quot;Now he has to continue to elevate his game. He's got to show the scouts out here how much hockey sense he has."Jones said he knows the scouts are watching him, but he's determined not to let it affect him."It's very overwhelming, but I'm trying to take it all in and stay focused,Nike Roshe Run Anti-Fur Black," he said. "I'm definitely blocking all that out right now. I'm looking to start the year out great in Portland."About the only thing about Jones that hasn't changed from a year ago is the fact he's still the youngest player in camp."He's the youngest player in birth year," Johansson said, "but if you asked all the players, I don't think any of them would know that."Jones won't turn 18 until Oct. 3, but he already has taken a leading role with a group that features only three players who skated in last year's tournament."He's a year bigger and stronger, but there's more leadership coming from him," Johansson said. "I think he had that leadership before, but it's hard when you're the youngest kid in camp to be a leader. He did it on the ice. But you're seeing now a lot more presence in the locker room, a lot more presence around all the players in the camp. I think he's a guy that as his game on the ice has matured, he's taking on some of those leadership qualities that he wants to be trademarks of him and trademarks of any team he plays on."Jones said he thinks he can be even better this year because of the experience he gained by going through the process a year ago."I feel a little more calm this year," he said. "Last year I was tense and showing everyone what I can do. This year I'm sticking to my game, staying calm, making plays I make on a regular basis, not trying to do anything too fancy."As was the case last year, everything that Jones is doing this year has scouts wanting more."Every tool is there," Gregory said. "In our business we see so much hockey and every once in a while there's players you can't wait to see again, and for me, he's one of those players."Contact Adam Kimelman at akimelman@nhl.com. Follow him on Twitter: @NHLAdamK
Austin Poganski and Kyle Connor scored two goals apiece, and Chris Birdsall made 15 saves to lead the U.S. Under-17 Select Team to a 6-2 victory against Germany in preliminary-round action at the 2012 U-17 Five Nations Tournament on Wednesday in Chomutov, Czech Republic.Poganski, who was named U.S. player of the game, scored twice in a span of 55 seconds in the second period to give the United States a 4-1 advantage. Poganski, a native of St. Cloud, Minn., will be a junior at St. Cloud Cathedral High School this season."We wanted to come out strong and make sure we got pressure on their defense," U.S. coach Barry Smith said. "I was very happy with our performance tonight. It was a good first game and we'll look ahead to the next one."The Five Nations Tournament includes teams from the Czech Republic, Germany,Nike Free 3.0 Fluorescence Green, Slovakia, Switzerland and the United States. The 20 players on the U.S. roster represent 12 different states, with Minnesota leading the way with five players, while Michigan and Illinois each have three.The U.S. team will face Switzerland on Thursday, the Czech Republic on Friday,Nike Free Run 3 Men, and Slovakia on Saturday.
On Tuesday, The Tennessean's Josh Cooper reported Shea Weber's agent,Free TR Fit 2 Womens Pink, Jarrett Bousquet of Titan Sports Management, said he and the Predators were still having talks in regard to adding a no-trade and/or no-movement clause to Weber's newly-minted 14-year, $110 million deal.If I were running the Preds, those "talks" with Bousquet concerning those additional clauses would be short and not-so-sweet.My answer: No!Nashville is under absolutely NO obligation to add such a clause to the deal. In fact, as you might be able to pick up,Free Run 2 Kids Grey Green, I think they'd be amazingly, incredibly foolish to do so.When Weber decided to sign the offer sheet from the Flyers, he got the money he was seeking (and them some!), but he gave control of his future to the Predators, who, as I predicted, matched the offer.