It would seem that behind the ubiquitous smile and charming personality of James Reimer is a competitive drive that tends to get overlooked. Alphonse Areola Jersey . And so while Reimer was "a little surprised" to learn of the trade which sent Jonathan Bernier to Toronto, the 25-year-old had no intention of backing down and surrendering the crease. "I dont plan on giving up the net," Reimer told TSN.ca exclusively from his offseason home in B.C. "I dont plan on giving up that starters spot right now, not to be a jerk about it obviously." Coming off his first full season as the Leafs starter, an impressive year in which he placed seventh overall in save percentage, Reimer was not expecting any kind of trade. Yes, hed heard the rumours, but was there definite surprise when word of the deal, which sent Matt Frattin and Ben Scrivens to the Kings along with a second round pick, came his way? There was some natural frustration followed by a period of reflection, an evaluation of why the team might have made such a move and where he might improve upon moving forward. "Obviously you had emotions when you first heard it," he explained of his initial reaction to the deal which also saw the Leafs absorb $500,000 in salary, "but at the same time when you take a step back and after a while you realize that its going to push you, its going to make you a better person and a better goalie and if that happens well then its great for me, its going to be great for Bernier and its going to be, most importantly, great for the Leafs." Despite setting a Leafs record for the highest individual save percentage in a season in 2013 (.924), doubts continue to linger as to Reimers ability to be the guy in the Toronto crease over the long haul. At the trade deadline in April, Leafs general manager Dave Nonis was frank in his chase for Flames netminder Miikka Kiprusoff, even offering the now-retired Finn additional years to remain with the club. Some of the questions would to seem to lie in the limited body of work, especially as it pertains to an 82-game campaign. Reimer starred as a rookie for 37 games two years back, spent his sophomore damaged from injury before standing tall again this past season. "Im sure they have a few reasons why they traded for Bernier," he said, concurring with the absence of a full season to his name. "Im sure if you play consistently over a full season and hopefully into playoffs then I think that would help erase maybe some of the doubts people have." As for answering the lingering questions, Reimer looked to keep a steady approach. "Just keep going, keep plugging away," he declared of his mindset. "You can always gain experience and you can always get better and in some way that really hasnt changed. Bringing in Bernier, obviously were both after the same thing here [and thats] trying to obtain that starting job I guess or in my instance trying to obviously keep it. You keep going. I think if you have a couple seasons like the first one I had and this third one, my third season, I think you start to answer those questions. "Im sure people have questions and the doubters and naysayers have things that maybe they think I need to work on, but I think you just keep playing and try and play well for a long period of time and I think then eventually you get that notoriety or whatever it is that you want to call it." Nonis made clear in the hours after the trade that "Nothing is being guaranteed to anybody", inferring that Reimer, despite thriving as the starter last season, would be in immediate competition for the position with Bernier, who has just 62 games of NHL experience, having backed up Jonathan Quick the past three seasons. The Leafs GM did offer confidence to Reimer during a conversation between the two earlier this week, hinting that if that werent the case, then in all likelihood Reimer would be playing elsewhere. "He said that they had faith in me and things could have gone differently if they didnt," Reimer recalled of his chat with Nonis. "They said they liked what Ive done so far, but they just thought that this might help me just to get to that next level." Nonis and the Leafs brass insist that competition from Bernier will only spur something greater from Reimer. They believe both goaltenders have the ability to start, gambling that the 24-year-old Bernier will thrive with further opportunity in Toronto. Selected 88 picks after the Montreal native in the 2006 draft, Reimer messaged Bernier on the day of the trade, offering him a welcome to the team, "looking forward to the battle and just told him that if you need anything in town or getting settled in then you can give me a call". The two had met briefly at the 2011 World Championship in Slovakia, Bernier arriving late to the proceedings, however, making for a limited introduction. Some in Reimers situation might have been sour toward the new teammate, one so plainly after his job, but not Reimer. "You can see how guys would be like that," he said. "But when it boils down it were teammates and teammates first. Not to get all cliché and everything. You want to be the best teammates and well both want the same thing as far as winning and giving the boys a chance. And so sure we both want the most amount of games that we can get because nobody likes to sit on the bench obviously – you want to be the one helping your team – but when it all boils down were teammates and were putting on the same jersey so obviously thats the most important thing." While his mental toughness might be questioned, Reimer has hurdled over adversity in the past. There was his return to form and the starting job following concussion/neck-related issues of his second season, not to mention insistent Roberto Luongo speculation. And then there was his follow-up to the Kiprusoff brouhaha, Reimer posting a .930 save percentage in April after the deadline had passed. "It definitely motivates you," he conceded of the trade. "It maybe gives you an extra shot of adrenaline. You realize coming in that youve got to be at your best and thats exciting hockey. Not to always relate it to playoffs, but thats exciting hockey because thats when it means the most. Kind of the same thing here. Every day youre going to have to be at your best. Thats what I try and pride myself in doing is motivating myself and being the best that I can, but this is definitely there to push you. "At the same time Im sure Berniers coming in wanting nothing but that starting job. And so thats the competition. Its going to push us." Lucas Hernandez France Jersey . DETROIT LIONS AT CHICAGO BEARS, 1:00 PM (ET) Detroit - G Rodney Austin, WR Ryan Broyles, DT Nick Fairley, QB Kellen Moore, DT Caraun Reid, CB Mohammed Seisay, DE Larry Webster Chicago - S Chris Conte, DT Brandon Dunn, QB David Fales, K Robbie Gould, CB Terrance Mitchell, OT Michael Ola, DE Trevor Scott GREEN BAY PACKERS AT TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS, 1:00 PM (ET) Green Bay - LB Carl Bradford, DT Bruce Gaston, C Garth Gerhart, CB Davon House, WR Jeff Janis, TE Justin Perillo, QB Scott Tolzien Tampa Bay - OT Anthony Collins, CB Isaiah Frey, WR Robert Herron, RB Mike James, WR Solomon Patton, FB/TE Evan Rodriguez, LB Lawrence Sidbury KANSAS CITY CHIEFS AT PITTSBURGH STEELERS, 1:00 PM (ET) Kansas City - WR Donnie Avery, CB Marcus Cooper, OT Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, OL Eric Kush, QB Aaron Murray, RB Charcandrick West, DT Nick Williams Pittsburgh - WR Justin Brown, DE Clifton Geathers, G Chris Hubbard, QB Landry Jones, S Troy Polamalu, TE Matt Spaeth, CB Ike Taylor MINNESOTA VIKINGS AT MIAMI DOLPHINS, 1:00 PM (ET) Minnesota - LB Anthony Barr, OT Carter Bykowski, DB Ahmad Dixon, OT Charlie Johnson, FB Zach Line, CB Shaun Prater, TE Kyle Rudolph Miami - G Nate Garner, WR Matt Hazel, S Don Jones, WR Rishard Matthews, LB Chris McCain, G Dallas Thomas, RB Daniel Thomas NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS AT NEW YORK JETS, 1:00 PM (ET) New England - CB Kyle Arrington, RB LeGarrette Blount, OL Dan Connolly, CB Alfonzo Dennard, OT Jordan Devey, WR Julian Edelman, RB James White NY Jets - DT T. Nabil Fekir Jersey . DArnaud hit one of three doubles for the Mets as they took a 4-0 lead in the first. Then the catchers seventh home run of the season broke the game open in the fifth. The 41-year-old Colon (10-8) retired the first 20 batters in his last outing Wednesday against Seattle, eventually allowing two runs on three hits in 7 1-3 innings in a 3-2 win. http://www.soccerfrancenationalshop.us/Hugo-Lloris-France-Jersey/ . "Back in 2011, when they announced that the game was coming here, we knew that it was going to be pretty important that we had a good year and hopefully could get into it, let alone win it, so I felt some pressure obviously within for sure," Taman said Monday, less than 24 hours after the Riders won the championship.LONDON -- Wayne Rooney scored for the first time in two months with a strike of the quality that justifies his lucrative new Manchester United contract as the floundering English Premier League champions won 2-0 at Crystal Palace on Saturday. The striker volleyed in Uniteds second, shortly after Robin Van Persies second-half penalty, a day after ending the uncertainty over his United future by signing a new deal that could earn him more than $140 million until 2019. Such a contract would seem to be beyond the reach of Palace, whose fans appeared to throw coins at Rooney, who flicked them back in their direction. "Its been more or less agreed for a month now and it was just the fine details that needed sorting," said Rooney, who pushed unsuccessfully to leave United last year. "I wanted to get it done as quickly as possible and thankfully its behind me and I can concentrate on my football." United needs Rooney, with just 12 goals this season having missed much of January through injury, to be more prolific for it to have any chance of qualifying for the Champions League next season. Although United ended a three-game winless run and climbed to sixth, David Moyes side was eight points from Liverpool in the fourth Champions League place having played an extra game. And this was a victory against a Palace side that might have sprung from the bottom in recent months with a recovery but was still only two points above the relegation zone. "We moved the ball well, maybe could have created more chances but overall we were in control of the game and once we got one goal we knew wed get another and see the game out," Rooney said. Looking at the team sheet, this is not a United side that should have taken until midway through the second half to score, or be in such a lowly position. The forward line in south London saw Rooney working in tandem with Van Persie and January signing Juan Mata. Uniteds teenage midfield dynamo, Adnan Jaanuzaj, did put the ball in the net early on but it was ruled out because he appeared to control a pass from Van Persie with his arm. Thomas Lemar Jersey. . And as United struggled in front of goal initially, goalkeeper David de Gea was called into action to block Marouane Chamakhs header. Uniteds Marouane Fellaini, starting his first game since December following wrist and groin injuries, squandered a good chance when he missed the target with the net in sight. It was a dangerous start to the second half by Palace, with De Gea tipping over when under pressure from Glenn Murrays corner, and saving low from Jason Puncheon after Ince sliced over. United looked unable to score, but the breakthrough came after Chamakh, the forward who was back in defence, tripped left back Patrice Evra. From the spot, Van Persie sent Julian Speroni the wrong way to make it 12 goals for the season in the 62nd minute. Suddenly United looked a more confident attacking unit, with Mata setting up Fellaini for a low shot that was saved. But Palace also came close to levelling, with Mile Jedinak playing in Cameron Jerome who fought off defenders to force De Gea into a low diving save with almost his first touch since coming off the bench. Uniteds anxieties were eased by Rooney scoring his first goal since Dec. 26, powering the ball in after Evras cross bobbled over to him, unmarked, in a prime central position. "Sometimes when Wayne has not got time to think, he does things naturally," Moyes said. "He has natural talent and the technique and ability to get his weight behind the ball and strike it cleanly. He works really hard for the team and some of his passing was fantastic." It left Moyes relieved that he prevented Rooney from defecting to a rival. "He would have been too difficult to replace," Moyes said. "There arent enough top players out there that you can get cheaply or easily. Waynes one of them, one of the top players." 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