6% .938 48.6% .750 21-41 2.52 2.67 8.0% .930 46.5% .619 42-62 3.05 2.81 9.2% .919 47.7% .690 63-82 2.75 2.55 8.5% .929 45.5% .675 NHL AVG 2.67 2.67 7.8 .922 50.0% .562 Key: GPG= goals per game, GAA= goals-against per game, SH%= even-strength shooting percentage, SV%= even-strength save percentage, SAF%= score-adjusted Fenwick percentage (differential of shot attempts faced vs. shot attempts, excluding blocked shots, adjusted for game score), PTS%= percentage of available points. Analysis: Games 1-20: Mediocre possession numbers were overwhelmed by great finishing offensively and superior goaltending. Games 21-41: Dodging bullets, with poor possession and declining scoring, yet pulled a favourable record. Games 42-62: Even with a slip in goaltending, the Avs scored at such a high rate that they offset their possession problems. Games 63-82: Above-average percentages carried the Avs to a strong finish, despite possession woes. Key 2014 Additions: RW Jarome Iginla, D Brad Stuart, C Daniel Briere, C Jesse Winchester Key 2014 Subtractions: RW PA Parenteau, C Paul Stastny This Is Now: The Avalanche lost Stastny in free agency to the division-rivaal Blues, who were the only team to beat the Avs more than once last season (they earned three wins in four contests).dddddddddddd Despite losing Stastny, the Avalanche still boast one of the deepest centre groups in the league. MacKinnon, Duchene and OReilly can all take on top-six duties, while John Mitchell, Marc-Andre Cliche and off-season addition Daniel Briere fight for bottom-six roles. In all likelihood, the depth at centre forces the Avalanche to line up Ryan OReilly on the wing a€“ as he did for the majority of last season - of the teams second line and Briere to the wing of the third. In his second year, MacKinnon may be tasked with taking on the role of the first-line centre. However, with the territory comes playing alongside Landeskog and free-agent signee Jarome Iginla, who scored 30 goals with the Bruins last season. If MacKinnon can make a seamless transition after opening last season as the third-line centre (before moving to the second line) and Iginla can mimic his success from Boston, the Avalanche offence could be stronger in 2014-15 than the year before. On defence, Erik Johnson and Jan Hejda are expected to form the Avalanches top pairing. Johnson led the defence with 39 points last season, while Tyson Barrie was second with 38 points and figures to round out the top-four with free agent signee Brad Stuart. Nate Guenin likely drops to the third pairing to play beside Nick Holden, who earned a three-year $4.95 million extension in the off-season after playing 54 games with the Avs in 2013-14. At goaltender, Varlamov is the undisputed starter, with trade-deadline acquisition Reto Berra assuming the back-up role. DEPTH CHART Forwards Left Wing Centre Right Wing Gabriel Landeskog Matt Duchene Ryan OReilly Alex Tanguay Nathan MacKinnon Jarome Iginla Jamie McGinn John Mitchell Daniel Briere Cody McLeod Jesse Winchester Maxime Talbot Patrick Bordeleau Joey Hishon Marc-Andre Cliche Andrew Agozzino Ben Street Troy Bourke Defence Left Right Jan Hejda Erik Johnson Nick Holden Tyson Barrie Brad Stuart Nate Guenin Ryan Wilson Zach Redmond Chris Bigras Stefan Elliott Duncan Siemens Bruno Gervais Goaltenders Semyon Varlamov Reto Berra Sami Aittokallio Craigs List TSN Director of Scouting Craig Buttons Top Prospect: Conner Bleackley When it comes to Connor, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. Hes productive in so many ways and that translates into having an influence in multiple areas of the game. Connor is smart and recognizes what is necessary at any given point and is capable of delivering. The styles of Duchene and MacKinnon differ from Ryan OReilly but in a group it makes the Avs very formidable. Connor will add strength in a similar manner. Fantasy - Cullens Player to Watch - Alex Tanguay Now 34-years-old, Tanguay was limited to just 16 games last season due to knee troubles, but he can still put up points and there is a good chance that hes still going to fit in a top-six role with Colorado. That alone offers up some intriguing possibilities, since the Avs have brilliant young forwards and a veteran winger, Jarome Iginla, with whom Tanguay has experienced some success in Calgary. Expectations have to be kept in check, given age and recent injury history, but Tanguay is a threat to put up 50-plus points if he can stay healthy. ' ' '