Allgemein » Stanley Cup champions in the opening round of the

The St. Louis Blues need to put a rough ending to the regular season behind them if they want to get past the defending Stanley Cup champions in the opening round of the playoffs. The struggling Blues hope to get back on track when they host the Chicago Blackhawks in Thursdays Game 1 encounter at Scottrade Center. Heading into the final week of the regular season, St. Louis was in the running to capture the Presidents Trophy as the leagues top point-earning team. Instead, an 0-6-0 skid knocked the Blues out of first place in the Central Division, where they finished a point behind the Colorado Avalanche to earn a much-tougher first-round matchup against a Chicago team that has won two of the last four Stanley Cup titles. St. Louis went 3-2-0 in the season series against the Blackhawks, with two of those wins coming in a shootout. Chicago, though, has won seven of the 10 all- time playoff series between the Central Division rivals. While this will mark the 11th all-time playoff series for these two clubs, they are meeting for the first time since the Blues ousted the Blackhawks in five games of the 2002 conference quarterfinals. The good news for St. Louis is that it is getting healthy. Vladimir Tarasenko is set to return while forwards David Backes, Vladimir Sobotka, Brenden Morrow and Patrik Berglund are considered questionable for the start of this series. T.J. Oshie has been ruled out for the game however. "Were going to have everyone back at some point in the first round," Blues head coach Ken Hitchcock said on Wednesday. Ryan Miller was acquired from Buffalo at the trade deadline and enters this series as the No. 1 netminder for the Blues. St. Louis hopes Miller can help the club get out of the first round after it fell in six games to Los Angeles in the opening series last spring. Miller was 10-8-1 with a 2.47 goals against average and .903 save percentage in 19 starts with the Blues and is 25-22 lifetime in the postseason with a 2.47 GAA and .917 save percentage. That includes two deep runs with the Sabres in 2006 and 07. Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford didnt slow down after helping Chicago win the Cup a season ago as he went 32-16-10 with a 2.26 goals against average and .917 save percentage in 59 games, including 56 starts. Crawford is 21-15 with a 2.04 GAA in the postseason. Like the Blues, Chicago played the end of the regular season without some key players but the Blackhawks are as healthy as they can be since forwards Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane have been declared ready to go for Game 1. Kane missed the final 12 games of the regular season with a lower-body injury, while Toews sat out the last six with an upper-body issue. Toews, the team captain, won the Conn Smythe Trophy when Chicago won it all in 2010 and Kane claimed the playoff MVP award last spring. "Im excited to get things going," said the reigning Conn Smythe winner. "Ive watched a lot of hockey lately, so its going to be nice to play in some games now." The return of Kane and Toews bulks up Chicagos talented top-six that also includes Patrick Sharp, Marian Hossa and the up-and-coming Brandon Saad. Chicago won the Central Division last season in a lockout-shortened campaign and battled its way to a second Stanley Cup title in four years. The Blackhawks hope to become the first repeat champions since the Detroit Red Wings in 1997-98. The Blues, who were 28-9-4 at home this season, will host Game 2 of this series on Saturday. Chicago was 19-14-8 on the road in 2013-14. Buddy Hield Kings Jersey . "We cannot stay the same way the whole season long," said Reyes. "This is not acceptable. Something needs to change because were a better team than what were showing right now. Its a long season and we just need to continue to push." Its been a frustrating week for the ballclub. Oscar Robertson Jersey . The CFL will help tackle womens cancers by playing four special "CFL PINK" games this weekend. http://www.nbakingsonline.com/Customized/ .J. -- The NHL reduced its penalty against the New Jersey Devils on Thursday for signing Ilya Kovalchuk in 2010. Nemanja Bjelica Jersey .Balotelli uploaded on Instagram a picture of the video-game character Super Mario, with whom the Italy international shares a nickname, with text around the image including jumps like a black man and grabs coins like a Jew. Jason Williams Kings Jersey . It was a loss. But it was also a learning experience. Deron Williams and Joe Johnson had 24 points each to lift Brooklyn to a 94-87 win over the Raptors, making their first playoff appearance since 08. "I thought we played a little bit as expected as it is our first playoff game," Toronto coach Dwane Casey said.EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Rex Ryan is hoping his New York Jets dont strike out.Its only Week 4, but the Jets are off to a shaky start with a 1-2 record. And with two straight losses, Ryan isnt downplaying his teams game Sunday against the Detroit Lions.Staying in the baseball-type deal, in the NFL, its the equivalent of a 10-game losing streak when you lose one game, Ryan said. So, were on a 20-game losing streak. If that talks about sense of urgency, then yeah, theres a huge sense of urgency.Because by Ryans math, another defeat would equal a 30-game skid. In other words, the Jets are in a tough spot against the Lions (2-1).Must-win in September? Not quite, but being 1-3 with San Diego, Denver and New England on deck would be ominous.In Major League Baseball, they play 162 (games), Ryan said. Thats why I think football is one of the greatest things and people love it because its that important. Yeah, look, we dont want to dig ourselves in any further hole than were in, so weve got to find a way and, albeit, against a good opponent.The Lions, meanwhile, are looking for their second straight 3-1 start. Theyre coming off a 19-7 victory over NFC North rival Green Bay and opened some eyes that maybe Detroit is a legitimate contender in the division.Having the top-ranked defence and a high-powered offence, despite its early struggles, that includes quarterback Matthew Stafford and wide receiver Calvin Johnson are two huge reasons.I can tell you its a resilient group, said coach Jim Caldwell, in his first season with the Lions.Its a tough group and a group that youre going to see thats going to be right in there fighting each and every week. It may not be pretty. Were not worried about pretty, were worried about the results. I think our guys are buying into that.Here are some things to watch for when the Lions take on the Jets at MetLife Stadium:GETTING DEFENSIVE: Both offences might have some problems in this one, particularly running the ball.While the Lions have the top defence, based on overall yardage allowed, the Jets are No. 2 in the league. New York is also No. 1 in rushing defence, allowing just 35 yards per game on an average of 14 carries. That spells possible trouble for Reggie Bush and Joique Bell.But guess who has the No. 2 defence against the run? Yep, the Lions. And theyll face an offence that ranks second in rushing, led by the trio of Chris Ivory, Chris Johnson and Bilal Powell.ddddddddddddSMITH ON HOT SEAT?: Ryan publicly backed his starting quarterback a€” twice a€” this week, and Geno Smith insisted he feels no pressure as far as his job security.But Smith has five turnovers in three games and is coming off a poor performance against the Bears last Monday night in which he threw two interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown on his first pass of the game. That has some anxious fans already calling for the Jets to put backup Michael Vick in and see if he can provide a spark.What people have got to understand, Vick said, is youve got to allow a young guy to work through the tough times.SPUTTERING LIONS: Detroit is off to a bit of a sluggish start on offence, scoring just 17 total points on that side of the ball in the past two games.While the Lions are 11th in overall offence and second in third-down conversions, they also had six turnovers against the Packers and Carolina Panthers. The running game is also 25th in the league.Its just little plays here and there, Stafford said. Any time you turn the ball over three times (a game), youre not going to score a whole lot of points.STOPPING MEGATRON: Johnson is still one of the most dominant receivers in the league, and he already has 19 catches for 329 yards and two touchdowns.Next up: a matchup against a secondary still trying to steady itself. The Jets have started converted safety Antonio Allen and backup Darrin Walls at cornerback, and theyve faired OK. Oh, and Johnson needs one game of 200 or more yards receiving to break a tie with Hall of Famer Lance Alworth for the most in NFL history with six.Johnson might be licking his chops this weekend since hes going up against a defence that allowed the Packers Jordy Nelson 209 yards receiving in Week 2.KICKIN IT: The Lions quickly pulled the plug on rookie kicker Nate Freese, who missed a 41-yard field goal last Sunday and was 3 for 7 this season.They signed former Eagles kicker Alex Henery to replace him, and with both defences being stout, field goals could be a factor. Henery set an Eagles accuracy record on field-goal attempts in 2011, but he had a key miss in last years 26-24 playoff loss to New Orleans. He also missed two this preseason before being cut.___AP Sports Writer Noah Trister and Freelance Writer John Kreger in Allen Park, Michigan, contributed.___AP NFL websites: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL ' ' '