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Posted: 14 Jun 2018, 09:14MALMO, Sweden -- Brent Sutter seemed to be in a nasty mood at practice the morning after Canadas biggest win so far at the world junior hockey championship. The veteran coach was barking orders and slamming his stick at missed plays on Wednesday, as if his team had lost the night before instead of pulling out a 3-2 victory over the defending champion United States to take first place in its preliminary round group. But the shouting had a tactical side. He didnt want his team feeling too good about themselves heading into the single-game knockout part of the tournament. Canada plays its quarter-final on Thursday against the Swiss, who finished fourth in the other group but who have shown they can pull off upsets against teams that take them lightly. On paper, its a game Canada should win handily, but that may be what Finland thought when they lost to the Swiss in a shootout in their final round robin game. "Theyre a disciplined hockey team," said Sutter. "Theyve kept games close. "Theyre in this position for a reason. Theyre a very structured team. Youve got to be disciplined in your game when you play them. You cant get frustrated." Canada beat the Swiss 4-1 in an exhibition game Dec. 23, profiting from five power plays to build a 2-0 first period lead. At one point, there were four Swiss players in the penalty box. Despite the loss, the Swiss came out of the game feeling good about their chances. "We know their players now," said Swiss goalie Melvin Nyffeler. "Theyve got a pretty good power play. "Last game we lost because they had so many power plays. Now were looking forward to playing them and lets see. In hockey, anythings possible. We have a chance against anybody." Canada went into its showdown with the Americans needing to win in regulation time to take over first place. They did it with a two-goal third period and some brilliant saves from Zach Fucale. But a day later, Sutter made sure to remind them they havent won anything yet. As well as Canada played against the Americans, he said "I dont want to see it slip. "When you get to this point, every game is like a Game 7. We have to make sure our emotions are in control and our details are good. It doesnt matter who your opponent is, you have to be at the top of your game. Weve got to practice like its for keeps. You cant just turn a switch on." Finishing first was a bonus on paper as it gave Canada a quarter-final against Switzerland and, if they win that, a semifinal against either the Czech Republic or Finland. The Americans now must face Russia in the quarter-finals and, if they manage a win, play the winner of Sweden-Slovakia in the semis. Sutter understands what it takes to win tournaments. He guided Canadian teams to gold medals at the 2005 and 206 world juniors without losing a game. His record at the tournament is 15-0-1. Canada improved from game to game as it built a 3-0-1 record in the preliminary round, and the coaching staff was active. Through three pre-tournament exhibitions and four round robin games, lines have been juggled and re-juggled. Centres play on the wings and move back to centre. In Curtis Lazars case, you play left wing, right wing and centre in the same tournament. "Youve got to think the game well, have a good hockey IQ, and make sure you have a third guy high all the time," Lazar said Wednesday. "Im just trying to better myself so I can be prepared for all these situations." Sutter said there isnt time in a tournament to build chemistry on the ice. Players have to adapt immediately or changes will be made. Nine of the 13 forwards are centres on their club teams, so five have to play on the wings. "Its a matter of finding what theyre most comfortable with when theyre playing wing," said Sutter. "They cant all play centre, so who they can play with as pairs and threesomes to feel comfortable? "Its been a revolving door. Theres not really a plan in place. You just have a feel for your team. If somethings not working, youve got to change. You dont have time to let it progress over a month. If somethings not working or someones not playing well, you have to change it up quickly." There were two moves of note against the U.S., moving Lazar off left wing to the right side, and switching Frederik Gauthier from the wing to centre, where the Toronto Maple Leafs prospect used his considerable size to win some key defensive zone faceoffs. Sutter had particular praise for Lazar, who has scored in consecutive games while still playing well defensively. "We started him on left wing because thats where he finished the game before, but we talked after the first period," he said. "He was having a bit of difficulty at that position, so I moved him back to right wing and he got his game back to where it was before. "Hes most comfortable on right wing or centre ice. Hes been one of our best forwards, if not our best, so we have to make sure hes feeling comfortable." He had similar praise for 18-year-old Sam Reinhart, a centre who has played mostly right wing. "He plays 5-on-5, power plays, penalty killing, 5-on-3," he said. "He and Curtis, as far as forwards go, have been very adaptable and have been our most complete players in that they can be put into any situation." At practice, Reinhart skated with centre Bo Horvat and captain Scott Laughton, while Lazar was with centre Nic Petan and 16-year-old Connor McDavid. Gauthier centred Kerby Rychel and Josh Anderson, while Jonathan Drouin was between Taylor Leier and Anthony Mantha. Charles Hudon missed practice to treat a shoulder injured in Canadas 5-3 win over Slovakia on Saturday. "It doesnt really matter where we play because were all pretty different," said Laughton, a centre playing on left wing. "We all dont really know each other. "Right now, weve got four complete lines that can work and all have size, so I think were pretty set on the lines right now." Petan and Rychel both signed entry-level NHL contracts this week -- Petan with the Winnipeg Jets and Rychel with Columbus. "I was pretty cool," the diminutive Petan said. "It was a good New Years present." . Hes the same player he always was, only now his efforts are being rewarded. The rookie manager has made a habit of heaping praise on others when things are going well, and accepting criticism when they arent. But in the case of Hurtado, its what the coach is NOT saying that may be the secret to a superb run of form. . After losing Brett Cecil to groin tightness on Friday, the Blue Jays watched as R. http://www.soccerportugalnationalshop.u ... al-Jersey/. Ozuna hit Reeds 2-2 pitch off the batters eye far above the 407-foot sign in straightaway centre. It was the fifth blown save in 25 tries for Reed (1-5) and the ninth home run the closer has allowed in 38 appearances. Nuno, acquired in the deal that sent Brandon McCarthy to the New York Yankees, gave up three hits, struck out a career-high seven and walked one in seven innings. . Sweeting scored two in the first and three in the second before Strong (4-4) got two back in the fourth. Sweeting then scored three in the fifth, two in the sixth and one in the seventh to grab a commanding 9-2 lead. . Murakami gracefully executed a double triple toe jump and a triple flip jump that put her at the top of a tightly contested race with 64.73 points, just ahead of Li Zijun of China on 62.Charlotte, NC (SportsNetwork.com) - Kemba Walkers layup with 0.3 seconds to play helped the Charlotte Hornets hold off a late New York Knicks surge and end their 10-game losing streak with a thrilling 103-102 victory on Friday. Carmelo Anthony gave the Knicks a 102-101 lead off a wide-open 3 from the left side with 40.7 seconds to play. After each team missed a jump shot, the Hornets took a timeout with four seconds to play after Marvin Williams rebounded Anthonys miss. Coming out of the timeout, Walker raced up to the top of the arc to receive the inbound pass and darted through the key, laying the ball off the glass and into the net for the deciding basket as the buzzer sounded. Gerald Henderson finished with a season-high 22 points on 8-of-10 shooting, Al Jefferson had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Lance Stephenson also scored 16 points for Charlotte, which won its first game since Nov. 14 at Phoenix. Anthony had a game-high 32 points, while J.R. Smith and Tim Hardaway Jr. supplied 14 and 13 points, respectively, off the bench in the Knicks seventh straight loss. Final Score: Oklahoma City 103, Philadelphia 91 Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - Russell Westbrook had 27 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder led wire-to-wire in a 103-91 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Friday night. The Thunder were coming off a loss in New Orleans on Tuesday that spoiled Kevin Durants return from offseason foot surgery and ended the teams first winning streak of the season at two games. The reigning NBA MVP scored 27 points while playing nearly 30 minutes in his season debut. He played 29 minutes against the Sixers, scoring 10 on 3-of-11 shooting as Westbrook, in his third game back after missing 14 with a broken hand, led the way. Thunder coach Scott Brooks agreed Durant looked rusty, but stressed that he was just getting his game legs back, and that the team as it looked Friday has only practiced together three times. Serge Ibaka added 19 points for the Thunder and Jeremy Lamb scored 15 off the bench, including a couple of 3-pointers that thwarted an attempted Sixers rally late in the fourth quarter. The Sixers fell to 1-18, landing right back in the losing column after getting their first win on the road against Minnesota on Wednesday night. The victory kept them from matching the 2009-10 Nets for the worst start to a season in NBA history, but they remain winless (0-11) at home. Robert Covington scored a career-high 21 points off the bench to lead the Sixers. Michael Carter-Williams had 16 points and 14 assists working against Westbrook all night and Nerlens Noel also posted a double- double, scoring 11 with 10 rebounds. Final Score: Washington 119, Denver 89 Washington, DC (SportsNetwork.com) - Kris Humphries scored 20 points to lead the Washington Wizards to a 119-89 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Friday. Rasual Butler and Kevin Seraphin each scored 16 points for the Wizards, who have won four straight. John Wall nearly had a triple-double as he scored nine points with eight rebounds and 12 assists. Wilson Chandler scored 20 points for the Nuggets, who have dropped their past two. Ty Lawson gave 14 points and 10 assists in defeat. Final Score: Boston 113, LA Lakers 96 Boston, MA (SportsNetwork.com) - Tyler Zeller had 24 points on 10-of-11 shooting and pulled down 14 rebounds in the Boston Celtics 113-96 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday. Jeff Green added 19 points for the Celtics, who have won two in a row since a five-game skid. Jared Sullinger tallied 17 points and 13 boards, Avery Bradley donated 16 points and Rajon Rondo scored 12 points and dished out 16 assists. Kobe Bryant ended with 22 points for the Lakers, who have dropped two straight. Nick Young and Jeremy Lin had 16 and 14 points, respectively. Final Score: Atlanta 98, Brooklyn 75 Brooklyn, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - DeMarre Carroll scored 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting to lead Atlanta to a 98-75 win over Brooklyn at Barclays Center Friday. Carrolls 14 second-quarter points keyed a dominant period for the Hawks that saw them outscore the Nets 36-13. Paul Millsap contributed 17 points and nine rebounds in the winning effort, Atlantas fifth straight, and Jeff Teague and Dennis Schroder scored 14 and 13 points, respectively. Brook Lopez paced Brooklyn with 20 points and seven boards as the Nets saw their two-game winning streak come to an end. Joe Johnson totaled 12 points with six rebounds and four assists for Brooklyn. Final Score: Cleveland 105, Toronto 91 Toronto, ON (SportsNetwork.com) - LeBron James had 24 points, 13 assists and seven rebounds and the Cleveland Cavaliers extended their winning streak to six games with a 105-91 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Friday night. The Cavs, led by Kyrie Irvings season-high 37 points, opened a three-game road trip with a win over Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks on Thursday night. Irving scored 15 in this one, including the bulk of Clevelands points in a key third-quarter run after Toronto had gone ahead for the first time. Tristan Thompson added 21 points and 14 rebounds off the bench for the Cavs and Kevin Love scored 15 with 13 boards. Amir Johnson had 27 points for the Eastern Conference-leading Raptors and Kyle Lowry scored 22 with nine assists. Final Score: San Antonio 107, Memphis 101 Memphis, TN (SportsNetwork.com) - One streak had to end and the San Antonio Spurs got the best of the Memphis Grizzlies again. Tim Duncan had his first triple double of the season with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists as the Spurs defeated the Grizzlies 107-101 to snap Memphis 22-game regular season home winning streak on Friiday night.dddddddddddd. San Antonio has beaten the Grizzlies nine straight times, including the postseason. The Spurs raced out to a 13-2 start in this one and never trailed by less than four the rest of the way, but that was with 21 seconds left when the game was already decided. Manu Ginobili tallied 17 points and seven assists and Danny Green added 16 points for the Spurs, who have won nine of their last 10 games. Marc Gasol, who was a game-time decision with a right knee bruise, posted 28 points, 12 boards and four blocks. The bruise was in the same knee that he tore his MCL last season and missed two months. Memphis went 10-13 during his absence. Mike Conley provided 23 points and 10 helpers, while Tayshaun Prince supplied 20 points off the bench for Memphis, which has lost two straight after coming into its last game Wednesday night with just two defeats on the season. The Grizzlies had their five-game winning streak snapped Wednesday against Houston when they committed 21 turnovers and were outrebounded 52-39 by a Rockets squad that played without Dwight Howard. Final Score: Houston 114, Minnesota 112 (OT) Minneapolis, MN (SportsNetwork.com) - James Harden fouling out late in regulation opened the door for an unlikely hero. Seldom-used rookie Nick Johnson muscled past fellow rookie Zach LaVine and got a layup to go with 0.8 seconds left as the Houston Rockets beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-112 in overtime on Friday. Harden scored 38 points on 17 shots in 36 1/2 minutes before picking up his sixth foul with 1:20 remaining in regulation. On the ensuing Minnesota possession, Andrew Wiggins had a putback dunk to give the Wolves a 105-101 lead. Donatas Motiejunas scored the final four points in regulation with a righty hook and a pair of free throws to force OT. It was tied at 112 late in the extra session when Jason Terry, who scored 19 points, drove and dished to a cutting Johnson. The first-year pro out of Arizona had missed his previous four shots before bullying his way to the basket for the game-winner. Thaddeus Youngs last-second jumper from near the foul line fell well short. Final Score: Phoenix 118, Dallas 106 Dallas, TX (SportsNetwork.com) - Goran Dragic had 28 points and 13 assists in the Phoenix Suns 118-106 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Friday. Markieff Morris added 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Suns, who never looked back after scoring 40 points in the first quarter. Eric Bledsoe tallied 19 points and seven assists. Monta Ellis ended with 33 points for the Mavericks, who had a five-game winning streak snapped. Tyson Chandler and Chandler Parsons each had 15 points, with Chandler also pulling down 18 boards. Final Score: Milwaukee 109, Miami 85 Milwaukee, WI (SportsNetwork.com) - Kendall Marshall scored 20 points and the Milwaukee Bucks took control in the second half to beat the Miami Heat 109-85 on Friday night. Jabari Parker, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton each scored 14 points for the Bucks, who snapped a three-game losing streak. Dwyane Wade scored a game-high 28 points for the Heat and Chris Bosh had 21 in their third straight loss. Jerryd Bayless scored 11 of his 12 points in the third quarter for the Bucks, who turned a tight game into a nine-point lead going into the fourth with a 13-2 run that came mostly at the foul line. Bayless hit six of Milwaukees nine free throws during the spurt, which made it 80-71. The Bucks then outscored Miami 29-14 in the fourth, leading by double-digits all the way after Middletons jumper to open the quarter. They shot better than 64 percent in the quarter and over 56 for the game. Final Score: Orlando 98, Utah 93 Salt Lake City, UT (SportsNetwork.com) - Tobias Harris had 22 points and seven rebounds as the Orlando Magic defeated the Utah Jazz 98-93 on Friday night. Victor Oladipo posted 20 points and six assists for the Magic, who had dropped six of their last seven games coming in. Orlando starting center Nik Vucevic didnt play due to back spasms. Derrick Favors provided 21 points and 13 boards, while Trey Burke added 13 points and 11 helpers for Utah, which has lost eight in a row. Final Score: Sacramento 102, Indiana 101 (OT) Sacramento, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - The Sacramento Kings finally won a game without DeMarcus Cousins. It wound up being a lot tougher than expected. Carl Landrys go-ahead layup with 0.8 seconds left in overtime lifted the Kings to a 102-101 win over the Indiana Pacers on Saturday night. Sacramento led by as many as 17 in regulation, but the Pacers closed the fourth on a 10-2 run to force the extra session and a C.J. Watson 3-pointer preceded his floater in the paint to stake Indiana to a 101-100 edge with 1:03 remaining in overtime. After Darren Collison and David West traded missed jumpers, Rudy Gay took the clock down and rose up for a contested jumper along the right baseline. Landry hauled in the misfire for an offensive rebound and laid the ball in to put the Kings in front. Wests desperation turnaround heave at the horn ricocheted off the backboard. Cousins, who sat out a fourth straight game with a viral infection, was released from a hospital Wednesday after receiving treatment for the illness. The Kings had been 0-16 without their big man in his career coming in. Gay netted 27 points, while Collison added 20 points, six rebounds, six assists and four steals for Sacramento, which snapped a four-game losing streak. West posted 16 points and eight boards, Rodney Stuckey supplied 14 points and four swipes and Watson added 14 points for the Pacers, who have dropped four in a row and five of their last six. ' ' '