Neues » Chris Pronger told CBC Sports

(SportsNetwork. Air Max Scontate .com) - The talk surrounding the New England Patriots ahead of their eighth -- yes, eighth -- Super Bowl appearance should be about how the club has been a model of consistency under owner Robert Kraft, head coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady. Instead, some missing PSIs have deflated (see what I did there) the Patriots ability to solely focus on their upcoming matchup with the Seattle Seahawks and dug up some old skeletons as well. Hey, at least the big game has its clear-cut villain. In case you missed it, and that is highly unlikely, the NFL reportedly found that 11 of the 12 balls used by the Patriots during a 45-7 rout of the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship Game were underinflated by two pounds of air pressure per square inch. That has sparked some finger pointing and a joint investigation while also allowing detractors of the Patriots to jump up and down and remind everyone of Spygate, the infamous 2007 incident in which New England was found guilty of videotaping defensive signals used by the New York Jets during a game in September. So, instead of talking about key new additions the Patriots made this season or how the club didnt let a slow start derail their season, the faces of the franchise have been forced to deflect the controversy away from the team. Belichick went on the offensive Saturday, defending his team of any wrong doing and then having once again to defend past mistakes when Spygate was brought up. The guys in front of 80,000 people. ... Everybody (on the) sideline saw it. Everybody sees our guy in front of the 80,000 people. I mean, there he is, said Belichick of the past incident. So, it was wrong, we were disciplined for it. Thats it. We never did it again. Were never going to do it again and anything else thats close, were not going to do either. The Pats coach also felt the need to remind everyone that it was talent that got his group of players to this point. This team was the best team in the AFC in the regular season, he said. We won two games in the playoffs against two good football teams. The best team in the postseason, thats what this team is. I know that because Ive been with them every day and Im proud of this team. Belichick has since shut down responding to any new questions about deflated balls, though each new report about the incident will bring new lines of question. Until then, New England has been able to talk a bit about how it got to an eighth Super Bowl, which ties Dallas and Pittsburgh for the most Super Bowl berths in league history. The Pats are aiming to become the sixth team with at least four Super Bowl titles, a distinction that was denied to them by losses to the New York Giants in the title game in both 2008 and 2012. New England has not won a Super Bowl since claiming back-to-back titles in 2004-05. No other team has won consecutive championships since and the Pats will be looking to deny the Seahawks from joining that company this season. The Patriots didnt look like contenders early, with a bad 41-14 loss at Kansas City on Sept. 29 dropping the club to 2-2. Questions about Brady being in the latter stages of his career surfaced, especially after he was limited to 159 yards passing while getting picked off twice by the Chiefs. Brady responded the next game in a win over Cincinnati, logging 292 passing yards and a pair of scores while allowing the run game to rack up 220 yards. That victory kicked off a seven-game win streak of the Pats, a span that saw them become the first team in NFL history to win three consecutive games by 20 or more points, each against an opponent with a record of at least three games above .500. I mean, we rallied, said defensive lineman Vince Wilfork, who appeared in only four games last season because of an Achilles injury. One thing we always say is, No matter what we go through, just stick with one another. Thats exactly what we did. So it didnt surprise me. It was something we had to go through, we went through. I think we handled it pretty well as a team and benefited from it. Offense played a big part in New Englands surge, with the club averaging just 20 points per game during the 2-2 start. The Brady-led Pats, though, went 10-2 after that while averaging 29.5 points per game over that stretch. Perhaps Brady just needed time to get back on the same page as talented tight end Rob Gronkowski, who was limited to just seven games in 2013 due to back injury that held him out of the first six contests and a knee ailment that ended his season on Dec. 9. Gronkowski had just 13 receptions for 147 yards with three touchdowns over the first four games, but had six catches for 100 yards versus the Bengals and ended the campaign with 1,124 yards on 82 catches with 12 TDs in 15 games. Then there is the defense, which brought back safety Patrick Chung and traded for linebacker Akeem Ayers while also bringing in former Pro Bowl cornerbacks Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner. The physical Browner won a Super Bowl with the Seahawks last season and helped bring an edge to a defense that ended up yielding 20 points per game this season. Revis is, well, still playing like Revis. I think we added two, you know, really good players, said 27-year-old defensive back Devin McCourty. I think when you do that of course you get better, and I think those two guys have done a good job of being leaders and fitting into the group. So I think we definitely got better on the field, but I thought we got two really good guys, too. Theyve showed the younger guys, direction, how to become good players, and its been joy to play with them, too. Still, the focus will be on Belichick and Brady, both for their success of having won 20 postseason games together and for the past and current controversies surrounding the club. To have an opportunity to play in this game is really unbelievable, said Brady, the NFLs all-time leader with 49 postseason touchdowns. I never thought Id have the experience to play in one of these. To think that its my sixth time, I cant imagine that Id think Id ever play anything professionally. Certainly to make the Super Bowl is a pretty amazing experience. To do it once and then six times is very, very special. For Brady and Belichick, they better win it clean. Their legacy may depend on it. Scarpe Air Max Outlet . -- Kenneth Faried made a turnaround hook shot over Draymond Green with a half-second remaining, and the Denver Nuggets made Golden State wait at least one more game to secure a playoff berth with a stunning 100-99 win over the Warriors on Thursday night. Nike Air Max Saldi Online . -- With his team down 16 points in the second quarter and headed for another blowout loss at home, Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson yelled out to his players to keep shooting and keep fighting on defence. http://www.scontateairmax.it/ . -- Oakland Athletics starting pitchers Jarrod Parker and A.Patrice Bergeron started earning acclaim for his defensive game four seasons ago when he was a legitimate Selke Trophy candidate for the first time. It has taken longer for Bergeron to be appreciated as one of the best all-around players in the NHL. Maybe it started during the Boston Bruins 2011 Stanley Cup run or last years trip to the final, but after playing a major role in Team Canadas gold-medal performance at the Sochi Olympics, the 28-year-old is surely considered among hockeys elite centres. "I think what hes done is he opened a lot of peoples eyes," Boston coach Claude Julien said. "I know at his first Olympics he didnt have, whether it was the opportunity, to do what he did. The last one I think people realized how good he is." Statistically, Bergeron had just two assists in six games, but the Quebec City native shifted from a fourth-line centre role to right-wing alongside Sidney Crosby and never missed a beat. His nearly flawless play wasnt a revelation as much as it underscored his growth from the 2010 Games in Vancouver, where he was the 13th forward. In that tournament, as defenceman Chris Pronger told CBC Sports recently, Bergeron had a smaller role that was "probably a little unfair to him." "Patrice would sit on the bench for long periods of time and then wed get a penalty and turn to him and say, OK, go out and kill it," Pronger told CBC. "Thats a pretty tough, but important, job." Its also an important job to play with Crosby, whose unique talent level and menatal acuity are often difficult to match. Bergeron said during the Olympics that the challenge is to be at his best when on Crosbys wing. "Its about trying to find him when hes open but also its getting open for yourself, not just trying to feed him," Bergeron said of Crosby. "You give him the puck in your zone and he does his thing." Bergeron said playing with not just Crosby but everyone on that deep, talented Team Canada made him better. "I think it helped me with the confidence being there, and the pace and the level of the game down there, it definitely helped me coming back here," Bergeron said last week in Detroit before the Bruins finished off the Red Wings to set up a showdown with the Montreal Canadiens that begins Thursday. Sochi gave Bergeron an international showcase to show his stuff, but he has been a key cog for the Bruins for a number of years. He has played 70-plus games in eight of nine full NHL seasons since entering the league in 2003 and had 20 points in 23 games when Boston won the Cup in 2011. This season, though, he was downright dominant at times. With 62 points in 80 games, a league-best plus-38 rating and a 58.6 per centt success rate in the faceoff circle, Bergeron was the Bruins most important forward as they won the Presidents Trophy. Nike Air Max Offerte Online. . "I didnt think a guy thats already played eight or nine years can get better each and every year, but he is," winger Brad Marchand said in Toronto late in the regular season. "Hes the reason why weve won this many games this year and why we won the Cup. Hes a phenomenal player, a great leader, and every night hes on the ice hes a guy you want to follow." At one time Bergeron was the player doing the following. Even though he was taught defensive responsibility while growing up in hockey, Bergeron looked to Ted Donato and others who were winning faceoffs and playing in their own end. Now a veteran on the verge of beginning his US$52-million, eight-year contract signed last summer, Bergeron is now in the position of instilling those principles in younger teammates. "I mean its how I play so Im always trying to talk about that, talk about making sure we come back on the backcheck and we do the right thing defensively to create some offence," Bergeron said. Bergeron doesnt just help Bruins players. Red Wings centre Riley Sheahan, who was a key piece of their run to the playoffs, said he studies Bergerons game to improve his own. Even players at other positions appreciate what Bergeron brings to the ice. Detroit defenceman Brendan Smith has noticed Bergerons game even more now that brother Reilly is his teammate in Boston. "He reminds me of (Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg) because hes so good defensively, hes so good offensively," Smith said. "Hes above the play. He makes good decisions. Hes a second quick. Hes strong on the puck. He makes good reads. You go through the list about a player like Bergeron." Brendan Smith said Reilly has picked up plenty of tidbits from Bergeron, and according to Julien hes far from the only one who can say that. "Anybody that plays with him and sees his work ethic doesnt have a choice but to follow this guy," Julien said. "That just makes those players better. If we see a player that has skill and some potential, we know playing with Bergie that the other parts of his game will improve. That certainly is something weve always looked at." Forget about younger players. Even as Bergeron is a well-established pro, hes trying to tweak elements of his game that arent quite perfect. "Youre always trying to work on things," Bergeron said. "Coaches are doing a great job of showing me some videos with my stick in the right position on the PK or whatnot. So I think you definitely improve every time you put some work into it." 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