Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Golf's dream pairing - Woods and Mickelson - is on the course in the final round at Pebble Beach. Jason Sobel has hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Euro Roundup: First-place Manchester City won 1-0 at Aston Villa on Sunday on Joleon Lescott's goal in the 63rd minute, maintaining its two-point lead over Manchester United in the Premier League.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
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Stanley Cups: 0
2008-'09 record: 35-41-6, 76 points (4th in Southeast, 13th in East)
2008-'09 playoffs: Did not qualify
General manager: Don Waddell (272-357-70, 9th NHL year, 1st team)
Coach: John Anderson (35-41-6, 2nd NHL year, 1st team)
Captain: Ilya Kovalchuk
Top returning scorer: LW Ilya Kovalchuk (43 goals, 48 assists, 91 points)
Top returning goalie: Kari Lehtonen (19-22-1, 3.06, .911)
Key additions: D Pavel Kubina; C Nik Antropov; C Jason Krog; D Noah Welch; RW; RW Tim Stapleton; LW Josh Gratton.
Key subtractions: D Garnett Exelby; LW Colin Stuart; D Clay Wilson; C Eric Perrin; RW Joe Motzko.
Top line: LW Ilya Kovalchuk, C Nik Antropov; RW Bryan Little
Top defensive pairing: Pavel Kubina, Zach Bogosian
Goaltending: Injury-prone Lehtonen missed 21 games following a November back injury and six of the last seven games of the season with a suspected concussion. Did rebound strongly to pace the Thrashers’ second-half surge. Hybrid butterfly netminder can fill net with size and cover bottom half effectively with quick, long legs. Does tend to play back in his net and get himself into trouble by committing too early on shots
Player to watch: C Evander Kane. Top draft pick in 2009 is named after former heavyweight champ Evander Holyfield, and also isn’t afraid to mix it up. Determined competitor figures to start in a checking role and work his way up the forward ladder as he gets his feet wet in the NHL. Still needs some work on his skating, but is a deadly finisher with outstanding hand-eye co-ordination.
Icing: The offense still flows through Kovalchuk, who became captain on Jan. 11. That fueled his second-half run that produced 31 goals in the final 41 games. He was sixth in the NHL with 91 points, including 43 goals, in 79 games. Kovalchuk is the only NHL player with at least 40 goals in the past five seasons. Bryan Little has been a great addition to the offensive mix. The No. 12 pick in the 2006 draft scored 31 goals last season, his second in the NHL. Rookie D Zach Bogosian bounced back from a broken leg that forced him to miss 10 weeks of his rookie season. He recorded points in 10 of his final 16 games, netting six goals and 11 points.
Outlook: Finished last season on a 16-9-1 run, too late to make playoffs, but enough to create some optimism heading into this season. They’ll score plenty, but probably can’t defend enough to qualify for postseason play.
Prediction: 86 points, 3rd in Southeast, 11th seed in East
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Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Check out highlights from the Rangers 3-2 win over the Capitals.
Special feature |
 Getty Images file |
The Kings, Wild, Stars stand best chance of reaching postseason |
 | Video: NHL from NBC Sports |
 NHLI via Getty Images |
More on Stanley Cup finals |
Chicago Blackhawks def. Philadelphia Flyers 4-2 |
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The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos |
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Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
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Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
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