TORONTO – High above the ice, while practice took place on Thursday afternoon in Toronto, stood Maple Leafs general manager Dave Nonis. He watched his team work through various drills, hash out lingering points of confusion and prepare for the latest biggest game of the year - a Friday clash with the Philadelphia Flyers. Nonis can do nothing, however, to affect the fortunes of his skidding team at this very late stage in the season, one tumbling precariously close to another late-season collapse. "Eight games left," said Phil Kessel, shortly before departure to Philadelphia. "Weve got to win some games and get in the playoffs here." "This is desperation time," Nazem Kadri added. "Were playing for our lives, so weve got to go start acting like it." It was exactly two years ago that the 18-wheeler of 2012 officially crashed for good. Losing for a stunning 19th time in 24 games against the Carolina Hurricanes on a late March night, the Leafs were eliminated from the postseason, the culmination of an epic unraveling that would cost Ron Wilson his job. Can they avoid a similar and yet perhaps more stinging fate this time around? The thought would have been almost unthinkable only two weeks earlier, but with six straight losses - all in regulation - and not a single point gained, the Leafs are indeed facing that reality. With a blink or two of the eye, theyve been passed by seven teams, now trailing the Detroit Red Wings and Columbus Blue Jackets for the final two wild card positions, and are in danger of fumbling away a second-straight trip to the postseason. Aspirations of capturing second spot in the Atlantic Division and home-ice advantage in the first round have been replaced by simply making it outright. The shift has been stunning. "I know right now it seems like were at a low point, but we will come through it," said captain Dion Phaneuf, speaking after a near 90-minute practice in Toronto, his performance and subsequent absence afterward a point of much consternation just a couple days earlier. "Im not going to stand here and say that weve played well. We havent. We havent won games, but theres been stretches that weve done some good things, we just havent found a way to win a game and were going to have to do that Friday." The pressure to do so has never been higher. At some point, the pit of despair becomes just too deep to dig out of, the snowball too large to stop from rolling.  That was the case for the club in 2012. Four straight early February losses rapidly morphed into nine of 10, a souring fan-base and the sudden dismissal of Wilson. Things would get no better in the early days of Carlyles tenure with 10 more losses in the next 14 games, including the aforementioned knockout blow on March 27.  "Theres pressure in any situation like this," said Kessel, "[but] weve just got to bounce back. If we can get a couple wins here, it would be positive for our group. Weve just got to keep going then." Fear of it all slipping away has seemingly seeped in. Head coach Randy Carlyle observed "tenseness" in the early stages of Tuesdays loss to St. Louis, pushing his club to be more assertive against Philadelphia, currently third in the Metropolitan Division - three points ahead of Toronto. "If youre going to stand there and youre in a street fight and youre not going to move, youre going to allow somebody to swing away, youre going to get hit," said Carlyle. "But if you move and try to avoid the hit and do what you do youre not going to get hit as many times, simple as that." Starts have become the most obvious foe to success during the two-week slide, early and often deep deficits too much to overcome. "So we have to move ourselves," said Carlyle. "We have to move our feet, we have to continue to move the puck effectively, we have to skate ... Those are the things that we have to correct and we have to correct it for [Friday] night." "Were starting the games terrible," Kessel said. "Were getting down a couple goals. Theyre out-playing us the first half of the game and then all of a sudden we wake up and we come [back] and its just too late." The same could be said of their playoff fortunes. A collapse under these circumstances might pale in comparison to 2012, given their comfortable state with just weeks to go - they were up three points on the Montreal Canadiens and Tampa Bay Lightning as recently as two weeks ago, now trailing both by a wide margin - and the heightened expectations of a club seemingly on the rise. Its a sting they wont want to experience again. "It snowballed on us," Phaneuf said after that season-sealing loss to Carolina two years ago. "We lost a lot of tight games and we just could not recover or find a way out of it as a group." Will they this time around time around? The answer will come soon enough. Francisco Rodriguez Jersey . -- Navy football player Will McKamey, who has been hospitalized since collapsing at practice three days ago, has died while in a coma. Hector Moreno Mexico Soccer Jersey . Zanetti will retire after 19 seasons at Inter, and the stadium was sold out as fans packed in to bid farewell to their 40-year-old captain. Lazio threatened to spoil the party when Giuseppe Biava scored the opening goal inside two minutes to stun San Siro. http://www.mexicosoccerJerseyspro.com/Copa-America-Jesus-Manuel-Corona-Soccer-Jersey/ . The Grizzlies were missing a bevy of players in the first meeting, and the Raptors were performing at a much higher level at that time compared to how they enter the rematch tonight in Memphis. Eduardo Herrera Jersey .com) - Sam Gagner and Devan Dubnyk, two former Oilers, led the Arizona Coyotes to a 5-1 win in Edmonton Tuesday. Javier Guemez Jersey . The Jays have a long history of beating up on the former Yankees right-hander, so they knew it was only a matter of time before they got him in his new home in Minnesota. Jose Bautista had three hits and an RBI, and Brett Lawrie hit a grand slam in the ninth inning to help the Blue Jays beat the Twins 9-3 on Tuesday night.CLEVELAND -- Once he discarded his bat, rounded the bases and tossed his helmet, Michael Brantley was doused with water by his celebrating teammates. Just like that, a four-game losing streak and a forgettable weekend were washed away. Brantley homered with two outs in the 10th inning off Al Alburquerque, giving the Cleveland Indians a 5-4 win over the drowsy Detroit Tigers on Monday night. Brantley connected on a 3-2 pitch from Alburquerque (1-1), driving it into the Tigers bullpen to end Clevelands four-game slide. Brantley held onto his bat until he nearly reached first base, unsure if the ball was going to clear the wall. "I was nervous," Brantley said. "I didnt know what do." After rounding third, Brantley flung his helmet to the side and received a wet welcome home. He was sprayed with bottles of water and then drenched by a bucket dumped over his head during a postgame interview. "It was cold," he said. It was worth it. Brantleys homer warmed the Indians, who have seen errors and losses pile up lately. Over the weekend, they were outscored 30-6 in being swept by Oakland. With the first-place Tigers in town, the Indians couldnt afford to fall any further in the AL Central, and Brantley gave them a dramatic win in the opener. "As long as we win, thats the main thing," manager Terry Francona said. "But the way it ended -- that was great." Scott Atchison (1-0) pitched a perfect 10th, retiring Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez for the first two outs. Detroits J.D. Martinez hit a pinch-hit homer in the ninth off Cody Allen to tie it 4-all, but the Tigers couldnt muster more magic in extra innings. The Tigers, who arrived just three hours before the first pitch because of travel delays from Boston, had their 11-game road winning streak ended. "We knew the game would end at some point, and wed be able to go back and get some sleep," Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said. "We were hoping to go back and get some sleep with a win, but it wasnt to be." Rookie Jesus Aguilar had two RBIs for the Indians. Martinez hit his 11th homer for the Tigers, who despite the loss have won 19 of the last 26 against Cleveland. With Detroit two outs from losing its road winning streak, Martinez homered off interim closer Allen to tie it 4-all. Battingg for shortstop Andrew Romine, Martinez drove a 1-0 pitch over the wall in centre, just over the glove of leaping outfielder Michael Bourn at the wall.dddddddddddd It was Martinezs first homer in 40 at-bats and it came at the perfect time for the sleep-deprived Tigers, who earlier rallied from a 3-1 deficit to tie it in the fifth. The Indians took a 4-3 lead in the seventh on Aguilars sacrifice fly. Cleveland badly needed a strong outing, and Corey Kluber came through. The right-hander allowed eight hits and struck out eight in seven innings. He contained the ALs best hitting club and didnt show any fear while pitching inside to Cabrera, who didnt seem pleased with the right-handers challenge. Kluber set the tone early when he started Cabrera off with a high, inside pitch in the first that annoyed baseballs most feared hitter. Cabrera took his time getting back into the batters box as Kluber waited patiently. Cabrera, who came in batting .417 with three homers against Kluber, struck out and then shot a menacing stare toward the right-hander. "I saw him looking at me," Kluber said, "and I just ignored it. You got to keep them honest." The Tigers, who walked into Progressive Field wearing pajama-like travel suits after their long day, tied it 3-3 in the seventh on a two-run double by No. 9 hitter Rajai Davis. Nick Swisher and Aguilar hit RBI singles in the fifth off Detroit starter Drew Smyly, who was the only well-rested Tigers player. He spent Sunday night in Cleveland while his teammates were stuck in Boston, where they were forced to spend an extra night due to mechanical problems with their plane. The Indians went 0 for 15 with runners in scoring position against the Athletics before Swishers base hit. NOTES: former Tigers manager Jim Leyland watched the game from the press box. Leyland, who retired after last season, is a special assistant to general manager Dave Dombrowski. ... Detroit starters came in with a major league-best 2.64 ERA. ... The Indians plan to activate DH Jason Giambi from the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday. The 43-year-old has been out with a calf strain since May 5. ... Indians OF Michael Brantley has hit safely in 16 straight home games. ... Indians RHP Trevor Bauer will be recalled to start Tuesdays game against Justin Verlander. Cheap Soccer Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China ' ' '