IRVINE, Calif. -- Christian Cirese and Cam Fowler have known each other for about 20 minutes, but the NHL player and the 8-year-old Orange County resident have already formed a bond that is as heartwarming as it is unexpected.The Anaheim Ducks defenseman peers intently at racks of socks and shoes in a local Target.What size does Christian wear?Does he like this brand? The color?If not, they can look at another, Fowler insists as they move from aisle to aisle.Later, while Fowlers girlfriend, Jasmine Maggard, and Christians 17-year-old sister, Heather, are checking out gifts for Heather, a high school senior, Fowler waits patiently outside the changing room door to make sure all of the articles of clothing picked out by and for Christian fit him perfectly.Fowler just turned 25. He does not have any kids. He has two younger sisters who are in their teens but, generally speaking, doesnt usually have much to do with youngsters.So he was surprised to find himself so immersed in the experience of shopping with his new pals.I ended up having more of a relationship with them maybe than I expected, Fowler said. They kind of opened up, and Christian was making me laugh the whole time. What was cool to me was the relationship that Heather and Christian had. He was picking out clothes for her, she was making sure he was OK, fixing his hair and stuff. That was very cool.Maggard agreed. It was like we had known these kids forever. But we just met them, she added.This outing is the first time that Fowler, the 12th overall pick in the 2010 draft, has taken part in the Ducks annual shopping excursion with The Wooden Floor, a nonprofit organization in Orange County that provides after-school programs to help low-income kids prepare for higher education through the arts.By the end of the day, Fowler is sharing tips with Heather about how she might relieve stress before a dance performance, and Christian is holding a microphone for an interview Fowler does with the Ducks in-house media group.I told her I listen to some music. I like to take deep breaths, Fowler said. It really seemed to resonate with her.In some ways Heather and Christian are unusual among the kids connected to The Wooden Floor. Theirs is a two-parent family, and their father works two jobs to support the familys four children. All six members of their family share a two-bedroom apartment in the Anaheim area.Next spring, Heather -- who is in her eighth year at the program -- will graduate from Valencia High School in Placentia and, with assistance from The Wooden Floor, will attend college. She will be the first in her family to do so.At first it was definitely scary, she said of the prospect of heading off to college. But now Im excited. Im planning to go to a community college first and then transfer into a four-year [program]. The medical field has always been my favorite thing, so I want go into that.NHL players have a long history of giving back to their respective communities, and frankly, their efforts often fly under the radar. But if you peek behind the curtain and see how these events come together and the impact they have, youll learn quickly that oftentimes its not the financial commitment of players -- although that certainly is important -- but the investment of time, effort and, on a day like this, emotion, that shows how meaningful these kinds of moments can be for everyone involved.Us doing it as a team is very cool, but I think that should be the back end of the story, Fowler said. It should be about the kids and the experience for them. So my main focus was on them today.In some ways, the Target store in this Irvine shopping mall had the look of a demolition derby-turned-scavenger hunt as the kids from The Wooden Floor paired up with Ducks players and their wives or girlfriends and other volunteers to fill out shopping lists that included necessities -- and, of course, a few toys.Other shoppers craned their necks to see what was causing the commotion, as red plastic Target shopping carts brimming with goodies careened around the store, piloted by?Kevin Bieksa, Ryan Kesler, John Gibson, Jakob Silfverberg and Fowler.The shirts, shoes, Lego Star Wars and Nerf weaponry that ended up in the various shopping carts might well be the only gifts these children get this holiday season, said The Wooden Floors CEO Dawn Reese, who also noted that the shopping spree and the programs holiday party are sometimes the only fun activity on many of the kids holiday schedules.More than 90 percent of the 375 kids The Wooden Floor helps annually with tutoring and college-prep assistance -- as well as crisis intervention and counseling six days a week -- come from low-income or extremely low-income families.They have to navigate a lot of challenges, especially toward higher-education goals that we have for them, Reese said.And so, sure, getting some cool things is a part of the equation.But will the kids remember the Batman caps or will they recall instead veteran Antoine Vermette regaling them with stories of having to cover his ears and eyes because former teammate Anton Volchenkov insisted on watching horror movies all night long when they were on the road?[The players] really uplift them and really empower them. We do that too, but this is just something special, when a stranger goes into your life and puts focus and attention on you. Theyre kind of like, Wow, whats this all about, Reese said. It makes you feel very proud, so we hope that pride then follows them in all parts of their life when they leave today.As the kids get ready to jump back on the bus that ferried them to the mall, there are hugs and pictures and autographs from the players. Its been only a couple of hours since they met, but somehow it seems like theyve been friends much, much longer. Anthony Miller Bears Jersey . Irving scored 23 points, Tristan Thompson had 20 points and 10 rebounds and the Cavaliers beat the Denver Nuggets 117-109 on Friday night. Khalil Mack Bears Jersey Cheap .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. http://www.chicagobearsshoponline.com/mitchell-trubisky-bears-jersey.html . Any real chance at payback wont come until the playoff. Still, Pittsburgh knows its taut 3-2 win over the Bruins on Wednesday night is a pretty good place to start laying the groundwork. "They are a very good defensive team," Penguins forward Brandon Sutter said. Cheap Bears Jerseys China . Fellow centre Pavel Datsyuk remains out because of a concussion. Zetterberg has 11 goals and 19 assists for a team-high 30 points, and Datsyuk has a team-high 12 goals and 11 assists. Discount Bears Jerseys . The Cincinnati Reds remain perfect with their speedy rookie outfielder in the starting lineup. MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- Jimbo Fisher has seen this scenario before.A coach takes over a long-struggling program, more than a decade removed from its most glorious days and is asked to resuscitate it quickly. And in that coachs first season, a win over his teams biggest rival serves as that springboard back to prominence.Thats what happened for Fisher and Florida State in 2010.And thats what Mark Richt and Miami will try to repeat now.The 10th-ranked Hurricanes (4-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) host No. 23 Florida State (3-2, 0-2) on Saturday night, looking to snap a six-year losing streak in the storied series and perhaps cement themselves as a true contender in the ACCs Coastal Division.Its a huge game, Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya said. It sways recruiting. It sways fan bases. It sways seasons.Richt has been part of this series as a Miami player and Florida State assistant coach. He now gets a taste of it as a head coach for the first time, though is trying to avoid the hyperbole that almost always accompanies the buildup to a Miami-Florida State clash.What we need to do, Richt said, is do our job the way were being taught to do it.Florida State hasnt lost back-to-back games since 2011 -- the Seminoles fell at home to North Carolina last week on a field goal at the final horn -- and needed heroics from star running back Dalvin Cook to rally from fourth-quarter deficits to beat the Hurricanes in each of the last two years.This is one of the games you came to Florida State to play in, said Cook, a Miami native.Florida State -- widely touted as a national-title contender coming into the season -- is probably out of the ACCs Atlantic race already, though Fisher has insisted theres plenty of meaningful football left to play.Miami is a very good team, Fisher said. I dont know if theyre Top 10, but theyre undefeated. Playing very well. ... We need to perform at a very high level to have a chance to have success, and thats what our goal is and thats what our intentions are.Heres some of what to know going into Florida State-Miaami:POLL WATCH: Florida States streak of 75 consecutive appearances in the AP Top 25 -- the second-longest current run behind Alabamas 137 -- is in jeopardy.ddddddddddddA loss almost certainly would leave the Seminoles unranked for the first time since the Nov. 20, 2011 poll. A win would give Miami a chance at its highest ranking in 11 years; the Hurricanes went to No. 3 in 2005, and havent been past No. 7 since.STORM PASSES: The Miami area was minimally affected by Hurricane Matthew, which skirted past the area before lashing much the coastline on the Atlantic side of Florida with incredibly intense wind and rain Friday and leaving hundreds of thousands without power. Florida State was able to fly south Friday morning, about a half-day behind what the Seminoles originally scheduled.ONLY TWO: Miamis Mark Walton and Joseph Yearby have touchdown rushes in all four Hurricane games this season. Theyre the only FBS running-back duo in the country with a TD run apiece in each of their teams games this season. Also, Miami is one of two FBS schools to not trail yet this season, with Boise State being the other.KAAYA WATCH: There are two players since 2000 with multiple 300-yard passing games against Florida State -- and both are Miami quarterbacks. Ken Dorsey did it in 2000 and 2002, and Brad Kaaya has thrown for 316 and 405 in his first two outings, respectively, against the Seminoles. Florida State gave up exactly 405 yards passing last week as well, to North Carolinas Mitch Trubisky.DRIVE FOR FIVE: Florida State quarterback Deondre Francois will try to become the fifth consecutive Seminole starter to win his debut game against Miami, joining Christian Ponder (2008), EJ Manuel (2011), Jameis Winston (2013) and Everett Golson (2015). The last Florida State quarterback to throw a touchdown pass in his first start against Miami and lose was Chris Rix in 2001. Rix wound up going 0-5 against the Hurricanes. ' ' '