NEW YORK – This was nothing new to the L.A. Kings. Time and time again in these playoffs, theyve stared adversity dead in the eye and come out on top. So when Justin Williams, holder of two Cups himself, looked around the dressing room at his teammates after 40 minutes of Game 2 – his team trailing by two goals for the fourth time in three games – he saw not doubt or fear of the Rangers snatching momentum of the 2014 Final, but belief - cold, hard belief. “Were not a team that wilts under the pressure,” said Williams, owner of 23 points in the playoffs. “Were a team that goes out and wants to make a difference and gets it. I feel thats a big reason why weve made it so far.” Three grueling series this spring, all stretched to the max opposite the very best the West had to offer, each dotted with varying threats to a second Cup in three years. But at every point along the way these Kings have found a little something extra – another gear, another goal, another save – unwavering in their ability to overcome a challenge, however tall or insurmountable it may seem. “Every series, every game, every year you play in the league you go through experiences that ultimately will help you in certain situations and I feel together as a team weve been through almost all them you could imagine and weve pulled through,” said Williams, who boasts 949 career NHL games, including 112 in the postseason. “So when were down do we feel comfortable? No, we dont feel comfortable, but we feel like were able to come back. “Belief is a very underrated attribute and we have that going on within our team right now.” It was another 2-0 pit at Staples Center on Saturday evening – the third such hole in as many games – just another obstacle for the Western Conference champs. But in familiar fashion (they did it against the Sharks, Ducks and Hawks) the silver and black forced their way back into the fold, ultimately dashing the Rangers hopes yet again in (double) overtime. Remarkably, the Kings have yet to lead at any point in regulation in the Final and still boast a commanding 2-0 series lead. “We find ourselves in the same situation regurgitating the same mumbo jumbo every time, but were in a results oriented league and the results are were up 2-0,” said Williams. “I dont care how we got here.” Another Cup, thus, appears close at hand for the 32-year-old and an always plucky bunch from southern California. Forty-eight teams have taken a 2-0 series lead in the Final since 1939 with all but five going on to capture the games top prize, including L.A. in 2012. But for whatever history might say the Kings know full well that theres plenty of game left, their own checkered track record in these playoffs the best proof of that. It was L.A. on the mat and apparently down for the count in round one against the Sharks – they rallied with four straight wins – and then seemingly in control against the Ducks in round two – they were up 2-0 in the series before losing three straight – before another dose of Game 7 magic was required. “Obviously momentums a huge part of playoff hockey and once a team has it its important to try to switch the tide in your favour as quick as possible,” said Dwight King from the teams hotel, sitting directly across from Central Park, his controversial third period goal timely in the 5-4 victory. “Teams dont make it this far out of luck,” Williams added. “Do we feel weve broken them? No, absolutely not. We should know that more than anybody; that its tough to put a team down. Especially when youre playing for the Stanley Cup its going to be hard to put a team down, but we need to try to step a little bit more on the throat tomorrow.” Finding their way to the borough of Manhattan on Sunday afternoon (after an early cross-country flight), the city buzzing with a flurry excitement at the Rangers first appearance in the Final in 20 years, the Kings exuded a quiet, knowing confidence, mindful of the improved start theyll need at MSG on Monday night and yet self-assured in their ability to handle whatever challenges Game 3 might throw their way. Williams knew what he saw of his teammates in that dressing room just a day earlier – “I saw a prepared team that knew what they had to do” – and he knows as well as anyone that more, much more will be needed in the days ahead.
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Dee Ford Super Bowl Jersey . While coach Doc Rivers high-fived fans and pumped his fist at the crowd, Blake Griffin and Chris Paul quietly congratulated each other.NEW YORK -- Milos Raonic emerged as the only Canadian survivor from five starters on opening day at the U.S. Open Monday. The fifth seed reached the second round over Japans Taro Daniel with a 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (1) victory. Raonic had a smooth ride in the first two sets, but hit speed bumps as he tried to serve it out. "Maybe just lacked a little bit of intensity," Raonic said after the match. "Where I needed to, I played well. "Its really hard to gauge my level because of the way things went throughout the match. But I feel like just the way Ive prepared for this event, Im feeling more comfortable than any of the other ones, so thats a good thing." The Thornhill, Ont., product saved two break points with aces in the 10th game leading 5-4 but hit the net with a backhand to make it 5-5 in the third set. The set went to a tiebreaker where Raonic finally got the job done. Raonic took just over 90 minutes to earn victory with 20 aces and nearly 60 winners. "Ive been playing my best tennis this year," he said. "I put a lot of focus into this event. Im glad to be here and start playing. "Im hoping to stay for as long as possible." Vasek Pospisil fell victim to a shoulder injury sustained from practise last week. The 46th-ranked Vancouver player who won the Wimbledon doubles title, lost to clay-courter Simone Bolelli 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3. Pospisil revealed that he hurt his shoulder on one serve last Tuesday but added that the problem is slowly healing. Pospisil fired 13 aces but was weighed down by 51 unforced errors and managed only 21 winners. He won his only match in New York during his 2011 debut after also going out in the first round a year ago. "Ive not been serving much, I lost my rhythm," said the Canadian. "I still have pain in my shoulder and thats never a good thing. "I couldnt serve like I usually do, that seemed like a big part of the match today. Its only my serve thats affected. But youre then not as confident on serve and not as loose on return games. It changed the whole outlook on the match. "Im not stressed about doubles, the shoulder is getting better. Four days ago I could barely serve." Shaaron Fichman of Toronto, Aleksandra Wozniak of Blainville, Que.dddddddddddd., and Montreals Francoise Abanda were also eliminated in the womens draw. Fichman returned from arthroscopic knee surgery to a crushing 6-1, 6-0 loss to fourth-seed Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland in a match that took 47 minutes. Wozniak lost to Japans up-and-coming Kurumi Nara, 6-2, 6-1, in 59 minutes. The 17-year-old Abanda, playing in her first match at a Grand Slam, went down to 2013 Wimbledon finalist Sabine Lisicki 6-3, 7-5. "It was a great feeling to be playing my first Slam," Abanda said. "I had a tough opponent so that was tough, but it was great for me to experience that this year at age 17." The No. 112-ranked Fichman was playing her first match since losing in the first round of Wimbledon on June 24. She had surgery to repair torn cartilage in her knee in late July, the result of injuries suffered in World Team Tennis. "Only I know what Ive been going through," she said. "Considering all that I have on my plate, I definitely did the best job that I could. Im proud of my effort. I knew that even on the best of days, Radwanska would not be the easiest match." Fichman is still searching for her first singles victory at a Grand Slam after first-round losses in New York last year and at Roland Garros and Wimbledon in 2014. She was rusty Monday, with 24 unforced errors and 23 winners from her Radwanska. "I dont know how long it will take me to come back," said Fichman. "Im doing the best that could be asked for after the surgery and the ankle and everything. Ill do all that I can, eventually Ill get there. All the struggles and hard work will make me better at the end." The No. 97-ranked Wozniak suffered through 28 unforced errors as she ended her Grand Slam season without a victory at any of the three majors she played -- Paris, London and New York. The 26-year-old Canadian, who has struggled in her comeback from a shoulder injury several seasons ago, was playing her first elite-level match since losing in the first round of the Rogers Cup. Montreals Eugenie Bouchard starts her tournament on Tuesday playing Olga Govortsova of Belarus. ' ' '
