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MONTREAL -- Rachel Homan started defence of her Scotties Tournament of Hearts title in style. Homan and her Team Canada (1-0) rink from Ottawa scored four in the eighth end for an 8-3 victory over Manitobas Chelsea Carey (0-1) on Saturday night at the Maurice Richard Arena. "The team played really well in front of me," said Homan, the winner last year in Kingston, Ont. "It was a tough battle. It was 4-3 and then one big end kind of ended it. My team just really had it today." It was a nervy but successful start for Val Sweetings Alberta rink. The Sweeting team (2-0) with lead Rachel Pidherny, second Dana Ferguson and third Joanne Courtney scored three points in the ninth end for a comeback 7-5 victory over 20-year-old newcomer Sarah Koltun (0-1) of the Yukon and Northwest Territories in the opening draw. In the evening, Sweeting took the early lead, wasted it, and then scored two in an extra end for an 8-6 win over 22-year-old Kesa van Osch of British Columbia (1-1). Heather Strong (2-0) of Newfoundland used the shot of the day to edge the home team, Quebecs Allison Ross (0-2), 5-4 with a raised angle takeout on the final shot. Stefanie Lawton (1-0) of Saskatchewan downed Allison Flaxeys Ontario rink (0-1) 8-6. Koltun looked ready for an upset when she stole a point for a 4-1 lead in the fifth end to throw a scare into 26-year-old Sweeting, a youngster herself in only her second Scotties. "They were outplaying us for sure," said Sweeting. "We set up some good ends and she made some good draws to save them, but we stayed patient and had an opportunity in the ninth and took advantage. "Im happy to get out of that one with a win, but we definitely have to sharpen up. We knew we couldnt take them lightly. Its their first time here and they have nothing to lose." A miss by Koltun with her first stone in the ninth set up the decisive steal by Alberta. Sweetings rink kept the house clear in the 10th and left no chance for the Whitehorse skip to force an extra end. Koltun is the youngest skip ever to play in the Scotties and is the first to skip at the Canadian junior and Scotties championships in the same year. She went 5-4 at the juniors two weeks ago in Liverpool, N.S. with two of her three teammates at the Scotties. She skipped a record seven times at national junior championships and is considered among the rising talents in the sport. But she may have let one get away in her debut. "We were in control at the beginning and it was just that one bad end, but its our first game at our first Scotties so well take what we can from it," said Koltun. "We are happy to be here, but we want to contend and be competitive and I think we showed that in this first game by putting up a really strong fight." Quebecs Allison Ross had a disappointing start as she failed to score until she picked up one point in the eighth end. After scoring, Ross conceded a 6-1 victory to New Brunswicks Andrea Crawford. The Quebec side from Montreal curled only 64 per cent as a group, lowest of the day. She found her draw weight in her evening match against Strong, which had the crowd of 1,825 roaring, but fell short when the Newfoundland skip pulled off her winning takeout. "I was reading the ice better," said Ross. "Its a disappointing loss, but Heather made an amazing shot. You want to leave the other team a hard shot, and she made it." Strong had won the Hot Shots competition -- a pre-tournament skills exhibition -- on Saturday morning and it may have helped her against Quebec. "A lot of the (Hot Shots) are indicative of what you face in game, so I referred back to that a lot," she said. "I felt good when I threw it, but I was coming off missing the one right before it, so I was a little torn. "We were exhausted. It was late back home. There were the opening ceremonies, we were in the Hot Shots right through. It was a long day, so to pull off that second win was awesome." Strong had won her first match as she took a 6-2 lead after six ends, then had to hold off a charge from Nova Scotias Heather Smith (0-1) for an 8-5 victory. Van Osch needed an extra end to defeat Kim Dolans Prince Edward Island rink 7-4. The 22-year-old from Victoria admitted to feeling nervous in her debut match, but settled down as it went on against the veteran Dolan, who is in her 10th Scotties. Van Osch said she hasnt set any goals for the tournament. "Were a first-year team," she said. "It was a bonus just to make it to the Scotties this year. Were taking things as they come, game by game." There are three draws scheduled for Sunday, including Team Canada against both Ontario and Quebec. 23:04ET 01-02-14 Wholesale NBA Jerseys Free Shipping .500 ball against teams with winning records, so they needed a huge lift from somebody Tuesday night in a matchup of division leaders. Wholesale Basketball Jerseys . At this point, even he isnt sure when it is going to stop. The right-hander dropped his fourth straight decision in Los Angeles 6-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday night, leaving his status very much in doubt as the Dodgers prepare for the stretch drive. http://www.cheapnbajerseysusa.com/... as usual. Even with the salary cap being set lower than many general managers expected and hoped for at $69 million and whats considered a shallow pool of top-end players available, this unrestricted-free-agent period figures to follow the familiar script of teams bidding up prices to keep up with each other. Discount NBA Jerseys .Commissioner Adam Silver said Wednesday it is inevitable that the league will one day take after European sports and have sponsor names on team jerseys. Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys . The Union looked to have grabbed a big win in the 88th minute when Amobi Okugo finally put the hosts in front. But a terrible giveaway by Union goalkeeper Rais Mbolhi handed Earnshaw the equalizer in the second minute of stoppage time, keeping the Union two points back of fifth-place Red Bull New York for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.NEW YORK -- Brandon Prust returns but fellow forward Dale Weise is out and defenceman Alexei Emelin is a game-time decision for the Montreal Canadiens. The Rangers are without suspended defenceman John Moore, with ex-Hab Raphael Diaz expected to play in his place in the third defensive pairing. Both teams had lineup issues ahead of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference final. A win and the Rangers can advance to the Stanley Cup final for the first time in 20 years. A loss and New York has to go back to the Bell Centre for a deciding game. Montreal coach Michel Therrien confirmed after Thursdays morning skate that Weise, flattened by the hit that earned Moore a two-game suspension, would not play. Emelin, who missed Game 5 with an undisclosed injury, did not take part in the morning skate either but was seen on an exercise bike outside the locker-room. Prust returns from his two-game suspension for breaking Derek Stepans jaw with a blindside hit in Game 3. "Hes going to be hungry to play," said Therrien. "Hes going to play hard. Hes excited about playing tonight so were glad hes back in the lineup." Weise seemed woozy after the Moore hit Tuesday in Game 5 but returned to action after spending time in the dressing room. On Thursday, Therrien denied that Weise had a head injury. Therrien said Weise, who plays in the Habs third line, told doctors he "felt fine" about finishing the last game. The Montreal coach said player safety is Job 1, but noted that Stepan finished Game 3 with what turned out to be a broken jaw. "Those are the things that you see at this time of the year," he said. "Right now (Weise) has a body injury so he wont be able to lay tonight." Asked what specific tests an injured player like Weise has to pass to get back into the game, Therrien essentially said that was up to the team doctors. "Those are the things I that dont know, because as a coach I never get a concussion," said a smiling Therrien. "But oone thing I trust, we trust our medical staff, we trust the doctor.dddddddddddd. So when theyre saying hes good to go. hes good to go." The Habs are 22-7-4 with Weise in the lineup and 5-4-0 without him. Goalie Carey Price, knocked out of the series in Game 1, came onto the ice in full gear near the end of the Canadiens skate. He did the same thing earlier this week in Montreal. Dustin Tokarski, the 24-year-old who has stepped in for Price, did not speak to reporters Thursday. Rangers starter Henrik Lundqvist, given the hook last time out, drew a crowd in front of his stall. With the Rangers looking to close out the series, the music wafting out of the New York locker-room area earlier at Madison Square Garden was appropriate -- "Closing Time" by Semisonic. "No Canada" was the headline on the back page of the New York Daily News. The kicker read "Rangers: We cant let series go back to Montreal." The New York Post headline was "Code Blue." Much has been said about the need to get a good start in the series, with Therrien acknowledging the first 10 minutes of the game are always crucial. "But Im going to tell you something, the whole entire 60 minutes are going to be really important," he said with a smile. Vigneault, whose exchange with the English media lasted three and a half minutes, offered no reaction to the league banning Moore for two games. He also did not want to speak about the 7-4 loss in Game 5 in Montreal, saying "Weve moved on." The Rangers coach did say he expected a big game from Lundqvist, who was pulled in the second period last time out after giving up four goals on 19 shots. "I expect him to play like he always does. Hes a great goaltender." Said Rangers forward Rick Nash: "Hes a world-class goalie. Hes been our best player all season, all the playoffs." Therriens pre-game meeting with the media was equally pithy, lasting just under eight minutes in English and French. ' ' '