rts is huge in a kids life in so many ways, and not being able to afford joining a team is tragic.Thats why Ill be standing with others who purchase green lac

Are the Columbus Blue Jackets for real? They sure look like it. And how about Tampa Bays response after losing Steven Stamkos? The Bolts?simply put their heads down and got to work. Have the Florida Panthers arrived? This weeks Rankings certainly have. Here we go:1. (Last week: 1)?Chicago Blackhawks, 13-4-2The Blackhawks notched wins in Calgary and Vancouver over the weekend as the circus trip rolled on. Chicagos younger forwards are starting to step up.2. (3)?New York Rangers, 13-5-1A home-and-home set with the rival Penguins looms on Monday and Wednesday. Giddy-up.3. (4) Montreal Canadiens, 14-3-2The Habs now have won 12 straight games over the Maple Leafs, but the young Buds are making it tougher on them. Saturdays 2-1 affair was a treat to watch. This age-old rivalry is entering a new phase.4. (5)?Washington Capitals, 11-5-2Has Evgeny Kuznetsov decided to take November off? Hes stuck at just seven points on the season.5. (11)?Tampa Bay Lightning, 12-6-1The surging Bolts can sweep their five-game road trip with a win on Monday night in Nashville. Life without captain Stamkos still will be a challenge, but Tampa Bay has a deep and talented forward group.6. (2)?Pittsburgh Penguins, 11-4-3After getting pasted 7-1 by the Capitals last week and suffering a 2-1 shootout loss at Buffalo, its time for the Penguins to reset. And what better way to get the juices flowing than to face the Rangers twice to kick off the week?7. (15)?Columbus Blue Jackets, 10-4-2The red-hot Jackets are 7-1-1 in November, including wins over Montreal, Anaheim, St. Louis, the Rangers and Washington (twice).8.?(16) St. Louis Blues, 10-6-3The Blues are 8-1-2 at home but just 2-5-1 on the road, where theyll be playing their next two games -- in Boston and Washington, respectively. Its time for St. Louis to get things going away from the friendly confines.9. (7) New Jersey Devils, 9-5-3Life without leading scorer Taylor Hall is going to be tough. The Devils werent exactly an offensive juggernaut with him in the lineup -- and now hell be out 3-4 weeks.10.?(12) Boston Bruins, 11-7-0Since dropping to 3-4-0 on Oct. 26, the Bruins have gone 8-3-0 as they begin to jell and look like a more cohesive unit.11. (19)?Florida Panthers, 10-8-1Have the Panthers arrived? Big wins at the Bell Centre and Madison Square Garden during their recent 3-1-0 road trip suggest so.12.?(8) Ottawa Senators, 10-7-1The Senators have dropped three of four as they get set for a big game on Tuesday night at Montreal. They beat the first-place Habs in a shootout back on Oct. 15.13.?(10) Minnesota Wild, 9-7-1Said a veteran scout to me over the weekend regarding the Wilds 1-0 win over the Bruins last Thursday, in which Devan Dubnyk and Tuukka Rask?each did their thing: That was one of the best goalie duels Ive seen in a long, long time.14.?(17) Los Angeles Kings, 10-9-1The Kings have won three in a row, including an entertaining game Sunday night across town in Anaheim. Peter Budaj keeps answering the bell.15.?(9) Anaheim Ducks, 9-7-3The Ducks, Oilers and Kings are all tied at 21 points in the topsy-turvy Pacific, with the Sharks just two points back. Hold on to your seats; this division is going down to the wire.16.?(6) San Jose Sharks, 9-8-1The Sharks went 3-2-1 on their road trip and now open up a five-game homestand at the Shark Tank, beginning with New Jersey on Monday night. San Jose is only 26th in goals per game and 16th on the power play, which is kind of stunning.17.?(13) Edmonton Oilers, 10-8-1Connor McDavid?had his first NHL career hat trick Saturday in Dallas and will have many more. More important, the Oilers win snapped a five-game losing streak.18. (18) Nashville Predators, 7-7-3Im really intrigued by Monday nights home game for the Predators, with surging Tampa Bay coming to town. About a week ago, it looked like Nashville had turned a corner -- but then the Preds lost games in Toronto and St. Louis, sandwiched around a win in Ottawa.19.?(21) Dallas Stars, 7-7-5The injury-riddled Stars have dropped three of four and just keep sputtering. This is an entertaining?team built to score, but I suggest that Dallas goes back to some defensive basics for a while so it can find some footing.20.?(26) Carolina Hurricanes, 7-6-4The Hurricanes have won four in a row, including decisions over Washington and Montreal. Veteran Cam Ward?has been rock-solid in net for Carolina of late and the Hurricanes have the top-ranked PK in the league.21.?(14) Winnipeg Jets, 9-10-2Just when it looked like the Jets were ready to fly, they dropped the opening three games of their road trip. This team is better than its record.22. (19) Toronto Maple Leafs, 8-7-3The Leafs are third in goals per game and 27th in goals against per game. Theyll get better on the latter as the season goes on.23. (20) Philadelphia Flyers, 8-8-3A Flyers team that has lost five of seven now faces a tough, two-game swing through Florida and Tampa this week.24.?(28) Calgary Flames, 8-11-1Has Chad Johnson taken the No. 1 job from Brian Elliott? Johnson has been in net four consecutive games as the Flames have won three of four.25.?(20) Detroit Red Wings, 8-10-1A win over St. Louis on Oct. 27 improved the Wings to 6-2-0 on the season. Theyve since gone 2-8-1, including four straight losses.26.?(24) Colorado Avalanche, 8-9-0There has been so much focus on the Avs open goalie battle, but the real spotlight should be on the fact that Colorado is just 27th in goals per game.27.?(27) Buffalo Sabres, 6-8-4The Sabres showed real life with a shootout win over the Penguins on Saturday night, which snapped a six-game winless streak. Can they feed off that emotion?28.?(29) Vancouver Canucks, 7-10-2The Canucks blew a 3-0 third period lead Saturday night at home to Chicago in a 4-3 OT loss. Oy. The hits keep on coming.29.?(25) New York Islanders,?5-8-4This summer, John Tavares will be one year away from unrestricted free-agent status. He has always maintained that he wants to be an Islander for life. This is just my opinion, but this season needs to turn around in order for him not to challenge that loyalty.30.?(29) Arizona Coyotes, 6-9-2Mike Smith had 43 saves on Saturday night as the Coyotes snapped a four-game winless streak with an OT win over the Sharks. Hayden Hurst Youth Jersey .ca look back at each of the Top 10 stories of 2013. Today, we look back at Boston Strong - a citys recovery from tragedy. Justice Hill Womens Jersey . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. http://www.ravensrookiestore.com/Ravens-Hayden-Hurst-Jersey/ . It was hard for Luck to pull off another comeback, or even get into the end zone, while standing on the sideline. Rivers threw a 22-yard touchdown pass to rookie Keenan Allen and Nick Novak kicked four field goals to give the Chargers a 19-9 victory against the Colts on Monday night. Lamar Jackson Womens Jersey . The team said Saturday that Lopez was hurt during its 121-120 overtime loss at Philadelphia on Friday. The Nets said they would issue another update next week after consultation with their doctors. Hayden Hurst Ravens Jersey . Brazilian national coach Luiz Felipe Scolari has confirmed that the veteran goalkeeper is set to join Toronto on loan, saying it will help him be ready for the World Cup. The campaign to reverse the trend of cuts to youth sports funding is going green.The Sports Matter program run by the DICKS Sporting Goods Foundation has launched a green shoelaces movement. Under the latest all-sports initiative, DICKS will donate $2 from every shoelace sale to Sports Matter. The green shoelaces can be purchased at DICKS stores or online at dicks.com.As I travel around the country, I see more and more young athletes who dont have the means to play, and it breaks my heart, says Super Bowl-winning coach Jon Gruden, now an analyst for ESPN and an ambassador for Sports Matter. The green laces represent more than your average shoelaces. They are a tangible way to raise awareness and start conversation around this crisis, all while raising money for kids who really need it the most.Projections show that 27% of U.S. public high schools might not have any sports programs by 2020, according to Up2Us Sports, a New York-based non-profit. With billions of dollars slashed from youth sports budgets in recent years, DICKS and its foundation have pledged more than $50 million to support teams and raise awareness of the issue. To date, the Sports Matter program has helped nearly 2,000 youth sports teams.Sports helped me get through some tough times in life, and taught me a lot about how to be a man on and off the field, says Texans receiver DeAndre Hopkins. Kids need more chances in life, and I hate to imagine a world where sports arent around to help kids stay out of trouble and succeed.Green shoelace users can sshow their support as well by taking a picture of their casual or athletic shoes or cleats laced up with green shoelaces and use (hash)SaveYouthSports.dddddddddddd You can be sure Vikings receiver Stefon Diggs will make such a fashion statement.Seeing what kids are exposed to nowadays makes the positive influences of coaches and teams more important than ever, Diggs says. The opportunity to play sports is huge in a kids life in so many ways, and not being able to afford joining a team is tragic.Thats why Ill be standing with others who purchase green laces in support of Sports Matter, and proud to wear them during Week 13 on `Thursday Night Football. `DICKS foundation also will use money donated to help raise awareness for and support underfunded youth sports programs.Other athletes involved in the program include Justise Winslow of the Miami Heat, Dexter Fowler of the Chicago Cubs (now a free agent), Isaiah Thomas of the Boston Celtics, and Kemba Walker of the Charlotte Hornets.The initiative also includes a short film profile of the Fifth Ward Saints football organization outside of Houston. It shows the importance of football in the lives of generations of Houston-area kids. At the end of the film, DICKS Foundation donates a $100,000 grant, including new equipment, as a gift.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFLSportsMatter.com/greenlaces ' ' '