SPORTS SATURDAY, MAY 17, 2014 Canadiens face angers in unexpected East Final NEW YORK: The Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers will face off in an Eastern Conference Final that few would have predicted but the matchup of Original Six rivals could be the highlight of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The best-of- seven series, which begins Saturday in Montreal, is both rich in history and subplots, the most intriguing being the loom- ing goaltending duel between the Canadiens’ Carey Price and Rangers’ Henrik Lundqvist. Nowhere in the world does passion for hockey burn hot- ter than Montreal, where one of the city’s universities offered a course called The Religion of the Canadiens and where fans are eager to see the team snap a title drought dating back to 1993. “I told the guys, moving on to the third round, you have no idea what (Montreal) is going to be like,” Montreal defenseman P.K. Subban said. “I feel sorry for the team that’s got to come into our building now.” But they also love their hockey in the Big Apple and it has been nearly as long since the Rangers were the toast of Broadway and paraded the Stanley Cup along Manhattan’s famous Canyon of Heroes in 1994 after ending a 54-year barren run. The starting goaltenders for the penultimate round of the playoffs represent a rematch from the gold medal game at the Sochi Olympics where Canada’s Price outplayed Sweden’s Lundqvist in a 3-0 win. Including the Olympic medal round in Sochi, Price is 5-0 in elimination games this year with a stellar .984 save percentage and will now be now counted on to anchor Montreal’s bid to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. “He’s a leader; he’s the guy on this team,” said Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty. “He spoke up and said something like, ‘Only live in the moment, don’t worry about the past.’ I don’t know if that’s the difference in his game this year from every other year, but I’m speechless with how he’s playing.” Rangers fans have also been searching for superlatives to describe Lundqvist’s post-season play after New York fought back from a 3-1 series deficit in the East semi-final to LOS ANGELES: of the heads for the basket being chased by , eliminate the favored Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games. (top), Darren Collison (right) and JJ Redick (#4) of the during game 6 of their NBA play- offs round two series. — AFP Lundqvist allowed just three goals over the final three games of the series and the Rangers’ 2-1 victory in Tuesday’s clincher gave him his fifth consecutive Game Seven win. Pacers set to battle Heat Entertaining hockey Both teams come into the East final battle tested. New York needed all seven games to get through both their pre- after banishing Wizards vious series against the Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers while Montreal, who swept Tampa Bay in the first round, Thunder eliminate Clippers needed seven games to depose top-seeded Boston Bruins. The Canadiens and Rangers possess plenty speed and play a WASHINGTON: David West scored 29 stuck together and found ways to into foul trouble.Chris Paul finished with similar up-tempo style which should produce entertaining points, and the beat the win.”Oklahoma City moves on to face 25 points and 11 assists while Blake hockey. 93-80 Thursday the top seeded San Antonio Spurs in Griffin scored 22 points for the Clippers Subban, a puck moving defenseman with a booming night to advance to the Eastern game one of their best-of-seven series who started strong but then saw their slap shot, has emerged as the most exciting and despised Conference finals for the second straight on Monday in Texas. The Spurs eliminat- offence begin to fizzle at the end of the player of the postseason in leading the Canadiens with 12 year. Lance Stephenson added 17 points ed the Portland Trail Blazers on second quarter. points while getting under the skin of the Bruins and their and eight assists for the Pacers, who won Wednesday. “It was the third quarter that changed fans. Austrian Thomas Vanek, a late season pickup, leads the series 4-2 over the Wizards. They will It was a heartbreaking season-ending the game,” said Clippers coach Doc Montreal with five goals while Lars Eller, feisty Brendan host Game 1 against the two-time loss for a Clipper club that has been rid- Rivers. “We never got our energy back. Gallagher and Rene Bourque each have four. Pacioretty, defending NBA champion ing a roller-coaster of emotions while We came out at the beginning with a lot meanwhile, looks to have rediscovered his touch after scor- tomorrow. Indiana took the Heat to sev- dealing with the Donald Sterling fiasco of emotion and I said to one of my ing the Game Seven winner against the Bruins. en games in the conference finals a year for the past month. League MVP Durant coaches ‘I hope we don’t hit a wall.’” The Rangers have also received contributions from all ago. The Wizards took a one- lead had 16 rebounds and Russell Westbrook Rivers said the problems with their over their roster with 15 different players finding the back of with 81/2 minutes to play, but they struggled early but still managed 19 embattled owner Sterling wasn’t the rea- the net in the 2014 playoffs. Brad Richards and Martin St scored only two field goals the rest of points and 12 assists for the Thunder son they lost the series after coming off Louis, who led Tampa Bay to a Stanley Cup title in 2004, the way as the Pacers closed with a 20-6 who advanced to their third league their most successful regular season in have been reunited and rejuvenated in the Big Apple. St run. Marcin Gortat scored 19 points for semi-finals in four years. The Thunder franchise history. Louis set up Richards for the Game Seven winner against the Wizards, who ended their best play- won despite a slow start from Westbrook “We have gone through a lot of stuff the Penguins. The Rangers, however, are still looking for off run in decades. who didn’t hit his first until the in the last three or four weeks. We Rick Nash, their leading goal scorer during the regular sea- third quarter. Durant carried the team on shouldn’t use that as an excuse,” Rivers son, to break out of his slump and finally get his first of the THUNDER 104, CLIPPERS 98 his shoulders like he has done all season said. The Sterling controversy began last playoffs. Kevin Durant scored 39 points as the long, especially when things looked bad month when the American gossip show Richards leads New York with nine points while St Oklahoma City Thunder advanced to the in the first quarter. TMZ released an audio of the owner Louis, who is playing with a heavy heart following the Western Conference final with a 104-98 telling his girlfriend that she should not win over the Los Angeles Clippers in ‘It is how you finish’ bring black people to Clipper games. In sudden death of his mother last week, has eight. The game six of their NBA playoff series. The “It is not how you start. It is how you the weeks that followed, the NBA Rangers, who will attend France St. Louis’ funeral in Thunder rallied from a 16-point first half finish. I just stuck with it,” Durant said. banned Sterling from the league and Montreal on Sunday, have rallied around their teammate, deficit to tie the contest on the last play Guard Reggie Jackson scored 14 points fined him $2.5 million. Last week the whose courage following the passing of his mother has of the third quarter then stepped it up in while New Zealand’s Steven Adams league appointed an interim chief exec- provided the team with inspiration. “Him showing up and the fourth to win the second-round came off the bench to score 10 points utive to run the Clippers. On Thursday, coming back for us was a real inspiration,” said Richards. “I series four games to two. “Tonight’s and grab 11 rebounds for the Thunder, Sports Illustrated reported that hate talking about it because he lost his mom. “We’d game is something we’ve done all year,” who also had to overcome a large deficit Sterling’s lawyers had sent a letter to the rather have her back and not rallied around that. It said Thunder coach Scott Brooks of to win game five. Backup centre Adams, league threatening to sue and telling deserves to be talked about it, but at the same time it’s Thursday’s game in front of a crowd of of Rotorua, had to come into the game them he didn’t plan to pay the $2.5 mil- still a tough time for their family.”—Reuters 19,565 at Staples Center arena. “We early after starter Kendrick Perkins got lion fine.—Agencies