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PITTSBURGH, Pa. - Dont worry, Kris Letang insists. The heat is coming. Sure, the Pittsburgh Penguins defenceman admits the New York Rangers dont invite quite the same animosity inside his teams locker room as the Philadelphia Flyers. The Rangers ended any shot of that tantalizing matchup when they beat the Flyers in seven games to set up a showdown with Pittsburgh in the Eastern Conference semifinals starting Friday. That doesnt mean Letang expects the next two weeks to be devoid of drama. Far from it. "Im pretty sure the intensity will get really high at one point when we start," Letang said. "The emotion is always going to be part of the game and were going to have to control it the best we can." Its an internal battle the Penguins won during a taut first-round series against Columbus. Expected to send the inexperienced Blue Jackets home without much effort, Pittsburgh needed six trying games to advance. The way the Penguins figure it, thats a good thing. Forced to respond to adversity, they played what coach Dan Bylsma called their best 120 minutes this season to avoid the upset. "We keep coming and we keep coming, playing forward and playing in the offensive zone and grinding teams down with that play with that speed and quickness," Bylsma said. "Games 5 and 6 were our best at playing that way." The Penguins will need to do it four more times if they want to advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the second straight year. They split their four regular-season meetings with New York, all of them coming before the Olympic break. The Rangers hardly look like the team that was still struggling to find an identity when they last faced Pittsburgh in early February. Pittsburgh is no longer the patched-together unit that cruised to the Metropolitan Division title despite having stars Letang, Evgeni Malkin, Paul Martin and James Neal miss large chunks of the season due to injury. The Penguins are healthy. New York is hot. Five things to look for heading into Game 1. SLUMPING STARS: Pittsburgh captain and likely NHL MVP Sidney Crosby hasnt scored a goal in his past 10 playoff games. New York forward Rick Nash has just one in 19 post-season contests wearing a Rangers sweater. Whichever streak ends first could swing the balance of the series. Crosby had six assists against the Blue Jackets, including one to Malkin in the first period of Game 6 in Columbus that gave the Penguins a 2-0 lead. Crosby knows he needs to take more chances. So does Nash, who can live with the drought as long as the Rangers keep it going. "Thats all that matters," Nash said. "Im going to try to keep getting my game going." LUNDQVIST VS. FLEURY: New Yorks Henrik Lundqvist and Pittsburghs Marc-Andre Fleury are the two winningest goaltenders in the regular season over the past five years, combining for 334 victories. Yet Lundqvist has yet to lift the Rangers past the conference finals while Fleury has struggled in the playoffs since helping the Penguins win the Stanley Cup in 2009. Both had their wayward moments in the first round. Both responded with brilliant play. Whoever gets hot — and stays hot — will give his team the upper hand. POWERLESS POWER PLAY: The Rangers went just 3 for 29 on the power play against Philadelphia, ending the series by failing to score 21 straight times with the man advantage. Not exactly the recipe to hang with the Penguins, who had the NHLs best power play during the regular season and was a solid 4 for 15 against the Blue Jackets while adding a pair of short-handed goals in the process. GENOS BACK: Like Crosby, Malkin was in the midst of a lengthy goal drought before coming up with his second career playoff hat trick in the clincher against the Blue Jackets. The rust that came with missing the final three weeks of the regular season appeared to vanish as he lit up Columbus goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky in Game 6. Playing alongside Crosby at times to try to shake loose the cobwebs, Malkin got hot. Expect to see the two MVPs on the ice frequently against New York. NEW YORK MINUTE: Game 1 marks the middle of a busy stretch in which the Rangers will play five times in seven days. Thats fine by them considering it beats the alternative of watching from home. "Now were in the middle of it and were in the battle," New York forward Brad Richards said. "This is when it gets real fun." ___ AP Sports Writer Ira Podell in New York contributed to this report. Chuck Foreman Jersey . -- The Vancouver Whitecaps remained unbeaten with a scoreless draw at the New England Revolution on Saturday. Rashod Hill Jersey . Sources tell TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun the international tournament will likely return in September 2016 rather than 2015. http://www.officialminnesotavikingsfootball.com/authentic-andrew-sendejo-jersey-womens .com) - The Toronto Raptors are paying Rudy Gay a visit on Wednesday night when they head into the Sleep Train Arena to take on the Sacramento Kings. Matt Wile Jersey . TSN 1290s coverage begins with Hustler & Lawless at 3pm. Rick Ralph hosts the Official Jets Pre-game Show at 5pm. Jalyn Holmes Jersey . Dwyane Wade followed a few days later.I first covered the most unsavoury subject on planet futbol in a February 2006 blog, and at the time thought like all other pre-civilized diseases on mother earth the authorities would do all they possible could to ensure it would soon be eradicated. How foolishly wrong I was. Forget the now inherent corruption and back handed favours that plague the beautiful game. Goal Line Technology? Youre having a laugh. As for them penalty cheating bandits, footballs lawmakers upend them by awarding the penalty to the opponent each time a player attempts to con the referee into awarding ghost penalties. This at least ensures Cristiano and Gareth remain upright for the next el clásico. What Josip Simunic did following the final whistle in Zagreb Tuesday night is beyond the pale of rational or reasonable behaviour. This has to finally be the point FIFA and UEFA finally begin to behave in a manner which will ensure the so termed beautiful game is rid of racism. Let there be no doubt, this is hardly an isolated case. Sepp Blatter and Michel Platini need to take a long, hard and very painful look at themselves and their organizations for their inertia, pitiful response and the lenient way they have dealt with offenders. In some cases, repeat offenders. The punishment is not even close to the offense taken and crime committed. Shaking hands doesnt count, Blatter. The effect of leniency has provided the breeding ground which has allowed racism on the terraces and the sacred pitch itself to evolve into a form that is not far removed from becoming structural. Dare I say an accepted practice? My February 2006 blog highlighted the fact a fringe minority of so called Real Zaragoza supporters were repeat offenders for racially abusing Samuel Etoo. Moreover, I was as troubled by the fact when the racism had occurred the previous year the response from the authorities was to fine Zaragoza €600, approximately $1,000. Etoo was so incensed by the events in 2006 to again be the target of this depraved and cowardly behaviour he wanted to send a message he had enough and was willing to walk off the pitch. It took his then coach Frank Rijkaard and some of his Barcelona teammates to convince the Cameroonian to not allow the racists win. Shamefully no one in a position of real authority that particular Zaragoza night decided to act in the required manner and right there in that moment begin the long hard process of finally doing something more meaningful than the lip service of an appeal on the PA system. The referee requested Real Zaragoza make an announcement on the stadium public address system for those guilty to refrain from the racism. Not sure if they used the word please. Obviously 2005s €600 fine to Zaragoza was hardly a deterrent. Or the first time such behaviour had occurred. Merely the first time the authorities felt compelled to be seen to be doing something about it. Plainly, what the Spanish Football Federation did, likely briefing or getting direction from UEFA as they went, sent a clear intention that brushing it under the carpet was all they were willing to do. I cant quite understand why its the club the authorities go after and not the actual cowardly perpetrators themselves. They use their football club as a smokescreen. We could list here all the separate racist incidents that have occurred in European football since 2005 and the word worthless could fit in terms of an adjective for the so called punishments that have been handed out. Excuse me, sanctions. Punishment almost directly infers a crime had previously been committed. The most recent reported case of racism occurred in last months CSKA Moscow v Manchester City Champions League match. Yes, many cases do go unreported and undetected. City captain Yaya Toure was the target on that particular Moscow night. Russian footballs response to this was to accuse the English of a smear campaign, whilst CSKA rolled out the denial campaign. UEFA went away from its fines system and went for the partial stadium closure sanction. Three institutions, three strikes. Shameful. Hows this for flexing your muscles? In UEFAs official statement, they omitted anyy explicit racist references to what went on that particular night.dddddddddddd. Wholly unacceptably, UEFAs statement referred to the matter as an incident. The first sentence of the statement reading, "The UEFA Control and Disciplinary Body has handed down sanctions to CSKA Moscow following incidents during their UEFA Champions League home game against Manchester City" An incident? Of what nature exactly. Late in the statement we find out the sanction is partial closure to a section of the stadium where the horrific abuse stemmed from. UEFA couldnt even bring themselves to close the entire stadium, or even for that matter, the South Stand which is the part of the ground the racist cowards like to associate themselves with. Tough guys only need apply. When CSKA and Bayern Munich play their UEFA Champions League group stage match Wednesday, Sector D of the Khimiki Arena will be closed. It was only in the final paragraph of UEFAs statement were they were willing to use the R word. "The fight against racism is a high priority for UEFA. All forms of racist behavior are considered serious offenses against the disciplinary regulations and are punished with the most severe sanctions." If closing a solitary section for a single Champions League match is UEFAs definition of the most severe sanctions then it is all the proof we need the European Custodian of the worlds game is incapable of correctly policing itself. Hardly surprising, shortly after the match, Yaya Toure began speaking of African players and teams boycotting Russia 2018. Can anyone blame him? Why is it that where yet again society has grotesquely failed people of African origins they themselves feel compelled to take matters into their own hands? I ask FIFA and UEFA; do we need to see rioting on the streets before they recognize that it is they themselves who have a responsibility? They have failed this generation and are indirectly guilty themselves. I think the legal term is by association. Too bad Platini doesnt view racism in football as he does the so called financial doping in the code. When do we see a panel assembled that has the exact same resources and same wide ranging powers as UEFAs Financial Fair Play executive be put in place to finally rid us of racism in European football. Apparently you can no longer invest your own personal fortune to better ensure a winning culture pervades at your football club. But at the same token, sit idly back as your customers racially abuse and in some instances commit crimes on the employees of your rivals. Who invented this system? Didnt John Terry get charged by the London police in regards to the well documented case involving Rio Ferdinands younger brother? Ultimately standing trial shortly after appearing for England at EURO 2012. Why then are the people who claim allegiance to CSKA not feeling the full force of the legal system? Simunic was found guilty by the Zagreb legal system for, Spreading Racial Hatred and was fined a paltry $4,000 by the Prosecutors Office. What message does that send? Someone else willing to invoke 20th century Nazism for a sum of money Gareth Bale roughly receives for every minute he spends on the Santiago Barnebeau pitch. Those multi-national companies, including the recently added Russian energy company Gazprom, who set aside millions of dollars each year to partner up and brand themselves around the pinnacle of club football have a duty and obligation to greater society. Companies are very willing to associate themselves with good causes. There is no greater cause in all of humanity than to foster encouragement in us all to treat one another and each other as our equals. As in the immortal words of singer Timmy Thomas who asked in his 1972 classic, which over the years has gone on to be re-recorded by a variety of musical greats from a variety of different backgrounds: Why Cant We Live Together? Answers on a postcard to Sepp & Michel. Im sure the two most powerful men in world football are in a good place to cover the cost of the stamps. You can reach and follow Noel Butler at:Noel.Butler@BellMedia.ca @TheSoccerNoel on Twitter Cheap Warriors Jerseys Authentic Cavaliers Jerseys Cheap Spurs Store Celtics Jerseys Online Cheap Bulls Jerseys Cheap Nets Jerseys Cheap Thunder Jerseys Cheap 76ers Jerseys Cheap Knicks Jerseys Wholesale Raptors Jerseys Cyber Monday Pistons Jerseys Wholesale Team USA Basketball Jerseys Cheap Celtics Jerseys Cheap Nets Jerseys Cheap Knicks Jerseys Cheap 76ers Jerseys Raptors Jerseys From China Cheap Bulls Jerseys Cavaliers Jerseys From China Wholesale Pistons Jerseys Bucks Jerseys From China Pacers Jerseys Outlet Authentic Hawks Jerseys Cheap Hornets Jerseys Cheap Heat Jerseys Cheap Magic Jerseys Authentic Wizards Jerseys Cheap Nuggets Jerseys Timberwolves Jerseys Outlet Wholesale Thunder Jerseys Cheap Blazers Jerseys Cheap Jazz Jerseys Discount Warriors Jerseys Wholesale Clippers Jerseys Wholesale Lakers Jerseys Cheap Suns Jerseys Cheap Kings Jerseys Discount Mavericks Jerseys Authentic Rockets Jerseys Discount Grizzlies Jerseys Cheap Pelicans Jerseys Spurs Jerseys From China ' ' '