TORONTO -- LeBron James going home to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers led to speculation about whether a star NHL player might do the same in the near future. Naturally, Steven Stamkos was at the centre of that speculation. The Tampa Bay Lightning captain and Markham, Ont., native could be an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2016, and the allure of playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs could be there. "Well see what happens. Its a couple years away," Stamkos said Wednesday. "Right now Im focused on what I have to do to win in Tampa, and I think weve really established ourselves as a team that can compete in upcoming years. "For me, thats the important thing is getting a chance to win. It looks like were going to have that chance for a couple years." At the age of 24, Stamkos is one of the most marketable stars in the NHL. He has topped 50 goals in a season twice already and only missed out on representing Canada at the Sochi Olympics because of a broken leg. Stamkos made a run with the Lightning to the Eastern Conference final in 2011, and Tampa Bay was swept by the Montreal Canadiens in this years playoffs. The Stanley Cup is his priority now, something he can legitimately think about with general manager Steve Yzerman piecing together one of the best young teams in the league. "We have a good thing going down in Tampa," Stamkos said at a Coca-Cola ball-hockey promotional event. "We have a great owner, we got a great GM in Steve Yzerman and we got a good young team. I want to win, and hopefully I can do it in Tampa." Stamkos said with the additions of centre Brian Boyle and defenceman Anton Stralman and the re-signing of winger Ryan Callahan, the Lightning are probably better on paper than they were at the end of last season. "We didnt have the finish we wanted to last year, but with the new faces coming in, the expectations are probably set a little higher," he said. Stamkos said chatter about joining the Leafs in two years was "absolutely not" a distraction for him in Tampa, where hell begin his first full season as captain this fall. "I try not to focus about that stuff," he said. "I think thats the great thing about playing in Tampa is hockey isnt the mecca that it is here in Toronto and you can kind of go about your life and kind of get away from the game when you need to." That said, Stamkos added that he loves playing in good hockey markets, including Toronto. "Im from around here and grew up cheering for the Leafs, so any time I get a chance to come back here I enjoy it, and any time I get a chance to play against the Leafs its fun," he said. "Its also fun beating them, too, because a lot of my friends are still Leaf fans." Stamkos is set to make US$13.5 million over the next two seasons. What could be in his not-too-distant future is a contract like the ones Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane signed with the Chicago Blackhawks: $84 million over eight years. "The business part of the game, its growing," Stamkos said. "Obviously the games in good shape, and when that happens the caps going to grow and players are going to get paid more money. Those guys deserve it: Theyre great players in this league, theyve won championships. "Thats the goal for me is to win a championship. You let your play take care of itself on the ice and when its time to re-sign or sign a contract, you back it up with your play." When James left the Miami Heat for the Cavaliers earlier this month, the chance to return to his native Ohio was cited as a prominent reason. James won two NBA titles during his time with the Heat. "He won his championships, he said he always wanted to come home and play, thats where it started," Stamkos said. "Good for him for making that decision." Derek Carr Raiders Jersey . You can watch all the action on TSN and TSN GO beginning at 8:30pm et/5:30pm pt. Minnesota dropped the first two tests of this best-of-seven set at Chicagos United Center and was outscored by a combined 9-3 margin in those setbacks. However, the Wild righted themselves at home by taking Game 3 by a 4-0 count before knotting the series at two games apiece with Fridays 4-2 triumph at Xcel Energy Center. Trayvon Mullen Womens Jersey . Each day, TSN.ca provides the latest rumours, reports and speculation from around the NHL beat. Keeping The Captain? Brian Giontas agent Steve Bartlett told La Presse on Tuesday that the Montreal Canadiens want to keep their captain - an unrestricted free agent on July 1 - in the fold, while sources tell the paper that the two sides will start talks this week. https://www.raiderssportsgoods.com/Women...nverted-Jersey/. The Hockey Canada Foundation is donating $50,000, with Hockey Quebec contributing $15,000. Hockey Canada also announced it will hold a skills camp for all levels of minor hockey in Lac-Mégantic during the 2013-14 season. Representatives from Hockey Canada, the Hockey Canada Foundation and Hockey Quebec were on hand Tuesday night at a meeting of the AHM de Lac-Mégantic to make the announcement and presentation. Otis Sistrunk Womens Jersey . Louis, MO (SportsNetwork. Foster Moreau Womens Jersey . Sizemore, who turned 29 on Jan. 4, has been limited to six games over the past two seasons because of an injured left knee that twice required surgery. He originally got hurt on Feb. 25, 2012, during a fielding drill in Oaklands first full-squad spring training workout and had surgery that March 21 to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.NEW YORK -- Stuck in a batting slump all week, the New York Mets seemed unlikely to even get a hit. Scoring? That looked downright impossible. Yet somehow, they rallied. The Mets suddenly struck for three runs in the ninth inning against Philadelphias makeshift bullpen minus closer Jonathan Papelbon, then ended a five-game skid by beating the Phillies 5-4 Sunday on Ruben Tejadas single in the 11th. "Desperate? You can call it desperate if you want to, but we have to stay positive," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "I dont know, standing on the edge of the cliff probably is a better way to describe it." Down 4-1 with only three outs left, the punchless Mets fought back, sparked by Daniel Murphys two-run homer. Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said Papelbon was sore and unavailable to pitch in a third straight game. "The daily grind of the season," Papelbon said. "Its just kind of a product of the last couple of games." Lefty reliever Antonio Bastardo and Roberto Hernandez -- who started Friday night -- quickly let the Phillies lead slip away. In the 11th, Chris Young opened with an infield single, barely beating the flip from second baseman Chase Utleys glove. The Mets sent up pitcher Zack Wheeler as a pinch-hitter, and he put down a perfect sacrifice bunt that moved Young to second. Juan Lagares drew an intentional walk and Anthony Recker loaded with the bases with another infield hit stopped by diving third baseman Reid Brignac. Tejada won it with one out, hitting a sharp single to left-centre against Jeff Manship (1-1). Tejadas teammates chased him down in short right field to celebrate. "It feels pretty good after a rough week for me and the team," said Tejada, who recently lost his starting job at shortstop. Scott Rice (1-1) got Brignac on a grounder with two runners on to finish the 11th. Held to a total of nine runs in their previous five games, the Mets began their comeback in the ninth when Eric Young Jr. led off with a double and Murphy followed with a home run that made it 4-3. Chris Young ended his 0-for-18 slump by hitting a one-out double off the wall, and Hernandez emerged from the bullpen -- he threw 99 pitches in the series opener. Pinch-hitter Bobby Abreu sinngled off the glove of a diving Utley, and a slow grounder by Lagares drove in the tying run.dddddddddddd. When Tejada came up in the 11th, he said he had one thought in mind: "Finish the game." The Mets comeback denied Cole Hamels his elusive first win of the year and the 100th of his career. He struck out 10 in seven innings while throwing a whopping 133 pitches, the most by any major leaguer since San Franciscos Tim Lincecum tossed 148 in his no-hitter last July 13. The Mets started quickly when Young Jr. led off with a single and stole second, Murphy walked and David Wright hit an RBI single. NOTES: A day after making his debut, the Mets Eric Campbell singled for his first big league hit. ... Jonathon Niese struck out twice, leaving Mets pitchers 0 for 63 at the plate this year. ... The four-game Subway Series begins Monday night at Yankee Stadium with Mets RHP Bartolo Colon (2-5, 5.36 ERA) facing RHP Hiroki Kuroda (2-3, 4.43). The teams play twice in the Bronx before shifting across town for two more at Citi Field. The Mets went 4-0 against the Yankees last year. ... Lefty-hitting Curtis Granderson didnt start vs. Hamels, but Collins said the outfielder would be in the lineup Monday night. It will be Grandersons first game in the Bronx since leaving the Yankees in the off-season, signing with the Mets and saying: "A lot of the people Ive met in New York have always said that true New Yorkers are Mets fans." ... Several players swung pink bats on Mothers Day to support the fight against breast cancer. In keeping with the days theme, Mets reliever Carlos Torres asked the team to play the hip-hop song "Dear Mama" by the late Tupac Shakur over the PA system if he got into the game Sunday. Torres didnt pitch. ... It was Bark at the Park Day to support pet rescue and adoption. Many fans brought their dogs for a pregame parade around the warning track. Not barking was longtime Mets hot dog vendor Willie B, popular for his loud woofing in the second deck. He said his back was hurting, so he was carrying a lighter tray of pretzels. Real dogs are allowed to sit with their owners in the right-field porch at these Bark events -- on those days, Willie B says he instead refers to his usual wares as "frankfurters, out of respect." ' ' '