Kritik und Anregungen » up the ensuing mountain tests

PITTSBURGH -- Its been about a month since Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan had a talk with winger Phil Kessel. Sullivan wanted to see Kessels wicked shot more to, he hoped, increase his scoring.The Ottawa Senators, who visit PPG Paints Arena on Monday night, will have a chance to see the results, although they might not be thrilled about that.Over the past six games, Kessel has scored four goals to double his total from the first six weeks of the season. He has been contributing all season -- he has 16 assists and ranks third on the team with 24 points -- but seems to be getting back to the snipers role that has defined his career.Sullivan noted that when Kessel is on the puck, hes a threat. Hes got such a great shot, whether its off the rush, underneath the hash marks. ... We have to be a team that can generate offense different ways.Kessel has 29 shots over the past eight games. Saturday, he scored twice in a 5-3 win over Detroit, his first multi-goal game of the season.Those two goals came off of slick passes by Evgeni Malkin and Carl Hagelin, and Kessel was quick to deflect most of the credit to those two, and in hockeyese.Geno sauced me a good one on the first one, and Haggy made a great backdoor for a tap-in, Kessel said.Translation: Malkin found him with a cross-ice saucer pass for a one-timer, and Hagelins pass cut across the grain.The Penguins (15-7-3) have won two games in a row for the first time in almost a month, since Nov. 6 and 8, but they remain neck and neck and neck with the Rangers and Washington as the three jostle for the Metropolitan Division lead.The Senators (15-8-2), meanwhile, beat Florida 2-0 Saturday to break a two-game losing streak. The win brought them within two points of Montreal atop the Atlantic Division -- although the Canadiens then picked up another two points Sunday in a shootout win against Los Angeles.Ottawa coach Guy Boucher sensed some fatigue after the two straight losses, so he called off Fridays practice, and Saturdays morning skate was a lightly-attended optional.We needed to give the guys a rest, Boucher said. We were definitely hoping to have more energy, and thats exactly what happened. You saw that right off the bat. Our guys were skating hard. They were ready.Now the Senators will need to be ready to start a four-game, nine-day road trip that heads to the West Coast following the game against the Penguins.With goaltender Craig Anderson on leave from Ottawa to be with his wife as she battles cancer, Pittsburgh could see a familiar face in goal for Ottawa on Monday.Mike Condon began the season with the Penguins while Matt Murray recovered from a broken thumb. He played just one period. When Murray returned, Pittsburgh traded Condon to the Senators.Condon is 3-1-1 with Ottawa, including two shutouts -- the second one a 24-save job Saturday against Florida. Its quite a run.I dont really look too far in the past or too far in the future, Condon said. Im just trying to keep the game simple and just stay in the moment.Charles Comiskey White Sox Jersey . In taking its goal tally to 99 in all competitions already this season, City delivered another demonstration of its lethal firepower at Etihad Stadium to set up a fourth-round match at home to another second-tier team -- Watford. Kodi Medeiros Jersey . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. https://www.cheapwhitesox.com/2844e-george-davis-jersey-white-sox.html .ca. Kerry, Just watched the shootout in the Coyotes/Leafs game and I have to ask, why was the James van Riemsdyk goal allowed to count? All of the video replays we were shown on TV were inconclusive about whether the puck had entirely crossed the line or not. Tim Raines White Sox Jersey . The third-ranked Ivanovic, who won the event in 2008 and 10, served five aces and broke Wickmayer, also a former winner in 2009, five times. "The result looked easier than it really was," Ivanovic said. Caleb Frare Jersey .J. -- New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz will miss the rest of the season after having surgery on his left knee.VILLARS-LES-DOMBES, France -- Mark Cavendish approached the finish line with so much speed that German rival Marcel Kittel swerved out of the way.The Manx Missile easily sprinted to his fourth stage victory in the Tour de France on Saturday.I didnt see it, Cavendish said of the incident with Kittel. I was in front of him.Finishing in the main pack during the 14th stage, Chris Froome had little trouble holding onto the yellow jersey.Todays stage was quite welcome after the last few days of racing, Froome said. It was really nice to switch off a little bit and sit on the wheels inside the peloton.It was Cavendishs 30th career win in the Tour, putting him within four of Eddy Merckxs record. The British sprinter held up four fingers after crossing the line.Kittel threw up his arm in protest when Cavendish passed him.I saw Cavendish overtaking me and suddenly cornering me, Kittel said. I had to brake to avoid a crash. Its not for me to say if he made a mistake.Cavendish analyzed it only after watching the replay.We were next to the barriers and it was him coming off the barriers more than anything, Cavendish said.Alexander Kristoff, a Norwegian with Katusha, crossed second, and world champion Peter Sagan was third.Cavendish is just faster right now, Kristoff said.Kittel came fifth.Kittel had already lost and stopped his effort. He had lost his focus. Maybe Cavendish swerved a bit, but its nothing, retired sprinter Laurent Jalabert said.The peloton stopped for a minute of silence at the start of the stage in honor of the 84 victims of the truck attack in Nice. Froome, French champion Arthur Vichot, and other leaders of the Tour took their helmets off and stood still at the start line.It was the first of three days of national mourning in France, and fans waved the countrys flag all along the 208.5-kilometer (130-mile) route frrom Montelimar to the bird sanctuary of Parc des Oiseaux in Villars-Les-Dombes near Lyon.ddddddddddddCavendishs personal record for wins in one Tour was six in 2009. His performance in this race has come as somewhat of a surprise, considering that he has been slowed by injuries in recent seasons.But Cavendish seems rejuvenated after joining the South African squad Team Dimension Data for this season.Ive been a lot more patient than I was last year, Cavendish said.Froome remained 1:47 ahead of second-place Bauke Mollema and 2:45 in front of third-place Adam Yates in the overall standings.Four riders -- Martin Elmiger of Switzerland, Alex Howes of the United States, Jeremy Roy of France, and Cesare Benedetti of Italy -- formed an early breakaway and opened up an advantage of 4 1/2 minutes before falling apart in the final kilometers.Known as a transfer stage because it was a lengthy leg that moved the peloton from one region to another to set up the ensuing mountain tests, the route took riders by fields of grain and sunflowers amid winds exceeding 35 kph (22 mph).The stage started 15 minutes early because of concerns over a strong headwind and concluded with a three-kilometer straight directly into the wind.Matti Breschel, a Danish rider with Cannondale, crashed midway through the stage, and was reported to have broken his collarbone.The Tour enters the Alps on Sunday with a 160-kilometer (99-mile) leg from Bourg-en-Bresse to Culoz featuring six climbs, including the beyond-category Grand Colombier.It is a tricky stage, Froome said. I know the roads there. Its a stage that has probably been a bit underestimated because its not an uphill finish.---Andrew Dampf on Twitter: www.twitter.com/asdampf ' ' '