Thomas Godoj Thread » excitement, a lot of mixed emotions." The 2

CHICAGO -- The contending Atlanta Braves bolstered their bench and bullpen on Thursday, acquiring utilityman Emilio Bonifacio and left-hander James Russell in a trade with the Chicago Cubs. The Braves also got cash back from the Cubs in exchange for catching prospect Victor Caratini. Bonifacio and Russell did not play in the Cubs 3-1 win over Colorado on Thursday afternoon. "These are two pieces that we really like," Atlanta GM Frank Wren said on a conference call. "In Bonifacio, we got a really versatile bench player who can do a lot of things well. In Russells case, its another veteran bullpen arm." Russell was in the home bullpen at Wrigley Field when the trade was made. He hugged several of his teammates and coaches -- and slapped hands with a few fans -- as he exited while the game was going on. "Its kind of hard to wrap your head around it," Russell said. "Its obviously a shock. I knew things were gonna happen. Theres really nothing you can do to prepare yourself for this. Its still kind of weird. I dont know how to feel. Theres a lot of excitement, a lot of mixed emotions." The 29-year-old Bonifacio hit .279 with 14 steals in 69 games for the Cubs this season. He previously played for Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez when they were both with the Marlins. "Hes a guy who gives you a lot of versatility. You can play him anywhere on the field," Gonzalez said in Los Angeles. "You can bring him off the bench or start him if the matchup is right. Hes a nice National League player." The 28-year-old Russell is 0-2 with one save and a 3.51 ERA in 44 games. "Hes not your traditional left-handed reliever," Gonzalez said. "You can let him run through some right-handers. Hes durable." Atlanta is in the chase for the NL East title, and the Cubs are last in the NL Central. The 20-year-old Caratini was selected by the Braves in the second round of the 2013 draft. He hit .279 with five homers and 42 RBIs in 87 games with Class A Rome this season. "Hes a guy we liked in the draft a lot," Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer. "Weve said it all along, catching is a weakness in our system and we dont have enough of it." Kris Bryant Jersey . - A lot of scenarios ran through Terrell Suggs head when the Baltimore linebacker prepared to face the Pittsburgh Steelers. Carlos Zambrano Jersey . "Its embarrassing what were doing here," leading scorer Phil Kessel said Wednesday. The most recent failed season came with even more pain than the six that preceded it. There was no hint of an impending implosion when the Leafs came roaring out of the all-star break with back-to-back games against Pittsburgh -- a 5-4 shootout loss followed by a 1-0 win the next night. http://www.thecubsteamshop.com/Cubs-Ben-Zobrist-Kids-Jersey/. Ferrer, the two-time defending champion in Buenos Aires, is aiming to win his 21st ATP tournament. Ferrer will next face fellow Spaniard Nicolas Almagro, the fourth seed, who defeated Jeremy Chardy of France 7-6 (7), 6-3 in another quarterfinal match. Ryne Sandberg Jersey . It was my fifth straight year attending and, as always, there are many interesting matters discussed as it pertains to the use of statistics in sports. Jason Heyward Cubs Jersey . With just under five seconds remaining - the Raptors having clawed back from a 19-point deficit and pulled within one - DeRozan took the handoff from Chuck Hayes.(SportsNetwork.com) - The fading Ottawa Senators have a chance to make up some ground in the playoff race on Tuesday night as they play host to the New York Rangers. The Senators are in the midst of a 2-5-2 skid, dropping them seven points behind the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, a position currently held by the Rangers. New York is tied for third place in the Metropolitan Division with the Columbus Blue Jackets, as both clubs have 76 points. However, the Blue Jackets have two games in hand to hold the current tiebreaker and push the Blueshirts out of one of the three automatic playoff bids in the division. The Senators have lost three straight and are coming off a 3-1 setback to the Colorado Avalanche. Ottawa was six seconds away from being shut out before Mika Zibanejad scored on a one-time blast. Robin Lehner stopped 19 shots in defeat. "We need wins right now, not moral victories," said Ottawa head coach Paul MacLean. Lehner was making his second straight start in place of the injured Craig Anderson, who suffered an upper-body injury in an overtime loss to the Nashville Predators last Monday. Anderson remains day-to-day and Lehner is likely to face the Rangers tonight for the second time in his career. He won the first meeting, stopping 33-of-35 shots faced. New York also is slumping, having lost six of its past nine games. That includes a tough-luck 1-0 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Sunday that denied goaltender Henrik Lundqvist a piece of teeam history.dddddddddddd Lundqvist made 28 saves and remains stuck on 301 career victories, tied with Mike Richter for the most in club history. The Rangers were denied a potential tying goal in the second period. Carl Hagelin forced a shot from a severe angle along the goal line to Antti Niemis left, and after the San Jose backstop virtually glued himself to the post, the puck was obscured underneath his equipment. A lengthy replay was not conclusive enough to overturn the original no-goal ruling on the ice. "I thought defensively we did what we had to do. Offensively, we did everything but finish. We had some very good looks, but we couldnt pull the trigger," New York coach Alain Vigneault said. "Youve got to believe if we keep playing this way, well be alright." Martin St. Louis played in his sixth game with the Rangers since being acquired from the Tampa Bay Lightning and has yet to score a goal with his new club. He has two assists and is a minus-1. St. Louis has 15 goals and 43 points in 50 career games versus the Senators, while Lundqvist is 11-14-3 with a 2.08 goals against average versus them. The Rangers snapped a five-game series losing streak to the Senators with a 4-1 win in Ottawa on Jan. 18. Derek Stepan had a goal and two assists, while Cam Talbot came up with 29 saves. The Blueshirts bested the Sens for only the second time in the last nine meetings and the recent victory snapped a three-game slide in Ottawa. ' ' '