world championship. Joakim Lindstrom scored

MINSK, Belarus -- Defending champion Sweden blanked the Czech Republic 3-0 Sunday to earn the bronze at the ice hockey world championship. Joakim Lindstrom scored early and Simon Hjalmarsson netted another one in the opening period for Sweden to take control. Mikael Backlund rounded off the win with a wrist shot past goaltender Alexander Salak in the third. "We came here to win the gold," Lindstrom said. "That was our goal. But the competition is very, very hard, and all in all it was a pretty good tournament for us." Sweden had to settle for the third-place game after a 3-1 loss to Russia in the semifinals. The Czechs outshot Sweden 29-24 but failed to score for the second straight match after Finland blanked them 3-0 in Saturdays semis. Goaltender Anders Nilsson saved all 24 shots for the shutout. "Hes been phenomenal, not just tonight, but the whole tournament," Lindstrom said. "From game one, hes been our backbone on this hockey team." The Czechs -- the 2010 champions -- struggled in the preliminary round, recording three losses before recovering to eliminate the United States in the quarterfinals. Veteran forward Jaromir Jagr said after the game it was his last with the national team -- although he will continue playing for his New Jersey Devils next season. "Its not that I would think Im not good enough for it," Jagr said. "But this is a different hockey than I play. My hockey doesnt fit this style." The announcement came a year before the Czech Republic hosts the next worlds. Russia faces Finland in the final later Sunday. Cheap Sharks Jerseys Authentic .C. -- Gleason Fournier scored the shootout winner as the Grand Rapids Griffins defeated the Abbotsford Heat 4-3 Friday in American Hockey League action. Cheap Sharks Jerseys . Dancevic won his singles match on Friday, defeating Go Soeda 6-4, 7-6 (2), 6-1, to even the best-of-five series at a game apiece. World No. 18 Kei Nishikori defeated Peter Polansky in the opening match, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. http://www.cheapsharksjerseys.com/ . Cleveland released the troubled wide receiver on Wednesday, an expected ending after Bess was arrested in January for assaulting a law enforcement officer at an airport and other bizarre behaviour. Cheap San Jose Sharks Jerseys . Patty Mills had 20 points, Tim Duncan had 11 points and 13 rebounds in limited action, and San Antonio rolled to a 110-82 victory over Milwaukee that kept the Bucks winless in the new year. Cheap Adidas NHL Jerseys . The Detroit Tigers slugger fell short in his bid to become the first player to win the Triple Crown in successive seasons.Former Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Dan Bylsma is among six front-runners the Florida Panthers will be sitting down with this week to discuss the vacant head coaching job, according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel. The Panthers braintrust is in New York City to interview Bylsma for the first time this week, while the other five candidates have all met or spoke to general manager Dale Tallon about the position. According to the paper, this weeks interviews will also include team co-owners Vinnie Viola and Doug Cifu, as well as CEO and President Rory Babich. As mentioned by TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger last week, the other leading candidates are believed to include Ron Wilson, Canadiens assistant Gerard Gallant and Red Wings assistants Tom Renney and Bill Peters. The Panthers fired interim coach Peter Horachek in April after Florida went 26-36-4 under himm this past season.dddddddddddd Horachek had no previous NHL coaching experience before replacing Kevin Dineen on Nov. 8. The Sun Sentinel also reported on Tuesday the Panthers were leaning toward selecting OHL Barrie Colts defenceman Aaron Ekblad with the first overall selection in the NHL Draft on June 27 because hes considered the most NHL-ready of the prospects. "Ekblad is this years player most likely ready to step in and play in the NHL, Scott Luce, the Panthers director of scouting, told the Sun Sentinel last week. "Hes physically mature and has lots of mileage underneath him at the OHL level. The Panthers finished 29th in the standings and had an 18.8 per cent chance of winning the lottery, behind only Buffalo (21-51-10), which had a 25 per cent shot. The draft will be held in Philadelphia on June 27-28. ' ' '