TORONTO -- Dion Phaneuf admits he made a mistake. Cheap Air Max 2017 . The Toronto captain said Thursday he erred in not talking to reporters following the Maple Leafs 5-3 home loss Tuesday night to the St. Louis Blues. Phaneuf was widely criticized for blowing off the media following the clubs sixth straight loss that dropped it to 10th in the Eastern Conference standings. "I shouldve been available, thats about all Im going to say about it," the veteran defenceman said following Thursdays practice. "I cant remember the last time I didnt make myself available but I shouldve been available." On Wednesday, a day off for the Leafs, Phaneuf told a Toronto all-sports radio station he didnt talk because he was too emotional following the loss. "I just didnt play well enough," he said. "Bottom line, I wasnt even close to the level I have to play at. "I accept responsibility for that. I will be better." Phaneuf and his teammates dont have time to fret about their respective situations. Toronto visits the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday night in one of just eight regular-season games remaining for the Leafs. The contest is important for both teams. Philadelphia (38-37-7, 83 points) is sixth in the Eastern Conference heading into action Thursday night. Toronto (36-30-8, 80 points) is tied in points with Columbus, Detroit and Washington, but all three clubs having games in hand on the Leafs. With each mounting loss, the Leafs find themselves increasingly under the media microscope in Toronto. There was no shortage of TV cameras and media at Thursdays practice. "If you look back two weeks ago we werent having to answer these questions, but the reality is were where were at right now," Phaneuf said. "We havent won in six games and when you dont win hockey games there are questions asked and theres every right to ask those questions because its our job to win games. "Im not going to stand here and say weve played well, we havent. I know right now it seems were at a low point but well come through it." And for head coach Randy Carlyle, the turnaround wont come about by continually harping on how tight the Leafs have played during the streak. "The more you talk about it, the more you focus on the tightness the harder it is to flush," he said. "We have to be prepared to look at the positives that are in the hockey game, the things weve done well and not focus on the negatives. "Pressure comes from within, comes from outside, it comes from everywhere. I think the amount of pressure you put on yourself to perform is really and truly who you have to answer to." But Carlyle didnt sugar-coat Torontos current situation, either. "We feel theres a lot of areas in which there are some positives but you cant look past weve lost six in a row," he said. "Bottom line, theres no other way to say it. "We cant feel good about ourselves but we have to prepare ourselves to play the best game of the year (Friday)." Toronto could have defenceman Paul Ranger back Friday. Ranger left a 5-3 home loss to Tampa Bay on March 19 on a stretcher with a neck brace after being hit by Lightning forward Alex Killorn. "I feel pretty good but Ive got to talk to the trainers and doctors and see if they can clear me to play," Ranger said. "I think its just a combined decision (Friday). "If I can help in any way Im going to and I plan on it. I had some encouraging words from teammates and trainers saying, We could use you back. It felt pretty good. Im excited to get back into a game and contribute as much as I can." Carlyle would consider playing Ranger in Philadelphia if the defenceman was cleared medically. "He looked good (Thursday)," Carlyle said. "As soon as the player tells us, then we have an option." Toronto has been plagued by poor starts over its losing streak, something Carlyle says gives the opposition an advantage. "It seems like were chasing the game and when you chase the game you have to open up and that gives the team youre playing against more opportunities," he said. "Its tough enough when youre on an even keel . . . especially at this time of year. "The bottom line is we have to find a way to start better and continue it." Forward Phil Kessel agreed. "It helps to get the first goal," he said. "Youre up one instead of being down one or down two. "Its tough to come back in this league." Given the intense media glare in Toronto, forward Nazem Kadri said its hard for the Leafs not to feel pressure to win. "When you drop six straight its definitely hard to focus on other things," he said. "Weve had some meetings and understand this is desperation time. "We have to play for our lives so we have to go start acting like it." Defenceman Cody Franson said the Leafs psyche remains solid. "I think were in a good spot," he said. "Obviously weve been through a tough stretch here but . . . were very aware of our situation and we all want to do the right things to get this back on the right foot. "Were aware of what we have to do. We dont feel sorry for ourselves, weve played well in a lot of games and done a lot of good things and were going to build on that." Toronto returns to the Air Canada Centre on Saturday versus Detroit, the first of four straight home games. After facing Calgary (Tuesday), Boston (Thursday) and Winnipeg (April 5), the Leafs will end the regular season with road games against Tampa, Florida and Ottawa. "Its not like were out of a playoff position," defenceman Jake Gardiner said. "Were in a decent spot, we can still compete for those last two spots and just see what happens. "Yeah, theres always that pressure . . . but we know we have a good team in here and we know we can do it. Its just a matter of playing the way we know we can." Max 95 Sale China . The Eastern Conference-leading Celtics finished their recent trek at 3-1 on Monday in Salt Lake City when Rajon Rondo made a key jumper with 24.1 seconds remaining, as Boston held off the Utah Jazz, 107-102, at EnergySolutions Arena. Cheap Air Max 2018 Shoes .C. -- The Edmonton Oilers used a late-power-play goal to get a hard-fought road victory. http://www.airmaxshoescheaponline.com/ . Napoli hit two home runs, Jonny Gomes and prized rookie Xander Bogaerts also connected, and the Red Sox kept up their dizzying scoring spree at Yankee Stadium by bashing New York 13-9 Saturday for a fifth straight win.KAPALUA, Hawaii - The reward for winning on the PGA Tour is a trip to the west tip of Maui for the Hyundai Tournament of Champions, where the course was built on the side of a mountain, overlooks the ocean and evokes a response from players that is different from other weeks.My first reaction was, Do we get a cart for the week? Canadian Open champion Tim Clark said.J.B. Holmes can spend all day looking out at the Pacific, where he can see the occasional breach of a humpback whale and the island of Molokai appearing to be close enough to swim there. The Plantation Course at Kapalua is on an amazing piece of property.Perhaps even more amazing is that they play golf on it.You wouldnt walk out onto it and say, We should put a golf course here. But they did a good job, Holmes said. Its a fun course to play.Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw created this golf course, which looks like a beast because of the expansive fairways cut through canyons, the stunning drops (and rises) in elevation and enormous greens that are difficult to gauge because of the grain.Hideki Matsuyama of Japan is still working on his English, though he had the right word when he smiled and said, Big.Looks can be deceiving, however. Zach Johnson, a pea shooter in this era of power, won last year at 19-under 273. Steve Stricker won and was runner-up the next year. Geoff Ogilvy won twice in a row and attributed it to his chipping.One thing is clear — it might be the most interesting course on the PGA Tour.The Tournament of Champions gets started on Friday when the 34-man field of PGA Tour winners — making this the most difficult tournament to get in — stick a tee in the ground and look some 500 yards out and 600 feet down to the first green.Off the first tee, I was like, Whoa, because of the views. Its just way different than I imagined watching on TV, Russell Henley said. The undulation is unlike anything I had seen anywhere else. The thing about it is it looks downhill, but its even more downhill than it looks.There are 12 players who are playing Kapalua for the first time. Cheap Nike Air Max 90. In the 16 years the Tournament of Champions has been held at the Plantation, only David Duval (1999), Sergio Garcia (2002) and Daniel Chopra (2008) won on their first try.I was intimidated, Zach Johnson said of his first trip. Not necessarily because of the yardage, though — because of the greens. Theyre just so hard to putt. Theyre big. Theyre undulating. A flat putt is pretty slow. The ones down grain are super fast. ... Its just hard. Youre going to hit a lot of fairways. Youre going to hit a lot of greens. And youre going to miss a lot of putts.Robert Streb, who won the McGladrey Classic last year to qualify for his trip to Kapalua, was reminded quickly that hes not in Kanas anymore. At least he has been watching this tournament on TV for years, and he knew what to expect in terms of vast changes in elevation and endless views of the Pacific.Its really pretty. And its really big, he said. They said the fairways are wide, and they are. They said its usually windy, and it is.Perhaps its greatest appeal is the width of the fairways — nearly 80 yards on some holes — which is good for the ego when players are coming off their short winter break and are trying to shake off some rust. The greens take experience, but with a Friday start, there is plenty of time to get used to them.Ogilvy, perhaps the most astute among players when it comes to golf course architecture, recalls his first reaction to the Plantation Course.I thought it was ridiculous that we played golf on a piece of land like this, he said. It was just absurd. From the 17th tee to the first green, what is that, 1,000 feet? You think 10 (tee) at Augusta to the 11th green, thats not even half of 17 here. I though the course was cool to not have a scorecard in your hand. Nobody plays really well their first time, I dont think. Its pretty extreme.It takes a bit of getting used to, he said.Now, Ogilvy cant think of a better place to be — mainly because he gets to play. ' ' '