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ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Tucked in the warmth on the surrounding grounds of the Big House, Maple Leafs general manager Dave Nonis made one point urgently clear as he announced the signing of Torontos captain through 2021. "We signed Dion to this deal because he deserved it," said Nonis on the eve of Wednesdays Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium. But the success of the seven-year extension between the Leafs and Dion Phaneuf wont just be about the 28-year-old defender, but the ability of Nonis and the organization to surround him and the Toronto core with capable talent. Right now that core includes at least six players; Phaneuf along with Phil Kessel, James van Riemsdyk, Joffrey Lupul, David Clarkson and Tyler Bozak – all signed until at least 2017. And while that group must remain productive – and increasingly so from a generally disappointing first half – the overall team success is likely dependent on the quality of talent the club adds in the coming years. "Weve added these pieces because we think that they can help us win long-term," said Nonis of that core group. "Its now going to be up to us to add players around them. We feel we have some pieces coming, but were not where we need to be yet. We still need to add some pieces around players like Dion and Phil and [Lupul], JVR. Those are players that will help any team in this league win, but we need to continue to add to that group." No team has done a more efficient job of surrounding their impressive core than the Chicago Blackhawks (though the Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Bruins could make equal argument). "I think theyre a model for the league, not just our hockey club," Randy Carlyle said of the defending Stanley Cup champions earlier this season. Chicagos core is among the more dynamic in the league – much of it built through the draft – but the organization has done well in surrounding that group with wave upon wave of helpful young players and outside talent. In recent years, the likes of Andrew Shaw (fifth round pick), Marcus Kruger (fifth round), Bryan Bickell (second round), Corey Crawford (second round) and Brandon Saad (second round) all proved invaluable toward the Blackhawks capturing their second Cup in four years last season. For the Leafs that means improved drafting and development. It means finding more capable assets through the draft, ever an important tool in todays cap age. "Theres still only three ways to do [build around the core] – trade, free agency or the draft," said Nonis. "We have to do a better job in all three areas. But the draft is going to be more and more important as players start to earn six, seven, eight, nine, 10 million – who knows what the numbers are going to end up being. "If you have players that are entry-level players or just coming out of entry-level that are earning substantially less that can contribute youre going to have a better chance of winning. We need to try to find some of those players." Not only does that mean the continued development of young players like Morgan Rielly, Jake Gardiner, Nazem Kadri, Peter Holland and Jonathan Bernier, but success here and there from a solid and yet unspectacular prospect pool that features Matt Finn, Connor Brown, Petter Granberg, Dominic Toninato, and Josh Leivo. It also means finding more useful players to contribute right now. Chicago found help for example in the form of veterans like Johhny Oduya and Michal Handzus. Uneven all season, Torontos patchwork defence – which featured no major additions last summer – is a source requiring definite upgrading in the summer of 2014 and beyond. As for Phaneuf, he may be an imperfect first defender, but is a capable first defender no less in a league where commodities of such kind are difficult to find and then keep. More and more teams are locking up their most talented players long-term leaving the free agency pool increasingly weak and short of high-impact options, especially on defence. Among the top unsigned defenders for the summer of 2014 are 37-year-old Dan Boyle, 35-year-old Andrei Markov, and 29-year-old Dan Girardi. Internally, the Leafs have promising long-term options for the top of their defence in the 19-year-old Rielly and 23-year-old Gardiner, but neither is near ready to assume the difficult duties Phaneuf holds at the moment. And while the likes of Finn, Granberg, Stuart Percy, and Tom Nilsson offer prospective hope further on down the line, they are suitably unknown commodities. "If youre signing players because you dont have anyone to replace them youre making mistakes," said Nonis. "Hes going to play at this level and beyond, I feel, for seven years and maybe beyond that. Its not that you dont have anyone to replace Dion, its that hes done enough to prove to us that he is a player that is near the top of the league in terms of how he stacks up against the top defencemen." The difficulty of his minutes is easy to overlook. His role on a generally unstable Toronto defence requires him to match up nightly against the most difficult competition in the league. In Wednesdays Winter Classic for example, that tall challenge will include large quantities of Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg. "I dont think you can look beyond the situations and positions that Randy puts him in," said Nonis. "Theyre not always the best situations. He plays some pretty tough minutes." In fact, no defender in the league has faced more challenging competition in the past two seasons than the Leafs captain, this according to ExtraSkater.com. And though hes struggled to produce offence this season – 15 points in 39 games – Phaneuf has ranked amongst the top-20 at his position in offensive production in each of the past two seasons. The Leafs were in a surprise in 2013, finishing fifth in the conference while nearly upending the eventual Cup finalist Bruins in the first round. But theyve fallen under considerable strain this season – just four regulation wins since Nov. 1 – and have proven a poor defensive contingent again after struggling in that regard a year ago. Phaneuf is more solution than problem. The Leafs simply need better players around him. "You see some of the best players around the league," said Nonis, "if you put them on a team by themselves theyre going to have a hard time winning. We think were adding pieces that will help us win." Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . FIFA said the suspension was requested by ethics prosecutor Michael Garcia, making Beckenbauer the first person to be punished as a result of the case. Beckenbauer refused "repeated requests for his assistance, including requests that he provide information during an in-person interview or in response to written questions provided in both English and German," FIFA said in a statement. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! .com) - Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh called Joe Flacco the NFLs best quarterback last week. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку!. -- Caris LeVert had 14 points and a career-high 11 rebounds for his first career double-double, and No. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . Szabados joined the Southern Professional Hockey League team last week. The 27-year-old goaltender from Edmonton backstopped the Canadian womens hockey team to Olympic gold Feb. Зарегистрируйтесь, чтобы увидеть ссылку! . After seven wins in a row, they have to do it one more time to get into the playoffs.Honolulu, HI (SportsNetwork.com) - Driphus Jackson had three touchdown passes, including two in a 19-second span in the opening quarter, to guide Rice to a 30-6 rout of Fresno State at the Hawaii Bowl. Dennis Parks piled up 109 receiving yards and a TD for the Owls (8-5), who lost their first three games, but bounced back to post an eight-win season for only the ninth time in school history. Jackson finished 15-of-24 for 318 yards, and also ran the ball 13 times for 41 yards. Jordan Taylor and Mario Hull each had scoring grabs for Rice, which amassed 463 yards of offense. Brian Burrell threw a pair of interceptions for the Bulldogs (6-8), who suffered their first loss to Rice in seven all-time meetings. Fresno State, which also began the season 0-3, has lost its last six bowl games. Burrell was 10-of-20 for 44 yards, and Zack Greenlee ended 7-of-18 for 49 yards in defeat. James Hairston kicked a 21-yard field goal to cap the game-opening offensive series. Fresno State stopped Jackson on a 4th-and-2 run, and the Bulldogs tied the contest on Kody Kroenings 44-yard field goal. Jackson connected with Parks on a 53-yard gain, and two plays later Taylor caught a 14-yard pass in the middle portion of the end zone. Hairston pushed the extra point try wide right to leave Rice with a 9-3 lead with 23 seconds left in the first quarter. On the ensuing play from scrimmage, J.T. Blasingame picked off Burrells long pass at the Rice 31. Hull then made an adjustment on an underthrown ball from Jackson aat the Fresno State 30 and raced to the end zone for a 69-yard TD and a 16-3 cushion.dddddddddddd Kroenings 40-yard field goal had the Bulldogs within 10 with 8:53 remaining in the half, but Fresno State failed on a 4th-and-1 from the Rice 18 later in the period. Greg Watson was stuffed for a 3-yard loss on a reception as he was met hard by Bryce Callahan. Rices defense continued to shine when Brian Nordstrom blocked Kroenings 44- yard field goal attempt early in the third quarter. The Owls expanded their lead to 23-6 on Jacksons 40-yard TD pass to Parks with 6:18 left in the third. Parks fought off two defenders down the left sideline. Callahan picked off Burrell at the Rice 12 to end Fresno States next drive; and the Bulldogs failed on a 4th-and-4 from the Rice 41 early in the fourth when Greenlee threw incomplete under heavy pressure from Nordstrom. On the next play, Jackson found Darik Dillard down the left sideline for a 58- yard gain. Dillard was rewarded with a 1-yard TD run up the middle on the next play to expand the difference to 30-6 with 10:07 remaining. Game Notes Jowan Davis had 46 yards rushing for Rice, while Marteze Waller gained 76 yards for Fresno State ... The Owls have won 25 games since the start of the 2012 season (25-15), the most over a three-season stretch in school history ... Rice head coach David Bailiff matched Jess Neely for the most seasons with eight or more wins with three. Bailiff won 10 games in both 2008 and 2013. ' ' '