German_Force » Five-time Pro Bowl defensive

BOSTON — Despite three losses in their last five games http://www.lionsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-frank-ragnow-jersey , the Florida Panthers still have a chance to grab the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.

And, thanks to a January postponement, much of what happens to the Panthers depends on how they do with three of their last six games against the first-place Boston Bruins.

Florida, 1-1-1 on its current four-game trip, ends that journey with a matinee in Boston Saturday.

The Panthers host the Bruins April 5 and then return to TD Garden for the April 8 makeup.

They also have a home game against the Nashville Predators, so it’s hard to say the schedule is favorable. The other games, though, are at home against the Carolina Hurricanes and Buffalo Sabres, both in the draft lottery.

Florida, which has lost two in a row for the first time since mid-February, trails the New Jersey Devils by three points but has a game in hand.

The Panthers lost 3-2 in Ottawa on a penalty shot goal by Jean-Gabriel Pageau with 12.9 seconds left in overtime Thursday night, leaving a vital point on the table.

“At this time of year, you want the two points,” said Florida goaltender James Reimer, who yielded the goal. “Two points are big, but any points are good. I’m disappointed we lost that one in OT, but the positives are that we got a point. We’re going to keep rolling, keep winning games and see where it stands at the end of the year.”

The penalty shot was awarded under what could be called controversial circumstances — defenseman Mike Matheson diving at Pageau.

“I watched it a few times,” Panthers coach Bob Boughner said. It’s an iffy Alex Avila Jersey , iffy call. It could have gone either way. I just think this time of year, the fight we’re in, it would have been nice to see it be called just a penalty with 13 seconds to go in the game. It’s a major decision that ended up costing us a point. Hopefully it’s not a costly point at the end of the day.”

Back on March 15, Reimer made 46 saves and the Panthers blanked the Bruins 3-0 after Boston swept the five-games between the teams last season.

The Bruins, meanwhile, continue to march impressively toward the playoffs despite their training room looking like a MASH unit.

They might get rookie Jake DeBrusk back Saturday, while top two defensemen Zdeno Chara and Charlie McAvoy will travel with the team and could play Sunday at Philadelphia. Rick Nash and Sean Kuraly are also hurt.

The Bruins, 11-2-3 in their last 16 games despite all the injuries, won their third straight game this season against the Tampa Bay Lightning, moving into first place in both the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference.

Friday night, however, the Lightning ended a three-game losing streak with a 7-3 win over the Rangers in New York.

The Bruins have two games in hand and visit Tampa Bay on Tuesday.

“For us, I think we haven’t talked about the standings much this year, and we won’t going forward,” Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said after the 4-2 win over the Lightning. “When the 82 games are over, we’ll see where we are, who we got, and we’ll go from there. And, I’m not trying to be disrespectful to that either Cheap Frank Ragnow Jersey , because it is an accomplishment, but we still have games to go, so we’ll enjoy it for a day or however long we’re there, and hopefully longer.”

Both teams have debuted Hobey Baker finalists in recent games, the Bruins with Harvard’s Ryan Donato and the Panthers Henrik Borgstrom.

Goalies Tuukka Rask and Anton Khudobin will split the two weekend games. Rask is 20-3-1 with a 1.48 goals against average and .950 save percentage against Florida while Khudobin is 3-2 in five games.

Roberto Luongo is 15-16-5 with a 2.49 goals against and .925 against Boston, but that doesn’t count his painful Game 7 loss to the Bruins for Vancouver in the 2011 Stanley Cup final. Reimer is 8-8-3 with a 2.34 average and .933 percentage against Boston.

The Bruins signed Jordan Szwarz to a one-year contract extension and then sent Szwarz and Tommy Cross back to Providence Friday.

All those promises worth millions upon millions to free agents turned into paydays Wednesday when the NFL's business year began.

Of course, teams needed to clear salary cap space or rejigger their ledgers to make it work, and they'll still be doing so for months.

While the likes of Drew Brees, Malcolm Butler and Andrew Norwell cashed in bigtime, having reached agreements in the past two days before everything became official, some value entered the marketplace.

Arizona released safety Tyrann Mathieu when it couldn't rework his deal. On Tuesday, the Cardinals let running back Adrian Peterson go.

Baltimore cut receiver Jeremy Maclin. Detroit said goodbye to tight end Eric Ebron. Pittsburgh tore up a secondary that often was torn up by opposing quarterbacks, releasing Mike Mitchell, Robert Golden and William Gay.

But Carolina had more success with a veteran, completing a one-year deal with defensive end Julius Peppers.

The 38-year-old Peppers, who contemplated retirement after 17 pro seasons, remains with the Panthers for $5 million, with $2.5 million guaranteed, a person familiar with the situation said. The person spoke to The Associated Press on Wednesday on condition of anonymity because the team does not release financial terms of contracts.

"I am fired up to have him back Youth Seattle Seahawks Jerseys ," Panthers coach Ron Rivera said. "It was amazing to have him as part of what we are trying to build and I think he can help us get to the next level."

Cleveland, meanwhile, did nothing more than listen to one of its greatest players, tackle Joe Thomas , announce his retirement. The Browns save his $10.3 million salary for 2018 and a $3 million bonus but lose their best player and leader in the expansion era (1999-present), a 10-time Pro Bowler.

"This was an extremely difficult decision, but the right one for me and my family," Thomas said. "Playing in the NFL has taken a toll on my body and I can no longer physically compete at the level I need to."

CARDINALS

Mathieu was due for $18.75 million of his contract to be guaranteed when the league year officially begins. By cutting him, Arizona will save close to $5 million in cap space.

Mathieu became a star in the Arizona secondary after being selected in the third round of the 2013 draft following a troubled college career at LSU. He was an All-Pro in 2015, when he had five interceptions and 17 passes defensed.

But he also has been plagued by injuries and only last season did Mathieu appear in all 16 games.

RAVENS

Baltimore frees up an estimated $5 million in salary cap space by releasing Maclin, who signed on as a free agent in June. But Maclin missed two games with a shoulder injury, two more with knee issues, and finished with only 40 catches for 440 yards and three touchdowns. The 84 receptions he had over the past two seasons (2016 with Kansas City) are three fewer than he had with the Chiefs in 2015.

Then the Ravens agreed to deals with receivers John Brown and Ryan Grant.

Brown, 27, spent four years in Arizona and is a speedy deep threat, something Baltimore desperately needs. He can also return kicks.

Grant, also 27, was with Washington for four seasons.

49ERS

San Francisco agreed to a four-year contract with running back Jerick McKinnon and a five-year deal with center-guard Weston Richburg. McKinnon replaces departing starter Carlos Hyde and Richburg could start anywhere in the interior line.

"We see Weston as one of the top young interior offensive linemen in the NFL," GM John Lynch said. "His athleticism Cheap Marshall Newhouse Jersey , intelligence and attitude are a perfect fit for our scheme. Jerick has proven to be an extremely versatile football player whose speed, elusiveness and tackle-breaking ability make him a very difficult matchup for defenses. We can't wait to get them on the field with their teammates and coaches later this spring."

GIANTS

New York agreed with offensive tackle Nate Solder, late of the Patriots, to become its starter on the left side. Solder, 29, will get a four-year contract worth about $62 million.

The Giants can move 2015 first-round draft pick Ereck Flowers to the right side as they rebuild a line that has struggled for years.

TITANS

Tennessee kept right guard Josh Kline and defensive end David King with new contracts after making a splash in free agency by getting Butler for $60 million over five years ($30 million guaranteed) and also taking running back Dion Lewis away from New England.

BILLS

The Bills restocked their quarterback position by agreeing to a two-year contract with AJ McCarron.

The 27-year-old spent the past four seasons backing up Andy Dalton in Cincinnati after being selected by the Bengals in the fifth round of the 2014 draft.

McCarron's signing came five days after Buffalo traded three-year starter Tyrod Taylor to Cleveland. The trade left 2017 fifth-round pick Nathan Peterman as the only quarterback on Buffalo's roster.

Buffalo also added defensive end Trent Murphy from Washington and got a needed pass rusher, albeit a player coming off a major injury.

Murphy had 15 sacks in 47 games, including nine in 2016, then sat out last season after tearing two ligaments in his left knee in a preseason game.

The Bills finished tied for 30th in the NFL with just 27 sacks last season.

The Bills added defensive backfield depth by agreeing with safety Rafael Bush on a two-year contract, and got linebacker Julian Stanford on a two-year contract.

FALCONS

The Falcons addressed a need by signing offensive guard Brandon Fusco, who started 16 games for San Francisco last season, to a three-year deal. Fusco, who began his career with the Vikings, could immediately start at right guard.

DOLPHINS

Five-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh officially was released, when the trades to acquire defensive end Robert Quinn and se.