," Teletovic said of the Nets struggles. "A lot of NBA te

PITTSBURGH -- Columbus coach Todd Richards insists his upstart team isnt in the playoffs "just to go to school." Maybe, but the Pittsburgh Penguins provided a pretty valuable lesson in perseverance during a 4-3 victory in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals on Wednesday night. Down two after 21 minutes of slow and sometimes sloppy hockey, the Metropolitan Division champions responded by scoring the final three goals, including Brandon Sutters go-ahead wrist shot 8:18 into the third period. "I think we expected a tight game," Sutter said after the third playoff goal of his career. "They got up and we stuck with it. It was a good win." One that came with more than a few tense moments. Beau Bennett and Matt Niskanen scored power-play goals 45 seconds apart in the second period, erasing Pittsburghs two-goal deficit. Jussi Jokinen also scored for the Penguins and Marc-Andre Fleury overcame some shaky defence in front of him to stop 31 shots. Game 2 is Saturday night. "We have to learn from it but we found a way to win," Pittsburgh forward Sidney Crosby said. "Obviously we didnt start the way we wanted, getting down two goals. I think we have to clean up some things." If not, a series expected to be a romp could turn into something else entirely. Jack Johnson, Mark Letestu and Derek Mackenzie scored for the Blue Jackets, who remain in search of their first-ever playoff win. Sergei Bobrovsky finished with 28 saves but was handcuffed by Sutters knuckler at the end of a 2-on-1 break. "Ive seen Bob make that save a thousand times," Richards said. "It just got by him." The Blue Jackets insisted they wouldnt be intimidated despite Pittsburghs overwhelming edge in playoff experience and star power. The Penguins swept the five regular-season meetings between the teams, but Columbus surged after the Olympic break, rising to the seventh seed in the East while the injury-riddled Penguins coasted to a division title. If the NHLs youngest team was scared by the stage, it hardly showed. Johnson gave the Blue Jackets their first-ever post-season lead 6:20 into the game. He charged to the front of the net, got a feed from Brandon Dubinsky and beat Fleury with a beautiful deke from forehand to backhand. The Penguins answered with 2:51 left in the first when Evgeni Malkin -- returning after missing three weeks with a foot injury -- took advantage of a turnover by Fedor Tyutin and hit Jokinen in the slot. The knuckling wrist shot sailed over Bobrovskys right shoulder and Pittsburgh exhaled. But only briefly. With Pittsburgh defenceman Rob Scuderi off for interference, the Blue Jackets went back in front 2-1 when Letestu jammed home a rebound and sent Columbus soaring into the dressing room. "People were wondering how we would start the game with our inexperience, but we were pretty comfortable after the first period with a 2-1 lead and maybe let off the gas," Columbus centre Ryan Johansen said. Mackenzie got loose for a breakaway short-handed goal, pushing the advantage to 3-1 just 43 seconds into the second. But Columbus momentum then vanished against the leagues top power play. Bennett tipped in a Niskanen slap shot 51 seconds after Mackenzie scored. Johnson was quickly whistled for interference and Niskanen needed only 10 seconds to even the game with a snap shot from the left circle. Things settled down after the five goals in 5 minutes flurry, though Columbus didnt exactly fold. The Blue Jackets carried play at times in the first two periods. The Penguins righted themselves in the third. The miscues that plagued them for the first 40 minutes disappeared, replaced by the kind of responsible play they know theyll need to make a serious run at the franchises fourth Stanley Cup. "Nobody panicked," Fleury said. "The power play was huge for us like it has been all season. It got us back in the game and from then we were in good shape." NOTES: Pittsburgh is 10-3 in its last 13 Game 1s played on home ice. ... The Blue Jackets scratched forwards R.J. Umberger (upper body) and Nick Foligno (lower body), though coach Todd Richards said both players could be available for Game 2. ... Crosby assisted on Niskanens goal to give him 106 career points in the post-season, tied with Kevin Stevens for third on the franchise list. Wholesale Nike NFL Jerseys . -- Former NHL star Jeremy Roenick shot a second-round 69 to take the lead after 36 holes and former LPGA great Annika Sorenstam and Chad Pfeifer, who lost his left leg above the knee serving in Iraq, are among several players in contention in the American Century Championship tournament on Saturday. Cheap NBA Jerseys China . "I never commented to anyone that I wanted out," he explained. "My heart is with this group and making the playoffs." Kesler added that the rumours are "completely false" that he asked to be traded - recently or ever. http://www.chinawholesalenfljerseys.com/. The 22-year-old Spanish midfielder recently signed a new three-year contract with Chelsea, and after spending last season on loan with Valencia in La Liga, Romeu will move to the Bundesliga for the 2014-15 campaign. Cheap NFL Jerseys . - Nikita Jevpalovs scored 6:22 into the second overtime as the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada edged the visiting Rimouski Oceanic 2-1 on Tuesday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League playoff action. NFL Jerseys Cheap . Directly ahead was open field, the end zone and the Seattle Seahawks place in the NFC championship game.NEW YORK, N.Y. - Taj Gibson enjoyed coming home for the holidays. Gibson, a Brooklyn native, scored 20 points and Jimmy Butler added 15 to help the Chicago Bulls rout the Nets 95-78 on Wednesday. "It was stressful," said the 28-year-old, who grew up minutes from Barclays Center. "I did a toy drive and I was tired, but it was great to see my family." Gibson led a balanced offence with six players in double figures for Chicago, which was buoyed by the return of guards Kirk Hinrich and Butler. With the Bulls trailing 50-49 early in the third quarter, Butler took over, keying a 21-5 run that gave Chicago control. Butler, who sat out the last game with a right ankle injury, started the burst with a 3-pointer and added a three-point play that made it 57-52. That was the first of 12 straight points by the Bulls. Another three-point play by Butler made it 66-52. "Coming out of halftime was a focus for us," Hinrich said. Chicago (11-16) led by 19 at the end of the period after Reggie Evans dunk with less than a second left ended a 5 1/2-minute field goal drought for the Nets (9-19). Brooklyn couldnt get much closer in the fourth and was serenaded with a chorus of loud boos from the fans. "They cheer when things are good and they let you know when things arent going good," Nets coach Jason Kidd said. "They expect good and they expect it 90 per cent of the time, but right now we are 90 per cent bad and so they have every right to boo and express how they feel." What once was viewed as a Christmas Day showdown between Eastern Conference contenders became a matchup of two of the NBAs biggest disappointments so far, as both teams have been plagued by injuries. Deron Williams scored 18 points and Mizra Teletovic added 17 for the Nets, who have lost four straight. "Im surprised at this season, how its played out altogether," Williams said. "Its like a nightmare the way the injuries have been, the things we talk about every day, the lack of effort, the lack of energy.ddddddddddddquot; The victory was Chicagos second straight, the first time since five consecutive wins from Nov. 8-18 that the Bulls had two in a row. Chicago is starting to get healthy with the return Hinrich and Butler, both of whom started. Hinrich spurred a 12-0 run midway through the second quarter that gave Chicago a 39-31 lead. Williams then scored seven straight to make it a one-point game. Chicago led 41-38 at the half before Butler took over. "Its good to get guys back," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "Our starters were very solid and our bench guys did a great job. Taj was super." The Bulls were still missing Luol Deng (Achilles) and Derrick Rose, who is sidelined for the season with a right knee injury. Brooklyn has its own injury issues with centre Brook Lopez lost for the season Friday to a broken right foot. "We talk about it a lot. Were really trying to figure out what it is. Its tough," Teletovic said of the Nets struggles. "A lot of NBA teams arent going to give you anything easy. You really have to concentrate and bring a lot of energy to win the game." The two clubs were wearing their Christmas short-sleeve jerseys that look straight out of a rec league game. Instead of numbers and a team name on the front, there was a big shiny logo. There are numbers on the sleeves, while the backs look more like a normal NBA jersey. Both squads were also wearing striped socks to complete the outfit. Notes: The Nets were still missing Andrei Kirilenko, who has been sidelined this season with a back injury. Kidd said before the game that his forward is making progress. ... Kidds always loved playing on Christmas. "One of the biggest honours as a player and coach is to participate on Christmas," he said. "The world is watching so you can showcase your talent." ... These two teams met in the first round of the playoffs last season and the Bulls won in seven games. ... Chicago has won eight of the last 10 regular-season meetings. ' ' '