Guy Boucher is anxious to face the chemistry-building challenge that is the Spengler Cup. Cheap NFL Jerseys .The former Tampa Bay Lightning head coach will be on Canadas bench Friday when it opens the annual Christmas event in Switzerland against host team HC Davos.It begins an intense stretch for the Canadians and five other competing squads, as the tournament champion will be crowned Dec. 31.Compounding the task for Boucher is having to build his team from scratch to compete against others that have been together this season. The Canadian squad will practise as a unit for the first time Thursday.Oh yes, its a challenge but to be honest thats what I love about it, Boucher said with a chuckle via telephone from Switzerland. Its one of those things where its all thrown at you and you have to react to it and find solutions real fast.The quality of the teams in the tournament is really high and theyve been together for months whereas Canada, in one day, has to come up with a roster and gameplan thats going to beat that. In that regard I think thats the toughest thing to do, getting the chemistry on and off the ice in that short amount of time . . . but my expectation is always to win at whatever I do.Its a challenge Canada has often met, having appeared in 10 of the last 13 Spengler Cup finals and winning in 02, 03,07 and 12. Overall, Canadian teams have captured this event 12 times since first taking part in 1984.Canada will play in the Cattini Group with HC Davos and KHL club Medvescak Zagreb of Croatia. Defending champion HC Geneve-Servette of Switzerland, Finlands Jokerit Helsinki and Russian KHL side Salavat Yulaev comprise the Torriani Group.Canada went 1-1 in the preliminary round last year to finish behind Davos in Group B. The Canadians beat the AHLs Rochester Americans 6-3 in quarter-final action before dropping a 6-5 semifinal decision to Geneve-Servette. Geneve-Servette beat CSKA Moscow 5-3 to claim its first-ever tournament title. The Spengler Cup, held annually since 1923, is the worlds oldest pro international hockey event.In Switzerland, its like the world juniors back home, Boucher said. Its part of the tradition of Christmas . . . its a big thing, its THE Christmas tournament here.Boucher, 43, a native of Notre-Dame-du-Lac, Que., coached Tampa Bay from 2010-13 but is familiar with the nuances of European hockey on the wider, longer ice surface. Hes currently coaching SC Bern in the National A League in Switzerland and has been behind the bench internationally for Canada numerous times.Boucher served three seasons as an assistant with Canadas under-18 program, winning gold in 08. The following season he was an assistant with the Canadian junior squad that won a record-tying fifth straight gold medal.Bouchers roster, unveiled Tuesday by Hockey Canada, features eight returnees from last years squad (defencemen Micki Dupont, Joel Kwiatkowski, Jim Vandermeer and Derrick Walser and forwards Colby Genoway, Alexandre Giroux, Brett McLean and Byron Ritchie) and five who represented Canada at the world junior hockey championship (forwards Chris DiDomenico, Curtis Hamilton and Jeff Tambellini and defencemen Steve McCarthy and Ryan Parent ).Canadas lineup features 14 Swiss League players, including four from Bouchers Bern squad (forwards Ritchie and Bud Holloway, defenceman Marc-Andre Gragnani and goalie Nolan Schaefer). Veteran AHLer Drew McIntyre of the Charlotte Checkers is the other goaltender.The combination of a condensed schedule and precious little practice time forces Boucher and his coaches to formulate a gameplan thats simple enough for the players to pick up on the fly but is still effective against more established opposition.A key is to try and put guys in roles right away because you dont have time to change roles four, five times in the tournament, Boucher said. You really have to make sure the same guys are out there on the power play, the first PK (penalty kill), play against the first line and are double-shifted.I think thats the big thing we did, working on whod play the power play and where, who had played together before so we can create chemistry right away and keep it very simple.Boucher said depth will be important for Canada in the tournament.Its a big ice surface, its geared towards speed and is a real up-and-down game, Boucher said. It really makes for a high-paced game that is very difficult to play if you dont go with four lines.You have to go with four lines, thats something I had to learn myself. As an NHL coach or AHL or junior coach back home, sometimes you play with three lines, you double-shift some guys and shorten your bench. If you do this here, your guys are dead at the end of the game.Theres also the matter of re-educating North American-based players on the European game and showing them the tricks of effectively playing Canadas brand of hockey on the larger ice surface.Even if youve got your systems, the gap inside defensively (on larger ice) is the most important thing, he said. Its very difficult to get accustomed to for defencemen because with the width of the ice you have a tendency to play on the perimeter because you feel you have more time, which is a mistake.You really want to play inside the faceoff circles because thats the same distance as back home . . . thats one thing we need to make the players understand, that we dont want to become perimeter players. Canadians are good inside, we force ourselves in, were shot blockers, were a pay-the-price type of country in terms of hockey and thats something thats got to be at the top of our list regarding what we want to show. Wholesale NFL Jerseys . Among the six changes: Drivers are now eligible if they have competed for 30 or more years in NASCAR or turned 55 in the calendar year before nominating day. Previously, drivers were not eligible until they had been retired for three years, so drivers can continue to compete and still reach the hall. Cheap NFL Jerseys CHina . - Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Percy Harvin has cleared league-mandated concussion protocol and has returned to practice as a full participant. http://www.wholesalejerseyschinaauthenticstore.com/ . While plenty of statistics illustrate Torontos turnaround in the second year of manager Ryan Nelsens tenure, stopping goals is not one of them.Chennai, India (SportsNetwork.com) - Stanislas Wawrinka defeated Aljaz Bedene on Sunday to claim a second consecutive Chennai Open title. The top-seeded Wawrinka earned a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Slovenian qualifier Bedene, who was playing in his first ATP final, for the championship. Wawrinka claimed his eighth singles title, third at this event, and avenged a quarterfinals defeat at the hands of Bedene in this tournament two years ago. The Swisss star used this tournament victory last year as a stepping stone to his first major title a few weeks later at the Australian Open. Wholesale Jerseys China. He also won the Chennai crown in 2011 and was the runner-up in 2010. Its an amazing atmosphere. Its one of the reasons I come back every year, said Wawrinka. It was a great final. Im really happy with my level. Chennai serves as a tune-up for the Aussie Open, which will begin Jan. 19. ' ' '