. While the Vancouver Canucks winger is again proving to be consistent offensively, he is also trending toward a career low in penalty minutes. Tony Romo Jersey UNIONDALE, N. Prince Amukamara Jersey .Y. — P.A. Parenteaus goal with 1:46 remaining broke a tie and led the New York Islanders to a 5-3 win over the Washington Capitals on Saturday night. After the Islanders (4-5-2) scored only 18 goals in their first 10 games this season, they busted out against Washington. Frans Nielsen, Brian Rolston, Matt Martin and John Tavares also scored for New York, which snapped a six-game losing streak (0-4-2). Tavares made it 5-3 with an empty-net goal Rick DiPietro made 24 saves for his first win of the season. Joel Ward, Alex Ovechkin and Brooks Laich had goals for the Capitals, who got 30 saves from Tomas Vokoun. Wards rebound goal 5:24 in gave the Capitals a 1-0 lead. Ward corralled a loose puck in the slot before whipping a shot over DiPietros stick. Ovechkin fired a slap shot, with the teams skating 4-on-4, to make it 2-0 with 1:19 left in the first. Ovechkin wheeled inside the blue-line and hammered an off-the-boards pass from Nicklas Backstrom over DiPietro. That prompted many frustrated fans in the crowd of 14,812 to chant for Islanders backup goalie Al Montoya. New York entered with the fewest goals scored in the NHL. Following Thursdays 3-0 home loss to Winnipeg, Islanders coach Jack Capuano announced he would make line changes to his team that hadnt scored since 11:28 of the second period last Saturday against San Jose. The Islanders benefited from the changes and outshot Washington 35-28. The best of New Yorks lines was the grouping of Rolston, Nielsen and Parenteau — which produced three goals and nine shots. Nielsens soft backhander past Vokoun at 1:41 into the second ended the Islanders drought. Rolston tied it 2-2 with 3:05 left in the period with his first goal with the Islanders and No. 336 of his NHL career. New York took a 3-2 lead 6:28 into the third when Martin backhanded a rebound under Vokoun. The goal was Martins second of the season and seventh in 84 career NHL games. That advantage lasted only 2:44 because Laich tied it with a power-play goal off a wrist shot from the left circle. That set the stage for Parenteaus game-winner and Tavares empty-netter 44 seconds later. NOTES: On Military Appreciation Night at the Nassau Coliseum, the Islanders wore camouflage warmup sweaters. Several hundred fans had to relocate from sections 305 and 306 before the start of the second period due to a leaky roof. Washington dropped to 9-3 this season. Osi Umenyiora Jersey .C. United 4-0 Sunday night to extend their unbeaten streak to four games. Houston, which hadnt scored a goal in two games, scored four for the first time since defeating D. Antrel Rolle Jersey . For the fourth straight year, Laval opens the Canadian Interuniversity Sport football season atop the national rankings. Randy White Jersey . Carter picked up a hamstring strain in training this week, days after kicking the last-minute dropped goal that gave the All Blacks a 22-19 win in the second test and an insurmountable 2-0 lead in the three-match series. Coach Steve Hansen on Thursday made six changes to his starting lineup for the test, naming captain Richie McCaw to start at No. DeMarco Murray Jersey . Thats the message the Marlies coach delivered Friday, hours after the American Hockey League admitted its officials erred in allowing a fluke overtime goal to stand up in Game 3 of the Calder Cup final. Calvin Johnson Jersey .ca NHL Power Rankings for another week. Its the seventh time in the last eight weeks that the Bruins have ruled the rankings, taking a one-week hiatus when captain Zdeno Chara was injured.(Sports Network) – The Texas Rangers are back in the American League Championship Series for the second straight year. If they want to make it two straight trips to the World Series they will have to get past the Detroit Tigers. That quest starts on Saturday at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. After cruising to their second straight American League West crown the Rangers started their postseason in disappointing fashion, as the Tampa Bay Rays handed them a 9-0 drubbing in Game 1 of the ALDS. However, behind a terrifically balanced lineup, the Rangers responded with three straight wins to nail down a series victory. It seemed to be a different hero every night, as five Texas batters drove in multiple runs in the series, with Adrian Beltre and Mike Napoli leading the way with four RBI apiece. Beltre also tied a postseason record by swatting three home runs in the Rangers Game 4 clincher, while Napoli hit .357 in the series. The Rangers lineup is loaded from 1-through-9 with former MVP Josh Hamilton leading the way, along with the likes of Ian Kinsler, Nelson Cruz and the incredibly underrated Michael Young, who was the teams best player this season, hitting .338 with 106 RBI. Left-hander C.J. Wilson, who will get the start in Game 1 on Saturday, absorbed the lone loss for the Rangers against the Rays. Wilson, though, had a terrific year after assuming the role as staff ace, as he went 16-7 with a 2.94 ERA and earned his first trip to the All-Star Game. “One great thing about the postseason is we know how to turn the page,” Young said. “If something doesnt go our way, we turn the page. Im sure C.J. was ready to go the second after Game 1, so hell be motivated, hell be ready to go. Hes definitely been our guy all season.” The starting rotation could be a bit of a concern, as Colby Lewis was the only starter to go more than five innings and did so by allowing just a run. Lewis outing followed up a terrific postseason from last year and the righty is now 4-0 in five playoff starts with a 1.67 ERA. Texas manager Ron Washington has said that Lewis will pitch on the road, where he went 9-5 with a 3.43 ERA this season. Left-hander Derek Holland, who tied for the AL lead with four shutouts on the season, will likely get the call in Game 2 on Sunday. If the Rangers need a fourth starter it will be lefty Matt Harrison. Another worry for Washington could be his bullpen, which was supposed to be a strength following the acquisitions of Koji Uehara, Mike Adams and Mike Gonzalez. However the group disappointed against the Rays, as Adams gave up a home run and three consecutive walks in Game 3, while Uehara surrendered a three-run homer to Evan Longoria in Game 2. Also, closer Neftali Feliz left the potential tying run stranded in the ninth in the last two games. However, right-hander Alexi Ogando shined. Ogando, who won 13 games as a starter this season, pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings in the ALDS and could be a big factor against the Tigers. While the Rangers have been waiting for their next opponent since Tuesday, the Tigers needed all five games to get past the New York Yankees before finally doing so on Thursday with a 3-2 win in a do-or-die Game 5 at Yankee Stadium. Making the series win even more impressive was the fact that the Tigers were only able to use AL Cy Young Award front-runner Justin Verlander once in the series after his Game 1 outing was cut short by rain following only an inning of work. Verlander made the most of his Game 3 assignment, striking out 11 in eight innings, while surrendering four runs and six hits. Of course, he put forth one of the best years ever by a Tigers starter this season and won the leagues pitching Triple Crown, going 24-5 with a 2.40 earned run average and 250 strikeouts. One of hhis losses did come against the Rangers, who managed just two runs in nine innings off him. Doug Free Jersey. Verlander, though, is 6-2 lifetime versus Texas with a 2.31 ERA in nine starts. “Were right where we want to be,” Verlander said. “Were ready to go to Texas and keep playing good baseball.” Righty Doug Fister bounced back from a loss in Game 1 to nail down the series win with a terrific effort in Game 5. He gave up a run and five hits in five innings of that one. Fister, who was 8-1 with a 1.79 ERA in 11 games (10 starts) after being picked up from Seattle, wont be available for Game 2. Instead, it could be either righties Rick Porcello or Max Scherzer, who gave up a run in 7 1/3 innings of the ALDS. If Scherzer is ready to go after pitching 1 1/3 innings on Thursday, he could be the choice, as he is 3-0 lifetime in six starts versus the Rangers with a 3.41 ERA. While their lineup may not be as lethal as the one they will be going up against, the Tigers do feature a rather intimidating middle of the order in Delmon Young, Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez. Cabrera led the American League in hitting this past season, batting .344 with 30 home runs and 105 RBI. He was just 3-for-15 against the Yanks, getting all his hits in his teams Game 2 triumph. You can make the argument that the Tigers werent complete until the mid- August acquisition of Young from Minnesota. Young, who hits in front of Cabrera, was a huge part of Detroits ALDS win, as he swatted three solo home runs and hit .316. However, he was forced to leave Thursdays contest with an oblique strain and his status for the next round is unclear. In his first year with the Tigers after inking a four-year, $50 million deal, Victor Martinez batted .330 and knocked in 103 runs. But like Cabrera, he had a rough time getting going in the ALDS, as he hit just .222 with a home run and three RBI. Detroits lineup may not have a lot of big names but they get the job done with the likes of unheralded players such as Don Kelly, the aging Magglio Ordonez, Alex Avila and Jhonny Peralta. Kelly hit .364 and hit a huge home run in the first inning of Thursdays clincher, while Ordonez batted a team-high .455 against the Yankees. Closer Jose Valverde continued to keep Tigers fans on the edge of their seats, as he made it interesting in his first two games before retiring the heart of the Yankees order 1-2-3 in Thursdays finale. Hes still yet to blow a save this season, going a perfect 51-for-51. Righty Joaquin Benoit has been the most reliable setup guy for manager Jim Leyland, who seems to have lost faith in right-handed rookie Al Alburquerque, gave up three runs in just a third of an inning over two ALDS appearances. These teams have never met in the playoffs, but the Tigers won six of their nine regular season matchups. PROGNOSIS: If it were a lock that Verlander would go three times in this series Id be more inclined to pick the Tigers. I dont think he will though. Verlander will go in Game 1 and then come back in Game 5 on full rest. Hell probably be available for an inning or two in a potential Game 7, but it wont even matter at that point. Not to mention Delmon Youngs availability is a question mark. Dont underestimate what he brings to that lineup hitting in front of Cabrera. The Rangers got all the postseason experience they needed last year and seem to be a team on a mission this season. Sure the starting rotation struggled at times against the Rays and the bullpen was a bit of a disappointment, but the Rangers were still able to get past Tampa in four games. That lineup is a beast all the way through. Not to mention this Tigers staff could be running on fumes. Plus the Rangers are just the better team from top-to-bottom. Prediction: RANGERS in SIX ‘ ‘ ‘
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