KOSICE, Slovakia -- A year ago, Chris Stewart was waiting for a call from Canada that never came. St.Louis Cardinals Stan Musial Jersey . Not only did an invitation to the IIHF World Hockey Championship arrive this time around, its come with a big opportunity. The 23-year-old forward has been slotted on a line with John Tavares and Jeff Skinner that is expected to be relied upon heavily throughout the event. The job description given to Stewart is pretty straightforward. "Theyre both skilled guys who are going to control the puck and Im going to be that big power forward that just goes in and makes room for them," he said after Saturdays practice at Steel Arena. They were only together for part of Fridays 4-1 victory over Belarus because coach Ken Hitchcock was juggling lines with only 11 healthy forwards at his disposal. The arrival of James Neal will give the lineup more stability for Sundays game against France (TSN, 10:15 a.m. ET). Hell line up with Rick Nash and Matt Duchene, allowing Stewart to take a permanent spot with Tavares and Skinner. A third scoring unit featuring Jordan Eberle, Jason Spezza and Evander Kane makes Canada a pretty dangerous opponent. Stewart scored 28 goals each of the last two seasons in the NHL and is proud to be wearing the Maple Leaf. "First time ever," he said. "Last year I was one of those fringe guys and didnt get the call. This year once we lost out, it was kind of in the back of my mind." It was a bit of an unusual season. A few weeks before the trade deadline in February, Stewart was part of a multi-player blockbuster trade that saw him sent from Colorado to St. Louis. The move caught him by surprise -- "I bought a house in Denver and thought I was a big piece of the puzzle there" -- but he felt at home almost immediately with the Blues, in part because he moved into the same condo building several teammates already called home. Among them are defencemen Alex Pietrangelo and Carlo Colaiacovo, both of whom are part of this Canadian team. Colaiacovo was one of the late additions and arrived in Europe on Saturday along with Neal and goaltender Jonathan Bernier. Pietrangelo was thrilled to see his close friend Colaiacovo make the trip. "We get made fun of a lot," said Pietrangelo. "We spend a lot of time together in St. Louis. He kind of took me under his wing, if you want to put it that way. We played together almost the whole year this year so we kind of built a chemistry on the ice and we live down the hall from each other. "So you get the chemistry off the ice, too." One of the strengths of the French team that will face Canada is the growing chemistry among its players. Theyve been training together for the last three weeks and nearly upset Switzerland in their tournament opener, failing to capitalize on a number of good offensive chances before losing 1-0 in overtime. Former NHL goaltender Cristobal Huet is the backbone of a young team that also features forward Stephane Da Costa, who played four games with the Ottawa Senators after signing as a NCAA free agent in April. Theyll be looking for an upset. "Were not just going to throw the skates out on the ice," said France coach Dave Henderson. "We got out every game to compete and try to win. "Whether its Canada, Russia, well see what happens at the end of the game. We are going to try and win every game we play -- no sense playing if we dont." James Reimer will get his second straight start in goal for Canada after making 21 saves against Belarus. He hasnt officially been handed the No. 1 job, but it appears to be his to lose. "He looks really good," said Hitchcock. "It looks like hes ready for the heat." The coach is also looking to create some balanced scoring units. Eberle had two goals against Belarus while playing with the speedy Kane and veteran Spezza. Neals arrive allows Nash to shift to the right side with Duchene at centre. Then theres Stewart, who will be looking to use his speed and six-foot-two, 228-pound frame to make life easier for Skinner and Tavares. "He uses his size and he doesnt panic when hes getting physical," Hitchcock said of Stewart. "That, to me, is an example of a power forward -- not just a guy who goes to the net, but a guy that hangs on to (the puck), makes a good play with it and doesnt throw it away because hes getting some heat." Pietrangelo is also a big fan, labelling his arrival in St. Louis as "something that we needed." "He knows how to find the back of the net," said Pietrangelo. "Hes a good guy to have, especially on the power play. "A real big body. I didnt like playing against him when we played Colorado so its nice to have him on our side." Cain Jersey . Gilbert Brule, Ales Hemsky and Sam Gagner each had a goal and an assist as Edmonton came from behind to halt a four-game losing streak, defeating the Colorado Avalanche 6-4 on Wednesday night. Replica Brian Cushing Jersey .J. Oshie ont déjoué Miikka Kiprusoff en tirs de barrage pour procurer une troisième victoire consécutive aux Blues de St. Michael Vick Jersey Authentic Eagles . Dave Bolland a aussi marqué deux buts pour les champions en titre de la Coupe Stanley, qui sétaient inclinés 3-2 en tirs de barrage la veille à Nashville. Toews a marqué son 100e but en carrière dans la LNH avec moins de quatre minutes à faire au match. Braves Jason Heyward Jersey . Since then, teams have added and subtracted players, dealt with injuries and gone through training camp to get an idea of what they have and what they need as they prepare for the new season. Chicago White Sox Gordon Beckham Jersey .J. -- Devils captain Jamie Langenbrunner was not at Prudential Center Thursday night to take part in New Jerseys 4-2 loss to Philadelphia.SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- The San Francisco 49ers finally unleashed Ahmad Brooks, and the result was a takeaway festival unlike the team has seen for more than a decade. "It was time to let the dog loose," Brooks said this week. "Ive been in my cage for a while, so I think it was time to just let me go and show the world what Im capable of doing." The fourth-year linebacker got that opportunity on a big stage Monday night, and he responded with three sacks and two forced fumbles during the 49ers win against defending NFC champion Arizona. The havoc created by Brooks on the edge of San Franciscos 3-4 defence helped the 49ers force seven Arizona turnovers, the most takeaways by the team in a game since 1997. The 49ers (6-7) will be looking for another strong effort from their defence Sunday when they travel to Philadelphia (9-4) to face the NFC East leaders. And that will require a strong pass rush to stay in the face of quarterback Donovan McNabb to keep the Eagles explosive offence out of rhythm. Brooks made life miserable for Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner, stripping him of the football twice and also hitting him twice in addition to the three sacks. Brooks entered the game with four career sacks, two of which came earlier this season after he finally was worked into the rotation at outside linebacker after being inactive for the seasons first two games. He has added juice to a San Francisco pass rush that has climbed to 11th in the NFL in sacks per play. Despite playing a situational role behind starting outside linebackers Manny Lawson and Parys Haralson, Brooks is second on the team in sacks behind Lawsons 5.5. "Were very excited about the possibilities of what he can do, and what he did the other night is just scratching the surface," 49ers coach Mike Singletary said. Brooks is new to this pass-rusher thing. He had spent his entire career as a middle linebacker before the 49ers decided to move him to the outside at the end of last season to take advantage of his size, power and speed. Saints Bell Jersey. The 49ers also wanted to get his talent onto the field. Brooks didnt play one snap last year in his first season with the team. A third-round pick of the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2006 supplemental draft, Brooks started five games at middle linebacker as a rookie but was waived by the Bengals at the final roster cutdown last year. That was a humbling experience for Brooks, a highly touted prospect coming out of college, but he vowed to take advantage of his second chance with the 49ers. "Patience is a virtue, and Ive been very patient and continuing to practice my craft," Brooks said. "And everything is paying off right now." With Brooks leading the charge, the 49ers sacked Warner four times, hit him on five other occasions and also intercepted him twice. San Francisco also forced seven Arizona fumbles, recovering five of them. Brooks has earned a regular role now in that pass rush. He has four sacks in San Franciscos past two games. "He has ability," defensive co-ordinator Greg Manusky said. "Ahmad has a lot of physical skills. We made the decision this past off-season to move him strictly to that position and it has benefited him. If we can just hone those skills like we did last week and keep getting better each and every game and every practice, the sky is the limit for the guy." Brooks said theres no turning back after his eye-opening performance against the Cardinals. It told him a few things about his ability that even he didnt know. "Maybe the light went on this past week," Brooks said. "I learned that I can be a dominant player. I learned that I can change the game. So now Im even more hungrier to just go out there and try and get as many sacks as I can." ' ' '