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Darian Durant found another level in helping lead the Saskatchewan Roughriders to a Grey Cup victory last season. For an encore, hell have to find an even higher level still. Durant was sensational last year, posting career numbers (325-531 for 4,154 passing yards, and a career best 31 touchdowns to just 12 interceptions), and featuring regularly in the MOP Watch. By the increasingly criticized metric that is Quarterback Rating, Durant had the best year of his career last year at 95.7, a full seven points higher than his career mark. But Durant had an awful lot of help on the teams third-ranked offence. First and foremost was league all-star and team nominee for Most Outstanding Player Kory Sheets. In his sophomore CFL campaign Sheets was second in league rushing with 1,598 yards and a gaudy 5.6 yards per carry average and 12 touchdowns. His Grey Cup performance will also be remembered in Saskatchewan – and Hamilton, albeit much less fondly – for years to come. The 29-year-old will be preparing for NFL training camp in Oakland when the Roughriders begin their title defence, and while hes in tough to make the Raiders roster, the best case scenario for Saskatchewan is a return sometime around Labour Day. Another Roughriders mainstay and fan favourite Durant will no longer have at his disposal is slight receiver Weston Dressler. The 57 slotback was a 1,000-yard receiver in five of his six CFL seasons, falling just 59 yards short in his sophomore campaign, and scored a combined 45 touchdowns. Durant and Dresslers time in Saskatchewan had coincided, the two emerging together in 2008. But now the favourite target is in Kansas City with no guarantee of returning. So this year Durant enters the unquestioned leader on offence, and with more unknowns on the roster than previous seasons, hell have to shoulder a greater load. The good news of course is that the cupboard isnt completely bare. While Dresslers sure hands and elusiveness will be missed in the receiving corps, two other pass catchers, ones still on the roster, eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark as well last season in Chris Getzlaf, who led the team with 1,045, and Taj Smith, who hit the mark in just his second season. And if Rob Bagg can stay healthy all year, that will be another receiver for Durant to lean on. The running back position is much more of a toss-up heading into the season. The team has five RBs with a combined two carries CFL experience (Clifton Smith, which he gained with the Calgary Stampeders last season). But the last time they tried to replace a solid veteran running back, Wes Cates in 2012, they found a guy who would one day lead them to a Grey Cup victory at home. So, theres hope. Things could work out around Durant; he may have a support staff as talented as the one hoisting the Grey Cup alongside him last year. But the inexperience and uncertainty heading into the season alone means hell have to do even more as both a leader and performer to keep the Roughriders in Grey Cup contention. The football crazy fans in Saskatchewan already love their veteran quarterback; if he can elevate his game and bring more success to the province, theyll cherish him even more. Notes Expansion Draft Roughriders fans were surprised to see DT Keith Shologan get picked by the Ottawa Redblacks in the national portion of the expansion draft after the veteran spent the past six seasons in Saskatchewan. Ottawa also grabbed Shologans backup in Zack Evans one round later, it being evident the Roughriders were making a ratio change. OT James Lee was Saskatchewans international loss in the draft. Coach of the YearIn his second season as head coach of the Roughriders, Corey Chamblin had a dream year. He led Saskatchewan to a scorching start to the season before guiding them to a Grey Cup win in front of a boisterous hometown crowd. Chamblin was awarded in the off-season with the leagues Coach of the Year award, beating out former Roughriders coach Kent Austin. Free Agency The Roughriders lost a lot more talent in free agency than they signed back. Notable losses included S Craig Butler, LBs Abraham Kromah and Graig Newman, WR Kierre Johnson, RB Jock Sanders, and QB Drew Willy, not to mention Kory Sheets and Weston Dressler who are now in the NFL. The team did lock up some of their pending free agents however, including DBs Paul Woldu and Terrell Maze, and WR Taj Smith. CFL DraftThe Roughriders traded out of the first round, stock piling picks later in the draft. With their first pick in the second round the team landed CFL Combine star Dylan Ainsworth, a DL from Western, before also grabbing WR Alex Pierzchalski from Toronto. Saskatchewan also had two picks in the third round, nabbing John Mark from Calgary and WR Kristopher Bastien from Concordia. Their remaining picks included DB Matt Webster from Queens and OL Kyle Paterson from Regina in the fifth round, LB Travis Bent from Concordia in the sixth round, and OL Terry Hart from St. Francis Xavier in the seventh round. New Mosaic StadiumRoughriders fans got a glimpse at the teams new stadium late in the off-season and not much longer ground was broken. The $278 million project should be completed by August 2016 and will give the 33,000 fans surely to pack the place on a regular basis a more comfortable viewing experience than the one they are getting now. China Jerseys Cheap . -- Kenneth Faried made a turnaround hook shot over Draymond Green with a half-second remaining, and the Denver Nuggets made Golden State wait at least one more game to secure a playoff berth with a stunning 100-99 win over the Warriors on Thursday night. China Jerseys Wholesale .C. -- Eric Staal kept his focus after his apparent breakaway goal was waived off early in the third period. https://www.chinajerseyscheap.us/. First reported by FOX Sports Ken Rosenthal, its unknown if the impetus for the deferral proposal came from players or management, but it never left the preliminary stages. Fake China Jerseys . -- Two out of three aint bad. China Jerseys Stitched . He even addressed his group of relievers Sunday morning. Dustin McGowan made those worries a nonfactor, at least for a day. McGowan pitched three-hit ball for seven innings, Colby Rasmus hit a grand slam and Melky Cabrera added a two-run homer as the Blue Jays beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-2. EDMONTON -- The Portland Winterhawks were down, but they were able to keep from going out. Keegan Iverson scored the overtime winner as the Winterhawks erased a three-goal, third-period deficit to snap a three-game losing skid and defeat the Edmonton Oil Kings 6-5 on Sunday, sending the Western Hockey League championship to a seventh game. Portland trailed 5-2, but battled back to tie the game. The Winterhawks completed the comeback when Iverson tipped a Dominic Turgeon shot past Edmonton goalie Tristan Jarry 7:23 into overtime. "Thats definitely the biggest goal of my life," Iverson said. "I was just in shock when I scored. "Its been such an unbelievable series. Its been crazy. Its going to be quite the final game." The seventh and deciding game of the WHL final will take place Monday in Portland. Mathew Dumba had a pair of goals and Anton Cederholm, Keoni Texeira and Derrick Pouliot also scored for the Winterhawks, who had dropped three straight after owning a 2-0 advantage to start the best-of-seven finals. Prior to the three losses in the finals, the Winterhawks had only lost three games in their previous 45 outings. "We knew we just had to stick with it," said Portland head coach Mike Johnston. "We have the ability to score and have built that confidence throughout the year. Our guys were great. They played through it. It was a great character win. Its unusual to look at a scoresheet and see five defencemen scoring like we had tonight." Dumba credited goalie Corbin Boes, who was pulled after the first period, for firing the team up before the comeback. "He gave one of the most inspiring speeches I have ever heard," Dumba said. "He stood up like a 20-year-old should and made a great speech. He said he had never been on a team that is so tightly-knit like this and he wanted to keep it going. He believed in all of us and he got really emotional and I think it hit home with all of us. Just talking about it now gives me chills." Henrik Samuelsson and Edgars Kulda each had two-goal games and Curtis Lazar also scored for the Oil Kings, who lost for the first time at home in the playoffs, dropping to 10-1. "Its the old story, you have to play 60 minutes and we played about 35 before we sat back a bit," said Oil Kings head coach Derek Laxdal. "It is what it is. We are headed to a Game 7. It didnt look very good for us coming back from being down 2-0 in the series and our mindset has to be that we will take another chance to win this tomorrow." Edmonton captain Griffin Reinhart agreed that his team missed out on an opportunity, but can take solace in having one more chance. "We got the lead and were maybe a llittle bit too comfortable," he said.dddddddddddd "We played not to lose rather than to win. It is a tough loss, but tomorrow is a new day and we have to bounce back. "I think our adrenaline is going to be big tomorrow. Its a seven-game series for a reason." Ten WHL finals have gone to a seventh game, and not one has been captured by the visiting team. Edmonton carried over the momentum from their previous three wins to get off to a great start in front of a WHL playoff-high crowd of 11,902 at Rexall Place. The Oil Kings took a 1-0 lead five minutes into the first period with a power-play goal. A Dysin Mayo shot hit Mitch Moroz on the way to the net and Samuelsson was able to poke his seventh of the playoffs past Boes. Samuelsson notched his second goal of the game 1:26 later as Moroz forced a turnover deep in Portland territory and sent it across the ice. Samuelsson blasted the puck off of Boes glove and in to put the Oil Kings up 2-0. Edmonton took a three-goal advantage with 51 seconds remaining in the first period as Kuldas shot found its way through a maze of players and into the Portland net. Brendan Burke came in to replace Boes in the Portland net to start the second period. Portland got on the board less than four minutes into the second as Dumbas point blast beat Jarry on a 5-on-3 man advantage. The Winterhawks made it 3-2 with seven minutes left in the second as Cederholm came down the left side and picked the top corner with a wrist shot. Just 45 seconds after Portlands goal, Edmontons Reid Petryk picked off a pass and sent a backhander to Lazar, and the Ottawa Senators prospect scored his ninth of the playoffs. Less than a minute later, Edmonton made it 5-2 as Mayo made a long lead pass to give Kulda a breakaway, and he beat Burke stick side for his second of the game. The Winterhawks cut Edmontons lead to two goals again with Dumbas second goal, also on the power play goal three minutes into the third. Portland made it 5-4 with 14 minutes remaining as De Leo put a puck on net and Texeira got it under Jarry and into the net. The Hawks tied the game with just under nine minutes left as Pouliot blew the puck past Jarry to eventually send the game to overtime. Notes: Its the third consecutive season that the Oil Kings and Winterhawks have met in the WHL Championship Series. Edmonton defeated Portland in seven games to win in 2012, while Portland won in six games last year. a It is just the second time in league history that two teams have met in the WHL final three years in a row. The last time was when the original Edmonton Oil Kings (who ended up moving to Portland to become the Winterhawks) played the Flin Flon Bombers three times from 1969-71. ' ' '