immy Howard out for up to two weeks. Its now

A remarkable race to AFL finals ended with a frenzied finish at the MCG on Sunday that has only heightened expectations of something special in September.Six clubs, including triple reigning premiers Hawthorn, started the final round with a chance of snatching the minor premiership or missing out on the top four entirely.The Hawks posted a one-point win over Collingwood at the MCG on Sunday, setting up a mouth-watering qualifying final against rivals Geelong at the same venue.Sydney and Greater Western Sydney will meet in the other qualifying final, while Adelaide and West Coast will host elimination games against North Melbourne and Western Bulldogs respectively.History dictates only the top-four sides can win the flag - it has been that way since the introduction of the current system.But the advent of a pre-finals bye and final-round ladder logjam suggests it could be different this year.The finals series will be really close this year. I reckon probably anyone in the top eight can steal it if they play well for a month, Hawks midfielder Isaac Smith said.It should be a pretty interesting finals series for the fans.Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson suggested it would be foolish to dismiss any of the top-eight sides, pointing to how eighth-placed North won through to an elimination final in 2015.Ladder positions (being up for grabs in the final round) indicate its pretty close, Clarkson said.Were of the view that every side in the top eight is a dangerous opposition.On any given day they can play some outstanding footy.Its going to be harder (to win the premiership) from fifth to eighth but it doesnt mean it cant be done. Particularly this year when theres a little bit of a curveball in terms of the (post-season bye).Clarkson indicated he would try to keep things as normal as possible during the upcoming week.The only difference is were not playing a game next week, he said.Well be pretty low key early in the week and give our players plenty of time to recover but then start to prepare for the Cats.Premiership players Ben Stratton and Ben McEvoy are likely to return for the Hawks against Geelong.Plenty of other clubs will be making some big selection calls over the next fortnight - on account of both form or fitness.The Swans will surrender home-ground advantage against GWS but boast plenty of confidence after five straight wins, the latest being a 113-point demolition of Richmond.Geelong were resounding 111-point winners over Melbourne in the final round of the season, while the Giants downed North by 37 points on Saturday.Western Bulldogs, who travel to Perth and face the Eagles in week one of the finals, have plenty to think about after a shock 20-point loss to Fremantle on Sunday.The Crows were also far from convincing in round 23, suffering a 29-point loss to the Eagles at Adelaide Oval.Fake Nike Shoes From China . -- Washington Redskins tight end Fred Davis was charged Thursday with driving while intoxicated, a day after he was suspended for an NFL substance-abuse policy violation. Clearance Nike Shoes From China . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists. https://www.nikeshoeschina.us/ .com) - The game was all punts and field goals before Kodi Whitfields catch. Cheap Nike Shoes From China . "It doesnt get any better than that," Giambi said. "Im speechless." The Indians are roaring toward October. Giambi belted a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning to give Cleveland a shocking 5-4 win over the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday night, keeping the Indians up with the lead pack in the AL wild-card race. Nike Shoes From China . Nine days before the opening ceremony, organizing committee chief Dmitry Chernyshenko said Wednesday that Sochi is "fully ready" and will deliver safe, friendly and well-run games that defy the grim reports that have overshadowed preparations.Sometimes all it takes is a little perspective shift to see the big picture.Weve had Connor McDavid in the NHL since the beginning of last season, but his first trip to the top of the NHL points leaderboard came early last week. We are quite sure it wont be his last, but extended injuries can make it hard to appreciate players at the best of times, let alone when theyre injured rookies.McDavids injury last season, which had him sidelined from November to February, meant that he finished well outside the points race. He was tied for 105th in the league with 48 points because he only played in 45 games last season.If you look at the NHL regular season scoring leaderboard for the calendar year of 2016, you get a bit of a different picture. First is, of course, Sidney Crosby, with 78 points in 60 games sine we flipped the pages from 2015. Patrick Kane is second, with 73 points in 66 games since the ball dropped in Times Square. Joe Thornton is third, with 69 points in 68 games since we last sang Auld Lang Syne.Then we have McDavid, tied for fourth in the NHL since Jan. 1, 2016, with 64 points in just 54 games (he missed 14 in the month of January). Theres no wondering about that kind of production from the wunderkind. Finishing fourth in the NHL -- or perhaps better -- during a calendar year is no small success.But we all know how great McDavid is; who else looks different when you judge NHL players based on the calendar year of scoring?Artemi Panarin, C/LW, Chicago Blackhawks (fourth in 2016, 64 points in 64 games): Certainly for last season, it looked like Panarin was doing more than a little bit of coattail riding with Patrick Kane. More and more, that does not appear to be the case. In fact, Panarin has played just about as much without Kane as he has with him this season -- and the success continues. In 2016 on the whole, Panarin is tied with Connor McDavid for the fourth-most points in the NHL. That is not something achieved through coattail riding alone. Panarins standing in fantasy hockey should no longer have a link to Kanes.Phil Kessel, RW, Pittsburgh Penguins (11th in 2016, 59 points in 67 games): Hes not scoring goals the way he did with the Toronto Maple Leafs, so it doesnt feel like Kessels still tearing things up. But 11th in the league for points in 2016 says otherwise. Sure, he only has 21 goals in 2016, but when the points are still there, we can forgive Kessel for becoming a little more playmaker than sniper. While the HBK line of Carl Hagelin, Nick Bonino and Kessel wasnt able to carry over its success from last season and the playoffs, Kessel has looked more than okay skating with Evgeni Malkin on a regular basis this season.Brayden Schenn, C/LW, Philadelphia Flyers (15th in 2016, 57 points in 65 games): With only 13 points this campaign, Schenn is tied for 91st in the NHL this season in scoring. Really, that puts the end of last season in perspective when you note that Schenn is tied for 15th in scoring in the NHL in 2016. Playing on the top-heavy Flyers can have big benefits when the pucks are going in. Schenn is still playing those big minutes alongside Claude Giroux both on and off the power play, so the dam is ready to burst on his 2016-17 scoring pace.Bo Horvat, C, Vancouver Canucks (45th in 2016, 45 points in 66 games): If asked to list the top 100 forwards for points in this look at the 2016 calendar year off the top of your head, there is a pretty good chance Horvat would miss the cut. So to consider the fact that he is in the top 50 for scoring in 2016 means hes really doing this under the radar. A red hot January last season really helped along his totals, but Horvat is driving secondary scoring for the Canucks right now, too. Originally catching fire in mid-November with linemate Sven Baertschi, Horvat just kept on scoring with different linemates after Baertschi suffered a foot injury this past week. The plus/minus that put a pretty big damper on Horvats fantasy value last season doesnt appear to be a major issue this campaign. He arguably deserves a chance on deep- to medium-league rosters; hes owned in only 18 percent of ESPN leagues.Forwards rising and fallingRyan Johansen, C, Nashville Predators (up 11 spots to No. 56): Its about time he shook off that slow start. Johansen turned in five points in a span of two games last week to push his season total to four goals and 10 assists in 21 games. Thats still not great, but its bringing hiim back to respectability and showing that the rust from October is disappearing.dddddddddddd. Buy low on Johansen while you still can.Michael Cammalleri, LW, New Jersey Devils (up 41 spots to No. 155): We are now in typical Cammalleri territory. After a month with no production, Cammalleri missed two weeks with an injury -- and then scored eight points in three games. That sounds about right for the mercurial and oft-injured fantasy forward. Whether or not he should be a part of your fantasy plans depends on your tolerance for inconsistency. If you can accept the lulls and injuries by sticking Cammalleri on your bench, he makes a great addition. If youre forced to ride him out in your lineup in a weekly lineup situation, you may want to look elsewhere.Mikael Granlund, C/LW, Minnesota Wild (up 38 spots to No. 212): Granlund has seemingly earned more and more of new Wild coach Bruce Boudreaus trust as the season wears on. He started the season playing about 17 minutes per game, was up to 19 minutes on average by the end of October and has almost averaged 20 minutes per contest in November. The results are showing on the scoreboard, with Granlund set to double his point total from October with a point on Tuesday. Playing on the second line and second power-play unit with Mikko Koivu, Granlund deserves to be picked up in most fantasy formats. Hes available in 82 percent of ESPN leagues.Defensemen rising and fallingColton Parayko, D, St. Louis Blues (up 16 spots to No. 183): When youve got Kevin Shattenkirk and Alex Pietrangelo on the depth chart in front of you, its easy to get overlooked. But wed be mistaken not to include Parayko in our ongoing fantasy plans. Still available in 23 percent of ESPN leagues, Parayko has 11 points in 22 games from the blue line, with three of those points coming on the man advantage. Whats more, Parayko is due for some scoring luck. No one in the NHL has as many shots on goal without a goal as Parayko does this season. Sure, Duncan Keith and John Carlson have 50 shots on goal without a tally this season, but Parayko has 60. Parayko is on pace to easily eclipse his shot total from last season, when he scored nine goals on 165 shots.Goaltenders rising and fallingChad Johnson, G, Calgary Flames (up 28 spots to No. 196): Sundays loss to the Flyers wasnt exactly inspiring, but Johnsons body of work through the month of November has otherwise been sparkling. He should get a long enough leash for a couple of blips considering he has unexpectedly rescued the Flames from their crease struggles. As Brian Elliott continued to melt down into November, Johnson rode in on a white horse to compile a 6-3 record with a 2.01 goals-against average in nine starts this month. Hes the man for now, and is worthy of being on rosters until something changes, and is a free agent in 70 percent of ESPN leagues.Quick hitsHes looked good in two games since being moved down the depth chart, but overall we should lower expectations for Sam Bennett for a while. It should be harder for him to do damage on the third line and with only 15 minutes of ice time per game.Sean Couturiers sprained MCL opens up a lot of important minutes for the Flyers for the next four to six weeks. Nick Cousins was pushed into the top six on the weekend, while Scott Laughton was summoned from the AHL to replace Couturiers roster spot. The Flyers are always worthy of watching closely for value on the top two lines.Petr Mrazek is being forced back into the Detroit Red Wings crease with Jimmy Howard out for up to two weeks. Its now or never for Mrazek to earn his crease back for the season, so if youve been holding him this long, hold out just a little longer.Check the injury status of Jonathan Toews, Brad Marchand and James Neal heading into this week, especially in leagues that lock you down for the entire seven days.Top 250 rankingsHere are the updated rest-of-season, top 250 rankings of forwards, defensemen and goalies, including position ranks.Note: Sean Allens top 250 players are ranked for their expected performance in ESPN standard leagues from this point on. ESPN standard stats include goals, assists, power-play points, shots on goal, plus/minus, penalty minutes and average time on ice for skaters, and wins, goals-against average and save percentage for goalies. ' ' '