ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - Ever so steadily, Jarome Iginla is getting up to speed with the Colorado Avalanche.Not easy, either, given all their speed.At 37, Iginla is simply trying to keep up with these kids flying up and down the ice. He picked this place in free agency because they have all the ingredients: A goal-scoring phenom in rookie of the year Nathan MacKinnon, a top-notch goaltender in Semyon Varlamov and an unorthodox coach in Patrick Roy who has a knack for pushing all the right buttons.Given his age, Iginla doesnt have much time left to hoist a Stanley Cup.Given their youth, the Avs sure could use another leader like him.Theres going to be some fun nights because of the things they can do a€” the skill level to go with the speed, said Iginla, who scored 30 goals for Boston last season. Very impressed with the tempo and the creativity.Iginla has been enthralled by the Avs for quite some time, too, watching from afar last season as the Avalanche tied a franchise record with 52 wins in Roys first season behind the bench. It was difficult not to pay attention with Colorado catching the hockey world by surprise and returning to the playoffs for the first time since 2010.What happened next, though, has haunted Roy all off-season a€” an overtime goal by the Minnesota Wild in Game 7 to end their season.We still think about that goal, Roy said.Thats why Roy and his former teammate turned executive Joe Sakic infused some grizzled veterans into their youthful squad, just to give them more leadership when times turned tough. They traded for Daniel Briere and Brad Stuart. And then, when Paul Stastny bolted for St. Louis, they brought in Iginla.The more leaders you have in the dressing room the better off youre going to be, Sakic said.Now comes the real challenge a€” winning when all eyes are upon them.Sure, theres a little more pressure, Briere said. But Id rather be a team that everybody is expecting to win, because that means you should be winning if you do your job right. I like the makeup of this team. What they did last year was tremendous.So far, Colorado has looked rather sluggish in the preseason, but Roy hardly gives it a second thought. Hes tinkering with different line combinations, trying to decide the best pairings between Matt Duchene, Ryan OReilly, captain Gabe Landeskog, Alex Tanguay, Iginla and MacKinnon.Here are some things to watch as the Avalanche prepare to open at Minnesota on Oct. 9:EVEN FASTER: Believe it or not, the already lightning quick MacKinnon may have found another gear this off-season working out with Duchene and Penguins standout Sidney Crosby. MacKinnon is coming off a season in which he scored 24 goals on his way to rookie of the year honours. I do have more jump in my step, MacKinnon said.FEELING HIP: Tanguay dealt with nagging knee and hip injuries all last season before finally electing to have hip surgery in February after playing in just 16 games. Healthy again, hes using this preseason to gain trust in that hip. He could again be paired with Iginla. The two were once teammates in Calgary.ANY ROLE WILL DO: When he arrived in Denver, Briere wasnt informed of his role by Roy but given some advice. Told me to come in and have fun, to relax, said Briere. He played a limited role most of last year for Montreal, which advanced to the Eastern Conference Final. Personally, a frustrating season as far as responsibilities went on the ice, Briere said. So that was (Roys) words of advice, just to come in here and have fun and good things will happen.VARLY, VARLY: Colorado will keep leaning heavily on Varlamov, who broke Roys team record for most wins (41) in a single season. He showed the world last year that he was a No. 1 goalie and Im sure Varlys going to continue to do that, Roy said. Varlamovs backup will be Reto Berra after Jean-Sebastien Giguere retired.LATE KNACK: Roy was revered last season for taking chances, like pulling the goaltender with plenty of time left in the third period, just to give his team more of a chance to score the equalizer. Hes one of the best in-game tactical coaches that Ive had, defenceman Erik Johnson said. Detroit Tigers Store . "Yeah, [I heard them]," he said. "They made me miss the free throw." A year ago, Lowrys post-game antics may not have been so well received but what was snide and snarky is now endearing quick wit. Detroit Tigers Shirts . I kept my eyes focused up on the camera during each approach. I just tried to stay focused on my form, as I didnt know what the ball reaction was. I was quite emotional at the end. I did not actually see any of the shots in the game until I got home and watched the video. https://www.cheaptigers.com/ . Nikolaos Kounenakis has been hired as an assistant coach, the team announced on Monday. Tigers Jerseys China . Inter Milan ended its five-match winless streak in all competitions by beating 10-man Bologna 3-1 on new manager Claudio Ranieris debut, while injury-plagued AC Milan edged Cesena 1-0 with an early goal from Clarence Seedorf. Wholesale Tigers Jerseys . The visitors missed a host of good chances to win the game, and were left to rue substitute Ivo Ilicevics strike against the crossbar in the 86th minute, when he only had the goalkeeper to beat.FRANKFURT, Germany -- Germany began an 11-day training camp in northern Italy on Wednesday with injury worries clouding the mood of the team shortly before the World Cup. Several key players, including captain Philipp Lahm and goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, are carrying injuries into the camp in St. Leonhard, in the German speaking Alto Adige region. Lahm and Neuer will join the rest of the team later. Defender Per Mertesacker delayed his arrival by a day because of the birth of his second child. Another star, Sami Khedira of Real Madrid, will not join the squad until after the Champions League final on Saturday. Germany coach Joachim Loews camp will eventually include 27 players. The squad will return to Germany for a friendly against Cameroon on June 1, after which Loew will announce his final 23-man squad. Germany also plays Armenia on June 6, one day before departing for Brazil. The Germans open their World Cup campaign against Portugal on June 16 in Salvador, then play Ghana on June 21 in Fortaleza and conclude the group stage against the United States on June 26 in Recife. Loew said earlier this week that he was optimistic about Lahm and Neuer recovering for the World Cup. "But its good and important to have them with us in South Tirol from the start, even if they cant practice," Loew said. His players, however, decided to extend their break. While the remaining squad flew to Italy, Bayern Munichs players arrived by car -- minus Lahm and Neuer. While Lahm was expected to show up on Friday, Neuer was "day-by-day," but still expected to arrive at some point, team spokkesman Jens Grittner said.dddddddddddd The decision for them to stay in Munich was reached mutually by Loew and team doctors, Grittner said. Lahm, nominally a defender, can also play in midfield, a role he has executed well at Bayern Munich. He injured his left ankle in the German Cup final on Saturday, when Bayern beat Borussia Dortmund 2-0. Doctors said he would not be able to train for up to seven days and Lahm said Wednesday he would stay home until Friday, while stressing that he would be ready for the World Cup. "I need to rest a few days but I will be top fit by the World Cup," Lahm told Bild newspaper in comments also published on the federations site. Lahm said Germany needed to work on its defence. "Weve allowed too many goals and too many chances recently. We have to pay more attention to our defence," he said. Neuer injured his right shoulder in the cup final and is wearing a brace. Khedira has yet to play a full match since coming back this month from a knee injury that had sidelined him for six months. A leader of the team, he is considered one of Loews key men. Midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger has been nursing a knee inflammation and missed the cup final. Miroslav Klose, one of only two strikers in squad, has been bothered by a hamstring injury. Defender Mats Hummels has a foot injury and played the cup final on medication. He played only 23 Bundesliga games this season for Dortmund because of various injuries. Germany also trained in the same region ahead of the 1990 World Cup in Italy and went on to win the last of its three titles. ' ' '