it was a tough night for relievers to sit through

CHICAGO - While Los Angeles and Anaheim prepare for Game 7 of their second-round series, the Chicago Blackhawks are resting and looking for ways they can play even better in the Western Conference final. Mark Wohlers Jersey . The Blackhawks practiced Thursday without ailing centre Andrew Shaw, but Brandon Bollig skated on the fourth line after he was suspended for the final two games of their second-round series against Minnesota. Shaw left Game 1 against the Wild with an apparent right leg injury, but he could return in Chicagos next series. "We expect to have him back on the ice this weekend and well get a better determination of when hell play," coach Joel Quenneville said. The Blackhawks missed Shaws net-front presence and pesky style in their six-game victory over Minnesota. The diminutive forward, listed at 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds, has two goals and two assists in the playoffs after he set career highs with 20 goals and 19 assists in the regular season. "He emphasizes his game being gritty and getting to the net and we need more of that," forward Bryan Bickell said. "And I know last series was, we needed a lot of it to be successful and come the next series, when he does come back, I know hell bring it and thats what you need out of him." Bollig was suspended by the NHL for boarding Minnesota defenceman Keith Ballard in Game 4 of their Western Conference semifinal. It was a rough series for Bollig, who had played in every game this season for the Blackhawks until he was a healthy scratch for Game 2 against the Wild. For Thursdays practice, he was reunited with Marcus Kruger and Ben Smith in a line combination that was very successful for the Blackhawks during the regular season. "Ive sure missed it," Bollig said. "Obviously we played together a good portion of the season and we had a nice roll there where we kind of found our niche together. So the fact that we were out there together today and hopefully it stays that way for the game and thats what gets us good quality minutes and playing a quality role." Bolligs role in the next series likely depends on Chicagos opponent. The Kings and Ducks close out the second round when they play on Friday night in Anaheim. The Western Conference final begins Sunday regardless of who wins. The Blackhawks will have home-ice advantage if Los Angeles advances, and will open on the road if top-seeded Anaheim moves on. "Theyre both physical. They both got a lot of skill," forward Brandon Saad said. "Theres a lot of similarities in a lot of teams in the NHL these days, play that tight checking game. Were not going to prepare for anyone yet obviously. We dont know who were playing. Were looking forward to see how Friday goes." ___ Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap Hoyt Wilhelm Jersey . The defending champions sent their preliminary list to FIFA on Tuesday, with coach Vicente del Bosque to announce the final 23-man squad on May 25. Costa is set to lead the attack in his native Brazil, with Atletico Madrid teammate David Villa and Chelseas Fernando Torres also included, while David de Gea replaces injured goalkeeper Victor Valdes. Glenn Hubbard Jersey . Kuper, a fifth-round pick in Denvers 2006 draft, started 79 games at guard over eight seasons. He dislocated his left ankle in the last game of the 2011 regular season, and though he started another seven games after that, he never returned to his previous level. http://www.custombravesjersey.com/custom-shane-greene-jersey-large-1207z.html .C. -- The Carolina Hurricanes have activated defenceman Joni Pitkanen from injured reserve. BOSTON -- Never one to take a lot of time between pitches, John Lackey had extra motivation to throw quickly and get out of the biting chill at Fenway Park. Lackey pitched eight solid innings with temperatures in the low 40s as the Boston Red Sox beat the slumping Tampa Bay Rays 7-4 on Tuesday night. "I try to work fast," Lackey said. "Especially when its cold, Im trying to get guys in the dugout. It wasnt a whole lot of fun out there on the field today." Lackeys teammates showed their appreciation with a five-run rally in the sixth as the Red Sox opened a three-game series with a win over their AL East rivals. Shane Victorino drove in his first two runs of the season while going 4 for 4, hiking his batting average from .133 to .316. Victorino was playing in his fourth game after missing the first 22 with a hamstring injury. He singled in his first two at-bats, hit a sacrifice fly in the fifth and added an RBI double in the sixth. "We knew it was going to take a couple of games for him to get his feet on the ground," Boston manager John Farrell said. "He does give us a completely different dynamic in that 2-hole. When we can set the table for that middle of the order, weve got a chance to score some runs." Lackey (4-2) scattered six hits and allowed two runs, striking out five and walking one. After the Rays scored twice in the ninth, Koji Uehara came in and struck out Ben Zobrist on three pitches for his sixth save. Jackie Bradley Jr. had a pair of doubles and two RBIs as the Red Sox got 13 hits and won for the third time in four games. Xander Bogaerts was the only Boston starter without a hit. "It was good to see the evenness throughout the at-bats 1 through 9," Farrell said. The Rays lost for the seventh time in eight road games and are 4-9 away from home. Wil Myers had two hits and scored a run for the Rays. James Loney hit two doubles and joined Myers as the only Tampa Bay players with more than one hit. Both scored in the ninth on a throwing error by Bogaerts at shortstop. The Rays began the second leg of a 10-game road trip, which they started 1-3 in Chicago. Erik Bedard held Boston to one run through five innings, but the bullpen could not stop the Red Sox in the sixth. Tampa Bay manaager Joe Maddon said both starters had good command, but it was a tough night for relievers to sit through the frigid conditions and then have to pitch. Ronald Acuna Jr. Jersey. "Bedard was good. I thought Lackeys command was good tonight," Maddon said. "Its hard. Its hard for both sides. The game was not meant to be played in this kind of weather. But youve got to fight through it." Brandon Gomes (1-1) started the sixth inning and immediately walked Mike Napoli and Jonny Gomes. Juan Carlos Oviedo took over with one out and fared no better. A.J. Pierzynski hit an RBI single, then Will Middlebrooks and Bradley hit back-to-back doubles. Bradleys shot to centre bounced off the wall in one of the deepest parts of Fenway Park, scoring Pierzynski and Middlebrooks easily. Bradley went to third on a wild pitch and scored on Victorinos ground-rule double. The Red Sox scored three more on three hits off Oviedo. Boston scored five times in the inning and sent nine batters to the plate. "Thats something that we normally dont do," Maddon said. "Were normally pretty good at minimizing damage. Weve got to do a better job of that." Bedard got his third no-decision in four starts. He allowed four hits, striking out four and walking three. Middlebrooks walked to start the fifth and went to third when Bradley doubled to centre. The Rays nearly got out of it when Dustin Pedroia lined out to third baseman Evan Longoria, who made a dive for the bag. Middlebrooks was diving in the other direction and barely beat the tag, then scored on Victorinos fly to centre to put Boston up 1-0. The Rays got the run back in the sixth when Desmond Jennings doubled with one out and scored on a sacrifice fly by Longoria. Ryan Hanigans single in the seventh drove in Myers, who led off the inning with a double that was just a few feet left of being a homer to centre. NOTES: Napoli has reached base in 24 of 25 games this season. ... It was the 28th anniversary of Roger Clemens first 20-strikeout game for Boston, when he broke the major league record for a nine-inning game against Seattle. ... Red Sox DH David Ortiz played in his 1,994th game. ... Tampa Bay played its 1,000th game since shortening the teams name to Rays in 2008. ' ' '