Boardregeln » Ramos return is a boost for the Nationals.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Having lost three straight, the Calgary Flames were looking for something positive when they visited the Carolina Hurricanes. Karri Ramo delivered just what they needed. Ramo made 22 saves in his first NHL shutout, and Mikael Backlund and Sean Monahan provided the offence in the Flames 2-0 win over the Hurricanes on Monday night The Flames snapped their skid and handed the Hurricanes their second straight shutout defeat. "It was probably our best team effort of the season," Calgary coach Bob Hartley said. "We had quite a good first period, and I felt we pressured them and gained the momentum. Carolina came hard at us, and we did a great job." Carolinas offence has been shut down for two games following a season-best, five-game winning streak. The Hurricanes failed to match Calgarys intensity at the start, and were shut out for the fourth time this season. "We spent too much time in our own end," defenceman Brett Bellemore said. "We didnt get off to a good start and they kind of got a lucky bounce off a skate or something (on their goal)." The Hurricanes now have a long wait before they host Florida on Saturday. "We didnt have that extra jump," Carolina coach Kirk Muller said. "Its disappointing. We have four days ahead of us to sit on it. When you play teams like Calgary, its going to be a game in the trenches. "They got the lead, and once they did, they were able to sit back a little bit and defend." Backland scored his seventh goal of the season for the Flames, who notched their second power-play tally in 26 chances. Backland gathered the puck in front after it bounced off the skate of Hurricanes forward Radek Dvorak. "It was nice to score first," Backlund said. "Its easier to play with some energy when you score than have to chase all the time like weve been doing lately." Monahan scored his 13th goal midway through the third period to add some insurance. He scored into an open net after goalie Anton Khudobin was unable to get back across the crease from the far post. Ramo improved to 8-8-3 as the Flames swept the two-game season games from Carolina. It was Calgarys first shutout in 117 games. "Its good that its out of the way," Ramo said. "Its nice to finish one without a goal. Obviously, everyone thinks about it and knows the situation but you just have to focus and play normally." Khudobin, who lost his second straight, did some of his best work in the first period when the Flames carried the play and held a 14-5 shots advantage. Khudobin made 27 saves overall. Carolina captain Eric Staal returned to the lineup after missing three games because of a lower body injury. NOTES: Calgary is 11-3-3 in games in which it scores a power-play goal. The Flames went 1 for 3. ... Carolina activated C Jiri Tlusty from the injured list, and he was in the lineup for the time since Dec. 23, before he was sidelined because of an appendectomy. ... The Flames have won three straight and four of five against Carolina. ... Calgary RW Kevin Westgarth returned to face his old team for the first time since being traded by Carolina on Dec. 30. Cheap Yeezy 350 v2 Clay . Four years after winning gold on home ice in Vancouver, the Canadians will get a chance to make it two in a row Sunday against Sweden after beating the United States 1-0 in the Olympic semifinals Friday at Bolshoy Ice Dome. Wholesale Yeezy 350 v2 Clay .com Tour title, closing with a 6-under 64 for a four-stroke victory. The 22-year-old former North Texas player finished at 12-under 268 at Panama Golf Club and earned $112,500 to jump from seventh to second on the money list with $171,500. http://www.yeezys350cheap.com/. Canada was placed in one of the easiest groups during Saturdays live televised draw in Montreal. Yeezy 350 Mens Wholesale . The same for both the Calgary Flames and the Edmonton Oilers. Fake Yeezy 350 v2 Black . Dragic was a game-time decision because of a sore right ankle that had kept him out of Wednesdays loss at Utah, but played all but the last 10 seconds of the second half in the first 40-point game for a Phoenix player since Amare Stoudemires 44 on March 19, 2010. WASHINGTON -- By the time Stephen Strasburg reached back and threw a 96 mph fastball for a strikeout to end the top of the seventh with his 106th pitch, his usual first-inning struggles seemed long ago -- and his day seemed over. When the next inning rolled around Wednesday, though, Nationals manager Matt Williams sent Strasburg to the mound to face the top of the Dodgers order in what would become a 3-2 victory for Washington, the first time this season the No. 1 overall pick in the 2009 amateur draft pitched into the eighth. "Hes our horse," Williams said, indicating hed like to keep his ace in deep into games more often. "We dont want to do that every time," Williams added. "But in a game like today, hes got the lead and (you) want to show confidence in him that were willing to send him back out there to protect that lead." Said Strasburg, who improved to 3-2 with a 3.42 ERA: "Thats the position I want to be in." After waiting through a rain delay of more than 1 1/2 hours to throw his first pitch, the righty did what hes done all season: laboured to get the first three outs, then been fairly dominant. This time, he gave up four consecutive singles, including run-scoring hits by Adrian Gonzalez and Yasiel Puig, during a 28-pitch first as Los Angeles went ahead 2-0. "Ive been trying not to go out there and give up a crooked number early," Strasburg said. "But you can give up one or two early and just keep it close and give your guys a chance to get back into the ballgame or get the lead." Hes allowed eight earned runs in his eight first innings in 2014, a 9.00 ERA. From the second inning on, its 2.29. "Hes as good as anybody on any given day. Weve also seen that anybody can get beat on any given day," Williams said. "We want to get him to that point where he can finish that eighth inning, too. Thats important for him." In all, Strasburg allowed two runs and seven hits -- all singles -- in 7 1-3 innings. He faced the minimum three batters in each of the second through fifth innings, and threw a total of 114 pitches.dddddddddddd In the sixth, he put two men on, but got Andre Ethier on a grounder for the third out. In the eighth, Strasburg also put two on, then was replaced by lefty Jerry Blevins, who got Gonzalez to pop out in foul territory. Righty Tyler Clippard then came in to retire Puig, who missed the two previous games after crashing into an outfield fence. Rafael Soriano threw a 1-2-3 ninth for his seventh save in seven chances. Adam LaRoches two-run single off the top of the wall in right off Dan Haren (4-1), who was with the Nationals in 2013, tied the game in the bottom of the first. Washington edged ahead on a bases-loaded sacrifice fly in the fifth from Wilson Ramos, playing his first game since opening day. Ramos earlier had a double on the first pitch hed faced in the majors since March 31, when he broke a bone in his left wrist against the Mets. He sat out 32 games. "Didnt take him long, did it? He pounded that ball," said LaRoche, who is hampered running the bases and on defence at first base by a left quad muscle problem. Ramos return is a boost for the Nationals. Theyre also eager to have right-hander Doug Fister come off the disabled list Friday to face the Oakland Athletics in his first start of the season. The Dodgers, meanwhile, have lost four of their past six games. "Were definitely," Haren said, "not playing to our potential." NOTES: Washington optioned 1B-OF Tyler Moore to Triple-A Syracuse to make room on the roster for Fister. ... After a day off, the Nationals open a three-game series at Oakland on Friday, with Fister on a pitch limit of about 100 while facing LHP Tommy Milone (0-3, 5.86). ... Los Angeles returns home to open a four-game series against San Francisco on Thursday, with Dodgers RHP Josh Beckett (0-1, 3.14) facing Giants RHP Ryan Vogelsong (1-1, 4.60). ' ' '