of Devils coach Pete DeBoer, hired by the Le

VANCOUVER -- The Vancouver Whitecaps havent had any difficulty getting up for big games this season, and Sundays performance against one of the top clubs in Major League Soccer was no different. Darren Mattocks scored for the fourth time in the last five games after Vancouver was gifted an own goal as the Whitecaps defeated Sporting Kansas City 2-0. "Its good win for us against a very good team," said Whitecaps head coach Carl Robinson. "It was a good test for us -- a test that we managed to overcome. I believed we could win the game if we did things right." Vancouver (7-4-11) was on the front foot against the defending MLS champions from the start to hand Kansas City (11-6-6) its first loss in MLS since May 31. "I think we managed the game," said Mattocks, who saw his penalty saved in the 85th minute. "Theres going to be games where were going to need to win 1-0 on the road or at home. "We should have got a third or even a fourth (goal) in the second half, but three points, well take it." Vancouver came in just 1-2-6 over its last nine -- including four straight ties -- and won for the first time since July 5. The Whitecaps were in desperate need of Sundays victory with all of the teams around them picking up points in the Western Conference standings. "I watched all the games yesterday and I was pig sick if I was honest," said Robinson. "Every game that I seemed to watch, the result I wanted to go our way didnt go our way, but as Ive said all along its not what other teams do. Its what we do." David Ousted was rarely tested in Vancouvers goal on the way to picking up his second straight clean sheet as the Whitecaps moved back into a playoff spot. "It is definitely crunch time right now. We need to keep winning like we did today to keep up," said Ousted, who now has six shutouts on the year. "This was a good start, but the work doesnt stop here. " The Whitecaps have victories in rivalry games against the Seattle Sounders and Portland Timbers this season, and added a win over the top team in the Eastern Conference with Sundays performance at B.C. Place Stadium. What they need to do now is produce similar results against some of the leagues lesser lights, starting next week at Chivas USA. "Were not actually far away," said Robinson. "I keep saying were that close but were that far ... the potentials there, it really is." The Whitecaps took the lead in the 17th minute on Sunday when Kansas City defender Igor Juliao and goalkeeper Andy Gruenebaum got their signals crossed after Vancouvers Pedro Morales lofted a long ball towards goal. Juliao tried to head a pass back towards Gruenebaum, but it instead dribbled over the line for a 1-0 lead. "It was just a miscommunication between the fullback and the goalkeeper, but well take it," said Robinson. "We did get lucky on the first goal but take that out of it (and) I think we thoroughly deserved the victory. "It was good performance against a top team." Vancouver doubled the advantage in the 30th minute when Morales and Mattocks pounced on a Kansas City turnover in midfield and broke back the other way. Morales drew a defender towards him before squaring the ball to Mattocks, who made no mistake in slotting a low shot past a helpless Gruenebaum for his sixth of the season. It could have been 3-0 in first-half stoppage time, but Vancouvers Sebastian Fernandez saw his effort cleared off the line by Kansas City defender Aurelien Collin. The Whitecaps -- who entered play with just six goals in their last eight games -- had a few other great chances that also went begging in the opening 45 minutes, including a pair from Mattocks. "Darren was fantastic for me today. He scored a goal, he missed two or three other chances in the first half and he missed a penalty, but we won," said Robinson. "Darrens a player that I want to grow with. Hes got potential to go as far as I believe he can, but its not going to happen over night." Sporting sits first in the East and had won five straight road games, one short of the MLS record during the non-shootout era, but were on their heels from the opening whistle as Vancouver controlled the midfield for long stretches. The visitors replaced Gruenebaum with Jon Kempin in goal to start the second half, and had a good chance in the 46th minute when Jacob Peterson tested Ousted with a stinging shot. Morales had a half chance from outside the Kansas City area in the 62nd minute before Collin headed wide at the other end a few moments later off a corner kick. Whitecaps defenders Johnny Leveron and Jordan Harvey almost linked up for another opportunity off a Vancouver corner in the 70th, but Kansas City survived to keep the score at 2-0 before Kempin stopped Mattocks late penalty. "The most important thing is we got three points against a very good K.C. team," said Mattocks. "For us to get a clean sheet, hats off to the guys at the back and David in goal. To get three points, two goals, its a very big achievement for us." Notes: The game marked Vancouvers first-ever victory over Kansas City in five all-time meetings. ... Morales picked up his ninth assist of the season to tie a club record. ... Vancouver defender Andy OBrien played his first game since June 25. ... Collin, Matt Besler, Graham Zusi and striker Dom Dwyer all represented Sporting in Wednesdays MLS all-star game against Bayern Munich. ... Kansas City hosts Toronto FC next Saturday. ... Attendance was 20,183. Ecco Scarpe Scontate . -- Kole Calhoun homered and drove in three runs, Albert Pujols also went deep and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Chicago White Sox 8-4 Friday night. Ecco Scarpe Saldi . Hes still nowhere close to throwing yet. The four-time MVP was in good spirits when he made his first public appearance on the field since having neck surgery Sept. http://www.eccooutlet.it/. And while taking highly-touted Simon Fraser offensive lineman Matthias Goossen second overall on Tuesday night will definitely help in an area of need for the club, it was a swap of draft picks that may prove to be his most shrewd move. "When Jesse Briggs started to fall a little bit, you could just see Kyle perk up in his chair. Ecco Scontate Outlet . Murakami gracefully executed a double triple toe jump and a triple flip jump that put her at the top of a tightly contested race with 64.73 points, just ahead of Li Zijun of China on 62. Ecco Outlet Online .com) - The Boston Bruins announced Monday that the team has signed goaltender Niklas Svedberg to a one-year contract.LONDON, ONT – For Brad Ross, it was quite the adjustment. A second round draft pick in 2010, Ross was still cooking from a year that saw him score 42 times, adding 12 more in the playoffs for the WHLs Portland Winterhawks. But there with the Toronto Marlies in the fall of 2012, Ross, a rookie, was on the outside of a veteran squad peering in. "It wasnt too good to be honest," he said of his introduction to pro hockey during a conversation with TSN.ca. "The games that I would get in I would only play four or five shifts so its hard to really improve doing that. "But its hard to talk to the coach and be like Look I want to play when you have Matt Frattin, Kadri, all those guys down [in the AHL]." Ross tiptoed in and out of the lineup for 40 games, scoring only eight goals, and even spent a bit of time in the ECHL. This year promises to be different for Ross and a barrage of other top Leaf prospects though with the once potent and veteran Marlies veering in a youthful direction. Gone are a cast of mainstays who helped the club to a Calder Cup final two years ago, among them captain Ryan Hamilton, Mike Zigomanis, Will Acton, Greg Scott and the man who led the resurgence, Dallas Eakins. His replacement behind the bench, Steve Spott, will focus on the development of a youth-infused group. "And thats why Im excited about it," said Spott with enthusiasm, "because were going to see the progression." The head man in Kitchener for the past five seasons, Spott has a track record of cultivating young talent, a challenge hes prepared to take on at the next level in Toronto. "I dont have a lot of ready-made guys," he said of the roster hell guide with the Marlies. "Ive got guys that Im going to have to work with and develop along with Gord [Dineen] and with Derek [King] to get them ready to play in the next step. I take a lot of pride in that challenge. Its going to be a lot of video, a lot of teaching and something that we pride ourselves in, but ultimately, yeah, theres not a lot of ready-made products we have with our team." The Marlies will be built on the foundations of those looking to rise up to the next level of their respective careers. There will be the likes of Jerry DAmigo and Carter Ashton, aiming for the NHL stage and those like Ross, Greg McKegg, Tyler Bigggs, Stuart Percy, Josh Leivo, David Broll, and Petter Granberg, trying to assert their place on the still new stage of the American League.dddddddddddd An offensive star in junior, McKegg waded uncomfortably in his first year with the Marlies, gaining some steam late in the season. Training camp last fall brought with it a loaded roster, NHL talent in the form of Frattin, Nazem Kadri and Jake Gardiner lingering because of the lockout. The results saw McKegg, among others, dangling on a tight rope of sorts. "Even if you make a mistake in junior youre used to going right back out the next shift and that wasnt the case when we turned pro last year," he told TSN.ca, noting the constant worry of tripping up with mistakes. "I was a lot more nervous last year," added Ross, who hopes to rediscover the feisty offensive game which made him successful with the Winterhawks. "With the lockout it was so tough to get a spot." Each player will, in many ways, represent a project for Spott and his staff, an opportunity to shape individuals through their habits on and off the ice and "transform them into becoming day-to-day professional players." "I think thats maybe a big reason why Im here," said Spott, a longtime protégé of Devils coach Pete DeBoer, hired by the Leafs organization in early July. "…the pride in the development and making sure the players, once they have a chance to play, that theyre complete players. When you look at the Skinners, and the Landeskogs and the Roys, those guys we took a lot of pride in developing them the right way." For Percy, a first round pick in 2011 who thrived in Mississauga last season, that process involves "putting the pressure on himself to become an elite player". For Biggs, selected three picks before Percy that same year, its "playing with that passion every night", Spott stressing the physical elements required of the 6-3 winger. Leivo, a power winger who drew acclaim from Leafs brass for his goal-scoring efforts last season, will be equally tested under Spott, having spent 39 games under him in Kitchener. "The training, the nutrition side of the game, thats all going to be new to him," Spott said. "Those are the types of projects individually were excited about." ' ' '