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VANCOUVER -- The Vancouver Canucks had a December to remember. Since the calendar flipped to 2014, its been a very unhappy new year. After compiling a 10-1-2 mark last month that put some distance between the teams chasing them in the Western Conference wildcard race, the Canucks have lost five in a row, including four straight to start January. The latest setback came Tuesday, when the Pittsburgh Penguins scored twice in the final 1:11 of regulation with their goalie pulled to tie the game before winning 5-4 in a shootout. All told, the Canucks have given up six goals in five games this season when opponents have their goalie on the bench for an extra attacker. "Late in games, I always talk about situational play," Canucks head coach John Tortorella said after Thursdays practice at Rogers Arena. "Situational play is a mindset and we have not totally grasped that. Thats a mental toughness, to me. I believe you can develop that type of mental toughness -- to play in the (hard) areas at certain times, at certain (moments) of games. "I think at times weve done it this year, and obviously of late here, we havent." Tortorella said the only way to deal with blown leads is to get back on the horse. "You hope youre leading again 3-2 in the third period ... and you find a way to get it done," he said. "You need to grasp something." Tortorella said that for him, the most fascinating part of coaching is the mind, adding that its his job to make sure players learn how to be tough mentally game in and game out. "I tell the players theyre screwed -- if I see it once, I know its there," said Tortorella. "When you show signs you can do it, then you need to demand yourself to do it more consistently. Thats a big part of our responsibility. Ive seen us play stiff enough to handle situations. "When youre developing an identity of a hockey club, it falls on the coach to demand it and keep it there. Im in it with them as far this little slump here." Vancouvers current losing streak includes road defeats to the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks. The Canucks currently sit in the first wildcard position, but they host the powerhouse St. Louis Blues on Friday before travelling back to Los Angeles and Anaheim as part of a three-game roadtrip. "The schedules not getting any easier," said Canucks defenceman Kevin Bieksa. "Weve got a lot teams that are ahead of us in the standings that were playing. These are the teams we have to beat if we want to catch them." Bieksa said the players arent dwelling on the late-game collapses, but are instead trying to learn from the mistakes. "Sometimes maybe we clench up a bit towards the end of the game with the lead because weve lost it so many times and its in the back of guys head," he said. "You still have to go out there and make a play. Its not just going back and just hammering pucks around the boards and shooting it out and then they come right back on you. "Somebodys got to make a play. Somebodys got to make a tape-to-tape pass. Somebodys got to hold onto a puck down low and kill some time. Someones got to beat a guy and get a shot on net. Its just a mindset of continuing to play the same way." Apart from blowing leads, the Canucks have also had a miserable time in the shootout this season. Vancouver has a meagre 2-6 record and is a combined 4-for-32 on shootout attempts. Tortorella had the Canucks practice the shootout for nearly 15 minutes at the end of practice on Thursday, with fourth-liner Zac Dalpe and defenceman Jason Garrison finding a measure of success. Tortorella downplayed the exercise, saying its impossible to mimic game shootout conditions in practice, before sharing what he thought of NHL games being decided by a skills competition. "It should be out of the league," he said. "That gimmick should be out of the league." Note: Canucks forward Alexandre Burrows and defenceman Alexander Edler were both full participants at Thursdays practice, but Tortorella said neither has been cleared to play. Burrows has been out with a broken jaw, while Edler has been sidelined by a knee injury. Juan Thornhill Jersey . -- Kansas City Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer will be out three to six weeks with a stress fracture of the third finger of his right hand. Len Dawson Jersey . 31-Feb. 2. While organizers havent decided if itll be red or green clay, they feel their choice of surface will give the Americans an advantage over Britain, which is expected to be led by defending Wimbledon champion Andy Murray. http://www.cheapchiefsjerseysauthentic.com/. For the Athletics, hes extremely important at the top of the order, especially with Coco Crisp hurting. Jaso drove in three runs Sunday night, helping Scott Kazmir and Oakland beat the Texas Rangers 9-3. Khalen Saunders Jersey . LOUIS - The St. Cheap Chiefs Jerseys . - After a back-and-forth battle throughout the season, Alex Guenette has earned the 2013 rookie of the year award for the NASCAR Canadian Tire Series presented by Mobil 1 by just one point over Ryley Seibert.Toronto FC supporters have heard all about it. They have watched it from afar. And now they have seen it for themselves. Jermain Defoe is a difference maker. Just two matches into his Major League Soccer career, the England international now has three goals. He followed up his opening day brace by scoring the winner against DC United in the clubs home opener on Saturday. MLSE has spent big bucks bringing the former Spurs forward to Toronto as part of a remarkable offseason transformation and even at this early stage, they are seeing a return on their investment. On Saturday, BMO Field was alive again. It was like 2007 all over again. A stadium and fan base that has seen the life gradually sucked out if it, year by year, failure after failure, was reinvigorated. With Defoe, its not just about the goals. Far from it. His movement is exceptional. Against D.C. United he created three first half chances which showcased his exceptional reading of the game - he was one or two steps ahead of the D.C. defence every time he sensed a potential opening in front of goal. An MLS coach told me last year he believes when LA Galaxys Robbie Keane is on his game, he is "unstoppable." Defoe has shown in his first two matches that he has the ability to have that same impact in Major League Soccer. And its not just Defoe. MLSE President Tim Leiweke must have been grinning from ear to ear when he saw three of the clubs big offseason acquisitions involved in the only goal of the game against D.C. Michael Bradley played a lovely ball through for Brazilian Gilberto who saw his shot saved by Bill Hamid, only for Defoe to pounce and score his third goal in just two matches. For the second week in a row, Bradley ran the midfield. Prior to signing Bradley, TFC GM Tim Bezbatchenko described him as "the heart and soul" of the U.ddddddddddddS. Mens National Team. He has very quickly become he heartbeat of Toronto FC as well. It was also the first chance we got to see Gilberto. The 24-year-old missed most of preseason through injury but started against D.C. and was impressive showing some quality touches as well as the physical attributes necessary to succeed in MLS. Defensively, Toronto also looked solid. Brazils number one goalkeeper Julio Cesar kept his first clean sheet for the club while the central defensive tandem of veteran Steven Caldwell and young Canadian Doneil Henry continues to develop a strong understanding. The quality on the pitch and the atmosphere in the stands was night and day compared to six months ago. There have been false dawns before, but this time it feels different. For the first time in club history the Reds have won back-to-back games to start the MLS season. There is of course still much work to be done. This is a team in the early stages of its life together and there will be setbacks and bad days ahead. There are questions about the depth of the squad should some of the key pieces be missing for an extended period of time. Head coach Ryan Nelsen talks often about the fact the team is not anywhere near where he wants it to be - he told me he wants the team to be able to win playing beautiful football and also learn how to win ugly. Saturday was probably somewhere in between. 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