struggling to find linemates for Crosby -- appears to be a thing of the past. The line has looked unreal.I think the chemistry clicked right away, the three of us from day one, said Bergeron. Im just tr

DETROIT -- Mikael Backlund and the Calgary Flames got their six-game road trip started in the best way possible.Backlund scored the tiebreaking goal with 7:46 left in the third period to give Calgary a 3-2 victory over the slumping Detroit Red Wings on Sunday night.This is huge, because were looking at these six games almost like a playoff series, said Flames defenseman Dougie Hamilton, who had three assists. We know we have to pick up some wins on this trip, and this is a good start.Garnet Hathaway got his first career goal and Matt Stajan also scored for Calgary. Chad Johnson stopped 21 shots.I thought this was a very even game, but we did a nice job of capitalizing on our chances, Flames coach Glen Gulutzan said. We didnt lose any momentum coming out of the Chicago game, where we played very well in a loss.Tomas Tatar and Anthony Mantha scored for Detroit, which lost its fourth straight game. Jimmy Howard made 23 saves.I think we gave them their chances. I think from the start, a few turnovers in our own end, all of a sudden they end up spending a minute, minute and a half in our end instead of making a simple play and move the play out to the neutral zone, Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg said.Backlund broke a 2-all tie when he slammed Michael Froliks pass from the left circle past Howard and into the open side of the net for his second goal.We better pick ourselves up and we better come to work tomorrow to get better, Detroit coach Jeff Blashill said. And we better put the work in that it takes to earn confidence come Wednesday (at Buffalo). Thats the bottom line. We better pick ourselves up in a hurry and focus on coming to win a hockey game on Wednesday.Mantha tied it 2-all 7:59 into the third with his first of the season. He put a snap shot under the crossbar on the short side after bringing the puck out from behind the net.Stajan gave the Flames a 2-1 lead at 2:31 of the third with his first goal of the season. He tipped in Hamiltons slap shot from the right point.Hathaway tied it 1-all at 3:40 of the second. Hathaway, who was beside the net and battling with a Red Wings player, got the shaft of his stick on a high shot by Hamilton from the top of the right circle and deflected it into the empty side of the net.Thats an amazing feeling. I saw Fer (Micheal Ferland) get the puck to Dougie, so I went to the net, Hathaway said. It was an odd play, because Howard was still flailing around, so I wasnt sure if he had the puck or if it had gone in. Ill probably tell people that I sniped it -- that sounds a lot better. Weve still got five more road games, so it is big to get this one and get some momentum.Tatar gave Detroit a 1-0 lead 8:06 into the game. He blindly slid a puck toward the net from the high slot that beat Johnson. It was Tatars third goal and only his second in 14 games.Howard was forced to make a couple of saves in close after Red Wings giveaways deep in their zone.Detroit defenseman Alexey Marchenko left with an upper-body injury after taking a hit from Ferland with a little less than 5:30 left in the second period. Blashill said Marchenko will likely be out a little while and the team would have more information Monday.Game notesDetroit LW Thomas Vanek returned after missing 11 games with a hip injury. The Red Wings were 3-7-1 without Vanek and averaged under two goals per game. He had four goals and eight points in seven games. ... Calgary forward Johnny Gaudreau missed his second game after sustaining a broken finger on a slash by Minnesota C Eric Staal. Gaudreau will miss six to eight weeks. ... Red Wings C Darren Helm missed his second game after dislocating his shoulder. He also will be out six to eight weeks.UP NEXTFlames: Visit the Buffalo Sabres on Monday night.Red Wings: Visit the Sabres on Wednesday night.Joe Harris Jersey . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Chris Morris Jersey . LOUIS -- Rookie Tavon Austin has missed another day of practice, lessening the odds hell be ready for the St. https://www.cheapnetsonline.com/ . "Jeff is a hard worker who was an important special-teams contributor for us last season," said Stamps GM John Hufnagel. Rodions Kurucs Jersey . -- Peyton Manning will have all of his wide receivers available for the first time in a month when the Denver Broncos begin their playoff run Jan. Fake Nets Jerseys . -- Most satisfying to Russ Smith about No.TORONTO -- It was only 10 months ago when people were openly questioning?Sidney Crosbys status as the best player in the NHL.A slow start to last season opened the door for a narrative that now seems so ridiculous -- that at 28 years old, perhaps the Pittsburgh Penguins superstar had begun his descent from owning the sport.Hockeys a young mans game, the refrain went, and perhaps he has passed his peak.Or perhaps not.I think people can put that all to rest, Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky said with a hearty laugh Sunday morning. Hes proven over and over that hes the best player in the game today. And it seems like the more important the game, the more impact that he makes on a game. Hes a tremendous player, and great leaders are the guys who come through in the clutch -- and he comes through in the clutch quite a bit.Fresh off owning the Stanley Cup playoffs and picking up the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, Crosby -- who turned 29 last month -- went to work Saturday night in Canadas World Cup opener and absolutely willed the Czech Republic into submission with a three-point, plus-4 performance that was as impactful at both ends of the ice.Hes an unbelievable player. Hes a world-class player for a reason, said Team Canada netminder Carey Price after the 6-0 crush job of the Czechs. He plays the game hard. He plays the game with a lot of pride. Thats the type of player that if youre a young kid watching how to play hockey, thats the way you do it. Thats all I have to say about that.Everyone will remember his play leading to three goals on this night, including his beauty of a bank shot to open the scoring. But for me, his first-period back check -- in which Crosby thwarted a Czech breakaway -- was just as memorable.That back check he had. ... For me, that was his best play of the night, which is pretty crazy because he made so many great plays, Team Canada forward Matt Duchene said Sunday. Hes not a guy who wins Selke Trophies, but he easily could be. I think that part of his game kind of goes under the radar.Just three months ago, Joe Thornton, Brent Burns and Marc-Edouard Vlasic of the San Jose Sharks were slashing and cross-checking away on No. 87 in a Cup finals that went Crosbys way in six games.On Saturday night, Crosby set up both Thornton and Burns for goals, and his backhand pass across to Jumbo Joe was absolutely sick.He was great. He was a leader, Burns said of Crosby after the game. Hes the best player in the world and he dominated tonight. That line was great, they were buzzing, they were working. Not just offensively, but defensively too. I mean, you have to do that to be the best in the world and thats why he is.Crosbys three-point output in the opener matched his entire production in six games during the Olympics in Sochi.Well, lets not get carried away.dddddddddddd He was a star in Sochi. He was a star in Vancouver, said Team Canada head coach Mike Babcock after Saturdays win. What you saw tonight, though, is that he got points. I mean, everyone likes to get points.Canada had a whole different approach on the bigger ice in Sochi, where it focused on a defensive philosophy that was meant to keep the puck away from its opponents and play a low-risk game. Crosby was just as effective doing that too, which is what Babcock is saying when referencing that a player cant just be judged on offensive contributions.That two-way, monster game is also why Crosby deservedly won the Conn Smythe this past spring.Because of that very short summer and the intense minutes he played on the way to winning his second Cup that one wondered perhaps if fatigue would be a factor for Crosby at the World Cup. Instead, its as if he just kept his season going from June, and Saturday night was Game No. 25 of his postseason.I feel good, said Crosby. The fact that I played late into June and then stepped into this level, I think that helps kind of with adjusting. I think finding chemistry with us as a line really has helped. But with our team weve got so much speed, so much depth, that if we get things rolling everyone kind of helps each other.His line with Patrice Bergeron and Brad Marchand has been a thing of beauty since the first day of camp. Babcock decided months?ago, after the roster was completed, that he would put those three together.That old storyline from back-to-back Olympics -- of Babcock struggling to find linemates for Crosby -- appears to be a thing of the past. The line has looked unreal.I think the chemistry clicked right away, the three of us from day one, said Bergeron. Im just trying to read off what hes going to do, and hes usually always a step ahead of everyone, so its about reading that, and making sure Im in position to help him.For Crosby, this is a chance to add one more title to a trophy cabinet busting out. Theres still lots of hockey to be played, but a World Cup of Hockey championship would fit in nicely with his world junior gold, mens world championship gold, Olympic gold and Stanley Cup titles. The final check mark, if you will.And about that slump last fall?Everybody has a bad stretch in your career where you go 10 or 15 or 20 games where, for whatever reason, you dont have that extra gear, Gretzky said. But the good players battle through it and come out on top even better. Hes played a lot of hockey over the past years, and that can add up mentally and physically. It can take a toll. But hes got a lot of hockey left ahead of him and hell be fine. ' ' '