TORONTO – A grin flashes on his face as he rewinds the clock. He was a youthful 22 back then, a top draft pick loaded with talent, a rising star in the sunny skies of Orange County. Joffrey Lupul had it all in a hurry for the Anaheim Ducks that year. The Fort Saskatchewan native and 7th overall pick (2002) scored 28 goals and posted 53 points in what was just his second NHL season (2005-2006). "I think at that point in my career I was a young guy just trying to come into the league and have as much fun as I could possibly and didnt take hockey quite as serious as I do now," Lupul reflected with TSN.ca in a lengthy conversation at Mastercard Centre. "I was just there and having fun, joking around and going out and playing the game." Lupul is an admittedly different player these days in Toronto, "a lot better hockey player now" as he described it. The 28-year-old has evolved into a bigger, stronger, and smarter version of his former self, one who set a new career-high for points (54) on Saturday with a pair of assists against the Senators. The road began to wind rather turbulently for Lupul after that momentous year in Anaheim. Trades, on-ice struggles, injuries and road-blocks ensued. And without ever enduring the grind that some players take to make it to the NHL – not unlike many high draft picks – Lupul was not fully prepared for the twists his career would take. "You kind of get ahead yourself a little bit in your career thinking about Oh, next year Im going to get this many goals and thats good too, its good to think like that, but I think at some parts early in my career I skipped a couple steps," he conceded. "I thought it might be easy a little bit." The naturally talented are often at a disadvantage when it comes to the work ethic required to succeed at the greatest heights of any given endeavor. Gliding by on the strength of their ability, the need to strive beyond all limits is rarely, if ever needed. In Lupuls case, it was the weight room that was almost an afterthought, an extra-curricular activity others suggested, but one generally ignored. "Now I come to the rink everyday – whether its a game or practice – with a purpose, to get better at something or stronger in the weight room or take care of my body so eight years from now hopefully I can still be playing," he said. "Back then, something like that would never even cross my mind, it was just living for that particular day and go from there." He shudders at the rash of injuries – most recently a troubling back problem that knocked him out of the league for nearly a calendar year – comprehending what could have been prevented had he taken a greater interest in the finer points of preparation. "And not to say that I wouldnt have had them anyway, but maybe not," he said of the injuries. "Now Im working everyday and trying to do some extra stuff for injury prevention, just to get the most out of my career as possible. With the injury, this is almost like a second chance for me." The unfortunate necessitated change, forced him to pay attention, and finally steered him toward the training that left him in the best shape of his NHL career this past summer. "I dont think twice when I come to the rink and say Ah, not going to do this today because I dont feel like it, its just what I do today." He looks in admiration at the sustained greatness of former teammate and current Ducks winger Teemu Selanne, who at age 41 is on pace for 29 goals and 79 points. "Thats actually a great example," Lupul concurred. "Hes one guy that I played with that does the work everyday. Not to say hes in there squatting 300 pounds or anything, but hes figured out what it takes for him to be successful and get the most out of his body. "Its different for every guy and I think thats something you have to figure out. Some guys like to go in there and lift a ton and other guys like to do sprints and explosive stuff. Its just taken me awhile to find out what makes me feel the best." Its not unusual for Lupul to spot a young player with the same mentality he once had, not quite comprehending the level of commitment the game entails. Hes hesitant to force-feed the advice, more comfortable setting an example with his actions. "...you come in just assuming youre going to have a really long career in the NHL and not thinking about anything ever going wrong," he concluded. "And then as your career goes and you have an off-year or you have some bad injuries or youre traded or friends of yours are traded, all sorts of things happen, and those are just experiences that you pick up from day to day and year to year that make you just a better player and in the end probably a better person too just experiencing as much as possible." cheap jerseys . Monfils will meet top-seeded Tomas Berdych, who beat Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany 6-3, 6-4. Simon rallied from a 3-0 deficit in the final set, levelling at 4-4, but he dropped serve again to lose the all-French match. nfl jerseys china . The 20-year-old from Thornill, Ont., dropped to No. 29 in the ATP rankings released Monday. Raonic underwent surgery last month after suffering a tournament-ending injury during the second round of Wimbledon. http://www.wholesalejerseychinast... . They got it when Jamar Walls blocked punt touchdown return proved to be the difference Friday, clinching the Stampeders a home playoff game with a 27-13 victory over the hapless Eskimos. [url=http://www.wholesalejerseychinastore.com/]wholesale jerseys . Jeffrey has appeared in just six games this season while coming back from knee surgery last season. He did not record a point in those games, the last one being November 3 at San Jose. cheap jerseys from china . -- D.J. Williams is preparing for his first start since Jan.CHICAGO -- Drew Brees passed to Jimmy Graham along the sideline. He found the tight end over the middle. They hooked up for long plays and short ones, all over the field. That New Orleans connection was just too much for the Chicago Bears. Brees threw two touchdown passes, Graham tied an NFL record with another 100-yard game and the Saints beat the Bears 26-18 on Sunday to remain unbeaten. "We knew the formula coming into this game was to remain patient, to run the football effectively, to be very efficient in the passing game and to take care of the football, priority No. 1," Brees said, "and we were able to do all those things." Brees was 29-of-35 passing for 288 yards in his first victory in four career games at Soldier Field. Garrett Hartley matched a career high with four field goals as New Orleans (5-0) picked up its first win in Chicago since a 31-10 victory on Oct. 8, 2000. Graham continued his torrid start for the Saints, catching 10 balls for 135 yards in his fourth consecutive 100-yard game -- matching an NFL record for a tight end. Tony Gonzalez was the first to accomplish the streak in 2000, and Graham matched the surge in 2011. Graham and Brees said they spent more time together during the off-season, and it looks as if all that work is paying off. "Im just blessed to be with such a great quarterback and a guy who has so much trust in me," Graham said. Graham helped the Saints hold onto the ball for 36 minutes, and Brees team had no turnovers. The ball control was crucial with Alshon Jeffery putting together a career day for the Bears (3-2). Jeffery had 10 receptions for a franchise-record 218 yards, breaking Harlon Hills mark of 214 at San Francisco on Oct. 31, 1954. He also had a 3-yard touchdown grab in the second quarter. "What I did out there, Im more concerned about the W, not about what I did," he said. "Its a team thing. It took 11 guys to get 200-plus yards or whatever I had." Jefferys 58-yard catch set up Jay Cutlers 2-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Marshall, and Matt Forte ran in the 2-point conversion to trim New Orleans lead to 26-18 with 2:11 remaining. The Bears got the ball back with 21 seconds left and no timeouts. Cutler then passed to Jeffery in the middle of the field for 21 yards, but time expired before they could run another play. "Its just a few plays here and there," said Cutler, who was 24 of 33 for 358 yards and two touchdowns in Chicagos second straiight loss.dddddddddddd "Against a team like that, the way they played offensively and ate up the clock its hard to rebound if you miss three or four plays in the game." It took a while for Brees to get started, but New Orleans defence made sure he had plenty of time to get warmed up. The Saints sacked Cutler twice while limiting the Bears to one first down in the first quarter. Chicago had just 51 yards when it got the ball back with 5:57 left in the first half. After two field goals by Hartley -- including a 19-yard chip shot after Cutler fumbled on a sack by Malcolm Jenkins deep in Chicago territory -- Brees started to find his rhythm. He connected with Graham on pass plays of 29 and 38 yards to get New Orleans to the 7 with 7:23 left in the half. This time, the Saints got into the end zone. Brees rolled out on second down and flipped the ball to Pierre Thomas, who fought through D.J. Williams tackle attempt and extended his right arm over the goal line for the 2-yard touchdown that made it 13-0 with 5:57 remaining. "When my name is called to do the job, I go out there and do my best," said Thomas, a Chicago native. "Thats all I can really ask for. When my name is called, just go out there and perform." The Bears responded with a seven-play, 80-yard drive that ended with Jefferys TD. But they gave the ball back to Brees with 2:41 left in the half, plenty of time for the star QB to direct another scoring drive. Thomas had a big 2-yard run on fourth-and-1 from the Chicago 27, and then went 25 yards for the score on a screen play with 23 seconds to go. Thomas second TD reception made it 20-7 and was the result of a perfect call by Payton, who still has a deft touch when it comes to play-calling after missing last season as a result of the bounty scandal. "It was a screen play away from the pressure," Brees said. "So you had everybody going one direction and here we are throwing a screen and getting linemen out. The key is your ability to get linemen out and down the field. "That was a big play. Big momentum gainer going into halftime." NOTES: The Saints also won a road game against the Bears in 2002, but that victory came in Champaign because Soldier Field was being renovated. ... Bears DT Nate Collins hurt his left knee in the third quarter and did not return. ... Bears DT Stephen Paea was inactive due to a toe injury. Landon Cohen got the start just 10 days after he was signed off waivers. cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '