Kreativecke » period of time.When you see Magic and Michael over time, how

CALGARY, Alberta -- While Brian Elliott has newfound confidence in net for the Calgary Flames, the Ottawa Senators will be without their starting goaltender for the foreseeable future.After backstopping the Flames (3-4-1) to back-to-back road wins over the Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues on Monday and Tuesday, Elliott will attempt to keep his momentum going against the Senators (4-2-0) at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday.Elliott, who the Flames acquired from the Blues on June 24 in exchange for a second-round draft pick (35th overall) in 2018 and a conditional third-rounder, started his tenure with the Flames with three straight losses before bouncing back to stop 54 of 57 shots he faced during Calgarys two wins earlier this week.I dont think Ive felt bad the other ones too, said Elliott. I just think we kind of beat ourselves the first few games. Now were getting the picture of how we need to play each and every night. We played good road-style hockey and if we can bring that kind of hockey at home well be successful as well.Meanwhile, the Senators announced on Thursday that goalie Craig Anderson has taken a leave of absence and that theres no timetable for his return.With the support of the entire organization, weve provided Craig with a leave of absence so that he can attend to a personal matter at home, said Senators general manager Pierre Dorion in a statement. While we are uncertain of how long Craig may be away, he will continue to have our support for as much time as is needed. We will respect his privacy and will have no further comment at this time.Anderson improved his record this season to 4-1-0 after making 22 saves to backstop the Senators to a 3-0 road win over the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday. The 35-year-old veteran has also compiled a 2.95 goals against average to go with a .903 save percentage.In his absence, the Senators will go with the goaltending tandem of Andrew Hammond and Chris Driedger, who was called up from the AHLs Binghamton Senators.Hammond, 28, will get the start on Friday and is hoping to bounce back from his only previous appearance of the season, a 5-1 road loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Oct. 17 in which he stopped 20 of 25 shots he faced.After going 20-1-2 in his rookie campaign with the Sens in 2014-15, Hammond went 7-11-1 last season and even spent a stint in the AHL in Binghamton where he had no wins to go with two losses.In just 55 minutes of NHL action over the past two seasons, Driedger has made 21 saves without allowing a goal. The 22-year-old netminder, who starred for the WHLs Calgary Hitmen for three seasons from 2011-14, has never started or been the goaltender of record in an NHL game.While Elliott played a starring role against his former team on Tuesday in St. Louis, Flames right winger Alex Chiasson told CalgaryFlames.com that hes looking forward to going up against his old squad at the Saddledome on Friday.Its always a little special playing previous teams, said Chiasson, who Calgary acquired from Ottawa in exchange for defenseman Patrick Sieloff on June 27. I have a good amount of friends on that team, but when the game starts its a game day just like any other day. Thats part of pro hockey, really.After starting the season on Calgarys fourth line, Chiasson has been elevated to play alongside center Sean Monahan and left winger Johnny Gaudreau.I know that itd be nice to be on the scoresheet a little more, but at the same time its a process of trying to stay focused mentally on that, do the good things and the rest of the stuff is going to come, said Chiasson, who has just one goal to show for his efforts through eight games with the Flames. If I keep playing with those two guys, I think I can bring an element to that line that they dont have, and they can just play. Adidas Continental 80 Belgie . The 15th-ranked Canadian men lost the opening two games of their European tour: 19-15 to No. 17 Georgia and 21-20 to No. Yeezy 700 Waverunner Kopen . -- On the field, it was business as usual for Jameis Winston and No. http://www.nmdbelgie.com/kopen-adidas-nmd-dames-sale/nmd-R2-dames.html .C. United of Major League Soccer. United chose the defender in the second round of the 2013 MLS re-entry draft. Adidas NMD Dames Outlet . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Adidas NMD R1 Dames . Shot outdoors against the stunning backdrop of Banff, Alta., the networks 30-minute original production airs tonight at 8pm et/5pm pt on TSN2. The four All-Star teams will play for $100,000 in prize money during TSNs annual skins game, airing live this weekend on TSN from The Fenlands Banff Recreation Centre. Larry Bird still believes in the power of basketball diplomacy. The Hall of Famer sat down with ESPN.com recently and opened up about the impact playing for Team USA had on his life and his feelings on Paul Georges resurgence.For you personally, what does it mean to see Paul George not only back but also representing Team USA after his gruesome leg injury in 2014?Bird: Its a pretty good situation for him because he came back [and] had a pretty good year last year. No pain. Got through all that. And I think that his goal was always to go back and play for his country and be around the guys [who] are the best in the league, or some of them are. Just get back involved in USA Basketball because it has been a long couple years for him.Was there ever a doubt in your mind that he would be back at this level on that stage?Bird: Well, you never know. But we had every indication from the doctors that he was going to be just fine. Just let the bones heal and get him back out there. When you go through something like that, I think its more mental than it is physical. ... But it was a horrific injury. It took him time, but he worked hard and did the things necessary to get back.You always stood behind USA Basketball after the injury. Why were you strong in your support of the program?Bird: I had an opportunity in high school to play against the Russians, and I thought that was the neatest thing in the world. I got in college, I played overseas, and it was over a month, and [I] got to see the world and play the game I love. And had an opportunity there at the end of my career to get into the Olympics and play for my country. Even though it was the end of my career, its still an honor. And I just wish everybody had that feeling. If you love your country and you get to represent them and you can win, its one of the greatest feelings, and I wanted Paul to have the same feeling. And I know he cares, he wants to play and he wants to win, and I think its awesome.Youve had that experience at every level of the USA program. If down the line, they came to you and said, Larry, we want you to have more of an active role within USA Basketball, is that something youd be interested in?Bird: I dont know. Im getting at an age now where everythings starting to slow down for me. But its like I said: Going back to high school, I got to play against the Russians. And that was when the Cold War was really going on, you know? And I said, Man, Im playing against the Russians. I couldnt believe it. They were very talented, very good, and I was always mesmerized by how they did things over there. My high school coach sort of gave us ... Even though it wasnt my high schhool team, it was an All-Star team, he was telling us about it and how they train, and they take the best [players] and put them together.dddddddddddd It caught my eye, so I was always interested in international basketball because I liked their style. I liked how they played. I like the up-tempo, I like the 40-minute game, and theres really no interruptions. If you go over and watch a team over in Italy, wherever its at, international rules, theyve got a flow to it. Theres no stoppage all the time, and I really like that. So I always enjoy playing it.As far as the Dream Team goes, as you look back all these years later, what do you think of that team and its impact on the game?Bird: It changed everything. From coaching to training, its really interesting. Dave Gavitt ... told me the importance for Magic and Michael and I to go over there with this team because its going to change the game forever throughout the world. And what he meant by that was once we kicked their butts so bad, a lot of their coaches are going to come over and see our training and how we do things. If you think about international training, you think about two workouts every day and a lot of shooting, and their bigs come out and take a lot of shots from the outside. And he was right. If you look at the NBA from then to now, we have probably more than 100 international players in our league, so theyre getting better. Its pretty awesome to me to see the change over that period of time.When you see Magic and Michael over time, how often does your Barcelona Olympic experience come up? Bird: We dont bring it up. I dont see Michael. I see Magic a little bit more. We had a sit-down -- I dont know when it was, time flies, it could have been a few years ago. Well, they had most of us in a circle talking about [the Olympics]. Thats the first time I think I ever really talked about it with another one of my teammates. Great memories, great time, we had a lot of fun. Our families were with us. And youre playing for your country, how can you beat that?So much was always made out of the Dream Team practices. Out of all three of you guys, who do you think was the most competitive out of that group?Bird:?Oh, I dont know. Everybodys competitive in their own way. Its hard to say one guys more competitive than another. I always said its easier to be competitive when Michael Jordan can run and jump as high as he does, as quick as he is. So I think me and Magic had to be more competitive because we didnt have that speed and we couldnt jump that high. ' ' '