NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs


Two teams that very few hockey fans predicted would play for the Stanley Cup when the playoffs started a month ago will now battle for hockey's greatest prize starting next week.

Adam Henrique scored 63 seconds into overtime for the New Jersey Devils as they knocked off the top-ranked New York Rangers in six games with a 3-2 victory Friday night, and claimed the Prince of Wales Trophy as Eastern Conference Champions.

The sixth-seeded Devils will face the eighth-ranked Los Angeles Kings, who surprised everyone by ousting the top three seeds in Vancouver, St. Louis and Phoenix, and winning all but two games en route to the Western Conference title.

The Stanley Cup Final series begins on Wednesday in Newark, NJ.

At the MasterCard Memorial Cup, the host Shawinigan Cataractes beat the defending champion Saint John Sea Dogs 7-4 in Friday night's semi-final to earn a spot in Sunday's final against the London Knights, who haven't played since their final round-robin game on Tuesday.