MONTREAL -- If his chin can get through the first few rounds, Lucian Bute has a chance to re-establish his reputation as world class boxer. Jessie Bates III Bengals Jersey . If he doesnt blow himself out early trying to test that chin, Jean Pascal stands to claim one of the biggest wins of his career. Thats how the scene is set for what promoters are calling the biggest match ever between two Canadian fighters. Bute (31-1) will face Pascal (28-2-1) in the main event Saturday night before more than 20,000 Bell Centre spectators, with a much larger audience watching on the U.S. specialty channel HBO. If the few hundred who turned up for Fridays weigh-in are an indication, those who chant Butes name will drown out fans of the flashy, outspoken Pascal, but all that really counts is what happens in the ring. The 12-round fight is officially for the minor NABF light heavyweight title and a meaningless trinket called the WBC Diamond belt, but much more is at stake for the two former world champions from Montreal whose careers have been mostly idling the last two years. "I feel very good, very confident," Bute, a natural super-middleweight, said after easily making weight at 173.6 points. "My future is in play. "Its the most important fight of my career so far." Pascal was a little over on his first attempt, then took off his tuque and came in right on the 175-pound limit. He put tape over his mouth to avoid saying anything to Bute or the media. The 33-year-old Bute has much to prove. The Romanian-born fighter who moved to Montreal to turn pro in 2003 was often criticized for always fighting in his adopted home and avoiding tough opponents while he held the IBF super-middleweight (168-pound) title from 2007 to 2012. And when he finally left Montreal to defend for the 10th time against power-punching Carl Froch in England, he was destroyed in five rounds, wobbling around with his face a bloody mess as the referee stopped the bout. He was hardly convincing in a close 12-round decision win over Denis Grachev in his only bout since then in November, 2012, although he came away with the NABF title. The question now is whether hell hold up if Pascal connects with an early power punch. "Youll see Saturday night if I have a chin or not, but Im very confident," he said. "In England with Carl Froch, I got a hit a lot and I never went down. I never took a knee and I dont plan to this time either." The Bute-Pascal showdown was originally scheduled for May 25, but was postponed when Bute injured a hand. After surgery to remove bone chips, he feels his hands are in their best shape in years. The 31-year-old Pascal lost a close decision to Froch in England in 2008. Shortly after, he moved up one weight class and beat another Romania native based in Montreal, Adrian Diaconu, for the WBC light heavyweight title. He defended it four times, but hit a wall in a pair of bouts with the wily Bernard Hopkins, who was in his mid-forties. Hopkins slipped and dodged punches and let Pascal wear himself trying to land haymakers and then took over in the late rounds. Their first meeting in 2010 was a draw, and Hopkins got the win and the title by unanimous decision a year later. Pascal has only fought twice since then, both against B-level opponents. He has since sought outside help in the form of boyhood idol Roy Jones Jr. to take his game to another level. They held camp at altitude at the Big Bear resort in California. Bute usually holds training camps in Florida, but stayed in Montreal for this one. While Bute and Pascal waited for their showdown, another Montreal fighter, Adonis Stevenson, jumped to the front of the queue by taking the WBC belt. Stevensons Detroit-based trainer Sugar Hill will be an interested spectator .The winner will become mandatory challenger for the title, although that fight likely wont happen until early 2015. He called the fight a toss-up, and said it should become clear in the first round who will win. "The only question I have is about Bute in a big fight after the Carl Froch fight," said Hill, the nephew of legendary trainer Emanuel Steward. "How he handles that will decide the outcome of the fight and that will be decided in the first round. "I have it in Butes favour if the fight goes longer." The southpaw Bute is the more technically sound of the two and his left uppercut can be deadly. Pascal answers with a brawling style, with plenty of speed and athleticism. Butes trainer Stephan Larouche likes how his fighter has not shown any signs of nervousness or doubt leading into the bout. Of course, he feels Bute will win. "Hes got better abilities and he can adjust the distance way better than Jean Pascal," said Larouche. If the fight goes the distance there will almost certainly be calls for a rematch, although Butes promoter Jean Bedard said he may prefer a rematch with Froch first if he wins. A loss would be crushing for Pascals pride, but he would likely remain in demand because his bouts are always entertaining. Peter Nelson of HBO said airing it on their first boxing show of the year was an easy decision. "These are two elite fighters with a lot at stake, with careers on the line in a certain respect," he said. "Its a great fight in terms of the environment here and the division theyre in. "Weve seen Adonis Stevenson and Sergey Kovalev emerge in the same division, so its a hot division with a lot of depth. We think the winner of this fight can emerge in a serious way to be a real player in our long term plans for the network." The co-feature has a 10-round heavyweight clash between Cuban Mike Perez (20-0) and Carlos Takam (28-1) of France. Perez weighed 231.2 while Takam was 256.2. Notes: Promoter Yvon Michel said Stevenson plans to fight three times in 2014. He gave few details other than that the first one will not be against fellow knockout artist Kovalev.. . . Larouche said Butes move to light heavy is not necessarily permanent and he can still make weight at super-middleweight. Malik Jefferson Bengals Jersey . And follow TSN.ca right through Deadline Day for all the updates. Getting Creative The Pittsburgh Penguins will try their best to acquire Ryan Kesler from the Vancouver Canucks before the Trade Deadline. Custom Cincinnati Bengals Jerseys . Despite 11-1 records, theyre out and Big Ten winner Ohio State is into the national semifinals. http://www.bengalsauthenticproshop.com/Youth-Sam-Hubbard-Bengals-Jersey/ .ca. In addition to the game being aired in its entirety on CTV Two Vancouver Island and TSN.ca, TSN2 will also have coverage of Whitecaps FC immediately following NASCAR Sprint Cup Series: Toyota Owners 400.WASHINGTON - Alex Ovechkin remembered what Troy Brouwer said earlier this season about the Winter Classic and took it to heart.Brouwer said, Its a good time to show up and make a show, Ovechkin recalled.Brouwer scored the game-winning goal as the Washington Capitals beat the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 on Thursday at Nationals Park. But that wouldnt have been possible were it not for Ovechkin playing some of his best hockey and scoring earlier in the afternoon.Ovechkin skated like a man possessed and was one of the best players on the ice. Thats no surprise given the eyes watching from the stands and across North America with the superstar on centre stage.Alex, the bigger the stage, the bigger Alex is. Alex, hes a rock star, coach Barry Trotz said. Alex has this ability, as the great stars do, that you want to keep your eyes on him. Even if hes not doing anything good, bad, or indifferent, you want to watch him. And thats what star power does. You want to watch those guys out there.Ovechkin made the most of the brightest the spotlight can really get during an NHL regular season. The 29-year-old had five shot attempts in the first period and ended with 13, flying around the ice with a purpose.After banging home the rebound of a point shot from Mike Green, Ovechkin jumped into the glass as part of his signature celebration and ignited a crowd of 42,832 that fillled the ballpark. Cordy Glenn Jersey. I always have fun, Ovechkin said. But this is probably one of the special days. And as soon as you see a puck go in, its a great feeling because you want to get success and you want to win.Ovechkin drives the Capitals success as the face of the franchise and has been the leader of the core of Green, Nicklas Backstrom and Brooks Laich for the past decade. Playoff success has eluded this group, but absent a couple of tough series, the 2004 No. 1 pick has performed and is a point-a-game scorer in the post-season.Itll be a few months until Ovechkin and his teammates get another chance to get past the second round. For now, they know they just need to keep winning games.The Winter Classic is just one of 82 regular-season games, but Ovechkin was instrumental in the Capitals winning for the ninth time in the past 13 games.Theres a lot of players in this league who want the big stage, but when theyre put in the spotlight, theyre not as big, Trotz said. I think that the great players of their generation, and Alex is one, is that, when the stage is very big, you know what youre going to get and youre going to get a good performance, a great performance.Asked about stepping up in big moments, Ovechkin said: I just like when I play against great teams and especially if its a great atmosphere.---Follow @SWhyno on Twitter Cheap Jerseys Online Wholesale Black NFL Jerseys Youth NFL Jerseys Wholesale Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Free Shipping ' ' '