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CALGARY, Alberta -- Brian Elliott was eager to get back in the rink on a hot summer day. After years of fending off challengers in St. Louis, the goalie has big expectations entering next season as the unquestioned No. 1 in Calgary.This is a big one for me, so Im really looking forward to it, Elliott said when introduced to the media on Wednesday at the Scotiabank Saddledome. Sometimes you want that extra bit of summer to relax and enjoy your downtime, but now Ive gotten really excited to get the pads back on and ready to get back at it.The?Flames?acquired the 31-year-old Elliott from the?Blues?on the night of the NHL draft for a second-round pick. Elliott and his wife, Amanda, were on vacation in Croatia at the time.When I got the news, it was 2 oclock in the morning and I saw my phone lighting up, Elliott said. I didnt go back to sleep after that, I was so excited.Elliott has the second-highest save percentage in the league among goalies who have played at least 50 games over the past five seasons at .925, just behind New Jerseys Cory Schneider (.926).Yet as well as he performed over that five-year period in St. Louis, he never seemed to fully gain the trust of the coaching staff that kept trying other options. He gave way to Jaroslav Halak in one postseason, and?Ryan Miller was brought in to be the guy in another. Two years ago, the Blues turned to Jake Allen in the playoffs.To have that good of numbers and not get the opportunity to be the No. 1 guy, sometimes its frustrating, Elliott said. But Ive always believed if you worked hard, put your head down and plowed through it, opportunities will pop up for you.Last year, the Flames trio of Jonas Hiller, Karri Ramo and Joni Ortio collectively ranked last in the NHL in goaltending.Calgary will turn to two new goalies, as veteran backup Chad Johnson?also was signed as a free agent.Elliott was selected by 291st overall by Ottawa in the 2003 draft. He has played 323 career games (165-99-32) with the?Senators,?Colorado Avalanche?and?Blues.He said hes ready for this next chapter.Its talked about a lot with goaltenders. It just takes longer to develop. You have to go through those experiences just to be able to be that consistent player and not really feel the ups and downs and the roller coaster of a season, he said. Just stay calm. Trust your game, trust your work and just go out and play. It takes time to learn that.Calgary general manager Brad Treliving said that while Elliotts on-ice performance was important, the Flames also really liked the fit off the ice.The numbers speak for themselves, but a big part of us going out and getting Brian is also the person, Treliving said. We talked to players that played with him, teammates that have had him, coaches that have coached him. The work ethic, the type of person that he is in the locker room, the teammate stood out as much as the goaltender stood out.Also on hand at the Saddledome was Elliotts wife, who is pregnant with the couples first child, due at the start of the season.A little cowboy on the way, Elliott said. Hakeem Butler Jersey . Gerald Green and Miles Plumlee? Green had bounced around the NBA when he wasnt playing overseas. The Pacers gave up on Plumlee after just one season. Now Green and Plumlee are key cogs in the Suns surprising breakout season. Patrick Peterson Jersey . Halifax beat the Saint John Sea Dogs 7-5 on the strength of two goals apiece from Nikolaj Ehlers, Matt Murphy and Brent Andrews. Jonathan Drouin also scored and had three assists while Zachary Fucale made 17 saves for the Mooseheads (16-8-0), who led 6-1 after two periods. http://www.nflcardinalsrookiestore.com/Cardinals-Christian-Kirk-Jersey/ . Louis Rams wide receiver Stedman Bailey last Sunday. The fine is the fourth this season for Goldson. He was fined $30,000 for a hit on the New York Jets Jeff Cumberland in Week 1. Haason Reddick Jersey . With their top three point guards and Kobe Bryant all sidelined by injury, the Lakers signed Marshall out of the D-League on Friday before their home game against Minnesota. David Johnson Cardinals Jersey . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. Corey Jones was driving home 13 months ago after a gig with his church band when his SUV broke down on a South Florida highway at nearly 2 a.m. Roughly 90 minutes later Jones was on the phone with roadside assistance when a white cargo van pulled up in the dim light. A man wearing blue jeans, sneakers, a tan T-shirt and a baseball cap got out.You good? the man asked.Im good, Jones answered.Really?Yeah, Im good, Jones repeated.Really?Yeah.The next sound on an audio recording of the phone call was the man shouting: Get your f---ing hands up! Get your f---ing hands up!Hold on! Jones said.Get your f---ing hands up! Drop! the man yelled before firing three gunshots within two seconds.According to a report filed by the state attorneys office, the man fired three more shots 10 seconds later -- only more deliberately -- with one shot every three seconds.Jones, 31, died on the side of that highway after being struck by three of the six bullets. His death sparked local protests because the man who allegedly shot him, Nouman Raja, was a plainclothes Palm Beach Gardens police officer who failed to show a badge or identify himself as an officer. Raja was driving an unmarked van.Raja was charged with manslaughter and attempted murder eight months later, but to date there has been no trial and no closure for Jones family, which includes cousin Anquan Boldin, a receiver with the Detroit Lions. Boldin would like answers for not only his family, but all families who have experienced such a tragedy. Its one reason he and four other NFL players have traveled to Capitol Hill on Tuesday for meetings with a handful of congressmen, including Speaker of the House Paul Ryan.No. 1, you want to hear that they hear you, Boldin told ESPN.com. You want to make sure they understand the things that we, as an African-American community, are going through. I dont think our community feels that way right now, especially when it comes to law enforcement and the way were being policed. Our neighborhoods are feeling hurt. No. 2, you want to see changes in policy, in terms of how we train our police officers. And lastly, you want to see accountability -- that justice will be served for all -- to make sure that the relationship between the African-American community and police can be better. Theres work to be done on both sides because theres a huge mistrust there. I want to help close that gap.Boldin, the NFLs Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2015 for his production on the field and his community work off it, began contemplating the trip well before August, when San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick started protesting police brutality against people of color by sitting and subsequently kneeling, during the national anthem.Boldin reached out to Philadelphia Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins, Lions safety Glover Quin?and quarterback Josh McCown and wideout Andrew Hawkins?of the Cleveland Browns?-- all guys who are well respected in the league and who have the same goal in mind as myself ?-- to join him. Each said yes. Boldin did not reach out to Kaepernick because, he said, it would have been tough logistically for Kaepernick to make the trip from the West Coast. Also, Boldin didnt want the meetings to draw attention that could negatively impact their desire to make positive change.For some players like Hawkins, the issue is deeply personal. He thinks back to the November day two years ago when 12-year-old Tamir Rice -- who was black -- was shot to death by a police officer while playing with a toy gun on a Cleveland playground. Hawkins reflects on how he couldve been Rice a decade earlier had his mother allowed him to play with the toy gun he had gotten from a church giveaway for kids.I thought the gun was the coolest thing ever, and my mom took it away, he said. I asked why, and she said, Someone is going to think its real and shoot you. I didnt understand it because all of my friends -- I went to a predominantly white elementary school, Catholic school -- they all had BB guns and would play with them all the time. I always thought it was so cool, but my mom would tell me, You dont have that luxury. I didnt understand it as a kid, but I do now. I have a son of my own.His mothers words came rushing back to him when Rice was killed, just as they did three months earlier when John Crawford, a 22-year-old black male, was fatally shot by police while holding a toy BB gun rifle inside a Walmart in Beavercreek, Ohio. Those killings prompted Hawkins to wear a T-shirt that read Justice for Tamir Rice and John Crawford on the front and The Real Battle for Ohio on the back before a December 2014 game against the Cincinnati Bengals.It created a lot of controversy at the time, but its something that was important to me then, and its important to me now, Hawkins said. To be honest, it was probably the proudest moment that Ive had as a professional athllete.dddddddddddd ... We have a lot of power because were visible, and there was a sense of responsibility that I felt I had because Im in a sport where I might be the only person of color to get the opportunity to be on TV and articulate how a lot of people of color feel about the situation. Thats not a responsibility I take lightly, so it was important for me.What does he hope to accomplish Tuesday?Im not a lawmaker, and I dont come from a background of politics, Hawkins said. My expertise is in the communities that I grew up in, the people that I know, the firsthand encounters that Ive had. Im just curious to hear what our congressmen have to say, as people who are in charge of government and who have that responsibility and power. I want to get the other side of it. Going forward, this is more of a baseline than anything. Were probably not having extensive meetings and sitting there and loosening our ties and really getting down to business, so I dont know how much can be accomplished or how much can be said. But its a first step and an important step because you cant get to the next one without this one.The players are scheduled to visit with Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Fla.), Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) and Rep. Daniel Webster (R-Fla.), as well as with members of the congressional black caucus. The meetings were arranged by Andrew Blejwas, an associate director of marketing for the nonprofit The Nature Conservancy, who since 2012 has been advising players like Boldin on how they can maximize their off-field work. The NFL Players Association also worked to arrange possible meetings with Speaker Ryan and some White House staff.No one is sure what will come of the sessions, but the players are firm that theyd like to walk away with something tangible, even if its an agreement to meet again for more discussions on what actions can be taken to address the issues. While Boldin and others want to be heard, McCown wants to listen.I dont believe we, as white people, can understand what African-Americans go through on a daily basis, because its different, McCown said. For me, first and foremost, I want to be able to acknowledge that and say that our stories are different and our histories are different, but lets just try to be a part of making it better moving forward. Thats been my resolve -- starting in my family first, and in my circle -- to be able to go, Im going to listen better and be better and be on the side of good and good things to move forward. But what does that look like? To me, it looks like justice and standing with your friends for whats right. So many times in this situation it feels like you cant be for law enforcement and for Black Lives Matter. Theres such a stark line that you have to be on one side or the other. Im trying to process that and understand. Why cant you be for both? I want the message to be that we can be for both. I dont know if thats possible, but thats where my heart is.McCown said he began to understand the issue?after police shot and killed Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. He said he began to read and listen more intently to what was going on around the country. The stories resonated even more during offseason bible-study meetings each Thursday with former and active players. Many of the participants were black and shared personal stories of how they or family members had been mistreated by law enforcement.Youre listening to what theyve gone through, and I call it a weighted vest, McCown said. That probably doesnt do it justice, but I was like, Man, they do live with a weighted vest on. Its not the same race we [whites] are running here. It began to change my perspective.Boldins goal is to raise awareness and create positive change. His commitment is even stronger following the contentious presidential election.It makes me even more passionate because I see a country thats hurting, Boldin said. I see so much divide, to the point that I dont think weve ever been at this point in my lifetime. Has there always been racism? Of course. Has police brutality always been there? Of course. You name it, and its been there. But at this point, it just seems to be so brazen.When you hear about the things that are happening on college campuses, high school campuses, even elementary school campuses, its mind-blowing. This is the type of stuff I didnt have growing up, where you have young kids just being blatantly racist. Theres a huge divide in our country now, and if we dont find a way to heal it, things are only going to get worse. I dont want to bring my kids up in a country like that. I dont think any of us do. Weve got to do some work. And we cant leave it to politicians and the government alone. We have to make a difference. If we dont, were doomed. ' ' '