est-ranked NHL team for the ninth consecutive season. Th

TORONTO -- The World Cup of Hockey next month will include advertisements on jerseys as well as puck and player tracking technology for broadcasts.The NHL and NHLPA announced the ventures Wednesday, as well as plans for fan initiatives in Toronto throughout the two-week event. The tracking technology will include elements like puck speed, player speed and distance traveled, all aimed to benefit television viewers.NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman called it a test run for potential use during the regular season. The league used the technology at last seasons All-Star Game.If youre a fan, you can have more and more insights to the game, said Bettman. And if youre a casual fan -- or not a fan at all -- this may give you another reason to connect even more with the game.SAP was announced as the sponsor advertising for game-worn sweaters, though Bettman said it was not a sign of things to come for the NHL. The NBA recently announced that it would begin advertising on its jerseys starting in the 2017-18 season.Nobody should say that that means the next step is to put them on NHL jerseys, Bettman said. I am a believer in the history, tradition and exactly how special NHL sweaters are. And while these World Cup jerseys have been designed from scratch and are spectacular, its not necessarily the same as the NHL sweaters.Digitally enhanced dasher boards will also be used for ads during games.Bettman said 90 percent of the tickets have been sold for the World Cup. He said nothing has been decided on future World Cup events, though the hope is that it is staged on a regular basis, perhaps every four years. Cheap Air Max Plus Green . Perez, 35, posted a 1-2 record with a 3.69 earned-run average in 19 relief appearances last season. His season ended Aug. 9 due to a torn ligament in his left elbow. Perez joins infielder Andy LaRoche and catcher Mike Nickeas with minor-league agreements for 2014 that include invitations to attend spring training. Cheap Nike Air Max Plus Tn . Spiller left Week 3s 27-20 loss to the New York Jets with a thigh injury, but fully practiced with the team all week and expects to be ready to go on Sunday. http://www.cheapairmaxplusshoes.com/ . LOUIS -- The New Orleans Saints looked like a team playing out the string. Cheap Air Max Plus Brown . Pert has formerly spent time as an assistant coach with Cardiff City, Coventry City, and Bahrain mens national team. "Martyn is a highly-respected coach with experience at the top levels in England," said Whitecaps FC head coach Carl Robinson. Cheap Air Max Plus Purple .B. -- The Baie-Comeau Drakkar took over sole possession of first place atop the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League on Thursday with their sixth straight win. This story is part of ESPN The Magazines Oct. 31 NBA Preview Issue. Subscribe today!Toronto Maple LeafsOverall: 118 Title track: 100 Ownership: 93 Coaching: 18 Players: 112 Fan relations: 113 Affordability: 122 Stadium experience: 107 Bang for the buck: 121 Change from last year: +4It took just one season for the all-world leadership corps of president Brendan Shanahan, GM Lou Lamoriello and head coach Mike Babcock to make an impact in Toronto: For the first time in three years, the Maple Leafs did not finish dead last in our standings.Whats goodNot much, at least not yet. The Leafs finished 30th out of 30 teams in the NHL standings in 2015-16, missing the playoffs for the 10th time in 11 tries. But Babcock warned that things would get worse before they got better when he left the Red Wings -- where he won the Stanley Cup in 2008 -- for hockeys highest-profile job in 2015. Long-suffering fans have bought into Babcocks plans: Coaching jumped 20 spots, to No. 18, despite the dismal first-year results. There is cautious optimism in Canadas biggest city these days as the rebuild continues. It grew further when Toronto won the draft lottery and took American center Auston Matthews with the top overall pick. Fellow blue-chippers William Nylander and Morgan Reilly are already on board, and Torontos goaltending should be better thanks to the acquisition of former Ducks backstop FFrederick Andersen.ddddddddddddhats badDespite the optimism, not all is rosy in Toronto. Its no coincidence that the Leafs are our lowest-ranked NHL team for the ninth consecutive season. They have the worst fan relations in the league (113th overall). Their average ticket price ($113.66) is an astounding 25 bucks more than the next-most expensive in the NHL and almost double the league average. That makes the laughable Leafs the least affordable team to support in North America. Not surprisingly, those who pay through the nose for an inferior product (mainly corporate types, resulting in unoccupied seats and a lifeless atmosphere at Air Canada Center) also get the worst bang for their buck in hockey.Whats newLook, its always going to cost top dollar to attend a Leafs game. Hockey rules Toronto, regardless of the standings. But real change is happening. Shanahan, Lamoriello and Babcock own three of the sharpest minds in the sport, and they have been afforded the time and Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainments vast resources in the hopes of snaring, eventually, the clubs first Cup since 1967. Leafs Nation can feel it: Title track jumped 20 spots this year. Even long-hated MLSE is winning hearts and minds, with ownership up 22 spots.Full rankings ' ' '