SOCHI, Russia – Hours before his team would battle for an opportunity to play for gold here in Sochi, Canadian head coach Mike Babcock had an opportunity to meet with two members of the womens squad – Hayley Wickenheiser and Shannon Szabados – that rallied for gold of their own in historic fashion just a night earlier. Ducks Jerseys China . "I just think what it does for everybody in life is real simple," said Babcock early on Friday afternoon. "You dont give in. You just keep on keeping on. Is it going to go your way every time? No. But you choose your attitude and how you perform and how hard you dig in." Nearly four years to the day of the 2010 gold medal match in Vancouver, his team dug in with its best effort of these Olympics, snuffing out the high-powered Americans for another opportunity at gold. The line between victory and failure was painfully thin at Bolshoy Ice Dome in a Friday evening clash of the tournaments two deepest teams, but ultimately Carey Price on the prowl, another Jamie Benn marker and a stiff Canadian defensive effort prevailed in a tight 1-0 win. "If we were to think about that result and visualize it at the start of the day, wed say, mission accomplished," Price remarked afterward. Their scoring struggles may have continued in victory – just four goals of offence in the past nine periods of regulation – but what Canada continued to do exceptionally well is defend, holding a potent U.S. team completely off the board. The Americans entered the night as the tournaments most fearsome offensive attack, scoring 20 goals in their first four games including five alone from Phil Kessel. But they were stifled by the Canadians, who have allowed, incredibly, just three goals and only two at even-strength. "Thats been something from Day 1 that weve really believed in and trust that thats a big part of having success here," said Sidney Crosby. "You see the games from every team at this point are pretty tight. Thats a common theme. And theres not much separating each team." Though the pace was absolutely frantic, the Canadians generally managed the feared American speed. Much of that effort came from simply controlling possession, forcing the likes of Kessel and Patrick Kane to defend a lot more than theyd like. "We forced them to play in the defensive zone a lot," said Crosby. "Theyve got a lot of guys who are skilled and create a lot of speed, but I think we did a good job of keeping them in there for at least 20 seconds in shifts. Hopefully that played a part in taking away their energy offensively." Toews and linemates, Jeff Carter and Patrick Marleau, drew the assignment of the slowing the Kessel line – which also featured Joe Pavelski, who had the most goals in the NHL since Jan. 1 and James van Riemsdyk – and did so in part by back-checking with fevered passion, a commitment that was shared by the rest of the Canadian forward contingent. Kessel had a rush or two of consequence early, but was held to four shots and none in the final frame. "It was just work ethic," said Toews. "It was good sticks, I think we had active sticks … we didnt stop moving our feet, and we were committed to doing the job right. Our penalty kill was great tonight, too. Those are the things, whether youre winning a Stanley Cup or an Olympic gold medal, those are the things you need to do." Zach Parise led the U.S. with eight shots and had one of the better opportunities to score in the second, redirecting a Patrick Kane pass attempt on Price, one of 31 shots turned aside by the 26-year-old in his first Olympic shutout. Price was facing the biggest and most scrutinized test of his career and he aced it, outdueling the always impressive Jonathan Quick. A stoic and unwavering personality, Price, a native of Anahim Lake, B.C., was cool in his fourth start of these Games and made the difficult look effortless. Maybe his most impressive stop of the evening saw John Carlson robbed by the glove in a scoreless opening frame. "I thought he was great," said Babcock. "The game was close. Its 1-0, its tight, and all those shots coming he had to make big saves, just like Quick did. Its not like there wasnt chances tonight. There was chances both ways, its just that the goalies are so good in todays world it makes it hard to get pucks by them." "Im just soaking in this moment right now," said Price, who owns a .963 save percentage thus far. Benn proved the only player on either team to score. The 24-year-old scored his second goal (and second game-winner) by redirecting a Jay Bouwmeester point shot past Quick, who was often awesome himself in turning aside 36 shots, including all 16 in a busy first frame. Only four Canadian forwards have scored with a game to go and if there is a concern heading into Sundays final with Sweden, its just that. Like the quarterfinal game against Latvia, there were numerous chances against the Americans on this night with only one resulting in a goal. Patrice Bergeron had an early backhand opportunity eschewed by Quicks blocker. Carter was stopped by the pads moments later. Two good chances for Patrick Sharp, who offered energy on an effective fourth line with Matt Duchene and Rick Nash, also failed to materialize into anything other than a shot or two on goal. "Weve had unbelievable opportunities and still havent finished," Babcock. "Were going to finish. We just hope we dont run out of time." A journey that started six months ago at an orientation camp in Calgary will conclude Sunday against the injury-riddled, overlooked and still dangerous Swedes, who topped Finland in the other semifinal. In line with Babcocks desired mantra at these Olympics, the Canadians have gotten better every day and know that will have to continue if theyre to repeat with gold for the first time in more than 60 years and also join the undeterred womens squad, who rallied from a 2-0 deficit to capture their fourth consecutive gold on Thursday night. "Each and every level of the Stanley Cup playoffs, youve got to keep getting better and its the same here," said Babcock, who will face four of his Red Wing players in the gold medal match. "What I do know about the Swedes and I know lots of them actually, theyre good players and they play with no ego and itll be about the team. Theyve been really good here. Theyre going to be a hard test. We understand that." Cheap Ducks Jerseys .com) - The Tennessee Titans agreed to terms with running back Jackie Battle on a one-year contract Friday. Cheap Corey Perry Jersey . -- Slugger Jose Abreu, All-Star left-hander Chris Sale and closer Matt Lindstrom are on the disabled list. http://www.cheapducksjersey.com/ . When Reyes signed a US$106-million, six-year deal with Miami last month, there was speculation Ramirez was unhappy about being supplanted at short. But new manager Ozzie Guillen sold Ramirez on the idea.Raleigh, NC (SportsNetwork.com) - After posting a huge upset over then second- ranked Duke this past weekend, NC State sets its sights on another powerhouse rival, as the Wolfpack play host to the 15th-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels in an ACC showdown at PNC Arena on Wednesday. Mark Gottfrieds Wolfpack are an impressive 12-5 on the season and that includes the teams biggest win to date, Sundays 87-75 upset of Duke. The win over the Blue Devils followed a tough loss to yet another powerhouse, Virginia (61-51). Roy Williams Tar Heels have won six of their last seven games, with the lone loss being a one-point decision to Notre Dame (71-70). The team most recently knocked off Louisville by the same narrow margin (72-71), moving to 2-1 in conference play. North Carolina holds a 150-76 edge in the all-time series with NC State and has won three straight and 16 of the last 17 meetings overall. UNC is also 59-45 in games played in Raleigh, with an 11-4 record at PNC Arena. Marcus Paige hit the game-winning shot with under nine seconds to play, as UNC edged out Louisville in Chapel Hill last time out. Kennedy Meeks led four Tar Heels in double figures in the victory with 13 points. Brice Johnson posted a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds, while Paige and J.P. Tokoto chipped in with 10 points each. North Carolina held a 40-30 advantage in rebounding and held All-America candidate Montrezl Harrell to just nine points and five boards in the game. The Tar Heels win most of their games with overpowering offensive nuumbers. Ducks Jerseys Outlet. . The team is shooting a healthy .452 from the floor overall, leading to a hefty 79.8 ppg. UNC is also very active on the boards, boasting of a +10.8 rebounding margin. Paige leads the team in scoring at 13.3 ppg. Meeks is the resident muscle in the paint. The sophomore big man is shooting .585 from the field and is averaging 12.8 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Johnson (11.3 ppg, 7.3 rpg) rounds out the double-digit scorers on the roster, although players like Justin Jackson (9.5 ppg) and Tokoto (9.2 ppg) are eager to join the group. The Wolfpack needed a statement win and got just that against Duke last time out, as NC State overwhelmed the Blue Devils with their efficient play. In all, NC State shot 55 percent from the floor and was a scorching 10-of-16 from behind the arc (.625). Trevor Lacey was once again the driving force in the win, as he posted 21 points, on the strength of five 3-pointers. Ralston Turner poured in 16 points and BeeJay Anya came off the bench to add 14 points in the big win. Lacey has made an immediate impact, as he has filled the void left by last years ACC Player of the Year T.J. Warren. Lacey, an Alabama transfer, is shooting a cool 50 percent from the field overall, including 46.3 percent from long range to pace the team with 16.9 ppg. Turner is a marksman as well at 13.3 ppg. The two have combined for 80 of the teams 107 3-pointers to date. Point guard Anthony Barber has the ability to both score (11.4 ppg) and distribute (3.6 apg) at a high level. ' ' '