eft fielder L.J. Hoes sprinted to make a diving catch on a ball hit

GREENBURGH, N.Y. -- Instead of getting ready for Game 6 of the Stanley Cup finals, in what would surely have been a rocking Madison Square Garden, the New York Rangers quietly packed up their lockers and headed toward summer vacation. The pain and disappointment of Friday nights season-ending loss to the Los Angeles Kings was still palpable Monday as players went through exit interviews at the teams suburban practice facility, but one by one they took positive looks back on their unexpected post-season. After all, it had been 20 years since the Rangers played with the Cup on the line. "Its a little early," star goalie Henrik Lundqvist said. "I am proud of the team and what we did and how we overcame different challenges -- not only in the past couple of months but throughout the entire season. "We have a lot to be happy about, but right now youre still disappointed about not winning." Had they been able to score in overtime on Friday or in either of the first two games of the finals in Los Angeles -- which were both decided in overtime -- New York would have hosted Game 6 on Monday night. The series would have been 3-2, one way or the other, and Rangers fans would have been firmly behind their club as it moved closer to a championship. "The last two or three days have been even worse than today," forward Carl Hagelin said. "Now its kind of faded off. Its enough crying now. You cant cry much more. "It couldve been a game tonight, but were going to have to live another day." The Rangers have reached the conference finals in two of the past three seasons, and now have taken it a step further. Only a few veterans in their room, such as Brad Richards and Martin St. Louis, had gotten to the finals before this run. The collective experience they now share as a group could bode well. "Its hard to swallow right now, but give it a couple of weeks," forward Derek Stepan said. "I think well look back and well see how much fun we had as a group and be able to look at it and say, Hey, we played some really good hockey. "Weve got a good balance of guys. The organization did a good job of building this team, getting the young guys and getting the old guys. Weve got a good blend." As is always the case at the end of the season, changes will be made before the team gets back together for training camp in about three months. One player who likely wont be there is Richards, who has become a prime candidate to have his contract bought out by the Rangers to give the club much needed salary cap relief. New York has one remaining amnesty buyout available, and it must be used by July 1. The cap room that would be saved by getting Richards contract off the books could go a long way to signing potential free agents the Rangers have and others who could come in from other teams. "Were going to work on putting a good team on the ice, but every year is different," Rangers coach Alain Vigneault said. "Next years team is going to be different, and youve got to go through the same process. Its going to be a challenge to make the playoffs, and then you take it one series at a time." Richards took on a bigger leadership role after captain Ryan Callahan was traded to Tampa Bay for St. Louis in March. His voiced carried in the room even as his play declined as the playoff run got deeper. Vigneault limited his ice time to fourth-line minutes in the final two games against Los Angeles. "If you look at Brads overall season he had a real good year," Vigneault said. "In the final series, I dont know if it was a combination of some other guys might have been playing a little bit better than he was, but we had some decisions to make in Game 4 and Game 5." No decision on Richards status had been made by Monday afternoon, and he didnt speak to reporters to discuss what might lie ahead for him, either. Vigneault excelled in his first season as coach, after he replaced the fiery John Tortorella, and he will also be looking to win that elusive championship. The Rangers havent hoisted the Cup since their last finals experience in 1994. Vigneault took the Vancouver Canucks to the final step, too, only to fall to Boston in 2011. "Each year you play, your drive gets bigger and bigger," Stepan said. "This group has been close, and certainly that drive is going to be there for next year." NBA Jerseys China . - Defensive end-linebacker Mike Neal apparently is returning to the Packers. NFL Jerseys Supply . The union filed a grievance late Thursday, one day after Goodell suspended four players who participated in bounties from 2009-11. The complaint says Goodell is prohibited from punishing players for any aspect of the case occurring before the new collective bargaining agreement was signed last August. http://www.cheapjerseysbasketball.com/ .com) - The Chicago White Sox have officially announced that the club has agreed to terms with utilityman Emilio Bonifacio on a one-year, $4 million contract that includes a team option for the 2016 season. Cheap NFL Jerseys China . -- Stacy Lewis shot 7-under 65 to lead the LPGA Tour team to the championship of the 3Tour Challenge on Tuesday. NFL Jerseys Outlet . Huntington doesnt want to help run the club unless Hurdle is in the dugout. The combination thats returned the franchise to respectability will remain intact for years to come.PRETORIA, South Africa -- For five days, Oscar Pistorius endured a withering cross-examination at his murder trial from a prosecutor who pounced on apparent inconsistencies in his testimony. Yet, legal analysts said Tuesday, expert witnesses who will testify for the defence could undermine the prosecutions efforts to prove Pistorius killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on purpose after an argument. The demeanour of the Olympian, often fumbling for answers and occasionally breaking into sobs, contrasted with that of prosecutor Gerrie Nel, who called Pistorius a liar and unleashed volleys of barbed questions. Social media buzzed that Pistorius is in deep trouble -- a South African talk show host wryly observed that the double-amputee runner had not "covered himself with glory" when his cross-examination ended Tuesday -- but experts said the trial has a long way to go. "Until the defence presents the rest of their case, you cant really evaluate the significance of any potential concessions that he may have made," said Kelly Phelps, a senior lecturer in the public law department at the University of Cape Town. The trial, which began March 3 and is expected to hear testimony until mid-May, reached a key stage last week when Pistorius took the stand to testify about the circumstances of Steenkamps killing in his home before dawn on Feb. 14, 2013. The Paralympic champion, 27, says he shot the 29-year-old model through a closed toilet door after mistaking her for an intruder, but Nel catalogued what he said were conflicts in Pistorius story that prove he made it up. The prosecution provided a "very clear narrative for the first time" of what it says happened on the night of Steenkamps death, Phelps said. The judge, she said, must decide whether Pistorius inconsistencies were a result of his clumsily trying to polish a story that is true in its fundamentals, or instead revealed an "elaborate coverup plot" after he murdered his lover. Phelps said the prosecution accused Pistorius of changing his account mostly on "smaller details" but that he had stuck to the "core parts of his story." Some commentators have speculated that Pistorius could face a lesser homicide charge that still carries long prison time in the event of a conviction. Still, during cross-examination, Pistorius gave a sometimes muddled account of the shooting. He said he feared for his life but also didnt intentionally shoot at anyone, prompting Nel to query if his defence was self-defence or "involuntary action." Inconsistencies in the athletes testimony include his statement that Steenkamp did not scream when he shot her but later saying his ears were ringing with the first of four gunshots and he would not have heard screams. A vital part of the prosecutions case is the testimony of neighbouurs who said they heard a womans terrified screams on the night that Steenkamp died; the defence says they actually heard Pistorius screaming in a high-pitched voice.dddddddddddd Pistorius credibility was further challenged by earlier testimony against him for three unrelated gun charges in which he denied any wrongdoing when questioned by Nel. Possibly in his favour was his lack of anger on the witness stand despite the prosecutions picture of him as overbearing and arrogant. Nevertheless, Marius du Toit, a former state prosecutor, magistrate and now criminal defence lawyer in South Africa, said Nel exceeded his goals in his cross-examination, even goading Pistorius into faulting his legal team while trying to clarify testimony. For example, chief defence lawyer Barry Roux said Pistorius fired two quick bursts -- the gun owners terminology for such a burst is "double tap" -- but Pistorius said he fired four shots in rapid succession. Du Toit, however, said the defence, which plans to call up to 17 witnesses, could still make it hard for the prosecution to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Pistorius is guilty of premeditated murder, which carries a penalty of 25 years to life in prison. Du Toit said he wasnt convinced that the prosecution had shown that he intended to kill, noting Pistorius fired roughly level with Steenkamps mid-section. Prosecution witnesses said the first bullet likely struck her in the hip. "If you wanted to kill someone, you would shoot in the chest or the head," du Toit said, adding that it was "not all lost" for Pistorius even though the defence has a lot of hard work to do. That work started right after Pistorius finished testifying. Roux, the defence lawyer, had the runner read out a Valentines Day card from Steenkamp that she allegedly brought him just before he killed her. In it, she tells Pistorius that she loves him. Roux then called forensic expert and former police officer Roger Dixon, who contradicted parts of the prosecutions case. Dixon said he conducted tests in Pistorius bedroom that proved it was very dark there at night, supporting Pistorius statement that he could not see Steenkamp in his bedroom on the night he killed her, and describing some aspects of the police investigation as "unprofessional." Phelps, the University of Cape Town lecturer, said Judge Thokozile Masipa could consider the prosecutors allegation that Pistorius sometimes faked distress in the witness box to wriggle out of a tough question. Otherwise, she said, the athletes outbursts would not affect the judge, who will deliver a verdict because South Africa does not have a jury system. "Her recognizing that trauma will have absolutely no bearing on her determination as to what his state of mind was when he was firing the shots," Phelps said. ' ' '