Neues » Balfour was a first-time All-Star

HALIFAX - Nikolaj Ehlers scored twice as the Halifax Mooseheads shut out the Saint John Sea Dogs 5-0 for their ninth straight win in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League play Saturday. Jonny Venters Jersey . Luca Ciampini, Connor Moynihan and Andrew Ryan also scored for Halifax (21-8-0), which is one point back of league-leading Blainville-Boisbriand. The Armada have three games in hand. Sebastien Auger stopped 37 shots in net for Saint John (6-18-3). Halifaxs Zachary Fucale meanwhile finished with 22 saves for the shutout. --- HUSKIES 5 ARMADA 4 (OT) ROUYN-NORANDA, Que. -- Liam OBrien scored a power-play goal in overtime to complete a hat trick and lift the Huskies past Blainville-Boisbriand. Maxime St-Cyr and Mathieu Lemay also scored for Rouyn-Noranda (15-9-2) Aaron Hoyles, Frederic Bergeron, Nikita Jevpalovs and Samuel Hodhod replied for the Armada (20-3-3), who hold a one-point lead atop the QMJHL. Alexandre Belanger made 19 saves in net for the Huskies, while Etienne Marcoux finished with 24 stops for the Armada. --- DRAKKAR 2 ISLANDERS 1 BAIE-COMEAU, Que. -- The Drakkar overcame a spectacular performance in net by Charlottetowns Antoine Bibeau. Robbie Graham and Valentin Zykov each scored for Baie-Comeau (18-5-4), while Simon Lemieux stopped 23 shots. Bibeau meanwhile made 43 saves for Charlottetown (13-11-3), and was especially good in the first period when he gave up one goal while the Islanders were being outshot 24-5. Alexandre Goulet added the lone goal for the Islanders. --- WILDCATS 2 SAGUENEENS 0 CHICOUTIMI, Que. -- Alex Dubeau made 29 saves for the shutout to help Moncton earn a win on the road. JC Campagna and Mark Simpson had goals for the Wildcats (12-16-2). Julio Billia finished with 24 saves in net for Chicoutimi (13-15-0). Power-play time was at a premium. Moncton went scoreless on two attempts while the Sagueneens failed to score on four tries. --- OCEANIC 4 REMPARTS 3 (SO) RIMOUSKI, Que. -- Dominic Beauchemin scored the lone goal in the shootout as the Oceanic edged Quebec. Beauchemin also scored in regulation, while Rimouski (16-7-4) also had goals from Anthony DeLuca and Peter Trainor. Olivier Archambault, Brent Turnbull and Nick Sorensen replied for the Remparts (14-8-6). Philippe Desrosiers stopped 24 shots in net for the Oceanic, while at the other end of the ice Francois Brassard finished with 37 saves. --- TIGRES 8 CATARACTES 5 SHAWINIGAN, Que. -- The Tigres scored four unanswered goals in the third period to blow past the Cataractes. Angelo Miceli and Gabriel Gagne each scored twice for Victoriaville (11-13-2), while Philippe Hudon, Jan Mandat, Matthew Boudreau and Carl-Antoine Delisle had singles. Charles-Olivier Lajoie stopped 28 shots. Frederick Gaudreau scored twice for league-worst Shawinigan (3-21-2), which had scored the first three goals of the third to take a 5-4 lead before the Tigres started their run. Kris Hodge, Anthony Beauvillier and Frank Schumacher also scored for the Cataractes. --- FOREURS 4 PHOENIX 0 VAL-DOR, Que. -- Foreurs goaltender Francois Tremblay needed to make just 17 saves for the shutout. Phil Pietroniro, Anthony Mantha, Timotej Sille and Pierre-Maxime Poudrier each scored for Val-dOr (16-11-0). The goal was Manthas league-leading 25th of the season. He also leads the QMJHL in points with 56. Francis Desrosiers did what he could in net for Sherbrooke (10-15-2), stopping 49 shots. Brad Miller Jersey . Infante hit a three-run homer in the sixth inning and had an RBI single in a four-run fifth against former teammate Justin Verlander, helping the Kansas City Royals beat the Tigers 11-8 Monday night. Adeiny Hechavarria Jersey . After making his All-Star debut in Fridays Rising Stars Challenge, the Raptors sophomore centre wont be sticking around for the duration of the weekends festivities, thinking about the big picture instead. http://www.officialraysgearshop.com/Rays-Joey-Wendle-Kids-Jersey/ . At this point, even he isnt sure when it is going to stop. The right-hander dropped his fourth straight decision in Los Angeles 6-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday night, leaving his status very much in doubt as the Dodgers prepare for the stretch drive.TAMPA, Fla. - The Tampa Bay Rays couldnt resist adding Grant Balfour to solidify the back end of their bullpen, giving the closer a $12 million, two-year contract Thursday about a month after his $15 million agreement with Baltimore fell through. The Orioles said they had concerns with his physical. Balfour proclaimed hes healthy and looking forward to helping Tampa Bay get back to the playoffs. "Im 100 per cent healthy," Balfour said, adding he had more lucrative offers from other teams but was eager to play for a perennial contender and return to the Tampa Bay area, where he still resides after spending time with the Rays from 2007-10. "Ive had an eventful off-season to say the least," he said. "Its always been a place on my radar. Ill be honest, I never wanted to leave here." Rays principal owner Stuart Sternberg made the announcement at a news conference held following a team sponsorship event at the Tampa Museum of Art. He called it a significant move for the budget-minded Rays, who have made the playoffs four times in the past six seasons despite one of the lowest payrolls in baseball. Sternberg noted the team did not enter the off-season expecting to be in a position to pursue the 36-year-old, who was 62 for 67 in save opportunities the past two seasons with the Oakland Athletics. ";Weve have had some exceptional teams," Sternberg said, explaining the decision to spend above the teams projected payroll. Jesus Sucre Jersey. "We want to give this organization the best chance to win, and we know its going to cost us more than we can afford to pay." In his first stint with the Rays, Balfour was part of an improbable run to the 2008 World Series, where Tampa Bay lost to Philadelphia in six games. Sternberg called him a "known quantity" for the Rays. Manager Joe Maddon added the signing will make an already impressive bullpen even more formidable. "He wants to go back to the World Series," Maddon said. "So do we, so do I." Balfour was a first-time All-Star in 2013, when he had a 1.63 ERA while going 25 for 25 in save opportunities the first half of the season. The right-handers 383 appearances, 380 1-3 innings and 410 strikeouts over the past six years are the second-most among AL relievers. Hes first Australian-born pitcher to make an All-Star team and has been a part of five teams that made the playoffs, including two with Tampa Bay. "I want to win a World Series," he said. "We got really close here in 2008, and Im really hoping here in the next two years, or whatever it is I get to play here, that I can win one it would be awesome." ' ' '