Desjardins said. Take anything away from the rally that fell short?

DENVER -- Jamie McGinn turned in the biggest play before the game even began, preparing a pregame meal for the cooking-challenged Nathan MacKinnon. Cheap Titans Jerseys For Sale . That pasta and chicken feast fueled the rookie MacKinnon to his first two-goal game and the Colorado Avalanche held off the San Jose Sharks 4-3 on Saturday for their third straight win. "I think Ive got to take a little bit of credit for that," McGinn joked. McGinn chipped in with more than a meal, though, scoring a goal as well. The Avalanche jumped out to a 4-0 lead -- and would need every one to dodge a comeback from San Jose. Semyon Varlamov was at his best late in the game, making several big stops in the waning moments. He finished with 30 saves. "Varly really bailed us out at the end there," MacKinnon said. "We knew theyre a resilient team. Next time we play them, if we get up, weve got to step on the pedal a little bit more." With his two-goal burst, MacKinnon moved past San Joses Tomas Hertl for most points (26) among rookies. Hertl is sidelined after undergoing surgery earlier this week to repair damaged ligaments in his right knee. Think about that rookie scoring race? "A little bit, when it gets announced on the Jumbotron," MacKinnon said. "But thats not my focus." These days, about the only thing MacKinnon cant do is cook. Thats why McGinn stepped in. MacKinnon usually lives in backup goalie Jean-Sebastien Gigueres basement. But Giguere had family in and MacKinnon stayed with McGinn. "So I was cooking this morning," McGinn said. "He said he doesnt know how to cook. Well let that slide." The Avalanche have 56 points at the halfway point of the season, second-most in team history behind the 2000-01 Stanley Cup team. Still, theres plenty of season left as they try to return to the post-season after a three-year drought. "Everybody is pushing hard," first-year coach Patrick Roy said. "Everybody wants to give ourselves a chance to make the playoffs." Erik Johnson scored a fluke goal at 5:45 of the second when the puck bounced past Antti Niemi. That gaffe ended the goaltenders day and frustrated his coach Todd McLellan so much that he inserted backup Alex Stalock, who promptly allowed MacKinnons second goal 14 seconds later to make it a 4-0 game. That didnt make McLellan any happier. "Ive gone after our team in the new year, try to hold them very accountable," McLellan said. "The goaltenders are part of that. Cant keep going toward the forwards or the D men." Joe Pavelski, Patrick Marleau and Logan Couture had goals for the Sharks. Couture made it a one-goal game at 5:44 of the third when he knocked in a loose puck over a sprawled out Varlamov. The Sharks pulled Stalock with just over a minute left for an extra skater, only to struggle to get the puck into Colorados zone. And when they did, Varlamov turned it aside. Jan Hejda was whistled for interference with 4:02 remaining and Pavelski had a chance to tie it, getting open in the slot, but Varlamov stopped it with his chest, along with a rebound. It was quite an entertaining second period for the fans who braved the chill and the snow to show up at the Pepsi Center. The opening part of the period was all Avalanche as McGinn scored off a Sharks turnover, Johnson added another on a knuckleball of a shot that skipped past Niemi and MacKinnon knocked in a wrist shot to stake Colorado to a four-goal lead. On the ensuing faceoff, Andrew Desjardins struck John Mitchell in the groin with his stick, setting off a scuffle at centre ice. That seemed to fire up the listless Sharks, who quickly scored two goals to make it a 4-2 game at the end of the second period. Desjardins said after the game he didnt hit Mitchell on purpose. "Its more like when the guys come together and you try to push the guys hands away and my stick I guess caught him in an unfortunate spot," Desjardins said. Take anything away from the rally that fell short? "We expended or used up a lot of energy to come within one," said McLellan, whose team plays in Chicago on Sunday. "Were in the midst of a tough schedule, played guys down the stretch an awful lot and still (came up) short. We play tomorrow and we used up a lot of gas today." NOTES: Marleau also had two assists. ... Colorado F Paul Stastny contributed two assists as nine different Avs players had at least a point. ... At 18 years, 125 days, MacKinnon is the youngest player in franchise history to score two goals in a game. Wholesale Titans Jerseys . -- Chris Crawford hit a 3-pointer with 1:36 left to put Memphis ahead to stay, and the 21st-ranked Tigers beat seventh-ranked Louisville 72-66 Saturday, sweeping the season series from the Cardinals. Cheap Titans Jerseys . A strong fastball. A big, bending curveball that can buckle hitters at the knees. Against the Detroit Tigers on Sunday, Elias put the entire package together against one of the leagues strongest lineups. http://www.wholesaletitansjerseys.com/ . Kyrie Irving and the Cleveland Cavaliers were left fretting over an MRI on the stars left knee. Paul George scored 21 points, Roy Hibbert added 19 and the Pacers used a dominant fourth quarter to blow out the Cavaliers 91-76 on Tuesday The Pacers (25-5) have won eight in a row over Cleveland, their longest active streak against any opponent.Kevin Durant withdrew Thursday from the U.S. national team, the biggest loss yet for a weakening American squad that will go to Spain without the leading scorer on its last two gold medal winners. The NBAs MVP took part in the Americans training camp in Las Vegas last week, but then informed team officials that he wasnt going to continue. "Kevin reached out to Coach K and myself this afternoon and expressed that he is just physically and mentally drained from the NBA season and his attention to his many responsibilities, USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo said in a statement. "He tried to give it a go at our recent Las Vegas training camp but felt coming out of camp that he was not prepared to fulfil the commitment he made to the team." Durant was the MVP of the world championship in 2010, leading the Americans to that title for the first time since 1994. The Oklahoma City star also started on their gold medal-winning team in the 2012 Olympics and led the Americans with 19.5 points per game. His withdrawal comes less than a week after Indianas Paul George was lost to a broken right leg and follows previous withdrawals by All-Stars Kevin Love, Blake Griffin and LaMarcus Aldridge, and NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard. "This was an extremely difficult decision as I take great pride in representing our country," Durant said. "I know that I owe it to my USA Basketball teammates to be totally invested in the experience. After going through training camp with USAB, I realized I could not fulfil my responsibilities to the team from both a time and energy standpoint. "I need to take a step back and take some time away, both mentally and physically in order to prepare for the upcomming NBA season. Wholesale Titans Jerseys Free Shipping. I will be rooting for USAB and look forward to future opportunities with them." The U.S. roster is down to 15 players. The Americans resume practicing next Thursday in Chicago and have to finalize a 12-man roster before the World Cup of Basketball begins in Spain on Aug. 30. The Americans may still be the favourites, but are increasingly beatable with the losses of Durant and George, who were expected to fill the two starting forward spots. Durant carried a young U.S. to the title four years ago in Turkey with a series of sensational performances, averaging 22.8 points and shattering a number of team offensive records. He set the American mark with 38 points in a semifinal victory over Lithuania. At 6-foot-10, Durant is big enough to play as a power forward internationally, creating a matchup nightmare for opponents who cant defend him on the perimeter. He led the tournament in 3-pointers attempted and made in the 2010 worlds. He has averaged 19.9 points in 31 games in a U.S. jersey, shooting 48 per cent from 3-point range. But Colangelo said the Americans understood his need for time off. "Coach K and I fully support Kevin," he said. "His well-being is the most important thing to us and we support him taking the time to get ready for next season. Hes been part of the national team program for eight years and a big part of the success we have achieved, and we look forward to him being part of our success in the future as well. "We are excited about the opportunity ahead of us and to getting back to work in Chicago on Aug. 14," Colangelo added. "All 15 players are committed to the USA Basketball standard, which is to come together to win gold medals." Cheap Nike Buccaneers Jerseys Cheap Nike Packers Jerseys Cheap Nike Vikings Jerseys Cheap Nike Lions Jerseys Cheap Nike Colts Jerseys Cheap Nike Texans Jerseys Cheap Nike Jaguars Jerseys Cheap Nike Dolphins Jerseys Cheap Nike Patriots Jerseys Cheap Nike Jets Jerseys Cheap Nike Browns Jerseys Cheap Nike Broncos Jerseys Cheap Nike Chiefs Jerseys Cheap Nike Bengals Jerseys Cheap Nike Steelers Jerseys Cheap Nike Titans Jerseys ' ' '