FIVE QUICK NBA THOUGHTS 1. DERRICK ROSE (Bulls): Had a major knot in my stomach when I heard about his knee injury. Feel awful for him. Hes one of my favourite players to watch. Its a significant blow to him and his team. There is no doubt that the Bulls, based upon their remaining players, outstanding coaching and the winning atmosphere in their organization, will still be a Playoff team. There will be some big discussions for GM Gar Forman to have with president John Paxson and the Reinsdorf family as to which direction to take this thing. Without Rose, theyre not a championship contender. With the pending contractual free agency issues on the horizon with Carlos Boozer and Luol Deng it will be fascinating to see if they buy, hold or sell. High stakes are involved here and lots will happen there in the Summer of 2014. This injury sets off a potential chain reaction that will send some competitive ripples around the Eastern Conference. 2. WESLEY MATTHEWS (Blazers): Portland is red hot and hes been outstanding at the off guard spot. He is shooting the lights out from behind the arc at 52 per cent and is an excellent finisher off the bounce and in transition. The former second-round pick was a bold free agent signing a few years back and hes paid huge dividends. Forget where guys are picked. Can they play and do they have a winning vibe about them? Hes got both. Good get. 3. DJ AUGUSTIN (Raptors): Has had a tough start to his run with the Raptors but it was great to see how prepared he was when Dwane Casey inserted him in the second half vs. Washington on Friday night. A pro all the way. Two huge assists and a dagger three-pointer. He made huge plays that swung the game in his teams favour. I see lots of guys pout and hang their heads and act like babies when things dont go their way - its nice to see a guy who keeps an even keel and in spite of the challenges he was having is not going to let it get him down. Im quite impressed by that. The Raptors backup point guard situation needs stability. Maybe those limited minutes against the Wizards will get him on track and give his confidence a boost. The Raps need it. 4. MARC GASOL (Grizzlies): Hes out indefinitely with a knee injury. Loved the pickup of Kosta Koufas from Denver in the off-season. Nice opportunity for him to play big minutes alongside Zach Randolph. Former Raptor Ed Davis will get some run as well - its a defining time for him since the Grizzlies didnt pick up his contract option. With all due respect to both of these guys, Gasol is the much better player yet at this time of year if you can get guys like this to fill in and produce then you become a stronger team later in the year when youre at full strength. Theyll miss the high-low action that he brings to their team along with his physical/tough play. 5. RAPTORS HOME STAND: Toronto has three more games this week at the ACC before heading out west. Brooklyn will be desperate for a W, the Heat are a tough match-up for the Raps and then Denver will bring its up-tempo act into town. Can I sign up for a 2-1 week and an 8-8 mark as they head west? I would take that right now if I could. Build the momentum and confidence early in the season and it carries over over the long haul. Lay the groundwork and foundation now. China Shoes To USA . "Im proud of him," Jones said in an interview from Sacramento, site of the UFCs weekend televised card. "I think hes listening to his body and hes doing what makes him happy and thats what life is about ultimately. China Shoes Wholesale . -- The guys in green raced off the court and into the locker room where they danced and sang, compared whose shot was most likely to end up featured on "One Shining Moment," and checked Twitter to see who was giving them a shoutout. https://www.chinashoes.us/ . Espanyol midfielder Sanchez intercepted Bilbao goalkeeper Gorka Iraizozs clearance and, having spotted a gap, risked using his less-favoured left foot to fire a beautifully precise long-range shot that bounced in from high up the near post in the 24th minute. Fake China Shoes . Colorado came up big against Chicago last spring, and repeated that performance Tuesday night. Varlamov stopped 36 shots and Paul Stastny had a goal and an assist for the Avalanche in a 5-1 victory over the Blackhawks. China Shoes Online . -- Stanley Johnson scored all 18 of his points in the second half, T.NEW YORK, N.Y. - Benoit Pouliot made the most of his return to Madison Square Garden.Pouliot scored the go-ahead goal against his former team midway through the second period and backup Viktor Fasth made 20 saves as the Edmonton Oilers beat the New York Rangers 3-1 on Sunday night.Pouliot scored his second goal of the season off a nifty pass from linemate Ryan Nugent-Hopkins at 8:29 of the middle period to put the Oilers ahead, 2-1. Pouliot was a key member of the Rangers as they reached the Stanley Cup finals last spring before he signed a five-year, $20-million deal with Edmonton in July.It was fun to be back and great that we came out with a win, Pouliot said. Last year was awesome for me. Of course playing against guys I had a great time with, I wanted to do well.Nugent-Hopkins opened the scoring at 3:19 of the first with his team-leading fifth this season with assists to Pouliot and Jordan Eberle. Carl Hagelin tied it for the Rangers with 7:26 remaining in the period with his fourth goal.Teddy Purcells empty-net goal at with 1:27 remaining in the game sealed the Oilers second straight win. Edmonton snapped a four-game losing streak with a win at Buffalo on Friday.Those are the types of games that we want to get the result in because it goes a long way to the learning process for our guys, Oilers coach Dallas Eakins said. We had success throughout the game playing an aggressive game.The Rangers lost for the second time in two nights, coming off a 5-4 loss at Toronto on Saturday night.With an unusual 6 p.m. local start time, the Oilers played better from the start, outshooting the Rangers 11-8 in the first period. The trend continued in the second as the Rangers put forth a minimal attack, with six shots on Fasth while Edmonton had 13 more on Lundqvist.The Rangers continued their uninspired play in the third, bringing a few jeers from the Madison Square Garden crowd. It took 11 minutes into the final period for New Yoork to register its first shot on goal by Tanner Glass.ddddddddddddur effort was unacceptable, Rangers defenceman Marc Staal said. We were out of sorts all over the ice and we were losing battles. Its tough to win a hockey game that way.The 32-year-old Fasth started opposite fellow Swede Henrik Lundqvist for the first time. It was Fasths third start in four games in place of Ben Scrivens.The boys were great blocking shots and making good plays in front of me, especially when they had a push at the end, Fasth said. It feels really good as a team.Lundqvist, who finished with 30 saves, kept the Rangers in the contest, especially in the middle period with saves on Justin Schultz and rookie Leon Draisaitl. The loss left the Rangers goalie searching for answers.When the energy isnt there, its hard to play this game, he said. We need to raise our level. Theres no way around that.The Oilers were without leading scorer Taylor Hall who missed his fourth straight game with a sprained knee. However, they welcomed captain Andrew Ference back after the defenceman missed three games because of a suspension for an illegal check to head of Vancouvers Zack Kassian.The Rangers continued to play without injured defencemen Ryan McDonagh (shoulder) and Dan Boyle (hand). They also missed John Moore, who completed a five-game suspension for a high hit on Minnesotas Erik Haula.Moore can return for Tuesdays home game against Pittsburgh. Boyle has been out since the season-opener but has resumed practicing with the team and could return this week.Rangers coach Alain Vigneault hinted roster moves could be looming for his inconsistent squad.We are going to evaluate our team, see where we are, see if we can make some adjustments and go from there, Vigneault said.NOTES: The Rangers play eight of their next 13 games at MSG . The teams meet again Dec. 14 in Edmonton. The Oilers complete their five-game road trip at Nashville on Tuesday. ' ' '