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TORONTO -- The Toronto Marlies have enjoyed plenty of success so far in the 2014 American Hockey League playoffs, sweeping their first two series to secure a spot in the Western Conference Final. But despite their perfect 7-0 post-season record, the Marlies wont be taking their next opponent, the Texas Stars, lightly. "We know were not going to win every game," said centre Peter Holland. "If we are going to make it to the Calder Cup (final) and were going to make a push like that, we know were not going to sweep the whole way through. Thats just not realistic." Texas (48-18-10) is the reigning Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy winner with the leagues best regular season record. The Stars roster also boasts the leagues MVP in Travis Morin and Rookie of the Year in Curtis McKenzie. Morin leads the Stars in playoff scoring with two goals and eight assists in nine games, followed closely by Mike Heddens five goals and four assists. The series begins Friday in Cedar Park, Tex. The Stars, like the Marlies (45-25-6), swept their first round matchup against the Oklahoma City Barons and then used six games to dispatch the defending Calder Cup champion Grand Rapids Griffins. Marlies head coach Steve Spott was in Texas Sunday to see the Stars down the Griffins 7-1 in the series clincher. "Theyre the No. 1 team in the league, were an underdog, lets not kid ourselves, were an underdog," Spott said. "I sound like Bruce (Boudreau) right now in Anaheim, but we definitely are, were underdogs, we understand that, but weve been underdogs since Sept. 1 in this league." Spott, who was the head coach of the Kitchener Rangers from 2008-13 before joining the Marlies, has coached or coached against as many as six members of the Stars organization including forwards Radek Faksa and Hedden, both of whom played for the Rangers. "Theyve got depth, theyre well coached and its going to be a heck of a series," said Spott. "I think these are two premiere clubs in the league the way theyre playing right now and its going to be a tough series. I think weve been searching for adversity. I think were going to find it and its going to test our identity." The Marlies were 2-2-0 against the Stars this season losing both meetings at Cedar Park Center. Toronto was out-scored 11-2 in the losses. Spencer Abbott and Josh Leivo each had three points during the season series while Marlies leading playoff scorer Jerry DAmigo had two goals and Greg McKegg added three assists. Drew MacIntyre, who has a 1.56 goals-against average and a .949 save percentage in the post-season, appeared in all four regular season meetings, posting a 3.00 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage. An area of concern against Texas could be Torontos power play, which went 1-for-14 during the season series. In the playoffs, though, the Marlies have the top-ranked power play among teams currently playing at 25 per cent efficiency. "Weve really got to make sure our special teams are on top of it cause they can win or lose you games at this time of the year," said Holland. "Weve got to make sure our power play is scoring goals for us and our penalty kill is stopping them." Holland, who has four goals and six points in four games after missing the first three playoff games to recover from injury, didnt play in the regular season series. Spott says Holland is a key ingredient to the power play. "When you drop in Holland and you drop in Abbott, your power play becomes a lot better," said Spott. "What we do is overrated sometimes. We can put in the plan, but theyve got to execute it. "When theres something not there, Peter Holland can create something so I think thats what makes the difference. " Game 2 of the series goes Monday in Texas before moving to Toronto for Games 3-5 beginning May 28 at Ricoh Coliseum. Notes: Defenceman Andrew MacWilliam (upper body), who was injured in Game 3 of the Chicago series, will be a game-time decision for Game 1. Spott said forward Tyler Biggs has been battling a stomach virus, which caused him to lose 11 pounds in a 24-hour period this week. Stephen Curry Jersey . CHAUNCEY BILLUPS (Pistons): Yes they got Josh Smith and Brandon Jennings in the off-season and Andre Drummond is a beast (teams are kicking themselves for passing on him - he rebounds and block shots every game - thats two more discernable and significant skills than most guys in his draft class), but dont for a second discount the impact of having a savvy veteran like Billups on your team. James Bradberry Jersey . Leverkusen said on Friday it signed Schmidt on a two-year contract. He guided Red Bull Salzburg to the Austrian championship this season. http://www.officialcarolinapanthersfootb...rsey-womens.com) - Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Edwin Encarnacion has been named the American League Player of the Week for the period ending May 11. Kawann Short Jersey . After missing 20 games as a rookie a year ago, Valanciunas - like the Raptors as a whole - has been fortunate to be in good health this season. As he spoke about it, the Raptors sophomore centre scanned the room for wood to knock on. "It is disappointing because we lost today so thats the worst part of the day," said Valanciunas, who left Tuesdays game with a lower-back sprain in the third quarter, missing the rest of Torontos 118-113 overtime defeat at the hands of the Hawks. Daeshon Hall Jersey . Johansen scored twice and Derek MacKenzie, Brandon Dubinsky and Cam Atkinson also had goals to lead the Blue Jackets to a 5-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Thursday night, ending a three-game losing skid.Nik Stauskas was nine years old and already thoroughly smitten with basketball when a chance meeting with Vince Carter sealed his fate. Stauskas and his family were at a Toronto Raptors open practice at the Air Canada Centre when he was plucked out of the crowd to shoot hoops with Carter and Morris Peterson. "He hit a three-pointer on Vince Carter, so Vince tackled him to the ground and gave him a noogie," dad Paul said, laughing. "We got pictures of all of it, it was great. That was the tipping point I think." The sweet-shooting 20-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., is one of six Canadians at the NBA pre-draft camp this week in Chicago, hoping to catch the favourable eye of league general managers and scouts. The others are Jordan Bachynski of Calgary (Arizona State), Khem Birch of Montreal (UNLV), Tyler Ennis of Brampton, Ont. (Syracuse), and Torontos Melvin Ejim (Iowa State) and Dwight Powell (Stanford). You can watch live coverage of the NBA combine on TSN2 and TSN GO on Thursday and Friday at 1pm et/10am pt. Canadian star Andrew Wiggins, considered a top-three prospect in the June 26 draft, isnt attending the combine. Stauskas is part of a growing crop of Canadian kids making their mark on the game. The six-foot-six guard earned Big Ten player of the year in his sophomore — and final — season with Michigan, leading the Wolverines to their second consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournaments Elite Eight. Stauskas, who had a career-best seven three-pointers at Illinois in March, is known for killing defenders with his quick step-back and release. Its ". . . so fast, youre not going to (defend it). Hes quick. Hes like a cat," Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan said of Stauskas after his teams loss to Michigan in January. Stauskass accuracy was developed over thousands of hours chucking up shots, first in their driveway and then on their custom-made backyard basketball court. The day nine-year-old Stauskas squared off against Carter, Paul Stauskas said his son already "had range. At the time he would shoot with two hands, he only developed his one-handed shot probably when he was 13, 14. So it was more of a chest pass. But he was very accurate doing it." Stauskas first played when he was seven, on a Lithuanian club team in Toronto coached by his uncle Vic Simkus. Even then, he was three inches taller than any kid on the court, so he played centre. He scored four points in first game — a 6-4 victory. "Nik had this big smile on his face, because we were all so enthusiastic, we were cheering for him, Go Nik go! He just had such a good time. Thats kind of what started it," Paul Stauskas said. "And if a kid enjoys doing something, whether theyre golfing or skating or whatever, when you do it enough times, you become really good at it." Stauskas became really good after the family moved to their Mississauga home when he was in Grade 5. His dad wanted to install either a pool, a putting green or a basketball court in the backyard. They went with the court, because Nik was "just so enthusiastic about basketball and went above and beyond the call of duty to work on his game," Paul said. The dad wanted the best for his boys — Nik has an older brother Peter — so had the court installed by a company that specializes in modular sports flooring. The backyard court, the first by this company in Canada, is made of interlocking tiles that both gives the feel of a real court surface, and help prevent ankle problems and shin splints. Good thing, because Stauskas would practically live on that court for the next several years. In the winter, he would plug in a space heater to warm his hands. Its also a good thing, Paul said, that he chose the court over the putting green. "Maybe Id be a much better golfer," he said. "But Im 100 per cent convinced Nik would not be where he is today if we had not done that. "This was just one of those things, he could be by himself and he was just happy as a lark, he didnt need anybody, he could be there for hours, flicking shots. And you know how kids get, they start playing games in their head and they start fantasizing that theyre hitting the last-second shot in an important game. Hed just play games with himself, just very happy." Stauskas shared his backyard shooting exploits online, turning into a bit of a YouTube showman. In one video, shot on Christmas Eve of 2012, Stauskas, in tuque and track suit, dropped 45 of 50 three-point shots. In another, shot on a rainy day last spring, he made good on 70 of 76 attempts — including 46 in a row — in the span of five minutes. That YouTube video has over 500,000 views, and even caught the attention of Stephen Curry. Golden States star guard retweeted the video, and wrote: "3pt contest sometime @NStauskas11 ????? this is Impressive.dddddddddddd" Stauskas tweeted: "I love waking up to a challenge by the best 3 point shooter in the world!!! Today might be a good day HA!" The Canadian quickly gained a fan following in his rookie year at Michigan. Paul Stauskas remembers it was a couple of tuba players on the school band that came up with the maize-and-blue version of the Maple Leaf that flew at games in Ann Arbor. The tuba players then created a T-shirt with the maize-and-blue flag. Underneath the Maple Leaf it read: "The best Canadian import since Molsons." For a pre-season game this past winter, Paul Stauskas and 50 friends, neighbours and family members chartered a Greyhound bus from Mississauga to Ann Arbor. They all wore the T-shirts. "We were the Nik Stauskas cheering section," Paul said. He and his wife Ruta were regulars at Wolverines games, attending about 15 games in each of Niks two seasons. "Weve followed him all over the country, to Atlanta, to Dallas, all over the place, and those road trips for us were a ton of fun," Paul said. "The whole point is, my wife and I, were financially secure. We never needed our kids to Oh youve got to get this good job to get me out of a bad situation, go pro. It was always just having family fun. And Nik just happened to be really good at what he was doing. "Its been fun, the entire ride. You think Disneyland is fun. This is a helluva ride." The family is happily buckling up for what lies ahead. Most mock drafts have Stauskas going anywhere from 11th to 14th (Denver, Orlando, Minnesota and Phoenix). Next seasons NBA rookie scale has the No. 11 pick getting paid just under US$1.9 million in the first year. "Its really exciting to think of the teams he might play on, and the players he might play with and against," Paul Stauskas said. "Nik has idolized LeBron James from the second LeBron stepped on the court. I was just saying to Nik Nik youre going to be playing against him! "The first time he steps out on the court, and he plays against LeBron, I think hes going to be shell-shocked. Hes probably going to go up to him and ask him for his autograph," he added, laughing. Paul Stauskas cant help but imagine the possible roster permutations. Hes heard the Chicago Bulls — who have the No. 16 pick — might like his son. "We were sitting there thinking Can you imagine Nik, youre playing with (Derrick) Rose? WOW. . . I can just hear it now: Rose to Skauskas, Stauskas back to Rose, OH AND ITS INNNN! That would be fantastic." He thinks Boston — which has both a lottery pick and the No. 17 pick — would be a good fit. "With Rajon Rondo there, I can imagine Nik playing with Rondo," Paul said. "When Rondo first came in the league, both me and Nik saw his very first game and we looked at each other and we go, Wow, is this guy good. So imagine we see this guy and a few years later (Niks) playing side-by-side with him. Its crazy." Rowan Barrett, the assistant GM of Canadas mens basketball program, saw Stauskas play in high school when he was a 15-year-old at Mississaugas Loyola Catholic School. "It was clear that there was talent, there was ability," Barrett said. "The keys you wanted to know were: What was his mind like? And how much would he be willing to work at it? The great thing is he is excellent in both of those areas. Tremendous work ethic and definitely has the mind of a winner. You put those things together with size and length and skill, and you can find yourself a pretty good basketball player. "Im very excited for him." Wiggins, Ennis and Stauskas are all projected lottery picks, which would make this years draft the most successful, in terms of numbers, in Canadian history. Anthony Bennett became the first Canadian to be picked No. 1 overall when he went to Cleveland last year. Canadian Kelly Olynyk (Boston Celtics) was the 13th pick last year. Barrett, 41, said the Canadian growth in the game is a product of opportunities and exposure that werent there when he was growing up in Toronto. "Night and day," Barrett said comparing the generations. Wiggins, Stauskas and Ennis grew up watching the Raptors. Barrett aspired to be a track and field athlete. "I played many of the sports but at that time in Canada, you just had some tremendous athletes in track and field who were bringing home medals from Olympics Games. So those athletes were the ones you wanted to emulate," Barrett said. "But a funny thing happened, I kept growing. "Its a tremendous environment right now for these kids." The 60 participants in this weeks NBA combine will be tested on skills such as vertical leap, shooting, lane agility, and speed. Each team is also allotted a half-hour interview with 18 players of their choosing. Authentic Bills Jerseys Dolphins Stitched Jerseys Cheap Patriots Jerseys Wholesale Jets Jerseys Wholesale Texans Jerseys Cheap Colts Jerseys Jaguars Jerseys Store Authentic Titans Jerseys Authentic Broncos Jerseys Authentic Chiefs Jerseys Cheap Raiders Jerseys Chargers Jerseys Store Cheap Ravens Jerseys Wholesale Bengals Jerseys Cheap Browns Jerseys Steelers Jerseys Store Wholesale Cowboys Jerseys Wholesale Giants Jerseys Authentic Eagles Jerseys Cheap Redskins Jerseys Authentic Falcons Jerseys Panthers Jerseys Store Wholesale Saints Jerseys Authentic Buccaneers Jerseys Wholesale Cardinals Jerseys Cheap 49ers Jerseys Seahawks Jerseys Store Wholesale Rams Jerseys Wholesale Bears Jerseys Authentic Lions Jerseys Cheap Packers Jerseys Vikings Jerseys Store ' ' '