The Boston Bruins wrapped up the NHL Eastern Conference regular-season title with a 1-0 win over the New York Rangers on Saturday.
One day after signing a four-year, US$20 million contract extension and five-and-a-half minutes after being hit on the back of his helmet by Sean Avery, Tim Thomas backstopped the Bruins to their sixth straight victory. He made 31 saves for his fifth shutout of the season.
Boston clinched the best record in the East for the first time since 2001-2002 and it might have been a preview of the first playoff round, with the Rangers holding the eighth and final playoff spot in the conference.
PHOTO: AP
Blake Wheeler scored his 21st goal after 9 minute, 4 seconds of the first period.
DUCKS 5, SHARKS 2
In San Jose, California, Ryan Getzlaf set up goals for Bobby Ryan, Corey Perry and Teemu Selanne as Anaheim stayed in the thick of the Western Conference playoff race.
Ryan scored two goals — including the 30th of just his second NHL season — in the resurgent Ducks’ 10th win in 12 games, keeping them in seventh place. Mike Brown also scored, while Jonas Hiller made 28 saves for Anaheim, who have won four straight.
Joe Thornton and Milan Michalek scored for the Sharks, whose lead over Boston for the NHL’s best record stands at one point with four games to play.
HURRICANES 3, PENGUINS 2, OT
In Raleigh, North Carolina, Carolina clinched their first playoff berth since winning the Stanley Cup in 2006 when Anton Babchuk scored after 1 minute, 11 seconds of overtime.
Cam Ward stopped 33 shots and matched a club record with his 38th win, helping the Hurricanes extend their team-record home winning streak to 11. Their eight-game overall winning streak is their longest since they won nine in a row in 2005-2006.
Chad LaRose and Eric Staal both scored for the second straight game, while Ray Whitney added two assists for Carolina. Tyler Kennedy had a goal and an assist for Pittsburgh and Jordan Staal also scored.
DEVILS 3, SABRES 2
In Buffalo, New York, Martin Brodeur stopped 35 shots — 21 in the third period alone — and Jamie Langenbrunner had a goal and an assist for New Jersey.
Zach Parise and David Clarkson also scored to help the Devils snap a six-game road skid and move to the verge of clinching the Atlantic Division title. New Jersey also matched a franchise record for victories with 49 first set in 2006-2007.
Clarke MacArthur and Jochen Hecht scored for the Sabres, who squandered a great opportunity to put themselves firmly in the hunt for the Eastern Conference’s eighth and final playoff berth.
CANADIENS 6, MAPLE LEAFS 2
In Toronto, Jaroslav Halak made 34 saves, while Alex Kovalev had a goal and three assists to help Montreal close in on a playoff spot.
Guillaume Latendresse, Alex Tanguay, Chris Higgins, Maxim Lapierre and Josh Gorges also scored for Montreal.
John Mitchell and Boyd Devereaux scored for Toronto.
SENATORS 4, FLYERS 3, SO
In Ottawa, Mike Fisher scored on Ottawa’s fifth shootout attempt to lift the Senators past Philadelphia.
Jason Spezza scored his 31st goal 3 minutes, 47 seconds into the third period to draw Ottawa even at 3-3. Nick Foligno and Chris Kelly also scored for the Senators. Darroll Powe scored on a penalty shot, while Mike Richards and Simon Gagne added goals for Philadelphia.
Saturday’s other NHL results:
• Oilers 5, Canucks 3
• Predators 5, Blue Jackets 4, SO
• Stars 5, Blues 4, OT
• Kings 6, Coyotes 1
Hong Kong-based cricket team Hung See this weekend found success in their matches in Taiwan, even if none of the results went their way. Hung See played the Chairman’s XI on Saturday morning, the Daredevils that afternoon and PCCT yesterday, with all three home teams winning. The team for Chinese players at the Happy Valley-based Craigengower Cricket Club sends teams on tour to “spread the game of cricket.” This weekend was Hung See’s second trip to Taiwan after visiting Tainan in 2016. “The club has been traveling to all parts of the world since 1982 and the annual tradition continues [with the Taiwan
Taiwan’s Hsieh Su-wei yesterday advanced to the semi-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while Coco Gauff’s dreams of a first women’s singles title in Melbourne were crushed in the quarter-finals by Paula Badosa. World No. 2 Alexander Zverev was ruffled by a stray feather in his men’s singles quarter-final, but he refocused to beat 12th seed Tommy Paul and reach the semi-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia defeated Elena-Gabriela Ruse of Romania and Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine 6-2, 5-7, 7-5 in 2 hours, 20 minutes to advance the semi-finals. Hsieh and Ostapenko converted eight of 14 break
The San Francisco Giants signed 18-year-old Taiwanese pitcher Yang Nien-hsi (陽念希) to a contract worth a total of US$500,000 (NT $16.39 million). At a press event in Taipei on Wednesday, Jan. 22, the Giants’ Pacific Rim Area scout Evan Hsueh (薛奕煌) presented Yang with a Giants jersey to celebrate the signing. The deal consisted of a contract worth US$450,000 plus a US$50,000 scholarship bonus. Yang, who stands at 188 centimeters tall and weighs 85 kilograms, is of Indigenous Amis descent. With his fastest pitch clocking in at 150 kilometers per hour, Yang had been on Hsueh’s radar since playing in the HuaNan Cup
HARD TO SAY GOODBYE: After Coco Gauff dispatched Belinda Bencic in the fourth round, she wrote ‘RIP TikTok USA’ and drew a broken heart on a television camera lens Defending champion Hsieh Su-wei of Taiwan yesterday advanced to the quarter-finals of the women’s doubles at the Australian Open, while compatriot Chan Hao-ching on Saturday dominated her opponents in the second round, as world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka swept into the quarter-finals. Third seeds Hsieh and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia toppled Hungary’s Timea Babos and Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the US 6-4, 6-3, hitting 24 winners and converting three of seven break points in 1 hour, 18 minutes at 1573 Arena. Although rivals at last year’s Australian Open — where Hsieh and Belgium’s Elise Mertens beat Ostapenko and Ukraine’s Lyudmyla Kichenok 6-1, 7-5
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