Lob&Kritik » Teams scramble when you shoot the puck.

TORONTO - Amir Johnson has never been one to sulk over playing time. Whether starting or coming off the bench, Johnson has always accepted his role in stride, part of whats made him the Raptors unsung hero for the better part of the last three seasons. His body language spoke louder than words on Sunday, both before and after his teams 112-98 loss to the Nuggets, their third straight defeat at home. An hour before tip-off a subdued Johnson sat alone in front of his locker. Playing a racing game on his phone - with the volume turned up - he knew what everyone else would find out 50 minutes later. For the first time since Mar. 23, a span of 27 games, Johnson would come off the bench with Tyler Hansbrough replacing him in the Raptors starting five. Dwane Casey had hinted a lineup change could be on its way after practice the day prior but the Raptors coach kept his cards close to his vest during his pre-game availability, with the Nuggets withholding the status of starter Kenneth Faried. Following a couple slow starts in back-to-back defeats at home, the shakeup was not a surprise. "Weve been talking about it, a few days back," Johnson said, despondent after the game. A man of few words. While Johnson was held scoreless in 14 uninspiring minutes as a reserve - an uncharacteristic minus-16 on the afternoon - the change seemed to spark his team out of the gate. Along with Jonas Valanciunas, Hansbrough set the tone for the Raptors, who took an early 15-point lead thanks in large part to Torontos energy and physical work on the boards. However, that lead shrunk in a hurry as both teams went to their second units. The Nuggets - a team assembled, at least in part by Raptors GM Masai Ujiri - dominated the final 36 minutes with their superior depth, exploiting the deficiencies in Torontos shallow roster. "Masai did too good of a job of putting that group together," Casey joked before the game. The Nuggets and their new coach Brian Shaw went 10 players deep, six of them scoring in double figures, including four off the bench. "Our bench has got to give us something," Casey maintained after Denvers subs scored 72 points, an opponent record against the Raptors. "Our (starters) cant play for 48 (minutes), so weve got to get production from the bench." "The guys coming in have got to develop a toughness, a resilience of getting stops and it starts on the defensive end. Thats where our problems started in the second half. They shot well but we didnt make them feel us and thats the difference." As a team, the Nuggets shot 65 per cent in the second half and their bench went 17-for-23 from the field. Johnson - now a member of the Raptors second unit that managed just 16 points on Sunday - has not been himself this season, to his own admission. "No, Ive been on and off," he responded, asked if his early-season play has met his standards. "I mean thats why we made the change in the lineup," Casey said in agreement. "Just to give us some energy, give (Johnson) a chance to recharge a little bit, refresh a little bit, refocus a little bit." Even after Sundays game, Johnson is a plus-20 this season - the teams second best mark - shooting 54 per cent from the field, tops on the Raptors. Still, his effort and consequently his impact has been inconsistent following a career season last year. At times Casey has questioned the forwards focus. "Everybodys been through some rough times," said Rudy Gay, who had a team-high 23 points on 10-of-23 shooting in the loss. "Ive been through it… and hes going through it now." "Everybodys going to go through it at some point in their career and this is the time hes been going through it. But I have all confidence in Amir. Hes going to be great, hes going to be the same Amir we know he can be." Frustration boiling over The Raptors have now dropped three straight and five of their last six games at home, prompting a sensible question; is frustration beginning to get the best of them? "It should hurt," Casey insisted. "But the teams that we played against, if you looked at the schedule before the season started, how many of them would we have been favoured (in)? But thats no excuse because we put ourselves in a position (to win) in each of these games and even in this one in the first half. I dont see frustration." DeMar DeRozan didnt mince words, expressing his frustration after the loss. "Me personally, Im frustrated period," he exclaimed after scoring 17 points in defeat. "Just losing, I mean I hate it, I hate it with a passion." "I mean were right there. Were the ones doing it. Nobodys making us miss our coverages or nothing like that. Its on us. We show it in spurts, weve just got to be more consistent with it." Rare third-quarter touches for Valanciunas Coming into Sundays contest, Jonas Valanciunas had scored 71 points on 57 shots in first quarters this season, tallying just 60 points on 58 shots in the other three quarters combined. The sophomore was utilized more consistently against a smaller Denver team and he responded with one of his better performances of the campaign. "I thought he had a (good) matchup with those guys so we made it a focal point of getting him the ball in the paint," Casey said of Valanciunas, who had a double-double of 18 points and 11 rebounds in 36 minutes of action. "He did an excellent job of getting to where he wanted to go." Valanciunas had four points on seven shots in the first frame, a quarter the Raptors won, also taking seven shots and scoring eight in the third, their next best quarter. As Toronto got steamrolled in the fourth, Valanciunas attempted just one field goal in over nine minutes. If the Raptors hope to diversify their offence, which has largely been centred on Gay and DeRozan, they must find ways to incorporate their centre more consistently, a task thats easier said than done given the teams personnel and the sophomores continued development on both ends of the floor. Up next After winning one of four games during their season-long home stand, the Raptors travel west next week. Their first stop is in Oakland to face the Golden State Warriors. Cheap Patriots Jerseys Authentic . -- Fantasy football owners and Denver Broncos fans can rest easy: Peyton Manning is back. Kevin Faulk Jersey .com) - The New York Jets have named Mike Maccagnan their new general manager. http://www.cheappatriotsjerseysauthentic.com/. The Arena das Dunas in the northeastern city of Natal sustained minor damage during the protests, but demonstrators stayed away on Sunday and officials said the stadium passed its first test, with only minor adjustments needed going forward. Jake Bailey Jersey .5 million. The 25-year-old Varlamov is thriving under first-year coach and Hall of Fame goaltender Patrick Roy, posting a 26-9-5 record with a 2. Andre Tippett Jersey . "Yes, Id like to get them in," Detroits rookie manager said. "Mother Natures going to have a say in that." Sure enough, the Tigers had their game against the Kansas City Royals postponed because of rain on Thursday. ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Roberto Luongo was a lot better in Minnesota than hed been in the past. Still, he wasnt quite good enough to extend Vancouvers seven-game winning streak. Jason Pominville slipped a shot past Luongos glove in the third round of a shootout to lift the Wild to a 3-2 victory Tuesday night, the first loss by the Canucks this month. Luongo made 30 saves, including 14 in the third period and overtime, and stopped Zach Parise to open the shootout. Mikko Koivu, who had two assists for a team-high 20 this season, hit the crossbar with his shot before Pominville scored. Ryan Keslers last-chance attempt for Vancouver sailed wide right after Josh Harding stopped shots by Mike Santorelli and Chris Higgins. "Weve got to try different people, I guess, because we stink at it," Canucks coach John Tortorella said. Harding made 29 saves to win for the fifth time in his last six starts and the Wild improved to 14-3-2 at Xcel Energy Center, where Luongo fell to 3-9-3 in his career. "I dont care about that stuff. I wasnt worried about it coming into the game. I just wanted to play," Luongo said. Parise scored early for the Wild, but Charlie Coyles late goal was what bothered Luongo, who let a snap shot go between his legs to tie the game with 11:13 left in regulation. "Its a disappointing loss. Ive got to make that save there on that second goal. Thats the bottom line. I do and we win the game 2-1," Luongo said. His last start in Minnesota was Oct. 19, 2010. Pulled from the past three games he started here, Luongo gave up a total of 16 goals on those forgettable nights. "I think we need a save on the second goal, but he made some great saves in the overtime," Tortorella said. "Ive never been here with him. Its a big story that he stinks here. But I thought he played well tonight." Jannik Hansen and David Booth each scored for the second straight game for the Canucks, who won their first seven games this month by a 24-8 combined maargin.dddddddddddd Only one of those wins went past regulation. The Wild, meanwhile, improved to 12-2-5 in one-goal games. "Confidence, and just sort of an attitude as much as anything else, that theyre going to keep fighting," coach Mike Yeo said. After ignoring the advice for most of the first two periods -- Tortorella called the game "boring" until overtime -- the Wild heeded Yeos urging to send more pucks at the net down the stretch. "Teams scramble when you shoot the puck. When you keep it on the perimeter, its pretty easy to defend," Parise said, adding: "You dont want to make a habit of it, but were confident we can come back." This was the only home game for the Wild in the middle of a grueling eight-game stretch against some of the NHLs top teams. "Down by a goal, you kind of got a sense of urgency, I think," Coyle said. "And time is winding down, so you pick it up a little bit. I think weve got to play like that for the most part the whole game." NOTES: Zenon Konopka took a penalty for tripping in the second period that the crowd loudly booed. But the Canucks wanted a major, because defenceman Ryan Stanton went feet first hard into the boards and was injured. He didnt return and was wearing a boot on his left foot afterward. ... C Mikael Granlund, who has played just one shift in the last 13 games because of a concussion, returned to practice Monday and is close to being cleared to play again. ... The Higgins-Kesler-Santorelli line has 10 goals and 14 assists between them in eight games this month. ... Parises goal was the first power-play score against the Canucks during December, ending a run of seven games and 21 opportunities without one. ... Ryan Suter had an assist for the fourth straight game and was on the ice for 32:34, the 12th time in the last 21 games that he topped 30 minutes. "When the games on the line and hes playing like that, its hard not to put him out," Yeo said. 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