Minnesota Wild forward Matt Cooke has been suspended seven games for kneeing Colorado Avalanche defenceman Tyson Barrie during Game 3 of their series on Monday. If the suspension is not fully served in this years playoffs, it will continue on next season. The Avalanche have a 2-1 series lead on the Wild with Game 4 on Thursday. Cooke has 48 hours to appeal the decision, first to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman then if Bettman upholds six games or more, he then has seven days to file an appeal to a neutral arbitrator. The incident occurred in the second period when Cooke and Barrie were involved in a knee-on-knee collision. The suspension is the sixth of Cookes career. After the incident he was assessed a two-minute minor for kneeing. Coach Patrick Roy said after the Wilds 1-0 overtime win that Barrie has a medial collateral ligament injury in his left knee and will need four to six weeks to recover. The offer of an in-person hearing gave the NHL the right to suspend Cooke for five games or more. Barrie was one of Colorados best offensive blueliners, with 13 goals and 25 assists in the regular season. Matt Cookes Suspension History: Feb. 19, 2004: 2 games - Spearing (Matt Johnson, MIN)Jan. 20, 2009: 2 games - Illegal check to head (Scott Walker, CAR)Nov. 28, 2009: 2 games - Illegal check to head (Artem Anisimov, NYR)Feb. 8, 2011: 4 games - Hit from behind (Fedor Tyutin, CBJ)March 20, 2011: 17 games (10 regular season and first round of playoffs) - Elbow to the head (Ryan McDonagh, NYR)April 23, 2014: 7 games - Kneeing (Tyson Barrie, COL) . The Blue Jackets play Thursday night at New Jersey in their first game after the NHLs Olympic hiatus. A native of Trencin, Slovakia, Gaborik has represented his country at the 2006 and 2010 Olympics but was unable to play in Sochi because of his injury. . - Henrik Samuelsson and Curtis Lazar each had two goals and two assists as the Edmonton Oil Kings secured top spot in the Eastern Conference by defeating the host Red Deer Rebels 7-4 on Saturday in Western Hockey League action.
http://www.cheapcardinalsjerseysauthent ... noz-jersey. Reimer told TSNs Mark Masters on Tuesday that he doesnt know if he will be moved leading up to the March 5 trade deadline but added he wasnt interested in discussing it. "Who knows whats going to happen on the horizon here and right now I dont know if I want to talk about it too much. . Fognini won 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 after Argentinas Carlos Berlocq had beaten Andreas Seppi 4-6, 6-0, 6-2, 6-1 on the outdoor clay surface. Doubles are set for Saturday with reverse singles on Sunday to decide which team reaches the quarterfinals. . -- At the beginning of training camp, Andrew Bogut set a goal to play all 82 regular-season games and regain his place among the NBAs best centres.ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- The Buffalo Bills monthlong shuffle at quarterback is coming to an end after rookie starter EJ Manuel returned to practice Wednesday. Manuels presence on the field, and the expectation that hell be ready to step in immediately and start against the Pittsburgh Steelers (2-6) on Sunday, has provided the Bills a much-needed lift. "Yeah, were excited to get EJ back," centre Eric Wood said. "Hopefully, it gives us a boost, offensively." And dont underestimate the importance of Manuel re-establishing stability at a position that was mostly unsettled in the four weeks since the first-round draft pick out of Florida State sprained his right knee. "Hes the guy that we wanted to be back there, and weve got him back there now," running back Fred Jackson said. "To get some stability there, a guy thats going to be there for the remainder of the season hopefully is something that can help this offence move in the right direction." The Bills (3-6) were going nowhere in losing three of four without Manuel, who was hurt in a 37-24 loss at Cleveland on Oct. 3. The injury prompted a scramble by the team to find a capable replacement at a position where Buffalo lacked experienced depth. Journeyman Thad Lewis was promoted from the practice squad to take over as interim starter after undrafted rookie Jeff Tuel struggled filling in for Manuel against the Browns. Lewis went 1-2 before he was sidelined by bruised ribs, which led to Tuel making his first career start in a 23-13 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs last weekend. Tuels inexperience was once again evident against the Chiefs. He threw two interceptions, the second one returned 100 yards for a touchdown in a game where Buffalo squandered a 10-3 halftime lead and outgained Kansas City 470-210. Manuel was cleared to play earlier this week after spending most of last week working out individually. On Wednesday, Manuel showed no signs of a limp while dropping back to passs, and he completed several throws into gusty winds during a 20-minute portion of practice open to the media.dddddddddddd "Yeah, very confident. Pushing off it fine. Running around and making plays," Manuel said. "Its still up to coach as far as what we want to do as a team, but I definitely feel confident going into Sunday." Coach Doug Marrone liked what he saw, and acknowledged that Manuel is expected to start barring any setbacks. "From a standpoint of being healthy, hes fine," Marrone said. "Now its just to the point of really trying to get him back." Plan B would be starting Lewis, who also returned to practice Wednesday. Manuel might not have all that much more experience than Lewis or Tuel. But he has had the most time in learning Marrones offence, and showed a capability of running it in going 2-2 before he was hurt. In four-plus games, Manuel went 85 of 150 for 985 yards passing with five touchdowns with three interceptions and a lost fumble. Lewis and Tuel combined to produce similar numbers in going 88 of 162 for 961 yards and four touchdowns. They struggled in protecting the ball by committing eight giveaways: five interceptions, including two returned for touchdowns; and three lost fumbles. At 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds, Manuel has a strong arm and provides an element of mobility to the Bills up-tempo attack. The only issue with him is avoiding hits, as happened against Cleveland when he elected to keep running rather than get out of bounds before being struck in the right knee by safety Tashaun Gipson. Manuel also missed the final two preseason games with a left knee injury. Manuel is defensive when it comes to answering questions about his running style. He went so far as to describe his latest injury as "a freak accident." "If I lifted my knee up a half-inch more it wouldnt have been a problem," he said. Manuel added it hasnt been yet determined whether hell play with a protective brace. ' ' '
