Aside from a postseason getaway to Cancun, Mexico, and attending friends weddings every other weekend, its been a summer of intense rehab for Tampa Bay Lightning and Team USA goaltender Ben Bishop, who said hes physically and mentally ready to take on the world in the World Cup of Hockey.From a personal standpoint, Bishop, 29, has plenty of unfinished business to attend to when he and the rest of Team USA report to Columbus, Ohio, for the start of World Cup training camp on Sept. 5.Injured in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals, which the Lightning lost in seven games to eventual Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins, Bishop said his strained ankle ligaments are completely healed, allowing him to hit the ice a month earlier than normal this summer.Bishop, a 6-foot-7, 216-pound native of Denver, went 8-2 with a 1.85 goals-against average and a .939 save percentage in last seasons playoffs and is expected to challenge Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick and New Jersey Devils netminder Cory Schneider for the starting job with Team USA, which will be coached by Columbus Blue Jackets bench boss John Tortorella.I feel good, said Bishop, who was a backup to John Gibson when the U.S. won the bronze medal in the 2013 IIHF Mens World Championship. Ive been doing rehab all summer, and Im stronger this summer than I was last summer going into camp as far as test results. Thats a good thing.Bishop said hes especially eager to see who will start in goal for the Americans when they open their World Cup pre-tournament schedule with a Sept. 9 game against Canada at Nationwide Arena in Columbus. The eight-team tournament starts for real on Sept. 17 in Toronto and ends on Oct. 1.Its going to be a little different than NHL exhibition games, Bishop said. Canada-U.S.? I dont think thats going to be an ease-in process. Exhibition games are going to be a little more intense, especially for goalies who like to slowly get into it. My first game could be against Team Canada, but after practicing for a week and some intrasquad scrimmages, Im sure Ill be ready.With eight rosters filled with NHL stars, ESPN.com quizzed Bishop on which World Cup opponents have the best offensive skills in a variety of categories:Hardest shot: Alex Ovechkin, RussiaHes got one of the best shots in the game. Its really tough to read off of his stick. He usually comes down on it almost like a knuckle ball. Its tough to read.Most accurate shot: Steven Stamkos, CanadaLuckily, hes on my team in Tampa, but Ive seen him score a lot of goals. Hopefully I can keep them out if hes shooting against me. I think [Vladimir] Tarasenko from Russias got one of the best wrist shots in the game. Some guys have a heavy, hard shot and its got more weight behind it, but a guy like Steven Stamkos has one of the more accurate shots in the game. I dont think its as hard as others, but he can put it wherever he wants. Theres a big difference.Shootout specialist: T.J. Oshie, United StatesIm glad hes on my team. Everybody saw what he did in the [2014] Olympics, so its nice to have a guy like that on your team and not have to go against him. I think Tarasenko is one of the better guys in the league in shootouts. Jonathan Toews and Sidney Crosby -- those guys can be pretty lethal in a shootout.Best setup man: Nicklas Backstrom, Sweden[He] is one of the better passers in the league, I think. Sidney Crosby, obviously. Those guys stand out, especially Backstrom. The Sedins [Henrik?and Daniel], those guys can find each other almost anywhere on the ice. Its hard to pick because every team has great talent. I mean, every teams got two top lines that will be future Hall of Famers.Speediest forward: Pick a Team North America forwardIm just happy I dont have to race up and down the ice with those guys. Im sure some of those young guns on Team North America [Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Johnny Gaudreau, Dylan Larkin] will be pretty quick. Theyve got a lot of fresh, young legs -- thats for sure. Its almost all top-10 picks in the last few years and all those players are supposed to be stars in this league. I dont think anybody is going to take them lightly. They have a lot of skill, and they kind of have nothing to lose, so theyre going to be one of the more dangerous teams, I believe.The Lightning and Chicago Blackhawks lead all NHL teams with 12 players competing in the World Cup, and Bishop said the chirping has already begun.Im sure theres going to be lots of friendly fire when we get to Columbus, said Bishop, who will sport a glow-in-the-dark mask for the tournament. Itll be fun-hearted until we step on the ice, and then its going to be all business. Its obviously a big tournament, but its going to be fun to play against your teammates, which doesnt happen too often.Team USA will begin the tournament in a group with Canada, the Czech Republic and Team Europe, while Group B will consist of Russia, Sweden, Finland and Team North America. The top two finishers in Groups A and B will advance to the semifinals, with the semifinal winners facing off in a best-of-three finals.You cant predict, Bishop said. I think the way the tournament is set up its going to be fun because I think every team has a legitimate chance to win. Cheap Old Skool Vans Wholesale . It was the second consecutive win for the Pacers (2-5), who lost their first five preseason games. Jeff Teague led the Hawks (1-5) with 17 points and eight assists and Al Horford had 12 points and seven rebounds. Mike Scott scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half. 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OXON HILL, Md. -- If Bryce Harpers representatives have had real discussions about a long-term contract with the Washington Nationals, general manager Mike Rizzo is not tipping his hand.Meeting with reporters Monday at baseballs winter meetings, Rizzo deflected a question about whether hes engaged Harper or agent Scott Boras about an extension for the slugger who was the 2012 NL Rookie of the Year and 2015 NL MVP.Its not like us to discuss anything that we (say) when were talking to players about anything, so Im not going to answer any of those kind of questions, Rizzo said. Those are private discussions between us and the players.Harper -- who is coming off a down year, hitting .243 with 24 homers and 86 RBI for the NL East champions -- is under Washingtons control for two more seasons.He can become a free agent for the first time after the 2018 season.With every player that you acquire, its a possibility that you may lose them in their specific time frame. With Bryce Harper and every other player that has a contract expiring, you better make plans, Rizzo said, when asked about preparing for the chance that Harper could leave in 2018. And its not just Bryce Harper; its everybody on the roster.Rizzo said he speaks weekly with Boras -- and other agents. That the GM would be in regular contact with Boras is hardly surprising, given that he represents several Nationals in addition to Harper, including pitchers Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasbuurg and third baseman Anthony Rendon.ddddddddddddere constantly talking to him throughout the year, throughout the winter, during the season, Rizzo said. Theyre not specific negotiations, but theyre discussions about strategies and philosophies and all those things that come into it.Among other topics touched on by Rizzo:- Things just didnt work out with closer Mark Melancon, who was acquired by Washington at the trade deadline last season and agreed to a free-agent deal with the San Francisco Giants. Rizzo said the Nationals offered market value, but the Giants offered him more.- With Melancons departure, Rizzo acknowledged the obvious, saying: The bullpen is something were going to have to address.- On the possibility of trading for White Sox starter Chris Sale or Pittsburgh outfielder Andrew McCutchen, Rizzo said: Weve had ongoing discussions with a lot of different teams. The White Sox and the Pirates have been two of them. But weve got a lot of lines in the water. Weve got a lot of irons in the fire. ... Were going to be aggressive if the occasion arises, but were going to be prudent and smart about it.- On whether he feels a sense of urgency to improve his roster, Rizzo responded: I think urgency is a mistake. Were coming off a 95-win team with a good young core of players and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. ' ' '