Jake Muzzin due to upper-body injuries, a

Jan Laco did everything he could. The unheralded Slovakian goaltender turned aside everything he saw. A Kontintenal Hockey League backup, he looked fearless in the face of the Russians high-powered offence. But his teammates couldnt solve Russian counterpart Semyon Varlamov. Alexander Radulov and Ilya Kovalchuk scored the only shootout goals after a scoreless deadlock, Varlamov provided 27 saves and Team Russia edged Slovakia 1-0 in Group A action on Sunday in the 2014 Sochi Olympics at Bolshoy Ice Dome. "Thats every game here. Its very intense," Kovalchuk said. "Even if you play against Slovenia or the USA, or today against Slovakia, it doesnt matter. We couldnt find a way how to score, but we found a way to win." With one win, one overtime win and one overtime loss in the preliminary round, Russia will have to play a qualifying elimination game against Norway to reach the quarter-finals. Slovakia (0-3) finished last in its group with one point. Laco, getting the call in place of star St. Louis Blues goalie Jaroslav Halak, was brilliant in stopping 36 Russian shots – the only blemishes being in the shootout. Alex Ovechkin thought he had an open net to end the game in overtime, but the Capitals forward was blocked on a spectacular sprawling stop by Slovakian defender Andrej Meszaros, who came to the aid of the 32-year-old Slovakian goalie. "It mattered to us," Meszaros said. "We wanted to prove to ourselves we could play better hockey than we showed in the first two games. I think we showed everybody that we can play with anybody." The home side re-established its momentum in the third period by outshooting the Slovaks 15-2 and drawing four straight penalties, failing to convert on any of them. The Russians, fresh off a thrilling 3-2 shootout loss to the Americans, appeared to have finally solved Laco in the third on a power play, off a deflected point shot by Yevgeni Medvedev. The puck beat the Slovakian netminder, but caromed off the crossbar and post to stay out of the net. The early half of the second period featured a defensive battle, with both sides smothering one another and not allowing many chances. Russia couldnt convert on either of its power-play opportunities of the frame, but the pace picked up significantly in the latter half of the period. Laco looked calm as can be in fending off the Russian attack. His glove side was seemingly unbeatable at times and he was able to spot the puck through traffic to make some difficult stops. One of his best came early in the second period on Pittsburgh Penguins sniper Evgeni Malkin, who had a great chance taken away by Lacos acrobatics. Not many goalies can say this, but Laco seemed to have Malkins number in this tilt. Known for having one of the quickest snap shots in the NHL, Malkin recovered a loose puck late in the period, turned and fired. Laco was quicker. He calmly turned aside the chance to keep things scoreless. But Varlamov was not to be outdone. He was lightning fast and sharp in denying chance after chance by the Slovaks. The Russians had a scare involving one of their top snipers Ilya Kovalchuk. At 9:17 of the second period, the former New Jersey Devil got tangled up with Richard Panik, went down awkwardly and appeared to be favouring his leg or ankle. He left the game but would later return. Slovakia lost the bronze-medal match to Finland in 2010 while the Russians finished a disappointing sixth. Russia is trying to duplicate what Canada was able to do four years ago in winning Olympic gold on home soil. Wholesale Pirates Jerseys . In the days leading up to the draft, TSN.ca and TSN Radio basketball analyst Duane Watson looks at some of the names that will be headlining the event. Tonight, Michigans Nik Stauskas of Mississauga, Ontario. Cheap Kent Tekulve Jersey . Phoenix got injured centre Emeka Okafor and a top-12-protected first-round draft pick in 2014 -- giving the rebuilding Suns potentially four choices in the opening round. The Suns also sent guards Kendall Marshall, Shannon Brown and Malcolm Lee to Washington so the deal will work financially. http://www.cheappiratesjerseys.com/ . Icardi is living with the ex-wife of former teammate Maxi Lopez, and the Sampdoria forward refused to shake Icardis hand before kickoff. Walter Samuel and Rodrigo Palacio also scored for Inter while Lopez had a penalty saved. Cheap Pirates Jerseys China . PAUL, Minn. Cheap Willie Stargell Jersey . Louis Blues were workmanlike, methodical and -- most of all -- effective on Monday night.The Los Angeles Kings hope to avoid a third straight setback to begin the season on Sunday night as they kick off a six-game homestand against the Winnipeg Jets. The defending Stanley Cup champions have had a tough go early on. The Kings were shut out at home by San Jose 4-0 on Wednesday and then suffered a 3-2 overtime setback to Arizona on Saturday night. Tyler Toffoli, who had an assist, took a hooking penalty with 1:19 to play in overtime and Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson was able to cash in as his drive from the right wing beat a screened Jonathan Quick with 14 seconds on the clock. Tanner Pearson and Jeff Carter lit the lamp for the Kings, while Quick took the loss despite turning away 37 pucks. They took advantage of their opportunities in the first period and the second period they played strong, said Los Angeles head coach Darryl Sutter. The third period I thought there was a lot more back and forth. Los Angeles, which played without forward Trevor Lewis and defenseman Jake Muzzin due to upper-body injuries, are again off to a slow start following a championship. The Kings began defense of their title in 2012-13 with an 0-2-1 mark. L.A. will try to avoid matching that sttart as it hosts a Winnipeg team that has split the first two of a three-game road trip to open the campaign.dddddddddddd Viewers in the Jets region can watch the game on TSN3 starting at 8:30pm mt/6:30pm pt. The Jets rolled past the Coyotes 6-2 on Thursday, but like the Kings they failed to get any offense going against the Sharks, losing 3-0 on Saturday night in San Jose. The Sharks Alex Stalock made 30 saves, while Jets netminder Ondrej Pavelec gave up all three goals on 26 shots faced. Winnipeg was short handed eight times in the game, though it did not allow San Jose to score on the power play, and saw defenseman Dustin Byfuglien get a game misconduct at 10:24 of the third as he slammed his stick on the way to the penalty box after a call. There was some frustration that got built over the first 30 minutes, but we cant spend so much time in the penalty box, Jets head coach Paul Maurice said. Winnipeg will conclude its road trip without forward Evander Kane, who suffered a knee injury in the season opener, and begins a five-game homestand on Friday. The Kings won two of three versus the Jets last season, including a 4-2 decision in the lone encounter in Los Angeles. 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