The days leading up

CALGARY - Mason Raymond will have to adjust on the fly to his new team.Limited to a pair of pre-season games with the Calgary Flames because of a lower-body injury, Raymond says the first few games of the NHL season will be a lesson in adaptation.Would I have liked a few more pre-season games? Sure, Raymond said. Coming to a new team, theres new things to learn, theres new systems, new everything kind of walk of life. I try to pick that up as much as I can, but in saying that I think actually being on the ice and in those situations is the best way, quickest way to learn those.Part of being a professional is being able to adapt. Ive been a pro in this long enough. You have to learn, you have to adapt, thats just part of the way it is.The Flames signed Raymond to a three-year, $9.5-million deal when unrestricted free agency opened July 1. Mike Cammalleri, Calgarys leading scorer last season, departed for the New Jersey Devils the same day.Looking to fill the void on offence, the Flames came to terms with Raymond, who is from Cochrane, Alta., just northwest of Calgary. The six-foot, 185-pound left-winger had 19 goals and 26 assists and played all 82 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2013-14.What was a bounce-back season with the Leafs made Raymond attractive to the Flames. Hed gone to Torontos training camp without a contract and earned a one-year deal.Raymond spent his first six NHL seasons with the Vancouver Canucks and posted a career-high 25 goals and 28 assists in 2009-10. He suffered a broken vertebra in Game 6 of the 2011 Stanley Cup final against the Boston Bruins.The long recovery from the injury hampered his output in subsequent seasons. The Canucks did not re-sign him in 2013. No other teams showed interest until the Leafs took a flyer on him and invited him to training camp.Truth be told, I couldnt get a contract, so I was there on a tryout, Raymond said. Im grateful for the opportunity that Toronto gave me and to be able to succeed.Its satisfying for me coming off a good season, playing well and proving you still deserve to play in this league. I think I proved it to myself, first and foremost, but proved to others I deserve to be here.Goal scoring is a question mark for the Flames to start this 2014-15 season and predicted to be by committee. Raymond, 29, is expected to be a significant producer on that committee.The reason why we went to get Mason is that we had two priorities . . . to get us bigger and to get us faster, Flames head coach Bob Hartley said during training camp. Mason fits in in the second category. Hes been through battles. When youre stuck in a corner and feel like none of the 30 teams want you anymore, youre facing adversity. He did this with flying colours. Last year he had a great season in Toronto and now hes with us.He wanted to be a Flame so its my job, its all our job and his job to make sure we come up with a plan that will make him feel good and make him feel hes going to be a big contributor for us.Raymond relishes the idea of increased responsibility on a re-building hockey team.The work ethic thats been going on here, its something very intriguing for any player to come into, he said.You want to contribute wherever you can for sure. Ultimately, you want to be a part of the solution. I love playing in the O-zone and producing. In saying that you have to be responsible at both ends of the ice.Its easy to romanticize a local hockey product playing for the hometown NHL team. Raymond did go to Flames games as a youngster and recalls once meeting Lanny McDonald, who was captain of the Flames in 1989 when they won the Stanley Cup.Raymond says its cool to play for the Flames and having immediate family close by was attractive for him, his wife and young son.But he hasnt spent his career plotting a return to southern Alberta. Raymonds interests and those of the Flames happened to align to bring it about. The hometown thing for me, its kind of there, but its not there, Raymond said. Family come visit you in every city. Because Im here, is there more? Not necessarily. They know that youre here, this is my job, this is my business and to be quite honest, I was gone from here for 10 years. Did I know I was going to be a Calgary Flame five days before free agency? No, not really. The process is interesting and how it works and theres that grace period where you can start to speak with teams and the Flames showed interest.Returning to an NHL market in western Canada was high on his wish list as a free agent. That was also a box the Flames were also able to check off.For me, Ive been fortunate enough to play in Canadian markets and to be honest, I really wouldnt want it any other way, Raymond said. Fans are passionate. They pay close attention to their teams. Trey Wingenter Jersey .The law passed on Friday, in a 128-62 vote in the lower chamber of parliament, was prompted by FIFA bribery scandals in recent years.Switzerland-based sports leaders such as FIFA President Sepp Blatter and IOC President Thomas Bach are now classed as politically exposed persons in wider legislation covering money-laundering. San Diego Padres Store . -- Chris Tillman paid no attention to the Baltimore bullpen as it started to stir in the ninth inning. https://www.cheappadresjerseys.us/153m-b...sey-padres.html. -- The Oakland Raiders expect to have starting right tackle Tony Pashos back for Sundays game against the Houston Texans. Franchy Cordero Jersey . A Swiss Federal Tribunal ruling published Friday said that FIFAs disputes panel and the Court of Arbitration for Sport correctly imposed the sanction for Nantes enticing Guinea forward Ismael Bangoura to break his contract with Dubai club Al Nasr in January 2012. Jorge Ona Jersey . - Titans quarterback Jake Locker will miss the rest of the season with a Lisfranc injury to his right foot, leaving Tennessee trying to rally with Ryan Fitzpatrick.Some teams sit on their hands come deadline day, while others look to shake up their lineups seemingly every year. But have past years been as busy as 2014? The days leading up to the deadline this year have surely been some of the most active in recent memory. 2010 was certainly the bbusiest year we can think of, with almost every NHL team getting involved in the action.ddddddddddddThis infograhic was created by Dan Gustafson, you can follow him on Twitter @16wins. Dan will contribute pieces like this down the road, so be sure to look for his work. ' ' '