It was a night for NHL teams to even up their respective playoff series, as the Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars and Chicago Blackhawks all won to get their series to 2-2. Discount KD Shoes . Scott Cullen has notes on Brandon Dubinsky, Jack Johnson, Shawn Horcoff, Alex Goligoski, Patrick Kane, Ben Smith and more. MY MORNING JACKETS The Pittsburgh Penguins coughed up a 3-0 lead and lost 4-3 in overtime to the Columbus Blue Jackets, leaving the series tied at two games apiece. To this point in the series, the most valuable Blue Jacket has been C Brandon Dubinsky who, in addition to spending his time matched up against Penguins star C Sidney Crosby, Dubinsky contributed a goal and an assist, giving him a team-leading six points in the series. Dubinsky has earned a reputation as a solid two-way forward who can play tough minutes, facing top-tier opposition but, in this series, hes been more assertive offensively and thats the kind of performance that the Blue Jackets need to knock off the higher-seeded Penguins. Crosby was held off the scoresheet, and had a negative Corsi, for the first time in the series in Game Four. Blue Jackets C Ryan Johansen had a goal and an assist, giving him five points in four games, and his line -- with rookie LW Boone Jenner and journeyman RW Jack Skille -- got the better of Pittsburghs second line of Evgeni Malkin, Jussi Jokinen and James Neal. Penguins G Marc-Andre Fleury was having a decent game, but turned the puck over leading to Dubinskys tying goal, then the winning goal was a 65-foot wrist shot from Blue Jackets LW Nick Foligno. Considering Fleurys dubious playoff history, he and the Penguins cant afford to have those kinds of gaffes appear with the game on the line. Blue Jackets D Jack Johnson played a game-high 31:12, mostly against Crosby, and, for the first time in the series, was break-even in terms of shot attempts for and against during 5-on-5 play. Score effects or not, given that they were chasing for much of the game, the Blue Jackets will take it. For the fourth consecutive game, Penguins D Paul Martin recorded a pair of assists. He has eight points to lead all playoff scorers. Blue Jackets D James Wisniewski also had a pair of assists and had nine unblocked shot attempts, his first points of the series, and had a game-high plus-15 Corsi. With the series even, the Blue Jackets arent carrying play, but theyre not getting dominated either. If G Sergei Bobrovsky can give them a few solid games, they can put pressure on Fleury and the Penguins. SHOOTING STARS The Dallas Stars evened their series with the Anaheim Ducks, taking Game Four by a 4-2 score, rallying to score four unanswered goals after falling behind 2-0. Anaheim came into the game with some lineup changes, making veteran RW Teemu Selanne a healthy scratch, and then missing C Ryan Getzlaf due to an upper-body injury. As a result, C Rickard Rakell and RW Emerson Etem were inserted into the lineup. Dallas line of Shawn Horcoff, Vernon Fiddler and Colton Sceviour was particularly effective. Horcoff and Fiddler each had two points and the trio was on for more than two-thirds of even strength shot attempts. Ducks D Francois Beauchemin, who played a team-high 27:14, got eaten up in terms of puck possession, finishing minus-14 (29.4% Corsi%) On the other hand, Stars D Alex Goligoski logged 32:48, scored a goal and, through the first four games, is running a 56.7% Corsi%. Needless to say, if the Ducks dont have Getzlaf back in the lineup, in a hurry, then they are really vulnerable to be upset. KANE COMES THROUGH Blackhawks RW Patrick Kane scored his second goal of the game, 11:17 into overtime, giving Chicago a 4-3 win in Game Four, tying the series at two games apiece. In the third period, the Blackhawks shifted Ben Smith into the middle on the line with Kane and Patrick Sharp, and that unit created several scoring chances before connecting on the winner. Smith had the best Corsi differential (+13), and percentage (74.1%), among Blackhawks forwards. Blackhawks defencemen Nick Leddy and Michal Roszival had a tremendous game, carrying possession against weaker competition. They matched up most frequently against the Blues line of Maxim Lapierre, Steve Ott and Chris Porter. While Lapierre scored St. Louis second goal late in the second period, that line was dominated possession-wise. Leddy was on for 26 shot attempts for and five shot attempts against (83.9%). When Leddy was off the ice, the Blackhawks were virtually even (50.6%) in possession terms. Blackhawks C Jonathan Toews added two assists, giving him five points through the first four games of the series. Blues RW Vladimir Tarasenko continued to find the net, scoring a pair of goals to give him four goals in four games for the series. Having tied the series, the Blackhawks are likely in a slightly better position going forward, particularly as long as St. Louis C David Backes remains out of the lineup, but this is an even series. Literally, both teams have a 50.0% Fenwick Close (unblocked shot attempts) for the series. 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. Clearance KD Shoes . -- New York Yankees centre fielder Jacoby Ellsbury was sent for an MRI Thursday of his ailing right calf, which was negative. Wholesale KD Shoes . The injury could land Machado on the 15-day disabled list, but its not as serious as it looked on Monday night, when the third baseman crumpled in a heap at the plate after taking an awkward swing in a game against the New York Yankees. http://www.wholesalekdshoes.com/ . With the Nets winning streak in jeopardy, Williams scored 23 points, 11 in the final six minutes, to lead Brooklyn to a 104-99 victory over the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night.It usually involves that kid who was in a wheelchair on Degrassi or some hashtag I dont understand or something to do with Disney Jr. But the word "beard" drew me in, and on upon further investigation I discovered that "peak beard" was about contemporary popular cultures threshold for beard wearing, and the notion that the age of the beard may be over. This seemed sacrilegious to me, because here in late April we sit on the precipice of the climax of beard season: winter is slowly receding and the NHL playoffs bring with them the greatest sports tradition of all-time, the playoff beard. Peak beard in April? Pfft. Thats like writing of December that weve hit "peak Santa", or of AC/DC weve hit "peak guitar", or of a wedding weve hit "peak open bar". As we settle into the first round of the playoffs, beards among NHLers are about to take form. We are awash in the infancy of stubble. In two months whichever teams are left battling will look like theyre en route to Bonnaroo post-pucks. It should be noted that Ive worn a beard since puberty allowed it, and a razor has insulted my cheeks just once in the past twenty years. I revel in playoff beards. They make me feel at home. I wear a playoff beard in August. And as we got through the first weekend of the playoffs a few days ago, which was also Easter, Id be remiss if I didnt mention the best playoff beard ever: Jesus. Dude rocked his beard into the post-post season, and according to scripture will still be rocking the playoff beard when he comes back. The story of the playoff beard is well known: It started some thirty years ago during the New York Islanders dynasty of the 80s. (For our younger readers the Islanders were once a good hockey team, before fishermen logos, Charles Wang, and Alexei Yashin.) No one is quite sure of its specific genesis, however. Some attribute it to two Swedish Islanders who were trying to emulate tennis star Björn Borgs custom of not shaving during Wimbledon. Some say that Islanders defenceman Ken Morrows beard led the charge. Whatever the story, the playoff beard has come to symbolize team unity, a badge of honour, and the fact that youve made a deep enough run to sport a thick brush from which you can hang livestock. In my years as a hockey fan, a few playoff beards standout. Scott Niedermayers greying old man beard, Mike Commodores ginger madness, and Lanny McDonalds wild west stache accompaniment immediatelyy come to mind. Cheap KD Shoes Free Shipping. . In recent years, rules concerning the playoff beard seem to have turned lax. Shaving after a loss in effort to change a teams luck is seemingly allowed. Goatees, the beards answer to the haiku, are tolerated. Professional trimming is apparent (Im looking at you, Sedin twins.) Back in the day, when men were men and the Oilers made the playoffs, the rules for the playoff beard were simple: 1. Stop shaving.2. Win Stanley Cup or get eliminated.3. Start shaving again. In todays NHL, a new challenge faces beard-growing players. In the salary cap era, inexpensive young talent on entry-level contracts are important to the balance of a competitive team. Eighteen, nineteen, and twenty year-olds are key parts of many playoff teams lineups. Early in the first round, all players beards are equal. Its like a grade 8 dance. But come rounds two and three, how will Nathan MacKinnon, Olli Maatta, and Ryan Murray look should their teams be fortunate enough to make it that deep? Of course, a teams playoff longevity doesnt necessarily guarantee a healthy bearded player. When Tomas Kaberle won a Cup with Boston in 2011, the former Leafs defencemen still looked like a pre-pubescent child despite two months without shaving. Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews has won two Cups without any discernible upper lip growth, and Sidney Crosby still owns his "Sid the Kid" moniker with his patchy-coat-of an-electrocuted-dog fuzz. We cant all be Duck Dynasty-esque, but at 26 Crosbys beard is just plain sad. I have a better beard in my junior prom photos. Hell, my prom date has a better beard. And then theres the beards well never know. Can Dion Phaneuf even grow a beard? Can Phil Kessel? Can the Edmonton Oilers? We know they can schedule vacations for early April, play in the World Championships, and pick in the early first round of the draft, but theyll need to see past round one of the playoffs before we can judge their facial hair prowess. Sadly, methinks well never know. For now, I will rebel against notions peak beard, despite what Cosmo and The Daily Guardian are writing. The grand tradition of the playoff beard is just one of the many facets of the fight for the Stanley Cup that makes the NHLs postseason more compelling, more rich in narrative, and more entertaining than any other sport. So buy razor futures now, because the blades are sheathed for another two months, and may the best beard host the parade. 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