The Los Angeles Kings haven’t lost a home game in two months, and the San Jose Sharks gave nothing close to the effort necessary to snap the champions’ streak in Game 5.

Add in another flawless performance by Jonathan Quick, and it’s clear why the Kings are going back on the road with a chance to wrap up this all-California series.

Quick made 24 saves in his seventh career playoff shutout, and the Kings moved to the brink of their second straight trip to the Western Conference finals with a 3-0 victory Thursday night.cheap nike nfl jerseys

Anze Kopitar and Slava Voynov scored, and Jeff Carter added an empty-net goal as the Kings won their 13th consecutive home game in emphatic fashion, claiming a 3-2 series lead.

Quick won his 27th postseason game, taking sole possession of the franchise record from Kelly Hrudey. The Conn Smythe Trophy winner shut out the Sharks for the second time in the series, yet Quick scoffed at any suggestion he’s responsible for the Kings’ abrupt reversal of this series’ momentum after the Sharks appeared to take control in San Jose.

”We came out with a purpose,” said Quick, who has stopped 313 of 330 shots in the postseason. ”We knew what was on the line tonight, and I’m lucky to play with guys who care so much about winning. Top to bottom, I thought everybody played well, but it’s just three wins. We know that doesn’t mean anything.”

Quick has three shutouts in this postseason alone, adding to his club record of seven playoff shutouts, yet nobody thought this latest zero was his best number of the postseason. The Sharks lamented their lackluster effort, particularly from the star players whose dominance had allowed San Jose to even the series with two straight wins and three straight games of largely superior play.

”They tested us for the first four games, and I like the way we responded,” Kings defenseman Matt Greene said.

Antti Niemi stopped 26 shots for the Sharks, who have played more than 96 minutes without a goal since they appeared to be seizing the series midway through Game 4.cheap Jerseys Wholesale

”We’ve got to score. It’s the playoffs,” Sharks forward Logan Couture said. ”We had enough chances to win tonight, but we have to start bearing down and scoring some goals. We weren’t there at the start. I don’t even think we were good at any point in this game tonight. Our power play was brutal.”

The home team has won every game in the series, and the Kings remained unbeaten at Staples Center since March 23. Los Angeles, 25-4-1 at home this season, has won seven straight home playoff games dating to last season’s Stanley Cup clincher against New Jersey.

After getting soundly outplayed to start each of the past three games, the Kings met the Sharks’ tempo and urgency from the beginning in Game 5. The Kings sharpened their physical game, outmuscling and outhitting the Sharks from the opening faceoff.

During a sluggish first period, a difficult second period, and a tense third period, there were few signs the New York Rangers would be able to hold off the Boston Bruins and extend their season for at least one more game.

The Rangers played poorly in the opening 20 minutes, but managed to get to intermission in a scoreless tie. Offensively challenged New York fell behind by two goals in the second and trailed by one twice in the third.

Yet, the Rangers dug out of those deficits and were still tied at the end of regulation. Surely the overtime bug would bite them again, no?Wholesale nfl Nike Jerseys

Chris Kreider deftly deflected a pass from Rick Nash past goalie Tuukka Rask 7:03 into the extra period, and the Rangers escaped with a 4-3 victory in Game 4 Thursday night that kept them alive in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

”Tonight is a good example of just how deep we are,” Kreider said. ”There is no quit in this room.”

Derek Stepan and Brian Boyle scored tying goals in the third period for the Rangers, who even found a bit of success on the power play. Carl Hagelin netted New York’s first goal in the second.

Henrik Lundqvist made 37 saves for New York, which totaled only five goals while losing the first three games of the series. The Rangers still trail 3-1 and will need to win Saturday in Boston to force a Game 6 back at Madison Square Garden.

”This was a big one,” Lundqvist said. ”It was such a great feeling to see that puck go in.”

The Rangers, who were outshot 40-32, won a faceoff deep in their zone, and Nash rushed the puck up ice. He stopped above the right circle and fed a hard pass in front that Kreider skated into and tipped in for his first of the playoffs.nike 2012 jerseys

”It is so surreal,” the 22-year-old Kreider said. ”It’s not something that can really be explained. It is something that just has to be felt, but it was awesome. I’m just excited to give these guys an opportunity to play another game.”

New York, which improved to 1-3 in overtime in these playoffs, was eliminated from the conference finals last year by New Jersey after regulation in Game 6.

”There is no negativity in the room,” defenseman Dan Girardi said. ”We’re not worrying about anything else that is going on. We knew we just had to win one game. Now we have to go to Boston and try to win another one.”

Kreider, who made his NHL debut in last year’s playoffs, has six postseason goals in just 25 games.

Boston got second-period goals from Nathan Horton and rising star Torey Krug to build an early lead. Tyler Seguin’s first of the playoffs put the Bruins back on top 3-2 in the third.

Only three teams have lost a series after leading 3-0, but the Bruins are the most recent to do it in 2010 against Philadelphia.cheap nike nfl jerseys

One more win will put Boston into the conference finals for the second time in three years. The Bruins gave up a 3-1 lead to Toronto in the first round before rallying in Game 7 to advance.

The NHL’s best team during the regular season will have to finish the season strong to avoid flopping out of the playoffs in the second round.

Jakub Kindl scored on a power play in the second period, Daniel Cleary had an empty-net goal and Jimmy Howard made 28 saves to help the Detroit Red Wings earn a 2-0 win Thursday night that puts the Blackhawks on the brink of elimination.cheap Jerseys Wholesale

After losing Game 1, the seventh-seeded Red Wings have surged into control of the second round series by handing the Blackhawks their first three-game losing streak of the year.

Is Detroit coach Mike Babcock surprised that his team that barely made the playoffs is a win away from the Western Conference finals.

”If you would ask me two months ago, I would be shocked,” he acknowledged.

Game 5 is Saturday night in Chicago, where goaltender Corey Crawford is confident the team can win the first of three straight games.

Crawford did a solid job in his net, but he couldn’t kick his right leg out quick enough to stop Kindl’s shot on a power play midway through the second period and he was on the bench in favor of an extra skater when Cleary sealed the victory in the final minute.

Toews was called for three penalties in the second – two for high-sticking – and could’ve gone to the box a fourth time in the period for slashing Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg while an official stood between them.

”Emotions run high in some of these games, and my stick got a little loose there,” he said. ”I was playing hard. Sometimes that happens.”Wholesale nfl Nike Jerseys

The Red Wings took advantage of the second power play Toews gave them when Kindl sent a low shot to the near corner from the top of the left circle.

”We’d like to keep him in the box,” Ericsson said. ”He’s not as good for them in the box.”

Chicago had killed its first 30 penalties of the playoffs and matched the 2001 St. Louis Blues’ feat of playing eight postseason games without giving up a power-play goal, the longest such streak since 1988.

Jimmy Howard kept Jonathan Toews in his misery, making three saves against the struggling star to help the Detroit Red Wings beat the Chicago Blackhawks 2-0 on Thursday night in Game 4 of the second round series to put the NHL’s best team during the regular season on the brink of elimination.

When Howard wasn’t using his glove or pads to deny Toews, Detroit’s skaters were rattling him and his teammates with a physical presence that is clearly making them uncomfortable.

Toews was called for three penalties in the second – two for high-sticking – and could’ve gone to the box a fourth time in the period for slashing Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg while an official stood between them.

”Emotions run high in some of these games, and my stick got a little loose there,” he said. ”I was playing hard. Sometimes that happens.”nike 2012 jerseys

The Red Wings took advantage of the second power play Toews gave them when Kindl sent a low shot to the near corner from the top of the left circle.

”We’d like to keep him in the box,” Ericsson said. ”He’s not as good for them in the box.”

Chicago had killed its first 30 penalties of the playoffs and matched the 2001 St. Louis Blues’ feat of playing eight postseason games without giving up a power-play goal, the longest such streak since 1988.

The Blackhawks had a power play with 4:45 left in the game when Kindl was called for hooking, but they couldn’t tie the game.

Crawford made 25 saves and allowed one goal, after giving up seven goals in the previous two games.

Howard was just a little bit better, earning his first shutout of this postseason and the second of his career in the playoffs. He has helped the Red Wings win five of their last six games since trailing Anaheim 3-2 in the first round.cheap nike nfl jerseys

”He has kind of been in a groove for a while now,” Detroit coach Mike Babcock said. ”And, we need that to be successful.”

Kindl scored his first goal of his first postseason, keeping up a trend that has helped the rapidly improving Red Wings pull within a win of their first trip to the Western Conference finals since 2009 when they got past Chicago and went on to lose Game 7 in a Stanley Cup finals rematch against Pittsburgh.

Detroit’s young players – six playing in their first playoff season – have been contributing to help out stars Pavel Datsyuk and Zetterberg.

Red Wings rookie Brendan Smith scored the winner in Game 2 at Chicago to even the series. First-year player Damien Brunner and Gustav Nyquist, who was pointless in his first four postseason games last year, had goals in overtimes against the second-seeded Ducks.

The Los Angeles Kings regained control of their Western Conference semi-final against the San Jose Sharks with a convincing 3-0 Game Five victory on Thursday to move one win away from claiming a series triumph.

The defending Stanley Cup champions maintained the series theme of home-ice domination to seize a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven set before the teams return to San Jose for Game Six on Sunday.Wholesale nfl Nike Jerseys

After a goalless first period, Anze Kopitar opened the scoring for the Kings in the final few minutes of the second as he pounced on the rebound of a Kyle Clifford long-range shot to notch his second tally of the playoffs, first in this series.

Stirred by a fanatical home support, the Kings refused to relinquish the advantage and doubled their lead early in the third when Slava Voynov connected from distance just 53 seconds into the final period.

Jeff Carter capped a comprehensive performance for the hosts when he steered the puck into an empty net to complete the scoring.nike 2012 jerseys

“I think a good start (was the key to the win),” Kopitar told reporters.

“We can all agree that it was probably our best effort in the playoffs so far. We needed it and we came up big in this one.”