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The New York Rangers opened the Eastern Conference Final with a 7-2 win in Montreal, embarrassing the Canadiens on home ice to start the series. Miles Burris Raiders Jersey . Rangers D Ryan McDonagh led the way with a goal and three assists for the Blueshirts and, oh, thats not any kind of sore spot for the Canadiens. Remember, he was a first-round pick of the Canadiens in 2007 who was dealt to the Rangers as part of the deal to get (ahem) Scott Gomez. McDonagh only had three points, total, through the first two rounds, so the first four-point game of his 298-game (regular season and playoffs) career was a great start for the Rangers. In a 7-2 rout, there were plenty of big contributors for the Rangers. The line of Chris Kreider, Derek Stepan and Rick Nash each had one goal and an assist. Yes, Nash scored his first goal in 15 playoff games this year, and Kreider, the rookie power forward was a tough match-up for the Canadiens. Nash and Kreider can be tough matchups if theyre playing well and, for various reasons, havent been major factors through the first couple rounds. Could be big trouble for Montreal if thats going to change now. Martin St. Louis and Derek Stepan each had a goal and an assist and Dominic Moore chipped in a couple of assists, while Mats Zuccarello delivered a goal and two assists. Zuccarello is now the Rangers leading scorer in the playoffs, with 11 points (4 G, 7 A) in 15 games, one ahead of St. Louis and Brad Richards. Richards scored a goal and registered a game-high 10 shot attempts. The Canadiens were getting outplayed at 5-on-5, but the Rangers also had seven of the games first eight power plays, with Montreal getting a couple of power plays in the last three-and-a-half minutes, long after the outcome was decided. Coming off a series against Boston in which the Canadiens were obviously invested emotionally, they certainly appeared flat in Game One against the Rangers. G Carey Price, who has been great in the playoffs, was pulled between the second and third periods after allowing four goals on 20 shots. Only twice, in 70 (regular season plus playoff) games this season, did Price allow at least four goals with 16 or fewer saves. Though his production was inconsequential, Canadiens C Lars Eller had a goal and an assist and hes the top scoring Montreal forward in the playoffs with five goals and 11 points in a dozen games. One negative for the Rangers was that C Derick Brassard left the game early with an apparent back injury. Hes considered day-to-day. If the Canadiens are to take a positive from this debacle of a game, it is that it only counts as one loss. Forget Game One, come back fresh for Game Two because, really, what other option do they have? 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. Jack Tatum Raiders Jersey .J. -- A good start is what is on the line this time when the New York Giants host the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL season opener. Bo Jackson Womens Jersey . He also a truly special inning, striking out the side on just nine pitches. Richards fanned nine to match his major league best, helping the Los Angeles Angels snap a season-worst four-game skid with a 4-0 win over Houston Astros on Wednesday night.CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Al Jefferson laughed when told he finished three stitches shy of a triple-double. "I have to call my agent because Im done with my modeling career," Jefferson said. Jefferson had seven stitches in the first half to repair a gash above his right eye, but returned to finish with 19 points and 11 rebounds, helping the Bobcats overcome an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit and defeat Washington 100-94 Monday night. The win prevented the Wizards from clinching their first playoff berth since 2008. Jeffersons put back off an offensive rebound with 3:30 left in the game helped the Bobcats take the lead for good at 93-92. Kemba Walker had a big second half, finishing with 21 points and 10 assists, and rookie Cody Zeller scored a career-high 15 points on 4-of-4 shooting and added eight rebounds for Charlotte. Walker scored nine points in the final quarter and the Bobcats erased a 16-point halftime deficit and pulled within two games of the Washington in the race for the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs Both teams have eight games left and will meet again on April 9. "We made big shots and played well defensively in the second half and really came together as a team," Walker said. "It shows our resiliency. That was a big win for us." Bradley Beal had 20 points for the Wizards, who missed 11 of their last 14 shots from the field. "It (stinks) man," Washingtons Al Harrington said of not clinching a playoff spot. "Because obviously we played a great first half. We really thought tonight was our night, but to have them come out and play the way that they played and beat us -- thats tough." Washington still would have clinched a playoff spot if the Utah Jazz had defeated New York later Monday, but the Knicks won 92-83. The Wizards (38-36) came in looking to snap the third-longest playoff drought in the NBA -- and for a while it looked like they would. The Wizards shot 59 per cent in the first half, at one point hitting 10 straight shots from the field and scoring on 14 of 15 possessions to close the first half on a 30-7 run. The Bobcats could do little right in what Jefferson called an "embarrassing" first half. But he was confident they would battle back. Marcus Allen Womens Jersey. . Jefferson walked to the scorers table at the start of the third quarter and told whoever was in earshot, "Hey, watch this comeback." "Everyone looked at me like I was crazy," Jefferson said. "At the end of the game though people were pointing at me saying, You said it. You said it." Charlottes defence was the big difference. Coach Steve Clifford also went to a pick-and-roll with Walker and Jefferson. "The Wizards did a good job of taking away the post," Clifford said. The momentum turned four minutes into the fourth quarter when Walker came up with the loose ball off a Washington turnover and fed Chris Douglas-Roberts for a fast-break layup in traffic with 7:38 left in the game. Douglas-Roberts had to adjust in midair to get his body from one side of the rim to the other to avoid defenders and get the shot to drop. Douglas-Roberts made a 3-point play and then knocked down a long-distance 3 to cut the lead to one before Jeffersons put back gave the Bobcats the lead for good. Jefferson hit a 16-footer to push the lead to three. Walker followed with a backbreaker when he scored on a driving layup to make it 97-92 after a Bobcats possession that took more than a minute off the clock. Charlotte twice came up with key offensive rebounds, allowing Walker to bring the ball back out and reset the offence and milk time off the clock. "When you give a team two to three looks one time down the floor, theyre going to make one," said Wizards forward Drew Gooden. "I would say we lost the game giving them second and third possessions offensively." Jefferson left the game briefly at the end of the first quarter to head to the locker room to get the stitches above his right eye after taking an inadvertent elbow from Trevor Booker. "I had to get a shot to numb it and I hate needles," Jefferson said. NOTES: Gary Neal returned to action for the Bobcats after missing two games with an ankle injury. He had nine points ... The Bobcats have won four of six against Washington, but have split their two games this season. ... The Bobcats have won 11 of their last 13 at home. ' ' ' |
