VANCOUVER -- Senators rookie Cody Ceci is trying to help his team by helping his own cause. Cecis second-period goal stood up as the winner as the Ottawa Senators downed the Vancouver Canucks 4-2 before a disappointed crowd of more than 50,000 people Sunday in the NHL Heritage Classic. "It means a lot," said Ceci, a 20-year-old Ottawa native. "These are points that we need right now going down the stretch, and it means a lot to me. Im just trying to earn my spot here." The Senators (27-23-11) posted their first win in three games and kept pace in the race for the eighth and final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference. The Canucks (28-25-10) suffered their ninth loss in 10 games and remained on the bubble in their quest for eighth in the Western Conference. Ceci put the Senators ahead 3-2 midway through the second. The defenceman moved up, took a pass from Jason Spezza, and fired home a shot from right wing on a three-on-two rush. He helped the Sens make a classic comeback as they produced four unanswered goals after trailing 2-0 in the first five minutes. The score was tied 2-2 after the first period before Ceci decided the outcome in the second and Greening closed out the scoring in the third. "I think it was huge that we tied the game before going into the intermission," said Ceci. "That was big for us, just because weve had it tough lately before the (Olympic) break and the game right after it." The Senators bounced back from a humiliating 6-1 home loss to Detroit on Thursday in their first game after the Olympic break. Ceci went minus-2 in the loss. "Its great to be young," said Senators coach Paul MacLean. "They have short memories." Both of Cecis goals this season have been game-winners. He led the Sens to a win over St. Louis in mid-December. Clarke MacArthur, Erik Karlsson and Colin Greening, into an empty net with 1:33 left in the game, also scored for Ottawa. Jason Garrison and Zack Kassian scored for the Canucks before Ottawa goaltender Craig Anderson shut them out the rest of the game. Anderson, who appeared to have little difficulty playing in a stadium venue with different lighting than a traditional arena, posted his 20th win of the season, recording 29 saves as Vancouver outshot the Sens 31-28. MacLean praised Anderson for making difficult saves look easy, but the goaltenders calm demeanour between the pipes defied how he actually felt at the outset of the game. "It was one of those things where you have the butterflies going and the nerves going," he said. "Everythings just a little bit different than your usual normal routine. a Its a big win for us and its a great venue and its one of those things that well be smiling about for while, because its kind of a once-in-a-lifetime experience." Canucks goalie Eddie Lack, who appeared to be fighting the puck at times and gave up more rebounds than usual, suffered the loss as he drew his third consecutive start following the NHLs Olympic break. Nominal No. 1 Roberto Luongo watched from the bench while sporting a toque and replica vintage pads and gloves. Vancouver coach John Tortorella spent much of his post-game news conference talking about his goaltending decision rather than Vancouvers continued scoring struggles, which were made worse by Daniel Sedins departure due to injury in the second period. "Before this game, the way Eddie was playing, I thought (he) was our best chance to get these two points," said Tortorella. Fans chanted for Luongo during the game but Tortorella, who said he didnt notice the crowd activities, stuck with Lack. The coach said Luongo was angry about the decision, but believes the veteran goaltender will use the sit-down as motivation. "I thought (Lack) looked not himself, but he made some big saves, too," said Tortorella. "Im sure hed like to have that third one back." The game was designed as a tribute to the 1915 Stanley Cup final series between the eventual-champion Vancouver Millionaires and Ottawa Senators. The Canucks wore maroon and cream-coloured replica Millionaires jerseys while the Senators sported duds similar to those of their predecessors. Coaches wore varsity-styled jackets rather than their usual suits. "It was a pretty cool setting, just to have that many people watch the game, and it was loud all game long," said Ceci. "We were in Vancouver, but there was a lot of Ottawa fans, so its good to see fans come out all that way." The NHLs outdoor series was forced to go indoors as the B.C. Place Stadium roof was closed due to rain. The weather teased Vancouver and Ottawa players who had hoped the roof would remain open. "I was glad (organizers) had the option to close it, because it probably would have ruined the game if it was raining out," said Spezza. "The ice got bad as it was with it closed." While the main goal was to get two points, Spezza enjoyed playing the role of spoiler before the large crowd. "There was so much hype around the game and so much talk about it," he said. "Its nice to get the win. It makes it more enjoyable for everybody, our families included. We dont have to tippy-toe around tonight." Spezza, who provided a nifty backhand pass on Cecis winning goal, hopes the win is also the start of Ottawas march to the playoffs. "We had a tough one against Detroit," he said. "It was a very important game, and we knew that we needed this one." Tortorella felt the loss of Daniel Sedin, who was hurt in a collision with Ottawa defenceman Marc Methot affected his team offensively because lines had to be juggled. His twin brother Henrik was less than pleased with the outcome. "Thats a game we should have won," he said. Notes: Canadian music star Sarah McLachlan sang the national anthem. aMembers of the 1994 Canucks team that reached the Stanley Cup final and Canadas 2014 Olympic gold-medal-winning womens hockey squad were saluted before the game. a NHL commissioner Gary Bettman was in attendance. a The stadiums field was covered with fake snow and featured vintage Vancouver and Ottawa logos. Cheap Air Max 90 China . -- Victor Bernardez tied the game with his second goal in the 95th minute and the San Jose Earthquakes drew 3-3 with Real Salt Lake on Saturday night. Discount Air Max 90 . Its the second time this season that Milan has been sanctioned by the league judge, after fans also subjected Napoli supporters to discriminatory chants. The ban will come into effect for Milans next match, against Udinese on Oct. http://www.outletairmax90cheap.com/outle...llow-cheap.html. Week 2s biggest games include Florida facing Miami and Notre Dame travelling to the Big House to conclude their rivalry against Michigan in primetime on TSN2 and TSN 1050. Air Max 90 Clearance . The Maple Leafs may not have had a pick until the third round, but they have made the biggest move of the second day of the Draft, dealing defenceman Carl Gunnarsson and a fourth-round pick in the draft to the St. Fake Air Max 90 Black . Thornton emerged as one of the leagues best defensive ends against the run in 2013. The former undrafted free agent from Division II Southern Arkansas led Philadelphias linemen with 78 tackles and had one sack.Canadas largest sports company wants the Maple Leafs to become Chinas favourite hockey team, in much the same way Manchester United is the most popular soccer team in the worlds most populous country. At the same time as Chinese government officials have asked the NHL to stage a regular-season game in China as early as next season, TSN has learned four executives with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment are scheduled to leave Friday for Beijing for meetings to help grow hockey in China, an untapped frontier for many sports leagues around the world. MLSE chief commercial officer Dave Hopkinson, Bo Hu, MLSEs executive in charge of Chinese business, and two colleagues will attend meetings in Beijing with Prime Minister Stephen Harper, his staff, and Chinese government officials. Maple Leafs President Brendan Shanahan was scheduled to participate but canceled at the last minute, a team spokesperson said. (The NHL and NHLPA announced forward Carter Ashton was suspended for 20 games on Thursday after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug. Ashton said he borrowed another athletes asthma inhaler.) MLSE executives, the 27-year-old Hu in particular, have quietly laid the groundwork for building the companys profile in China over the past three years. Because basketball is so popular in China, MLSE staff first established relationships with companies interested in sponsorship agreements with the Raptors. The basketball team now has sponsorships with Chinese auto tire maker Aeolus Tires and Asus, a laptop maker. MLSE has also partnered with I.T. company Huawei on music-industry projects. Its believed that MLSE garners more than $300,000 from each of those sponsorships. Company officials declined to say how much sponsorship revenue they make from China-based companies. As MLSEs relationships in China matured, the company landed meetings with the Chinese government - meetings where MLSE received an attractive offer. China is competing with Kazakhstan to host the 2022 Winter Olympics. China wants to have hockey teams that are competitive. But with a mens national team thats ranked No. 38 — behind New Zealand, Belgium and Iceland — China needs help getting to that point. China wasnt a sports nation before the Beijing Olympics in 2008, but it is now, Hopkinson said in an interview. The president of the country attended the Team Canada mens hockey games in Sochi and said he fell in love with hockey. Whats important to the president of China is important to China. Chinese officials said in exchange for helping to develop grass-roots hockey programs in China, the government would help MLSE promote the Maple Leafs brand there. This is the most storied and established brand in the game, Hopkinson said. We were told that if they were going to partner in the NFL, it would be with the Dallas Cowboys. If they were doing a baseball deal, it would be with the New York Yankees. And if theres a partnership in the NHL, its going to be with the Maple Leafs. It doesnt hurt that the Leafs are based in Canada. Tensions might appear if a U.S.-based team tried to do what the Leafs hope to do. The Chinese have told us they really appreciate what we are doing, boots on the ground, helping them to develop a hockey competency, said Hopkinson, who has made four previous trips to China. In March, the Leafs converted all of their rink boards to Chinese to welcome Chinese viewers. In August, the team sent staff to Beijing and Shanghai to stage hockey camps for young amateur players. In coming weekks, the Leafs will aid in the production of a 10-part Hockey 101 series to be included in NHL broadcasts on CCTV in China to educate viewers.dddddddddddd We arent the only team in China, Hu said. The Canucks and Islanders are there, too, but we really have a plan to become the biggest hockey brand there. We want to keep holding camps for kids, building grass roots interest, and eventually take our Maple Leafs players there. This is the Manchester United model. The worlds most famous soccer club says it has 108 million fans in China, where it has played almost a dozen times since 1975. Hu said because the NHL prevents teams from promoting themselves outside their local territories, MLSE has been targeting Chinese companies such as Air China and the Bank of China that want to expand their business in Canada. There are a lot of Chinese mining companies that have investments in Canada, although we just signed an agreement with a Colombian mining company, Hu said. Hu confirmed Chinese officials have told the NHL they are interested in hosting an NHL game as soon as next season. As any seasoned marketer knows, the payoff for a team to break through in China is huge. In its recent filing for an initial public offering, Alibaba reported just 45.8 per cent of Chinas population uses the Internet, far lower than Canada or the U.S. In 2000, four per cent of urban households in China were considered middle class; by 2012, more than two-thirds of those homes had gained that status, earning between $9,000 and $16,000. In 2022, Chinas middle class may eclipse 630 million consumers. There already are signs that China, a non-traditional hockey market to be sure, is open to a new sport. Last year, the state broadcaster CCTV began showing four live NHL games every week. This is CCTVs second year of a three-year deal with the NHL. NHL games broadcast on the weekend in China have attracted an average 800,000 households - airing at 7 a.m. local time. By comparison, televised Leafs games in Canada with national distribution this season have attracted about 1.5 million viewers. This year, Beijings 150 registered teams have 2,300 players between the ages of six and 15, MLSE says. Still, there are challenges to growing hockey in China. For starters, its an expensive sport, Hu said, thanks to 30 per cent import duties for hockey equipment shipped from the west and expensive ice time. There are politics to consider. In 2005, the newspaper Beijing Today accused western soccer teams of gold-digging, using their tours of China solely to build their brand and commercial presence. Some efforts simply dont translate. Manchester United closed a pair of theme restaurants after fans didnt see a connection between soccer fandom and eating out, The New York Times reported in 2007. Also, its unclear whether the NHL sees a big upside in China. The league does not have a senior vice president in change of expanding its international business, a position common in other pro sports leagues. Moreover, the NBA has a long head start in China, where it began to lay a toehold during the 1990s. Now, the NBA attracts some five million viewers a game in China. In the U.S., NBA broadcasts on cable TV get about two million viewers per game. Its doubtful that the NHL would ever grow business through the sale of team jerseys. While authentic jerseys now sell for $330 in Canada, counterfeiting has flourished in China, bringing down the price of knock-off jerseys to $5 or $10 in some cases. ' ' '