INFO » lead, carrying the puck from behind the net before f

Mark Noble struck twice from the penalty spot as West Ham beat Watford 3-1 at Upton Park to keep alive their faint hopes of a top-four place. Andy Carroll gave the hosts the lead after 11 minutes on Wednesday night, and Noble added West Hams second with the first of three penalties - two for West Ham - after Cheikhou Kouyate was fouled by Jose Holebas.Almen Abdis shirt-pull on Michail Antonio gave Noble another chance eight minutes after the break, and the Hammers midfielder coolly slotted home from 12 yards. Andy Carroll celebrates with Dimitri Payet after opening the scoring at Upton Park Watford were handed a lifeline when Sebastian Prodl slammed in a half-volley after 64 minutes, but substitute Troy Deeney saw his late penalty saved by Adrian before Nordin Amrabat was sent off for his second yellow card in the dying seconds.Manchester Uniteds 2-0 win over Crystal Palace means West Ham remain sixth, three points off fifth and a further point behind fourth-placed Arsenal, who face West Brom live on Sky Sports on Thursday.Watford, with an FA Cup semi-final on Sunday, made seven changes but it was Carroll, one of three West Ham alterations from their 2-2 draw at Leicester, who opened the scoring. Carroll volleys past Heurelho Gomes to open the scoring at Upton Park The Hammers striker guided home Dimitri Payets cross for his sixth goal in as many games.Falling behind brought Watford to life, but with Odion Ighalo left out of the squad and Deeney on the bench, they lacked a focal point, and West Ham made them pay just before half-time.Holebas was the villain for the visitors, climbing over the back of Kouyate, and referee Mike Dean had no hesitation in pointing to the spot.Noble still had plenty to do against Heurelho Gomes, who saved two Saido Berahino penalties on Saturday, but the midfielder sent the goalkeeper the wrong way.It could have been even better for the home side in first-half stoppage time, but Manuel Lanzini miscued wide when it looked easier to score. Manuel Lanzini is closed down by Valon Behrami on Wednesday evening Abdi spared his blushes shortly after the restart, turning Jose Manuel Jurados cross over the bar and leaving manager Flores with his head in his hands on the sideline.The Hornets midfielder capped a nightmare few minutes when he then conceded the second penalty of the evening for a pull on Antonio, duly dispatched by a grateful Noble. West Ham manager Slaven Bilic hailed his sides performance after they beat Watford 3-1 at home But 11 minutes later Watford threatened to make a game of it as Prodl expertly fired home Steven Berghuis free-kick.The goal prompted Flores to introduce Ikechi Anya and Deeney, and the pair made a difference as Anya twice stretched the West Ham defence. Watford manager Quique Sánchez Flores was pleased with his sides display despite suffering a 3-1 defeat away at West Ham The hosts had chances to wrap up the points too, as Victor Moses and Lanzini both squandered clear-cut opportunities, but an Angelo Ogbonna shirt-pull on Prodl gave Deeney the perfect chance from the spot to set up a frantic finish.The Hornets striker could not take it, though, as his poorly-struck spot-kick was kept out by Adrian.Things got worse for the visitors in the closing stages when Amrabat, booked for a late challenge on Kouyate midway through the second half, saw red for a similarly mistimed lunge on Winston Reid deep into stoppage time.Player ratingsWest Ham: Adrian (7), Antonio (7), Reid (6), Ogbonna (6), Cresswell (6), Noble (8), Kouyate (7), Lanzini (7), Payet (7), Sakho (6), Carroll (7)Subs used: Moses (6), Emenike (6), Collins (6)Watford: Gomes (6), Paredes (6), Prodl (7), Cathcart (4), Holebas (3), Suarez (5), Behrami (5), Guedioura (6), Jurado (6), Abdi (6), Amrabat (6)Sub used: Anya (6), Berghuis (6), Deeney (6)Man of the match: Mark Noble Dave Schultz Flyers Jersey . That assertion is getting harder and harder to make, especially given the way 23-year-old Danilo Gallinari has been playing this season. Claude Giroux Jersey . During the furious first few hours of free agency Tuesday, the team agreed to terms with strong safety Donte Whitner, a Cleveland native who cant wait to play in his hometown. http://www.nhlflyersproauthentic.com/robert-hagg-hockey-jersey/ . Boston is making its first appearance in the ALCS since 2008. For Detroit, its a third straight trip to the ALCS and its fourth in eight years. Scott Laughton Flyers Jersey . -- Adrian Peterson remained in a walking boot to treat a high ankle sprain on his left leg on Wednesday, and coach Leslie Frazier said he will not play on Sunday against Atlanta if he cant hit the practice field in the next two days. Bernie Parent Jersey . The 22-year-old slugger, who is no stranger to adversity, made up for it at the end.ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The Minnesota Wild rattled a 26-year-old rookie goalie on Tuesday night. The way they were clicking, it might not have mattered who was in the goal. Zach Parise scored twice and Josh Harding continued his dominance in goal to lead the Wild to a 5-1 victory over the Calgary Flames. Flames goalie Reto Berra, who beat the defending Stanley Cup champion Blackhawks 3-2 in overtime in his NHL debut on Sunday, stopped 13 of 15 shots through two periods, keeping the Flames in the game with a handful of saves on point-blank shots. But the Wild broke through with three goals in the third, including two in a 33-second span, that left Calgary head coach Bob Hartley shaking his head. "The goals that they scored, you could have taped Patrick Roy, (Ed) Belfour and (Martin) Brodeur together and we wouldnt have won that game," Hartley said. "They were so much better than us, they deserved the two points." Parises second goal, in particular, was a product of precision passing by Ryan Suter and Mikko Koivu that left Berra reeling and gave Parise half the net as his target. "You always like getting those on your tape when the goalie is sliding the other way," Parise said. "It was such a nice play by (Koivu and Suter) and I just happened to be the recipient. That was a world-class pass by Mikko. That was a little bit of a gift." Koivu, who posted his first multi-point night of the season with a goal and two assists, helped the Wild recover from a sluggish start after Calgarys Jiri Hudler opened the scoring with his sixth goal of the season. Minnesotas captain chipped in a rebound over Berras shoulder to tie the score just 4 minutes after Hudlers goal and the Wild were off and running. "I like the way we responded, getting the quick rreply, especially who got it for us," Minnesota coach Mike Yeo said.dddddddddddd"That was a good message to the group that we were going to bounce back." Parise put the Wild ahead 2-1 with a power-play goal at 6:28 of the second period. Suter passed to Parise at the edge of the crease, where he was stonewalled by Berra. But the rebound bounced right back to Parise, who knocked it past the sprawled goaltender. Still, Berra kept the Flames close until the Wild struck twice midway through the third period to break the game open. First, Justin Fontaine gave the Wild a 3-1 lead, carrying the puck from behind the net before firing a wrist shot from the left faceoff circle that slipped past Berra. On the ensuing shift, Torrey Mitchell feathered a pass to Zenon Konopka on a 2-on-1 break, and Konopka beat Berra on the short side for his first goal of the year. "For sure I have to watch video about one or two goals," Berra said. "Maybe I should have those, but the other ones were just pretty nice plays." Meanwhile, Harding stopped 24 of 25 shots to win his fifth straight start. He leads the NHL with a 1.10 goals-against average and .950 save percentage and has given up just 12 goals in his last 12 starts. "Its impressive -- thats all you can say. Its really impressive," Yeo said. "What good goaltending allows you to do is, sometimes youre not quite there, but it allows you to find your game, and hes done that for us." NOTES: Harding entered the game with a 6-0-0 record and a 1.06 GAA in home games this season. ... Flames D Chad Billins made his NHL debut and assisted on Hudlers goal. ... Konopkas goal was his first point in 55 career games with the Wild. His last goal came on Dec. 16, 2011, when he played for the Ottawa Senators. ' ' '