year-old Lowry holed a 30-foot birdie at the last to secure second

The Los Angeles Kings took advantage of their breaks in Game Three and goaltender Jonathan Quick was terrific, stopping all 32 shots he faced, as the Kings downed the Rangers 3-0 to take a 3-0 stranglehold in the series. Game Three opened with a brilliant pace, as the Rangers and Kings played a back-and-forth first period with very few whistles. It looked like it was going to end up scoreless through one when Kings C Jeff Carter buried a 2-on-1 with Justin Williams, his wrist shot deflecting in off a sliding Dan Girardi with 0.7 seconds remaining in the first period. A backbreaking goal for a Rangers team already down two games in the series. With Rangers D Marc Staal in the penalty box, for high-sticking, Kings D Jake Muzzin scored a power play goal early in the second period to create some breathing room. Muzzins goal was on the power play, but was a wrist shot from just inside the blueline that deflected in off Rangers RW Martin St. Louis. Two goals on two attempted blocked shots and this left the Rangers, down a couple of goals, to press. Late in the second period, Kings C Mike Richards broke out on a 2-on-1 with RW Trevor Lewis, and after Rangers D Ryan McDonagh blocked Richards attempted pass, Richards found the puck back on his stick and finished it off to give the Kings a 3-0 lead. The proverbial dagger. The Rangers had many chances -- they outshot the Kings 17-8 in the second period, then 11-2 in the third, once the deficit was virtually insurmountable -- but they couldnt get the puck past Quick. His 32-save shutout was his best of a postseason that hasnt been Quicks best. Even with the Game Three shutout, Quick has a .910 save percentage in 24 games, but the Rangers best chance to pull off an upset in the series was going to be if Henrik Lundqvist outdueled Quick and that hasnt happened. In Game Three, the Kings won while registering a season-low 15 shots on goal. The playoff scoring race didnt see any change at the top, or at least similar change as Anze Kopitar, Jeff Carter, Justin Williams and Marian Gaborik each had a single point. Kopitar leads the postseason with 26 points, two ahead of Carter and Williams, five ahead of Gaborik. Williams, making his late charge for the Conn Smythe, had six points (1 G, 5 A) in the series. There may not have been a better example of the Rangers frustration in Game Three than to see RW Rick Nash, who has just three goals in the playoffs, creating chances -- he had a game-high seven shot attempts -- but coming up empty at every turn. In one second period sequence, Nash attacked on the rush, was stopped by Quick, stayed on the puck, gathered control behind the Kings net and as he attempted a wrap-around, was hooked by Kings D Drew Doughty to prevent the goal. It was a smart play by Doughty in the moment and, given the Rangers power play struggles (2-for-30, 6.7% in the past seven games), it was sensible, even in desperation. Game Three was a fine example of why a team like the Rangers, the underdog coming in, couldnt afford to lose a pair of overtime games. Sure, the Rangers could have easily won one of the first two games in Los Angeles and come home even, but they didnt. Then, they had a game in which the bounces totally went in the Kings direction and, just like that, the series is 3-0 and that should be just about that. In 26 previous Stanley Cup Final series in which a team has taken a 3-0 lead, only the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs managed to overcome the deficit. Thats what the Rangers are left with. Long, virtually impossible odds, in a series that (aside from the third period of Game One) they have played relatively even throughout. Maybe the Rangers deserved a better fate, but they are left needing a miracle and its pretty tough to count on miracles when the other guys are getting the bounces. 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. NCAA Jerseys . The international synchronized skating competition takes place from January 31 - February 1, 2014, and features 39 teams from 10 countries, in senior, junior, and novice. College Football Jerseys . - On the night Dirk Nowitzki overtook Dominique Wilkins on the career scoring list, Brandan Wright was a human highlight film all by himself. https://www.cheapncaajerseysjustwholesale.com/ . -- During a players meeting following the All-Star break, Jermaine ONeal promised his teammates to play the rest of the regular season like he would never play again -- because he very well might not. Authentic NCAA Jerseys . The Bruins forward has been fined $5,000 by the National Hockey League for spearing Red Wings defenceman Danny DeKeyser in the groin. NCAA Jerseys For Sale . The Oilers have been shut out in three straight home games and are in last place in the Western Conference with a 4-14-2 record. "Things have obviously not gone as well as I would have thought probable. VIRGINIA WATER, England -- Rory McIlroy put aside the anguish in his private life to win the European Tours flagship BMW PGA Championship on Sunday. The double major winner came from seven shots back at the start of the final round to shoot a 6-under 66 and win by 1 stroke with an overall 14-under 274 on the Wentworth course. It was McIlroys first European Tour success since December 2012 and ends a run of eight second-place finishes in 11 events this season. Shane Lowry of Ireland came second with a round of 68 for a 13-under 275. Denmarks Thomas Bjorn (75) shared third place on 12 under with Englands two-time BMW PGA winner Luke Donald (70). McIlroys 12th victory worldwide comes four days after the 25-year old Northern Irishman confirmed the breakdown in his relationship with Danish tennis star Caroline Wozniacki. McIlroy had been close to tears on Wednesday when talking to the media. He was still subdued Sunday despite his victory though he hugged his father Gerry and long-time coach Michael Bannon. "I guess when I got inside the ropes this week, it was a little bit of a release, and I was on my own and doing what I do best, which is playing golf, and that sort of gave me four or five hours of serenity or sanctuary or whatever you want to call it," McIlroy said. "I was just focusing on the job at hand which was to play golf and get the ball in the hole in the lowest number of shots possible ... Its obviously been a week of very mixed emotions, but Im sitting here looking at this trophy going, How the hell, how did it happen this week? But it did." It was McIlroys first success since coming from behind to win Decembers Australian Open in Sydney. He heads into next months U.S. Open as a strong contender to win the event for a second time in four years. "The win at the end of laast year in Australia sort of stopped all the questions about equipment and about struggling and slump and all this stuff," McIlroy said.dddddddddddd "But to win here, against a great field, one of the best fields of the year, especially in Europe sort of cements that, and shows where my game is and Im on the right track again. Hopefully, it wont be long before Im contending in majors and having a chance to win those again." Lowry went into the last day some five shots behind third round leader Bjorn but found himself in front when Bjorn took a triple bogey 7 at the par four No. 6. After three birdies in a row from the 10th, Lowry had his own troubles in taking a double bogey at the par four 13th. However, the former Irish Open and Portugal Masters winner regrouped to birdie the 14th and, while he dropped a shot at the next, the 26-year-old Lowry holed a 30-foot birdie at the last to secure second place on his own. "Im happy but I know I am going to be sitting in my hotel room tonight and the 13th hole is going to be going through my head," Lowry said. The 43-year-old Bjorn went into the last day with history on his side as no player had lost at this European Tour event after leading by five shots. By the ninth hole Bjorn had forfeited his advantage -- taking a bogey at No. 5, triple bogey at the sixth where he failed to get out of a greenside bunker in regulation, and dropping a further shot at the ninth. The Dane birdied the 12th but was in trouble again with bogeys at Nos. 14 and 15 before birdies at the next two holes in an eventual round of 75. "Its a disappointment when you come off the golf course like this," Bjorn said. "I just didnt get it right today and I made that massive judgment error on six and that kind of let everybody back into the frame." ' ' '