Das Gästebuch » Wild dominated play against the Chicago Blackhawks

The Rangers force Game Six and the Wild even the score; notes on Zuccarello, St. Louis, Cooke, Toews and more. RANGERS ROCK PENGUINS Facing elimination, the New York Rangers invaded Pittsburgh, earned a first-period lead and never let the Penguins back into it, winning 5-1 in Game Five, forcing Game Six back in Manhattan. Derick Brassard and Mats Zuccarello each had three points for the Rangers, while LW Chris Kreider and D Ryan McDonagh each contributed a goal and an assist. Brassard, who was a point-per-game player for the Rangers in a dozen playoff games last year, now has six points (3 G, 3 A) in 12 playoff games this season, while Zuccarello is up to eight points (3 G, 5 A). Zuccarello also had the best possession stats for the Rangers, with 16 shot attempts for and seven against. The Blueshirts had 69.6% of the attempts with Zuccarello on the ice and 48.6% when he was off the ice. This was only Kreiders second game of the playoffs, and he was effective on a line with Derek Stepan and Rick Nash. Both Kreider and Brassard tied for the Rangers team lead with six hits. McDonagh, who only had one assist in 11 playoff games prior to Game Four, had a goal and an assist, with both points coming on the previously beleaguered Rangers power play. After scoring two goals on three attempts with the man advantage, maybe the Rangers are ready to leave that PP slump in the rearview mirror. After getting annihilated by Pittsburghs Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in Game Four, the Rangers (led by McDonagh and Dan Girardi) were much more effective against that duo in Game Five. While Malkin scored a goal, Crosby was on for 13 shot attempts for and 18 against. The inspirational story for the Rangers was veteran RW Martin St. Louis, playing a day after his mother died suddenly. St. Louis didnt have his best game, but the Rangers rallied around him and G Henrik Lundqvist stopped 31 of 32 Pittsburgh shots to keep the series going. The Penguins line of James Neal, Jussi Jokinen and Brandon Sutter didnt fare too well in the possession game. Neal, in particular, was on the ice for 28.6% of the 5-on-5 shot attempts when he was on the ice, while the Penguins had 54.0% of the shot attempts with Neal off the ice. In a must-win game, the Rangers played with an urgency that they havent shown in this series and are rewarded with a home date for Game Six. Theyre not out of the woods, by any means, but deserve credit for a big road win. WILD AT HEART The Minnesota Wild dominated play against the Chicago Blackhawks and won Game Four by a 4-2 score, evening the series at two games apiece. Wild defencemen Jared Spurgeon and Ryan Suter each had two points. Spurgeon, who had a goal and an assist, now has five points in the playoffs. Suter is up to seven. Wild LW Matt Cooke returned to the lineup, after serving a seven-game suspension and replaced Matt Moulson, who is out with a lower-body injury. Cooke was an impact player for Minnesota, playing a physical game (a game-high five hits), and chipping in an assist on the first goal of the game. He set the tone. Wild forwards Mikael Granlund, Erik Haula and Jason Pominville were all on for better than 70% of the 5-on-5 shot attempts, while Blackhawks RW Ben Smith had a game to forget, on for zero 5-on-5 shot attempts and 13 against. Smith spent the first half of the game on a line with Jonathan Toews, who was on for seven attempts for and 21 against, his 25% Corsi% was his lowest of the year. Toews faced the Wilds top defence pair, Suter and Jonas Brodin, for most of the night. Blackhawks RW Marian Hossa had two assists and D Brent Seabrook had one; they are tied for Chicagos playoff scoring lead with 10 points. Neither goaltender, Chicagos Corey Crawford or Minnesotas Ilya Bryzgalov, looked sharp, but with the Wild controlling play, they had more opportunities to take advantage against Crawford. In front of a rowdy home crowd, the Wild continued their winning ways, now 5-0 at home in the postseason. If theyre going to pull off the upset, though, they are going to need to win at least one in Chicago. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Chauncey Gardner-Johnson Jersey . Louis Blues have returned to the top spot in the TSN. Rickey Jackson Youth Jersey . "He started putting me on the ice to strengthen them at the suggestion from a doctor," he said. Weight said it wasnt a pretty sight at the rink in St. Clair Shores, Mich. "I looked like Forrest Gump," he joked. http://www.saintsrookiestore.com/Saints-Alvin-Kamara-Jersey/. 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Go out there for as long as John wants to leave me out there, and give the team a chance to win to the best of my ability." Buchholz had gaudy regular season numbers (16 starts - 12-1, 1.74, 1.025 WHIP) but he suffered through an injury-riddled campaign, missing exactly three months with a neck strain. He made four starts after his return on September 10 and in three postseason starts, hes recorded three no-decisions while posting a 5.40 ERA and 1.440 WHIP in 16 2/3 innings. Buchholz appears to tire relatively early in games, twice against the Tigers he couldnt get out of the sixth inning, and indications are hes experiencing tightness in his pitching shoulder. Buchholz promises to grind through. "Its going to be my first World Series experience being on the field, and I think that just the environment, the crowd, the adrenaline, thats going to help me out, too," he said. The 29-year-old has undergone rigorous treatment to prepare for Sunday night. Buchholz has been careful about his use of pain medication in the wake of a bout of esophagitis that put him in hospital last season. "I stayed away from the stuff that, the really stronng anti-inflammatories," said Buchholz.dddddddddddd "Basically been on the same stuff since the first time during the season, whenever I went on the disabled list." Buchholzs problems of late have started around the 75-pitch mark. He will be watched closely by Bostons coaching staff. Left-hander Felix Doubront and right-hander Ryan Dempster, both starters during the regular season, would be available to work multiple innings if Buchholz needs the support. "We go into (Sunday) thinking that hes going to give us what hes been in the postseason," said Red Sox manager John Farrell. "That might be a little bit shorter of an outing than maybe weve seen back in April and May. But hes also been very effective and were fully anticipating that to be the case (Sunday.)" Itll be a fine balance for Buchholz, who will have to make an honest determination about the state of his arm on an inning-by-inning basis. "Being at this level, especially on this stage, its tough to take yourself out of a game. Ive never done that before," he said. "But with this scenario thats going on right now, Im going to tell them the truth. Its not going to be one of times where you might be feeling tired but still telling everybody that youre good to go. Like I said, Im going to compete and give my team the best chance of winning that I can and if something does come up that Im feeling a little rundown, then, yeah, thats something that Ill let them know." ' ' '