Mazda » 15-for-32 from three-point range in their 1

TORONTO – Fighting rising adversity and stalled growth, the Leafs will get a little help on the back-end in the coming days. Mark Fraser is ready to return from a left knee injury and hopes to play against the Devils, his former team, on Friday. The 27-year-old has been sidelined for all but two games this season with a grade-2 MCL tear. "I think I can say today was my best day yet," said Fraser, following an hour-plus practice on Wednesday morning. "There really wasnt any concerns today in practice. I think thats a pretty good green light indication for myself." Randy Carlyle wasnt ready to say if Fraser would immediately rejoin the lineup, but did at least concede to the looming possibility of change on a defence thats had trouble this season. Guardedness from the coach aside, Fraser figures to find a place upon his return from injury. He was among the teams top-6 defenders when the season began in Montreal – he played with Paul Ranger that night – and offers the kind of meat-and-potatoes defensive game his team has lacked early this season. Where he fits and who exits the lineup in the interim is more the question and one Carlyle and the coaching staff have surely been pondering. "We have decisions to make," Carlyle said, revealing little in the way of plans. The odd man out when the season opened on Oct. 1, Morgan Rielly played a season-low 14 minutes in Vancouver on Saturday. The 19-year-old has had the predictable ups and downs of a rookie defender, averaging nearly 18 minutes alongside Cody Franson in the slot Fraser occupied last season. Like Rielly, Jake Gardiner and Paul Ranger have also been inconsistent options to date. Theyve offered limited patches of good on a third pairing, but nothing sustainable. Their troubles with the puck and in the defensive zone have been an obvious concern. Much like last season, the Leafs have struggled to find consistency beyond their top pair of Dion Phaneuf and Carl Gunnarsson. Carlyle has typically employed Franson and Rielly against second-tier offensive options (often subbing the rookie with Phaneuf), but theyve proven uneven in the role, both players more refined offensively than defensively. Carlyle found success teaming the 6-foot-4 Fraser with the 6-foot-5 Franson last season; though the pair had difficulty at times with greater competition as the year wore on. Because of Riellys inexperience and the inconsistency of Gardiner and Ranger, this may be the best option for the Leafs at the moment – with any one of the aforementioned three exiting the lineup initially, likely on a rotating basis. Ultimately, Carlyle will have to determine where Fraser fits best in helping to stabilize the defence. "Youre going to make the decision that you feel is best for your hockey club, whats going to give you the best chance to win," said Carlyle. Frasers return, needed as it is, highlights the instability of a Toronto defence that received no external upgrades in the offseason. Leaf management had limited options via free agency and ultimately stood pat on the trade market, adding only Ranger from the Marlies. It was and remains a hope for the club that Gardiner rounds into playoff form, that Ranger continues to improve after a four-year NHL absence and that Rielly continues to show growth. The results remain inconclusive to this point. Fraser exuded a workmanlike effort in snatching a spot with the Leafs last season; he led the defence in both blocked shots and hits. Though the pain and discomfort in his left knee have subsided, he will be required to wear a brace upon returning from long-term injured reserve, one that hell likely keep for the remainder of the season as a precaution. "Finding some sort of comfort in it," he said of the adjustment. "It just feels like a very restrictive piece of equipment that seldom stays in the same spot so its just getting beyond that. Like anything it just takes some getting used to." More constrictive than the brace is the medical tape he must wear, stretching from the thigh to below the knee. The protective equipment, he said, wont affect his skating stride nor does it restrict him from any typical movements. Though he figures to help a club that has had difficulty defending – 37 shots against per game – his addition is just one small piece to a group that has yet to play anywhere near its best hockey (10-5-0). In what was likely their worst performance of the season on Saturday, the Leafs allowed 40-plus shots for the third straight game, shut out for the first time all year in a 4-0 loss to the Canucks. "I think we need physical," said Carlyle, asked if Frasers physical presence was needed. "I think we need puck-moving. I think we need to quit the turnovers. I think weve got to get back to more a workman-like game versus the cute game I think weve been trying to play." Theyll be challenged to do so without two of their top centres. Tyler Bozak (hamstring) is out for the foreseeable future (Nov. 21, his earliest return date) and Dave Bolland (ankle) has hit injured reserve for a period that remains unknown and figures to be longer rather than shorter. Hoping to plug the holes and survive in the meantime, the club signed 34-year-old Jerred Smithson for the remainder of the season, also bumping James van Riemsdyk to centre. Previously with the Marlies on a pro tryout, Smithson spent last season split between Florida and Edmonton. "We look at our team to play a tighter brand of hockey and to continue to show some growth," said Carlyle. "We think the growth has stalled for our team. We dont think that weve played to the template that weve created and some of the things that were struggling with are things that we have to overcome or were not going to give ourselves the best chance for success." Zack Greinke Jersey .NYCFC confirmed to The Associated Press on Saturday that this week Lampard signed a contract to start in July — midway through the new teams first season in MLS. Arizona Diamondbacks Jerseys .Y. - The NFL has fined Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch $20,000 for making an obscene gesture during last Sundays NFC championship game, a person with knowledge of the fine told The Associated Press on Thursday. http://www.diamondbackssale.com/diamondbacks-luis-gonzalez-jersey/ . First, Ivan Nova decided to have season-ending Tommy John elbow surgery. Then Michael Pineda was suspended for 10 games for using pine tar. Randy Johnson Jersey . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Darcy Kuemper, Minnesota (5): He was calm, poised, and looked comfortable all game. Curt Schilling Jersey ." Those traits were clear to the 24,071 at Olympic Stadium on Saturday as the Impact dominated the scoring chances but settled for a 2-2 draw with the New York Red Bulls in a battle of still-winless Major League Soccer teams.TORONTO - The Raptors knocked down 10 of their first 12 shots, two days after missing 10 of their first 12 attempts. They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. Despite all the aforementioned improvements over Fridays embarrassing defeat to the Bulls, they still picked up their seventh loss in 11 games to begin the season. The culprit of their demise on Sunday afternoon was the three-point shot. "Its tough when theyre knocking down shots like that," said Rudy Gay, after the Blazers went 15-for-32 from three-point range in their 118-110 overtime victory. "No matter how much we rotated, moved around and switched, its tough to [beat] that, when a team has it going like that." Portland entered the game fifth in three-point shooting at 41 per cent and its shooters were red-hot from start to finish. Four Blazers hit three or more treys and they outscored the Raptors, who shot 3-of-17, by 36 from beyond the arc. As a result, Portland extended its lead to as many as 17 before the home team cracked down on defence and Gay took over. Gay, who scored 30 points to go along with 10 rebounds in the game, engineered a 19-6 Raptors run to close out the fourth quarter. Gay had 10 points in that stretch, including the buzzer-beating lay-up that tied the game at 102 and forced overtime. It was his sixth go-ahead or game-tying basket in the final 10 seconds of the fourth quarter or overtime in the past four seasons, passing Carmelo Anthony for most in the league. "It was go-time," Gay said of the comeback that ultimately fell short in extra time. "Of course, the whole game you have to play like its go-time but when youre backs against the wall, you have to pick it up and find a way to get the win." In overtime, the three broke Torontos back again as Portland hit three of five attempts and held the Raptors to 2-of-12 shooting overall.dddddddddddd Ball movement, or lack thereof Gay and DeMar DeRozan attempted 54 of Torontos 94 field goals - 27 each - but they combined for just three assists. Despite his game-high 30 points, Gay was held without an assist and despite Kyle Lowrys 10 dimes - to go along with 10 points - only three Raptors registered a helper. "We definitely want there to be movement," Casey acknowledged after the game. "We have out limitations from that standpoint but we want to move the ball, set screens [and] move the ball from side-to-side. Again, weve got to do a better job of that; thats where weve got to find ourselves offensively." Treading water A year ago, the Raptors dug themselves an insurmountable hole after a tumultuous early-season schedule got the best of them. By the time the schedule eased up and their fortunes began to turn, it was too late. Now, as they navigate through a similarly challenging start to the campaign, they thrive to avoid making that same mistake. "We want to make sure were at sea level when the schedule does balance out and not be so far behind that we cant catch up," Casey said Saturday following an afternoon practice. "We want to make sure were treading water and not get so far behind the eight ball while were trying to find out who we are." Fortunately for the Raptors, theyre not the only ones trying to find their identity early in the season. Heading into Sundays action, only four teams in the East (Indiana, Miami, Chicago, Atlanta) boasted records above .500, and at 4-7, Toronto finds itself in the thick of the Eastern Conference and just one game out of first in its division, where the Nets and Knicks are also struggling. "The league hasnt gone anywhere and thats what I tell our players," said Casey. "We still want to have a sense a urgency of finding out who we are offensively and defensively and make sure we find out pretty quick." 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