BARCELONA, Spain -- Lionel Messi marked his 80th Champions League match with a hat trick on Wednesday as Barcelona began its campaign in Group H with a 4-0 rout of Ajax. Paul Molitor Jersey . The Argentina forward opened the scoring at Camp Nou Stadium with a free kick in the 22nd minute, doubled the hosts advantage in the 55th on the break and, after Gerard Piques 69th-minute goal, added another 15 minutes from fulltime. The goals took his cumulative tally in the competition to 62 -- nine short of Raul Gonzalezs all-time record of 71 goals in 144 appearances. Messi now stands alone as the only player to have scored a hat trick four times in the tournament. "From (Frank) Rijkaard until now, the coaches that have come through here, every two or three games they have talked about how surprised they are by him, and I am just one more," said Barcelona coach Gerardo Martino, who will travel to his native Argentina following the death of his father on Tuesday. Despite some lethargic moments late in the first half, Barcelona eased to the win thanks to Messis goals and the teams near complete control of possession. When Ajax did manage to create a scoring opportunity, Valdes was there to keep a clean sheet. "As the game went on we adapted better as we figured out what to do," said Messi. "We couldnt put pressure on them at the beginning because they read the match perfectly." AC Milan beat Celtic 2-0 in the nights other Group H game. True to both teams well-established playing styles, Barcelona and Ajax kept the ball on the turf. While Ajax was limited to former Barcelona forward Bojan Krkics sprints down the left side, Barcelona soon focused on Neymar cutting in from the left flank. But it fell to Messi to get the hosts going after he was fouled while dribbling across the edge of the area following a neat passing combination with Dani Alves. From that prime spot, Messi sent a left-foot shot off the left post, with the ball beating outstretched goalkeeper Kenneth Vermeer before ricocheting into the far side of the net. "We know that Messi can always score, and he did," said Ajax coach Frank de Boer, a former Barcelona defender. "His free kick was very good, very fast. "I cant be happy. When you allow four goals you cant be. But I saw moments that we can build on for the games ahead." Ricardo van Rhijn almost answered for Ajax in the 31st when Bojan picked him out with a cross, only for Valdes to smother his header. The home crowd became nervous near the end of the first half, and Barcelona apparently took note by showing the defensive pressure Martino had said was his top priority to restore after the break. The increased intensity paid off when Barcelona recovered the ball and Sergio Busquets spotted Messi running unmarked down the right side. Messi took his pass, cut back to bring Stefano Denswil to the ground and used his left foot to score. Neymar, in his European debut, set up Gerard Pique to add Barcelonas third goal with a long cross. Ajax lost possession near its area and Xavi Hernandez laid the ball off for Messi to take his time before driving it between a pair of defenders and into the corner of the net for his third goal. Valdes had his moment of glory one minute later in the 76th when he blocked Kolbeinn Sigthorssons penalty after Javier Mascherano fouled Thulani Serero in the box. "We played a better second half," said Martino. "We were more comfortable than in the first and took control of the game. It was a good performance, not as brilliant as the 4-0 looks, but we won it fairly. "Barcelona is full of individual talents. Today we can talk about Messi and Valdes, another day Xavi or Neymar. It is normal that one of them rises to the occasion." Ajaxs defeat was its ninth consecutive loss to a Spanish opponent. Ajaxs last victory in Spain dates back even farther to the 1996-97 season when De Boer helped the Dutch team win at Atletico Madrid. The two four-time champions had never met before in Europes top-tier competition. Even so, fewer teams from different countries have stronger ties. Dutch great Johan Cruyff led Ajax to three straight European titles from 1971-73 as a player before moving to Barcelona, where he would later return as a coach to guide it to its first European title in 1992. Orlando Arcia Jersey . But qualifying for her first Scotties Tournament of Hearts after years of falling short in tough Manitoba provincial championships is as good as consolation prizes get for the 29-year-old from Winnipegs Fort Rouge Curling Club. Jonathan Villar Jersey . The Los Angeles Clippers showed them just how ugly that life could be. Jared Dudley scored a season-high 21 points, Chris Paul added 16 points and 17 assists, and the Clippers jumped all over the Bulls in Roses absence for a 121-82 victory Sunday. http://www.baseballbrewersofficial.com/eric-thames-jersey-c-23/ . Hamels threw seven sharp innings to earn his 100th career victory, Domonic Brown had a career-best five RBIs and the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Cincinnati Reds 12-1 on Saturday night to end a four-game losing streak.(SportsNetwork.com) - The New Jersey Devils have managed to stay afloat in the Eastern Conference playoff race thanks to their recent play. The club hopes to add another win to its cause when the Calgary Flames visit Prudential Center on Monday. The Devils have posted wins in three of their last four games and are currently riding a seven-game point streak with a 4-0-3 record over that stretch. Still, New Jersey is just outside the playoff picture with 84 points, leaving the club tied with Toronto and three points behind Columbus for the Easts second wild card spot. The Devils also are four in back of Detroit for the first wild card berth. Like Columbus and Detroit, the Devils have four games remaining in the regular season, while the Maple Leafs have only three tilts left. New Jersey is the only team from that group in action on Monday. New Jersey won its second straight game on Saturday with a 3-1 road victory over the Carolina Hurricanes. Dainius Zubrus scored twice and Cory Schneider stopped 26 shots to help the Devils record two valuable points. Zubrus recorded his second two-goal game of the campaign and now has 13 markers on the season. "It was nice for (Zubrus)," Devils head coach Peter DeBoer said of Zubrus. "He works hard every night and doesnt get rewarded a lot." Travis Zajac netted what proved to be the game-winner 6:34 into the second, while Schneider turned aside all eight shots he faced in the third for the Devils. Schneider has started the last three gammes for New Jersey and could get the call over Martin Brodeur again tonight. Milwaukee Brewers Jerseys. The 28-year-old American is 4-2-0 with a 2.13 goals against average and .936 save percentage in six career games against Calgary. New Jersey has won two straight and three of its last four home games and is 20-10-8 in Newark this season. Although the Flames have been eliminated from postseason contention out West, the club has played with pride down the stretch and picked up a second straight win in Fridays 2-1 road victory at Florida. The win gave Calgary a 2-2-0 mark on a five-game road trip that ends tonight in the Garden State. Mike Cammalleri netted the winner early in the second period and Joey MacDonald stopped 34 pucks to help the Flames down the Panthers, 2-1. Kenny Agostino also produced his first NHL goal for the Flames, who have won six of 10. "We promised our fans and we even promised ourselves that we would play the games to win until the final second of the regular season," Calgary head coach Bob Hartley said of his team playing hard down the stretch. Calgary, which is 15-20-4 as the road club this season, beat a visiting Devils club back on Oct. 11. Sean Monahan notched the game-winning goal with 2:43 remaining for the Flames, as they downed the Devils, 3-2, at the Saddledome. The Flames have won two straight and three of their last four overall games against New Jersey, but the Devils have claimed two in a row and three of four at home in this series. Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '