microphones.Ive been very impressed with Josh from the day that he got here, Gruden said Wednesday, referring to Normans work ethic.Then, turning to the rest of what having Norman on the team entails, t

When the New York Rangers limped off the ice after being whacked by the Pittsburgh Penguins in five games in the first round of the playoffs last spring, it was hard not to imagine that it likely marked the end of an era. Goalie?Henrik Lundqvist had been yanked twice and looked beaten down. The Rangers defense that had backchecked the team to the Stanley Cup finals in 2014 and conference final appearances in 2012 and 2015 looked broken. Rick Nash was a nonfactor.In short, it was hard not to imagine the future as anything but bleak for the Broadway Blueshirts. But credit general manager Jeff Gorton with somehow retooling the Rangers on the fly by acquiring highly touted college free agent Jimmy Vesey, intriguing center Mika Zibanejad and free-agent forward Brandon Pirri. Was it a shuffling of the deck chairs or a bold reinvigorating of the Rangers lineup that will help get them back in the playoffs for the 11th time in 12 seasons?Biggest new facesI must admit Im still not sure how Vesey ended up with the Rangers, given how they finished the season and the fact that it looked like the window was closing on their championship potential. But good on Gorton and assorted New York celebrities for making the Rangers an attractive option for the collegiate star.Pirri had 22 goals in just 49 games for the?Florida Panthers?in 2014-15 but has struggled to find a permanent NHL home, having bounced from the?Chicago Blackhawks to the Panthers to the Anaheim Ducks,?for whom he played just nine games last season before signing with New York. But he has impressed from the get-go with the Rangers and could be another important depth piece.Zibanejad came at the expense of Derick Brassard, but hes younger, brings more size and has, in theory, a better two-way game. Michael Grabner and Nathan Gerbe?will help fill in spaces among a much-different-looking forward contingent. On the blue line, neither?Nick Holden?--?acquired from the Colorado Avalanche -- nor?Adam Clendening?will replace Keith Yandle,?who likely was the Rangers most consistent defender over the last half of the season but who ended up signing a big contract with Florida.Biggest unknownsWill the blue line return to its former state, or are those days gone forever? I chatted with Ryan McDonagh in Minnesota during the offseason, and the Rangers captain said he is committed to returning to his former status as a nightly difference-maker. The same must happen for Marc Staal and Dan Girardi, both of whom saw their games slide dramatically last season.Up front, how will all the new, younger faces meld together? And is there enough offense there to keep the Rangers comfortably in the playoff picture? The talent is certainly there, so its up to coach Alain Vigneault to get the most out of this group. Speaking of Vigneault, can he help the Rangers penalty kill get up off the mat after the unit finished 26th last season?Sure thingsWe actually wrestled with where to slot in The King in this preview. Is Lundqvist a sure thing or big question mark? As noted, the playoffs ended on a sour note for the one player most responsible for the Rangers significant success over the past decade, with Lundqvist sporting a 4.39 goals-against average. Its fair to say this season looms large for the 34-year-old Lundqvist. But he was excellent at the World Cup of Hockey (even if his Swedish teammates were less so).The bottom line is that Lundqvist has to be, well, Lundqvist, and if he is, the team is playoff bound and should be a handful. If hes not, if time is starting to wear down the former Vezina Trophy winner, then it wont really matter what else has been done to this lineup. The Rangers will be in trouble.PredictionI still think Lundqvist is capable of delivering the goods, and I like what the Rangers have done to get younger and faster up front without really sacrificing skill. I fully expect them to be better in their own zone and ultimately finish where they end up pretty much every spring -- in the playoffs. Fourth in the Metropolitan Division.Jed Lowrie Jersey . - NASCAR announced a 33-race schedule for the 2014 Nationwide Series with virtually no changes from this years slate. Denny Mclain Jersey . World champions Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov of Russia won the gold medal with 237.71 points, Moore-Towers and Moscovitch followed at 208.45 and Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov of Russia were third at 187. https://www.cheapathleticsonline.com/1735m-blake-treinen-jersey-athletics.html .ca. Kerry, Just watched the shootout in the Coyotes/Leafs game and I have to ask, why was the James van Riemsdyk goal allowed to count? All of the video replays we were shown on TV were inconclusive about whether the puck had entirely crossed the line or not. James Kaprielian Jersey . -- The Bishops Gaiters are showing they belong among the countrys top varsity football teams. Chad Pinder Jersey . Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the Carolina Hurricanes, announced Wednesday that the team would assign Swedish forward Elias Lindholm to his nations team for the upcoming tournament.ASHBURN, Va. -- To no ones surprise, Josh Norman is sticking to his style, on and off the field.The Washington Redskins cornerback is not about to let the NFLs fines or officials yellow flags deter him from doing what he does, whether its speaking his mind about what he considers bad calls or sticking a hand in an opposing receivers face.As his Redskins (4-3-1) get set to host the Minnesota Vikings (5-3) on Sunday, Norman is sure the league is keeping a particularly close eye on him.Hes also certain hes not going to alter anything because of it.What am I going to change, my aggressiveness? ... For what? No. Its what we do. Weve been doing it since Day 1. Whys it going to change now? Because its aggressive? Hands to the face? So? Im going to come back and Im going to be aggressive in the same way the next time -- and the next time after that, Norman said. Youre going to have to actually physically run through me to beat me. Thats whats going to have to happen. At the end of the day, thats how I play, that style of football.Washington is coming off its bye. In the teams most recent game, a 27-27 tie in London against the Cincinnati Bengals on Oct. 30, Norman was whistled five times as he was matched up against wideout A.J. Green, including four flags for illegal hands to the face.Afterward, Norman ripped the field judge for poor officiating, a diatribe that prompted a fine of $25,000 from the league that he is appealing.He also was docked $9,115 earlier this season for a bow-and-arrow pantomime that drew a flag for unsportsmanlike conduct after an interception.I enjoy the refs. I love them. They love me. We out there, were playing with each other. They say (my) first name; I call them by theirs. We have fun with each other, Norman said. I dont think thats one of the things thats the problem here.Normman has picked off only one pass since joining the Redskins as a free agent after the Carolina Panthers surprisingly let him leave over the offseason.dddddddddddd He generally has managed to play the same sort of shutdown defense he displayed as an All-Pro a year ago.Norman hasnt always been deployed as a traveling cornerback assigned to the opponents top receiver -- remember Washingtons Week 1 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Antonio Brown? -- but there is no doubt he is a major cog in the defense.He cuts off one side of the field for us, defensive lineman Ricky Jean Francois said. Thats a plus.And coach Jay Gruden leaves no doubt how he feels about what Norman has done in a Redskins uniform, whether its during plays, between them, or in front of reporters microphones.Ive been very impressed with Josh from the day that he got here, Gruden said Wednesday, referring to Normans work ethic.Then, turning to the rest of what having Norman on the team entails, the coach added:As far as his off-the-field antics or on-the-field penalties that hes gotten, hes a physical football player. Hes in your face and hes very competitive. You dont want to change that about him at all.Game notesWR DeSean Jackson (shoulder) missed practice Wednesday, while S Will Blackmon (left thumb) and RT Morgan Moses (left ankle) were limited. ... . Former Redskins GM Bobby Beathard will be inducted into the teams Ring of Fame during Sundays homecoming game against the visiting Vikings.---AP Sports Writer Stephen Whyno contributed to this report.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich ' ' '