FRANKFURT, Germany -- Germany defensive midfielder Lars Bender will miss the World Cup because of a thigh injury. The German Football Federation says Bender was injured in training in the teams camp in northern Italy. Benders injury increases problems for coach Joachim Loew in central midfield. Sami Khedira is coming off a six-month layoff because of a knee injury, and Bastian Schweinsteiger and Philipp Lahm are also nursing injuries. Bender, who plays for Bayer Leverkusen, already has left the camp. Peja Stojakovic Jersey . The 25-year-old Brazilian player has only made four Premier League appearances for United this season and underwent a medical test in Italy on Friday. Cory Joseph Jersey . 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. https://www.kingslockerroom.com/Mike-Bibby-City-Edition-Jersey/ . - The Oakland Athletics say they are stopping negotiations to extend their lease at the Coliseum. Nemanja Bjelica Kings Jersey . But defending champion Elena Vesnina of Russia held off a strong challenge to beat Shuai Peng of China 6-3, 6-4, and there was another hard-fought victory for 2012 runner-up Angelique Kerber of Germany, who defeated Alison Riske of the United States 7-6 (6), 6-4. Iman Shumpert Kings Jersey .Shipulin pulled away from Martin Fourcade of France, Simon Eder of Austria and Fredrik Lindstrom of Sweden to finish in 35 minutes 16.8 seconds. Fourcade was 1.2 seconds back in second place to reclaim the overall World Cup lead, with Eder another 0.(SportsNetwork.com) - The Colorado Avalanche slowly improved during the first month of the season and the Avs will try to record consecutive wins for the first time in 2014-15 when they visit the surging St. Louis Blues on Saturday. Colorado was shut out by Minnesota in its first two games of the season and had a 1-4-1 mark after six outings. It was a far cry from 2013-14 when rookie head coach Patrick Roy led the club to a 12-1-0 mark out of the gate en route to a surprise Central Division title. Although the Avalanche have only won twice over the last five games, they enter Saturday riding a point streak with a 2-0-3 mark to end October. Colorados best effort of the season likely came in its last game, as the Avs recorded a 5-0 win in Thursdays meeting with the visiting New York Islanders. Semyon Varlamov stopped all 40 shots he faced to record his first shutout of the season, and Nathan MacKinnon added a pair of second-period goals. Both players were big parts of last seasons run to the playoffs, with MacKinnon winning the Calder Trophy and Varlamov garnering a Vezina finalist spot. MacKinnon led all NHL rookies with 63 points last season and was tied for the lead with 24 goals. He scored his first two goals of 2014-15 on Thursday. Tonight was a huge win. And our goaltender was an MVP tonight, MacKinnon said. Erik Johnson, Marc-Andre Cliche and Cody McLeod also provided offense for the Avalanche. With Colorado also set to play Sundays home game versus Anaheim, Varlamov could get a rest this weekend from backup Reto Berra. The Blues, meanwhhile, will go with Brian Elliott in net as the club tries to extend its season-high winning streak to four games.dddddddddddd After picking up consecutive wins over Chicago and Dallas, the Blues kept their hot streak going with Thursdays 2-0 victory over visiting Anaheim. Jake Allen made 24 saves to record his second career shutout, while Alexander Steen and Ryan Reaves scored the games only goals. St. Louis has played its best hockey of the season of late despite dealing with injuries to key players as well as a bacterial infection that has spread throughout the team. Center Paul Stastny has missed the last five games with a sprained left shoulder, while fellow forwards David Backes and T.J. Oshie sat out Thursday and are both sidelined indefinitely with concussions. Blues center Joakim Lindstrom is questionable for Saturday after becoming the latest St. Louis player to catch an illness. Lindstrom sat out Thursdays win due to flu-like symptoms. Every team in the League is going to have losses (to injuries) all season long, and unfortunately we have them right now, Allen said after his teams win over the Ducks. Elliott is 3-2-1 with a 1.98 goals against average this season, and he has the same exact record and a 2.81 GAA in six career games against Colorado. St. Louis won three of four encounters against the Avs in 2013-14, but Colorado earned a 4-0 victory when the clubs last met on April 5. That win halted Colorados five-game road losing streak against the Blues, but St. Louis has claimed six of the last nine meetings overall ' ' '