Bar » tie Detroit for eighth place in the East with 79 points. T

NASHVILLE -- Jake Locker is back on the field with the Tennessee Titans -- a couple of weeks ahead of the schedule doctors estimated for his return from an injured right foot. The quarterback said Tuesday that he pushed hard to give himself every chance to learn a new offence before the season starts. "With it being a new system, I want to run plays behind centre as often and as much as I can before we take our first snap of the season," Locker said. "And I want the guy son the team to know it means something to me. Im not just taking a break because I can. Im going to do everything I can to be on the field, and hopefully it helps create a culture that were all going to work that way." Locker took part in his first team drills Tuesday since suffering a Lisfranc injury to his right foot Nov. 10, which cost him the final seven games of the season. He has missed 14 of his first 32 starts and now is busy learning a third offence in four seasons with a coaching change. Locker had to watch the voluntary three-day minicamp in April, and his personal target had been being on the field for this final stage of the off-season. He said he felt really good moving around. Locker expects to deal with some stiffness and soreness now that hes finally back on the field for the organized team activities. He is experimenting with different shoes right now to find the right fit. "Barring any setbacks, I hope to keep moving forward," Locker said. This is a crucial season for Locker. The 10th overall draft pick in 2010 is heading into the final season of his rookie contract after the Titans decided not to pick up his fifth-year option. New coach Ken Whisenhunt and general manager Ruston Webster both have endorsed Locker as their starter repeatedly, but the pressure now is on the quarterback to stay on the field and win. Locker was good when he was on the field in 2013, completing a career-best 60.7 per cent of his passes. He also had twice as many touchdowns (eight) as interceptions (four). But he was only started seven games, winning four. The Titans have tried to protect themselves by bringing in veteran Charlie Whitehurst, who knows Whisenhunts offence very well, to back up Locker. They also drafted Zach Mettenberger of LSU in the sixth round. Whisenhunt said its a credit to Locker for working hard and now they must see him continue that progress off the first day. "A good assessment the first day is how they handle the terminology going into the huddle, and he did a nice job with that," Whisenhunt said. "Hes been working at it a couple of weeks now, but just the way hes been studying, the way hes working out I really like that. Theres no substitute for getting the work on the field. But even seeing some of the drills today youre seeing him make progress (with) his footwork, some of his progressions so Im excited about that." Tight end Delanie Walker said Locker was putting the ball on target. "Its always good to see your starting quarterback out there running the offence for us, especially in team and seven-on-seven," Walker said. "But it didnt surprise me. Thats Jake. Hes a fighter. Hes going to be out there. Hes going compete. Hes a leader, and that shows leadership. Its good to have Jake out there throwing the ball to us just to get the timing down." Where To Buy Cheap Kyrie Shoes . After Mondays comments by Coach Claude Noel that its work first and skill second, and that more “A” games are needed, the Jets responded with a 47-shot effort. If not for terrific goaltending by Braden Holtby the Jets would have had two points in regulation. Cheap Air Max 90 Wholesale . JOHNS, N. http://www.wholesalenikeshoesclearance.com/cheap-max-90-shoes.html . Howard had 17 points and a career-high-tying 26 rebounds in his Houston debut, James Harden added 21 points and the Rockets cruised to a 96-83 win over the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night. Cheap Air Max 97 Wholesale . PAUL, Minn. Air Max 97 Wholesale China . Barnard, 28, was 1-0 with a 0.53 ERA in three appearances, including two starts, with San Angel o this season. He struck out 19 batters and walked just one in 17 innings pitched. He has previous American Association experience with the Lincoln Saltdogs, El Paso Diablos and Amarillo Sox.SAN JOSE, Calif. - Nicklas Backstrom scored the winning goal in the shootout to lead the Washington Capitals to their first win in San Jose in more than 20 years, 3-2 over the Sharks on Saturday night. Eric Fehr and Chris Brown scored in regulation for the Capitals, who had lost 11 times and tied once since winning their first game at the Shark Tank on Oct. 30, 1993. This is only Washingtons second win in its last 19 games overall against San Jose. Braden Holtby made 34 saves in his first start since March 6 in place of the banged-up Jaroslav Halak. Patrick Marleau and James Sheppard scored for the Sharks, who missed a chance to clinch their 10th straight playoff berth. Antti Niemi made 23 saves. Evgeny Kuznetsov put the Capitals ahead in the shootout when he scored in the opening round. But Marleau tied it in the third round before Backstrom beat Niemi for the winner. The Capitals had lost five straight shootouts while San Jose had won seven in a row in the tiebreaker. The Sharks appeared poised to clinch the playoffs when Sheppard blocked a shot by Jason Chimera early in the third period and then scored on a breakaway against Holtby to put San Jose up 2-1. But the Capitals got the equalizer when they got a fortunate bounce with 7:30 remaining. Dustin Penner took the puck from Scott Hannan behind the net and fed Brown, whose shot deflected off defenceman Dan Boyle and past Niemi for his first career goal. The Sharks lost two of three on this homestand, bbeating Anaheim in a showdown for first place in between losses to Washington and Florida — two Eastern Conference teams out of playoff position.ddddddddddddSan Jose is three points ahead of the Ducks in the Pacific Division although Anaheim has two games in hand. The game was more crucial to Washingtons playoff hopes. The Capitals have earned points in five straight games to tie Detroit for eighth place in the East with 79 points. The Red Wings have two games in hand. The Capitals jumped on top with help from a lucky bounce and a strong forecheck. Jason Chimera got the puck away from Logan Couture along the boards to set up Fehr for a shot that was blocked. Justin Braun tried to clear the puck out of danger, but it hit teammate Matt Nieto in the leg and bounced into the net for a goal credited to Fehr. Nieto helped the Sharks tie it in the closing seconds of the period when he put a wraparound attempt on net following a turnover by Mike Green. Holtby made the save on the initial shot, but Marleau knocked in the rebound following a scramble for 30th goal with 5.6 seconds remaining. NOTES: Marleau has seven career 30-goal seasons. ... The Capitals have as many wins (two) in the Cow Palace, where the Sharks played their first two seasons, as they have at the Shark Tank, which opened in 1993-94. ... This game finishes a stretch where the Sharks played 13 of 14 games against the Eastern Conference. They wont play the East again this season unless they make the Stanley Cup finals. ' ' '