The St. Louis Blues brought in the premier unrestricted free agent centre, and did it without breaking the bank. Numbers Game looks at the Blues signing of Paul Stastny. The Blues Get: C Paul Stastny. Stastny, 28, has been a strong two-way centre, capable of putting up points and, more recently, taking on tougher assignments while remaining productive. Since arriving in the league in 2006-2007, Stastny has 458 points in 538 games, which ranks 34th. While his possession stats havent been dominant, it needs to be considered that they have been accrued in Colorado, where theyve been strong in relative terms, and hes among a select group of forwards to face quality opposition and start more of his shifts in the defensive zone, yet still have strong relative possession stats. Joining St. Louis is a terrific situation for Stastny too. The Blues had a contending team last season that could have used an offensive boost and Stastny ought to provide that and with last years top line -- Alex Steen, David Backes and T.J. Oshie -- capable of handling a lot of heavy lifting (tough matchups, defensive zone starts), Stastny should be freed up for more of an offensive role than the all-around responsibility he had with Colorado. Also working in Stastnys favour is that by moving to a team with much better puck possession stats, there will be more opportunity for Stastny to play in the offensive zone and if he ends up with rising young wingers Jaden Schwartz and Vladimir Tarasenko (or fellow U.S. Olympian T.J. Oshie), it would be easy enough to forecast that line being very productive. Theres also some shuffling to do among Blues forwards, as they have signed C Jori Lehtera and that could mean Patrik Berglund and David Backes shifting to wings, leaving Vladimir Sobotka and Maxim Lapierre in the third and fourth-line spots. The team that Stastny is leaving, the Colorado Avalanche, will have their hands full trying to match their 2013-2014 regular season success, but the team does at least have options down the middle, with Matt Duchene and Nathan MacKinnon more than suitable on the top two lines, and they have Ryan OReilly (who shifted to wing last season) available if needed. Losing Stastny means tougher minutes for those guys, but the Avalanche at least have the personnel to withstand a loss at centre. The ideal part of this deal for St. Louis is that they didnt have to get into an outrageous deal in order to acquire the player who was clearly the best free agent centre on the market. Stastny wanted to go to St. Louis and was willing to take a shorter term than he might have made elsewhere. Signed for four years and $28-million, Stastny gets a raise on what he was making in Colorado, joins the team with which his father, Peter, finished his career and its not an unreasonable price for what Paul Stastny provides. If Stastny can thrive in an offensive role, hell give the Blues a legitimate chance to get into the discussion with the best teams in the Western Conference and thats all that can be asked from a contending team when they dip into the free agent pool. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Mark Arcobello Maple Leafs Jersey . The loss completed Ottawas opening round series victory and sent the Northeast Division-winning Habs to the dressing room to pack after just five games. Wendel Clark Jersey . 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The 16-year-old Thompson shot a 5-under 67 Saturday to win the Dubai Ladies Masters, becoming the youngest professional winner on that side of the Atlantic. Thompson pulled away from Lee-Anne Pace of South Africa to win by four strokes for her second professional victory. In September, she became the youngest winner of an LPGA tournament at the Navistar LPGA Classic in Alabama. "It feels amazing," Thompson said. "Im just honoured they invited me back and Im just grateful to be here. Ive been working on my game really hard and it has paid off." Thompson chipped in for a birdie on No. 9 to take a one-shot lead over Pace and extended her lead with four birdies on the back nine for a 15-under 273 total. Pace (69) started strong with two birdies and an eagle on her first six holes, but shaky putting on the back nine ended her chances. The 2010 European Tour money winner, Pace hit her approach shot on No. 12 over the green for her second bogey in five holes. "Things could have been a little different," Pace said. "I hit a bad club on 12, which cost me a shot, and that is where things changed around." Sophie Gustafson of Sweden (71) was a shot behind Pace in third place followed by four players another shot back. Michelle Wie (72) came into the final round five shots behind leader Thompson. She fell out of contention with two bogeys and a double-bogey on the front nine, finishing tied for 12th. "It was pretty frustrating. I couldnt get my putts going," Wie said. "I just needed to play better on the front nine all week. Nothing really went. Nothing went in. At least, I finished birdie, birdie. I gotta work on a lot of things for next season." Thompsons father Scott, who caddies for her, said he was most impressed how she handledd the pressure when Pace made her run.dddddddddddd "She didnt panic and kept playing her game, not worrying about what else anyone was doing," he said. Wie offered a congratulatory tweet and predicted she would be force to be reckoned with in the future. The 22-year-old Wie praised the support Thompson gets not only from her father but her entire entourage. "I think she kind of has that mentality, just grip it and rip it," said Wie, who also joined the LPGA Tour at 16 and has two wins. "She just goes out there and just kind of has fun, which is really nice to see. Shes a really talented player and Im really impressed." Thompson is projected to move into the top 40 in the rankings. She credits her success with playing alongside her brothers, including PGA Tour member Nicholas. The precocious Floridian qualified for the U.S. Womens Open at age 12 in 2007 at Pine Needles, tied for 10th at the tournament last year and was a runner-up by one shot last year at the Evian Masters, one of the richest events on the LPGA Tour schedule. Her breakout moment came in September when she won the Navistar LPGA Classic by five strokes and was granted LPGA membership two weeks later. The unfailingly polite, easy-going Thompson said she was looking forward to spending some time with friends and steadily improving next season. "Theres not really any pressure," she said. "Im just playing the game and doing what I love. Playing every week in these tournaments is an honour for me, so Im just coming out and relaxing and doing my best." Her father also tried to tamp down expectations, saying he just wanted to relish her second victory since she turned pro a year-and-a-half ago. "The first one wasnt a fluke. She has won again now. That is the great thing," he said. "The first one people may say she is lucky for the week. But she won again, so it kind of validates it." cheap nfl jerseys cheap jerseys cheap jerseys cheap jerseys cheap nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '
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