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DENVER -- As a kid, Nathan MacKinnon admired the game of his idol, Sidney Crosby. New York Knicks Jerseys . He even had posters on his wall of the Pittsburgh Penguins star. MacKinnon grew up with constant comparisons to his boyhood hero, especially since they were from the same hometown and had a similar scoring panache. Now, MacKinnon gets a chance to carve out his own identity after the teenager was the first pick of the draft by the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday. Much like Crosby eight years ago, MacKinnon will be counted on to turn around a franchise, one that finished last in the Western Conference in 2012-13 and missed the playoffs for a third straight season. No pressure, MacKinnon insisted. "I dont think anybody expects me to tear up the league and get 100 points as an 18-year-old," MacKinnon said at his introductory news conference on Monday. "I just want to help out and have a strong role and contribute as much as I can." To ease MacKinnons transition into the NHL, new Colorado coach Patrick Roy has already decided hes going to pair the rookie on the third line with Jamie McGinn and Steve Downie. That way, MacKinnon can be mentored by the veteran players. "I want him to have fun," Roy said. "Theres going to be enough pressure on him anyway. I know hes going to deal well with it. At the same time, its important for him to feel comfortable. "We need to give him time to adapt and just feel comfortable." Since being picked, MacKinnon has received congratulatory texts from teammates Matt Duchene and captain Gabriel Landeskog. Hes also heard from Crosby, the player he grew up respecting so highly. "That was so cool," he said. MacKinnon was the first player drafted No. 1 overall out of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League since Crosby in 2005. Fittingly, hes only the third 17-year-old taken No. 1 overall in the draft since 1988, joining Joe Thornton (1997) and Crosby. There was a time when MacKinnon constantly heard about how he was going to be the next Crosby. The last few years, though, the comparisons have slowed down. Either that or hes simply tuned them out. "I realize that I wasnt going to be Sid and I am going to be a different player than him," said MacKinnon, who turns 18 on Sept. 1. "I wanted to create my own path. Were from the same area -- if I wasnt from there those comparisons wouldnt be made." The 6-foot, 182-pound MacKinnon actually sees himself being more similar in style to Jonathan Toews, the Chicago Blackhawks captain who just led his team to the Stanley Cup crown. Like Toews, MacKinnon prides himself on being solid on both ends of the ice. Thats why Colorado was so drawn to the youngster, picking him over defenceman Seth Jones, who slid to No. 4 and was picked by Nashville. "(MacKinnon) wants to be a difference maker, and he is," said Joe Sakic, the executive vice-president of hockey operations whos in charge of the Avalanches restoration project. "I dont believe (pressure) is going to affect him one bit. Hes lived under pressure his whole minor hockey and junior career. Hes a hockey player -- he doesnt worry about pressure. "He cant wait to get on the ice and play to the best of his ability." He cant wait to get back on the ice, period, especially now that the draft is over. The last time MacKinnon picked up his stick was when he led the Halifax Mooseheads to their first-ever Memorial Cup last month. He had quite a tournament, too, recording 13 points on his way to being named the MVP. Asked if that performance at all swayed the Avalanche to use the top pick on him, Sakic said: "Anybody that watched him play there realized, on the biggest stage, he was by far the best player. "He was always rated right up there," Sakic added. "We did our homework. We had our internal meetings and thats the guy we all felt is a cant-miss kid, a guy thats a perfect fit for our organization." MacKinnon certainly doesnt rattle. Not on the ice or in the presence of two Hall of Famers. He posed for pictures standing between Roy and Sakic, hardly even intimidated by the moment. "That," he said, "was so cool." Now, its back home to work on his game. In a few months, he will be back in the Mile High City for training camp. Just where hes going to live as a rookie remains undecided. MacKinnon might reside with an Avalanche player to begin his career, the same way Duchene once shared a roof with Adam Footes family. But that hasnt been worked out yet. "This is the way I envisioned things all my life -- to play as an 18-year-old," MacKinnon said. "Pretty cool to hear that they have confidence in me, that I can make the jump and contribute. Its a big role as an 18-year-old. I have a lot to learn. I know that." NOTES: The Avalanche drafted seven players on Sunday, including five defencemen. ... Roy wants to play Ryan OReilly, Duchene and P.A. Parenteau on one line, along with Landeskog, Paul Stastny and newly acquired Alex Tanguay on another. Mark Jackson Jersey .500 ball against teams with winning records, so they needed a huge lift from somebody Tuesday night in a matchup of division leaders. Kristaps Porzingis Jersey .com) - Carmelo Anthony scored 31 points with eight rebounds to lead the New York Knicks to a 92-80 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. http://www.nbaknicksauthority.com/frank-ntilikina-knicks-jersey-c-24/ . John Albert Elway, 24, was booked into jail early Saturday morning after an incident near a college campus in downtown Denver, according to jail records. MILWAUKEE -- Ryan Braun hadnt done much except get hit by a pitch. He made up for it with one swing in the bottom of the ninth. Braun was hit by a pitch in the seventh inning that scored a run and had an RBI single in the ninth, lifting the Milwaukee Brewers to a 3-2 win over the Colorado Rockies on Friday night. "I got beat up pretty good," Braun said. "Ill take it. Ill take them both." Braun thought the Rockies might pitch around him. He had already struck out twice and grounded out while Jonathan Lucroy had two hits and a RBI. "Typically, there is probably a higher likelihood that they pitch around me," Braun said. "I have been swinging so terribly and Luc has been swinging so great that that combination probably enticed them to at least come at me a little bit." Rockies manager Walt Weiss told reliever Matt Belisle to pitch carefully to Braun, but the strategy didnt work. "Ill always take responsibility for that one," Walt Weiss said. "Could have put him on. Its a tough situation for Mattie. Hes trying to get him to expand for a couple of pitches. The ball was maybe a little up. Braun went up and got it." Mark Reynolds led off the ninth with a single off Belisle (2-3) and advanced on a sacrifice by Jean Segura. Scooter Gennett pinch hit for Francisco Rodriguez (3-2) and was intentionally walked. The runners advanced on a passed ball by catcher Michael McKenry. After Rickie Weeks went down swinging, Braun drilled Belisles first pitch up the middle. "I dont think they were trying to throw it where he ended up throwing it," Braun said after collecting his first walk-off hit since 2011. Josh Rutledge tied the game when he homered off Rodriguez with one out in the ninth. Rutledge hit a 3-2 pitch that just barely cleared the wall in left for his second homer this season. Rodriguez was trying to help Kyle Lohse win his third straight start. Lohse has been victimized by five blown saves this season. He allowed one run on seven hits over seven innings and came within two outs of beating the Rockies for the second time in five days. Sunday, he pitched five innings and allowed three runs on seven hits in the Brewers 6-5 win in Colorado. Rodriguez leads the majorss with 27 saves, but this was his third blown save this season. Tracy McGrady Jersey. Lohse had plenty of sympathy for Rodriguez. "I feel bad for K-Rod because hes been pitching so well, but the bottom line is we won," Lohse said. "He came in and did what he does. Ill take K-Rod closing out one of my games any time." The Brewers became the first team in the majors to record 50 wins. Their NL-leading record (50-32) is the best in team history through 82 games. They have 13 games left to top the team record of 54 wins before the All-Star game. The Brewers also improved to 5-0 in the season series with the Rockies. "Its nice to be the first one to 50 wins, for sure," Braun said. "Were excited with the way that weve played so far, but theres still a lot of baseball left." The Brewers went ahead 2-1 in the seventh. Khris Davis doubled off Nick Masset to start the inning and Reynolds followed with a walk. Both advanced on a sacrifice by Segura. When Lyle Overbay was announced as the pinch hitter for Lohse, the Rockies brought in Rex Brothers. The Brewers countered with Martin Maldonado, who struck out swinging. After Weeks walked, Adam Ottavino came on to face Braun and hit him with the first pitch. Lucroy hit into a fielders choice for the third out. The Rockies scored their run in the seventh on a sacrifice by pinch-hitter Brandon Barnes that scored Rutledge. The Brewers scored first when Lucroy chopped an RBI single over second base off rookie Tyler Matzek in the sixth. Matzek went six innings, allowing one run on five hits while striking out three. NOTES: The Rockies challenged the call when Carlos Gomez was ruled safe at second in the eighth inning. The decision was reversed in under 2 minutes. . Rockies C Wilin Rosario, who left Thursday nights game with lower back tightness, missed the game. Weiss said that the injury was not serious, but enough to keep him out of the lineup. . Rockies RHP Nolan Arenado (broken left middle finger) heads to Triple-A Colorado Springs on Sunday for a rehab assignment. . Troy Tulowitzkis double in the fourth was his 400th career extra-base hit. . RHP Matt Garza (4-5, 3.20 ERA) faces Colorados RHP Jhoulys Chacin (1-6, 4.84) on Saturday. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '