| body hope on that football team. Stegall: Im going to agree and say yes also, but its not so much ab | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: May 14 2014, 10:39 AM (9 Views) | |
| zake201 | May 14 2014, 10:39 AM Post #1 |
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NEW YORK -- If Rangers coach John Tortorella was miffed in any way after New Yorks season-ending home loss to the Washington Capitals, he didnt show it. Washington scored three first-period goals and third-string goaltender Braden Holtby made 35 saves Saturday night to help the Capitals beat the Rangers 4-1, spoiling New Yorks chance to clinch the Presidents Trophy. The hard-driving Tortorella chose instead to focus on myriad positives for the Rangers (51-24-7), who reached 109 points for the third time in franchise history but finished two behind Vancouver for the leagues top spot. The Canucks beat Edmonton 3-0 later Saturday night. "Im glad the 82 games are done because now is when the real stuff starts," said Tortorella, who coached Tampa Bay to the Stanley Cup in 2004 but has yet to guide the Rangers past the first round of the playoffs. "I am really excited and I know our guys are too. Our team will be ready to play." New York will host the Ottawa Senators in the opening round of the playoffs, the first time since 1996 New York will have home ice in a post-season series. The Rangers have never met the current Senators -- an expansion franchise in 1992-93 -- in the post-season. The Capitals quieted the Madison Square Garden crowd quickly as Alex Ovechkin and Mathieu Perreault scored on Washingtons first two shots against Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist. Washington (42-32-8) finished with 92 points and will be the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference. The Capitals will face the defending champion Boston Bruins in the opening round. The Florida Panthers beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-1 to win the Southeast Division and will host New Jersey in the opening round. The Capitals, who would have won the division if the Panthers had lost, clinched a playoff spot for the fifth straight year with their 4-2 win over Florida on Tuesday. Ovechkin got his 38th goal of the season just 32 seconds into the game after Brooks Laich won a faceoff and backhanded the puck back to Ovechkin, who fired a wrist shot past Lundqvist. "We didnt want to finish in eighth place so we wanted to play a strong game, and we did," Ovechkin said. Perreault made it 2-0 at 2:18 of the first, tipping a Roman Hamrlik slapshot past Lundqvist. Defenceman John Carlson extended the lead to 3-0 with 1:47 to go in the period before Nicklas Backstrom scored his 14th at 5:58 of the second to complete Washingtons scoring. The goal was Backstroms first since Dec. 30. The centre had missed 40 games with concussion symptoms, returning to the Capitals lineup March 31. "It feels great to contribute tonight and were eager for the playoffs to start," Backstrom said. "Our goaltender played a great game for us and were feeling good about ourselves." The Capitals are 11-5-2 in their last 18 regular-season games against the Rangers and 5-2-1 in their last six at MSG. The teams met in the first round of the playoffs last year and in 2009 with the Capitals winning both series. Brian Boyle scored for New York with 7:16 left in the second on a wraparound past Holtby. It was Boyles 11th of the season. The 22-year-old Holtby, who has played most of the season for Hershey of the AHL, started because of injuries to Michal Neuvirth (lower-body) and Tomas Vokoun (groin). Holtby, who improved to 4-2-1, was a fourth-round choice by the Capitals in the 2008 draft. He made acrobatic breakaway saves on Carl Hagelin and Brandon Prust midway through the third period. "It was a challenge to play here but I felt confident all game," said Holtby. "Its exciting to be thinking about the playoffs now. This is what you dream about as a kid." New York is trying to clinch the Presidents Trophy for the first time since 1993-94, when the Rangers recorded a franchise-best 112 points and won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 54 years. Lundqvist, who had a career-high 39 wins this season, also chose to look toward the post-season and a chance to advance past the first round for the first time in four years. "Its been a fun year, but I hope, and everyone else hopes, the best is yet to come," said the 30-year-old goaltender, whose only two post-season series wins came in 2007 and 2008. "It will be exciting." The Presidents Trophy was first awarded in 1985-86 to the NHLs top regular season team. The Rangers also captured it in 1991-92, when they were 50-25-5 and went on to lose in the second round of the playoffs to Pittsburgh. New York also finished with 109 points in 1970-71 and 1971-72. NOTES: Ovechkin has the most points in the NHL (678) since 2005-06. ... Washington was 26-11-4 at home this season but 16-21-4 on the road. ... Since the Rangers won the Stanley Cup in 1994, only four Presidents Trophy winners went on to win the Stanley Cup: Dallas in 1999, Colorado in 2001 and Detroit in 2002 and 2008. The two other dual winners since 1986 are Edmonton (1987) and Calgary (1989). ... Dany Sabourin, who last played in the NHL in 2008-09 for Pittsburgh, was recalled from AHL Hershey to back up Holtby. http://www.officialstlouiscardinalsstore.com/Matt-Carpenter-Jersey/ . Hudler will be added to the Flames active roster on Wednesday but will not be joining the team for that nights game in Vancouver. The left-winger had been in the Czech Republic to mourn the death of his father. http://www.officialstlouiscardinalsstore.com/Roger-Maris-Jersey/ . -- Brady Quinn is getting another shot on the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback merry-go-round. http://www.officialstlouiscardinalsstore.com/Stan-Musial-Jersey/ . Olivier Occean scored in the second half and 10-man Canada held on for a 1-0 win over Cuba to kick off the third stage of CONCACAF World Cup qualifying Friday. http://www.officialstlouiscardinalsstore.com/Bob-Gibson-Jersey/ . "The concept that the owners are trying to dismantle existing contracts that they in good faith offered, signed, and committed to is appalling, unprofessional, and disgraceful," Johnson wrote in his blog at jackjohnson3. http://www.officialstlouiscardinalsstore.com/Albert-Pujols-Jersey/ . The amazing Federer will appear in his 35th consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal on Wednesday. The second-seeded former world No. 1 Federer, who has yet to drop a set through four matches, got past 13th-seeded Canadian slugger Milos Raonic 6-4, 7-6 (7-4), 6-2, while the third-seeded Murray, who has also won 12 straight sets here, whipped 14th-seeded Frenchman Gilles Simon 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 at Melbourne Park.Each week, The CFL on TSN panel will break down three hot button topics from around the Canadian Football League. This week they discussed who needs to step up for the Toronto Argonauts in Ricky Rays absence, Winnipegs chances of making the playoffs and who the favourite for CFL MOP is. First Down: In Ricky Rays absence, who needs to step up the most for the Toronto Argonauts to help Jarious Jackson against the WInnipeg Blue Bombers? Milt Stegall: Im going to say offensive coordinator and head coach Scott Milanovich. I say this because you are dealing with two different types of quarterbacks: Ricky Ray who is a drop back guy and Jarious Jackson who is a mobile guy who can throw on the run. You have to change up your game plan so Im going to say head coach and offensive Coordinator. Matt Dunigan: Im going to go with the defence. Three weeks in a row this defence scored touchdowns then last week they gave up big plays and did not put points on the board. They have to tighten that up to make up for Jarious Jackson and cut down on the big plays. Chris Schultz: Im going to go with the offensive line. The B.C. Lions are tied for number one in the Canadian Football League with 29 sacks. Guess who is also tied for number one? The Winnipeg Blue Bombers, and theyre evenly distributed among their four defensive linemen. The Argonauts offensive line has to play a great game Dave. Second Down: With Buck Pierce healthy, do the Winnipeg Blue Bombers have a chance at making the playoffs? Schultz: I am going to say yes and the single biggest reason: they have already beaten the Hamilton Ticats twice this year.dddddddddddd When it comes to that tiebreaker within the division, Winnipeg has the advantage. Yes to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Dunigan: Yes. Buck Pierce is the glue that holds that team together. He puts the swagger back in Swaggerville. Buck Pierce can execute that offence and gives everybody hope on that football team. Stegall: Im going to agree and say yes also, but its not so much about Buck. It has to be Chad Simpson, he has to be the guy on that offence. Buck of course is the momentum, hes going to get them into the playoffs but they have to ride it with Chad. Who is your favourite for the MOP? a.) Anthony Calvillo b.) Travis Lulay c.) Jon Cornish d.) other Dunigan: Travis Lulay. The guy is learning how to win close football games. We dont hear enough about him particularly with his legs. He has 398 rushing yards this season and can hurt you with the pass and the run. Schultz: Audible, audible, audible. Andrew Harris of the BC Lions. He has 1,300 yards from the line of scrimmage so far. He is a great running back. Milt: Audible. You guys dont like receivers do you? Chad Owens. Have you seen what he has been doing? The leading receiver is leading the league in all-purpose yards. Hes going to break Pinballs single-season all-purpose yardage record. Chad Owens will be the MOP. ' ' ' |
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8:31 AM Jul 11