chenyan94: Host Dallas on Tuesday
Host Dallas on Tuesday
When Philip Rivers and his teammates reported to the same sunny spot Saturday for the first practice their second training camp in Orange County, pretty much everyone was feeling perfectly at home.
”Now it’s just football,” Rivers said. ”There’s not as much wondering about schedules and what the practice field was going to be like. There’s not as much of that uncertainty. It’s all football now. There’s definitely a level of comfort that I think we have now and we can just put our focus on the field.”
A year after leaving San Diego, the Chargers are eager to take another shot at living up to their enormous potential. Although they already lost two key players to injuries before training camp even began, the Bolts are aware they’re still a popular pick to be a playoff team and likely even a Super Bowl contender.
Those are nothing less than the Chargers’ own internal expectations, and they’re much more interested in proving themselves right.
”We just want to be the team we know we can be,” running back Melvin Gordon said. ”Yeah, expectations are high, but we make them higher than other people make them.”
The 36-year-old Rivers has started every game for the Chargers since 2006, and he realizes he has fewer and fewer shots at reaching his first Super Bowl. He won the AFC West and appeared in playoff games during each of his first four seasons as a starter, but the Bolts have made the playoffs just once since that run ended in 2009.
Rivers understands the excitement around the Chargers after their 9-3 finish to last season. He even welcomes it.
”It’s interesting, because it’s been a while,” Rivers said. ”I’ve been on some teams here that had those expectations [url=www.packerscheapstore.com/marcedes-lewis-jersey-cheap]Marcedes Lewis Packers Jersey[/url] , and we went out and did it year after year there for a while. It’s been a long time, though. There aren’t many guys that have been through that on this team. … We know there are a lot of expectations outside. We have those same expectations on the inside.”
The Chargers return with remarkable continuity from last season’s team, with veteran center Mike Pouncey joining a largely unchanged offense and rookie safety Derwin James moving into a solid defense. Their biggest personnel losses happened recently, and did nothing to shake the Chargers’ reputation for soul-crushing injury problems: tight end Hunter Henry was lost for the season in May, and former Pro Bowl cornerback Jason Verrett tore his Achilles tendon Friday in a conditioning test.
The coaching staff also stayed essentially intact, with second-year head coach Anthony Lynn keeping coordinators Ken Whisenhunt and Gus Bradley. Lynn said he feels more confident as a head coach after getting through his first year in good form – and even finishing up his college degree along the way.
”I definitely feel a little bit more comfortable knowing what to expect, not moving and not living out of boxes, knowing where we’re going to training camp, and (having a) similar coaching staff and players,” Lynn said.
Although the stands at Jack Hammett Sports Complex were filled with an estimated 7,000 fans for the first practice, the Chargers realize they’ve still got plenty of work to do if they hope to win over the Los Angeles marketplace in the coming years – particularly with the Los Angeles Rams looking like a potential Super Bowl team as well. Fielding a winning team this fall would be the most potent way to do it, the Bolts players and coaches agree.
But after four consecutive non-playoff seasons, and after the challenges of their relocation year [url=www.chicagobearsteamonline.com/roquan-smith-jersey]Roquan Smith Bears Jersey[/url] , the Chargers are grateful to settle in for a few weeks of training camp with their thoughts on nothing bigger than the next practice or scrimmage.
Rivers even had a catchphrase for it: ”Enjoy the boring.”
—
William Karlsson put a spectacular bow on a surprising Pacific Division championship for expansion Vegas.
Karlsson scored a short-handed goal in the third period, and the Golden Knights clinched the title with a 3-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Saturday night.
”It’s a great feeling to win our division. Obviously, nobody had those expectations the first of the season,” coach Gerard Gallant said. ”A lot of things went right for us, a lot of guys played real well, a lot of guys had career years, so that’s why we’re here today.”
Vegas (50-22-7) reached 50 wins in its inaugural season with its third victory in four games. San Jose (44-25-10) is second in the Pacific, four points ahead of Los Angeles.
”It’s a great accomplishment, but we all know what the real accomplishment is gonna be,” Gallant said. ”A great regular season means a lot, but a great playoffs can mean a lot more.”
For the second straight night, Karlsson scored a short-handed goal on a breakaway, this time with what might have been his sweetest of 42 goals this season – between his legs to beat Martin Jones top shelf for the game-winner.
”I kind of had a great spot there to pull that move … it’s instinct, when you black out [url=www.sanfrancisco49ersteamonline.com/reuben-foster-jersey]Reuben Foster Jersey[/url] , that’s usually when you do good – don’t overthink it,” Karlsson said. ”It was a great game, a lot of fun to play. It’s good to clinch not only the division, but the home advantage over the Pacific teams.”
Shea Theodore and Oscar Lindberg also scored for the Golden Knights, and Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 29 shots. Fleury improved to 29-12-4 this season and moved into sole possession of 11th place on the career wins list with 404 victories.
”This is obviously a nice feeling, to do this at home, in front of our fans, you know they’ve been so great to us all season long,” Fleury said. ”I’m very proud of these guys, the way they’ve played all season long. To have an expansion team win the division in our first year, I think it’s pretty cool.”
Jones made 35 saves. The Sharks had allowed fewer than 30 shots in eight of their previous 15 games.
Joe Pavelski and Marc-Edouard Vlasic scored for San Jose, which has dropped three in a row.
The Sharks, who went 10-4-1 in March, will have to wait until Tuesday to try to clinch a playoff berth for the 13th time in 14 years.
”You’re going to come in here and win in this rink in this time of year [url=www.sanfrancisco49ersteamonline.com/jimmy-garoppolo-jersey]Jimmy Garoppolo Jersey Limited[/url] , you’re going to have to bring your A-plus game, and I thought we were B tonight,” coach Peter DeBoer said. ”Just not good enough at certain moments and we probably got what we deserved.”
Vegas struck early in the first period. Theodore took a pass from Karlsson at the point and sent a wrist shot past Jones at 2:21.
Pavelski tied it when he fired a rebound into an open net at 7:14 while Fleury was still recovering from making a save at the other side of the goal.
Lindberg got the lead back for Vegas when he redirected Theodore’s shot from the point past Jones 3:03 into the second. But Vlasic tied it midway through the period when he backhanded home a rebound that came off Vegas defender Brayden McNabb’s knee.
NOTES: In a pregame ceremony, the Golden Knights retired No. 58, raising a banner with 58 stars and the names of the lives lost in the Oct. 1 concert shooting. … The 18,458 in attendance was the largest crowd of Vegas’ inaugural season. … Vegas’ James Neal played in his 700th career game, while teammate Jonathan Marchessault played in his 200th game. … San Jose’s Joonas Donskoi played in his 200th career game. … San Jose, which has the league’s second-best penalty kill, denied Vegas’ four power-play opportunities, and hasn’t allowed a power-play goal in 16 of its last 18 contests. … The Golden Knights improved to 33-5-2 record when scoring the first goal of the game.
UP NEXT
Sharks: Host Dallas on Tuesday.
Golden Knights: Visit Vancouver on Tuesday.
.
Add comment