Talk » rio. Forced onto crutches and glued to a whole lot of Appl

MONTREAL -- The Montreal Canadiens shored up their back end by acquiring veteran defenceman Mike Weaver from the Florida Panthers for a fifth-round pick in the 2015 draft. Weaver, 35, has six assists in 55 games this season but is more known for his defensive prowess. In the past, Weaver has been considered something of a specialist against Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals. "If I stay out of the paper, Im doing my job," he said jokingly, as quoted by the Canadiens official website. "Im not a guy whos going to score a lot of points but I do the little things like block shots and penalty killing is my specialty. Id rather block a shot than score a goal so I guess you could say Im a goalies best friend back there." As the Panthers make moves for next season and beyond, general manager Dale Tallon was more than willing to give Weaver a shot to go to the Canadiens. "Were just looking to the future. Montreal was in need of a solid defensive defenceman, and we felt that it was a good thing for Mike Weaver to get into the playoff picture and have a good opportunity to win with Montreal," Tallon said on a conference call Tuesday night. "Hes a great warrior, played his rear end off for us every night, blocked, shots, killed penalties, so I wish him well." Weaver has played in 585 career NHL games with the Panthers, Atlanta Thrashers, Los Angeles Kings, Vancouver Canucks and St. Louis Blues. This is the first time he has been traded. Its the second year in a row the Habs went for defensive depth at the blue-line. They traded a fifth-rounder last year to the Kings for Davis Drewiskie, who played nine games for Montreal to finish out the 2013 season. Weaver is in the final season of a US$2.2-million, two-year deal. He is set to be an unrestricted free agent July 1. Steve Howe Dodgers Jersey . 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But qualifying for her first Scotties Tournament of Hearts after years of falling short in tough Manitoba provincial championships is as good as consolation prizes get for the 29-year-old from Winnipegs Fort Rouge Curling Club. Los Angeles Dodgers Gear . Pierre last November, only to watch St. Pierre leave the UFC octagon with his welterweight title belt and a split-decision victory.TORONTO – Dave Bolland repeated himself to hammer home the point. "Fifty-fifty," he said of his odds to return before the Olympic break. "Fifty-fifty." Bolland, who took part in his first full practice Friday since returning to the ice, continues to inch back toward a return from a severed left ankle tendon, one that has kept him out of the Toronto lineup since Nov. 2 – a stretch of 41 games and counting. Whether he returns before the Leafs conclude their pre-Olympic schedule – they have four games left – is a matter of some uncertainty and will depend entirely on the state of his recovery. "Im not going to get back into it if Im not ready," said Bolland, joining the team for a brief 35-minute skate. "Theres no point in me getting back into it if Im not ready ... I dont want to be back in there and take a minus and be a liability out there. I want to be back and be 100 per cent." Bolland seemed to hint toward a target of Feb. 8, the teams final game before the Olympic break, giving him an opportunity to test the recovered area in a string of practices before potentially returning. "Well see," he said. "If Im ready then Im ready. If I feel that I can contribute out there in that last game. If not, then Ill take those two weeks to get back into it." "Theres no rush," added Leafs assistant GM Claude Loiselle.dddddddddddd "You always hope that you can get a player like that back [sooner]. "But to get back sooner when youre not ready is the wrong thing to do." Describing the rehab as "grueling" recently, the three-month recovery process has not been easy for the native of nearby Mimico, Ontario. Forced onto crutches and glued to a whole lot of Apple TV for a month after the injury, Bolland began skating in mid-January, joining the team for the first time earlier this week. A two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Chicago Blackhawks, he was arguably Torontos best skater in October, totaling six goals and 10 points in 15 games. Winners of eight of their past 10, the Leafs will be mindful of not rushing him back, especially with the upcoming two-week layoff. "Its a long process coming back from an injury like that," said Joffrey Lupul. "I dont think anything is going to happen overnight, but yeah he looks good out there. I think for him its probably just increasing the workload a little bit every day. And its certainly not something you want to rush, especially with a couple weeks off here. We in the room want him back as soon as possible, but were going to need him at 100 per cent eventually so hopefully [the organization] take[s] the right course." ' ' '