miaowang123: trail 82-50 heading into the fourth. O

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SOCHI, Russia -- Shea Webers shot left his stick, and by the time it hit the net, Canada was able to exhale. Discount Nike Air Max Wholesale . For much of the night, Team Canada forced everyone to hold their collective breath while goaltender Kristers Gudlevskis and Latvia played with house money in the mens Olympic hockey quarter-final. Webers third-period goal was enough to break the tie and help the Canadians escape with a 2-1 victory at Bolshoy Ice Dome on Wednesday. The win gave Canada a spot in semifinals, where it will meet the rival Americans for a berth in the gold-medal game. The United States beat the Czech Republic 5-2 at Shayba Arena to move on. Nerves from the Canadian contingent were palpable throughout the game against Latvia, from the time Lauris arzins scored in the first period to tie the score until Weber reclaimed the lead with a blast from the point on the power play at 13:06 of the third. Had 11th-seeded Latvia beaten third-seeded Canada, it would have arguably been one of the biggest upsets in the history of Olympic hockey. Instead, Canada was able to survive an unexpected test against a gritty group coached by Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., native Ted Nolan. Latvia was outshot 57-16 overall but managed to hang in the game thanks to 55 saves from Gudlevskis, a prospect in the Tampa Bay Lightning organization. "It can get to you," Canadian forward Patrick Marleau said Canadas struggles to beat Gudlevskis. Patrick Sharp scored Canadas first goal in the first period, and goalie Carey Price made 15 saves. But it was Webers goal through a screen after a give-and-go at the points with Drew oughty with three seconds left on a power play that made the difference. With puck drop coming just two hours after host Russias tournament ended with a stunning 3-1 loss to Finland, the atmosphere inside Bolshoy was, as Pavel atsyuk described his emotions, "empty." Previously the home fans filled the arena, chanted "Roos-ee-ah" and at least revelled in rooting against Canada. This time they were more subdued, save for joining in with some "Lat-vee-ah" chants started by a group wearing bright orange. Gudlevskis gave them a chance to cheer with a big save on Jamie Benn two minutes in, and Chris Kunitz a chance to gasp as he hit the crossbar seconds after Sidney Crosby almost scored. But Canadian fans got the first chance to celebrate when the fourth line opened the scoring 13:37 in. Rick Nash collected the puck in front of the net, skated behind it just long enough for John Tavares to set a screen and fed Sharp, who hit the open hole perfectly to make it 1-0. Not long after, a set neutral-zone play by Latvia led to a breakaway on Price and a tie score. Defenceman Sandis Ozolinsh stepped off the ice and Darzins, a forward who impressed with a pretty toe drag earlier, stepped on just in time for Winnipeg Jets property Arturs Kulda to spring him for a pass. Canadian defencemen Jay Bouwmeester and Alex Pietrangelo got beat clean, and Darzins scored on a back-hander over Prices right pad at 15:41. That was enough to fire up many Russian fans to make this much more like a hostile, road game for Canada. On the ice it felt similar, as Ted Nolans group made the Canadians work for quality scoring chances despite a huge shot discrepancy. Early in the second period it wasnt a shot but a hit that made a huge difference for Canada and the New York Islanders. Kulda hit Tavares hard, and the fourth-line centre went down in a heap in the corner. Tavares was able to skate off under his own power and remained on the bench briefly before going down the tunnel. It was not immediately clear what the injury was. Without Tavares, coach Mike Babcock was forced to shuffle his lines, putting 13th forward Martin St. Louis on right wing with Kunitz and Crosby and sliding Bergeron down to centre the fourth line between Sharp and Nash. Canada continued the siege on Gudlevskis throughout the second period, outshooting Latvia 15-2. But it could not break through. It looked like that run was over 8:27 into the third, but a controversial call kept it 1-1. Jonathan Toews and Marleau got the puck to the goal-line and almost over, but Latvia defenceman Kristaps Sotnieks gloved it to keep it out. The ruling was that the puck did not fully cross the line, and Canada did not get a penalty shot because that cannot be awarded on review. NOTES: Forward Matt uchene and defenceman P.K. Subban were Canadas healthy scratches vs. Latvia. Babcock said Subban, who appeared in only one of four games, has been "excellent" about handling his role. Duchene tweeted a "best of luck" message to his teammates Wednesday afternoon. ... Former Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators forward Kaspars augavins was scratched for Latvia because of an illness. ... The attendance was announced as 9,852. Cheap Nike Air Max Outlet . According to TSN Edmonton reporter Ryan Rishaug, agent Rick Valette met with Oilers senior VP of hockey operations Scott Howson and general manager Craig MacTavish on Monday to kick off the talks. Nike Air Max Sale .Stanton suffered fractures in his face and other injuries when he was hit by a pitch Sept. 11. The Marlins are confident hell fully recover and be ready for spring training, and they hope to reach a long-term agreement with him.Oklahoma City, OK (SportsNetwork.com) - Russell Westbrook made an emphatic return to the court, pouring in 32 points in just 24 minutes to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 105-78 blowout of the punchless New York Knicks at Chesapeake Energy Arena. In his first game back since fracturing his right hand on Oct. 30, Westbrook went 12-of-17 from the field while amassing eight assists and seven rebounds and providing a much-needed spark to the injury-plagued Thunder, who won consecutive games for the first time this season. The Knicks, meanwhile, struggled mightily on offense with their star out of the lineup. As Carmelo Anthony sat out a second straight contest with back spasms, New York shot a meager 38.7 percent and missed 17-of-19 attempts from 3-point range to fall for the 12th time in 14 games. Amare Stoudemire was New Yorks lone bright spot, recording 20 points on 7- of-8 shooting and pulling down nine rebounds. Serge Ibaka added 14 points and Jeremy Lamb had 13 off the bench in the Thunders wire-to-wire win. Steven Adams posted 13 rebounds. Westbrook wasted little time making an impact, dropping in 12 points over the games first eight minutes as the Thunder sped out to a 23-6 lead. The All- Star point guard finished the opening quarter with 14 points and four assists while hitting 6-of-7 shots. Wholesale Nike Air Max From China. While Westbrook was red-hot, the Knicks were ice cold over the initial 12 minutes. New York made a woeful 4-of-22 tries from the floor while falling behind 30-13 at periods end. Those struggles continued into the early stages of the second quarter, which began with a 10-0 Oklahoma City run in which Lamb sunk a pair of threes. The Thunder led by as many as 28 during the frame before cruising into the break owning a commanding 59-33 advantage. The Knicks continued to miss shots during a third quarter in which they managed just 17 points to trail 82-50 heading into the fourth. Oklahoma City was ahead by as much as 37 in the final stanza, building a 98-61 lead with five minutes to play. Game Notes The Knicks are now 1-6 at Chesapeake Energy Arena since the Thunder relocated to Oklahoma City from Seattle ... J.R. Smith, starting in place of Anthony, mustered just two points while going 1-of-9 from the floor ... Tim Hardaway Jr. finished with 11 points off the bench for the Knicks ... Lamb went 3-for-4 from 3-point range and 4-of-4 from the free-throw line. ' ' '