SUNDAY SPORTS
Artem Anisimov, Trevor van Riemsdyk and Dale Weise scored during Chicago’s dominant second period, and the Blackhawks beat the St. Louis Blues 6-3 to send their first-round playoff series to Game 7. Andrew Shaw added a third-period goal in his return from a one-game suspension for using a gay slur during Chicago’s Game 4 loss. Game 7 is Monday night.
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The Nashville Predators are on the brink of elimination. Ryan Garbutt scored the go-ahead goal in the second period and the Ducks downed Nashville 5-2 for a 3-2 series lead. And Pittsburgh is moving on to the Eastern Conference semifinals after a 6-3 win over the Rangers in Game 5. Rookie Bryan Rust scored twice as the Penguins took the series 4-1.
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Linus Lindstrom scored the shootout winner as Sweden held off Canada 6-5 in the semifinals of the world under-18 hockey championship. Filip Gustavsson made 54 saves for the win in net. The Canadians were able to overcome a two-goal deficit in a wild third period. Sweden will face Finland in Sunday’s final after it downed the United States 4-2 in the other semi.
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The Toronto Blue Jays are back in the win column after dropping three straight. Troy Tulowitzki hit a pair of solo homers and Josh Donaldson hit a three-run shot as the Blue Jays downed the Oakland A’s 9-3 at Rogers Centre. Left-hander J.A. Happ got the win after pitching seven strong innings.
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George Hill and Ian Mahinmi each scored 22 points as the Indiana Pacers beat the Toronto Raptors 100-83 to tie the first-round playoff series at 2-2. Game 5 goes Tuesday night in Toronto. Elsewhere, Enes Kanter was the catalyst as Oklahoma City took a 3-1 lead in the Western Conference quarter-finals. Kanter came off the bench to score a game-high 28 points in the Thunder’s 119-108 win at Dallas.
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The Vancouver Whitecaps were credited with an own goal before Jordan Harvey and Kekuta Manneh also scored to secure a 3-0 victory over F-C Dallas. Earlier, Toronto FC earned a 2-nil road win over the Montreal Impact. Sebastian Giovinco (scored both TFC goals.
(Canadian Press)
Chicago will not go away, nor will Anaheim. Looks like another Anaheim Chicago Western Conference final this year.
I must say that watching these NHL playoffs on CBC has been a treat. Bob Cole and Dave Randorf are wonderful to hear, and the speed of the game is a joy to watch.