The Chicago Blackhawks opened the Western Conference Final with a 3-1 victory over the Los Angeles Kings in Game One. Notes on the Jonathan Toews-Anze Kopitar matchup, Duncan Keith, Jeff Schultz, Corey Crawford and more. Blackhawks LW Brandon Saad had a goal and an assist to lead Chicagos attack, but the Blackhawks did not hold the territorial edge in play against the Kings. Only three Blackhawks -- Bryan Bickell, Jonathan Toews and Johnny Oduya -- were on the ice for better than 50% of the 5-on-5 shot attempts. Real credit for the Blackhawks defensive effort must go to the line of Toews, Bickell and Marian Hossa, along with the defence pairing of Oduya and Niklas Hjalmarsson; they took on the toughest matchup, against the Kings top line and, in addition to Toews tallying the Blackhawks third goal, the unit held the playoffs leading scorer, Kings C Anze Kopitar, without a shot attempt and RW Justin Williams had all four of his attempts blocked. Blackhawks D Duncan Keith, who scored the game-winning goal, was on for 30.8% of the 5-on-5 shot attempts, getting the wrong end of a frequent matchup against the line of Jeff Carter, Tyler Toffoli and Tanner Pearson. Toffoli was the Kings lone goal-scorer. In a surprise twist, Kings D Jeff Schultz, who had turnovers that contributed to the Blackhawks first two goals, also had spectacular puck possession numbers. With Schultz on the ice, the Kings had 22 shot attempts for and five against, 81.5%. With Schultz off the ice, the Kings earned 45.6% of the games 5-on-5 shot attempts. While the Blackhawks didnt hold the possession edge overall, they did get another strong goaltending performance from Corey Crawford, who stopped 25 of 26 shots -- the third straight game in which Crawford has allowed a single goal. Even though he won the Stanley Cup last season, he doesnt necessarily have the postseason rep of Kings netminder Jonathan Quick, but Crawford has done all right for himself in 50 career playoff games. Since 2000, he ranks third (behind Tim Thomas and Tuukka Rask) in save percentage, among goaltenders with at least 40 playoff appearances. Since the Blackhawks and Kings are both top-tier possession clubs, it could easily come down to which team gets the better goaltending and Crawford gives the Blackhawks a legitimate chance to win that matchup. Scott Cullen can be reached at Scott.Cullen@bellmedia.ca and followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/tsnscottcullen. For more, check out TSN Fantasy on Facebook. Jonathan Toews Jersey . Tokarski, a somewhat controversial choice -- with his 10 games of NHL experience and all -- to replace an injured Carey Price in Game Two had a night to remember, turning back a Rangers team that was dominating play from the get-go, outshooting the Canadiens 14-4 in the first period and 37-25 overall. Anton Forsberg Jersey . Lack made 20 saves for his third shutout of the season as the Canucks blanked the St. Louis Blues 1-0 in the first post-Olympic game for both teams night. http://www.cheapblackhawkschinajerseys.c...chmaltz-jersey/. - Rookie Kyle Larson will start from the pole position Saturday night in the NASCAR race at Richmond International Raceway after a thunderstorm arrived just in time to wash out qualifying. Michal Rozsival Jersey . They have homered once every 27.3 at bats, which just happens to be the third best mark in the American League, albeit just 10 games into the season. Jeremy Roenick Jersey .C. -- The Charlotte Bobcats said head coach Steve Clifford underwent a successful procedure Friday to have two stents placed in his heart. BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A quick start paid off for the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday. Marian Gaborik had a goal and two assists and the Blue Jackets kept the Buffalo Sabres winless with a 4-1 victory. Cam Atkinson, Nick Foligno and Brandon Dubinsky also scored for Columbus. Sergei Bobrovsky made 26 saves for the Blue Jackets. "Guys played hard," Bobrovsky said. "They blocked shots. They played good systematically in the zone. They played really well." The Blue Jackets scored three first-period goals to get the early edge on Buffalo. "When youre struggling, theres doubt," Columbus coach Todd Richards said. "As a team that comes in, you need to create that doubt, help bring it back." Thomas Vanek scored for Buffalo and Ryan Miller stopped 29 of 33 shots for the Sabres, who fell to 0-4-1 on the season. Its the clubs worst start since they went 0-5-2 to open the 1999-2000 season. The Sabres have scored just five times in their first five games. "We have guys in here that can make plays," Miller said. "We just have to get past this little hump were having trouble with and you cant just work hard get a puck and not do anything with it. We have to start doing things with it." Miller was playing his first game since injuring his groin last Friday against the Ottawa Senators. Atkinson opened the scoring with a goal at 1:51 of the first. Gaborik and James Wisniewski had the assists. "We were fortunate to get one on our first shift of the game and any time that happens it gives you a little confidence, a little extra jump in your step," Dubinsky said. The Sabres tied the game on Vaneks second goal of the sseason at 8:50 of the first.dddddddddddd The goal was the 252nd of his career and moves him into a tie with Craig Ramsay for fifth on the teams goal scoring list. "There was some creativity out there," Miller said. "We had a nice first goal and some other good plays, mostly because were moving our feet and the game was faster." Foligno put the Blue Jackets back ahead 2-1 at 16:35 of the first on a backhand past Miller. And Gaborik got his second of the season at 18:48 to make it 3-1. Dubinsky scored at 2:11 of the second for his first goal of the season to make it 4-1. Gaborik and David Savard had the assists. The line of Gaborik, Dubinsky and Atkinson combined for six points. "Playing with some pretty good players," Atkinson said. "The chemistry between us three has definitely grown. Its fun to play with those guys." The Sabres continue to look for answers, but Miller said their confidence isnt shaken. "I know we can do it," he said. "We just have to step up here and make it better." Notes: The win was Columbus first in Buffalo since Nov. 14, 2008. ... Defenceman Mike Weber was a minus-4. ... Shortly after Columbus opened the scoring, two fights broke out as Cody McCormick fought Dalton Prout and Patrick Kaleta fought Jared Boll. ... Kaleta returned to the game wearing a full-face mask. ... It was the third time Columbus forward Nick Foligno faced off against his younger brother, Marcus. Nicks teams have won two of three. ... The Sabres travel to Chicago to play the Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday night and the Blue Jackets host the Boston Bruins on Saturday afternoon. 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