cking is one of the strengths of our game. "The ability to p

[blueberryjerry]

The Montreal Canadiens have signed European free agent forward Jiri Sekac to a contract. . More details to follow. .C. - Phoenix Suns coach Jeff Hornacek says guard Goran Dragic will return to the starting lineup against the Charlotte Hornets after missing the last two games with a strained back. . Masahiro Tanaka has touched down in the United States and the courting of the Rakuten Golden Eagles stud pitcher has begun in earnest by a bevy of MLB teams interested in the Japanese ace. . PETERSBURG, Fla.MINSK, Belarus -- Ben Scrivens will start in goal for Team Canada against Finland today in the quarterfinals of the world hockey championship. You can watch the game live on TSN and TSN GO at 12:45pm et/9:45am pt. Scrivens beat out James Reimer for the No. 1 goaltender job after they split games during the preliminary round. "Tight decision, both of them played well," coach Dave Tippett said Thursday. "Just hes the guy we decided on." Scrivens won all three of his starts at his first international tournament for Canada, putting up a 1.31 goals-against average and a .954 save percentage, second only to Kevin Lalande of Belarus, an Ottawa native. Reimer lost the opener to France in a shootout, won his next three starts and had a 2.20 GAA and .911 save percentage. Tippett hinted earlier in the week at Scrivens being the likely choice after Reimer started against Norway. Canadas coach mentioned the difficult schedule of four games in six days, and Scrivens not facing Norway gave him a chance to be fresh for Finland. Scrivens is now the man, barring injury or a rough outing against Finland that doesnt end Canadas tournament. Tippett said Tuesday that his quarter-final starter would likely continue in that role as long as he won. Canadas challenge, from Scrivens on out, is a Finnish team that has only six players back from the Sochi Olympics but plays a similar style. "Theyre what youd classify as a typical Finland team where work ethic is one of their strongest points," Tippett said. "(They) play well as a team, (have) good structure, dont have a lot of NHL players on it but still players that are committed to play the way Finlands identity is. Its a structured, hard, one-on-one game." Finlands three NHL players are goaltender Pekka Rinne, captain Olli Jokinen and forward Erik Haula, who was a late addition after the Minnesota Wild were eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs. One player back from Sochi is Petri Kontiola, who has beeen Finlands leading scorer and arguably its best player. . . But Canadas biggest concern against Finland is Rinne, whos now healthy after being out from late October until early March with a hip infection. Nashville Predators teammate Ryan Ellis said he and his Canadian teammates are more worried about keeping the puck away from Rinne behind the net and in the corners than figuring out how to score on him. Rinnes strong play (1.65 GAA, .929 save percentage) has helped a turnover-prone Finnish defence. Still, thats something Canada might be able to exploit with an aggressive forecheck. "Your whole game has got to be built on it," Tippett said. "It doesnt matter who you play, were going to play two things that we think are the strengths of our game and certainly we think forechecking is one of the strengths of our game. "The ability to play in the offensive zone, come up with loose pucks, hold pucks and play in the offensive zone is one of the traits of good, Canadian-style hockey. Whether its Finland or whoever its against, we think thats one of the strengths of our game." Canada will have its full roster for the first time in almost a week as Alex Burrows returns from a two-game absence with a leg injury. Given Jonathan Huberdeaus success on a line with Brayden Schenn and Nathan MacKinnon, Burrows is expected to be the 13th forward. "Hes a good, veteran player," Tippett said of Burrows. "We talk about hes going to see a lot of different situations. Hes played on the penalty kill for us, hes played on the power play and hes played a regular shift, so hell jump in there, hell give us a spark." Defenceman Tyler Myers, who missed Wednesdays practice with the flu, took part in Thursdays optional skate and Tippett said hes feeling much better and will play. The United States plays the Czech Republic in the early game at Chizhovka-Arena for a spot in Saturdays semifinals against the winner of Canada-Finland. ' ' '

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