08-01-2019, 12:43 AM
NEW YORK -- The Rangers clutch victory over the Stanley Cup champions earlier this week would have lost a lot of lustre if New York couldnt back it up against the struggling Dallas Stars. The Rangers needed 58 minutes to get ahead -- and then spent the final two holding on. Rick Nash snapped a tie with 1:58 left, and the Rangers sent the Stars to their fifth straight loss, 3-2 on Friday night. New York is 7-2-1 in its last 10, but more importantly, the Rangers followed up their stirring win at Chicago on Wednesday with another one at home. "We talked about it this morning," said Henrik Lundqvist, who made 24 saves to earn his second straight win. "Its always a great feeling when you come up big in the end of a game." Nash poked a rebound of Chris Kreiders shot past goalie Kari Lehtonen to give New York its first lead. Nash has 10 goals this season and three in three games. "I think it was 50 per cent luck ... well, probably 70 per cent luck and 30 per cent skill," Nash said of his 50th game-winner. "I was just following the puck. It went a little bit higher than anticipated, but luckily it went in." Ryan Callahan and Derick Brassard both erased one-goal Rangers deficits, and Brad Richards had two assists to extend his point streak to four games (two goals, four assists). Ryan Garbutt and Cody Eakin both had a goal and assist, but the Stars remained winless in 2014. Lehtonen stopped 31 shots for Dallas, which went 0-3 on its three-game trip through the New York metropolitan area. "I thought we skated better," Stars coach Lindy Ruff said. "I thought we created a little bit more and I thought we were better with the puck. We still have a ways to go, though." After being shut out for the first time this season in a 1-0 loss at New Jersey on Thursday, the Stars got their offence on track early -- grabbing the lead 4:06 in on Eakins ninth goal. Garbutt outraced Rangers defenceman Marc Staal to a loose puck deep in the New York end and sent a pass back to Eakin in the right circle. Eakin let go a shot that Lundqvist blocked with his arm, but couldnt control as it found its way in. Dallas had the lead despite being outshot 8-3 at the time in the sluggish first period that featured multiple icings and frequent faceoffs. New York tied it with 8:40 left in the period on Callahans eighth of the season and first in five games since the Rangers captain returned from a nine-game absence caused by a sprained knee ligament. Benoit Pouliot kept the puck in the Dallas zone at the right point and got it to Richards, who took a shot. Richards got to his rebound and moved the puck to his right to the streaking Callahan, who snapped in a drive as he was flying to the ice. Dallas regained the lead 3:34 into the second on Garbutts eighth goal. Antoine Roussel sent a pass that Garbutt knocked down with the shaft of his stick. He then jammed the puck between Lundqvists pads. However, the Rangers tied it 2-2 just 4:48 later when Brassard scored a power-play goal on the games first advantage. Mats Zuccarello sent a hard shot from above the right circle into the slot where Brassard deflected it past Lehtonen for his seventh of the season and fifth on the power play. "I didnt do much. I just shot it. All the credit to him," Zuccarello said of Brassard. "If its there, its there. If its not there, its not there. "I just shot it. He made a really nice tip. Its a skill play by him." The Rangers, who swept the two-game season series from Dallas, have scored a power-play goal in nine of the past 12 games. "When a power play works, it keeps the other team honest because they dont want to see the power play on the ice," Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said. "Our power play has been working real well for us. Its been giving us momentum, its been giving us timely goals." New York had other scoring chances in the second, including several scrums in front of the net, but couldnt convert. Nash shot wide on a breakaway, and Richards struck the crossbar with a drive. NOTES: Callahan had an assist in each of his previous three games. ... Stars D Aaron Rome returned after missing two games with an upper-body injury. ... Garbutt has three goals in his last eight games. ... Dallas received its only power play in the third period. ... Rangers C J.T. Miller, scratched for the second straight game, is going down to Hartford of the AHL. Fjallraven Kanken Classic Ox Red/Royal Blue Backpack . Patty Mills scored 15 points, Tim Duncan had 10 points and 11 rebounds in limited minutes, and San Antonio trailed for only 11 seconds late in the first quarter of a 103-90 victory over Portland on Wednesday night. Kanken Classic Backpack Sale . General manager David Poile called signing Ribeiro a great opportunity to add a talented, experienced and creative centre Tuesday when he introduced the veteran at a news conference. Ribeiros contract is worth $1.05 million after being bought out of the final three years of a $22 million contract by the Coyotes recently. http://www.cheapkankenbackpack.com/cheap...green.html. Next up, the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Cleveland Browns in the AFC North. Baltimore Ravens In 2014, the 8-8 season that the Baltimore Ravens experienced was to be expected. Fjallraven Kanken Mini Backpack Pink . But unfortunately for the Niagara Falls, Ont., native, a pulled muscle wouldnt allow him to go past the second set. Japan sealed its victory over Canada in the first-round Davis Cup tie after Nishikori downed an ailing Dancevic 6-2, 1-0. Cheap Kanken Backpacks For Sale . Starting from pole, the 26-year-old Vettel turned in a trademark clinical performance to win the Indian Grand Prix on Sunday and join F1 greats Juan Manuel Fangio and Michael Schumacher as just the third driver to win four consecutive championships.They took away her ‘C, but they didnt take away her heart. Hayley Wickenheiser, the greatest womens hockey player ever, stole the show as Canada defeated the United States 3-2 in a thrilling nail-biter preliminary game in Sochi Wednesday. Wickenheiser set up Canadas first goal of the game on a nifty pass to Meghan Agosta-Marciano and then scored her second goal of the 2014 Winter Olympics – the 18th of her Olympic career. Not only that, the 35-year-old Wickenheiser played a strong defensive game, too, shutting down Team USAs top scorers. It is no coincidence that in the dying seconds of the game, with the United States on the power play and its goalie on the bench in favour of an extra skater, Wickenheiser was one of the four Canadian skaters on the ice in pure defensive mode. The victory for Canada means it avoids a tough semifinal matchup against the pesky Finnish squad. Canada defeated Finland 3-0 earlier in the tournament, but didnt score until 9:27 of the third period. The Finns are capable of pulling off an upset in this years Olympics. Wickenheiser, a two-time Olympic MVP, had been the captain of the Canadas national team, but it was announced by Hockey Canada prior to the Olympics that Caroline Ouellette would be the captain in Sochi. Wickenheiser was named an alternate captain. There had even been some chatter leading up to the Games she might be cut from the team. Given how well she has played in Sochi, that would have been a dreadful mistake. Its a team game For Wickenheiser, it is all about the team. “Were so close,” she said of the bitter rivalry with the United States. “Sometimes it just comes down to the team that gets a break or has more energy. I liked the energy level and determination in our game [today].” On snapping the four-game losing streak to Team USA, Wickenheiser said, “Its a confidence booster. [Coach] Kevin Dineen has had some time to prepare for this game. He also needed time to get to know the players in our room; the strengths and weaknesses. We have all the confidence in him.” So, with the victory over the United States, is it advantage Canada moving into the medal round? Perhaps. Perhaps not. Bragging rights Certainly Canada has bragging rights following its win over Team USA. However, history has shown what happens leading up to the Games doesnt necessarily have anything to do with who wins the gold medal. In 2002, Team USA had beaten Canada 10 times in a row, but the Canadians shocked the Americans with a 3-2 victory in the gold-medal game at Salt Lake City. It is also worth noting prior to the last tthree Olympic Games, the United States won the world championship only to have Canada rebound to take gold at the Olympics.dddddddddddd The United States certainly had a mental edge over Canada entering the game – the first time the teams had met in the preliminary round since 1998 – thanks to four straight victories over their rivals in a six-game exhibition series leading up to the Olympic Games. In 1998 in Nagano, Japan, Team USA beat Canada 7-4 in the preliminary round and 3-1 in the gold-medal game. At the very least, Canada now knows it can skate with and beat the powerful United States club. Doing it twice in a row will not be easy. “It felt so good,” said winning goalie Charline Labonte. “We have been struggling a bit the past couple of games against them. We have worked really hard to readjust and become a better team. They came out really strong, as expected, so I am really glad we came up with the win.” American scoring ace Amanda Kessel was understandably dissatisfied with the final result. "It hurts," Kessel said. "Every game matters. They didnt get to see how we can play." A lot has been made of the fact the two teams have an intense dislike for one another – as indicated by the two line brawls in the final few exhibition games leading up to the Olympics – and it was fully on display in Wednesdays preliminary match. Despite the fact bodychecking is illegal in womens hockey, players from both teams rode that fine line between handing out jarring hits, just hard and incidental enough so as not to cause Finnish referee Anna Eskola to penalize them. In that regard, Eskola did a fine job in allowing the game to be physical without getting goofy. "Both teams were aggressive," said American forward Hilary Knight. Youll get our top game when we play one another and thats a great thing. We are both good teams and we are competitive." Canada matched USAs speed and demonstrated a penchant for driving hard to the net from start to finish. If there was a concern for Canada it was the ineffectiveness of its power play. Canada entered the third period a mere 1-for-10 with the man advantage throughout the tournament. It was zero-for-three in the first 40 minutes. However, Agosta-Marciano accepted a perfectly-placed pass from Wickenheiser and scored with Americas Brianna Decker in the penalty box to tie the game 1-1 with a much-needed power-play marker. Decker had been sent off for tripping Wickenheiser. The quarter-finals will be played Saturday and Canada will play in the semifinal Monday. ' ' '