Die Allianz T-D-P » Almost nobody has. Opponents are hitting

PITTSBURGH -- Sidney Crosbys mini-vacation after the latest triumph in his remarkable career lasted all of four days.Sorry, but the process of defending a Stanley Cup waits for no one. So there Crosby was on Tuesday skating in line rushes with the rest of his Pittsburgh Penguins teammates just five days removed from leading Team Canada to the World Cup of Hockey title as the tournaments MVP.And no, Crosby wasnt about to complain about being tired. Thats simply not his way. Besides, his electric performance during the World Cup offered plenty of proof hes fresh as the Penguins look to become the first team since the 1998 Detroit Red Wings to repeat as Cup champions.When youre playing a lot of hockey its more comfortable, Crosby said. You just have to balance rest and recovery and making sure youre ready to play.Crosby certainly looked ready while piling up 10 points during Canadas clinical domination of the eight-team tournament that featured the worlds best players. He was a unanimous selection as tournament MVP just a few months removed from being named the Conn Smythe Trophy winner after guiding the Penguins to their fourth championship.Theres no danger of burnout, however. Crosby is a rink rat in the best sense. The Penguins were certainly happy to have his familiar No. 87 on the ice, allowing coach Mike Sullivan to work extensively on special teams for the first time during camp.Thats just fine by Crosby, who is well aware of the challenge that awaits the Penguins after they visit the White House on Thursday and raise the Cup banner to the rafters at newly renamed PPG Paints Arena during the season opener next Thursday against Washington.Theres a reason why it hasnt been done for a long time, Crosby said. Everyone wants to beat you. Everyone wants to measure themselves against you.The last time Pittsburgh tried to go back-to-back the Penguins didnt make it out of the second round of the playoffs in 2010. Five sometimes turbulent years for the franchise and its star followed before Sullivans arrival last December and a commitment by management to provide needed depth galvanized Pittsburgh last spring, leading a sprint through the postseason that ended with Crosby taking the Cup from commissioner Gary Bettman for a second time.The Penguins did little to tinker with their personnel during the offseason, which should only aid Crosby as he gets up to speed.It shouldnt take long to adjust or adapt, Crosby said. Playing kind of long into last year, that intensity, that desperation that you finish the season off, you hopefully can kind of carry that off to the start of this season. Eric Oelschlagel Dortmund Jersey . Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the Carolina Hurricanes, announced Wednesday that the team would assign Swedish forward Elias Lindholm to his nations team for the upcoming tournament. Sebastian Rode Jersey . -- The Bishops Gaiters are showing they belong among the countrys top varsity football teams. http://www.footballdortmundpro.com/Kids-Jacob-Bruun-Larsen-Jersey/ . -- Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Alrdridge were again the go-to duo for the Trail Blazers against the Kings. Mahmoud Dahoud Jersey . According to a report from the Winnipeg Free Press, the Bombers will name Acting GM Kyle Walters to the post full time. Sergio Gomez Dortmund Jersey . "Trying to breathe," he said with a grin. Bernier stopped 42 of 43 shots on Monday night, including all 22 in a hectic middle frame, his heroic performance propelling the Leafs toward an undue point in their final game before the Christmas break. CLEVELAND -- The guy who has spent the last three months possibly redefining what it means to be a closer remains in awe of the guy who took his job this spring.Sorry, Andrew Miller cant help it. Aroldis Chapmans stuff is so electric, its impossible to turn away.I love watching him pitch, Miller said. I dont change the channel when hes on TV.At the moment, his view is even better. The Cleveland Indians reliever can just glance over at the Chicago Cubs bullpen during the World Series to get his fix of Chapmans seemingly endless stream of triple-digit fastballs.Theres a perception that its easy for him because hes such an outlier, Miller said. But hes got a tremendous work ethic and in the way he goes about getting himself prepared.Miller would know. They were in the bullpen together for 2+ months with the New York Yankees this season. New York acquired Chapman last December, and the Cuban left-hander bumped Miller to a setup role when he returned from a domestic violence suspension in May. Miller had tied for second in the AL with 36 saves the year before.The experiment lasted until the trade deadline. Treading water in late July, the Yankees sent Chapman to the Cubs and Miller to the Indians in exchange for prospects while committing to a full rebuild.Three months later, the two players who began the season trying to help the Yankees win a 28th World Series title find themselves playing vital roles on teams that have combined for a small fraction of that number (four). Miller and the Indians can clinch the clubs first championship since 1948 on Tuesday night in Game 6, while Chapman and the Cubs are hoping for a chance to send it to a deciding Game 7 as Chicago tries to end a 108-year drought.On the surface, Miller and Chapman could be carbon copies of each other: hard-throwing lefties who overwhelm batters with power. The reality is a bit more complex thanks in large part to the unorthodox way Cleveland manager Terry Francona deploys Miller.In an era of clearly defined bullpen roles, Francona uses Miller as a 6-foot-7 piece of duct tape. Sometimes, the seventh inning needs to be patched up. Sometimes the eighth. Sometimes the sixth. Sometimes, all three. And Miller, a former first-round pick who spent the first half of his career trying to make it as a starter before the Boston Red Sox gave up and converted him into a reliever in 2012, has responded by putting together one of the most ddominant postseason runs ever.ddddddddddddNine times during the playoffs, Miller has jogged to the mound. The Indians are undefeated in those nine games. Its not a coincidence. Hes entered as early as the fifth and as late as the eighth, recording at least four outs in every appearance. His numbers -- 2-0 with a save and a 0.36 ERA, striking out 39 against just five walks -- look like a typo or something out of a video game where fatigue has been turned off.Theyre not.Andrews the model of just pitch whenever, Francona said. The kids unbelievable.Even Miller is having a hard time describing the run hes on, one fueled by a nearly unhittable slider that forces batters like Chicago first baseman Anthony Rizzo to play the baseball version of the lottery every time they swing.You just hope you pick the right lane, Rizzo said.Almost nobody has. Opponents are hitting .140 against Miller, who doesnt seem to tire whether hes throwing 17 pitches or 37. He attributes his elasticity to the gadgetry Clevelands training staff uses to keep him fresh and the survival instincts honed from the days when he was simply clinging to a spot on a major league roster.Its not something you offer, its something you have to have, he said. If youre not flexible, youre not going to have a spot in the big leagues.Besides, as Miller points out, theres very few closers who become closers right away and fall into that routine.Meaning closers like Chapman, who took over the job in Cincinnati in 2012 and proceeded to make four straight All-Star teams. The 28-year-old is a meticulous creature of habit, so used to being used in the ninth inning -- and almost exclusively the ninth inning -- that Cubs manager Joe Maddon checked with Chapman before Game 5 about entering earlier.The call ended up coming with one out in the seventh and Chicago up a run. Chapman responded by allowing just one hit over 2 2/3 innings to preserve a 3-2 victory and pick up his fourth save of the playoffs. The way Chapman went about his business, it was almost Miller-esque.That was impressive, Francona said. I mean, kind of like what Andrews done, he kind of did the same thing.Its a performance the Cubs would love to see a couple more times.I like our chances when hes in the game, Cubs catcher David Ross said. Hes a presence. ' ' '