TORONTO – Amid the pomp and circumstance of the home opener, the great Roy Halladay throwing out the ceremonial first pitch and the major league debut of Yankees phenomenon Masahiro Tanaka, it could be easy to lose the significance of Dustin McGowans role in Friday nights festivities. James Washington Jersey . Yet there he was, toeing the rubber to throw the first pitch of the first inning for the first time since September 26, 2011. Even greater an accomplishment, considering his significant injury history, is that McGowan is healthy to begin a season for the first time since 2008. Not many pitchers undergo three shoulder surgeries and another on a knee and continue to throw in the best league in the world. McGowan is a rare exception. Hes allowing himself to enjoy the experience but not enough to distract him from the task at hand. "I have a little bit but the last few days, my focus has been on what Ive got to do to get the Yankees out," McGowan told TSN.ca. "It feels like Ive got a lot of stuff going on in my head but thats part of it. Im ready." The shoulder surgeries chronicle like this: in 2008, to repair fraying of the labrum; two years later, in 2010, to repair a torn rotator cuff; in 2012, an arthroscopic procedure. McGowan underwent the knee surgery in 2009. Yet there he was on April 4, 2014, starting Torontos first home game of the season. His wife Jilly and their two children were in attendance. At the time McGowan spoke to TSN.ca, he was trying to arrange for his brother-in-law to be in the crowd, too. The result matters because the game counts in the standings. But in its own way, the fact McGowan is on the mound in the first place, the fact he went to the Blue Jays late last season and told them he wanted to take one more shot at being a starting pitcher and the fact he achieved the goal seems just as important as the result itself. "To be honest with you, I am," manager John Gibbons said, admitting to surprise. "All hes been through, hes defying all the odds really. So many guys thats happened to disappear and then to be able to maintain most of it, I mean hes not popping it like he once did but theres still plenty there." There really is no plan for McGowan because nobody knows what lies ahead. Hes tired of being asked how his shoulder feels after every bullpen session and each outing but those are important questions. The Blue Jays intend to monitor McGowans innings for as long as this experiment goes. The club, should it choose, could utilize its three April off days to push McGowan back, giving him extra off days in between appearances. If his shoulder starts to ache, or "bark" as players often say, McGowans bosses want to hear about it. "Ive told him multiple times, any concerns at all, youre not doing this for us, youre doing this because you want to do it," said general manager Alex Anthopoulos. "He had no problems at all last year. We would have loved to have been able to stretch him out but we werent in a position to do it." Halladay tosses ceremonial first pitch It was an all-too-familiar scene: the great Roy Halladay back on the mound for the home opener in Toronto. But he wasnt in full uniform and he only had the ceremonial first pitch to deliver. It was a strike. "Its pretty cool to be back," said Halladay. "It doesnt seem that long ago when you walk in. It feels like I was just here. Its exciting. Im enjoying retirement but this is pretty cool to be able to come back here." Halladay has settled in the Tampa Bay area and went to the Jays season opener against the Rays on Monday at the behest of his son. He worried that sitting in the stands would be uncomfortable so soon after his retirement. "I had my doubts," said Halladay. "But, honestly, I enjoyed it and I have no regrets, no disappointments. Im actually really happy with the choice I made and it was the right choice I made." Terrell Edmunds Jersey . "It was a little weird looking over and seeing all the green uniforms," he said of his first game against the Boston Celtics. Custom Pittsburgh Steelers Jerseys . Tortorella told The Vancouver Province hell be cheering for Team Sweden to win gold when they take on the defending Olympic champions on Sunday morning. "I hope Sweden wins, cause I dont think Hammer (Dan Hamhuis) is going to play, judging by whats happened. http://www.steelersfanaticproshop.com/jon-bostic-steelers-jersey/ . PETERSBURG, Fla.NEW YORK -- It was advantage Rangers on Saturday in the off-ice gamesmanship that is running parallel to the Eastern Conference final between New York and Montreal. There has been no shortage of storylines in this series, which has already featured one surgery and two suspensions in three games. And with two days off between Games 3 and 4, the old adage that idle hands are the devils workshop was proved true at Madison Square Garden when two New York assistant coaches showed up to watch Montreal practise. The intrusion seemed squarely aimed at getting under Montreals skin. When Canadiens goalie coach Stephane Waite noticed the break in protocol, he told head coach Michel Therrien. As the players stretched, Therrien moved down the rink and had words with Rangers assistant Ulf Samuelsson. Observers said the exchange was somewhat prickly. Samuelsson, no stranger to antagonizing rivals during his playing days, and fellow assistant coach Dan Lacroix left soon after. Therrien told reporters later there was a "gentlemans agreement" that rival coaches dont attend practices on non-game days. The idea is to allow coaches to make changes or test out new strategies in private. "When we saw those assistant coaches there, they were not supposed to be there, so we let them know," Therrien said pithily. New York president and GM Glen Sather watched the practice from one of the top rows of the lower bowl at Madison Square Garden, seemingly more interested in his phone than what was happening on the ice. Game 4 is Sunday night. The Rangers lead the series two games to one. While coaches seemed hot and bothered over the presence of the Rangers coaches, Canadiens defenceman P.K. Subban was oblivious. "I get in trouble when Im looking up in the stands," he said, drawing laughs. The Canadiens, coming off a bitter seven-game battle with their rival Bruins, are finding themselves down and dirty again in the trenches with the Rangers. The series has already left an ugly trail. Montreals Brandon Prust has been suspended two games for the Game 3 hit that broke Derek Stepans jaw. Rangers agitator Dan Carcillo has been banned for 10 games for jostling a linesman in the wake of the Prust hit. And Stepan was recovering in hospital Saturday from surgery to repair his jaw. Carcillo has requested that NHL commissioner Gary Bettman review the 10-game suspension, according to the NHL Players Association. "I think its building," Habs forward Brendan Gallagher said of the animosity between the two teams, which he has helped grow by throwing his five-foot-nine, 180-pound body around with reckless abandon. "Last game, it certainly took a big step forward," he added. Gallagher looks like his mum still packs him a lunch. But he is fearless, a hockey Smurf full of grit and attitude. While his assistants were stirring the pot Saturday, Rangers coach Alain Vigneault -- the picture of calm normally -- was still burning over the missed call on the Prust hit and the domino-effect mayhem that ensued. "At the end of the day if the right call is made on the ice, that whole situation doesnt happen," he lamented. The war of words continued on the Rangers website, which noted Stepan was New Yorks second-leading playoff scorer while fourth-liner Prustt "has had trouble keeping up with the speedy Rangers through the first three games of this series. Terrell Edmunds Steelers Jersey. " The good news for Vigneault was word that Derick Brassard is healthy. The New York centre left early in Game 1 with an upper body injury after being checked by Canadiens defenceman Mike Weaver and has not played since. Brassard told reporters after practice that he was good to go. That brought a smile to the face of Vigneault. "I was told he cleared himself," Vigneault said with a laugh. "Thats good to know. He didnt tell me." As one might expect, Vigneault said Stepan was "unlikely" to play Sunday. The 23-year-old centre has not missed a game since coming into the league in the 2010-11 season. Carcillo declined to speak to reporters Saturday. But Vigneault said the player knew he needed to have kept control of himself. "I cant begin to tell you how bad he feels about the whole thing," the coach said. "His situation, his personal future, the team. Theres nothing he can do about it now and theres nothing we can do about it." Forward Brad Richards called the abrasive Carcillo "a great teammate." "I heard a lot about him before but I dont have one bad thing to say about him." The New York players, for the most part, had little to say about the length of the ban to Prust, a former Ranger. But goalie Henrik Lundqvist said that hot spots in the playoffs usually cool down in the off-season. "Especially during the playoffs, you dont see your opponents as friends, even though youve played with them. Right now I dont have any friends in Montreal," the stylish Swede said with a chuckle. "Theyre just enemies and you play it that way. Thats your approach. "But you also have to understand this game, you know, theres a lot of players that play on the edge. Thats their role, thats what they do. Theyre always going to play it like that and sometimes things happen and maybe they take it a little too far. As it comes to relationships, as friends, in the summertime you move past it. "But right now, do I like what happened? Absolutely not. But its on the ice, it happens on the ice. It is what it is." Michael Bournival slotted into Prusts place on Montreals fourth line in practice. Francis Bouillon was skating in place of Nathan Beaulieu on defence. Subban and other Habs said, despite the Game 3 overtime win, the Canadiens have more in the tank. "I dont think weve played our best hockey yet this series," said Subban. And they acknowledged that they cannot rely on young goalie Dustin Tokarskis heroics, as they did last time out. "We now we cant expect him to do that every game, so we want to be better in front of him," said Canadiens captain Brian Gionta. On the Rangers side, J.T. Miller was skating in place of Carcillo on the fourth line with Derek Dorsett and Brian Boyle. New York gave winger Chris Kreider a "maintenance day" off. That meant Dominic Moore skated with Rick Nash and Jesper Fast, filling in for Kreider. NOTES: Game 4 will be shown at the Bell Centre in Montreal. Canadiens officials say more than 20,000 tickets have already been snapped up. Wholesale Falcons Jerseys Wholesale Buccaneers Jerseys Wholesale Cardinals Jerseys Wholesale Bills Jerseys Wholesale Jets Jerseys Wholesale Panthers Jerseys Wholesale Ravens Jerseys Wholesale Texans Jerseys Wholesale Patriots Jerseys Wholesale Steelers Jerseys Wholesale Cowboys Jerseys Wholesale Packers Jerseys Wholesale Browns Jerseys Wholesale Chiefs Jerseys Wholesale Colts Jerseys Wholesale Rams Jerseys ' ' '