d by Mohamed bin Hammam of Qatar.However, after Bin Hammam was banned by FIFA, an AFC-appointed review of its finan

MONTREAL -- The NHL-leading Montreal Canadiens are once again streaking. Only this time, its in the opposite direction.After matching or setting franchise -- and league -- records en route to a 13-1-1 start, the Canadiens are now 0-2-1 in their past three games after falling to the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night in Raleigh. Now theyll head home to face a Toronto Maple Leafs squad on a roll, rested and waiting in Montreal.Its the second meeting in three weeks for the historic rivals, and the final on at the Bell Centre. The teams last squared off on Oct. 29 in Montreal, with the Canadiens skating away with a 2-1 victory.The Canadiens gave up three goals in six minutes in the third period against Carolina to see a 1-0 lead become a 3-1 deficit. It marked the third straight game of at least three goals allowed for Montreal and while they connected three times of their own in Tuesdays overtime loss to Florida, theyve only scored three goals total in their two other losses.I think the effort was there, Canadiens coach Michel Therrien said after the loss to the Hurricanes. You need puck luck and we dont have the puck luck lately.If theres been one bright spot during Montreals recent slide, its the play of defenseman Andrei Markov. The 16-year NHL veteran picked up a pair of assists against the Hurricanes to extend his point streak to seven games and moving him into a tie with Yvan Cournoyer for seventh place on the Canadiens all-time assists list.Carey Price, who made 37 saves in their last meeting with Toronto, will get the start in goal on Saturday but Therrien didnt confirm any other potential line-up changes. Rookie Charles Hudon, called up from the AHL on Thursday, replaced Sven Andrighetto. He could earn another go after picking up an assist and leaving an impression on his coach.Well see, but he played really well, Therrien said. He played well for a first game, I thought he created offensively, really responsible on the ice. I thought the kid competed really well. Im pleased with his effort.For the Maple Leafs, November has been much kinder than October was. After posting a 2-4-3 record in the opening month of the season, Toronto has won six of its eight games so far this month. And not only has Mike Babcocks group been winning, its been doing so with plenty of offense of late; Toronto has scored at least six goals in each of their most recent four wins.The young Leafs have made headlines for their offensive efforts and while the likes of Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews and William Nylander have generated most of the buzz, rookie Connor Brown added his name to the conversation on Thursday night. Brown became the fifth Maple Leafs player to record a four-point night with two goals and a pair of assists in a 6-1 win over the Panthers.Im slowly getting more comfortable with the puck and more comfortable making plays, Brown told TSN after the game. Offensively it was a bit of a slow start but I feel good defensively and I feel like Im in the right spots.While the offense has been rolling, its been doing so without much help from the power play. Toronto has scored just three times on 19 opportunities with the man advantage and has been held off the scoresheet in four of the past five games.Opponents arent scoring much on power plays either against the Leafs, who have allowed just three goals on the penalty kill and have denied the opposition of any power play tallies in six of eight games this month.Ray Nitschke Jersey . But what about the officials? Every sport has officials and they also have stories about hard work and sacrifice but their accomplishments are seldom recognized by anyone outside their inner circle. Brett Favre Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. http://www.packersrookiestore.com/Packers-Rashan-Gary-Jersey/ . -- There were a lot of firsts for the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday night. Darnell Savage Jr. Jersey . The Islanders dealt Thomas Vanek to the Montreal Canadiens after less than a year on Long Island. Meanwhile, the Oilers dealt long-time sniper Ales hemsky to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday for a fifth-round pick in 2014 and a third-rounder in 2015. Jace Sternberger Youth JerseyABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates -- The Asian Football Confederation has confirmed a rule for elections to FIFA Council seats, allowing Olympic powerbroker Sheik Ahmad of Kuwait to be a candidate.Elections in May for FIFA positions will be conducted under the terms of the FIFA regulations which allows any member association to nominate a candidate, the AFC said on Thursday after an executive committee meeting.That is different from AFC election rules which require that candidates shall be proposed by his football association.Kuwaits national soccer body is barred from nominating candidates while suspended by FIFA in a dispute over government interference.Sheik Ahmad has continued his duties for FIFA and the IOC, which also suspended Kuwait last year, as an individual while the dispute between the government and sports bodies has continued.The AFC previously said the seat held by Sheik Ahmad would be for another two-year mandate rather than the usual four-year term.The elections being held in Bahrain were originally scheduled in September, then delayed twice. Three more seats on the 37-member FIFA Council must also be filled in polls of FIFAs member federations in Asia.The AFC executive committee also hopes to launch a competitive bidding process next year for the commercial rights to its competitions from 2021 onward.The current eight-year deal awarded by previous AFC leadership to Singapore-based World Sports Group without an open tender was criticized as undervalued.ddddddddddddIt is very important that we have a transparent process to choose the right model and partner for our next cycle, AFC President Sheik Salman said in a statement.The 2013-2020 master rights deal for AFC competitions was valued at $1 billion with at least $600 million coming to the Asian soccer body then led by Mohamed bin Hammam of Qatar.However, after Bin Hammam was banned by FIFA, an AFC-appointed review of its finances by accountancy firm Pricewaterhouse Cooper said no financial due diligence was performed before the rights deal was agreed in 2009.The WSG agency has since been brought under the banner of its French-based parent group as Lagardere Sports.On Thursday, the AFC also launched an integrity project called Do the right thing, with renewed commitment to encourage whistleblowers.Sheik Salman said the Kuala Lumpur-based AFC wanted member federations to help identify and recruit a head of integrity. That hiring should be confirmed at the May election meeting in Bahrain.The executive meeting was held ahead of the annual Asian soccer awards gala, held in Abu Dhabi. ' ' '