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DETROIT -- The Detroit Red Wings had a successful debut as an Eastern Conference team, scoring early and holding on late. Pavel Datsyuk and Mikael Samuelsson scored 36 seconds apart midway through the first period and Detroit beat the Buffalo Sabres 2-1 Wednesday night in the season-opener for both teams. "When you start off at home, you always want the first goal and we got two," Samuelsson said. "After that, we slowed down." Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard turned the puck over, allowing Zemgus Girgensons to score in his NHL debut with 7:24 left in the game. Howard tried to clear the puck from behind his net, but it hit Buffalos Brian Flynn and popped over the net to set up Girgensons backhander that pulled the Sabres within a goal. "It was unfortunate that it hit him and ended right on the guys stick," Howard said. "My bad." Howard made 19 saves, playing an Atlantic Division game against the young Sabres. Buffalo had a two-man power play for 1:31 early in the first period and for 51 seconds late in the second, but couldnt take advantage. In between those 5-on-3 opportunities, the Sabres were scoreless on three power plays. "It couldve been a difference-maker for our team, and it wasnt," Buffalo forward Steve Ott said. Ryan Miller gave up goals on the fifth and sixth shots he faced and finished with 32 saves. He didnt seem to have much of a chance on either goal. Samuelsson swiped the puck out of the air and into the net off a centring pass from Cory Emmerton 12:05 into the game. "It was pretty," Miller said. "Youd think it was prettier if it didnt happen to you." Datsyuk got a giveaway in the Sabres end, skated between the circles and backhanded a shot that Miller appeared to not see until it was too late at 12:41 of the first. "We made a second mistake up the wall and we turned it over to a real good player," said coach Ron Rolston, following his first game behind Buffalos bench. The Red Wings didnt create a lot of chances the rest of the game, but did have a goal waved off because Daniel Cleary was called for interference against Miller. "We hung around long enough and got one, so we were still in it at the end," Rolston said. "But obviously our power play didnt help us." Detroit is hoping to start strong this season and finish better than it has the previous four years when it failed to get past the second round of the playoffs. The Red Wings seem to have a deep roster including a pair of veteran newcomers, Daniel Alfredsson and Stephen Weiss. Buffalo, meanwhile, is rebuilding. The Sabres played three teenagers: Girgensons, Mikhail Grigorenko and Rasmus Ristolainen. Buffalo selected Ristolainen, an 18-year-old defenceman from Finland, with the No. 8 pick in this years draft. Grigorenko, who had five points in 25 games last season, and Girgensons were chosen in the first round last year. "This is a good experience for them, playing a team like that with the speed that they have," Rolston said. NOTES: Samuelsson played in just four games last season because of injuries and didnt have a goal. ... The Sabres played more than two teenagers for the first time since the 1995-96 season, when they had five on their roster. ... The Red Wings are 9-1-1 in their last 11 games against Buffalo, a team they will play four times this season. Nike Air Force 1 Just Do It Comprar . The CFL will help tackle womens cancers by playing four special "CFL PINK" games this weekend. Air Force 1 Baratas . Sterling was banned for life and fined US$2.5 million by the NBA on Tuesday for racist comments the league says he made in a recorded conversation. Nash, who plays for the rival L.A. Lakers, spoke as a representative of current NBA players at a press conference assembled by Sacramento mayor and National Basketball Players Association adviser Kevin Johnson. http://www.airforceonebaratas.com/air-more-uptempo-baratas/720.html .Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg have been neck and neck all season, with 17 points separating the rivals and double points on offer for the race.Tensions between them have spilled over during the campaign and the pairs fragile relationship was evident during Thursdays pre-race news conference, when Rosberg goaded Hamilton by advising him to race cleanly. Air Force 270 Comprar . Mike Vecchione tied it at 2 with 4:01 left in the first, Saskatoon native Eli Lichtenwald gave the Dutchman the lead 57 seconds later, and Daniel Ciampini capped the spree with 2:57 to go. Nike React Zapatillas . -- Chad Labelle scored the winner 17:36 into the third period to give Medicine Hat a 2-1 victory over the Swift Current Broncos on Sunday and lift the Tigers into the second round of the Western Hockey League playoffs.What is the most important space on a soccer field?Some suggest that it is the zone directly in front of the penalty area – referred to as Zone 14 – where the largest percentage of goal scoring opportunities originate. Others suggest that the penalty area is the most important, as it is where the largest percentage of goals are scored. Still others suggest that the midfield is the most crucial area of the pitch, as it is often where games are "won and lost".I disagree with all three suggestions. For me, the most important space on a football pitch is the space between a players ears.For me, football is simply a game of decisions. The ability to make the correct decisions consistently is what is often referred to as a players "football IQ" or "football intelligence". You will often hear analysts refer to a player having a good "football brain", which is simply a way of saying that a player consistently makes the correct decisions on a football pitch.Does he pass the ball or does he dribble? If he passes the ball, whom does he pass it to? When he passes the ball, how hard does he pass it? Does he pass it to the left side or to the right side of the receiver? Does he pass it on the ground, or does he have to lift the ball in order to get it to its intended target?Players make thousands of these decisions during a 90-minute game, yet the difference between glory and failure can often rest on just one or two. For defenders, the wrong decision often results in conceding a goal.Consider Spains humiliating 5-1 loss to the Netherlands.Just one minute after Spains David Villa had a one-on-one with Dutch goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen – which would have put Spain in front 2-0 just before the halftime break had Silva scored - the Netherlands scored a fabulous equalizing goal through Robin van Persie. The goal completely changed the course of the game, as the momentum heading into the break turned 180 degrees in favour of the Netherlands.As wonderful as the goal was for the Netherlands, from Spains perspective it was a defensive calamity.When Dutch defender Bruno Martins Indi passed the ball to wingback Daley Blind, the assessment of the situation from Spanish defender Sergio Ramos was that there was no imminent danger.However, Ramos failed to correctly assess the situation because he got caught ball-watching. Ramos focused his attention on Blind, rather than on Robin van Persies position in relation to the ball at Blinds feet. Had he seen van Persies positioning on his back shoulder, Ramos would have realized that there was a genuine threat. Had Ramos then decided to run just three or four yards to get back into the correct defensive position, Blind would have opted to retain possession with a safer pass, rather than sending the ball forward for van Persie to attack.The ball in behind Spains back line from Blind was inch perfect, matched in qualitty only by the diving header from van Persie.ddddddddddddThe goal completely changed the course of the game, as the momentum swung in favour of the Netherlands – who went on to score four unanswered goals in the second half to pull off one of the results of the tournament.Consider Italys shocking 1-0 defeat at the hands of Costa Rica.Usually one of the most consistent defensive teams at the international level, Italy was badly caught out for Bryan Ruizs game-winning goal.When Costa Ricas Júnior Díaz picked up the ball on the left flank and shaped to cross, Italys Giorgio Chiellini (arguably one of the best defenders in the world) never spotted the run of Ruiz off his back shoulder. Why? Because Chiellini never took his eyes off the ball.Yes, it was clever movement from Ruiz. But Chiellinis decision to focus solely on the ball, rather than on Ruizs movement in relation to the ball, resulted in a devastating outcome for Italy. A tremendous cross from Diaz and a clinical finish from Ruiz was all Costa Rica needed to separate the two sides, clinching the minnows passage to the knockout stage.Consider Ecuadors winning goal in their 2-1 victory over Honduras.One of the key principles of good defensive play is "see the ball, see the man". A good defender always puts himself in a position where he can see both the ball and the player he is marking. Generally speaking, this is a position that is ball-side and closer to the goal that is being defended than the attacker.On Ecuadors free kick, Honduran defender Juan Carlos García committed the cardinal sin of turning his back on the ball when marking Ecuadorian striker Enner Valencia. Garcia had no idea that the ball had been kicked, as he was trying to wrestle with Valencia instead. This left Valencia the easy task of wriggling away from Garcias clutches to head the ensuing cross into the back of the net.While there have been some examples of very good defensive play at the World Cup – Iran, Greece and Costa Rica have all put on excellent defensive performances in various games – I have been surprised at how many individual defenders are making fundamental defensive mistakes.As the game changes – fullbacks are now more coveted for their ability to get forward in attack than they are for their one on one defensive abilities – the characteristics of the next generation of defenders will also change. Speed, comfort on the ball and a wide passing range are all characteristics that the modern game seeks in its defenders.But those characteristics should never come at the expense of situational and positional awareness, tackling, heading, organization and communication. The young players - like Frances Raphael Varane and Uruguays José Giménez – who can marry all of these traits together will go on to be the next "defensive artists" of the modern game. ' ' '