ite have enough to match up with the Penguins. The addition of Mikkel Boedker helps address that. Boedker is a great skater who adds to an alr

LE LIORAN, France -- A gastronomical, sporting and cultural glance at Stage 5 of the Tour de France on Wednesday:Region: The stage finished at Le Lioran in Auvergne, a region of extinct volcanoes.Baguette and butter: Belgian rider Greg van Avermaet won the first mountain leg with an audacious solo attack in the Massif Central and also claimed the overall leaders yellow jersey. Defending champion Chris Froome and two-time runner-up Nairo Quintana finished in the main pack.Plat du jour: La Truffade is a hearty mountain dish suitable for anyone on a shoe-string budget. Its a cheese dish made with fresh Cantal tomme cheese and potatoes cooked in a pan. The local chefs say the recipes name comes from the word truffe, which meant potato in Langue dOc, a dialect spoken in the southern half of the country in medieval France.Culture: The Lioran tunnel was the first road tunnel built in France. Dug between 1839 and 1843, it connected the cities of Murat and Aurillac. At 1,404 meters (4,600 feet) in length, it was the longest in the world at the time of construction. While it still exists, the tunnel is no longer used for transport, having been replaced by a newer version.Vin du jour: Just a glass of refreshing mineral water, either still or sparkling. The Massif Central is like a gigantic water tower, featuring more than 100 natural springs in Auvergne, making it the No. 1 region in Europe for mineral water production.History: The race paid tribute to eternal Tour runner-up Raymond Poulidor when the peloton went through his hometown of Saint-Leonard-de-Noblat. Poulidor, who turned 80 this year, secured eight podium finishes at the Tour during his career but never wore the yellow jersey.Stat of the Day: 9. The numbers of years since the last Belgian 1-2 at a Tour de France stage.Quote of the Day: I dont care about it. Cest la vie, From world champion Peter Sagan, reflecting on losing the yellow jersey.Dessert: There are so many varieties of cheese in the Auvergne area its impossible to list them all. If you had to pick just one, go for a slice of Cantal, the famous cylinder-shaped pressed cheese made with the milk of hay-fed cows. It comes in three different types, depending on the age and texture: Cantal Jeune (young), Entre-Deux (medium) and Cantal Vieux (aged). With its thick black crust and full-bodied flavors, the Cantal Vieux is not for the faint-hearted.Next order: Stage 6 Thursday is a flatter 190.5-kilometer (118-mile) leg from Arpajon-sur-Cere to Montauban, in the southwestern region of Tarn-et-Garonne. The next mountain stages come this weekend in the Pyrenees, although the Tour may not be decided until the race reaches the Alps in the third week. Bernie Kosar Jersey . Ronaldo produced a spectacular individual performance on Tuesday, scoring all three goals and guiding Portugal into the next years World Cup in Brazil with a 3-2 victory in Sweden. The Real Madrid forward has scored 66 goals in 2013, but the last three may be the boost he needs to upstage Messi after FIFA unexpectedly extended the voting period for the Ballon dOr to Nov. Custom Cleveland Browns Jerseys . A knee to the thigh might have stung him the most, but his sixth straight double-double made up for the brief burst of pain. http://www.brownsrookiestore.com/Browns-Sheldrick-Redwine-Jersey/ .Y. - Rob Manfred was promoted Monday to Major League Baseballs chief operating officer, which may make him a candidate to succeed Bud Selig as commissioner. Bernie Kosar Womens Jersey . Oaklands loss to Seattle clinched the ALs best record for the Red Sox with one day to spare in the regular season. "I think everybody was kind of watching," catcher David Ross said. "Demp (Ryan Dempster) came out before he went to the bullpen and was just yelling that they lost. Greedy Williams Browns Jersey . -- Timbers coach Caleb Porter didnt stray from his business-like approach to the season even after Portland downed the two-time defending league champion Los Angeles Galaxy to gain crucial playoff position. When we last saw the San Jose Sharks, they were getting skated off the ice in the Stanley Cup finals by a Pittsburgh Penguins team that was faster, deeper and more than San Jose could handle in a long series.The sour ending overshadowed a remarkable run by the Sharks, one that saw them return to Western Conference power status. That was further underlined by the strong presence of San Jose players on Canadas World Cup team, where Joe Thornton, Marc-Edouard Vlasic and Logan Couture all played important roles.NHL history hasnt been kind to the Stanley Cup runner-up. Its hard to climb that mountain, get knocked off and then begin that long climb again.The Lightning did well to get to the Eastern Conference finals last year, but they certainly had their regular-season issues along the way.Guys are excited to get back and get this season started, said Couture. There was a sense of disappointment once it ended. Throughout the summer, talking to guys, everyone is just excited to get back and get going again.They have a full season under coach Peter DeBoer, so there should be a heightened comfort level in his system. They also will be playing with the confidence that comes on the heels of a long playoff run, one that included a payback series against the rival?Los Angeles Kings.The Pacific is wide open, and the Sharks are best built to take advantage.Best new facesThe Sharks used team speed to beat the?St. Louis Blues?in the Western Conference finals but didnt quite have enough to match up with the Penguins. The addition of Mikkel Boedker helps address that. Boedker is a great skater who adds to an already-deep group of forwards in San Jose.We got better this summer, Couture said. [Boedker] is a quick guy. We played against him a lot in our division. Hes going to help our power play. Hes going to add speed and depth. Hes going to push guys down in the lineup where we can have an edge in matchups.It was a nice signing by GM Doug Wilson, similar to the unheralded additions of Joel Ward and Paul Martin the previous offseason.The addition of David Schlemko on defense was another quiet but effective addition. Hell bring mobility and puck-moving to the bottom end of the Sharks defense.Biggest unknownsLike the Lightning -- runners-up in 2015-16 -- before them, the Sharks have contract issues to resolve, and you just know how thats going to impact play on the ice.dddddddddddd. Defenseman Brent Burns?is a dynamic defenseman who has emerged as one of the best in the league -- but he needs a new deal and is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the season.?Wilson has traditionally gotten his core players to stay in San Jose at a discounted rate and very reasonable terms. As other general managers were giving out crazy, decade-long deals to their players when that was allowed under the previous CBA, guys like Thornton and Patrick Marleau instead signed team-friendly deals to keep the Sharks competitive.Both Marleau and Thornton are also entering the last years of their contracts. The expectation is that Thornton wont be going anywhere, but Marleaus status isnt quite as clear.Sure thingsLets make this section a Marc-Edouard Vlasic appreciation. He got some love during the Stanley Cup finals and occasionally his game was highlighted during the World Cup, but when you play with a wildman like Brent Burns, you tend to get overlooked.Vlasic is a sure thing. DeBoer knows what hes getting every night from Vlasic and sends him out on the hardest assignments every game. Vlasic and Justin Braun face the toughest competition and still control the play a majority of the time. The Sharks controlled 52.7 percent of the even-strength shot attempts when those two were on the ice together last season.Vlasics presence frees up Burns to play against slightly easier competition, usually starting in the offensive zone. Vlasic, meanwhile, started just 42.8 percent of his even-strength shifts in the offensive zone. Hes invaluable to the Sharks.Hes, in my mind, the best shutdown guy in our conference and I think the NHL, Couture said. Hes just a quiet player and he plays that effortless quiet game.PredictionThe Sharks are going to win the Pacific and enter the postseason as a favorite to represent the Western Conference again in the Stanley Cup finals. Joe Thornton is winding down his career and this is a team capable of giving him a real shot at finally hoisting the Stanley Cup. First in the Pacific;?Stanley Cup finalists. ' ' '