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MADRID -- Spanish cyclist Alberto Contador will miss the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro because of injuries that forced him to abandon the Tour de France.Making it to Rio is practically ruled out, Contador said Tuesday. The question isnt whether I am recovered or not, but rather if I could arrive in prime condition.Contador, a two-time Tour winner, says he hopes to recover in time to compete in the Spanish Vuelta on Aug. 20.With seven Grand Tour titles, Contador is one of the top riders of his generation.Not going to the Summer Games is a hard blow, it was my second objective after the Tour, Contador said.The 33-year-old Contador withdrew from the ongoing Tour on Sunday during its ninth stage because of a fever. He had already lost valuable time after falling during the opening two stages of the three-week race.The Olympic road race is scheduled for Aug. 6.Cheap Ecco Shoes Canada .Y. -- The Buffalo Sabres have placed centre Cody Hodgson on injured reserve and recalled two players from their AHL affiliate in Rochester. Wholesale Ecco Shoes Canada Online . Tevez, who has had conflicts with coaches in the past, has not been called up since Sabella was named coach in 2011. Argentina boasts Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain, Sergio Aguero, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Angel Di Maria. http://www.discounteccocanada.com/ . -- Three close looks at the bucket, three misses. Ecco Shoes Canada Sale . Nigeria beat surprise package Ethiopia 2-0 in the second leg of their playoff for a comfortable 4-1 aggregate victory. Victor Moses converted a 20th-minute penalty after an Ethiopian handball, and Victor Obinna made certain of Nigerias place in Brazil with his powerful free kick in the 82nd at UJ Esuene Stadium. Clearance Shoes Canada . -- Team after team passed on Andre Ellington in the draft.After making the trade that shook the hockey world over the summer, the Montreal Canadiens are glad to have rock-solid defenseman Shea Weber and goaltender Carey Price as they try to get back to the playoffs.In June, the Canadiens traded flashy, risk-reward defenseman P.K. Subban to the Nashville Predators straight up for Weber, a steady presence on the blue line who could fit better with coach Michel Therriens conservative style. Montreal is counting on Weber bringing his size, physicality, heavy shot and stability to bear in front of Price, arguably the best goalie in the world whos back after missing almost all of last season with a knee injury.General manager Marc Bergevin said having the 6-foot-4, 236-pound Weber around makes a difference on and off the ice.Hes a player that is very tough to play against -- hes responsible and makes the opposing forwards lives very difficult, Bergevin said. A team that brings in a player of Shea Webers caliber, with his leadership, his presence and the way he is a real pro, your young players are going to benefit from his presence.No one benefits more from Webers presence than Price, who won the Hart Trophy as MVP and Vezina Trophy as top goaltender in 2014-15 but injured his right knee Nov. 25 and hasnt played an NHL game since. While they were on the way to winning the World Cup of Hockey together for Canada, Price said of Weber: Hes a big body and definitely makes it easier on me to see the puck. Its always good to have a man mountain in front of you.Weber was a man mountain in Nashville for 11 seasons, serving as captain for the past six. If anyone knows how much Price will enjoy Weber playing in front of him its Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne, who thinks every GM would want someone like the 31-year-old defenseman on his team.Theres not a similar player in the league whos as physical, as good of a shot, a big guy who can skate, Rinne said. Im 100 percent sure that Careys going to like to play behind Weber. Hes a modern defenseman whos extremely tough in front of your net but also offensively he can do some damage.Weber and Subban are two drastically different players but had the same number of pointss last season.dddddddddddd The key for Montreal is getting enough offense from captain Max Pacioretty, center Tomas Plekanec and others without sacrificing the solid play around Price that led to trips to the playoffs in 2013, 2014 and 2015.Here are some other things to watch with the Canadiens this season:PATCHING THINGS UP: If there was any kind of rift in the locker room between players last season when Subban was around or between Pacioretty and Therrien, now is the time to fix it. Pacioretty has the C, with Weber brought in as an alternate to help out, and this is his team to lead.Ive spoken to players on the team and were all on the same page, Pacioretty said. Were going to show this year that were all on the same page -- coaches, management, players.RADULOV FACTOR: The Canadiens took a risk in signing Alexander Radulov to a $5.75 million, one-year deal in the hopes the Russian winger can recapture past scoring prowess after the last four-plus seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League. This isnt like signing Alexander Semin for cheap a year ago, as Montreal needs Radulov to produce with that kind of salary-cap hit.SANDPAPER SHAW: At the draft Montreal traded center Lars Eller to Washington and acquired versatile agitating forward Andrew Shaw from Chicago. Shaw is a pest who can hit, defend and also put up points, but most importantly he plays with the kind of edge the Canadiens have lacked in recent years.THERRIENS WARM SEAT: Bergevin has doubled down on Therrien, even though his coaching style is old-school and counter to the NHLs trend of going smaller, faster and more offensive. Therrien can feel safe in his job unless the Canadiens miss the playoffs again.BLUE LINE BLUES: After Weber, Montreals blue line includes Jeff Petry, Nathan Beaulieu, Alexei Emelin, Andrei Markov and a handful of unheralded defensemen. Petry has the potential to get even better after an injury ended last season, but Montreal also needs more from Beaulieu and Emelin.---Follow Stephen Whyno on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/SWhyno . ' ' '