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TORONTO, Ontario – Moments after Canada narrowly edged Latvia 2-1 to book their ticket to face the United States in the semifinals of the Olympic mens hockey tournament, Jonathan Toews was asked about going head to head against his Chicago Blackhawks teammate Patrick Kane. Yeezy Outlet Online . “Hes alright,” laughed Toews, “but that Kessel guy is even better.” Whether Toews was sharing his true belief or not is beside the point. The fact that the captain of two different Stanley Cup champions would even think to make that comparison shows that Kessel is being thought of among the games elite, not just by pundits but, more importantly, by his peers. And rightly so. Finishing up with points in thirteen of his final 15 games before the Olympic break (11-16-27) to put himself fourth overall in NHL scoring with 65 points – second overall in goals with 31 behind only Alex Ovechkin – Kessel has continued to excel in Sochi, leading the mens tournament in scoring with eight points in four games while sitting tied with Michael Grabner for the lead in goals with five. Let that sink in for a moment. In a tournament involving undisputedly the best players in the world, Phil Kessel has arguably been the top performer. “We all believed that hes able to do it,” said Kessels centre in Toronto, Tyler Bozak. “Who knows what other people think outside of our locker room but we believe in him to be one of the best players in the league and hes proving it yet again.” Now 26 years old and in his eighth NHL season, Kessel is on pace for his best statistical season, poised to set new career highs in goals, assists and points. If he keeps up his pace set through the first 60 games, he could well break the 40-goal plateau and finish just shy of 90 points. To put that in perspective, not since Mats Sundin scored 41 goals in 2001-02 has a Maple Leaf reached 40 goals. The 90-point milestone hasnt been met in Toronto since Sundin did it in 1996-97. Nazem Kadri feels its time for Kessel to be recognized among the NHLs best. “I think he should be, if he wasnt already,” he said after the Maple Leafs reconvened for practice on Wednesday. “I think we all knew that Phil was going to achieve more, especially on that big ice. Not too many players in the league can skate with him. Phil does a great job finding areas to get open; he can find his own teammates and score goals.” The knock against Kessel has long been that he is too one-dimensional of a player but the Madison, Wisconsin native has been aggressively debunking that myth in recent times. An inspired effort during the Leafs seven game playoff series against the Boston Bruins in the spring of 2013 was an eye opener. Hes shown a willingness to stand up for himself, as he has done on two separate occasions against Alex Burrows this season. “I think Phil kind of likes that stuff secretly,” revealed Bozak after Kessels latest altercation with Burrows on Feb. 8. “It kind of fired him up.” Perhaps most impressive though has been Kessels ability not only to score goals but to enhance the play of his teammates, a much more difficult task as a winger than as a centre. Only Patrick Kane (36), Taylor Hall (36) and Kyle Okposo (35) have more assists as wingers this season than Kessels 34. To any longer cast Kessel in the light of solely a one dimensional goal scorer is inaccurate. Hes proven that he is one of the most purely skilled players the Leafs have had in the last thirty years and right now, among the best in the NHL. “Phil has definitely taken strides here and has grown as a player,” explained Coach Randy Carlyle. “Hes not a one dimensional player as people described him previously. Hes a guy that still has some things that wed like him to stop doing but hes become more of a two way player, hes stopped on pucks a lot more, hes been in the shooting lane a lot more. Hes not just a rush player, he can do a lot of different things with the puck and hes provided this hockey club and now the USA team with a lot of different intangibles.” Vapormax China Paypal . The Detroit Tigers closer blew a three-run lead in the ninth inning Wednesday night against the Dodgers. Fake Vans Shoes . – The situation looked bleak at best for the coach Doc Rivers Clippers — down by four points with 18 seconds left in the fourth quarter.Ames, IA (SportsNetwork.com) – Dustin Hogue finished with 17 points and eight rebounds and No. 17 Iowa State used two key blocks in the waning seconds to hold off Oklahoma State for a 63-61 win in its Big 12 opener. Hogue shot 7-for-9 from the floor, including 3-for-4 from 3-point range, Georges Niang and Matt Thomas each scored 10 points and Monte Morris contributed eight points and six assists for the Cyclones (11-2, 1-0 Big 12), who bounced back from a 64-60 loss to South Carolina on Saturday. Phil Forte paced the Cowboys (11-3, 1-1) with 21 points and LeBryan Nash supplied 19 points, six boards and six assists in the loss. Jeff Newberry scored five straight points and Tavarius Shines triple got the Cowboys within 56-55 with under seven minutes to play. Each team went cold as the games next basket was Hogues 3-pointer 3 1/2 minutes later. Fortes layup with 55 seconds to play made it a two-point game once again. After Niang missed a free throw, Shines 3-point try was swatted out of bounds by Hogue. Forte threw up a desparation shot from beyond the arc off the inbounds, but Niang sealed the win with a block ass time expired. Cheap Air Max 97 Wholesale. Trailing by a point with 2:30 to play in the first half, Thomas knocked down two treys as Iowa State used an 8-2 run to take a 26-21 lead into halftime after a tight opening 20 minutes of play. Hogue hit a 3-pointer to start the second half and an 8-2 spurt that featured a triple from Bryce Dejean-Jones for a 34-23 lead, forcing an Oklahoma State timeout less than two minutes into the final stanza. The Cowboys battled back as Nash scored nine points and Forte and Shine made shots from beyond during a 14-5 swing that got them within two points. Nash and Forte hit back-to-back treys as Oklahoma State took a 43-42 lead. Iowa State, however, reclaimed the lead with as it responded by outscoring the Cowboys by a 12-4 margin for a 54-47 game with under nine minutes to play. Game Notes Iowa State is 11-0 this season when leading at the half … Nash has scored in double figures in 13 straight games … The Cyclones have won four straight games against the Cowboys … Iowa State shot 43.9 percent from the field, while Oklahoma State shot 42.4 percent. ‚ ‚ ‚