NEW YORK -- Dallas Mavericks star Dirk Nowitzki said Monday that he is getting closer to returning from a sore right Achilles.Nowitzki missed his fourth straight game with the Mavericks 93-77 loss to the New York Knicks. He had a lengthy pregame workout, but by then, it was already decided that he wouldnt play.The biggest issue is still running, Nowitzki said after the game. Im not a big runner at this stage in my career, but I cant really go up and down yet. I havent run in full practice. So its not quite there yet, but the good thing is its getting better. I dont have the soreness I had last week, obviously. Ill be doing more and more.Nowitzki sat out the second half of Dallas loss in Portland on Nov. 4 and hasnt played since. Although the Mavericks are 2-7, they dont want the 38-year-old forward back until hes ready.I think hes really close. Hes feeling a lot better, and we just dont want to rush anything, owner Mark Cuban said. Theres no reason to rush anything with him.The Mavericks are playing without injured guards Deron Williams and Devin Harris. On Monday, they shot under 39 percent against a Knicks team that had been struggling defensively. Nowitzki, the No. 6 scorer in NBA history, knows the offense will return once he does.We cant score enough. Obviously, thats the one thing I can sort of do, Nowitzki said. I might not be any good at any other thing anymore, but I can still score a little bit and help the team score, just helping offensively as much as I can. So its tough. It is tough to sit over there and watch.Brook Jacoby Jersey .Y. -- Leading 3-0 with only 11:25 left, the Colorado Avalanche committed a seemingly meaningless penalty to give the New York Islanders a power play. Roger Dorn Jersey . Defencemen Drew Doughty, Shea Weber and forward Ryan Getzlaf also scored for the Canadians, who started their gold-medal defence 2-0. Goalie Roberto Luongo, getting the call in place of Game 1 starter Carey Price, was solid when needed in making 23 saves for the shutout. [url=https://www.ch