VANCOUVER -- Kenny Miller made good on a pressure packed do-

zhanjiao1212 · Geregistreerd op: 21 Jan 2019 Berichten: 301

VANCOUVER -- Kenny Miller made good on a pressure packed do-over to keep the Vancouver Whitecaps unbeaten. Discount Shoes China . Millers goal on a penalty kick in the 58th minute gave the Whitecaps a 2-1 victory over the Houston Dynamo on Saturday. He had to re-take the spot kick, after being successful on the first one, because teammate Darren Mattocks was still in the 18-yard box when Miller put the ball into the net. "It was a little tougher when youve scored the first one, and its easy after a miss," said Miller. "But sometimes that happens. It was a little bit of encroachment there. Sometimes, the referees dont make you take it again. But I was fortunate enough to put it in." The penalty kick was awarded after Houston defender Kofi Sarkodie was called for a hand ball in the box in the 56th minute. The Whitecaps improved their record to 2-0-2 in the young season before a sellout crowd of 21,000 at B.C. Place Stadium. The Dynamo (2-1-0) suffered their first loss. "I dont think you could ask for much more (to start the season)," said Miller. He scored what proved to be the winning goal as he put the hosts ahead 2-0 with his spot kick, rolling a shot into the right corner of the net. He had put his first penalty-kick attempt over Houston goalkeeper Tally Hall. "(Miller), obviously, has got a cool head (to score on) the second penalty," said Vancouver rookie head coach Carl Robinson. "The first (penalty kick) was driving me mad. I just prayed that hed put it in, and he did. Hes a very clever player and a very cool character, so Im delighted for (Miller) but delighted for all the guys." Jordan Harvey, in the 14th minute, also scored for the Whitecaps while Ricardo Clark, in the 75th, was the lone Houston marksman. "I think we got the result we deserved," said Robinson. "But we showed a lot of heart and character in todays performance." The Whitecaps effectively negated Dynamo striker Will Bruin, who had shared the MLS scoring lead after netting three goals in his clubs first two games to start the season. "I thought we did okay. We just came out on the wrong end of the result," said Houston coach Dominic Kinnear. Harvey, a left back, gave the Whitecaps a 1-0 lead as he bounced Andy OBriens header past Hall. The assist was the first point in MLS for OBrien, a central defender, who joined the Whitecaps midway through the 2012 season. The play originated off a long cross from the left flank by Pedro Morales. "I like to think I can contribute, not just with assists and things like that," said OBrien. "But Im pleased that I could contribute on the goal." After assisting on the goal, OBrien made several timely defensive plays with some key plays and a blocked cross that he took in the groin. He lay on the ground briefly but continued to play well after. Houston started with a charge and forced Whitecaps goalkeeper David Ousted to knock a Giles Barnes header over the crossbar in the first minute. But that was the only attempt Houston put on net in the first half. Afterwards, aside from getting back-to-back corner kicks in the eighth minute -- the second of which Ousted leaped out to catch -- the Dynamo rarely penetrated a staunch Whitecaps defence. On the other hand, Hall was forced to make three saves in the first half, including two on Morales. The second stop on Morales came in stoppage time and prevented the Whitecaps from going into halftime with a bigger lead and considerable confidence. The Dynamo again attempted to get off to a strong start in the second half, but the Caps held them off fairly easily as Robinson switched to a diamond-shaped midfield that he had not used previously. "The system that we played today gave us more options when we had the ball," said OBrien. "It exposed the channel areas for (Mattocks) to run into, and hes not the guy that you want to be chasing with the ball a as a defender." Vancouvers penalty kick was awarded after Mattocks tried to deke Sarkodie a few yards inside the Houston box. Sarkodie fell and swept his arm out, getting a hand on the ball. Clark pulled the Dynamo within a goal as he headed home a Brad Davis free kick. But the Whitecaps managed to hold Houston off the scoreboard the rest of the way as Robinson made substitutions to keep his attackers fresh and the defenders and midfielders remained solid in their play. "Were going to concede goals, but its about how you bounce back and we didnt look (like we were) under any pressure," said Robinson. "They pushed time after time, and theyre a big, physical team, but while they were putting bigger players on, I was putting smaller players on." Morales, a 28-year-old Chilean midfielder who is in his first season with the Whitecaps, continued to draw rave reviews from his coach and teammates for his vision and passing ability. He now has a goal and two assists in his first four MLS career games. "Hes a joy to watch, he really is, and I think hes a joy to play with as well," said Robinson. "He just gives us a different dimension to our team." Notes: The Whitecaps honoured retired defender Y.P. Lee before the game. The former Korean international was presented with a photo of himself and his two children, taken prior to the final game of his career last season. Lee continues to live in Vancouver and works with the Whitecaps business operations while pursuing his education. a The game marked a rare time when a female official, Felisha Mariscal of Chula Vista., Calif., served as an assistant referee in an MLS contest. Mariscals brothers Apolinar (Polo) and Eduardo, who are twins, are also soccer officials. a Vancouver captain Jay DeMerit played the whole game a week after Robinson kept him at home to rest while the Caps earned a draw in Philadelphia. a Vancouver midfielder Gershon Koffie was solid in place of the injured Nigel Reo-Coker (concussion.) Discount Shoes Wholesale . Pominville scored in all three of Minnesotas games last week to help the Wild (8-4-3, 19 points) earn four out of a possible six points. His best performance was in a 4-3 win over Montreal on Friday, where he posted a season-high three points (two goals, one assist), including the game-winning goal. Cheap Discount Shoes Online . The Argentina striker has not played for the Premier League leaders since September when he refused to warm up during a Champions League match and only returned last week from a three-month unauthorized absence at home. City coach Roberto Mancini had initially told Tevez he would never play for City again after his act of public insubordination, but later softened his stance and only asked for an apology. http://www.discountshoeschina.com/ . -- Craig Anderson has quite a record against his former team, the Florida Panthers.ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Randy Carlyle could barely contain his relief after the Winter Classic. The hype was gone along with the all-access HBO "24/7" cameras that followed the Toronto Maple Leafs everywhere for the past month. "Finally, yeah," said the Leafs head coach. "Its been a long three weeks, thats for sure, with whats gone on with our hockey club and the way weve played, the inconsistencies that weve played to and the microscope that weve been under." Carlyle and the Leafs are used to being under a microscope just by virtue of playing in Toronto. But an inside look at the stretch in which they lost seven of nine games turned up the pressure even higher. "There are lot of things that are going on inside that are hard to deal with when youre always constantly under a camera or a microphone (is) under you," Carlyle said. But after beating the Detroit Red Wings in a shootout in front of an NHL-record crowd of 105,491 freezing fans at Michigan Stadium, those trials and tribulations could feel like a distant memory. Led by goaltender Jonathan Bernier, the Leafs have won three games in a row and have added a little vitamin C to their game. "Weve talked a lot about consistency and making sure to work on our game to become more consistent," captain Dion Phaneuf said. "I feel that weve played some good hockey the last little bit. Were trying to keep building it because we know thats been something thats plagued us a little bit. We feel better about our game right now." A large part of that has to do with Bernier, who has stopped 181 of 190 shots put on him since relieving James Reimer on Dec. 21. Hes 3-0-2 in that time, and Carlyle acknowledged it would be "foolish" to turn away from him now. "Jonathan Bernier has come in and given us a chance and given us an opportunity in games, and thats what we are looking for," the Leafs coach said. Its not all Bernier because goals have to come from somewhere. In the Winter Classic they came from the top line of James van Riemsdyk, Tyler Bozak and Phil Kessel. This was the second game with that trio reunited, as Bozak returned Sunday after missing almost a month with a strained oblique. Bozak had three assists in his first game back and then a goal and the shootout winner in the Winter Classic. "I think that I was aable to play one game before, it was huge for me," Bozak said. Wholesale Shoes China Free Shipping. "Definitely would have been crazy, just coming back into this game. So I think being able to play the one before really helped me a lot." Having Bozak back also helps the Leafs, in general. His chemistry with Kessel and van Riemsdyk is undeniable, and his presence shifts Nazem Kadri, Peter Holland and Jay McClement back into more comfortable roles down the lineup. "Tyler is a player that our coaching staff trusts, pretty simple," Carlyle said. "When coaches trust people, they put them in situations where you believe the player will get the job done." Carlyle went so far as to call Bozak a "model for the younger players to follow." "He gets inside, he wins his share of one-on-one battles, very strong in the faceoff circle, and hes got the hockey sense," Carlyle said. "The puck follows him around." Puck possession is one thing the Leafs could stand to improve on Saturday against the New York Rangers and beyond. They were outshot 43-26 by Detroit in the Winter Classic, as Red Wings coach Mike Babcock praised his team for holding on to the puck for much of regulation and overtime. But as the Leafs have done much of the year, they pulled out two points despite being badly outshot. Opportunistic offence and strong goaltending allowed them to reach playoff position early and hang on despite some struggles, so it was only fitting that helped them win the NHLs signature regular-season event. The Winter Classic represented the end of a difficult journey for the Leafs, who made the most out of the spotlight in the end. "It is a lot leading up to it. I think its tough on the players, its tough on the coaches," general manager Dave Nonis said. "But I also think that it created an atmosphere that made it more than just a game. I think both teams raised their level of play. I know our team did. I think thats the hardest weve competed for a long time. "When you look at over 100,000 in the building, its impossible not to play harder." Seeing how hard and well the Leafs played gave Nonis some fuel to be optimistic about the near future. "From our standpoint I hope its, I wouldnt say a turning point, but maybe the genesis of consistent games where we work hard for three periods," he said. Wholesale Hoodies NFL Shirts Outlet Jerseys NFL Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Cheap NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '