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TORONTO -- All the stars have arrived. Now the work can really begin. Jermain Defoe practised with Toronto FC for the first time Monday, and declared himself "100 per cent" healthy and keen to start when the club opens its Major League Soccer season on Saturday in Seattle. "Its been a long time talking about it and stuff, so to actually get over (to Canada) and put my boots on and start playing, training. . . its good," Defoe said. "It feels good. Obviously a little bit strange when you first come in, but the lads have been fantastic. Good training session. I feel sharp. So yeah, happy." The 31-year-old striker had been battling a nagging hamstring injury, and didnt play in what would have been his farewell game for Tottenham Hotspur on Feb. 27 at White Hart Lane. Toronto coach Ryan Nelsen said hell wait and see how quickly Defoe adapts to his new teammates this week before deciding if he will start. "Hopefully," Nelsen said. "Weve obviously got to get him up to speed with everything, but if hes fit and raring to go it will be hard to turn down a player of that quality." Some two dozen journalists turned out to Torontos training ground just north of the city to watch the clubs biggest star practise. At one end of the pitch, the five-foot-six striker in electric-blue cleats took turns with Andrew Wiedeman and fellow newcomer Michael Bradley firing shots on Torontos goalkeepers. Defoe shook hands with his teammates, he applauded their efforts. He then dropped to the pitch for a series of crunches, and was the last player off the field. Nelsen practically scoffed when asked how Defoe did. "He was awful. Hes done," the coach said, prompting much laughter. "Again, he came in on Saturday, so we just have to be careful, just with the artificial field and a flight," Nelsen added. "Hes still got that goofy smile, and still enjoys it in the back of the net. Thats all Im worried about." Defoe missed Torontos off-season due to commitments to Tottenham and England. He was the last player to arrive among a group of key off-season acquisitions that included American Michael Bradley, Brazilians Gilberto and Julio Cesar, and Dwayne De Rosario, whos back in Toronto after three seasons with New York Red Bulls and D.C. United. "To see (Defoe) in the locker-room this morning, now its like, alright we can start now," Bradley said. Gilberto, who has been slowed by a quadricep injury, believes it wont take long to develop chemistry with the England striker. "Now that everybody is here, were able to connect, get the chemistry working together as a team, and hopefully within the week well be ready to go," Gilberto said through an interpreter. "I think the chemistry will work right away, Toronto has got no time to wait." Defoe left Spurs with 143 goals to his credit, behind only Cliff Jones (159), Martin Chivers (174), Bobby Smith (208) and the legendary Jimmy Greaves (266) in the club record book. He was sidelined by the hamstring injury when he said his farewell to the fans at White Hart Lane late last month during halftime of a Europa League match against FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk. Defoe was on the bench for Englands friendly against Denmark last Wednesday at Wembley but didnt get a chance to earn a 56th cap in the 1-0 win over Denmark. He said "obviously" it would help if he had participated in Torontos pre-season, but added that "hopefully in training they will understand how I play, and vice versa, and it will be OK." Defoe was asked if he had concerns about playing on the artificial turf Saturday in Seattle, and he said that even practising on artificial turf might take some getting used to. Torontos indoor training is on turf, and with no warm weather in sight, it remains to be seen when the team can head outdoors to the pristine grass practice pitches. "Obviously its not something Im used to, to be honest, and even training today, it was the first time in years where Ive actually trained on this kind of surface," Defoe said. "But again, I suppose its something youre going to have to get used to. And you cant really make excuses because its the same for both teams. Same for all the players. Its something you get used to, I suppose its just part and parcel to travelling away and playing on these kind of pitches." Nelsen said the artificial pitch at Seattles CenturyLink Field may determine who plays and for how long on Saturday. "You get the travel, and then you get, not just an artificial field, its a bad artificial field. Its not like this one," Nelsen said. "Its like playing one-and-a-half. . .one-and-three-quarter games in terms of damage to your body. So weve got guys who are healthy but just dont have that hardness of fitness under them, which is a concern." This past Saturday, New York held Thierry Henry and Jamison Olave out of the Red Bulls opener versus the Whitecaps on the turf in Vancouver. Nelsen cautioned it may take some time for the newcomers to develop on-field chemistry, but pointed out the pedigree of his players will help hasten the process. "Theres no magical formula, its not like switching on a light," the coach said. "But when youve got good guys, good character, and good winning mentality, they want to learn. And everybody knows their roles. The right back on this team knows what the strikers are doing, and vice versa. So when everybody knows everybodys jobs it comes quicker." Defoe said he has no concerns about getting to know his new teammates. "Obviously its important around the training ground trying to get to know each individual and how they play," he said. "But I suppose off the pitch is important, getting to know your teammates, because you become a family. So I think thats important, but thats obviously thats something Ill do around the training ground." After the flurry of off-season signings, Defoe and Nelsen shoulder lofty expectations from fans and a front office gunning for the teams first playoff appearance. "The way I deal with it is, weve got a great bunch of guys, theyre all hardworking, they all want to win, well be very well-organized, and weve got players that can turn games," Nelsen said. "So do I worry at night when I go to bed? No, of course not. Its because of those reasons. Youre either going to win and youre going to lose, but what I can tell is all the variables and all the stuff that happens amongst a team Im really happy with. So I can sleep at night very, very well." Defoe, who has scored 19 goals for England, is also hoping to earn a spot in Roy Hodgsons World Cup squad. His competition includes Wayne Rooney and Danny Welbeck of Manchester United, Daniel Sturridge of Liverpool, Rickie Lambert and Jay Rodriguez of Southampton and Andy Carroll of West Ham. "Obviously its at the back of my mind, but first and foremost its important to concentrate on your club, and make sure your form is good," Defoe said. "As a forward you get judged on scoring goals. I think thats on my mind first and foremost, and then well see what happens with World Cup." England has three friendlies left before the World Cup -- Peru at Wembley on May 30 before games in Miami against Ecuador and Honduras Cheap Wild Jerseys . PAUL, Minn. Cheap Wild Jerseys Authentic .com) - The Columbus Blue Jackets rewarded starting goaltender and pending restricted free agent Sergei Bobrovsky with a four-year contract extension on Friday. http://www.cheapwildjerseys.com/ . PETERSBURG, Fla. Cheap Minnesota Wild Jerseys . Five straight losses (and six in the past seven) now dot the schedule – matching their longest skid of the year – after they fell again in New Jersey on Sunday night, topped 3-2 by Cory Schneider and the Devils. Cheap Adidas Wild Jerseys . Mauer struck out to end the inning, with a runner on third base in the seventh on Wednesday and the Twins trailing 1-0. Everybody does this, of course, in a sport with a 30 per cent success rate at the plate long proven to be a benchmark of excellence.WILKES-BARRE, Pa. -- On a neutral-zone faceoff with about 30 seconds left and the score tied Saturday night, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins coach John Hynes tried to make a late personnel change. Referee Terry Koharski disallowed it, ruling that the change took too long. A checking line, centred by Zach Sill, stayed on the ice and the teams top scoring line remained on the bench. The Penguins owe Koharski a big thank you. Sill scored the game-winning goal with 15.8 seconds left in the third period to help the Penguins stave off elimination with a 4-2 victory over the St. Johns Ice Caps in Game 5 of the American Hockey Leagues Eastern Conference finals Saturday night. "Nobody in this room wanted to stop playing hockey yet," Sill said. The IceCaps lead the series 3-2. Game 6 will be played Tuesday in St. Johns, N.L. Chuck Kobasew had a pair of goals for the Penguins while Spencer Machacek also scored. Will ONeill, meanwhile, had a goal and an assist for the second straight game for the IceCaps, who also got a single from Patrice Cormier. Michael Hutchinson made 30 saves for the IceCaps. Peter Mannino stopped 19 shots for the Penguins. With the score tied 2-2 in the final minute, Tom Kostopoulos threw a puck into the crease from the right-wing corner. Harry Zolnierczyk kept it alive at the near post and Sill took a shot that banked off the far post, off Hutchinson and in. "It went off the post and my heart sank foor a minute, then it went off his glove and into the net and that was exciting," Sill said.dddddddddddd Kobasew added an empty netter with 6.1 seconds left. He also tied the score 2-2 with 7:30 left in regulation, finishing off a cross-ice pass from Andrew Ebbett at the right faceoff dot at the end of a long offensive-zone shift for the Penguins. Kobasew, who missed the last two games, and Ebbett, who missed the last 11, were making their return from injury for the Penguins. "Its good to be back together. Weve played a lot together this season," Kobasew said. "Just a good shift by all five guys out there. We were able to hem them in." ONeill scored on a 5-on-3 power play to give St. Johns a 1-0 lead with 7:33 left in the first period, hitting the top-left corner of the net from the high slot. The Penguins outshot the IceCaps 8-3 in the first half of the second period and tied the score when Machacek scored on a 3-on-1 break off a scramble in the neutral zone at 3:49. St. Johns retook the lead on their second power-play goal of the game with 5:55 left in the period. Cormier tipped in an ONeill shot from the blue-line to make it 2-1. "Weve played with the lead before. Were pretty comfortable," IceCaps winger Carl Klingberg said. "They came with a strong push. They had their season on the line. They had to go for it and they succeeded. Sometimes theyre going to do that." 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