TORONTO -- Toronto FC will be without the heart of its defence as well as star striker Jermain Defoe and possibly midfielder Jonathan Osorio for Saturdays game in Columbus against the unbeaten Crew. Captain Steven Caldwell is suspended while fellow centre back Doneil Henry has been sidelined by a twisted knee suffered in last weekends 3-0 loss at Real Salt Lake City. Defoe, who has all three of Torontos goals this season, strained his left hamstring last week and was substituted in the 61st minute. "Not a major thing but definitely unavailable this weekend," Toronto manager Ryan Nelsen said earlier in the week. Osorio, who missed last weeks game with a hamstring injury, "probably wont make it as well," Nelsen said after practice Friday. It looks like rookie Nick Hagglund, a 21-year-old Cincinnati native, will start at centre back Saturday. He impressed during the pre-season when he was pressed into emergency action at right fullback due to injuries elsewhere on the roster. Gale Agbossoumonde, Bradley Orr and Ryan Richter can also play in the centre of defence. Left fulback Justin Morrow has also played at centre back but a hip injury to backup fullback Ashtone Morgan has taken away some of Nelsens flexibility at the back. Canadian Kyle Bekker may step in for Osorio in central midfield alongside American international Michael Bradley. Nelsen did not say who would wear the captains armband in Caldwells absence but it will likely be Bradley, coming off an impressive showing in Wednesdays 2-2 tie in Glendale, Ariz., between the U.S. and Mexico. Bradley scored one goal and set up another. Toronto and the Columbus Crew are both off to their best starts in MLS history. But Columbus (3-0-0) is unbeaten while Toronto (2-1-0) is coming off a loss and is hurting. Caldwell was suspended for one game and fined an undisclosed amount by the leagues disciplinary committee for a studs-up tackle on Real Salt Lake midfielder Ned Grabavoy last week. The Toronto skipper was yellow-carded on the play. "Very disappointed with my 1 match ban," Caldwell said via Twitter. "Never tackled to hurt someone in my life. Sorry I wont be out there Saturday to help the lads." Toronto will get Brazilian midfielder Jackson back from a one-game suspension for an elbow thrown off the ball in the win over D.C. United. And Brazilian goalkeeper Julio Cesar has recovered from a knock to the knee from a goalmouth collision in Salt Lake. Toronto will have to watch Argentine attacker Federico Higuain, who has three goals (two from the penalty spot) and has been involved in five of the Crews seven goals this season. Columbus showed its resilience last week in Seattle when it won 2-1 on a 94th-minute goal by Justin Meram -- with an assist from Higuain -- that snapped the Sounders 51-match unbeaten run when they score the first goal. Toronto, meanwhile, got a reality check in a 3-0 loss at Real Salt Lake City after opening the season with victories over Seattle and D.C. United. Nelsen says he is not surprised by Columbus fast start out of the gate. "Not at all. A lot of their players are good MLS players that have been around. Gregg (Berhalter) is a really good coach and hes got them going really good ... There hasnt been a hell of a lot of turnover there, especially in the main positions. Hes done really well." Berhalter took over as the Crews seventh head coach -- and first sporting director -- last November after two seasons at the helm of Swedish club Hammarby IF. As a player, the defender spent 18 seasons in the Netherlands, England, Germany and the U.S., winning 44 caps for the American national team. Toronto has New Zealand midfielder Tim Payne, currently on Blackburns books, in camp on trial. NOTES -- The Crew have lost to Toronto FC just twice in 19 meetings all-time and lead the Trillium Cup rivalry (10-2-7). Columbus is 7-1-2 against Toronto at home. Torontos 2-1 home win over the Crew last July was the first since a 4-2 victory in September 2011 in Columbus, which ended a 12-game TFC winless run against Columbus ... Crew defensive midfielder Tony Tchani played 12 games for Toronto in 2011 before being traded to Columbus for Andy Iro and Leandre Griffit. A.J. Brown Jersey .com) - John Wall supplied 24 points and 11 assists in leading the Washington Wizards to a 102-91 win over the New York Knicks on Christmas Day. Bruce Matthews Jersey . The Tournament of Champions, which starts Friday, is his first event since a freak accident in Shanghai two months ago. Snedeker was on a Segway scooter during a corporate outing at Sheshan International when he took a tumble and injured his left knee. http://www.titansstoreonline.com/Black-98-Jeffery-Simmons-Womens-Jersey/ .com) - Real Madrid claimed its 16th consecutive victory across all competitions on Saturday after earning a 2-1 win over Malaga at the Estadio La Rosaleda. Derrick Henry Womens JerseyMarcus Mariota Titans Jersey . - Maynor Figueroa headed in a late goal to give Honduras a 1-1 draw with the United States in an international friendly Tuesday. DENVER -- Nino Niederreiter hesitated for just a moment after scoring the winning goal, not sure if what he just saw actually occurred. It happened, all right. His Minnesota teammates suddenly skating over to mob him made the moment real. Niederreiter scored his second goal of the game at 5:02 in overtime after Ilya Bryzgalov made a big save filling in for the injured Darcy Kuemper, leading the Wild to a 5-4 win over the Colorado Avalanche in Game 7 on Wednesday night. The right winger was a rather unlikely star with his first two goals of the series. "An unbelievable feeling," said Niederreiter, whose team captured their first playoff series since 2003. "I think our heart made the difference tonight." Minnesota trailed 4-3 before Jared Spurgeon scored on a nifty play with 2:27 left in regulation. Spurgeon waited for a clear look at the goal, and then shot it over Semyon Varlamovs shoulder and off the left post. Mikko Koivu and Dany Heatley had the other goals for the Wild, who will face the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks in a second-round series that begins Friday. The two met last season, with the Blackhawks winning in five games. Nick Holden, Jamie McGinn, Paul Stastny and Erik Johnson scored for the Avalanche as they returned to the post-season for the first time since 2010 and tied a franchise record with 52 wins in capturing the Central Division. Not that its much consolation -- not now, anyway. "The toughest part is to not come back tomorrow and be ready for Chicago," first-year coach Patrick Roy said. "We believe in ourselves and its hard to see that its over. "Im sure tomorrow is going to hurt more thinking its over because we still have the emotion of the game." Rookie Nathan MacKinnon couldnt agree more. "It tarnishes the year a lot," said MacKinnon, who had two goals and eight assists in the series. "We wanted to make a run here and we had a chance twice to win the series, once in Game 6 and obviously tonight. Its tough to describe what went on. "Weve got to wait until September to get things going again, which is going to be a long summer, especially watching the playoffs. Its going to be tough." The Avalanchee took a lead on four different occasions, only to have the Wild respond.dddddddddddd. Niederreiter won it for Minnesota on a 2-on-1 break when he sent a shot over Varlamovs shoulder in the fourth overtime of the series. "Its not easy to play against a good team," said Varlamov, whos a finalist for the Vezina Trophy thats given to the leagues top goaltender. "Theyve been playing well against us the whole series." Bryzgalov took over in net for Kuemper midway through the third. Bryzgalov started the series but was replaced by Kuemper in Game 2. The veteran Bryzgalov stopped a shot with his left shoulder early in the overtime, paving the way for Niederreiters winner. It was his only save in 13:15 of action. Now, like most of the season, the Wild have a concern at goalie, especially since coach Mike Yeo isnt sure how badly Kuemper is hurt. "If only we had any experience dealing with this," Yeo jokingly said. "Were fortunate we have good depth at that position." Roys first season on the bench for the Avalanche ended the same way his Hall of Fame goaltending career did -- with a loss to the Wild in Game 7. Roy surrendered the winning overtime goal in 2003. This one was just as agonizing. "We had our chance -- dont kid ourselves," Roy said. "We had our chance and they took advantage of theirs." Niederreiter was starting to heat up in Game 6, but couldnt find the net. That changed on Wednesday. "He raised the bar," Yeo said. "Got himself in trouble now, because this is what we expect." Niederreiter was only happy to contribute. "As a little kid, its exactly the moment you dream about," Niederreiter said. "Im very happy and fortunate that it happened tonight." NOTES: Minnesota F Matt Cooke served the fourth game of his seven-game suspension for his knee-to-knee hit on Avs D Tyson Barrie. Cooke has appeared in the most Game 7s (seven) of any Wild player. ... Yeo said this is the start of a "budding rivalry" between the two Central Division foes. ... Wild F Kyle Brodziak had three assists. ... Colorado Fs P.A. Parenteau and Matt Duchene each had two assists. This was Duchenes second game back after missing almost a month with a knee injury. ' ' '