way through an inning, how to get an out," Black

NEW YORK -- Surgery, suspensions and thuggery. The storylines surrounding the Eastern Conference final reached Shakespearean proportions Friday. As he was in Game 3 Thursday night, Montreal fourth-liner Brandon Prust was slap bang in the middle of the mayhem. What had seemed like a quiet off-day quickly turned dramatic when New York Rangers coach Alain Vigneault revealed that forward Derek Stepan, laid out by an unpenalized blindside hit from Prust two minutes 45 seconds into the game, had suffered a broken jaw that needed surgery. Three hours later, Rangers agitator Dan Carcillo was suspended 10 games for physical abuse of an official on a play that came minutes after the Prust hit, as New York looked for retribution. The Carcillo incident came 5:51 into Thursdays game after a fight between Derek Dorsett of the Rangers and Prust. Carcillo, a fourth-liner, had been penalized for charging Prust on the play. The league said Carcillo "physically applied force to linesman Scott Driscoll while being escorted to the penalty box." The suspension was automatic under category 2 of Rule 40.3, titled Physical Abuse of Officials. Prust, meanwhile, was handed a two-game suspension for interference for the Stepan hit later Friday. It has added more drama to a series that saw Montreals all-world goalie Carey Price sent to the sidelines in Game 1 after coming out the worst for wear in a collision with six-foot-three, 230-pound Ranger Chris Kreider. For Vigneault, the missed Prust call Thursday set off a domino effect whose ripples were still being felt the next day. "Four referees missed the call," Vigneault said. "Stepan is injured. The same player that called the hit on Price accidental but on purpose. Late hit, everything that you want to get out of the game, that was his hit on Stepan. "And what saddens me about that hit is, if the call is made on the ice, were on a five-minute power play, and what happened to Dan Carcillo, and what Dan did is inexcusable, and hes going to pay a big price for it, but if the call is made on the ice, hes not put in that position. "So its unfortunate. Step (Stepan) right now at this time is probably getting operated on. He broke his jaw (Thursday), so well have an idea of the time frame (Saturday). But those are stuff that happens during the game that you have to deal with, and thats what were going to try to do." Dressed in jeans and flip-flops, Vigneault looked like he was in relaxation mode. But he was clearly irate at a sequence of events which he believes could have been avoided. Stepan went briefly to the dressing room after the hit, yelling over his shoulder at Prust as he exited. But he returned later in the period and amazingly played a total of 17:45 in the game. A team spokesman said X-rays that night were negative. But Stepan was in pain and saw a specialist Friday, when further tests detected the broken jaw. It seems unlikely that Stepan, who centres Rick Nash and Kreider on the Rangers top line, will be back any time soon. New York leads the series to two games to one. Prust, a former Ranger who counts Canadian UFC lightweight Sam (Hands of Stone) Stout as a friend, was not made available Friday as both teams, skipping practice in advance of Game 4 Sunday, offered up their coaches and select players. Montreal coach Michel Therrien defended his player. "His intention was not to hurt anyone," he said. "Like Kreider, his intention, even if he was going hard to the net and then laying on Carey Price, Im sure his intention was not to hurt Carey Price. Brandon Prust, he tried to finish his check. His intention, honestly, was not to hurt Stepan." Then Therrien suggested the Canadiens knew better than anybody about losing a star player. "If there is a team that can understand the loss of a player, its us. We lost Carey Price in the first game of the series with the hit on Kreider when he hit Carey Price, and we felt frustrated at the time. Were still frustrated not having our goalie, our No. 1 most important player." Therrien, taking a page from Vigneaults book from the Price injury debate, called it "a hockey hit." Habs forward David Desharnais called it a clean hit, with Prust just wanting to get his team going. "You never want to see a guy injured like that but, like I said, we were fighting for our lives (Thursday) and we wanted to set the tone," he said. At five foot seven, Desharnais is one of the Hobbit-like Canadiens. But the first-liner wins praise from his coach for his compete level. And he knows the value of getting under an opponents skin, as Prust clearly did in Game 3. "They were not happy about it," he said of the Rangers. "Everybody got a little chirp here and there and the game was on." A day later, the Rangers still wanted justice. "I think guys were unhappy there wasnt a call on the play," Kreider told reporters. "Obviously, it was away from the play so not a lot of people saw it. But I think the sentiment today is the same as it was yesterday, that it wasnt a clean hit. Hopefully the league deals with it justly." Cheap MLB Jerseys .J. - The New Jersey Devils know the odds are against them as they chase a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Cheap Jim Palmer Jersey . The Thornhill, Ont., native, who is ranked 11th in the world, said hed hoped he would be ready when Canada begins its World Group first-round tie against Japan in Tokyo on Friday. http://www.cheaporiolesjerseys.com/ . As deep as their roster is, they need their superstar. Rose scored 23 points in his return from a five-game absence due to back pain, and Chicago hung on to beat the struggling Atlanta Hawks 90-79 on Monday. Cheap Brooks Robinson Jersey . -- Billy Donovans bench came up big, bailing out top-seeded Florida in a tight game against what was supposed to be an overmatched opponent. Wholesale Orioles Jerseys .ca MLB Power Rankings, the third consecutive week that the As have held top spot and the third straight week that they have been one ahead of the Toronto Blue Jays. SAN DIEGO -- The Padres are on a roll, proving how quick momentum can flip in baseball. Will Venable homered and San Diego beat the Miami Marlins 5-4 on Sunday for their first three-game winning streak of the season. This run comes on the heels of Thursdays extra-inning loss, when second baseman Jedd Gyorkos error led to Giancarlo Stantons home run and a deflating defeat. Now the Padres hit the road packing along some confidence. "Its a much better vibe, theres less tension in the clubhouse and in the dugout," Padres manager Bud Black said. "When you dont score theres tension. And its been released a little bit and the guys are playing a little more relaxed. That is what winning does. When you dont score, things get a little tight." The surging Padres offence, which has scored 24 runs in the three games, also got two hits and two RBIs from Chris Denorfia. Robbie Erlin (2-4) scattered five hits in 6 1-3 scoreless innings before giving way to three Padres relievers. Huston Street pitched around a hit and two walks in the ninth to earn his 11th save. Street handled the middle of the Marlins order, Stanton and Casey McGehee with caution. He didnt mind putting them on when they didnt offer at border line pitches early in their counts. "I saw (Jeff) Baker in the hole and while he swung the bat well in series, I felt like once the bases were loaded I got to start attacking," Street said. "You know how you feel and youve seen how guys are hitting and when I fell behind those guys in middle of lineup, you feel like you dont want to give them anything to hit, especially Stanton." Street retired Baker on a fielders choice. "Got to be a little crisis at the end but Huston has proven over the years how to work his way through an inning, how to get an out," Black said. "He always knows whos on deck, whos in the hole and as the inning proceeds, what he has to get done and that is always a good sign of a good closer." Stanton understood. "He wasnt going to give me something to hit a homer and goo up in the game," he said.dddddddddddd "So he was either going to take the corners and if I didnt bite, he was going to let (McGehee) take over." Erlin handed his game over to the bullpen and was rewarded. He had lost four straight decisions before beating the Marlins in his first appearance against them. But it was his second consecutive strong showing after a seven-inning, one-run outing versus the Royals. The Padres pitchers struck out 48 over the four-game series to set a franchise record. They broke their mark of 44 set in 1998 against Montreal. Miamis Henderson Alvarez (2-3), who was coming off his second shutout of the season and third in his last eight starts, wasnt sharp. He lasted four innings, allowing five runs on seven hits with three walks and two strikeouts. "He didnt have a good feel for his sinker today and that is his bread and butter," catcher Jeff Mathis said. "Without his sinker today we were doing what we could do throw the ball over the plate." Venable hit his franchise-best 10th career leadoff homer. His 400-foot blast off a 1-0 fastball over the right-field wall was his first home run of the year. NOTES: Padres SS Everth Cabrera was out of the starting lineup after his wife, Connie, gave birth to their daughter late Saturday night. ... OF Carlos Quentin was to play with Single-A Lake Elsinore on Sunday as he continues his rehabilitation from bruised left knee. Quentin could join the club on its upcoming road trip. ... LHP Casey Kelly threw a bullpen session and will pitch at Double-A San Antonio on Wednesday; hes rebounding from Tommy John surgery. ... Marlins MGR Mike Redmond said hes not sure where RHP Henry Rodriguez fits into the teams bullpen. Rodriguez, who worked the seventh inning, was summoned from Triple-A New Orleans. ... Marlins RHP Tom Koehler (3-2, 1.99) faces Dodgers RHP Dan Haren (4-1, 2.68) on Monday in Los Angeles. ... Padres RHP Andrew Cashner (2-5, 2.86) goes against Reds RHP Mike Leake (2-3, 3.40) in Tuesdays series opener in Cincinnati. 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