TORONTO a€“ Jonathan Bernier wants to be like Henrik Lundqvist. Cheap Anthony Miller Jersey . Or at least something approaching the greatness of the New York Rangers goaltender. He wants to earn that respect, be the guy in Toronto that Lundqvist has become in the borough of Manhattan. But he also knows that respect of that kind isnt earned overnight, in a week or with one season full of highlights. Its partly why he wont he even call himself the Leafs No. 1, even after finishing last season with career highs in wins, starts, and save percentage a€“ his .923 even-strength save mark fifth among goalies with at least 30 starts. Doing it for 55 games is nothing though, not compared to the nine fantastic seasons and 575 games of Lundqvist, who boasts 50 career shutouts, a cumulative .920 save percentage and one gleaming Olympic gold medal. Theres something about that track record, of being that guy year after year in the New York pressure cooker that perhaps not surprisingly appeals to Torontos unofficial No. 1. To me its not a matter of being a No. 1 or a No. 2, Bernier said, its just to prove that I want to win every night and prove that I can be one of the top in this league. And thats what Im working on every day to get better. It would seem that hes even out to prove to his own team, the same one that traded for and believed in his upside two summers ago, but also the same one that has yet to fully recognize him as their guy this fall. Head coach, Randy Carlyle, perhaps mindful of stirring the Toronto pot and likely paying some deference to James Reimer, has veered far away from talk about the top job in the Leafs crease. Its been the usual song and dance instead about two good goaltenders both being able to contribute, neither designated as anything but. We cant ignore what Bernier did for our hockey club, simple as that, Carlyle said on the first day of training camp. And we cant ignore what James Reimers done for our hockey club. Here we are at training camp and the questions going to be Whos No. 1? Is he clear-cut? Is he this? Is he that? Well, right now, we would have to say that [its] 1-A and 1-B. You laugh at me and you say hes full of this, hes full of that. [But] the reality is if you go to every team you have to have somebody thats going to emerge and be your guy. Bernier was that guy last season. He took hold of the goaltending reigns in late December and never looked back. And though he wont spell it out explicitly, it would seem that even Carlyles 1-A, 1-B designation is quiet fuel to the fire. At no point during the teams two-week training camp would Bernier proclaim himself this or that. His explanation earlier this week provided some insight as to why. Its up to Randy I guess, he said of being the No. 1. To me, Im not going to say Im the No. 1 [because] if I play 20 games this year then I look like a fool right? So it just depends on Randy, how much he wants to play me, how much he wants to play [Reimer]. But obviously it comes from the head coach. If the head coach says Ive got my No. 1 guy thats when you feel you are. Bernier earned the opening night nod against his hometown team. It didnt go great. Uncharacteristically quiet in the early going, Bernier didnt face his first shot until nearly five minutes had ticked off the clock. The shot, from Max Pacioretty, surprised him and snuck through, a bad goal he wouldnt hide from. Theres going to be a lot of bad goals in my career, just got to flush it out, he said afterward, four goals finding their way through on 32 shots. Bernier wasnt able to spend a ton of time on the ice this summer, undergoing sports hernia surgery after his first season in Toronto wrapped earlier that spring. He didnt get much game action in either, so the inactive start against the Canadiens didnt help much to jump into the rhythm of things. Bernier though hasnt been limited at all from the surgery; he felt fine after a month. What hes had to monitor and stay on top of instead is his left knee, which he injured in the Leafs fifth-to-last game of what was a disastrous late season collapse. Its nothing serious, he says. Patrice Bergeron, competing for position with former Leaf defender, Paul Ranger, fell in just the right spot. He felt the pain immediately when it happened, knew it right away. The injury is one that only heals with time. Its stiff from time to time, Bernier says, and requires a series of special stretches to get warm. Sometimes Ill feel a little pinch and obviously [Wednesday] that was a good test when I got run into it, Bernier said of Brendan Gallaghers charge into the net on Wednesday evening. Youre always kind of scared in the back of your head, but I have nothing to worry about. No two goalies were under siege last season quite like Bernier and Reimer, and if there was one encouraging sign for the former during exhibition season it was the hints of improvement defensively. The biggest thing, he noticed, was the stemming of opposition speed through the neutral zone. And as a goalie, and as a defenceman, thats probably the worst play in hockey when guys are coming full speed on the three-on-two or two-on-one, he said. I think we limited that and thats a big change for our group. If not exactly good pals, he and Reimer share a healthy respect for one another. I dont think its ever going to be a case where were buddy-buddy, said Reimer. Its not like were going to be going out for beers, but its a thing where we respect each other, we like each other. Its not necessarily about beating him out but its about playing your best and leaving it up to the coaches to decide, Reimer continued. Its not even necessarily that youre against the other guy, its more youre just playing your game, youre fighting as hard as you can and you hope that the coach gets impressed with how youre playing and you can get the nod. Bernier is hoping for the same. His path towards being a No. 1, which took a years-long detour in L.A., is now firmly underway in Toronto. Its a road thats only just beginning. Cheap John Timu Jersey . Knapp defeated American Alison Riske 6-3, 7-5 to secure Italys victory in the best-of-five series. She held a 5-2 lead in the second set, only to let Riske tie it at five. Cheap Joel Iyiegbuniwe Jersey . Seriously. Seven years of losing has brought many different faces, players and management, to the annual pre-season get-to-know-the-team round up. http://www.cheapbearsjerseyselite.com/?tag=cheap-taylor-gabriel-jersey . Bryce Harper? He also came into Wednesday without a long ball and hadnt driven in a run. He was hitting .160, had nearly three times as many strikeouts as hits and was dropped to seventh in the batting order.TORONTO -- Kyle Lowry sat at his locker nursing a headache in the moments after the Toronto Raptors loss on Sunday, the product of a misplaced knee. The Raptors were thoroughly dismantled by a speedy Phoenix Suns team in a 121-113 loss, but Lowry and coach Dwane Casey insisted there would be no lingering pain after a rare defeat at home. "Its not a systemic problem, its one game, we knew we werent going to go undefeated the rest of the way," Casey said. "That team right there, theyre fighting for their playoff lives like we are, and theyre a quality team in the west. "Its not like its the end of the world." Lowry scored 19 of his 28 points in the third quarter against the run-and-gun Suns, but his standout effort wasnt enough as the Raptors (37-28) lost at the Air Canada Centre for just the fifth time in the last 16 games. There were some scary moments with about a minute-and-a-half to go when Lowry went down in a scramble for a loose ball, and was ploughed in the head by first one of PJ Tuckers knees and then the other. "Ive got a headache. . . These (TV camera) lights are killing me right now," Lowry said, shrugging off any suggestion of a concussion. "PJs not a dirty guy, Ive known him for a while. He even apologized after the game. . . . Hes a strong dude, so it hurt." Terrence Ross finished with 22 points while Amir Johnson had 20, DeMar DeRozan finished with 17, and Jonas Valanciunas chipped in with 15. Gerald Green scored 13 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter to top the Suns (38-27), while Goran Dragic added 19, and Markieff Morris had 16 point and grabbed 14 rebounds. The Raptors had been red-hot the past several weeks, positioning themselves for their first playoff appearance in six seasons. Theyd gone an Eastern Conference-best 11-3 since Feb. 10 heading into Sundays game and sat first place in the Atlantic Division. But the hungry Suns also have the playoffs in their sights. They went into Sunday trailing Memphis by a game-and-a-half for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West. "Thats a helluva team right there," DeRozan said. "(We can) just learn from it. We battled, a lot of stuff didnt go our way. . . It was just a tough night overall. The Suns outran the Raptors all afternoon, and led by as much as 14 points before taking a 96-90 advantage into the fourth in front of a crowd of 18,717 energetic fans at the Air Canada Centre. The visitors pulled ahead by 15 a couple of times in the final 12 minutes before a basket and free throw by Lowry made it a seven-point deficit witth 4:08 to play. Cheap Eddie Goldman Jersey. But on the Suns next trip down the floor, Morris grabbed an offensive rebound and scored to put the game virtually out of reach. "Theyre up and down," Lowry said. "They got out. . . 121 (points), thats their type of game. We dont want to have a type of game like that, we want to hold teams under 100, under 90 preferably." Rebounding proved problematic for the Raptors all afternoon, with Suns owning a whopping 45-26 advantage on the boards. "Again, no time to panic," Casey said. "I dont think were going to see that type of speed and quickness -- at least I hope not -- the rest of the way." The Raptors frustration showed at times. Casey was slapped with a technical for arguing a call, then DeRozan collected a tech when he kicked the ball in anger. "It was just tough when youre going out there playing hard and sometimes you dont get a call that youre fighting or dying for and that we may need at a critical time," DeRozan said. Both teams shot well, the Suns going 50.7 per cent from the field to Torontos 49.4. There was plenty of energy from both teams in a first-quarter shootout. The Raptors and Suns combined for 10-for-14 from three-point range. The Raptors led by as much as nine, but Marcus Morris drained two consecutive threes to put the Suns up 37-35 going into the second. "The guys seemed really focused tonight," said Suns head coach Jeff Hornacek. "They came out right from the start, they had the energy. Maybe it was the one oclock game that were not used to playing; they thought it was a great opportunity. I thought were on ESPN or something." The Raptors went 0-for-8 to open the second quarter until a John Salmons pull-up jumper more than five minutes in. The Raptors ended the quarter with a 10-2 run and when Ross drained a three, and pumped one fist in the air, it pulled Toronto to within two points. The Suns led 61-59 at halftime. The Raptors fell behind by 14 points with just under six minutes to play in the third, when Lowry almost single-handedly got them back in the game. He scored 10 points in the final 3:38 of the quarter and the Raptors went into the fourth trailing 96-90. NOTES: Raptors forward Patrick Patterson missed his fifth game with an elbow injury. Casey said he will be evaluated again Monday. . . The Raptors are on the road for two games -- Tuesday at Atlanta and Wednesday at New Orleans -- before returning home to host Oklahoma City next Friday . . . The Raptors had won three in a row against the Suns before a 106-97 loss in Phoenix on Dec. 6. Cheap Diamondbacks Jerseys Cheap Braves Jerseys Cheap Orioles Jerseys Cheap Red Sox Jerseys Cheap Cubs Jerseys Cheap White Sox Jerseys Cheap Reds Jerseys Cheap Indians Jerseys Cheap Rockies Jerseys Cheap Tigers Jerseys Cheap Astros Jerseys Cheap Royals Jerseys Cheap Angels Jerseys Cheap Dodgers Jerseys Cheap Marlins Jerseys ' ' '