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NEW YORK -- Madison Square Garden underwent a recent $1 billion transformation, and yet it will have another completely different feeling once the New York Rangers hit the ice in the Eastern Conference finals. Brooks Robinson Jersey . Gone will be the fear of impending doom that enveloped the club during its second-round comeback against Pittsburgh. Missing will be the nerves that any goal or loss could mean the end of the season. Suddenly, the Rangers are the front-runners against the Montreal Canadiens, and their fans now have the chance to celebrate the ride with them. "Having fan support is obviously huge," Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said. "Unconditional love, its something thats really beneficial to a team." New York is riding a five-game winning streak, but four of those victories came on the road -- two in Pittsburgh when the Rangers erased a 3-1 series deficit, and the first two in this matchup with Montreal. The Rangers will skate at the Garden on Thursday night with a series lead for the first time since Game 2 of the first round against Philadelphia 15 games ago. "Its a good feeling, but we know weve accomplished nothing yet," forward Martin St. Louis said. "Were trying to prepare for a Montreal team thats going to come out with a lot of energy. We know that. This is a big game for everybody. We know where the series is, and its a big opportunity for us." Nothing is a guarantee, but to take a 3-0 series lead would set the Rangers up for their first trip to the Stanley Cup finals since 1994. Since New York fell way behind Pittsburgh with a dispirited home loss in Game 4, the Rangers have been playing with a sense of desperation. It didnt reset once they eliminated the Penguins, and so far they have shown no signs they will let the Canadiens recover. "I feel every game is a must-win in the playoffs," St. Louis said. "You go into every game understanding what can happen with a loss and what can happen with a win. Its a lot of momentum shifting, a buildup in the playoffs, and you want to make sure you keep it as long as you can." The Canadiens mindset is to regroup and play the kind of road game the Rangers did by jumping on them. Montreal is still dealing with the loss of No. 1 goalie Carey Price, who was knocked out of the series by injury in the opener, but now is trying to rally around third-stringer Dustin Tokarski. The inexperienced goalie, who has played in only 11 career NHL games, got the surprise nod by coach Michel Therrien in Game 2 over regular backup Peter Budaj and was tabbed again Wednesday to start in Game 3. Struggled forward Thomas Vanek was dropped to the fourth line in practice on Wednesday alongside Danny Briere and Brandon Prust in another potential shake-up. "Dont read too much, OK?" Therrien said. "They might change tomorrow." Whatever the lineup looks like, the Canadiens have adopted a motto of no excuses as the series shifts to New York. "We lost the first two games. Weve got to do something different," Canadiens captain Brian Gionta said Wednesday in Montreal before the team flew south. "But at the same time, we had a pretty good game in Game 2. Weve just got to find ways to get more goals and get to them a little more offensively." They netted only two in a blowout loss in the opener, and then scored one on Monday in a 3-1 loss. The Canadiens grabbed what had been an all-important first goal, but they lost the lead just 17 seconds later and were trailing 2-1 before the first period ended. Henrik Lundqvist was the main reason the Rangers were ahead, holding off an early attack and then a third-period surge in which he stopped all 19 Canadiens shots. He made 40 saves overall. "We are down two, and we are going on the road," said forward Max Pacioretty, who scored the lone Montreal goal in Game 2. "Obviously, we would have liked to have Game 2, but we can only worry about Game 3. Weve got to be better. "We have to make life difficult for their goalie, and if we do that, I like our teams chances." Pacioretty, a Connecticut native, is also looking forward to the atmosphere at the Garden, even though he will be wearing an enemy sweater. "I love MSG," he said. "I grew up watching games there. I love going there. I havent played in the finished building yet, so this will be fun for me." One person who hopes to be back on the ice on Thursday is Rangers forward Derick Brassard, who was injured early in the opener and missed all of Game 2. He went through a full practice on Wednesday and was waiting to meet with the medical staff and Vigneault to see if he would rejoin the lineup. Fellow forward Benoit Pouliot sat out for a maintenance day. Jim Palmer Jersey . The start of the seasons fifth and final major was delayed two hours due to heavy rain in the area. The tournament eventually began, but with water on the greens and the rain persisting, players were called back to the clubhouse less than an hour after the first group teed off. Custom Baltimore Orioles Jerseys . Zdeno Chara scored with 13 seconds left in regulation after David Krejci tied it late, lifting the Bruins to a 3-2 win over Pittsburgh on Saturday night in a game that saw Orpik taken from the ice on a stretcher. http://www.oriolesapparelsshop.com/manny-machado-jersey-c-7/ .com) - New England Patriots starting center Bryan Stork will not play in Sundays AFC Championship against Indianapolis due to a knee injury the rookie sustained last week.The San Antonio Spurs, the model for stability and sustained success in the modern NBA, were still a shaken team when they showed up for training camp in October, less than four months after a devastating loss to Miami in the NBA Finals. Some coaches would try to brush off the disappointment of letting a title slip through their fingers and refuse to acknowledge the elephant in the room. Gregg Popovich took it head on, embraced the heartache, and in a career full of masterful coaching performances, delivered perhaps his finest effort in season No. 18. "The way we lost in the finals wasnt an ordinary loss, it was pretty devastating," Popovich said on Tuesday after being named NBA coach of the year. "We decided that we needed to just face that right off the bat at the beginning of the season and get it out of the way. Dont blame it on the basketball gods or bad fortune or anything like that, the Miami Heat beat us and won the championship and thats that." Popovich joined Don Nelson and Pat Riley as the only coaches in league history to take home the Red Auerbach trophy three times in their career. "Theyre on the hood of my car," Popovich cracked. "One, two, three, right on the car, the way players do license plates. ... Ive got three of those right on the hood." Hes never liked the attention, never bought into the proclamations of his genius. When the accolades come his way, Popovich is quick to deflect them, giving the credit to his players, his assistant coaches, owner Peter Holt and general manager R.C. Buford. The humility in his voice on Tuesday was genuine, the challenge of putting the pieces back together after last seasons finish as daunting as ever. They showed up to training camp still stinging from that defeat, and Popovich had to get to know a new-look coaching staff after losing longtime assistants Brett Brown and Mike Budenholzer to head coaching jobs in Philadelphia and Atlanta. Then he led the Spurs to a league-best 62-20 record, which gives them home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. And he did it while deftly navigating a season filled with nagging injuries to several key players. Tim Duncan was the only starter to play in at least 70 games. No Spur averaged 30 minutes per game and Tony Parker led the team with a modest 16.7 points per game. Despite all of that, the Spurs won at least 50 games for the 15th straight season and topped 60 for the fourth time in that span. "Day after day, year after year, the energy that Pop provides our organization is truly unique," Buford said. The Spurs lead the Dallas Mavericks 1-0 in their best-of-seven series, with Game 2 on Wednesday night in San Antonio. Yovani Gallardo Jersey. "Hes a gentleman," Spurs swingman Marco Belinelli said. "Everybody knows that hes the best coach in the league. So to say that is not really important. But maybe some people, they dont know hes really a great guy, a great gentleman. He really helps guys, helps each other. He wants to help everybody. Great person." When Miami topped San Antonio in that classic seven-game series, Popovichs reaction resonated deeply within some members of the Heat organization. Instead of showing his disappointment at the final buzzer, Popovich lingered on the court for a few minutes, sharing heartfelt embraces and words with Erik Spoelstra, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James, among others -- even smiling as he chatted with them and congratulated them on winning the title. And when told of Popovichs award Tuesday, James offered high praise to the Spurs coach. "Not surprised," James said. "Its well-awarded. I have the utmost respect for Gregg Popovich, man. Not only what hes been able to do for that team, but him just being able to always keep those guys motivated and always keep their best interests. ... From the outside looking in, it seems that he has their best interests and all he cares about is the teams success and nothing else matters. Thats big-time." Behind all his press conference bluster and the orneriness he directs toward the officials, there is a softer side that endears Popovich to those around him. That much was revealed during Game 1 against the Mavericks when he was interviewed by Craig Sager Jr., who was filling in for his father, a longtime sideline reporter who is being treated for leukemia. Popovichs curt demeanour and one-word answers to the elder Sagers questions have become appointment viewing, but this time the coach stopped in the middle of tense game, stared right into the camera and delivered a heart-felt message. "We miss you. Youve been an important part of all of us for a long time, doing a great job," he said. "We want your fanny back on the court, and I promise Ill be nice." Popovich garnered 59 first-place votes and 380 total points in voting conducted by a panel of media members. Phoenixs Jeff Hornacek (37 first-place votes) finished second and Chicagos Tom Thibodeau (12) finished third in the voting, with Charlottes Steve Clifford and Torontos Dwane Casey rounding out the top five in a season so strong that Spoelstra did not make the top 10. 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