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WASHINGTON (AP) In a game that didn’t feel much like the postseason Zdeno Chara Jersey , the Washington Capitals gave future playoff opponents fair warning about how they handle tight games.Outshot by a team eliminated from contention, Washington stayed close before tying it late and beating the New York Rangers 3-2 in overtime on Wednesday night. Braden Holtby stopped 35 of 37 shots, Lars Eller forced overtime and Evgeny Kuznetsov won it to push the Metropolitan Division-leading Capitals closer to their fourth consecutive playoff appearance.Even if it wasn’t the kind of showing the Capitals would like to have come playoff time, Eller’s goal with 1:50 left and Kuznetsov’s 38 seconds into overtime showed what they could do when it matters.”I think we play better when it’s close,” Holtby said. ”With our skill, I think it forces us to turn things on late in the game and I think guys take that as a challenge. That’s I think a reason why you can see us bring it to a next level to try and force the other team into feeling a bit of panic and open up space.”There was little panic in the Rangers, who were playing their first game with no playoff implications since 2004, and they turned that looseness into a 37-33 shot advantage. Henrik Lundqvist made 30 saves and Kevin Hayes and Ryan Spooner scored, but New York lamented a defensive miscue on Eller’s goal that let the game slip away.”So frustrating,” Lundqvist said after his first game with no hope of playoffs in his NHL career. ”When you’re tied up that late after playing so hard and doing so many good things, it doesn’t matter where you are in the standings, you want to win games and sit in here and feel good about a win. They came back and got it. It bothers me.”After the Capitals came back and got two valuable points, they can clinch with help around the league or by picking up a point Friday at home against Carolina. There are lower expectations on Washington this year after back-to-back Presidents’ Trophies and second-round exits, but Holtby said making the playoffs was a goal at the start of the season.It’s within reach now.”It’s the first step on the way,” Eller said. ”We want to win our division and go into the playoffs on a high note.”Holtby looks like he could be heading into the playoffs on a high note after almost two months of struggles and a minor lower-body injury. He would have liked to stop Spooner’s third-period goal on a shot that beat him clean, but with a question of whether Holtby or Philipp Grubauer will start, it helped that the 2016 Vezina Trophy winner finally looks like his normal self again.”I felt comfortable,” Holtby said. ”It’s something I’m not used to – not playing much. The stamina and such was a little different than I was used to, but it felt good to go out there and just get to work and play in a high-intensity game.”There are many more high-intensity games to come for the Capitals, who can soon exhale about making the playoffs and prepare for the next step.”The NHL how it is, it doesn’t really matter where you are in the standings,” Holtby said. ”The guys should be proud. We should be proud we’re in a position like that.”NOTES: Rangers assistant Lindy Ruff missed the game after hitting his head on the ice at practice Thursday. Coach Alain Vigneault said Ruff was hospitalized and diagnosed with a concussion but was in good spirits and expected to be back with the team in a few days. … F Shane Gersich, a 2014 fifth-round pick who signed with Washington last week after his season at North Dakota ended, made his NHL debut. … Pheonix Copley backed up Holtby because Grubauer felt a ”tweak” in the Capitals’ game at the Rangers on Tuesday, according to coach Barry Trotz.UP NEXTRangers: Return home to face the playoff-bound Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday night.Capitals: Host the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night.— Ed Olczyk takes one look at the white-out-wearing crowds of Jets fans packing Winnipeg’s arena and surrounding streets and is reassured about what he always knew of the Canadian prairie city, even during its bleakest days.Winnipeg was a hockey-mad town deserving of an NHL team some 22 years ago, when Olczyk played in what became the franchise’s final game before relocating to Arizona. Very little has changed with ”Jets 2.0,” launched when the Thrashers left Atlanta for the Manitoba capital in 2011.”It made me nauseous to know what was going to happen,” the NHLer-turned-broadcaster said, recalling the uncertainty after the Jets were eliminated following a 4-1 loss to Detroit in Game 6 of their first-round playoff series on April 26, 1996. Jets players and fans lingered long after the final horn sounded in the former Winnipeg Arena, where the oversized portrait of Queen Elizabeth II hung prominently from the rafters.”But I always knew that Winnipeg was an NHL city even though they didn’t have a team there,” Olczyk added. ”It’s just incredible to see. The white outs bring back a lot of memories. And I couldn’t be happier.”The NHL is, indeed, back in ”The `Peg.” And the Jets are better than ever in preparing for Game 7 of their second-round playoff series at Nashville on Thursday night.No matter the outcome, the Jets are already enjoying the deepest playoff run of any Winnipeg-based NHL team. This marks just the third time Winnipeg has advanced to the second round in 13 postseason appearances. The previous two times, the Jets were swept in four games by Edmonton in both 1985 and `87.As for the current franchise’s 18-year history, the team was swept in its two previous playoff appearances before opening this postseason with its first victory, a 3-2 decision over Minnesota.The only real hockey success Winnipeg enjoyed was when the Jets won three Avco Cups as members of the defunct World Hockey Association before joining the NHL after the league folded in 1979.Suddenly, these Jets have captured the imaginations of all Manitobans Authentic Benoit Pouliot Jersey , and many Canadians as well. They stand as nation’s last team with a shot to end Canada’s Stanley Cup drought dating to 1993, when Montreal won the title.The Jets are wowed by their fans’ support.”I don’t know if they can yell any louder,” coach Paul Maurice said.Even Edmonton Oilers forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins took notice from Denmark, where he’s representing Canada at the world championships.”It looks like a crazy atmosphere,” Nugent-Hopkins said. ”Even during the regular season it’s pretty fun and loud and intense. So I can only imagine that right now in the playoffs.”The white out in Winnipeg first became a playoff staple in 1987, and has reached new levels this spring, with estimated crowds of 20,000 gathering to watch games outside the arena.”I’ve never experienced this level of excitement for our team or confidence in our city,” Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman said. ”My 10-year-old son is sleeping with his hockey stick.”The excitement is evident in Bowman’s Twitter account, which features the mayor wearing a Jets jersey, and pictures and videos of fans in makeup, putting on makeup and dancing in the streets.This is as far removed as anyone expected after the Jets left in 1996 at a time when the Winnipeg’s economy and population base were also dropping.”It was a kick in the gut,” Bowman said. ”It was demoralizing and a lot of people were questioning the city’s future because we were losing people to other cities.”The Jets’ on-ice success mirrors the city’s rebound. With a population of 750,000, Winnipeg now ranks as Canada’s seventh-largest city and features one of the nation’s fastest growing economies.”I think that’s one of the really nice parts about this playoff run. It’s allowing Winnipeggers to take stock in where we were in the `90s and compare it to where we are now,” Bowman said. ”People are feeling good about the city, and their confidence and swagger is growing.”Despite the city’s size and 145-year history, Winnipeg is often overlooked in the national media because of how far it’s removed from major centers such as Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.To some, Winnipeg is best known for its black flies and mosquitoes in the spring and summer, and frigid winters, made notable in the Neil Young and Randy Bachman song, ”Prairie Town,” which includes the lyric ”Portage and Main, 50 below,” in reference to the city’s main intersection.Perhaps the Jets’ success can begin changing perceptions.”It’s an opportunity for us to show North Americans what’s going on in Winnipeg,” Bowman said.Even former Thrashers fans in Atlanta are on board. Bud Ellis overcame the frustration of losing the Thrashers by continuing to root for the Jets in Winnipeg. He couldn’t begrudge Jets fans in knowing they once lost their team.”I am so happy for the people there, the way they embrace that team,” Ellis said. ”In a way, they’ve kind of taken care of my team and they’ve let me stay along for the ride and welcomed me in.”He’s even getting some nods of approval in Atlanta for wearing a combination of Thrashers and Jets gear.”If you’re tied to Atlanta and you somehow find some success, people will at least start paying attention,” Ellis said. ”Even if they’re 1,850 miles away.”—AP Sports Writers Charles Odum in Atlanta, Teresa M. Walker in Nashville, Tenn., and Associated Press writer Karel Janicek in Herning, Denmark, contributed to this report.—

MONTREAL (AP) Canadian world junior championship coach Dominique Ducharme has made the jump to the NHL as an assistant with the Montreal Canadiens.The Canadiens dropped assistant coaches Jean-Jacques Daigneault and Dan Lacroix and hired Ducharme away from the Drummondville Voltigeurs of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League on Friday.The club also gave a contract extension to goaltending coach Stephane Waite Authentic Marcus Johansson Jersey , who has been with the team for five years.The moves are part of an offseason shakeup by a Canadiens team that missed the playoffs for a second time in three years. On April 17, the club fired Sylvain Lefebvre, coach of their American Hockey League team, the Laval Rocket, which also missed the playoffs. Lefebvre has yet to be replaced.Ducharme, 45, has built an impressive resume in junior hockey and may be seen as a potential future replacement for Canadiens head coach Claude Julien.Ducharme coached 10 years in the QMJHL with Halifax and Drummondville. In 2013, he took a Mooseheads team that included future Colorado Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon and Canadiens winger Jonathan Drouin to a Memorial Cup title, as well as winning the QMJHL coach of the year award. He moved to Drummondville in 2016 to be closer to his family.Ducharme coached Canada twice at the world juniors, winning silver in 2017 and gold in 2018. PITTSBURGH (AP) A cathartic celebration 20 years in the making began with a poke of Evgeny Kuznetsov’s stick. It built as the puck that Kuznetsov tapped away from Sidney Crosby made its way to Washington Capitals teammate Alexander Ovechkin.It neared its crescendo as Ovechkin flipped it back to Kuznetsov, who at this point had split two Penguins and was streaking toward the Pittsburgh net. And it culminated jubilantly and unexpectedly in the corner moments later, with the puck in the net and Kuznetsov’s teammates mobbing him after he ended two decades of frustration with a flick of the Russian’s wrist.The ghosts of past playoff failures, many of them at the hands of the Penguins, were gone. Dispatched over the course of six games of grit and guile, the last a 2-1 overtime win in Game 6 on Monday night that gave Washington a 4-2 series victory and a spot in the Eastern Conference finals against Tampa Bay.”It’s pretty emotional,” Kuznetsov said after his seventh goal of the playoffs 5:27 into overtime pushed the Capitals into the NHL’s final four for just the third time in franchise history. ”I don’t really have a word for it.”Maybe because there aren’t many that can accurately describe the anguish Washington has felt during much of the Ovechkin Era, one filled with postseason failure after postseason failure, many of them coming with the team on the precipice of a breakthrough.Only this time they didn’t crumble. Even with Nicklas Backstrom, Tom Wilson and Andre Burakovsky out. Even with a handful of rookies – including Australian Nate Walker – thrust into the lineup. Even on the road against a two-time defending champion with a special knack for torment.”Again, it doesn’t matter what happened (before),” Ovechkin said. ”We have to stick together. We knew it was there we just had to battle and we just had to fight through it.”Alex Chiasson scored Washington’s only goal of regulation Michael Grabner Jersey , a shot from the right circle that gave the Capitals the lead in the second period. Braden Holtby, benched at the start of the playoffs, stopped 21 of the 22 shots he faced and received a dash of luck when Pittsburgh’s Tom Kuhnhackl hit the far post early in the extra period.The puck flitted away harmlessly. Play continued. And a few minutes later Kuznetsov’s goal joined Dale Hunter’s overtime Game 7 winner vs. Philadelphia in the first round in 1988 and Joe Juneau’s poke by Dominik Hasek vs. Buffalo in the Eastern Conference finals in 1998 in franchise lore.”I’m not expecting myself to score game winner in that situation,” Kuznetsov said.Maybe because it’s what the Penguins always seem to do instead. Pittsburgh won nine of its 10 previous playoff meetings with Washington, including taut second-round triumphs in 2016 and 2017 on their way to becoming the first team in nearly 20 years to win consecutive Stanley Cups.A bid for a three-peat came to an abrupt end after another sluggish start. Kris Letang scored for the Penguins and Murray finished with 28 saves but couldn’t close his legs fast enough to stop Kuznetsov’s flick.”You look at the last couple of games, it’s a one-shot difference,” Crosby said. ”You need to get those big plays. Unfortunately couldn’t do it.”Washington spent the series saying its forgettable playoff history littered with squandered leads and blown opportunities – particularly against the Penguins – is not a factor. That this time is different. That this team is different. Twice the Capitals rallied in the third period to stun Pittsburgh, including a four-goal outburst in Game 5 that brought them to the brink of their first Eastern Conference finals appearance in 20 years.That last step, however, has always been tricky. Four times previously since 2008 the Capitals won three games in the second round only to come up short in Game 7. This time, a Game 7 wasn’t even necessary.”It’s almost embarrassing that it’s taken this long for us to get past it,” Washington owner Ted Leonsis said. ”But the Penguins are an unbelievable franchise. It’s an unbelievable team.”One that came up just short for the first time since Mike Sullivan took over in December 2015. The Penguins had been 4-0 in elimination games under Sullivan but had trouble getting much going as Washington cut off shooting lanes and created havoc in the neutral zone, leading to 15 Pittsburgh turnovers, the last on Kuznetsov’s poke away from a rushing Crosby that began the series-deciding sequence.The victory wasn’t just a measure of redemption for Ovechkin but for Trotz, who has won over 750 games in the regular season but never made it to a conference final. He has now. So has his team, one that knows as giddy as they felt in the middle of a quiet PPG Paints Arena, much work remains to be done.”We beat the Pittsburgh Penguins today and they’re a hell of a hockey team and we’re only halfway,” Trotz said. ”We haven’t done anything yet. It’s a good feeling getting by the Penguins because there’s a lot of skeletons in the closet. It’s a start.”NOTES: Crosby’s assist pushed his career playoff total to 185, tied with Hall of Famer Steve Yzerman for 10th most all-time. … Walker’s assist was the first ever in the playoffs by an Australian when he set up Chiasson’s score.—

CALGARY http://www.officialsabres.com/authentic-adidas-jack-eichel-jersey , Alberta (AP) After a blip in Vancouver, the Boston Bruins got right back to business.Brad Marchand scored his 22nd goal 3:36 into overtime to give Boston a 2-1 victory over the Calgary Flames on Monday, less than 48 hours after the Bruins lost 6-1 to the Canucks.”We ran into a hot goalie in Vancouver. Their goalie played great tonight, but we were resilient,” Marchand said. ”We were much better in the defensive zone and had a better game overall.”Article continues below ...David Pastrnak also scored for Boston (36-13-8), which moved within one point of Tampa Bay for first place in the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference. The Bruins, who are 12-1-2 in their last 15 road games, have two games in hand on the Lightning.Boston has lost only three times in regulation in the last 28 games (21-3-4).”It starts at the top with leadership, and just having that constant belief we can do it, we can get the job done regardless of who we’re playing against,” Riley Nash said.After TJ Brodie’s turnover deep in the Flames end, Nash’s pass sprung Marchand on a breakaway and he made no mistake, slipping the puck through the pads of rookie goaltender David Rittich for the ninth overtime goal of his career.”(Nash) made a phenomenal defensive play,” Marchand said. ”I knew that they had three guys low and I just tried to get out of the zone. He made a great play to get it up.”Brodie accepted the blame.”Tonight was on me,” the Calgary defenseman said. ”I tried to pass to Johnny (Gaudreau). I could have passed it to (Sean Monahan), I could have shot it. It’s one of those things that looking back now, I definitely could have done something different.”Matthew Tkachuk scored for the Flames (30-21-9), who fell to 1-3-4 in their last eight home games. They began the day one point out of third place in the Pacific Division.”It’s like any slump – the harder you try, the more you grip the stick, the worse it is,” Brodie said. ”It’s not like we’ve been playing bad at home. We’ve gotten chances. It’s just one of those things where a bounce here and there Richard Panik Jersey , we could be talking about the same record as the road.”With the teams meeting for the second time in six days, Calgary was territorially outplayed by a wide margin in the first period but Rittich kept the Flames in it.Calgary tied it 1-all at 5:28 of the second, scoring on the power play. Monahan’s shot was stopped by Tuukka Rask, but as the puck lied at the feet of Zdeno Chara in the crease, Tkachuk knocked in his 22nd goal.Rittich was starting his fourth game in a row, with veteran Mike Smith (lower body) still sidelined. Rittich was pulled Saturday night after giving up four goals on 15 shots.”Huge bounce-back for Rittich,” Flames coach Glen Gulutzan said. ”That team is a hard team to beat. You look across the league, not many teams are beating them. You can’t really beat them without goaltending and we got it tonight and it gave us a chance.”The 25-year-old Czech goalie was especially sharp in keeping the score even at 1.A minute after Calgary tied it, Rittich slid across the crease to get a glove on Marchand’s backhand out of midair after he was set up by Patrice Bergeron.Late in the second, Rittich stabbed out his glove to rob Ryan Spooner on a breakaway. In the third, the goalie stared down Pastrnak on a breakaway and acrobatically got the toe of his left pad on a dangerous chance.Rittich finished with 30 stops but fell to 6-3-3.”It’s frustrating,” said Tkachuk, who has 14 goals in his last 22 games. ”They’re a really good team. Didn’t give us many chances at all. The ones that we did get, we’ve got to capitalize.”Rask also was coming off a shortened outing in his previous start, pulled after giving up four goals on eight shots in the first period against Vancouver.This time, he made 28 saves to improve to 24-10-4.Boston struck first at 5:59 when Michael Frolik coughed up the puck along the sideboards in his own end and Pastrnak pounced on it, quickly firing a shot past Rittich on his blocker side.NOTES: Flames D Travis Hamonic played in his 500th career game. … Calgary LW Morgan Klimchuk, drafted in 2013, made his NHL debut on a line with C Matt Stajan and RW Curtis Lazar. Every player selected in the first round of that draft has now played an NHL game. … The Bruins improved to 9-1-3 in their last 13 games against Calgary. … Boston is 23-1-5 when scoring first.UP NEXTBruins: Tuesday night at Edmonton.Flames: Wednesday night at Vegas.— WINNIPEG, Manitoba — The Edmonton Oilers are giving new meaning to the term “road warriors.”After opening the season in Sweden against New Jersey before crossing the Atlantic Ocean to play the Boston Bruins and the New York Rangers — not to mention finishing their pre-season with a game in Germany — the Oilers will wrap up their longest road trip in franchise history, distance-wise Tyson Barrie Jersey , with a tilt against the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday night. Prior to flying into town on Tuesday morning, the Oilers have flown a total of nearly 11,000 miles.Even though they defeated the Rangers 2-1 on Saturday at Madison Square Garden, the Oilers have scored just five goals thus far this season and captain Connor McDavid, who has led the league in points each of the past two seasons, has figured in on all of them. Article continues below ...“We’ve only scored five goals in three games. When offence isn’t there, you need to check. I thought we did a great job finally getting a win in a tough building,” McDavid said. “It wasn’t the prettiest way to win a game but we needed to win a game.”The Jets, meanwhile, are hoping to avoid their giveaway-prone performance against Carolina on Sunday night, a game that they managed to win 3-1 despite leaving backup goalie Laurent Brossoit high and dry for extended periods and being outshot 18-6 in the first period and 43-25 overall. It was Brossoit’s first win as a member of the Jets after spending parts of four seasons with the Oilers. (He won’t get the chance to start against his old mates as coach Paul Maurice has given the crease to Connor Hellebuyck.)The good news for the Jets was their No. 2 line may be starting to get on track. Center Bryan Little scored the winner with his first of the season with just a couple of minutes left on the clock on Sunday while his right winger, Patrik Laine, scored his second of the campaign on the power play to open the scoring.Jets captain Blake Wheeler said there was no panic in the Jets dressing room after the second period of the still-scoreless game.“There was no coming to Jesus speech, we didn’t need to reinvent the wheel,” he told The Winnipeg Sun. “There’s an element of patience and being positive five games into the season that you know you just stay with it and find a way to get two points. (Monday) we’ll try to get better (in practice). Hopefully, the next game will be quicker.”The Jets will have one less player in the press box after forward Marko Dano, who was acquired a couple of years ago from Chicago in exchange for captain Andrew Ladd, was picked up on waivers by Colorado on Monday morning. The first round pick in 2013 hadn’t played for the Jets this season. He scored 10 goals over parts of three seasons for the Jets.

TORONTO (AP) One little tweak to Toronto’s lines is paying off in a big way for the Maple Leafs.Nazem Kadri had three goals and two assists Womens Carter Hutton Jersey , Frederik Andersen made a career-high 54 saves and surging Toronto beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 6-3 on Wednesday night.The line of Kadri, Patrick Marleau and Mitch Marner combined for five goals and five assists. Since the trio was formed on Jan. 24 against Chicago, Kadri has seven goals and eight assists, Marner has seven goals and five assists, and Marleau has three goals and four assists.Article continues below ...”My linemates contributed just as much as I did,” Kadri said. ”They found me, I just tried to get open, and the puck seemed to find me tonight.”The production far exceeds what Kadri and Marleau managed with Leo Komarov, their regular linemate for a large chunk of the season.”I’m not sure,” Leafs coach Mike Babcock said when asked about the change in the lineup. ”I used them together, Kadri and Marner, last year and they were no good together. That’s the beauty of having more players. You move them around and once in a while you get lucky.”Andersen also turned in a solid performance as the Maple Leafs closed out a perfect five-game homestand. It was the first time in franchise history that the team swept a homestand of five games or more.”I had a clean view of most of the shots Colton Parayko Jersey , and I think that was the key to withstand all of that,” Andersen said.The Blue Jackets recorded 50 or more shots for the third straight game, making them the first team to accomplish the feat in the post-expansion era (since 1967-68). Nick Foligno had two goals and an assist, and Joonas Korpisalo made 22 saves.Toronto played much of the game without defenseman Jake Gardiner, who departed with a lower-body injury after one period.”I’m not exactly sure how it happened. He’s got some kind of spasm or something like that,” Babcock said.The Maple Leafs had a 4-2 lead before Jack Johnson beat Andersen with a slap shot from the left circle that went off the post and into the net at 14:35 of the second. It was Johnson’s third goal of the season.Toronto then put it away with two in the third. Kadri got his 21st of the season at 11:21, and Marleau added an empty-netter with 1:47 left.”I like the way we played,” Columbus coach John Tortorella said. ”Problem tonight for us is we couldn’t finish.”The Maple Leafs opened the scoring when Dominic Moore finished a 2-on-1 with his fifth goal at 4:38 of the first. With David Savard taking away the passing lane to Kasperi Kapanen, Moore used a backhanded shot to beat Korpisalo.Kadri cut around Korpisalo before using a screen to make it 2-0 at 7:36, but the Blue Jackets pulled within one when Foligno received a centering pass from Alexander Wennberg and fired a backhander by Andersen with 1:39 left.Foligno scored his 13th goal early in the second. He received a pass from Wennberg on a 2-on-1 and beat Andersen at 2:25.But Kadri’s one-timer made it 3-2 at 8:03 and he set up Marner’s one-timer at 10:17.NOTES: Toronto D Travis Dermott had two assists. … Columbus was 0 for 2 on the power play, and Toronto went 0 for 3 with the man advantage.UP NEXTBlue Jackets: Host Philadelphia on Friday night.Maple Leafs: Visits Pittsburgh on Saturday night. OTTAWA, Ontario (AP) — Jakub Voracek rebounded quickly from an embarrassing loss.Voracek had two goals and three assists and Scott Laughton also scored twice in Philadelphia’s 7-4 victory over the Ottawa Senators in Wednesday http://www.stlouisbluesteamshops.com/authentic-dmitrij-jaskin-jersey , a night after an 8-2 loss to San Jose in the Flyers‘ home opener.“It was a tough start at home for us, but we scored seven and I think we played a pretty good hockey game,” Voracek said. “We just have to take it to the home ice now.”Sean Couturier, Robert Hagg and Claude Giroux also scored, and Calvin Pickard stopped 31 shots.Brady Tkachuk scored his first NHL goal and finished with two goals and an assist for Ottawa.“(My mother’s) birthday is (Thursday), so it’s a nice little pre-gift for her because as of right now I don’t have a gift for her yet,” said Tkachuk, the No. 4 pick in the June draft. “Maybe try to send flowers overnight, but it’s kind of my gift for her.”Maxime Lajoie also had two goals and an assist for the Senators, who were playing the first of a five-game homestand.Craig Anderson made 38 saves, but the Flyers victimized him with four goals through two periods before they pulled away in the third.Philadelphia took the lead for good with 4:15 remaining in the second period when Thomas Chabot missed an opportunity to clear the puck down low and Laughton beat Anderson off a backhand.The game took a nasty edge in the second that continued in the third.Playing his second career game, the 19-year-old Tkachuk endeared himself to fans with his scoring touch Youth Jaden Schwartz Jersey , but also showed his propensity to mix things up when he took a double minor for roughing early in the final frame.The Flyers didn’t score on the ensuing power play, but Hagg picked up his second of the season shortly thereafter.Giroux scored his first goal of the season late in the period on a power play to make it 6-3.Tkachuk, making his home debut with the Senators, got his first goal when he redirected a shot by Chris Tierney off his skate on the power play midway through the first period. He became the fastest Tkachuk to score in the NHL. It took his father Keith five games, and brother Matthew, who plays for Calgary, scored in his fourth outing.The Flyers tied it on the power play as Voracek, at the side of the net, redirected Shayne Gostisbehere’s one-timer.Tkachuk picked up his second of the night early in the second period as he carried the puck in and beat Pickard shortside, but less than two minutes later Couturier grabbed a rebound and backhanded it past Anderson to tie it 2-2.The Flyers took the lead on Voracek’s second of the night as he showed great patience before beating Anderson through the five-hole. The Senators managed to tie it when Lajoie fired a rebound past Pickard.NOTESOttawa C Paul Carey and D Ben Harpur were healthy scratches.UP NEXTFlyers: Return home to face the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday.Senators: Host the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday.

OTTAWA — Injuries have hit the Ottawa Senators. Hard.In the wake of Thursday’s 7-4 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers Juuse Saros Jersey , the Senators learned they will be without top scoring winger Ryan Dzingel (lower body), impressive rookie winger Alex Formenton (concussion) and minutes-eating defenseman Cody Ceci (upper body) for Saturday’s afternoon game at Canadian Tire Centre against the Los Angeles Kings.All are expected to return for an Oct. 20 meeting with the Montreal Canadiens.Article continues below ...“There are a lot of fallen soldiers around here, but that’s the way it goes,” winger Mikkel Boedker said Friday. “We’ve got to have a next-man-up mentality.”While the Senators (1-2-1) have dropped two in a row, they’ll be facing a Kings team (2-1-1) that spoiled the Montreal Canadiens home opener on Thursday.Goalie Jack Campbell, a first-round pick of the Dallas Stars in 2010 who has just 10 games of NHL experience, made 40 saves in the Kings’ 3-0 shutout of the Canadiens. Campbell has allowed four goals in three games, suggesting the Kings will be OK while star goalie Jonathan Quick is out “week-to-week” with a lower body injury.“Jack’s got ability, but he’s got a really good attitude and he’s got a great work ethic,” Kings coach John Stevens told LA Kings Insider. “He’s been all ears trying to get better. If you work that hard, you’re going to get better, and I think he’s really worked hard at his game to be ready for an opportunity like this.”Center Jeff Carter led the offense in Montreal with a goal and two assists, while center Adrian Kempe scored his first goal since Feb. 7.Kings defensemen Dion Phaneuf and center Nate Thompson will make their returns to Ottawa after being traded by the rebuilding Senators to Los Angeles last season.Phaneuf also had plenty of praise for Campbell.“He’s calm in there, mature,” Phaneuf said, per NHL.com. “I’m really happy for him because he works extremely hard. Things you might not see in practice … he really competes, he’s on every puck. For him to get a shutout, it’s well deserved. He won the hockey game for us.”While Campbell is expected to start in goal for the Kings, Craig Anderson will be tending the pipes at the other end. The 37-year old Anderson allowed six goals in his last outing and, through three games, has a .895 save percentage and a 4.35 goals-against average — neither of which is acceptable.Senators coach Guy Boucher, however, blames the problems in Thursday’s loss to the odd man rushes his team gave up.“The minute we lose the puck, our reload has to be smarter, better, so we can avoid at least the rush goals that we’ve been giving Kyle Turris Jersey ,” said Boucher. “It wasn’t about the D-zone last game. It was more about the rush situation we didn’t sort out well. We didn’t have the right numbers the minute we lost the puck. If we improve that, we give ourselves a chance.”While the Senators recalled winger Nick Paul and defenseman Christian Jaros, Boucher would only confirm that defenseman Ben Harpur will be making his season debut. The Senators could go with an 11-forward, seven-defenseman alignment. WASHINGTON — After years of carrying the weight of unfulfilled expectations on their shoulders, Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals traded it in for the weight of the actual Stanley Cup, which they paraded around the Las Vegas ice after a 4-3 win in Game 5 of the finals in June.On Wednesday night, the Capitals will raise a banner to the Capital One Arena rafters and begin their title defense against the Boston Bruins.While their roster is mostly unchanged, new coach Todd Reirden will make his debut. After four years as Barry Trotz’s top assistant, Reirden ascended when Trotz stepped down and ultimately took the New York Islanders’ top job.Article continues below ...Ovechkin, who recently turned 33, scored 87 points (49 goals) in the regular season and added 27 points (15 goals) in 24 postseason games as he finally put to rest questions about his ability to lead a team to the Cup.“It looks like he’s in the best mode ever,” center Nicklas Backstrom told the Washington Post. “He’s just laughing all the time, which is great. He’s going to carry this over, I think.”Washington will likely open without top-line winger Tom Wilson, who was ejected from Sunday’s preseason finale against the St. Louis Blues for an illegal check on Oskar Sundqvist, who lay motionless before being helped from the ice. Wilson was slated for an in-person hearing with the NHL’s Department of Player Safety on Wednesday.Wilson’s absence combined with several injuries led the Capitals to claim forward Dmitrij Jaskin off waivers from the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday. Jaskin, 25, totaled six goals and 11 assists in 76 games last season.“We like the player,” general manager Brian MacLellan told the Washington Post. “We think the player has some upside and with the possible suspension of Tom we’re adding a big body that can make some plays and go to the net and has a similar skill set as Tom.”Washington has won 12 straight regular-season games in four seasons against Boston.After starting 6-7-4 last season, the Bruins soared to a 50-20-12 record, good for second place in the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference. They defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games in the first round but fell to the Tampa Bay Lightning in five games in the Eastern Conference semifinals.The Bruins’ success was a bit ahead of schedule as they boast one of the youngest rosters in the league.Boston will be missing a key player in the opener as well. Defenseman Torey Krug injured his left ankle in the final preseason game. He’s in a walking boot and will be evaluated in three weeks. Krug had 59 points (14 goals, 45 assists) in 76 games last season.“It’s a big loss,” center Patrice Bergeron told the Boston Herald. “He’s a huge part of our defense, power play as well. He’s the quarterback up there. We’re going to miss him. That being said, it’s an opportunity for someone else to step up and be good for us.”

SUNRISE Authentic Oscar Lindberg Jersey , Fla. (AP) — Bob Boughner’s favorite dinner spot used to be a sports pub in the minor-league hockey hotbed of Glens Falls, New York called Dango’s, a place where the chicken wings were huge and most of the televisions were usually tuned to hockey.These days, it’s an upscale steakhouse called Mastro’s.If there’s one constant of Boughner’s life in hockey, it’s that just about everything — from refining a palate, to reaching the NHL, to transforming a hockey team — takes time. And Boughner got a very tough reminder of that last season when the Florida Panthers missed the postseason by a single point in his inaugural year as their coach.So here the Panthers go again, trying to become a playoff club. But with Boughner leading the charge, there’s real belief that good things are coming.“He’s even more than advertised,” Panthers president Matthew Caldwell said. “His diligence, he’s a player’s coach but also very, very technical. He gets into the weeds and I think the players trust him, but he’ll hold them accountable too. His ability to be there for the players but also correct them, not be too friendly with them, have strong standards, that’s been excellent.”Boughner won the job in Florida by selling Caldwell and the rest of the Panthers’ leadership on a vision.His message: Be patient.Boughner played 297 games in three different minor leagues, needing seven years to make the jump from NHL draftee to NHL player. Once he got to the top level, he never left Reilly Smith Jersey , spending parts of 10 seasons with six franchises and being part of five deep runs in the Stanley Cup playoffs. He was a hard-nosed defenseman, someone whose pro-career-best of eight goals came during those Dango’s-fueled days with the AHL’s Adirondack Red Wings in 1993-94.His coaching climb took time as well, going from an owner-coach-president of OHL team in his hometown of Windsor, Ontario to some NHL assistant stints and finally getting the head job in Florida in 2017.“It wasn’t an easy road. It was a hard road,” Boughner said. “I earned it as a player and I had to work every day to stay there. And it was not like I had a secure spot every year, too. But I always worked hard to be a team guy and that’s what has sort of turned into some of my coaching philosophy. I had to build it from the ground up. I miss playing every day, but coaching, there’s something gratifying when it all comes together.”He feels that gratification coming in Florida.The Panthers, who open their home schedule on Thursday against Columbus, won three playoff series in their third season of existence — 1995-96. They’ve won zero series since, missing the playoffs entirely in 17 of the 21 seasons that followed their lone run to the Stanley Cup final. Boughner spent two seasons as part of the Panthers organization as a player, though he never made the NHL club.Panthers general manager Dale Tallon knew it would take time for Boughner’s system to take root. Florida was 25-8-2 in its last 35 games last season, going from near the bottom of the Eastern Conference to just missing the postseason.“I just like his whole attitude about everything,” Tallon said. “He’s a straightforward, no-nonsense guy. His technical aspect is terrific. And he gets the player. He has good relationships with all the players.”Boughner looks back at last season with the obvious tinge of disappointment.But he also knows the growing pains were vital.Much of the core from last season remains the core now, and those players know what makes Boughner tick — and what makes his system work. There’s a culture in place now, a level of expectation, a level of accountability.It’s what Boughner demanded from himself as a player Tomas Tatar Jersey , and it’s his blueprint for what he wants as a coach.“There’s no more excuses,” Boughner said. “There’s a point last year, maybe 10 or 15 games in, when we were on a trip and I couldn’t wait to get off our plane and get to the hotel and tell the guys get into the meeting room. I sort of blew up, got a lot of things off my chest, and the guys sort started taking inventory of themselves. I think we’ve turned a corner now. I think we’re ready now.” GREENBURGH, N.Y. (AP) After firing coach Alain Vigneault, the New York Rangers have also dismissed two of his top assistants.Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton said Monday that associate coach Scott Arniel and Darryl Williams were let go the previous day. Gorton said Lindy Ruff is still on staff and intends to speak with him before deciding on his future.Gorton said the decision to fire Vigneault was made in the last week of the season. The announcement Saturday night came hours after a 5-0 loss at Philadelphia in the season finale.The Rangers went 226-147-37 in five years under Vigneault. They made the playoffs four times, reaching the Stanley Cup Final in his initial season in 2014. This season, they finished last in the Metropolitan Division, missing the postseason for the first time since 2010.”AV has been a terrific coach in the league, he’s been a really good coach for the Rangers,” Gorton said. ”After five years we just think it’s time for a change. The players need a new voice and the organization needs a new coach.”Gorton expects to interview five to 10 candidates.”We’ll look anywhere, whether it’s AHL, NHL, wherever we can find the best possible coach going forward,” he said. ”We’re looking for somebody who can help us get back to an identity we want to get back to. We’re looking to go through this process and hear some ideas from some people.”

DALLAS (AP) — Jim Montgomery didn’t pause very long to savor a win in his NHL coaching debut.The Dallas Stars coach isn’t even sure it counts.“First of all Womens Bryan Rust Jersey , players win games,” Montgomery said after Devin Shore, Alexander Radulov and John Klingberg scored less than two minutes apart in the second period of a 3-0 win over the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday night.“I don’t know why coaches have records. I really think players win championships, and I’ve always believed that. I think coaches help give them opportunities to do that.”Ben Bishop stopped all 30 shots for his first season-opening shutout and the 25th of his career. Bishop has a four-game winning streak on opening night.Shore broke a scoreless tie by putting in a rebound as he was going to his knees. Radulov beat backtracking former Dallas defenseman Alex Goligoski one-on-one in a battle for the puck as they skated up the ice and slipped it between Antii Raanta’s pads 27 seconds later.A little more than a minute after that, Klingberg skated alone up the right side in 4-on-4 and beat Raanta inside the far post.“A couple of big ‘yeahs’ by me behind the bench on every one of them,” Montgomery said. “So, it was a great flurry by us.”Defenseman Connor Carrick, acquired in a trade with Toronto three days before the opener, assisted on the first two goals.Jamie Benn also had two assists in the Stars’ eighth straight win over the Coyotes — all in regulation by a combined score of 30-13. It was Dallas’ 11th consecutive home win over Arizona, a streak dating to February 2012.The Coyotes — who opened last season with 10 straight losses, nine in regulation — hit the post twice when the game was scoreless.Clayton Keller did it in the first period, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson in the second less than a minute before Shore’s goal sparked the Dallas flurry.“We hit the post, and then …,” second-year coach Rick Tocchet said. “It’s the first game of the year, but it’s something you can’t let happen. We have to play quicker and initiate.”Montgomery, who played his final game with Dallas in 2002, was making his debut less than two years after winning an NCAA championship at Denver. He is one of three current NHL coaches who made the jump from college.General manager Jim Nill chose Montgomery as the club’s third coach in three seasons after one year under Ken Hitchcock Authentic Conor Sheary Jersey , who led the Stars to their only Stanley Cup title in 1999 but missed the playoffs in his return 15 years after he was fired.“It’s nice to not have to make him wait for it,” Bishop said of Montgomery’s first win. “There’s a lot of firsts in here tonight. Monty’s obviously one of them. Hopefully we can get him a lot more.”Missing several injured forwards they figure to count on for scoring, the Coyotes outshot the Stars 30-25 but didn’t generate many good chances in the final period. Raanta stopped 22 shots.“It’s a new season. It feels way different,” Goligoski said. “Every year there’s new faces in here. I don’t think (last year’s start) is on anyone’s mind.”Bishop finished a season-opening shutout after getting injured when he was working on one in his Dallas debut last season. He had stopped all 19 shots for a 1-0 lead over Vegas when Bishop took a puck to the mask early in the third period and left the game. The Golden Knights rallied for a 2-1 win.“Can’t start thinking I’m feeling good because that’s like the worst thing you could probably think to yourself,” Bishop said. “Did a good job of clearing the front when there was a couple of ones that squeaked by.”NOTES: Stars D Stephen Jones started the season on injured reserve. He was dealing with headaches during the preseason. He says they might be related to concussions sustained last season. … Coyotes D Jordan Oesterle went to the locker room in the second period after a hard check from Tyler Pitlick but returned to the game. … Stars F Tyler Seguin was scoreless in his first game since signing a $78.8 million, eight-year contract extension.UP NEXTCoyotes: Home opener Saturday against Anaheim.Stars: Second of four straight home games to start season Saturday against Winnipeg. PITTSBURGH (AP) The Pittsburgh Penguins don’t expect the sting from their second-round playoff exit to fade anytime soon.They also don’t expect it to compel general manager Jim Rutherford to give the roster a thorough makeover after the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions’ bid for a three-peat ended at the hands of Washington.If anything, the setback has given Sidney Crosby and company a chance to put their remarkable run atop the league in perspective.No team in a generation had won consecutive Cups until Pittsburgh did it last spring and the Penguins went as far as the 1999 Detroit Red Wings and Mario Lemieux-led 1993 Penguins in their own respective quest for a three-peat.”I think it definitely allows you to appreciate how difficult that was, but also to know we were that close to moving on too, that’s the difficult part,” Crosby said Wednesday as Pittsburgh packed up for the summer.”I think it definitely gives you a greater appreciation how many times it could have went the other way on a pretty good run.”The margin is always razor thin in the playoffs. And the Penguins somehow found a way to land on the right side of things through nine playoff series across three springs.Against the Capitals, however, the bounces – and often the energy – went the other way.Twice Pittsburgh blew a third-period lead in regulation – something that never happened during the regular season.Goaltender Matt Murray was usually crisp but not dominant. The scoring depth that made the Penguins an impossibly tough out vanished this time around. Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel did not register a point at even strength against Washington.Derick Brassard – brought in at the trade deadline to be the third-line center role Nick Bonino filled so capably in 2016 and 2017 – was a nonfactor.So were Bryan Rust and Conor Sheary, who played beyond their years and scored pivotal goals in the process while ending their first two seasons in the league with a parade through downtown Pittsburgh with the Cup in hand.Not this time.The Penguins downplayed the notion they simply ran out of gas after playing more hockey than any other club over the past 32 months.Maybe, but there’s ample proof the NHL has caught up with the team that built itself on lightning quick aggression when Mike Sullivan took over as head coach in December 2015.Now it’s time for Pittsburgh to spend the offseason trying to get that extra gear back.”We’re a good team,” Rutherford said. ”And we will be a good team going forward. We’ll have a chance to win again. We have the nucleus to do that.”How? Let’s take a look back and a look ahead while the Penguins spent the rest of the playoffs watching the pursuit of the Cup on TV, if they bother watching it at all.DINGED UP: Pittsburgh, as is hockey tradition Melker Karlsson Jersey , had several players make a go of it in the playoffs despite undisclosed or non-characterized injuries that limited their effectiveness. The group includes Kessel, Malkin and Brassard. Kessel picked up a career-high 92 points while playing in every single game for the eighth straight season, but had just one goal in 12 playoff games. Sullivan allowed Kessel was dealing with a health issue but added ”it was nothing significant, I can tell you that.”Penguins rookie Zach Aston-Reese, who broke his jaw and suffered a concussion following an illegal hit by Washington’s Tom Wilson in Game 2 of the second round, is currently eating lots of ice cream, sidestepped when asked if the three-game suspension Wilson received was enough but does feel it was a positive step.”It’s something I guess they’re trying to get rid of and I think moving forward guys need to be a little more aware and have more control of their body when they go in and have hits like that,” Aston-Reese said.HOT STOVE: Rutherford, who is as aggressive as they come in terms of trying to upgrade the roster, admitted there’s a chance the Penguins could move an established player or two if necessary.”It is fair to say that this will be a different looking team by the time we open next season,” Rutherford said. ”It doesn’t mean there will be drastic changes … but they’ll be changes that are necessary.”SPRING SPRONG?: Pittsburgh kept forward Daniel Sprong in the minors for most of the year and he responded by scoring a club-rookie record 32 goals for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. It didn’t earn him a promotion during the postseason. That likely won’t be the case next season, when the 21-year-old will be given every chance to make the team out of camp.”He will be a regular on our team,” Rutherford said.So will Rutherford. The 69-year-old famously said he might only be around a handful of seasons when he took over in the spring of 2014. Now it appears he’s not headed anywhere.”I think the best answer is I may be around longer than you guys,” he said with a laugh.—

CHICAGO (AP) — Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford will start Thursday night against Arizona in his first game since he missed most of last season because of a concussion.Coach Joel Quenneville confirmed Crawford’s return at the team’s morning skate. Rookie forward Luke Johnson was assigned to Rockford of the American Hockey League Authentic Gustav Nyquist Jersey , leaving three goaltenders on Chicago’s roster.It’s the first game for Crawford since Dec. 23.“It’s exciting,” Quenneville said. “I’m sure he’s looking forward to it and we all are excited about him in there as well. It’ll be a fun situation for the guys seeing him back in net as well, so we’re looking for everybody to be excited about tonight’s game.”The 33-year-old Crawford helped Chicago win the Stanley Cup in 2013 and 2015. Without him last season, the Blackhawks tumbled into last place in the Central Division and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2008. The two-time All-Star has 230 wins, a 2.37 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage in 409 career games.“I think we’re all happy to see him back on the ice,” star forward Patrick Kane said. “He seems like he’s in a good mood lately. A lot of smiles out there. Good to have him back.”Crawford went 16-9-2 with a 2.27 GAA last season before he was placed on injured reserve. He faced some shots during a morning skate in Arizona on Feb. 12, but was never able to come back.Crawford’s return creates a crowded situation in Chicago’s net with Cam Ward and Anton Forsberg. Ward started Chicago’s first five games. Forsberg hasn’t played yet this season.Beginning with the matchup with the Coyotes, the Blackhawks have three games in the next four nights and seven in the next 11 days.“We’ll see how that goes. I know that we have three right now on our roster,” Quenneville said about the goaltending situation. “With three in four nights, we’ll see how that plays out.” WASHINGTON (AP) The Latest on Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Vegas Golden Knights and the Washington Capitals (all times local):11:03 p.m.The Washington Capitals have beaten the Vegas Golden Knights 3-1 and taken a 2-1 lead in the Stanley Cup Final.Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov scored second-period goals and Devante Smith-Pelly added another late in the third period to put the Golden Knights in a hole. The lone Vegas goal came from Tomas Nosek, who cashed in a mistake by Washington goaltender Braden Holtby at 3:29 of the third period.Vegas pulled goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury for the final two and half minutes of the game but couldn’t break through.It was the first Stanley Cup Final held in the nation’s capital since 1998.—10:50 p.m.Devante Smith-Pelly has given the Washington Capitals a 3-1 lead on Vegas late in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final.Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore had trouble clearing the puck and Capitals centerman Jay Beagle took the puck away and found Smith-Pelly skating in all alone on Golden Knights goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury.Smith-Pelly ripped it past the goalie at 13:53 of the third period.The series is tied 1-1.—10:35 p.m.The Vegas Golden Knights have taken advantage of a huge mistake by Washington Capitals goalie Braden Holtby to get back into Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final.Holtby did a poor job of clearing the puck from behind the Capitals net, and Tomas Nosek easily scored to slice Washington’s lead to 2-1 at 3:29 of the third period.The goal deflated the mood of the sellout crowd, many of them wearing red and cheering for the Capitals in the first Stanley Cup Final held in D.C. since 1998.The series is tied 1-1.—10:10 p.m.The Washington Capitals are 20 minutes away from taking a 2-1 lead in the Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights.Second-period goals by Alex Ovechkin and Evgeny Kuznetsov put Washington up 2-0 in Game 3. Washington holds a 21-13 advantage in shots on goal after two periods.Washington lost the opener 6-4 in Vegas before rebounding to win 3-2 on Wednesday. The series shifted to the nation’s capital for Game 3 Womens Henrik Zetterberg Jersey , marking the first time 20 years the Capitals hosted the Stanley Cup Final.When the Final has been tied 1-1, the winner of Game 3 has gone on to win the Stanley Cup 21 of 27 chances (78 percent) since the series went to the best-of-seven format in 1939—9:45 p.m.Evgeny Kuznetsov has given the Washington Capitals a 2-0 lead in Game 3 of their Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights.Kuznetsov came down the right side in a 2-on-1 with Jay Beagle and pushed a shot into the left side of the net past goalie Marc-Andre Fleury at 12:50 of the second period. Kuznetsov missed most of Game 2 with what appeared to be a left arm injury.The goal came after Washington defenseman Brooks Orpik looked dazed following a hit from Golden Knights forward James Neal. He was not pulled from the game to go through concussion protocol.Orpik went to the bench following the check in the corner but did not go down the tunnel for evaluation. The NHL’s concussion protocol states that a player exhibiting any possible concussion symptoms must be evaluated, and the league has spotters in place to pull players if that’s suspected.—9:25 p.m.Alex Ovechkin has given the Washington Capitals a 1-0 lead over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final.Ovechkin scored on a shot from the left side at 1:10 of the second period as he was falling over Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb to end a flurry that saw goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury make three saves before Ovechkin connected.It was Ovechkin’s 14th goal of the playoffs, tying the franchise mark set by John Druce in 1990.The series is tied at one game apiece. This is the first Stanley Cup Final held in the nation’s capital since 1998.—9:05 p.m.The Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights have skated through a scoreless first period, though both teams had chances to get on the board first in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final.Vegas goalie Marc-Andre Fleury swatted away a close shot by Alex Ovechkin, and the Capitals had an apparent goal taken away when winger Devante Smith-Pelly was called for goalie interference.Golden Knights’ leading scorer, Jonathan Marchessault, hit the right post with a shot at the 14-minute mark.Washington finished with 7-5 advantage in shots. There were 15 goals total in the first two games, the most in a Final since 1982.Toward the end of the period, Capitals defenseman Michal Kempny left the ice. He took a spill in pregame warmups after crashing into the boards.There’s plenty of star power in the stands, including a few people you never knew were Capitals fans.Keenan Thompson, a longtime cast member of ”Saturday Night Live,” spent this Saturday night watching hockey. He waved to the crowd and tipped his red hat http://www.redwingsshoponline.com/authentic-jimmy-howard-jersey , which said, ”ALL CAPS.”Actress Lynda Carter showed off her red Capitals jersey. Former Redskins coach Joe Gibbs yelled ”Let’s Go Caps!” over the public address system and game show host Pat Sajak introduced the starting lineups.The series is tied 1-1. It is the first Final game in Washington in 20 years.—8:40 p.m.Plenty of action between Vegas and Washington in the opening minutes of Game 3, even if the game remained scoreless as the first period approached its midpoint. The fast pace of the first two games has continued.The Capitals missed an early chance to score when Vegas goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury dived to stop a close-in shot by Alex Ovechkin.With around five minutes elapsed, Washington had an apparent goal wiped out when Capitals winger Devante Smith-Pelly was called for goaltender interference when he collided with Fleury as a shot found the net.Washington subsequently killed the penalty.There were 15 goals total in the first two games, the most in a Final since 1982.The series is tied 1-1. It is the first Final game in Washington in 20 years.—8:25 p.m.Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final is under way with Evgeny Kuznetsov and Michal Kempny in the Capitals’ lineup.Kuznetsov was a game-time decision with an apparent left arm injury resulting from a hit from Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb that caused him to leave Game 2. Kempny stepped on a puck and crashed into the boards during pregame warmups but returned.The pregame festivities moved from a Sting and Shaggy concert outside to a red-rocking party inside Capital One Arena, where fans shook red glow sticks as three-time Redskins Super Bowl-winning coach did the ”Let’s Go Caps!” chant as fan of the game.After Vegas put on a show in the first two games of the series with Michael Buffer introducing players and a Knight vanquishing Capitals invaders, Washington had ”Wheel of Fortune” host and longtime season-ticket holder Pat Sajak reading off the starting lineups. Fans drowned out the Golden Knights introductions with boos – except for former Capitals defenseman Nate Schmidt.—7 p.m.Almost 100-degree heat wreaked havoc on ice conditions in the first two games of the Stanley Cup Final in Las Vegas, and humidity threatens to affect it in Game 3 in Washington.Humid weather outside – typical for the nation’s capital in June – has Capitals coach Barry Trotz wondering just how the ice will be at Capital One Arena.”We don’t know how the ice conditions are going to be in our rink,” Trotz said after the morning skate at the Capitals’ suburban practice facility. ”Humidity is not kind to ice. One thing I’ve learned over my years is it’s not necessarily the heat but the humidity. If you get the combination of both, you could have a tough night. We’ll just see how it is.”Vegas players reported decent conditions after their morning skate at Capital One Arena, or at least better than Game 1 in the desert. Pre-game warmups will be important for the Capitals, who haven’t skated on their home ice surface since Game 6 of the Eastern Conference final on May 21.”You gauge it right away,” Trotz said. ”Guys have to manage that. We’ll see right away. I think in warmup Jonathan Ericsson Jersey , even as a coach standing on the bench, you have a feel right away on how the ice is. I think we’ll have to keep it simple. We’ll have to keep our emotions in check, have good energy, and we will.”—6:20 p.m.Vegas had Imagine Dragons inside the arena before Game 2. Washington has Sting and Shaggy playing outside before Game 3.Sting and Shaggy collaborated on a new reggae lite album, ”44/876,” and are performing at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery steps away from Capital One Arena. After the concert, fans not attending the first Stanley Cup Final game in Washington since 1998 can watch on video boards stationed outside.Fall Out Boy is scheduled to play before Game 4 on Monday.—6:05 p.m.It’s wet outside, and it’s sure to be red inside the Washington Capitals’ home arena for Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights.After splitting a pair of games in Las Vegas, the Capitals are preparing to host the final round of the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in 20 years.The expansion Golden Knights have gone 6-2 on the road during their surprising run to the Finals, numbers that take the sting out of losing home-ice advantage with a 3-2 loss on Wednesday.Washington is 4-5 at home, but captured a must-win 3-0 decision over Tampa Bay before capturing the Eastern Conference title with a victory in Game 7 on the road.The Capitals were hoping to have Evgeny Kuznetsov, who skated Saturday morning after missing most of Game 2 with an upper-body injury.—More Stanley Cup coverage: https://apnews.com/tag/StanleyCupFinals

After four seasons as mostly a backup in Minnesota http://www.officialhockeyrangersshop.com/authentic-adidas-marc-staal-jersey , McKinnon was one of San Francisco's big-ticket additions in free agency this offseason and took some time to learn coach Kyle Shanahan's complex new offense.

"When I first got here, I was lost. I was really lost," McKinnon said. "My head was spinning. It's different protections I have to learn, different concepts I have to learn and basically I have to take my whole way of thinking for four years and switch it up to a new one. I guess it's complex when you're new to it, but once you start studying it, you get it. I'm starting to get it."

McKinnon has shown just that early in training camp. He broke a long run around the left side on the team's first 11-on-11 drill of the summer and also has made several catches out of the backfield.

Those skills are why the 49ers gave the career backup a $30 million, four-year contract this offseason. McKinnon will get paid $12 million in 2018. Only Todd Gurley and Saquon Barkley have signed contracts that will pay them more this season, according to spotrac.

But McKinnon feels no added pressure because of the high price tag.

"I've had the same mindset I've had since my rookie year, which is coming in and working," he said. "A lot of guys get contracts and some of them get content. For me, it's about staying the same and continuing to work and showing my teammates how I work and what I bring to the table and pushing everybody around me."

McKinnon spent four years in Minnesota after being drafted in the third round in 2014 out of Georgia Southern. He has rushed for 1,918 yards with an average of 4.0 yards per carry, has 142 catches for 984 yards, and has scored 12 touchdowns.

McKinnon had his most productive season last year, when he ran for a career-high 570 yards while setting personal bests with 51 catches for 421 yards.

McKinnon replaces Carlos Hyde, who left as a free agent for Cleveland.

McKinnon has more speed and is a better receiving threat than Hyde and should fit well into Shanahan's offense. But Shanahan said McKinnon's strengths start as a runner.

"You have to be a good running back to truly get the effects of being good in the pass game because if you're only good in the pass game, then they can just treat you as a receiver and it's different," he said. "So, it starts with being a running back and we really like him as a running back. We studied every run he had in Minnesota. I think he fits in the type of runs we do very well. He's got the speed. He's got the cutting ability and he's got the toughness to run through arm tackles. Then the pass game is the huge bonus. He is a matchup issue. He's very good in his routes. ... Just versatility-wise Zach Parise Jersey , he's going to help us a lot."

Having a running back who is a threat in the passing game is a crucial part of Shanahan's offense. The Niners ranked third in the NFL last year with 113 receptions out of the backfield, up from just 67 the previous year under Chip Kelly.

While Hyde had a team-high 59 catches last season, he wasn't particularly productive. He averaged just 5.9 yards on those catches and turned only 28.8 percent of them into first downs.

Those numbers are significantly below McKinnon's 8.3 yards per catch and 39.2 percent first downs as his skills make him a better option in the passing game.

"Jerick is a unique talent," quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo said. "He can do things out of the backfield. You can line him up in the slot. ... He can do so many different things that it's hard for a defense. What do you put on him? A linebacker, a safety, a corner? It's a pick your poison type of thing so it makes my job a whole lot easier."

COSTA MESA, Calif. (AP) Los Angeles Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa set an NFL record with 19 sacks in his first 20 career games.

He recorded at least 10 1/2 sacks in each of his first two seasons, but Bosa and the Chargers insist the best is yet to come.

”I think there’s so much I have to work on that I have an idea in my head of what I want things to look like and how I want to be as a player, and I’m not anywhere near those things, but I know I’m making the right steps in that direction,” Bosa said Sunday.

Cornerback Casey Hayward has never been shy in sharing his belief that Bosa could become the best defender in football. It was only reinforced last season as Bosa’s pass rush skills helped contribute to Hayward intercepting four passes.

”Made my life a lot easier,” Hayward said. ”A couple of my picks last year came off Joey hitting the guy, wobbly ball, I take all of them.”

Entering his third season, the next step in Bosa’s development could come from a better understanding of coordinator Gus Bradley’s 4-3 defense. The Chargers were productive in 2017 while transitioning to Bradley’s system, finishing third in points per game allowed, tied for fifth in sacks, and sixth in takeaways. Those rankings could improve as the coaches, players and front office are more comfortable with what will allow the defense to succeed in this iteration.

The Chargers added depth in the draft Roberto Luongo Jersey , with Bosa praising defensive lineman Justin Jones and linebacker Uchenna Nwosu for their ability to get to the quarterback. The progression of second-year defensive end Isaac Rochell could result in Bosa staying fresh by allowing Bradley to rotate more. The 280-pound Bosa could play inside if Rochell is capable of creating pressure off the edge consistently, allowing Bradley to use his most disruptive players together in obvious passing situations.

Bosa, who had 12 1/2 sacks last season as the bookend to Melvin Ingram, could cause more havoc if opponents cannot focus all their attention on stopping the two standout defensive ends.

”Joey can improve,” coach Anthony Lynn said. ”I don’t think he has reached his peak yet at all, and the better we get on that defensive line and create more one-on-one matchups, that’s going to help his success as well.”

But Bosa will never put a target on his individual production going into his season after recognizing that chasing personal goals often comes at the expense of both the individual and the team.

”If you want to get 15 sacks and you’re out there doing your own things to get sacks, more than likely you’re going to hurt the team and not get a sack rather than you just doing your job and you falling into one,” Bosa said. ”I’ve come to realize when I’m really out there trying to make a play like that, I do something wrong and they’ll break a run or whatever. But if I I stay within myself and the defense, it usually works out pretty well.”

Bosa’s zen mentality carries over to his offseason workouts. He stresses developing his overall athleticism rather than addressing any particular football technique. That regiment makes the first week of training camp something of a transition period, with Bosa joking he is focused on ”lining up right.”

Still, Hayward sees how Bosa approaches the game spilling over to the rest of the team. If Bosa can improve on his momentous initial returns, that bodes well for the Chargers as a whole.

”That’s definitely contagious. You see that, you want to work just as hard as he does,” Hayward said.

NOTES: Rookie tight end Austin Roberts tore his ACL on Saturday, Lynn said. . The Chargers will practice in full pads for the first time Monday.

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Calhoun hit a two-run homer, Richards pitched effectively into the sixth inning and the Los Angeles Angels beat the Mariners 7-4 on Wednesday to snap Seattle’s eight-game winning streak.

Batting in the leadoff spot for only the fourth time this season, Calhoun had three hits and drove in three runs to help lift Richards (5-4) in his return.

Calhoun’s towering homer in the sixth gave the Angels a 6-2 lead. He also had a single in the fourth inning for his first RBI. Calhoun is batting .306 with four homers and eight RBIs since coming off the DL on June 18. He was hitting .145 before that break.

”Kole did his job today,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. ”That’s what we need from the guys at the top of the order. It gave us a lot of opportunities today.”

Richards, who went on the DL on June 15 with a left hamstring strain, allowed three runs, including back-to-back homers to Kyle Seager and Ryon Healy, over 5 1/3 innings. He struck out eight.

”I just overthrew a couple of heaters there,” Richards said of the home runs. ”But I felt good. The hamstring felt good. I knew I would be on a leash (80 pitches), so I just tried to execute pitches.”

Richards retired 10 of the next 11 hitters he faced after the home runs.

”Garrett just exhaled (after the homers) and made some really good pitches,” Scioscia said. ”He gave us a chance to win the game.”

Blake Parker pitched out of trouble in the ninth for his 10th save. Mike Zunino singled and Denard Span doubled to put runners at second and third, but Dee Gordon flied out to center and Zunino was thrown out at the plate on Jean Segura’s grounder to Albert Pujols at first. Mitch Haniger ended it with a groundout to third.

Parker failed to cover first on the grounder to Pujols, so Pujols had no choice but to throw home.

”Pujols getting that guy at the plate was a huge out,” Scioscia said. ”The pitcher didn’t cover there, so Albert made a great decision and threw a strike to the plate.”

The Mariners had their chances, including a bases-loaded, no-outs situation in the seventh inning when trailing 6-3. After Gordon and Span struck out, Segura hit a broken-bat flare that looked like it might drop behind second base and score two runs, but Angels second baseman David Fletcher made a leaping catch to end the inning.

”I got a pretty good read off the bat Bengals Authentic Jerseys ,” Fletcher said. ”I kind of felt I had a bead on it all the way. It was a nice feeling to save those runs from scoring.”

The Mariners struck out 15 times and left eight men on base.

Mike Leake (8-5) allowed four runs and nine hits before leaving with no one out in the fifth. He had allowed two runs or less in seven of his previous eight starts.

”They were battling me, fouling balls off today,” Leake said. ”Trying to get them to go down, but they found some holes and that’s about it.”

Luis Valbuena drove in two runs for the Angels and Shohei Ohtani and two hits and scored two runs.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: OF Chris Young was placed on the 10-day DL a day after straining his hamstring. LHP Tyler Skaggs was also placed on the DL with a thigh strain. Skaggs said hopes to miss only one start. OF Jabari Blash and RHP Deck McGuire were recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake, with INF Kaleb Cowart also optioned to Triple-A. … LHP John Lamb will undergo Tommy John surgery on his left elbow early next week. He’ll become the fourth Angels pitcher to have the procedure this season.

Mariners: Manager Scott Servais said RHP Erasmo Ramirez could begin a rehab assignment soon. Ramirez has been on the DL since May 1 because of a right teres major muscle strain in his pitching shoulder. Ramirez said is willing to pitch in relief if that’s where he’s needed.

UP NEXT

Angels RHP Jaime Barria (5-4, 3.40) will start Thursday’s series finale in place of Skaggs. Barria is making his 12th start of the season and has given up two earned runs or fewer in four of his last five starts. LHP Marco Gonzales (8-5, 3.77) will make his 18th start for Seattle. Gonzales pitched the first complete game of his career in his last start, a 4-1 victory over Kansas City when he allowed six hits and didn’t walk a batter.

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Right-hander Jhoulys Chacin could have gotten something richer than the two-year, $15.5 million contract he signed with Milwaukee during the offseason.

It turns out the Brewers certainly cashed in.

Chacin (6-1, 3.32 ERA), who faces right-hander Trevor Williams (5-4, 4.38) and the Pittsburgh Pirates in a series opener Monday at PNC Park, is 6-0 with a 2.66 ERA in his past 12 starts, a career-high six-game winning streak.

The Brewers are 12-3 in his starts overall.

“He’s PITCHING,” Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell said after Chacin’s last outing, when he gave up one run in six innings Wednesday and combined with three relievers for a 1-0 shutout against the Cubs in Chicago.

“He’s got some cunning and some craftiness out there, as well as good stuff.”

Chacin, who is 2-3 with a 4.76 ERA in seven career starts against Pittsburgh, introduced a split-fingered fastball Wednesday Youth Danny Shelton Jersey , switching to that after he struggled with command on his changeup.

His performance more than 2 1/2 months into the season would seem to make him quite a deal for Milwaukee. He has no regrets.

“I’ve never been a guy who wanted a lot of attention,” Chacin said. “I just want to go out there and do my job. I was happy to sign here because I saw the chemistry last year. I’m 30 years old, but I’ve been in the big leagues a little bit longer, and I really want to win. This is a good young team.”

Milwaukee (42-29) lost its second straight Sunday, 10-9 to the Philadelphia Phillies.

Pittsburgh (35-36), which won two of three against Milwaukee in a series in early May, sits fourth in National League Central. The Pirates lost 8-6 Sunday to the Cincinnati Reds to end a three-game winning streak but still won a series after losing eight in a row.

“If somebody would have told me you’re going to lose eight series, you’d think you’re going to be horrible,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. “We’re not horrible. We’re fighting. And we believe that our best baseball is in front of us. You’ve got to go play it, though.”

Second baseman Josh Harrison said that mindset has permeated the clubhouse.

“For one, nothing changes for us as far as our day-to-day grind, preparing,” he said. “But we also know what’s happened here the past couple weeks. Guys are still plugging away and coming ready to show up every day. … We’ve just got to continue bringing it every day.”

Williams is in need of a turnaround just like his club. He won his first three 2018 starts, but he is 0-2 with an 8.57 ERA in his past five starts. Most recently, he gave up three earned runs (eight total) and six hits in three innings Tuesday in a 13-8 loss to the Colorado Rockies.

Williams is 0-1 with a 3.29 ERA in three career appearances, two of them starts, against the Brewers.