ORLANDO, Fla. Mark Hutton Jersey . -- Tiger Woods was a large part of the conversation on the eve of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. And hes not even playing. Woods is missing Bay Hill for only the second time in his career when the tournament starts Thursday on a course that Palmer said is in the best shape ever. Woods has won eight times, including the last two years, but he called the 84-year-old host on Tuesday to say persistent back pain will keep him from playing. "He didnt tell me how bad his back is. I dont think he knows how bad his back is," Palmer said. "I think hes listening to the doctors. And he mentioned that theyre saying that he needs to give it a bit of a rest and see if he can work it out. He was very nice. And I, of course, have great sympathy for the fact that he tried like hell to come here and play. And I appreciate that and the fact that he called. "I think he wanted to play golf this week," Palmer said. "I think that he needs to take (time) -- whether its this week, next week or the following week -- to get ready for Augusta. Certainly, if I were in that position, Id be doing much the same." Most of the chatter was more about the future with Woods. Will he play at the Masters? Stuck on 14 majors for the last five years, can he match or surpass the record 18 majors won by Jack Nicklaus? And what will be the larger obstacle -- his age (38), his health (legs and back) or the competition (long list)? "I dont think 38 years is the ultimate stopping point for his quest to do what Jack did," Palmer said. "I think it lessens the possibility of that happening. Its going to be tough. Its going to be tough to keep the concentration and the type of the game that is necessary to win majors." Nicklaus won four of his majors after turning 38. Ben Hogan, with battered legs from a car accident, won five majors after turning 38. Palmer, however, believes more than age is at stake for Woods. "These young guys are tough, and theyre strong," Palmer said. "And if they continue to play as well as theyve been playing, its going to be tough for anybody -- whether it be Nicklaus or Tiger or whomever it would be -- to continue to win major championships. And were talking about guys that are playing good and coming on." Palmer actually had a list of players he was talking about. Some of them were young, such as Chris Kirk and Harris English. Others had either won this season (Ryan Moore) or played well recently (Robert Garrigus). "I dont know how many you want me to name," Palmer said. "But really, the strength and the ability of these people is very pleasing to me." Graeme McDowell, a runner-up to Woods two years at Bay Hill, said he can understand what the No. 1 player is going through with injuries. He also believes that competition might be an even larger obstacle than his health for Woods to break Nicklaus record. "Hes a physical player who creates a lot of speed and a lot of power and his body is starting to struggle a little bit, no doubt about it," McDowell said. "But Im sure hell fix it. ... But we all talk about how good the fields are nowadays. Taking Tigers fitness and physicality out of it, winning major championships is getting harder and harder for everyone -- including the best player maybe thats ever lived in Tiger. "Hes got more than just his body to be fighting. Theres a lot of great players in the world now," McDowell said. "Its going to be harder for him to achieve Jacks record. But if anyone can do it, Im sure he can find a way because we all know how good he is." The field at Bay Hill is not as strong as usual, starting with the absence of Woods, the No. 1 player in the world and an eight-time winner of this event. Match Play champion Jason Day (No. 4 in the world) pulled out with recurring pain in his thumb, and Phil Mickelson (No. 5) is not playing this year. Not that it would change the dynamics of what already has been a peculiar season. With 18 tournaments in the books this season, Zach Johnson is the only player to win a PGA Tour event while ranked among the top 10 in the world. The Masters is three weeks away. Is it time for the stars to come out? "Hopefully, this one does," Masters champion Adam Scott said, pointing to himself with a laugh. "But as far as unexpected winners, it seems to me thats happening more and more in golf. There are more and more guys breaking through, putting in a lot of hard work and getting what they deserve. So I think weve seen a bit of a shift in the game over the last couple of years -- a lot less domination by top players." Kurt Abbott Jersey . - The Detroit Lions have 13 takeaways this season — three less than all of last season — and the defence isnt the only unit pleased with the performance. Anibal Sanchez Jersey . - In about six minutes, the Memphis Grizzlies had allowed their 23-point lead to be cut to seven. https://www.cheapmarlinsjerseys.us/221r-kurt-miller-jersey-marlins.html . Atletico Madrid made it three wins from three thanks to a double from in-form striker Diego Costa in a 3-0 victory at Austria Vienna, leaving the Spanish side on the brink of the last 16 already to continue its brilliant start to the season.COLUMBUS, Ohio - Two years after the massive success at Michigan Stadium, the Montreal Canadiens will become the second Canadian NHL team to take part in a Winter Classic.The Canadiens will visit the Boston Bruins at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass., on New Years Day 2016, taking hockeys oldest rivalry outside.It was special in 2010 just to be there with the history behind Fenway Park and all that, Bruins centre Patrice Bergeron said. But playing Montreal outside at Foxborough, well see if it beats it, but its definitely going to be something great.The Toronto Maple Leafs were the first Canadian team to crack the Winter Classic. The success of the 2014 game at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor between the Leafs and Detroit Red Wings, especially in U.S. TV ratings, helped set the stage for the Habs involvement.This is the Bruins second Winter Classic after hosting the Philadelphia Flyers at Fenway in 2010. Boston is the first market to host multiple Winter Classic events, though Chicago has had one of those and a Stadium Series game.We know its a great sports town, its a great hockey town, commissioner Gary Bettman said. The Bruins have a wonderful organization. And the opportunity to go back with this rivalry and play in a large stadium like Gillette, we think its going to be a spectacular day.Gillette Stadium, home of the NFLs New England Patriots, seats 68,756. A sellout wouldnt rival the Big House at Michigan, but it would be a step up from baseball stadiums that have hosted the game previously.On Saturday, Bettman also announced two Stadium Series games for next season: the Minnesota Wild hosting the Chicago Blackhawks at TCF Bank Field in Minneapolis on Feb. 21 and the Colorado Avalanche hosting the Red Wings at Coors Field in Denver on Feb. 27.Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher is looking forward to showcasing the State of Hockey at the University of Minnesotas football stadium.Our owner, Craig Leopold, has been adamantly pursuing this game and (is) very passionate about it, Fletcher said. I think down the road wed even like to get a Winter Classic as our team continues to improve and we make strides. To land a Stadium Series game is a great accomplishment and its going to be a lot of fun.The Blackhawks will be appearing in their league-high fourth outdoor game. They were most recently visitors against the Washington Capitals in the 2015 Winter Classic.I dont think it gets old at all, Chicago winger Patrick Kane said. We kind of view ourselves and pride ourselves on being one of the faces of the league, as far as team-wise.The Winnipeg Jets were supposed to host the Heritage Classic, but the NHL and CFLs Blue Bombers were unable to agree on a date to have the game at Investors Group Field. The league preferred December, but the Blue Bombers wanted it to be later in winter so as not to conflict with the Grey Cup. Elieser Hernandez Jersey. It was the window we had been talking about both with the (Jets) and with the Bombers for a long time, like two years, deputy commissioner Bill Daly said Friday. It was kind of a last-minute pivot by them with respect to no, we dont want to have it so close to the Grey Cup.Bettman said he was hopeful the league could schedule something for the 2016-17 season.Toronto will reportedly host the 2017 Winter Classic and maybe even the all-star game, too, to celebrate the Leafs 100-year anniversary. Bettman said the league wanted to honour that milestone and the NHLs 100th anniversary appropriately and was in discussions with the Leafs about future plans.Bettman also said the Senators have expressed interest in hosting an outdoor game in Ottawa. TD Place, home of the Redblacks, has a capacity of just 24,000, which is the same issue with Montreals Percival Molson Memorial Stadium.The problem is the stadium situation, Bettman said of Montreal. Unless that changes dramatically or we figure out a way to pop up a stadium that would work, theres an indoor stadium and I think the football stadium only seats about 20,000 people, so its not the same experience.The 2016 Winter Classic will be the Canadiens third outdoor game after visiting the Edmonton Oilers in the 2003 Heritage Classic and the Calgary Flames in the 2011 Heritage Classic.During his state of the league address, Bettman also announced that Sportvision would be tracking player and puck movement at Saturday nights skills competition and Sunday afternoons all-star game. There will be chips in jerseys and pucks to track speed and other things.The NHL and NHLPA have discussed the possibility of doing that in the future but have not come to an agreement. This is an experiment, though Bettman said they were in the embryonic stage of discussions.On the value of the Canadian dollar and its impact on next years salary cap, Bettman said it wont cause too much of a decline from the early projection of US$73 million. An 80-cent dollar would see the cap drop to $71.7 million.I assure you, even with the decline in the Canadian dollar, the salary cap does not fall off a cliff, Bettman said. No one can project where its going but the point Im making is, you are not going to see a dramatic difference.The board of governors met Saturday morning in downtown Columbus, and the group was briefed on expansion, among other things. Bettman had little update on the impending season-ticket drive in Las Vegas but confirmed he met with the mayor of Seattle.Las Vegas is considered the front-runner for NHL expansion, with arena issues holding Seattle back. Quebec City has an arena under construction, but unbalanced conferences mean the league is looking to expand West before East, Daly said.---Follow @SWhyno on Twitter ' ' '