a position where we had to win almost every game and

WASHINGTON -- For nearly four years, Washington Capitals fans have watched video clips of Evgeny Kuznetsov playing in Russia and imagined what he could do in the NHL. On Friday night, Kuznetsov began compiling the North American version of his greatest hits -- posting three assists for his first NHL points in the Capitals 4-3 win over the Vancouver Canucks. Kuznetsov assisted during a power play as countryman Alex Ovechkin finished with a slap shot for his NHL-leading 45th goal. Less than five minutes later, Kuznetsov faked a slap shot from the wing and fed the puck to Tom Wilson for his third goal. In the third period, Kuznetsov started a sequence that led to Mike Green putting the Capitals ahead for good with 9:41 left. Green scored with a slap shot off a feed from Nicklas Backstrom from behind the net. "(Kuznetsov) did a great job battling down the corner and keeping control of the puck," said Green, who scored his ninth goal. "He made a great play to Nicky, and I noticed when Nicky was wheeling the net that he saw me before he even looked up." It was the third NHL game for Kuznetsov, the Capitals first-round pick in the 2010 draft. He signed with Washington last week after five years in Russias Kontinental Hockey League. "You get your first point on the power play, which is kind of an easy point, but it still counts," Washington coach Adam Oates said. "You get your juices going. Great play on the second goal, and then protecting the puck on a cycle (on the third goal), which is kind of something you dont necessarily expect." Kuznetsov played on Washingtons fourth line with fellow rookie Wilson and Jay Beagle, who contributed an assist. "He is such a creative player and a lot of fun to play with," Wilson said. "The first couple of games he wasnt sure, and hes really finding his groove. Hopefully we can have some chemistry for years to come." Kuznetsovs performance helped the Capitals forget the 12th time this season theyve blown a two-goal advantage. Washington led 3-1 early in the third period before Shawn Matthias and Nicklas Jensen scored for Vancouver to tie it. The goal by Jensen, a rookie playing in his sixth game, was the first of his NHL career. "I just felt we were just going to keep on coming," Vancouver coach John Tortorella said. "Theyve given up some leads here. We got that third one, I thought we were just going to take off. We had some chances." Vancouver outshot Washington 41-21, but the Capitals killed all seven Canucks power plays. Jaroslav Halak made 38 saves in his fourth start with the Capitals. "He had a fantastic night," Oates said. "We left him hanging." Jordan Schroeder scored Vancouvers first goal, and Chris Higgins and Christopher Tanev both had two assists. Eddie Lack stopped 17 shots as Vancouver fell to 3-12-1 in its last 16 games. "Its frustrating. I thought we played really well all game," Matthias said. "To tie it up there and let that happen, its upsetting." The night got off to a difficult start for the Canucks, whose bus broke down. Players then took cabs to the arena. Joel Ward opened the scoring for Washington, but the second period belonged to Kuznetsov. "Hes sort of got that young mentality where you know youre not afraid to make a play and do these things that youre capable of," Green said. "Hes going to be a great player." NOTES: The Canucks learned on Friday they will be without C Ryan Kesler for two weeks. Kesler, who leads the team with 22 goals, injured his knee in a 3-2 shootout victory on Wednesday over Winnipeg. ... The International Olympic Committee ruled that Backstrom wasnt at fault for his positive drug test before the gold-medal game at the Olympics, in which he didnt play, and he will receive the silver medal he earned with Sweden. Air Max 97 Baratas Mujer .com) - The Los Angeles Kings werent playing their best hockey before the league went on break during the Winter Olympics. Nike Air Max 97 Rebajas . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Tuukka Rask, Boston Bruins (5) – He had a brilliant game; it was a huge response for his average games before. http://www.tiendasairmaxbaratas.com/zapatillas-air-max-98.html . Nine-year veteran Danny Granger did not make his debut with the Clippers because of a technicality on the teams active list, which is signed by coach Doc Rivers before every game and relayed to the officials. Grangers name was printed by hand by a member of the public relations staff under the heading: "Updated Roster Additions," but the number on the sheet was not circled along with the other active players by the required deadline of 6:30 p. Air Max 270 España . It was the most lopsided loss in Lakers history. Darren Collison had a team-high 24 points while starting at shooting guard for the injured Jamal Crawford. Chris Paul added 13 points and 11 assists for the Clippers, who apparently are trying to make up for decades of humiliation at the hands of the Lakers all in one season; theyve won the last two meetings by a combined 84 points. Nike Air Max 90 Baratas España .J. -- Pete Carroll said it was the suspension of linebacker Bruce Irvin last spring that finally got the attention of the rest of the Seattle Seahawks that they needed to be taking their commitment to the team more seriously.NEWARK, N.J. -- Jaromir Jagr has decided to remain with the New Jersey Devils for another year. "I was happy being here," the 42-year-old Jagr said Thursday in a conference call from Belarus, where he is playing for the Czech Republic in the world championships. "There was no reason to change. There was no reason to test free agency. What would happen? Someone might give me more money, but nobody can guarantee me that Id be happy someplace else. If Im happy, then theres no reason to go anywhere else. I play my best hockey when Im happy." The Devils did not release terms of the contract. Jagr said it was a one-year deal. The contract is believed to be worth $6 million with incentives. "I like having one-year deals," Jagr said. "If something goes wrong, you never know if you have a long contract and say have three years left. One year is good for everybody. I think both sides wanted to get this done quickly. Lou (Lamoriello, the teams president and general manager) wanted to do it, because he wanted to see the direction where hes going with the team." Jagr was the Devils leading scorer this, finishing with 24 goals and 43 assists for 67 points. "Id truly like to score more goals," Jagr said. "I feel like I can play with the guys we have. We have a better chance to play better. We have a good group of guys and thats very important. I like to play a lot, because I dont get tired." Jagr will turn 43 in February of next season, his 21st year in the NHL. A two-time winner of the Stanley Cup when he played for the Pittsburgh Peenguins, Jagr has 705 goals and 1,050 assists.dddddddddddd The Devils missed the playoffs for the third time in the last four seasons. "We made a lot of mistakes early," Jagr said. "But we were able to play good against the good teams. We lost a lot of points to teams that didnt make the playoffs. It put us in a position where we had to win almost every game and that was too much pressure. We didnt have any great superstars, but we had good goal scorers that give us a chance to compete against anybody and beat anybody. Its just my feeling, but we didnt have to be great to win games, if we work hard." Jagr said that he liked the camaraderie in the Devils locker room. "We have a lot of fun," Jagr said. "We have a loose atmosphere. Theres not a bad guy in the room. Maybe we need a bad one to get in the playoffs." Jagr was named Thursday as one of the three finalists for the Bill Masterton Award, given to the player "who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey," along with Manny Malholtra of the Carolina Hurricanes and Dominic Moore of the New York Rangers. "It means a lot that the hockey writers picked me," Jagr said. "Hockey writers can be very picky, so for them to pick me means a lot. I just love the sport and follow the laws of the sport." Jagr said he plans to keep playing after next season. "Theres no reason to stop," Jagr said. "I want to play for as long as I can. As long as I work hard, I am going to continue to play." ' ' '