The Pittsburgh Penguins dealt a top scoring winger, improving their forward depth in the process. [url=http://www.lakersbasketba

The Pittsburgh Penguins dealt a top scoring winger, improving their forward depth in the process. Rajon Rondo Lakers Jersey . Numbers Game breaks down the trade sending James Neal to Nashville for Patric Hornqvist and Nick Spaling. The Predators Get: RW James Neal. Neal, 26, is a power forward who has been riding high while playing on Evgeni Malkins wing for the bulk of his time in Pittsburgh. Over the past three seasons, he has scored 88 goals, which ranks fifth, behind Alex Ovechkin, Steven Stamkos, Corey Perry and Phil Kessel. Hes also put up dominant possession stats, but a lot of that would figure to be related to the favourable ice time that he gets with Malkin. While the Predators are aiming to get more scoring in their game, they dont nearly have the playmakers to compare with Pittsburgh, so if Neal ends up playing with Mike Fisher, Colin Wilson or Calle Jarnkrok, none of them is particularly dominant offensively, so expect Neals production to dip. The question is, how far? Before he joined the Penguins, Neal had 131 points in 214 games with the Dallas Stars, a 50-point pace over an 82-game season. That should be about the baseline, with room to move up because Neal currently is a better player than he was from age 21 to 23, but we can also keep in mind that Neal has scored more than 60 points twice in his career. Neal is signed for four more years, at a cap hit of $5-million per season, so hes a reasonably-priced first line forward for the Predators. The Penguins Get: RW Patric Hornqvist and LW Nick Spaling. Hornqvist is a 27-year-old winger who has been one of the more prolific shooters in the game over the past five seasons. Hes a four-time 20-goal scorer who is most effective right around the crease, deflecting shots and knocking in rebounds. He played primarily with Mike Fisher last season (with Colin Wilson and Matt Cullen their most common linemates) and while that line was effective -- Hornqvists relative possession stats have always been really good -- its not quite as dynamic as what opportunities Hornqvist should have in Pittsburgh. If Neal is expected to see his scoring go down as a result of this trade, naturally Hornqvist should expect an uptick in his scoring numbers. He scored a career-high 53 points last season and while his on-ice shooting percentage was a career-best, it wasnt outrageous and is still below what is typical for wingers alongside Malkin or Crosby. Signed for four more years, at a cap hit of $4.25-million, Hornqvist comes a little cheaper than Neal, but not dramatically, so the Penguins have to expect that they are not going to lose much offensively. Spaling, 25, scored a career-best 32 points last season, playing a career-high 16:01 per game, and while he may not play quite as much in Pittsburgh, the hope is that he might help the Penguins bottom six forwards. However, Spalings possession stats have been rough for most of his time in Nashville, which doesnt suggest that hell be turning the tide on his own. A restricted free agent who earned $1.5-million last season, Spaling is looking at a raise, but the Penguins are probably not in position to give him a lot more money, but they need Spaling to give them more reliable minutes on the third line. It didnt come as a massive surprise that the Penguins moved Neal -- it has been rumoured as a possibility for some time -- but the return may be something of a surprise. The Penguins didnt save a bunch of money; rather, they found a couple of forwards with the hope that will help improve their depth up front. They sacrificed the most talented player in the deal, though, and that presents a certain amount of risk, particularly if Hornqvist doesnt produce at the same level. For a Nashville team that is making a concerted effort towards a more offensive style, Neal is a big addition, well worth the price they paid. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Lance Stephenson Lakers Jersey .C. -- The Carolina Hurricanes have activated defenceman Joni Pitkanen from injured reserve. James Worthy Lakers Jersey . Minutes before the final whistle of Sporting Kansas Citys 3-0 victory over a shorthanded Montreal Impact squad on Saturday afternoon, Saputo tweeted: "Our fans deserve better. http://www.lakersbasketballshop.com/Jerry-West-Jersey/ . After deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league would consider pulling out of Sochi if something "significant" happens before players arrive, those set to participate are trying not to worry about that scenario.Canadas Kevin Koe is trying his best to avoid distractions and focus on curling as he prepares for the upcoming mens world curling championship. There have been a few challenges for Koe in the leadup to the competition, which opens Saturday at Beijings Capital Indoor Stadium. Chief among them is news that there are changes coming to his rink next season. Koes current lineup features second Carter Rycroft, third Pat Simmons and lead Nolan Thiessen. Rycroft, whose wife is pregnant, has already said hell be taking a year off after this season. Kevin Martin confirmed to The Canadian Press that Marc Kennedy and Ben Hebert will be leaving his rink to join Koes team next season. Koe preferred to keep his focus on the world championship and declined to comment on the coming changes. The future plans of Simmons and Thiessen were unclear. It was the first major shakeup in whats expected to be a summer of significant change on the mens curling scene now that the four-year Olympic cycle is complete. The timing is less than ideal for Koe and his teammates. Gerry Peckham, the Canadian Curling Associations high-performance director, expects Koe to be able to lock in on the immediate task before him. "Our analysis of his performance skills and performance attributes would suggest that hes an incredibly focused individual and is seldom distracted by anything external to the game at hand," Peckham said. "I think those teammates have looked in each other in the eye again, squared their shoulders, are shaking each others hands and are now moving on to complete this journey of a world championship." Koe won gold in his only previous appearance at the world championship, taking top spot at the 2010 playdowns in Cortina DAmpezzo, Italy. At this years event, Canada will be a favourite along with Scotland, Sweden, Norway and China. The 12-team field is rounded out by the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Russia, Switzerland and the United States. "Canada used to be known obviously as a big favourite going in all the time but you quickly realize how the gap is changing," Koe said. "Our experience in 2010 was awesome in Italy and it was a great feeling to win. But this is just as important for us. "To get to be two-time world champs would be pretty neat and kind of validate our first win." Koe arrived early in the week so that hed have time to adjust to the 14-hour time change. He was greeted by plenty of smog, heat and humidity. Hes also still getting used to the various culinary options in the Chinese capital. "Its a bit of a culture shock for us," Koe said in a recent interview. "Big difference from what were used to. Obviously a huge city but it will be a great experience." Koe had a strong performance at the Tim Hortons Brier and is enjoying another solid year on the World Curling Tour. Hes third on the money list and fourth in the order of merit standings behind only Olympic champ Brad Jacobs, Howard and Jeff Stoughton. Jamaal Wilkes Jersey. The only change from the 2010 lineup is that Simmons has replaced Blake MacDonald on the Calgary-based rink. "We dont get too excited or too worked up as a team," Koe said. "Were pretty calm. Obviously the experience of being to one (world championship) will help for sure, especially when youre coming to a foreign country where everything is different. "At least we can rely on the experience once we actually get on the ice of knowing weve been to the worlds and we did well last time." Its the first World Curling Federation world championship event to be staged in China. The venue was used for volleyball competition at the 2008 Summer Olympics. The Chinese team skipped by Rui Liu is coming off a fourth-place result at the Sochi Games. Scotlands Ewan MacDonald has three world titles to his name although this is his first appearance as skip. Thomas Ulsrud, who won Olympic silver at the 2010 Games in Vancouver, will skip the Norwegian team. "We know most of these teams and theyre all pretty good," Koe said. "Not too many easy games out there." Swedens Niklas Edin is not back to defend the title he won last year in Victoria. Instead, Oskar Eriksson will skip the Swedish entry. Round-robin play will continue through Thursday evening and tiebreakers will be used if needed to determine the top four teams. The Page playoff system will be used ahead of the medal games on April 6. Koe said the ice conditions in the venue will be a huge factor. "They do have some great icemakers but its really warm here," he said. "Its supposedly pushing 30 (degrees Celsius) here and they had an event in the facility early in the year and there was a lot of problems. But I think theyve brought in some dehumidifiers and air conditioning to cool the arena down. "Thats the big worry here. If the ice is good, I for sure like our chances. Bad ice would be a bit of an equalizer I think. But when you have some of the best icemakers in the world, Im sure theyll get it figured out." Canada has won gold three of the last four years at this event. Stoughton was victorious in 2011 at Regina and Howard won at Basel, Switzerland in 2012. The Canadians are scheduled to open against Denmarks Rasmus Stjerne on Saturday. "You have four very solid, confident, resolved individuals (who are) mentally tough," said Peckham. "I think they realize the significance and the importance of this world championship to themselves individually and as a collective, and then of course representing this curling nation of Canada. "So I think theyve gone out the door with their game face on." The world championship will return to Canada next year as Halifax plays host. ' ' '