NEU » arvick, with Carl Edwar

Theres a zen-like quality about Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson despite the Hawks biggest test of the AFL season coming on Thursday night.The three-time reigning premiers travel for a high-stakes top-of-the-ladder clash with great rivals Sydney.Clarkson has identified the midfield as crucial to the SCG clash, and particularly whether former Hawk Lance Franklin turns up inside 50 or out of it.But he laughed off the idea his side would need to lift their contested ball figures - on which the Hawks rank last in the league - if they are to come away with a win over the Swans.Contested ball is just a fancy term for everyone in the media. We dont give a toss about that, Clarkson said on Wednesday.Weve won five contested ball contests in about two years. Weve still won lots of games of footy.The Hawks will cede top spot on the ladder to the Swans with a loss but here too, Clarkson isnt concerned.The media wants to declare a premiership favourite every week, he said.Its great reading for all the viewers out there ... but we couldnt give a toss.Its whos playing the best footy in September and early October.And thats why Clarkson is just as unfazed by the suggestion that Hawthorn - who have six straight wins heading to Sydney - are yet to hit top gear in 2016.We werent in the greatest form this time last year either. Nor the year before that, he said.Its about chalking up the wins and trialling young players.Giving guys exposure to different positions on the ground and trying to work out the best mix.Franklin looms as Clarksons chief headache at the SCG.The dominant forward pushed up the ground last week, which Clarkson said was instrumental in the Swans win in Geelong.Despite not garnering a single vote from John Longmire or Chris Scott in the coaches player of the year award voting, Clarkson thought it was a game-changer.He doesnt have to have a dominant game in terms of scoreboard pressure to have a significant influence on the contest, he said.My view is he was the most significant player on the ground last week.The loss of Liam Shiels gives Clarkson a hole in midfield to fill, with Brendan Whitecross travelling to Sydney for what would be his first game since round six, 2015. Dennis Awtrey Jersey . A big centre with all the tools to be an elite player, Johansen paced the Blue Jackets with a standout game Saturday night. He had a goal and two assists for a career-high three points as Columbus beat the New York Islanders 5-2 to snap a five-game losing streak. Spencer Haywood Jersey . Fernandez, coached in Toronto by former two-time Olympic silver medallist Brian Orser, scored 267.11 points and is the first champion to successfully defend since Russias Evgeny Plushenko in 2005 and 2006. https://www.supersonicsjerseys.com/730s-marvin-webster-jersey-supersonics.html . Mitch Holmberg added a goal and three assists. Connor Chartier also scored for the Chiefs (3-0-0). Luke Harrison spoiled Garrett Hughsons shutout bid with a power-play goal at 13:17 of the third period. The Spokane goaltender finished with 28 saves, including a Brandon Fushimi penalty shot in the second period that would have tied the game 1-1. Walt Hazzard Jersey .Y. -- Paul Byron and Matt Stajan scored as the Calgary Flames started a five-game road trip with a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon. Vin Baker Jersey . The visitors took a deserved lead in the 16th minute with midfielder Yohan Cabaye curling the ball beyond Adrian from inside the penalty area. By Reid Spencer, NASCAR Wire ServiceDistributed by The Sports ExchangeDARLINGTON, S.C. -- Tropical storm Hermine made sure Chris Bueschers path to the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup would be just a bit more difficult.In qualifying for the last five races, Buescher has advanced to the second round four times and to the third round once, posting an average starting position of 20.4.But at Darlington Racing this weekend, Buescher didnt have a chance to qualify, thanks to the storm that washed out all track activity on Friday.Accordingly, with the starting order set by owner points, Buescher will take the green flag from 31st place in Sunday nights Bojangles Southern 500 (6 p.m. ET on NBC) -- right beside David Ragan, the driver hes trying to beat for the 30th position in the regular-season standings.If Buescher is 30th or better after the Sept. 10 race at Richmond, he make the Chase. If hes 31st or worse in the driver standings, his Chase spot will go to someone else.With two races left before the cutoff, Buescher leads Ragan by seven points for the all-important 30th spot.On a track fraught with peril, starting that deep in the field is certain to raise Bueschers stress level.Definitely, Darlington being one of the tougher race tracks we go to, that makes us a little bit anxious to get out there and get rolling this weekend, Buescher said. Nature has not helped us by any means. Without qualifying right, its going to put us starting a lot further back than what weve been able to qualify the last several months, so thats a little bit of a bummer there.But, on the other hand, Darlington is my favorite race track we go to. I absolutely love that race track. I had a lot of fun there on the XFINITY side, and Ive gotten my fair share of stripes already, so maybe Im done with that and we can keep it clean this weekend.This will be the first NASCAR Sprint Cup Series start at Darlington for the driver of the No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford, who is competing for Sunoco Rookie of the Year honors this season.In four XFINITY Series races, Buescher has an average finish of 17.0, with his best result of fifth coming in last years championship season.CALE YARBOROUGH HONORED IN DARLINGTON CEREMONYIn a special ceremony on pit road at Darlington Raceway on Saturday morning, NASCAR Hall of Famer Cale Yarborough was honored for his contributions to the sport.The garage area at the 1.366-mile track was named in Yarboroughs honor.Yarborough, the honorary pace car driver for Sunday nights Bojangles Southern 500, grew up in nearby Timmonsville and decided he wanted to be a race car driver the first time he saw an event at the Lady in Black.In fact, he sneaked into the garage that now bears his name to watch his first race at the track.I slipped under the fence when I came to see my first race, and now, here Ive got a garage named after me, so its great, Yarborough said. This is a great honor. Theres no place like Darlington to me, and to have a garage area named after you from now on is just great.Team Peenske driver Joey Logano is five victories short of the five Southern 500s Yarborough won during his career, but Logano remembers his first encounter with the three-time Sprint Cup champion during a winners circle appearance in 2009.ddddddddddddHe took me around in a ride-along car, and I sat in the passenger seat and he came out with his old race suit on, open-face helmet, bubble goggles, and I got to sit in the passenger seat with Cale Yarborough driving around Darlington, Logano said. I thought, Man, this is the coolest thing.Obviously, I wasnt watching racing when he was racing -- I wasnt alive -- but re-watching races and reading a lot about the history of the sport and what hes meant to NASCAR racing, its neat that hes still so involved and he still cares about the sport.KEVIN HARVICK ON POLE AFTER QUALIFYING RAINOUTThe odds against Sundays Bojangles Southern 500 producing another first-time winner are relatively heavy.When all track activity was washed out on Friday, the starting field for the race was set according to owner points, and the top 10 starters in the field, from pole sitter Kevin Harvick through 10th-place Matt Kenseth, all have at least one NASCAR Sprint Cup Series victory this season.Why is that significant? Because in the last 14 races at Darlington, 10 of the winners have come from the top 10 spots on the starting grid. So the odds say a driver who already has won this year will take the checkered flag on Sunday night.Brad Keselowski will line up next to Harvick, with Carl Edwards in third and fourth, respectively, behind the front-row starters. Joey Logano, Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, Martin Truex Jr., Jimmie Johnson and Kenseth complete the top 10.The last time Harvick started from the pole in Darlington, in April 2014, he picked up his only victory at the track.But that doesnt mean 11th-place starter Chase Elliott should abandon hope of notching his first career win.Back in 2004, Elliotts Hendrick Motorsports teammate, Jimmie Johnson, started 11th and ultimately took the checkered flag. In the 14-race stretch dating to Terry Labontes 2003 victory, the deepest in the field a winner has started is 23rd (Regan Smith in 2011).SHORT STROKESJimmie Johnson paced opening practice at Darlington with a lap at 176.025 mph, followed by Denny Hamlin (175.060 mph) and Sunoco rookie Ryan Blaney (174.711 mph). Ryan Newman, who currently is 15 points behind Jamie McMurray for the final Chase spot on points, was fifth fastest at 174.519 mph. McMurray was 26th on the speed chart. ... Newman, however, slipped to 25th fastest in final practice, while McMurray was two spots ahead of him in 23rd. Brad Keselowski was fastest in the session at 174.649 mph, followed by Kurt Busch (174.031 mph) and Johnson (174.019 mph). Kasey Kahne, whose only realistic path into the Chase is a victory in one of the next two races, was fourth on the list at 173.656 mph. ' ' '