News » The 23-year-old Romero

In combining for 42 goals in five regular-season games and 25 in their first three playoff games http://www.steelersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-chukwuma-okorafor-jersey , the Nashville Predators and Winnipeg Jets often put on what coaches and players alike have described as a track meet on skates.

In Thursday night’s 2-1 win at Winnipeg that equaled the best-of-seven Western Conference semifinals at two games each, the Predators never let the Jets get out of the starting block. It used two personnel changes, plus renewed commitments to defense and puck support, to stifle the NHL’s second-highest scoring team during the regular season.

With home-ice advantage back in its grasp for Game 5 on Saturday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn., the Predators will probably stick with the defense-first approach that pushed them into the Stanley Cup Finals last year.

“It was something we really focused on, playing solid defensively,” Nashville goalie Pekka Rinne said. “That was an amazing team effort. We played a really solid game throughout the 60 minutes and it’s obviously a big win for us.”

Many Twitter coaches scoffed at Nashville coach Peter Laviolette when he scratched Kevin Fiala, who scored the double-overtime game-winner Sunday night in Game 2, in favor of the older, slower Scott Hartnell. But Hartnell’s 98th playoff appearance was a good one Ronnie Harrison Color Rush Jersey , as he gave the Predators a physical presence while neutralizing Winnipeg’s top defenseman, Dustin Byfuglien.

Inserting Yannick Weber for Alexei Emelin on the third defense pair with Matt Irwin added some quickness and reduced the Jets’ chances of power-play time, as Emelin tends to take penalties.

Nashville used a more conservative forecheck and steered puck-carriers away from the ice’s center, forcing Winnipeg to settle for longer shots at times. And when the Jets did produce high-danger chances, Rinne stood tall in his best game of the series with 32 saves.

That included an improbable stop with the knob of his stick, which denied Josh Morrissey the game’s first goal about midway through the first period.

Winnipeg center Bryan Little described his team’s attempts to attack the Predators’ defensive scheme as “skating into a wall.” The Jets will have to come up with some adjustments for Game 5.

“When they’re defending that well,” Winnipeg right winger Patrik Laine said, “we just have to get pucks in deep and get a lot of O-zone time. Just try to shoot a lot and create some loose pucks.”

Laine was one of the Jets’ few bright spots from Game 4, snapping a six-game scoring drought with his marker in the last minute of the match. Laine could have had a hat trick were it not for two quality saves by Rinne, one late in the first period and another in the third period.

Simply put, the matchup of the league’s best regular-season teams has turned into point and counterpoint. Both Jets wins have been answered by Nashville victories Jermey Parnell Jersey , and the teams are now in best-of-three mode.

“We’re heading home playing in front of our fans in a big game,” Nashville defenseman P.K. Subban said. “We know they are going to get better as the series goes on. This is exactly what the teams expected it to be. Now we got home ice back.”

CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Indians, who are in first place in the American League Central Division, are in the midst of a portion of their schedule in which they have an opportunity to lengthen their division lead, or see it evaporate — quickly.

Saturday at Progressive Field the Indians will host the division-rival Minnesota Twins in the second game of a three-game series. Saturday’s game will be the Indians’ ninth game in a 16-game stretch in which they will play only AL Central teams. In the first eight games in that span the Indians are 4-4, including a 6-3 loss to the Twins Friday night.

Overall this season the Indians are 18-12 against AL Central teams, including 11-3 at Progressive Field. The Twins are 15-10 against AL Central teams, and 5-2 against Cleveland.

Both teams made roster moves prior to Friday’s game. The Indians activated outfielder Tyler Naquin off the disabled list and placed first baseman Yonder Alonso on the family medical emergency list. Naquin was in the lineup Friday and played center field. He went 1-for-3 in his first game since being placed on the DL on May 11 with a strained left hamstring.

The Twins on Friday activated first baseman Joe Mauer off the disabled list and recalled infielder Taylor Motter from Triple-A Rochester. Mauer and Motter replace infielder Miguel Sano, who was optioned to Class-A Fort Myers, and outfielder Jake Cave, who was optioned to Rochester.

“It’s really been bothering him that he hasn’t been contributing while we’ve been losing. His biggest goal is to win Authentic Ronnie Harrison Jersey ,” Twins manager Paul Molitor told the Minneapolis Star Tribune regarding Sano. “Some things have knocked him off course from time to time, and it’s time to address them.”

Mauer missed 25 games with a cervical strain/concussion-like symptoms. Motter was claimed off waivers from Seattle on May 28 and hit .167 (7-for-42) at Rochester.

Although the Indians are just 6-7 in June, they are encouraged by the improved work by their bullpen, which was the American League’s worst over the first two months of the season. However, in the month of June, the Indians’ 2.30 bullpen ERA ranks fifth. Two new additions, left-hander Oliver Perez and right-hander Neil Ramirez, have been key contributors in the bullpen’s resurgence.

“We were hoping that with an opportunity to pitch for those guys, good things would happen, and that’s what happened,” said Indians manager Terry Francona. “Perez has helped a lot Jakob Silfverberg Jersey , and Ramirez has some swing and miss stuff. Things are definitely settling down (in the bullpen).”

The pitching matchup Saturday will be a pair of right-handers: Cleveland’s Carlos Carrasco vs. Minnesota’s Fernando Romero.

Carrasco (8-4, 3.90 ERA) is coming off his best start of the season, a 4-0 win over the White Sox on June 11. In that game, Carrasco pitched seven scoreless innings. He gave up two hits and recorded 11 strikeouts with one walk.

Carrasco has started two games against the Twins this season and is 0-1 with a 5.06 ERA. In 19 career appearances (16 starts) against Minnesota, Carrasco is 5-7 with a 3.97 ERA.

The 23-year-old Romero (3-2, 3.92) will be making his ninth major league start and his first against Cleveland. Romero’s last start was a 7-5 win over the Angels on June 10. Romero pitched five innings in that game, giving up three runs (two earned) on five hits, with five strikeouts and two walks.

Romero’s rookie season started well but has been bumpy in recent starts. In his first three starts he was 2-0 with a 0.54 ERA. But in his last five starts he is 1-2 with a 6.20 ERA.

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