Buchstabensuppe History &'nd about us » Portugal are the favourites

UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- Scottie Upshall and the Florida Panthers have had little to celebrate this season. But four unanswered goals to secure a 5-3 win over the New York Islanders was reason enough to savour the moment. Upshall scored twice in the third period as part of the four-goal outburst as the Panthers snapped a four-game losing streak and sent the Islanders to yet another discouraging loss Sunday. Upshalls 11th of the season broke a 3-3 tie at 10:31 of the final period. The goal came on the rebound of shot by Shawn Mattias, who also scored two goals for the Panthers. Upshall tapped the loose puck past backup goaltender Anders Nilsson, who started in place of Evgeni Nabokov. He scored again at 15:26 on the power play to make it 5-3. Tim Thomas made 35 saves for the Panthers (23-31-7). "We came out determined in the third," said the 30-year-old Upshall, a first-round pick by Nashville in 2002 who almost completed a natural hat trick with two minutes left. "We needed a spark and we found it. And we played with an edge." The Islanders entered the third with a 3-1 advantage after Thomas Vanek scored twice in the first and Ryan Strome added a goal late in the second. But Floridas Marcel Goc and Matthias scored early in the third to tie the game at 3 before Upshalls late scores. Vanek opened the scoring at 6:41 with his 20th of the season and added his 21st on the power play at 7:39. The goals were his first since Jan. 25. Vanek was a major acquisition by the Islanders from Buffalo on Oct. 27 and has 17 goals in 47 games for New York. The Austrian left wing said he wants to test free agency this summer. Thus, the Islanders might try to trade him before Wednesdays deadline while they can still garner assets in return. The Islanders lost for the ninth time in 11 games. And it was the 12th time in their disappointing season in which they surrendered a two-goal lead, winning only two of those contests. "We seem to find ways to lose," said Andrew MacDonald, also a pending free agent who could be traded. "Its tough to see games slip away. When you get the lead, you should be able to hold it, most of the time. Its discouraging." MacDonald also addressed the idea he could be leaving the only NHL organization he has known. "I thought about it today, it weighs on your mind," the 27-year-old defenceman said. "You try not to let it get to you." After Matthias scored for Florida to make it 2-1 at 18:15 of the second, Strome restored the two-goal margin for the Islanders 59 seconds later with his second of the season. Gocs 11th of the season at 3:16 of the third came on a 40-foot floater from just inside the left point to make it 3-2 early in the third. Matthias scored his second of the game and ninth of the season at 4:18. The afternoon matchup was chippy from the start. Rival tough guys Krys Barch of the Panthers and the Islanders Eric Boulton squared off 2:25 into the game. Eight seconds later, a skirmish ensued between Brian Strait of the Islanders and Jonathan Huberdeau of Florida. "We didnt quit, we stayed involved," added Matthias. "We played a real gritty game and were glad to get the two points." The Islanders beat Toronto in overtime last Thursday in their first game back following the Olympic break. But they were drubbed 6-1 on Saturday by the New Jersey Devils as Jaromir Jagr scored his 700th career goal. The Islanders played without defenceman Travis Hamonic, suspended one game for instigating a fight near the end of Saturdays loss. NOTES: The Islanders activated forward Frans Nielsen before the game and sent Mike Halmo to AHL Bridgeport. Nielsen, who has 18 goals, suffered a broken hand when he was slashed against Colorado on Feb. 8. ... The Islanders (23-32-8) head out for a four-game Canadian road trip -- Winnipeg, Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver before returning home to face San Jose on March 14. ... The Panthers have played 30 one-goal games this season, with a 12-11-7 mark. ... Florida was without forwards Alex Barkov (knee) and Tomas Kopecky (upper body) while the Islanders also missed forward Matt Martin (lower body). ... Florida scratched captain Ed Jovanovski and forward Scott Gomez. Landon Collins Womens Jersey . The announcement was made by the hall on Friday, March 14. She joins Switzerlands Denise Biellmann as this years inductees to the Hall, based in Colorado Springs, CO. Russ Grimm Womens Jersey . The 10-horse field of 3-year-old pacers will leave the starting gate at approximately 10:14pm et. Co-owned and trained by David Menary, Hes Watching will be driven by Tim Tetrick and is the 5-1 fourth selection in the field. https://www.redskinssportsgoods.com/Wome...nverted-Jersey/. -- Caris LeVert had 14 points and a career-high 11 rebounds for his first career double-double, and No. Alex Smith Womens Jersey . - Urijah (The California Kid) Faber finds himself in an unaccustomed position Saturday night at UFC 175 — on the preliminary card. Sonny Jurgensen Redskins Jersey . - The Baltimore Ravens and tight end Dennis Pitta reached agreement on a five-year contract Friday.The U.S. drew a daunting task for next years World Cup: difficult opponents, tropical venues and a wearying 9,000-mile zigzag journey across Brazil. The Americans wound up with the potentially punishing group they feared and will play Ghana, Portugal and Germany next June as they try to achieve a U.S. first: reaching the knockout phase twice in a row. While Ghana eliminated the Americans in 2006 and 2010, the Black Stars wont do it again. The U.S. opens its seventh straight World Cup appearance against Ghana on June 16 at Natal. The U.S. meets Portugal and 2008 FIFA Player of the Year Cristiano Ronaldo six days later in the Amazon rain forest city Manaus. The Americans have just three off days to recover before closing Group G on June 26 in Recife against three-time champion Germany. "I think we have the quality, if we play our best ball, to get out of the group," U.S. captain Clint Dempsey said after Fridays draw set the eight four-nation groups. "You cant think about, Am I the favourite? Am I the underdog? Whats it going to be like playing in the heat? Whats it going to be like with the travel? Those are factors that come into it, but at the end of the day both teams have to deal with it." After having the shortest group-play travel in South Africa, the U.S. will have the longest in Brazil. The Americans will be based in Sao Paulo and face trips of 1,436 miles to Natal, 1,832 miles to Manaus and 1,321 miles to Recife. They will play all three games in the tropics, with the second and third matches in the afternoon. "I think guys who have played in MLS are used to taking 3,000-mile trips across the country to play," midfielder Sacha Kljestan said. The U.S. group has the best average FIFA world ranking. Odds on the Americans winning their first World Cup more than doubled after the draw, from 60-1 to 150-1. "Its definitely one of the tougher groups, if not the toughest, but at the same time, this is what the World Cups all about. You go there to play against the best," American forward Jozy Altidore said during a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "I think the boys will be excited, will be up for it." U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann, who replaced Bob Bradley 2 1/2 years ago, played for Germanys 1990 World Cup championship team and coached his native country to third place at home in the 2006 tournament, commuting to Europe from his California house in Orange County. "It couldnt get any more difficult or any bigger," he said at the draw in Costa do Sauipe, Brazil. "Its a real challenge. And well take it. Well take it on, and hopefully were going to surprise some people there." The U.S. and South Korea were the last remaining teams in draw pot three. While the Americans landed in a group with an average FIFA ranking of 11.25, South Korea wound uup in Group H, creating a group with the poorest average at 28.dddddddddddd25. "I think the teams mentality is that we can go and play with anybody," American defender Matt Besler said. "Now were going to have to prove it." Germany beat the U.S. 2-0 in its 1998 World Cup opener in Paris -- with Klinsmann setting up the first goal and scoring the second -- then edged the Americans 1-0 on a controversial goal in the 2002 quarterfinal in South Korea. Die Mannschaft is coached by Klinsmanns former assistant, Joachim Loew. The Americans beat a second-tier German roster 4-3 in a June exhibition at Washington. "With Jurgen Klinsmann, they have another mentality," Loew said. "I learned a lot from Jurgen, so this is special." Ranked 14th in the world, the U.S. has alternated quick exits with advancement since returning to soccers showcase in 1990 after a 40-year absence. After the draw four years ago, one British paper used a headline "EASY" for England, Algeria, Slovenia and the Yanks, and The Sun called it the "best English group since the Beatles." The Americans wound up atop a group for the first time since the first World Cup in 1930, and England advanced as the second-place nation. This time, second-ranked Germany and fifth-ranked Portugal are the favourites to reach the second round. If the U.S. qualifies for the round of 16, it would face Belgium, Russia, Algeria or South Korea from Group H. As for the rest of the field, Brazil, Cameroon, Croatia, Mexico were put in Group A; Australia, Chile, Netherlands and Spain in Group B; Colombia, Greece, Ivory Coast and Japan in Group C; Costa Rica, England, Italy and Uruguay in Group D; Ecuador, France, Honduras and Switzerland in Group E; and Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iran and Nigeria in Group F. The U.S. will feel pressure to open with a win against 24th-ranked Ghana. The Black Stars defeated the Americans 2-1 in the 2006 group stage and by the same score in overtime in the round of 16 at the last World Cup in South Africa. "Theyre the team that beat us, kind of crushed our dreams of being in the World Cup, so I think were due a little bit of luck and were due a win against them," Dempsey said. At the 2002 tournament, the U.S. opened with a 3-2 upset of Portugal after taking a shocking three-goal lead in the first 36 minutes. Several of the American players are of German descent, so all three matchups are intriguing. The U.S. will train at home from mid-May until early June and plans a series of exhibition games, which likely will include England as an opponent, before heading to Brazil. "Everybody is saying that this is the Group of Death and its such a hard challenge," former American captain John Harkes said. "I still think that the U.S. can rise to the occasion." ' ' '