The Rangers earn an overtime win and Patrick Kane comes alive in the third period to give Chicago a victory in Game One. Scott Cullen has notes on Brassard, Pouliot, Crosby, Kane, Bickell, Hossa and more. RANGERS TAKE OT WIN Derick Brassard scored at 3:06 of overtime to give the New York Rangers a 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game One. The Rangers third line made the most of their opportunities for the night, as Benoit Pouliot scored the Rangers first goal as well as assisting on the game-winner. Brassard and Pouliot also had the Rangers best possession stats for the game, on the ice for 60% of the shot attempts at 5-on-5. The most notable story for the Penguins is that Sidney Crosby was held off the scoresheet, but also was on for all three Rangers goals. Its been a rough start to the postseason for Crosby. Even though he has six assists in seven games and his puck possession numbers are strong, Crosby is minus-5 and still seeking his first goal of the postseason. Hes still getting chances -- his 3.14 shots on goal per game is barely below his regular-season average of 3.24 per game -- but until he gets that first goal, hes going to be under more scrutiny than usual. Penguins wingers Jussi Jokinen and James Neal were on the ice for more than 70% of 5-on-5 shot attempts and Neal scored Pittsburghs second goal, but the ice was tilted favourably in their direction -- they started more than 75% of their shifts in the offensive zone. Rangers D Dan Girardi chipped in a couple of assists. Only once in 81 games during the regular season did Girardi record two assists in a game. The bad news for the Penguins is that they won the puck possession battle, which doesnt fit the profile of these teams entering the postseason, but that still wasnt enough to get away with the win. Getting beat by the Rangers third line is all the more troubling because the Penguins depth and goaltending are areas in which they would expect to have a deficit when compared to the Rangers and thats exactly how Game One played out. KANE PUTS ON A SHOW Blackhawks wingers Patrick Kane and Bryan Bickell each scored a pair of goals and Chicago knocked off the Minnesota Wild, 5-2, in Game One. Kane broke a 2-2 tie with 11:38 remaining in the third period, on a highlight-reel goal, then added another with 3:13 remaining to settle the matter before Bickell added an empty-netter. Kane now has five goals and eight points in seven games this postseason, while Bickell has four goals and five points in seven games. Blackhawks RW Marian Hossa had three points (1 G, 2 A), giving him more points already in this series than he managed in six first-round games against St. Louis. No matter, no one in this years playoffs has more than Hossas 118 career playoff points. LW Patrick Sharp, who had one point in Round One, added two assists in Game One against Minnesota, while D Brent Seabrook contributed two more assists, giving him eight points (2 G, 6 A) in four games. To their credit, the Wild didnt wilt after falling behind 2-0. They outshot the Blackhawks 17-3 in the second period, then scored twice in the first seven minutes of the third to even things up; not for long it turned out. Wild D Jonas Brodin had the best possession numbers for Minnesota at 5-on-5, 73.7% of shot attempts, but it was a rough night for him, as he had six minutes in penalties and was in the box for Chicagos first two goals. D Clayton Stoner also had an eventful game for the Wild, getting credited with a goal (knocked in by Johnny Oduyas skate) and delivering a game-high six hits, including one that knocked Blackhawks RW Andrew Shaw out of the game in the first period. This game showed just how difficult the task at hand is for the Wild. They fought hard to come back, outshot the Blackhawks 32-21 (48-37 in 5-on-5 shot attempts), but they couldnt contain the Blackhawks power play or prevent Kane from getting loose. On top of that, the Wild were fortunate enough to have a Blackhawks goal disallowed in the first period, so there is some work to be done if they are going to make a series out of this. On the plus side, the Wild did show that they can take the play to the Blackhawks at times, so they will have to continue doing so because its difficult to expect Ilya Bryzgalov to get the better of Corey Crawford in the goaltending 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. Jeff Walker Jersey Retro . He still wanted out. "It just seemed like the direction they were going didnt fit what I thought my career was going to be," Kesler said. 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The players looked relaxed and smiled as they filed out for practice. There was little evidence the teams confidence had been shaken by a pair of subpar performances and its first loss in eight Major League Soccer games. There was even talk about how the Seattle Sounders, Vancouvers Cascadia rival with the best record in MLS, are the right medicine to cure whatever ails the Whitecaps. "Its the perfect test to bounce back," forward Nigel Reo-Coker said about Saturdays game at BC Place Stadium. "Its a great test for the team. No one expects us to win this game. They are the most experienced team, I would say, in the league. For us, as an emerging young team, its a great time for us to prove to people we should be taken seriously as a team." The Whitecaps had a franchise record eight-game unbeaten streak (3-0-5) snapped in a 2-0 loss to the Colorado Rapids last week. Vancouver had also played poorly in a 0-0 draw to the Montreal Impact the previous game. A Vancouver team that had gone six of seven games scoring two or more goals has suddenly had problems putting the ball in the net. "The last couple of games I dont think our team has produced the same amount of opportunities they have in the past," said forward Erik Hurtado. "That is going to affect us scoring goals." Coach Carl Robinson doesnt see any big problems with the Whitecaps game, just areas that need little fixes. "Good teams are able to do the crappy jobs very well," said Robinson. "Weve done that the first part of the season. In the last two games I think we went away from that. "Our transition play needs to be a little bit better. Its the little details that make the big differences. If we get back to that, then everyone will put a smile on their face." Seattle leads the MLS standings with 35 points from a 11-3-2 record. One of those ties came against Vancouver last month. The Sounders have also scored 33 goals, more than any other team in the league. Vancouver is fifth in the Western Conference, 13 points behind Seattle with a 5-3-7 record. Steven Beitashour, who is returning to the Whitecaps lineup after playing for Iran at the World Cup, said the last two results are a minor bump in a long season. "We were on a nice streak," said the 27-year-old right back. "The guys did well during that. "The league is going to have runs, good runs, bad runs. I dont think two is bad at all. Im confident this weekend we will have a good result, then we will start a new winning streak.dddddddddddd" The last time the teams met Seattle salvaged the tie on a late penalty kick after a controversial call. Sounders coach Sigi Schmid doesnt expect things to be any easier in the rematch. "They are going to be a team that is motivated," Schmid said on the Sounders website. "Im sure they havent been happy with their last two games they played, they havent scored any goals. "Coach Robinson will be under them and motivating them. That team is going to be hungry when they play us." One reason the Whitecaps have had problems scoring goals is teams are dropping back defenders to counter Vancouvers speed. Robinson said his team must be smarter with the ball when they have possession. "We have to get back to maintaining possession, dictating possession, but also being a threat in the final third," he said. "We know we have quick players, but have we got players with an understanding how to move (opposition) players out of position? Seattle is a very organized team. They like to get eight, nine men behind the ball. We are going to have to be open and expansive but also a little bit creative in our final third play." Vancouver could also improve its set plays. The Whitecaps have been unable to take advantage of some good deliveries from midfielder Pedro Morales. "I think the service has been there," said Robinson. "Now its the challenge for the players to get in the right position. Its about movement in the box." The Whitecaps have been guilty of giving up leads. Robinson said thats a result of his team still learning how to deal with certain game situations. "The top teams are able to grind out results," he said. "I havent got an experienced core. I have a young group. "When we bend we might break at the moment. Its important we learn from scenarios like that. At the moment we have broken but we will learn form certain things." One player thrilled to be back in the Whitecaps lineup is Medhi Ballouchy. The 31-year-old midfielder from Morocco spent 11 months recovering from anterior cruciate ligament surgeries on both knees. During that time he also lost his father to cancer. Ballouchy played 20 minutes against Colorado and called the experience "amazing." "Taking something from a soccer player ... its always hard," he said about his long recovery. "Im just happy (and) at this point dont even want to think about it. "I hope I can stay in this phase for a long time." ' ' '