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TORONTO - Greivis Vasquez was speaking to a large circle of journalists Thursday when DeMar DeRozan squeezed his way in through the crowd and affectionately draped an arm around Vasquezs neck.This seasons Toronto Raptors are a tight-knit bunch. And on a day ESPN pegged the Raptors chances at winning the NBA title at a whopping 41 per cent, they scoffed. Anything said outside of their gym, they said, is all just noise.We dont care about nothing ESPN is saying, honestly, DeRozan said. Nobody cares what anybody says. We care about everybody thats got this Raptors jersey on. Everything else dont matter to us, man.Weve got our confidence, Vasquez added. We dont need anybody to talk about us, whether its good or bad.The Raptors practised the day after their 126-115 victory at Atlanta that kept Toronto even with Memphis atop the NBA standings (13-2), and boosted their win streak to six games.Thursdays ESPNs Hollinger Playoff Odds gave the Raptors a 100 per cent chance at making the playoffs, and a 71 per cent chance of making the NBA final.Theyre lofty predictions never before seen in Toronto, but Raptors coach Dwane Casey similarly shrugged them off.Im not a betting man, how many more games have we got to go? A lot of games to go. Im not putting any credence in that, Casey said.When someone asked if the predictions had at least put a smile on his face, he answered: No. Not at all. None whatsoever. I live in reality. All I know is we have a tough game (Friday) night.The Raptors host the Dallas Mavericks (11-5) on Friday amid a huge buzz around Canadas lone NBA franchise. What would have normally been a relatively quiet practice Thursday drew a couple dozen journalists.The players say theyre not looking at records, or getting caught up in the buzz. Theyre just enjoying playing.This is the best team Ive played with by far, DeRozan said. Not just basketball-wise either. Personnel. Everybody gets along, everybody has a great relationship with one another. That goes a long way. . . the chemistry that we have is amazing.That even goes for his high school teams, DeRozan added.Asked what hes thankful for — Thursday was Thanksgiving in the U.S. — DeRozan answered, his arm still slung around Vasquez: Having teammates like Greivis. Honestly. Having teammates like all these guys here. Because it makes every day easier, even on the tough days, you find something to joke about, laugh about, have fun about.Weve all been on bad teams, and what it feels like to come in and work, on the tough days.While the Raptors are off to easily their best start in franchise history, theyve had a favourable schedule at home that included a stretch of seven games in a row at the Air Canada Centre. Theyve also had some luck on their side, playing a Memphis Grizzlies team that was missing five players to a flu virus, and an injury-riddled Oklahoma City squad missing stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook.I dont believe in luck. I dont, DeRozan said. I understand how hard I work, how hard this man works (arm still around Vasquez), how hard the other 13 players on this team work. And when people say the luck thing to me, I take it personally, because I know how hard we work to be as good as we are.Wasnt no fluke what we did last year. Wasnt no fluke, no luck.DeRozan pointed to Torontos strong performances on the road — their come-from-behind win over LeBron James and the Cavaliers in Cleveland, Wednesdays solid victory at Atlanta — as proof their red-hot record is more than luck.We like playing on the road, we like playing in other peoples arenas, we get a thrill out of going to other peoples houses and beating them, DeRozan said. If youve got that type of mentality, we can go a long way.Casey said the way his team has won games — pulling out a victory in tough situations — is also proof of the teams growth.The last three games we were in a pickle, Casey said.They fell behind by 18 points to the Cavaliers before roaring back to beat them. They gave up seven three-pointers in the fourth quarter to Phoenix before clinching the win with a final 60 seconds of sheer hustle and hard work. They allowed Atlanta to stay close on Wednesday before pulling away down the stretch.I think two years ago, a year-and-a-half ago, we would have folded the tent, Casey said. But there seems to be a resolve developing with our players, fighting through stuff, fighting through adversity, making adjustments at halftime mentally and physically. Thats a tough way to live throughout this live. As a coach Id prefer wed start doing it the first quarter. . . thats our next step.Following Fridays game, the Raptors head west for three straight, playing the Lakers in Los Angeles on Sunday, the Kings on Tuesday in Sacramento, and the Utah Jazz on Wednesday. Milwaukee Brewers Pro Shop . The Senators will put the busy off-season and training camp behind them when they open their regular season on the road. They kick things off Friday against the Buffalo Sabres and then head to Toronto to take on the Maple Leafs on Saturday. Jay Jackson Jersey . 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The fight was originally slated for Sept. 6 but had to be postponed after Klitschko tore a bicep in sparring and was forced to miss four weeks of training.NEW YORK -- The New Jersey Devils put up a more respectable number of shots, and the added offence produced just enough goals to beat the rival New York Rangers again. Eric Gelinas scored on a power play 1:15 into overtime, after the Devils squandered the lead in the final seconds of regulation, to lift New Jersey to a 4-3 win Saturday night. The Devils managed only 11 shots Friday in a 3-1 home loss to Detroit. They fired 24 at Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist, and got four past the man with the new seven-year, $59.5 million contract. "Im fortunate to be out there in that type of situation, and I gave it a shot," Gelinas said. "It definitely feels good to be rewarded and to get that winner, but it was a team effort." New Jersey has won all three meetings against the Rangers this season, including two at Madison Square Garden, with two remaining. "These are fun games to play," said Devils goalie Martin Brodeur, who wore new pads without breaking them in. "To come in here, get the puck to the net, score some goals, it feels good." Gelinas one-timed a shot, off a pass from Patrik Elias, from above the right circle past Lundqvist. The goal came 13 seconds after Rangers captain Ryan Callahan high-sticked Andy Greene in the mouth. "My intent was to swing around and get his stick, but it comes up too high and catches him," Callahan said. "Its a bad penalty. It cost us a point." Michael Ryder had put the Devils ahead 3-2 with 4:04 left. Chris Kreider tied it on a power-play goal with 21.3 seconds left. Brodeur made 21 saves for the Devils, who earned just their third win in nine games (3-5-1). Travis Zajac lifted the Devils into a 2-all tie 5:58 into the third period. Cam Janssen also scored, and Jaromir Jagr and Tim Sestito both had two assists. Brad Richards and Mats Zuccarello also had goals for the Rangers, who again failed to move two games over .500 as they began a nine-game homestand. Lundqvist made 20 saves in his first home start since signing his contract extension. The Rangers fell to 11-1-1 when leading after two periods and 14-2-1 when scoring first. "Its a big point," Lundqvist said of the overtime loss. "We never gave up, so thats a good sign. We just didnt get the bounces." Zajac, in his 500th NHL game, got the Devils even when he cleaned up a rebound of a shot by Jagr and scored from in close. The Devils, with revamped line combinnations and changes to the lineup, put early pressure on Lundqvist, but despite recording the first three shots, New Jersey fell behind 3:32 in.dddddddddddd New York raced out of its zone on a 2-on-1 break, with Richards carrying the puck on left wing alongside Callahan to his right. Richards snapped a drive from the left circle -- the Rangers first shot -- that beat Brodeur stick side for his team-leading ninth and second in two games. There was more jump to the Devils offence than on Friday, yet they couldnt get anything past Lundqvist in the first period on nine shots. "We knew we were going to need some depth contributions," Devils coach Pete DeBoer said. "We got them from Janssen, the fourth line, Peter Harrold, who I thought was excellent. "We needed a lot of energy, and those guys gave it to us." The Rangers made the most of their early offence again in the second period, this time scoring on their second shot that came off a big rebound. Callahan ripped a drive from the right circle that Brodeur sticked away to his right, but it came to Zuccarello, who stepped into a hard shot from the left circle that easily found its way into the open left side 57 seconds in. New Jersey got a fortunate bounce when Janssens third of the season cut the deficit in half at 6:02. The rugged forward, who scored only three goals in 312 career NHL games before this season, crashed the net toward a rebound of Sestitos shot and knocked the puck past Lundqvist with his left skate. The on-ice call stood up to a video review. "I thought it was a kick, but it doesnt matter," said Lundqvist, who will make his third straight start Sunday against Washington. "They got it, and in the end they just managed to get the bounces. Its a frustrating loss." Brodeur earned the secondary assist, the 43rd of his career. NOTES: Rangers D Marc Staal was struck in the head by the arm of New Jerseys Reid Boucher in the third period and left the game. It wasnt immediately known if Staal would play Sunday. ... Harrold filled in for D Marek Zidlicky, who sat out with an upper-body injury. RW Damien Brunner returned to the lineup after being a healthy scratch Friday, replacing C Jacob Josefson. ... D Justin Falk replaced D Michael Del Zotto, and newly recalled C J.T. Miller took LW Benoit Pouliots place in the Rangers lineup. RW Derek Dorsett sat out for the fourth time in six games with a wrist injury. ' ' '