Dein erstes Forum » ts in just 57 games might convince some

OXFORD, Miss. -- ??? Memphis forced Mississippi into a few uncomfortable minutes for the second straight season.This time, the Tigers couldnt pull off the upset. The Ole Miss offense wasnt going to let anyone catch it Saturday night.Chad Kelly threw for 361 yards and Eugene Brazley ran for a career-high 124 yards and two touchdowns as No. 16 Mississippi pulled away late to beat Memphis 48-28 at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.We know the only people who can stop us is ourselves, Kelly said. We ran the ball, we threw the ball around a little bit and the guys up front protected me.Ole Miss (3-2) jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter against the Tigers for a second straight season, but this time held on for the victory. Memphis beat Ole Miss 37-24 last season after falling behind by two touchdowns early.There would be no such comeback Saturday. Memphis (3-1) made this one interesting for a while, but couldnt keep up with the Rebels high-scoring offense.Ole Miss continued its trend of playing great in the first half, jumping out to a 24-7 by halftime. Kelly completed 17 of 24 passes for 200 yards and backup quarterback Jason Pellerin -- who is sometimes used in short-yardage situations -- ran for two touchdowns before the break.The Rebels might be the best team in the country if games lasted just two quarters. Theyve outscored opponents 131-40 in the first half and had the lead in all five games.Ole Miss was a little shaky to start the second half -- Memphis scored two quick touchdowns in the third quarter to pull to 27-21. But the Rebels responded with two touchdowns of their own -- including a 12-yard strike from Kelly to tight end Evan Engram -- to take control of the game.Offensively, we answered when we needed to, Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze said.Memphis quarterback Riley Ferguson was 30 of 46 for 343 yards, but threw three interceptions, including one that was returned 31 yards for a touchdown by safety Zedrick Woods.First-year coach Memphis coach Mike Norvell said he was proud of the teams effort, but that the Tigers made too many mistakes to pull off a road win.Turnovers, communication issues, penalties, missed tackles -- all those things that cant happen in a close game with a quality opponent, Norvell said. This team still has some things to clean up.THE TAKEAWAYMemphis: The Tigers were an interesting team after three blowout wins against Southeast Missouri, Kansas and Bowling Green. But the Ole Miss offense was too much for the Memphis defense, finishing with 624 total yards.Ole Miss: The Rebels have won two straight games for the first time this season. It gives the program some momentum going into a bye week before difficult back-to-back road games against Arkansas and LSU.ANDERSON TOSSED, GATES SUSPENDEDOle Miss safety Deontay Anderson was ejected from the game for targeting after a hit on Memphis Ferguson. Because the play happened in the second half, hell also miss the first half of the Arkansas game on Oct. 15.Ole Miss linebacker DeMarquis Gates didnt play on Saturday after being suspended for breaking team rules. Freeze said his status will be updated on a game-by-game basis. Gates came into the game leading the team with 30 tackles.POLL IMPLICATIONSMemphis: The Tigers received a few votes in last weeks poll after a big win over Bowling Green. That probably wont happen again.Ole Miss: The Rebels will likely climb a few stops.UP NEXTMemphis hosts Temple on Thursday.Ole Miss has a bye next week. The Rebels play at Arkansas on Oct. 15.-----Follow David Brandt on Twitter: www.twitter.com/davidbrandtAP . AP College Football website: www.collegefootball.ap.orgRyan Tannehill Youth Jersey . He said Tuesday thats a big reason why he is now the new coach of the Tennessee Titans. Whisenhunt said he hit it off quickly with Ruston Webster when interviewing for the job Friday night. Eddie George Womens Jersey . But by the time the game started, the Toronto Raptors forward felt even worse. And, for three quarters, it showed as Gay shot a woeful three-for-13 from the field. http://www.authentictitanspro.com/Marcus-mariota-titans-jersey/ . The move comes after the Canadiens were approached by the Buffalo Sabres for permission to speak to Dudley - a former Sabres player and head coach. "The Sabres called for permission and I appreciate that, Im flattered, Dudley told TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun of ESPN. Amani Hooker Jersey . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. Warren Moon Youth Jersey . On Tuesday, Ottawa placed forward Cory Conacher and defenceman Joe Corvo on waivers as trade rumours swirl around the Senators.ESPN is bringing you quick-hitting team previews ahead of the 2016-17 fantasy season, with a spin through each division. Well look at whats new, upward and downward trending players, and the goaltending situation for all 30 teams.The goaltender index is a rating from one to 10, with one being your workhorse starters that face no threat whatsoever to their expected workload of 60-plus games, and 10 being a situation that is already a full-blown timeshare between two goalies.Boston BruinsWhats new: The Bruins still have one of the best duos on the top line and one of the best one-two punches down the middle in the NHL. Those two factors will go a long way to producing fantasy value. David Backes is new to the roster this season. While he is a center by trade, Backes can play the wing if need be.Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand will continue to star on the top line, while Krejci can anchor the second line with the best of them. Up and comers, including David Pastrnak, Ryan Spooner and Frank Vatrano, can help fill out the holes in the top six.Trending up: David Pastrnak, W: Backes might not get the first crack at the top line because Pastrnak is due for some more responsibility. After a scorching finish to his rookie season in 2014-15, Pastrnaks sophomore campaign was interrupted by a loan to the Czech junior national team, and he played just 51 games. But in those 51 games, he managed 15 goals and 26 points in barely 14 minutes of ice time per contest. If he were to earn a role on the top line -- or even the second unit -- Pastrnaks additional ice time would push him into fantasy starting territory very quickly.Trending down: Zdeno Chara, D: His finish as the 87th-best player on the ESPN Player Rater last season belies what were new lows for Chara for a full season. He only moderately topped his poor numbers from 2014-15, in which he played 17 fewer games than last season. His contributions in penalty minutes and ice time kept him on the bubble for fantasy usefulness, but it seems age is catching up to this 39-year-old defenseman. Hes still worth a back-end roster spot, but Chara shouldnt be counted on as a key contributor.Goaltender index: 3. Tuukka Rask is still cemented into the starting role, but if his trends from the past three seasons continue, he could play his way out of it. Rasks ratios slipped firmly into pedestrian territory last season, at a 2.56 goals-against average and .915 save percentage. That is easily replacement-level production, and it was the second consecutive year his ratios slipped by a statistically significant amount. His slide coincides with the departure of several key members of the defensive group, but with no reinforcements on the way, there is little reason for optimism. We have him as a mid-tier No. 2 fantasy goaltender, which doesnt exactly lineup with his name value. That said, it would take a particularly poor showing before Anton Khudobin or Malcolm Subban drew into the fantasy picture this season. But if Rask doesnt have a big bounce-back season, youll want to stash Subban for the 2017-18 campaign in keeper leagues.Buffalo SabresWhats new: The future is bright with Kyle Okposo jumping onto the Sabres top line with Jack Eichel, echoing the dangerous duo that Okposo formed on Long Island with John Tavares. Experience playing with a stud center should make the acclimation painless for Okposo, boosting Eichel past any thoughts of a sophomore slump. The Sabres also have other pieces, including a healthy Tyler Ennis, Ryan OReilly, sophomore Sam Reinhart and -- hopefully -- a mercurial Evander Kane with which to build an offensive attack. But the buck stops at the new Okposo-Eichel duo, and they are the ones fantasy owners should key on.The defense is strong from a defensive perspective, but lacks much offensive push outside of the as-of-yet-unsigned restricted free agent Rasmus Ristolainen.Trending up: Rasmus Ristolainen, D: Ristolainen remains the only Sabres defenseman with any kind of legitimate offensive upside to his game, and will therefore play almost all of the power-play minutes. By the way, those power-play minutes will be with a group of stars that should push into the top 10 this season. Ristolainen responded to increased ice time last season with 40 points and more than 200 shots. With the continued improvement of both himself and the team, look for 50 points and 250 shots this season.Trending down: Evander Kane, W: Just a hot mess off the ice, Kane wont stop providing fodder for distractions away from his hockey ability. When on the ice and playing to his potential, he can score 30 goals and trail only Alex Ovechkin for shots (maybe Patrik Laine now, too). But with many off-ice legal concerns on his plate, how much stock do you put in Kane being able to put in a full campaign? Hes worth the risk at some point in your draft, but he wont go anywhere near where he would have coming into the season with a clean slate.Goaltender index: 3. After a prolonged injury absence last season, Robin Lehner gets a mulligan on his first season with the Sabres. This will be the campaign that decides if hes the true No. 1 goaltender he appeared to be throughout his minor-league career. The chance of the Sabres making the playoffs a season earlier than expected will live and die with Lehners performance as the guy.Anders Nilsson can spell Lehner when need be, but if Lehner struggles, the Sabres have to go back to the drawing board next season. For this season, Lehners a bench stash on the chance he makes good on his potential. He showed hints last season with a .924 save percentage, which was tied for fourth in the league among players with more than 20 games.Detroit Red WingsWhats new: The Red Wings step into the post-Pavel Datsyuk era with plenty of talent that under-performed last season. In fact, aside from rookie Dylan Larkins exploits, there arent any returning Red Wings who fantasy owners felt good about owning last season based on their draft value.Frans Nielsen provides terrific secondary center support and Thomas Vanek will be a boost to scoring chances on the wing, but are they enough to fill the void left by Datsyuks return to Russia? Probably not. The team will need continued development from Larkin, big bounce-back seasons from Tomas Tatar, Gustav Nyquist and Henrik Zetterberg, and inbound support from youngsters like Anthony Mantha or Andreas Anasthasiou.Trending up: Dylan Larkin, C: Larkin is likely making the full-time switch to center this season, with Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill hopefully committing more responsibility to his best young pivot. Larkin produced most of last season on a line with Zetterberg and Justin Abdelkader, but perhaps would be better served with the teams top talent on his flanks, including Tatar or Nyquist. Hell need to score better than the 23 goals he had last season, which led the Red Wings. That was the lowest total to lead a team in scoring outside of Toronto.Trending down: Niklas Kronwall, D: Stick a fork in him, hes done. Kronwall turned in his worst season in a decade and it wasnt even close. Three goals and a minus-21 rating are straight-up brutal statistics from someone who was leaned on as a fantasy regular for the 10 seasons prior. The drop off the cliff came out of nowhere, and there is no reason for hope headed into 2016-17. His lingering knee issue, for which surgery is not an option, is going to make him a shadow of his former self going forward.Goaltender index: 6. While we are more than confident in Petr Mrazek delivering the goods in net for the Red Wings, we have to remain cognizant of the fact that Jimmy Howard is still hanging around. We also cant ignore how Mrazek faltered at the end of last season, and even ceded way to Howard for the start of the postseason. Mrazek is the far superior talent at this juncture, and should confidently be drafted as a No. 2 fantasy goaltender, but he hasnt shaken Howard away completely.Florida PanthersWhats new: The Panthers took a team on the rise and added an established power-play quarterback and a competent backup goaltender. Keith Yandle takes some of the offensive pressure off Aaron Ekblad and gives himself a role to recapture his glory days from the desert. James Reimer gives the Panthers a strong option if Roberto Luongos age starts to catch up to him.The top line of Jaromir Jagr and the kids should continue to dominate for fantasy owners, despite Jagrs advancing age. If you thought Aleksander Barkov broke out last season, you aint seen nothing yet. Barkov played only 66 games, but had a pace that was good enough for 70 points if he was healthy. Look for him to blow past 70 in a full season.A word of caution about the second line, however, as Vincent Trochek, Jussi Jokinen and Reilly Smith took the league by surprise last season. Everyone knows they are coming this season, so a drop-off could be in store for a couple of them, similar to what happened with the Triplets last season in Tampa Bay.Trending up: Aaron Ekblad, D: Remember when Yandle and Oliver Ekman-Larsson were both elite fantasy defensemen together in Arizona? It wasnt that long ago, and the Panthers have recreated the recipe for Yandle and Ekblad to dominate the blue line together this season. The presence of Yandle and his deadly point shot will help push Ekblad to the next level, giving him a shot at 45-plus points and a boost in his power-play numbers.Trending down: Jaromir Jagr, W: It just cant happen again. Can it? We still think Jagr will be a fantasy asset this season, but he finished as the 49th-best fantasy player last season. Theres just no way, in the same season he turns 45 years old, that he can still be a top-50 player in the NHL. Right? Right?!? Maybe he can, but we swear there will be some serious regression here. The last time he had a shooting percentage as high as his 18.9 percent from last season, it was literally 1997 -- you know, the year Auston Matthews was born!Goaltender index: 4. Reimer has uniquely honed his game with the Maple Leafs, perhaps learning a lot about goaltending by being the stopgap for a bottom-feeder. He parlayed his first chance to tend twine for a winner into exceptional stats for the San Jose Sharks at the end of last season, and now gets a chance to play for another winner in Sunrise. But make no mistake, this is still Luongos team unless injury says otherwise. There are already whisppers from that department though, as offseason surgery will leave Luongo in less-than-prime shape to start the season.dddddddddddd Reimer is a very sensible handcuff or fourth goalie at the end of your draft.Montreal CanadiensWhats new: Carey Price is healthy and thats all you need to know. Well, not really. But its the most important point. The Habs were lost without Price last season, and should be back to being a playoff team with him.But the big news doesnt stop there. In one of the most -- lets call it -- interesting trades of recent memory, Canadiens brass decided they were playing in a re-draft fantasy hockey league and traded P.K. Subban for Shea Weber. While everyone likes to point out that Weber is on the decline, lets not forget that Weber was the 31st-best fantasy player in 2014-15. Of course, Subban was 15th-best that season, but we digress ...If it seems like ages ago that Alexander Radulov was lighting the NHL on fire as a 22-year-old with Jason Arnott and J.P. Dumont, thats because it was ages ago. But dont forget that it happened. The knowledge that Radulov scored 26 goals and 58 points once upon a time in the NHL answers the biggest question about his return: Can his skills translate? Of course they can. They already did once. Even during his whirlwind return to Nashville in 2011-12 -- you know, when the curfew issues occurred -- he potted 13 points in 17 games before heading back to Russia.Trending up: Alex Galchenyuk, C: Showing last season that he is a legitimate No. 1 center portends an increase in both ice time and responsibility for Galchenyuk. The training wheels should come off completely this season, as he takes on the top-line pivot role. If he can score 30 goals and almost 60 points with 16 minutes of ice time per game, what happens when he starts approaching 19 or 20 minutes per game?Trending down: Brendan Gallagher, W: This team has three top-line wingers and thats one too many. Max Pacioretty isnt going anywhere from the top line, so its a question of whether Gallagher can stay there with Radulov in the fold. We just dont how that will go down, as Gallagher was showing even more improvement in an injury-riddled campaign last season and Radulov was, hands down, the best hockey player in the world outside the NHL last season. Given that Gallagher already has some chemistry with second-line center Tomas Plekanec, the battle may already be decided.Goaltender index: 1. Price, even though he only played 12 games, still finished as the 116th-best fantasy player in the ESPN standard game. His numbers in those 12 games were that good. Prior to that, he was coming off a season winning both the Vezina and Hart trophies. Its safe to say a healthy Price is still the best goalie in the business.Al Montoya is both capable enough to spell Price for 20 games and step in and provide better-than-replacement level goaltending if the unthinkable were to happen to Price again. In deeper leagues, he might be worth a handcuff if you spend your first-round pick on Price.Ottawa SenatorsWhats new: This team begins and ends with Erik Karlssons presence. That presence, however, has a reverberating impact on the lineup and helps create plenty of fantasy value on offense. If you are a believer in value over replacement player, we wouldnt fault you for taking Karlsson as the first overall pick in fantasy.New coach Guy Boucher was most previously employed in the league with the Lightning from 2010-11 to 2012-13, guiding the team to epic offensive numbers -- and terrible defensive ones. We arent so sure he has changed his spots since then, so the offense should still be fine for fantasy purposes. This is not a situation in which to bank on a turnaround from Craig Anderson, though. Seriously, the Lightning had a sub.-900 save percentage under Bouchers direction in three seasons.The swap of Mika Zibanejad for Derick Brassard is a slight upgrade at center for the Senators, and we like the potential chemistry of Brassard with Mark Stone, as Kyle Turris was starting to feel a bit stale as the No. 1 pivot here.Trending up: Mark Stone, W: Throw out a dreadful January and Stone did make some major strides last season. Seriously, it was an awful month. His 61 points in 75 games with a minus-4 rating look good, but not great. Take away January, and Stone had 59 points in 63 games with a plus-6 rating. All of a sudden, thats borderline superstar status.Trending down: Kyle Turris, C: While Stone secretly made gains last season, Turris most definitely did not. His 30 points in 57 games is disastrous compared to the breakout stats he posted in 2014-15. The drop in points-per-game rate was from 0.78 to 0.53, which is going from No. 2 fantasy center territory to fantasy afterthought. The arrival of Brassard, who is more reliable in recent seasons, could easily push Turris away from the top line, and away from fantasy relevance.Goaltender index: 4. Anderson is the man for the Senators after Andrew Hammond lost his Hamburglar magic last season. There wont be much threat to Anderson playing fewer than 60 games -- outside of his own health. But as we pointed out, coach Guy Bouchers track record for keeping pucks out of the net is not a good one. He can run an offense, but until we see a change in his coaching in the defensive end, be wary of Anderson as any more than a No. 3 fantasy goalie.Tampa Bay LightningWhats new: Not much is new with the Lightning. Considering they came within one win of their second consecutive Stanley Cup finals appearance, thats just fine.Jonathan Drouin put the drama of last seasons demotion and suspension behind him, and will have to find his role in the offense. Given his performance as a playoffs savior when Steven Stakmos was injured, Drouin could find a very fantasy-friendly role, and needs to be taken as a sleeper on offense.Health among the Triplets could also go a long way to changing the fortunes of the Lightnings season. Ondrej Palat struggled with injury and Tyler Johnsons wrist was never right all season. If they can come in with a clean bill of health, the Triplets could ride again as they did in 2014-15.Trending up: Jonathan Drouin, W: After a spat with the club in December following an AHL demotion, Drouin buckled down, played well in the minors and came back strong when called upon in April. Including the postseason run, Drouin had seven goals and 16 points in 19 games when he was brought back to the Lightning following Stamkos injury. He didnt have much chemistry with Stamkos at the beginning of last season, but he was a different player at the end of last season and will get another chance on the top line.Trending down: Ryan Callahan, C: The same is also true for Valtteri Filppula, as both veterans have been thoroughly passed by a swath of young forwards on the Bolts depth chart. No longer do Callahan or Filppula have a fleeting chance in this strong lineup for scoring-line roles. Vladislav Namestnikov, all three Triplets, Alex Killorn, Drouin and even J.T. Brown can be argued above them for scoring roles. Its why the Lightning might have the best fourth line in the league, but dont expect fantasy stats out of these guys anymore.Goaltender index: 5. Ben Bishop has been a Vezina finalist in two of the past three seasons and has been among the workhorses in the NHL during that span. Hes also very clearly just keeping the seat warm at this point for Andrei Vasilevskiy. Dont take that suggestion to far in your thinking, however. If the Lightning are in the running for the Stanley Cup again, Bishop isnt going anywhere. But Vasilevskiy has more than proven he is capable of a bigger workload and Bishops start total might drop closer to the range of 50 this season. This is a rare case where you need to handcuff your goaltender if you are going to draft the starter. Take Bishop, and plan on taking Vasilevskiy in the later rounds.Toronto Maple LeafsWhats new: With Nazem Kadri still potentially on the rise, James van Riemsdyk hoping for a full season of health and the injection of three of the NHLs most exciting rookies (William Nylander, Auston Matthews and Mitchell Marner), there is plenty of reason to expect this Leafs team to improve on their 28th-ranked 2.34 goals per game last season. Also with the addition of dependable netminding in the form of former Anaheim Ducks starter Frederik Andersen, there is reason to expect an improvement in the teams 24th-ranked 2.93 goals allowed per game.Fantasy owners in redraft leagues wont have to make a decision about whether they want to buy into the Leafs until the middle rounds of their draft, so the potential returns are quite tantalizing. Just remember that the goal this season for the team will be a middle-of-the-pack finish with measured development of young stars, so dont expect too much.Trending up: Nazem Kadri, C: Kadri still has 30-goal potential on his stick and if hes going to realize it, this will be the season. Its the right mix of opportunity and influx of talent for Kadri to have a breakout campaign with the Leafs. The rookies will supply the supporting cast of talent but still not take over the offense completely from the established players. Kadri boosted his shots on goal rate significantly last season, now he just has to put more of those biscuits in the basket.Trending down: Tyler Bozak, C: Without Phil Kessel to work with last season, one might have expected Boak to be exposed as the bottom-six center he is. Not the case. Bozaks 35 points in just 57 games might convince some fantasy owners that there is fantasy life for him here, A.P. (After Phil). But with Kadri in tow and Matthews just waiting to take over, the Leafs will be forced to use Bozak in a third-line role sooner than later.Goaltender index: 4. Dont be mistaken, this is Andersens team to start the season. He brings a career .918 save percentage and 77-26-12 record into Toronto. But that win-loss ratio is one of the main reasons we downgrade this to a four on the index. Andersens never played for a losing team before, and its not the same for a goaltender playing for a winner. It takes a certain kind. If Andersen doesnt take it personally and plays his game, hell have spot fantasy value through the season, and could be a No. 2 goaltender in 12-team leagues. ' ' '