CKNW Vancouver Sports

Kings Keep Rolling

Fri, 18 May 2012 06:40:00 GMT

Dwight King scored the tiebreaking goal early in the third period, Jonathan Quick made 18 saves, and the Los Angeles Kings rolled to the brink of their first Stanley Cup final in 19 years with a 2-1 victory over the Phoenix Coyotes on Thursday night.
The Kings lead the Western Conference finals 3-0. Anze Kopitar also scored to help the eighth-seeded Kings improve to 11-1 in their improbable post-season run. Despite trailing in a game for the first time since April 28, King scored his fourth goal in three games against the Coyotes, who face a deficit only three teams have overcome in NHL playoff history. Game 4 is Sunday at Staples Center. Mike Smith stopped 26 shots in a standout performance for the third-seeded Coyotes, who must win four straight to reach their first Stanley Cup final in club history.

Oilers Not Bringing Renney Back As Coach

Fri, 18 May 2012 06:40:00 GMT

The Edmonton Oilers are parting ways with head coach Tom Renney. The team announced via Twitter account his contract will not be renewed. The rebuilding team has not had a winning record in two years with Renney behind the bench. Renney joined the team for the 2010-11 season and finished with an NHL-worst 25-45-12 record.
This season the team barely improved with a 32-40-10 record for second-last overall. Renney came to Edmonton having previously served as head coach with the New York Rangers and Vancouver Canucks.

Pacers Take It To The Heat

Fri, 18 May 2012 06:39:00 GMT

Roy Hibbert had 19 points and 18 rebounds, George Hill scored 20 and Danny Granger 17 as the Indiana Pacers, showing more balance, toughness and togetherness than Miami, throttled the Heat 94-75 on Thursday night in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Overlooked during the regular season and given little chance to upset the reigning East champions, the Pacers took a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series. Game 4 is Sunday at raucous Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
LeBron James scored 22, 16 in the first half before wearing down and Mario Chalmers added 25 for Miami. However, Dwyane Wade scored only 5 on 2-of-13 shooting for the Heat, already missing forward Chris Bosh because of a strained abdominal muscle and not expected to return for this series.

Spurs Lead Clippers 2 Games To None

Fri, 18 May 2012 06:38:00 GMT

Tony Parker scored 22 points on his 30th birthday, Tim Duncan had 18 and the San Antonio Spurs beat the fading Los Angeles Clippers 105-88 on Thursday night, pushing their winning streak to 16 and taking a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference semifinal series.
Chris Paul responded to his awful Game 1 with only a slightly better encore, scoring 10 points as the Clippers now head home desperate to steer out of what's starting to get the feel of a sweep. Blake Griffin led the Clippers with 20 points. His plan to manage his ailing knee so the All-Star would have enough steam for the fourth proved moot, as both teams emptied their benches with another Spurs blowout assured. Game 3 is Saturday night in Los Angeles.

Hastings Jockey Still Waiting for Phone to Ring

Thu, 17 May 2012 18:07:00 GMT

Mario Gutierrez has been on the phone constantly since winning the Kentucky Derby aboard I'll Have Another.
    Most of the messages are from friends and family, offering congratulations following the victory that lifted the jockey from Mexico out of obscurity.
    Gutierrez is still waiting for the calls offering him more mounts.
    That could change after Saturday, if I'll Have Another wins the Preakness and moves into position for a run at the Triple Crown.
    So far, the Derby victory hasn't raised the soft-spoken rider's profile. Gutierrez is still trying to crack the deep jockey colony in Southern California.
    He got the Derby mount on a whim after making a favourable impression on owner Paul Reddam. Impressed by how Gutierrez rode a race at Santa Anita, Reddam decided to give the newcomer a chance.
    ``This is kind of a step out of the box,'' Reddam said. ``It's one of those weird intuitions that you get. It's amazing when it works out, which isn't too often I suppose.''
    The horse and rider tandem clicked immediately. They are unbeaten in the three races since teaming up, a string that includes the Santa Anita Derby.
    That success hasn't opened many doors for Gutierrez.
    ``I'm still not riding that many horses,'' Gutierrez said. ``Everybody knows that California racing has top trainers and top jockeys. I'm just glad to be riding with them. I am getting a lot of calls, but not to ride.''
    Last weekend he had only four mounts at Hollywood Park.
    A breakout is only a matter of time, said Doug O'Neill, I'll Have Another's trainer.
    ``Mario is the closest thing to Rafael Bejarano who many of you are familiar with,'' O'Neill said. ``He's a finesse rider who is able to get the horse to drop the bit and relax. When he calls on them, they want to grab the bit and take off. Some guys have it and some don't and Mario has it. And he's such a confident, calm jockey. It won't be long before his business picks up.''
    Till then, Gutierrez is focusing on the Preakness.
    ``The horse is going to take me there,'' he said. ``I believe in the horse. He did it for me in Kentucky. He's looking great. I'm not doing anything. The horse is proving a lot of people wrong.''
    I'll Have Another is the 5-2 second choice from post No. 9.

Another Early Exit by Team Canada

Thu, 17 May 2012 14:37:00 GMT

For a third straight year, Canada is making an early exit from the IIHF World Hockey Championship.
    Michal Handzus tipped in a shot with 2:32 to play in regulation as Slovakia eliminated Canada with a 4-3 quarter-final victory Thursday.
    The goal came just five seconds after Canadian captain Ryan Getzlaf was given a questionable five-minute major for kneeing Juraj Mikus.
    Getzlaf said he thought it was a clean check.
    ``It hurts like hell right now,'' said Getzlaf. ``I feel like I let the boys down.''
    Tomas Kopecky, Miroslav Satan and Milan Bartovic also scored for Slovakia (6-2-0).
    Evander Kane, Jeff Skinner and Alex Burrows replied for Canada (6-1-1).
    The Slovaks, who lost 3-2 to Canada in the opening game of the round robin, will face the winner of the Sweden-Czech Republic quarter-final, which will be played later Thursday.
    Canada was in a position to secure a victory with a 3-2 lead heading into the third period but couldn't hold the advantage.
    Goaltender Cam Ward stopped Tomas Tatar on a spirited rush early in the third period before Bartovic tied it 3-3 at 13:25, following up on his shot and knocking home the rebound. Shortly after, the Slovaks rang a shot off the crossbar and eventually found the winner after Getzlaf's penalty.
    Slovakia gained momentum after a Getzlaf penalty in the first and Kopecky opened the scoring at 5:57. He skated hard to the goal and had Branko Radivojevic's shot deflect off his leg and past Ward.
    Satan soon made it 2-0 for Slovakia, collecting a loose puck high in the zone and beating the screened Ward.
    With Hartwall Arena buzzing in anticipation of a potential upset, Canada dug in. Getzlaf and Corey Perry delivered some good shifts and created the first goal, which came off the stick of Kane at 16:14.
    That set the stage for a second period that was Canada's best of the tournament so far.
    The puck stayed in the Slovak zone for almost the entire 20 minutes _ save for one dangerous-looking Slovak power play _ and Canada took a 3-2 lead. The Canadian players consistently went hard to the net and were rewarded for their efforts.
    Skinner tied the game 2-2 at 6:30 on a power play, taking a pass from linemate Jordan Eberle shortly after he'd been denied on a breakaway by Slovak goalie Jan Laco. Burrows was standing at the top of the crease when the puck made its way to him and he put Canada ahead at 17:43.
    However, the opportunistic Slovaks wouldn't go away and now they're headed to the semifinals.

Late Goal Earns Whitecaps FC Draw

Dave Sheldon | Email David.Sheldon@corusent.com — Thu, 17 May 2012 04:50:00 GMT

Vancouver Whitecaps FC overcame a sluggish start against a defensively postured Toronto FC and needed a late goal by substitute Eric Hassli in the 91st minute to earn a 1-1 draw in the first leg of the Amway Canadian Championship.

Hassli, who was brought in to spark a stagnant Caps offence in the 56th minute, volleyed home a rocket past TFC keeper Milos Kocic from just outside the Toronto penalty area to send the home crowd of 14878 into a frenzy in what was otherwise a dull affair…which was just what Toronto FC was playing for on a road game of a two leg affair.

TFC opened the scoring in minute 66, finding himself able to leap over Whitecaps defenders to head home a cross from Julian de Guzman.

Caps keeper Joe Cannon kept his team in the game with a great save off TFC sub Nick Soolsma in the 85th minute to give Vancouver some late life. Early in stoppage time, a cross from the left side of the pitch by Alain Rochat found Hassli on the top of the penalty area with a right footed thump that was in the moment it left his boot.

The teams will both play MLS matches on Saturday before hooking up in Toronto for the final leg of this championship next Wednesday night in Toronto. Next up for Whitecaps FC will be a date against their arch-rivals from Seattle, with first touch being 2 PM on Saturday afternoon.

Devils Tie Up East Final

Thu, 17 May 2012 06:46:00 GMT

David Clarkson's deflected goal 2:31 into the third period snapped a tie and lifted the New Jersey Devils to a 3-2 victory over the New York Rangers that evened the Eastern Conference finals at one game apiece on Wednesday night.
    Clarkson built off the momentum created by Ryan Carter's goal late in the second period that tied the game, 2-2. Ilya Kovalchuk had given the Devils a 1-0 lead with a power-play goal in the first. Defenceman Bryce Salvador added two assists, and Martin Brodeur stopped 23 saves for the win.
    Marc Staal and Chris Kreider scored in the second for the Rangers, who lost their third straight Game 2 after winning the series opener. Top-seeded New York, which had 24 saves by Henrik Lundqvist, hasn't had a two-game lead at any point in these playoffs.
    Game 3 will be Saturday in New Jersey.

Thunder Take 2 Game Lead Over Lakers

Thu, 17 May 2012 06:45:00 GMT

Kevin Durant scored 22 points and rattled in the go-ahead basket on a baseline runner with 18 seconds left, and the Oklahoma City Thunder scored the final nine points to rally for a 77-75 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals Wednesday night.
    Oklahoma City trailed by seven with 2 minutes left before surging back with a series of defensive stops by its stars to take a 2-0 lead.
    Game 3 is Friday night in Los Angeles.
    Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum scored 20 points apiece for the Lakers, who came up empty on their last six possessions after Bynum's hook shot made it 75-68 with 2:09 remaining.
    Russell Westbrook added 15 points for Oklahoma City.

Celtics Take 1 Game Lead Over 76ers

Thu, 17 May 2012 06:43:00 GMT

Kevin Garnett scored 27 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, and used a dominant second quarter to help the Boston Celtics beat the Philadelphia 76ers 107-91 on Wednesday night and take a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
    Whistled for a costly illegal pick late in a Game 2 loss, Garnett crushed the Sixers early and never let them think about a fourth-quarter rally.
    Garnett scored 13 of Boston's 32 points in the second quarter and the Celtics became the first team to win by double digits. Game 1 and Game 2 were each decided by one point.
    Rajon Rondo had 23 points and 14 assists. Paul Pierce, playing with a banged-up knee, had 24 points and 12 rebounds.
    Game 4 is Friday in Philadelphia.