Patrice Bergeron started earning acclaim for his defensive game four seasons ago when he was a legitimate Selke Trophy candidate for the first time. Adidas NMD Wholesale China . It has taken longer for Bergeron to be appreciated as one of the best all-around players in the NHL. Maybe it started during the Boston Bruins 2011 Stanley Cup run or last years trip to the final, but after playing a major role in Team Canadas gold-medal performance at the Sochi Olympics, the 28-year-old is surely considered among hockeys elite centres. "I think what hes done is he opened a lot of peoples eyes," Boston coach Claude Julien said. "I know at his first Olympics he didnt have, whether it was the opportunity, to do what he did. The last one I think people realized how good he is." Statistically, Bergeron had just two assists in six games, but the Quebec City native shifted from a fourth-line centre role to right-wing alongside Sidney Crosby and never missed a beat. His nearly flawless play wasnt a revelation as much as it underscored his growth from the 2010 Games in Vancouver, where he was the 13th forward. In that tournament, as defenceman Chris Pronger told CBC Sports recently, Bergeron had a smaller role that was "probably a little unfair to him." "Patrice would sit on the bench for long periods of time and then wed get a penalty and turn to him and say, OK, go out and kill it," Pronger told CBC. "Thats a pretty tough, but important, job." Its also an important job to play with Crosby, whose unique talent level and menatal acuity are often difficult to match. Bergeron said during the Olympics that the challenge is to be at his best when on Crosbys wing. "Its about trying to find him when hes open but also its getting open for yourself, not just trying to feed him," Bergeron said of Crosby. "You give him the puck in your zone and he does his thing." Bergeron said playing with not just Crosby but everyone on that deep, talented Team Canada made him better. "I think it helped me with the confidence being there, and the pace and the level of the game down there, it definitely helped me coming back here," Bergeron said last week in Detroit before the Bruins finished off the Red Wings to set up a showdown with the Montreal Canadiens that begins Thursday. Sochi gave Bergeron an international showcase to show his stuff, but he has been a key cog for the Bruins for a number of years. He has played 70-plus games in eight of nine full NHL seasons since entering the league in 2003 and had 20 points in 23 games when Boston won the Cup in 2011. This season, though, he was downright dominant at times. With 62 points in 80 games, a league-best plus-38 rating and a 58.6 per cent success rate in the faceoff circle, Bergeron was the Bruins most important forward as they won the Presidents Trophy. "I didnt think a guy thats already played eight or nine years can get better each and every year, but he is," winger Brad Marchand said in Toronto late in the regular season. "Hes the reason why weve won this many games this year and why we won the Cup. Hes a phenomenal player, a great leader, and every night hes on the ice hes a guy you want to follow." At one time Bergeron was the player doing the following. Even though he was taught defensive responsibility while growing up in hockey, Bergeron looked to Ted Donato and others who were winning faceoffs and playing in their own end. Now a veteran on the verge of beginning his US$52-million, eight-year contract signed last summer, Bergeron is now in the position of instilling those principles in younger teammates. "I mean its how I play so Im always trying to talk about that, talk about making sure we come back on the backcheck and we do the right thing defensively to create some offence," Bergeron said. Bergeron doesnt just help Bruins players. Red Wings centre Riley Sheahan, who was a key piece of their run to the playoffs, said he studies Bergerons game to improve his own. Even players at other positions appreciate what Bergeron brings to the ice. Detroit defenceman Brendan Smith has noticed Bergerons game even more now that brother Reilly is his teammate in Boston. "He reminds me of (Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg) because hes so good defensively, hes so good offensively," Smith said. "Hes above the play. He makes good decisions. Hes a second quick. Hes strong on the puck. He makes good reads. You go through the list about a player like Bergeron." Brendan Smith said Reilly has picked up plenty of tidbits from Bergeron, and according to Julien hes far from the only one who can say that. "Anybody that plays with him and sees his work ethic doesnt have a choice but to follow this guy," Julien said. "That just makes those players better. If we see a player that has skill and some potential, we know playing with Bergie that the other parts of his game will improve. That certainly is something weve always looked at." Forget about younger players. Even as Bergeron is a well-established pro, hes trying to tweak elements of his game that arent quite perfect. "Youre always trying to work on things," Bergeron said. "Coaches are doing a great job of showing me some videos with my stick in the right position on the PK or whatnot. So I think you definitely improve every time you put some work into it." Cheap Mens Adidas NMD Shoes .J. -- Travis Zajac of the New Jersey Devils took a lot of grief considering his scored the first of his career-best three goals just 12 seconds into a crucial game against the Florida Panthers. Adidas NMD Womens Sale . -- Felix Girard scored on the power play in the third period to lift the Baie-Comeau Drakkar past the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada 4-3 in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action Friday. http://www.cheapnmdonline.com/adidas-nmd-mens-clearance.html . The Tiger-Cats announced on Friday the linebacker has signed a new contract with the team through the 2016 season.PARIS -- At last, Formula One has a heated rivalry again. Better still, its in the same team and there are 13 races left for it to develop. The dominance of Mercedes, which has swept all six races and all six pole positions so far, prompted fears that this season was becoming even more predictable than the last, when Sebastian Vettel won the final nine races and Red Bull crushed everyone. Then, at last weekends Monaco GP, a feud erupted out of nowhere between Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg to add some much-needed spice to a dull campaign. Hamilton has won four races this season, but Rosberg captured Sundays race from pole for his second victory and reclaimed the overall championship lead with 122 points to 118 for his teammate. "Were fierce competitors, so you can never expect us to be best friends and compete as fiercely as we do," Hamilton said after the Monaco GP. "But I will try to remain respectful." Hamilton ignited the row by taking the brash step of publicly claiming that Rosberg, the son of former F1 champ Keke Rosberg, has less hunger than him after growing up in the luxurious environment of Monaco. Rosberg didnt respond to those claims verbally, but in the eyes of Hamilton he responded to them on the track by making a surprising last-gasp mistake in qualifying that led to a yellow flag. The session was abruptly halted, ending any hopes that Hamilton, at full throttle just behind, had of winning pole. The fallout escalated quickly. An incensed Hamilton insinuated that Rosberg -- cleared by stewards of any wrongdoing -- had done it on purpose, suggesting he would watch his own back the way the late Ayrton Senna did when he fell out with Alain Prost when they drove for McLaren in the late 1980s. With tensions running high, the two Mercedes drivers were not in the postt-qualifying team meeting together and were at opposite ends for the traditional pre-race jaunt around the circuit. Adidas NMD R1 Clearance. After Rosbergs win, there was no handshake from Hamilton, who came in second to give Mercedes a fifth straight 1-2 finish. There have been fiery team rivalries before, notably the one between Vettel and Mark Webber at Red Bull. That got very bitter, with each driver ignoring team orders to let the other one pass and making blunt comments about the other. But the crucial difference is that, apart from 2010 when Webber challenged for the title, the four-time defending champion Vettel was always winning. Relations were ice-cold, but there also seemed to be a mutual acceptance they would never get along and the professional working environment within Red Bull continued to operate smoothly. The matter is more delicate for Rosberg and Hamilton because theyve known each other for such a long time, racing karts against each other and even going on holiday together -- something that was never going to happen with Webber and Vettel, and even less so with Senna and Prost. Rosberg is less experienced than Hamilton, with five GP wins compared to Hamiltons 26, but the German has shown real consistency with top-two finishes in all six races. Hamilton would still be ahead, though, but for the engine failure that forced the British driver to retire in the season opener at Melbourne. That technical glitch, on what is the most reliable car in F1, likely still rankles him. After several frustrating seasons with McLaren, Hamilton has a great chance to win his second F1 title six years on. But standing in his way is his childhood friend. That relationship is going to be severely tested and the spotlight will be beaming straight in the face of both drivers at the Canadian GP in two weeks time. ' ' '