Dein erstes Forum » Alburquerque and Joba Chamberlain

PHILADELPHIA -- Steve Mason was about to tee off on the back nine when Brayden Schenn interrupted with a breaking report. "Have you heard the news," Schenn asked. A puzzled Mason had no clue what Schenn was about to spill: Ilya Bryzgalov had his contract bought out by the Philadelphia Flyers. When it comes to Flyers goaltenders, Mason is suddenly the leader in the clubhouse. Mason finished his round with a solid day on the course and the realization that he is, for now, Philadelphias No. 1 goalie entering next season. Sure, his solid month as a Flyer after he was acquired from Columbus merited a deeper look from the organization. But the Flyers mostly wanted to get rid of the flaky Russian who never performed up to the $51 million, nine-year deal he signed in 2011. Mason has the chance to prove hes more the goalie who was the NHLs rookie of the year in 2008-09 and not the one who posted a goals-against average of 3-plus each of the next three seasons. "Im prepared to be the No. 1 guy," Mason said by phone from Toronto. "I feel Ive come a long way in the last few years in the growing-up process of being a goaltender in the NHL." Mason had it all figured out when he went 33-20-7 with 10 shutouts and won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year in 2008-09, the only season the Blue Jackets have made the playoffs. But Mason and Columbus could never recapture that fleeting success again. He fell to 20 wins and five shutouts the next season, and hasnt had a winning record since he was a rookie. He bottomed out in 2011-12 with a 16-26-3 mark. Mason lost his job to eventual Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky, a former flyer, and was traded away by Columbus in April. He called the last few years "extremely humbling." "You almost hit rock bottom in terms of the way you feel about yourself as a goaltender," Mason said. "It got to the point in Columbus where I was struggling to find my confidence and also, struggling to come to the rink happy about playing hockey." Only 25, Mason appreciated a fresh start in Philadelphia. He instantly bonded with goalie coach Jeff Reese, and a 4-2 record with a 1.90 goals-against made him a hit with his teammates and management. He signed a $1.5 million, one-year extension shortly after the trade. "Im a big Steve Mason fan," Flyers general manager Paul Holmgren said. "I know theres a short window that we got to watch him here, but he played very well. Even the game he lost, he played well." Holmgren has to add another goalie to play with Mason. But he expected the bulk of the playing time to be thrust on Mason. The Flyers went 23-22-3 and were 10th in the Eastern Conference with 49 points in this lockout-shortened season. "I looked at coming to Philadelphia as a great new challenge," Mason said. "Regardless of the length of Bryzs contract, I was confident that if I played well, I was going to get an opportunity to play a lot of hockey games." Theres been a revolving door in net for Philadelphia for decades. They Flyers -- and their fans -- thought that was solved with Bryzgalovs arrival. Perhaps Mason can finally take that honour. "I was going to prepare myself this summer," Mason said, "to have the mindset of being able to handle the pressures of playing in Philadelphia and the pressures of being a No. 1 goaltender again in this league." Bryzgalov was 52-33-10 with a 2.61 goals-against and a .905 save percentage in the two seasons for Philadelphia, which failed to make the playoffs this year. Bryzgalovs quirky personality and sometimes brutal honesty with the media didnt always endear him to teammates. But the Flyers say that didnt factor into this decision. Coach Peter Laviolette and Holmgren have each checked in with Mason this summer, though not since the trade. "It was an extremely easy team to come into," Mason said. "and feel welcomed." Example? Mason was invited along with captain Claude Giroux and other Flyers to play in Scott Hartnells charity golf tournament in Canada. Thats when word hit that Bryz was out -- and Mason was in. "It wasnt a celebration," Mason said. "It was, heres an opportunity and go with it." Off-White x Nike Air Max 270 Black . -- Atlanta Braves pitcher Tommy Hanson is being checked for a possible concussion after blowing a tire on his way to the first workout of spring training. Nike Air Max 270 React Triple Black . -- Chicago manager Darold Butler has a message for the Windy City. http://www.max270cheap.com/nike-men-s-is...bq1918-002.html. Bjoerndalen, who had failed to win any major race for two years before Sochi, writes in a Facebook entry that he is "full of energy and inspiration" after winning the 10-kilometre sprint and mixed relay at last months Olympics. Air Max 270 Flyknit Triple Black . TSN2 December 18 Knicks at Bulls 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 December 18 Thunder at Warriors 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 December 21 Pacers at Timberwolves 7pm et/4pm pt. TSN2 December 23 Timberwolves at Cavaliers 7pm et/4pm pt TSN2 December 25 Wizards at Knicks 12pm et/9am pt TSN December 25 Thunder at Spurs 2:30pm et/11:30pt TSN December 25 Cavaliers at Heat 5pm et/2pm pt TSN December 25 Lakers at Bulls 8pm et/5pm pt TSN December 25 Warriors at Clippers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN NBA on TSN - January Date Game Time Network January 1 Kings at Timberwolves 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 3 Jazz at Timberwolves 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 5 Nuggets at Timberwolves 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 7 Rockets at Cavaliers 7pm et/4pm pt TSN January 7 Suns at Timberwolves 9:30pm et/6:30 pt. TSN January 9 Bulls at Wizards 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 9 Cavaliers at Warriors 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 January 13 Timberwolves at Pacers 7pm et/4pm pt TSN2 January 15 Thunder at Rockets 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 15 Cavaliers at Lakers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 January 16 Cavaliers at Clippers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 January 22 NBA All-Star Selection Show 7pm et/4pm pt TSN2 January 22 Spurs at Bulls 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 22 Nets at Clippers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 January 25 Heat at Bulls 1pm et/10am pt TSN January 25 Thunder at Cavaliers 3:30pm et/12:30pm pt TSN January 26 Timberwolves at Thunder 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 29 Nuggets at Grizzlies 8pm et/5pm pt TSN2 January 29 Bulls at Lakers 10:30pm et/7:30pt TSN2 NBA on TSN - February Date Game Time Network February 5 Clippers vs. Nike Air Max 270 Triple Black For Sale . Andrews, Scotland - Oliver Wilson fired a final- round, 2-under 70 on Sunday and he held on to win the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship by one shot. DETROIT -- Joel Hanrahan is still working back from elbow surgery for a team eagerly awaiting his return. The former All-Star agreed to a $1 million, one-year deal with the Detroit Tigers, who are hopeful the right-hander can bolster a shaky bullpen when hes ready to pitch again in the majors. Hanrahan had Tommy John surgery last May after nine appearances for the Boston Red Sox in 2013. He saved 76 games over the previous two seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates. "The one area we wanted to address the most with our ballclub has been our bullpen," general manager Dave Dombrowski said after announcing the deal Friday. The Tigers put Hanrahan on the 15-day disabled list, saying they will not rush him back to the majors. Hanrahan is expected to throw to hitters next week. "Right now I feel good. My arm feels good, my body feels good," Hanrahan said. "Im able to throw a slider again, which I havent been able to do for a while." Hanrahan will earn $819,672 of his base salary, or 150-183rds given that he wasnt on the roster until Friday. He can make $2.17 million in bonuses based on time on the active major league roster: $310,000 each for 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90 and 105 days. "Im not going to jump to the conclusion that hes going to be 100 per cent just because of the nature of the recovery from these surgeries, but the reports are his velocity has been good," Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said. "I dont know necessarily back to where he was pre-surgery, but it doesnt mean he wont get back. "I do know hes battle-tested in late innings," Ausmus added. "He wont be intimidated by a situation, which I think is very important, especiallly if you work your way into a pennant race by September.dddddddddddd." The 32-year-old said Tigers outfielder Torii Hunter -- a friend of his -- helped recruit him. Detroit signed veteran Joe Nathan to be the closer in the off-season, but the bullpen was hurt by a season-ending injury to Bruce Rondon. Tigers relievers had a 5.37 ERA entering Friday nights game at Kansas City. The 6-foot-4 Hanrahan is hesitant to put any timetable on his return. "I dont think anybodys really saying like, Youve got to be back on June 1," Hanrahan said. "Its kind of a situation where I havent faced a hitter yet, I havent bounced back from throwing in a game. Its a situation that, itll come day by day." Ausmus also tried to temper expectations that Hanrahan will be able to help soon. "Youre making the assumption that everything is going to go well, and I hope it does," he said, "but theres some Ts to cross and Is to dot before Im ready to say how great this is. But all things equal, Id rather have him if hes healthy than not have him." If Hanrahan is healthy and effective, he could end up being one of the teams top right-handed options in the bullpen, along with Nathan. Al Alburquerque and Joba Chamberlain have shown the ability to strike hitters out, but they had ERAs of 4.50 and 4.35 entering Friday. Hanrahan was an All-Star in 2011 and 2012, and in 2010 he struck out 100 hitters in 69 2-3 innings for the Pirates. "When anybody comes back from injury thats got an established big league history, we try to watch all of those guys throw whenever we can," Dombrowski said. "Were always looking to upgrade." ' ' '