The legislation, which the House of Representatives passed Thursday, 130-0, stems from recommendations from the Racial Profiling Prohibition Project Advisory Board.

Current law requires officers to record the date, time and location of the stop. Under the bill, the specific geographic location of the traffic stop must also be recorded.

The bill also requires that additional departments, including UConn and Connecticut State University police, record traffic stop data and adopt policies that prohibit stopping, detaining or searching anyone solely because of a person’s race, color, ethnicity, age, gender or sexual orientation.

The bill also makes changes to standardized forms for recording traffic stop data.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

At the Rally for Toxic-Free Kids, the Coalition for a Safe and Healthy Connecticut voiced their support for House Bill 6489, Concerning Chemicals of High Concern in Children’s Products. Under the legislation, the Department of Public Health would be required to send a report to lawmakers every two years, detailing their evaluation of the current status of toxins in children’s products.

Among the speakers at the rally was former UConn men’s basketball coach Jim Calhoun, who also voiced his support for the bill. Calhoun described toxins as one of the unintended consequences of technological advancement.

Coalition coordinator Anne Hulick says that passing the legislation would set up a system that would provide health officials with a clearer line of communication to lawmakers, allowing them to more easily make reccomendations on how the risk of of exposure could be limited.

As the house bill remains under consideration, the Coalition faces a potentially long road ahead. Similar bills making restrictions on Bisphenol-A and fire-retardant chemicals died in committee earlier this session.

Click here to view a photo gallery from the rally.

#1 Chicago vs # 7 Detroit

Game 1– Wed, May 15, Detroit 1, Chicago 4

Game 2– Sat, May 18, Detroit 4, Chicago 1

Game 3– Mon, May 20, Chicago 1, Detroit 3

Game 4– Thu, May 23, Chicago at Detroit- 8 PM ET

Game 5– Sat , May 25, Detroit at Chicago- 8 PM ET

Game 6– Mon, May 27, Chicago at Detroit-Time TBD

Game 7– Wed, May 29, Detroit at Chicago -Time TBD

#5 Los Angeles vs #6 San Jose

Game 1– Tue, May 14, San Jose 0, Los Angeles 2

Game 2– Thu, May 16, San Jose 3, Los Angeles 4

Game 3– Sat, May 18, Los Angeles 1, San Jose 2

Game 4– Tue, May 21, Los Angeles 1, San Jose 2

Game 5– Thu, May 23, San Jose at Los Angeles- 10:30 PM ET

Game 6– Sun, May 26, Los Angeles at San Jose- Time TBD

Game 7– Tue, May 28, San Jose at Los Angeles- Time TBD

Eastern Conference

#1 Pittsburgh vs # 7 Ottawa

Game 1– Tue, May 14, Ottawa 1, Pittsburgh 4

Game 2– Fri, May 17, Ottawa 3, Pittsburgh 4

Game 3– Sun, May 19, Pittsburgh 1, Ottawa 2

Game 4– Wed, May 22, Pittsburgh 7, Ottawa 3

Game 5– Fri, May 24, Ottawa at Pittsburgh- 7:30 PM ET

Game 6– Sun, May 26, Pittsburgh at Ottawa- Time TBD

Game 7– Tue, May 28, Ottawa at Pittsburgh- Time TBD

#4 Boston vs # 6 NY Rangers

Game 1– Thu, May 16, NY Rangers 2, Boston 3

Game 2– Sun, May 19, NY Rangers 2, Boston 5

Game 3– Tue, May 21, Boston 2, NY Rangers 1

Game 4– Thu, May 23, Boston at NY Rangers- 7 PM ET

Game 5– Sat, May 25, NY Rangers at Boston- 5:30 PM ET

Game 6– Mon, May 27, Boston at NY Rangers- Time TBD

Game 7– Wed, May 29, NY Rangers at Boston- Time TBD

U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, a member of the House Readiness Subcommittee, said its vote was the first official rejection of a new round of Base Realignment and Closure by this Congress. The language forbidding closings was added as the subcommittee gave its approval to the administration’s proposed defense budget.

Courtney said the Pentagon has failed to demonstrate how a new round of closings would make financial sense considering the up-front costs.

“It was just very sketchy as far as how much savings they projected,” said Courtney, a Democrat who represents eastern Connecticut. He said he would prefer to see the Pentagon focus on closing military installations in Europe.

The base in Groton was nearly closed in 2005, and many fear it soon will be targeted again.

The Groton base pumps $4.5 billion a year into Connecticut’s economy and supports at least 15,000 jobs around the southeastern section of the state. Since escaping the last round of base closings, the state of Connecticut has committed $50 million for improvements to help increase the value of the base, which is the home port for more than a dozen nuclear-powered attack submarines.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Segarra also restored a million dollars of the two-million dollar cut for police services.   The mayor says the money is needed to operate a police class beginning in January –  and says without the officers,  the city will fall below the staffing required for two federal grants.

He also says without additional staffing,  police department overtime will go up.  He added half a million back from the million cut for the fire department,  as well trimming other cuts made by the council, including the Department of Human Resources and the Registrar of Voters.  And he restored half of a $300-thousand cut for overtime for special events in the city.

As is the norm with this Democrat leadership in the legislature, there was little notice of scheduling this debate and of course the vote takes place in the dark of night .The bill passed mostly along party lines with all Republicans voting no, joined by 9 Democrats.

The bill still must be passed in the State Senate, tune in to hear the pros and cons of this very controversial legislation… you may be very surprised!

However, even if Hibbert had been on the court it likely wouldn’t have made any difference in the final outcome of the game.

That was the message TNT NBA analyst Charles Barkley had for people after the game and it was echoed Thursday morning by NBA champion Bruce Bowen on ESPN Radio. The basic message was simple, Hibbert doesn’t have the speed or athleticism to get there to stop LeBron from getting to the basket.

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra designed arguably the perfect play for LeBron and the Heat executed the play to perfection. Right before LeBron flashed to the top of the key to get the ball, Chris Bosh began to move slightly to the outside to draw his defender away from the basket.

Indiana had to respect Bosh’s ability to either hit a mid-range jump shot or flash to the basket for a pass from LeBron. That’s why Bosh’s defender moved out from the basket.

However, the two parts that made the play work were LeBron’s speed to the basket and Pacers forward Paul George overcommitting to one side allowing LeBron to go right past him to the basket.

Still, some said having Hibbert on the floor would have altered LeBron’s plan going to the basket. But, Indiana head coach Frank Vogel played the odds the way the season has broken down for the Pacers against the Heat.

During the regular season, when Hibbert was on the court, Miami hit approximately 50 percent of its shots in the paint versus just 40 percent when Hibbert was off the court. Plus, in the mid-range area, Miami struggled much more with Hibbert off the court, 27 percent, than when he was on the court, 47 percent.

In Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, Indiana gave Miami everything they could handle and the Heat allowed the Pacers to stay in the game with horrendous free throw shooting. Still, in the end when it counted most, the Heat and Coach Spoelstra simply outexecuted Indiana.

It’s a great start to a series that will test Miami’s ability to not only win the Eastern Conference, but also how the Heat can match up against the likely Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs.

Game 2 is set for Friday night at the AmericanAirlines Arena.

The CT Sun home opener will take place on May 25th, as the Sun face off against the New York Liberty at Mohegan Sun.  Representatives from CT Sun have confirmed that all tickets sold from May 21st until the day of the game on May 25th will be donated to help the Red Cross after the devastating tornadoes in Oklahoma earlier this week.

Here is the full press release from CT Sun about the home opener donation:

Connecticut Sun To Donate Proceeds From Home Opener To Tornado Relief Efforts

UNCASVILLE, Conn. (May 21, 2013) – In an effort to help those devastated by the recent tornadoes in Oklahoma, the Connecticut Sun will donate all proceeds from all tickets sold beginning on May 21^st to its home opener on May 25^th against the New York Liberty to the American Red Cross.

“We are all saddened by the loss of life and destruction in Oklahoma,” Sun vice president and general manager Chris Sienko said. “Through our small efforts we can hopefully bring some relief to those in desperate need of assistance.”

Tickets to the game, which will be held at Mohegan Sun Arena at 7 p.m. on May 25^th, can be purchased by visiting Ticketmaster.com, WNBA.com/tickets, or by calling 1-877-WNBA-TIX.

“The thoughts and prayers of the Mohegan Tribe and our employees are with all those affected by this horrific disaster,” said Mohegan Tribal Chairman Bruce “Two Dogs” Bozsum.

The American Red Cross provides shelter, food, health and mental health services to help communities and families get back on their feet when disasters strike. For more information, visit redcross.org or call 1-800-Help-Now. Fans can also text REDCROSS to 90999 to donate directly.

MIAMI (AP) — LeBron James caught the inbounds pass, changed direction and immediately attacked the rim.

There was no one in his way.

There was no stopping him, either.

James made a layup as time expired in overtime, capping a 30-point, 10-rebound, 10-assist effort as the Miami Heat found a way to outlast the Indiana Pacers 103-102 in a wildly back-and-forth Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals Wednesday night. There were 18 ties and 17 lead changes, the last two of those coming in the final 2.2 seconds.

“Two teams fought hard,” James said. “We were able to make one more play.”

If this is how this series is going to go, then get ready for a classic between teams that absolutely wanted to face the other with a trip to the NBA Finals on the line.

Paul George saved the Pacers at the end of regulation with a 32-footer with 0.7 seconds left, and then made three free throws with 2.2 ticks left in overtime to give Indiana a one-point lead. George pumped his fist gently after the third free throw, then extended his index finger skyward as the teams retreated to their benches to get ready for the final play.

He just left James too much time, and the Pacers left their best shot-blocking option on the bench. Roy Hibbert wasn’t on the floor for the final play, and without a 7-foot-2 barrier to contest him, James made the winner look easy.

“Two great teams just throwing punch for punch,” Indiana coach Frank Vogel said. “Our spirit is very high, very confident. We know we can play with this basketball team.”

Vogel said he left Hibbert off the floor for the final play out of concern of what defending champion Miami would do with Chris Bosh in that scenario. Afterward, he acknowledged he might have different thinking next time.

“I would say we would probably have him in next time,” Vogel said.

Game 2 is Friday night in Miami.

Officials reviewed James’ play at the end, though it was clear he beat the clock, and the Pacers walked slowly toward their locker room, lamenting one that got away — by no fault of George’s.

“Gut-wrenching,” Hibbert said.

George was fouled by Dwyane Wade on the play where the Pacers had to think they had stolen the series opener. Referee Jason Phillips said Wade hit George, and the Pacers’ star made all three free throws for the 16th lead change of the night.

The final lead change came moments later.

“Welcome to the Eastern Conference finals,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Back and forth the whole way.”

Wade scored 19 points, Bosh had 17 and Chris Andersen had 16 on 7-for-7 shooting for Miami.

George scored 27 for the Pacers, who got 26 from David West and 19 from Hibbert. The Pacers have won only two series in NBA franchise history after dropping a Game 1.

“It just felt like everything was in our favor,” George said.

The final few seconds of regulation were stunning, with Ray Allen — the sixth-best free-throw shooter in NBA history — missing one that proved big, and George making a miracle happen.

Trailing by two with 17.7 seconds left, the Pacers had to foul Allen, who surely would have been their last choice. But he missed one of the two free throws, and it remained a one-possession game. Indiana brought the ball into the frontcourt, called time, and then seemed to have nothing really working as the final seconds of regulation ticked away.

So George simply made something happen.

From 32 feet — from the newly applied Eastern Conference finals sticker on the side of the court, technically — George connected with 0.7 seconds left, tying the game and giving Indiana life.

Allen didn’t get much of a desperation shot off at the end of regulation, and to overtime the teams went.

“It took an overtime to get it done,” Spoelstra said. “Glad to get that one.”

The Pacers kept landing the first punches in the extra session. George made a pair of free throws to open the OT, and Andersen tied it with a pair of his own. Hibbert scored from close range, and Wade answered with an easy one after a runout for the 16th tie of the night.

George was far from done. He went past James, got into the lane, tossed up a shot after contact and started what became a three-point play that put the Pacers up 99-96. Miami had three chances at the tie — a desperation 3-pointer by Shane Battier as the shot clock was expiring, then a 3-point try by Bosh and another 3 attempt by Battier.

All missed.

But Bosh grabbed the rebound of the last Battier shot that bounced off the rim in that sequence, scored while being fouled by George with 49.7 seconds left, calmly swished the free throw and the teams were — what else? — tied again at 99-all.

James scored on a drive with 10.8 seconds left in the overtime, and George answered with the three free throws. With Hibbert on the bench, Indiana had one plan for James on the last play.

“We wanted LeBron to shoot a jumper right there,” George said.

He was just better.

And after 3 hours, 18 minutes, it was over.

“We’re excited about the win,” James said. “But we have to get better going into Game 2.”

NOTES: Celebrities in attendance included Jimmy Buffett and Anna Kournikova. … James picked up two first-quarter fouls for just the ninth time in 125 career playoff games. … West’s 18 first-half points were his most before halftime since March 24, 2011, when he had 20 through two quarters against Utah. … From the not-often-seen department, a lane violation against the Pacers that led to James getting a second (and successful) chance on a missed free throw, and a 5-second call against Wade, both of those coming in the first half.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

Federal authorities say five individuals are named in a federal criminal complaint for their part in the heist.  Two are due in federal court in Bridgeport this afternoon.

Two people were bound and gagged inside a home in Meriden on April 11,  while two others were taken to the store in Fairfield, forced to open  it,  and an estimated $4  million  in jewelery was taken.  At the time police said it was a well-organized crime with at least four or five participants.

A silver BMW with Massachusetts plates taken from one of the victims was found the next day in Fairfield.

Tuesday’s top seed for Cleveland marks the second time in three years that the team has won the lottery; point guard Kyrie Irving was their top selection in 2011.

Although the Orlando Magic entered the lottery with the best chances of securing the top pick, they ended up with the second pick.

The rest of the NBA lottery order held to form for the most part with the Charlotte Bobcats dropping from two to four.

As the NBA lottery has been set, the following list below is the complete order for the 2013 NBA Draft:

First Round:

1. Cleveland Cavaliers
2. Orlando Magic
3. Washington Wizards
4. Charlotte Bobcats
5. Phoenix Suns
6. New Orleans Pelicans
7. Sacramento Kings
8. Detroit Pistons
9. Minnesota Timberwolves
10. Portland Trail Blazers
11. Philadelphia 76ers
12. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Toronto)
13. Dallas Mavericks
14. Utah Jazz
15. Milwaukee Bucks
16. Boston Celtics
17. Atlanta Hawks
18. Atlanta Hawks (from Houston via Brooklyn)
19. Cleveland Cavaliers (from Los Angeles)
20. Chicago Bulls
21. Utah Jazz (from Golden State via Brooklyn)
22. Brooklyn Nets
23. Indiana Pacers
24. New York Knicks
25. Los Angeles Clippers
26. Minnesota Timberwolves (from Memphis via Houston)
27. Denver Nuggets
28. San Antonio Spurs
29. Oklahoma City Thunder
30. Phoenix Suns (from Miami via L.A. and Cleveland)

Second Round:

31. Cleveland Cavaliers (from Orlando)
32. Oklahoma City Thunder (from Charlotte)
33. Cleveland Cavaliers
34. Houston Rockets (from Phoenix)
35. Philadelphia 76ers (from New Orleans)
36. Sacramento Kings
37. Detroit Pistons
38. Washington Wizards
39. Portland Trail Blazers (from Minnesota via Boston & Cleveland)
40. Portland Trail Blazers
41. Memphis Grizzlies (from Toronto)
42. Philadelphia 76ers
43. Milwaukee Bucks
44. Dallas Mavericks (pick may be conveyed to Lakers)
45. Portland Trail Blazers (from Boston)
46. Utah Jazz
47. Atlanta Hawks
48. Los Angeles Lakers (pick may be conveyed to Dallas)
49. Chicago Bulls
50. Atlanta Hawks (from Houston)
51. Orlando Magic (from Golden State via Denver & New York)
52. Minnesota Timberwolves (from Brooklyn)
53. Indiana Pacers
54. Washington Wizards (from New York)
55. Memphis Grizzlies
56. Detroit Pistons (from Clippers)
57. Phoenix Suns (from Denver via. Lakers)
58. San Antonio Spurs
59. Minnesota Timberwolves (from Oklahoma City)
60. Memphis Grizzlies (from Miami)

But given their recent track record in close-out games, the Rangers may have a few more days left in their playoff lives.

The Bruins may be up 3-0 in the series, but have struggled to close things out under head coach Claude Julien. Just last series they let a pair of potential clinchers get away after jumping out to a 3-1 series lead against the Toronto Maple Leafs, and needed a miracle comeback in the final 10 minutes of Game 7 to get to the Eastern Semis.

Read: Bruins-Rangers Game 4 Preview

Then of course, there is that 2010 collapse against the Philadelphia Flyers, when the Bruins blew a 3-0 series lead.

But the 2013 Boston Bruins aren’t living in the past. They’re focused on the task at hand.

“I think we live in the moment. You learn from the past and you live in the moment, but you don’t live in the past,” head coach Claude Julien said on Wednesday. “Right now, we’re living in the moment and I like where our team is right now; the attitude and the approach.”

“We’re not looking at it the way other people are going to look at it and try to find reasons to give New York some hope,” the coach continued. “We’re not even going there. We’re looking at the present right now, and the present is getting prepared to play a real good game (in Game 4).”

CBS New York: Rangers Focusing On First Step

The Bruins have held a 3-0 advantage 18 times in their storied history, winning all but that 2010 series against Philadelphia. Boston is 13-5 in Game 4′s when going for the sweep, and they won’t be changing much as they look to accomplish that Thursday night.

“Same as always; we’re going to have to come out hard, get up early and get some momentum going,” said forward Shawn Thornton, whose fourth line scored both of Boston’s goals in Tuesday’s Game 3 win. “We have to play the full game; it’s not over until we finish it off. They’re going to give us their best and we’re going to have to be ready for that.”

Closing out the Rangers Thursday night would give the Bruins some much-needed rest before the Eastern Conference Finals, but they aren’t thinking about any potential rest. All they’re looking at is putting together a winning effort in the next game on the schedule.

Read: Seidenberg Says ‘There’s A Chance’ He Returns In Game 4

“(Rest) would be nice but we know and we’ve learned as a team that the last one is the hardest in past years, even the last series,” said forward David Krejci. “We’ve got to get ready for tomorrow and play it just like a Game 1.”

“It’s only been three games, and these last couple – (Game 3) could have went either way,” said Thornton. “We still have some work to do; the last one is always the toughest one.”

Tune in to every Bruins playoff game on 98.5 The Sports Hub — the flagship station of the Boston Bruins. Pregame coverage begins 30 minutes before every game!

A quick-thinking friend, Terry Schnurr,  General Sales Manager of Lynch Toyota, Manchester,  snapped this photo,  and a second, where the bear is hidden in the shadows:

Howard has held top-seeded Chicago to only one goal in two straight games, lifting seventh-seeded Detroit to a 2-1 series lead. He was the star of the end-to-end, high-paced Game 3 the Red Wings won 4-1 on Monday night, when he became their first goalie to face at least 40 shots without giving up more than a goal in the playoffs since Greg Stefan did it 1987.

“That was probably the fastest playoff game I’ve ever been a part of,” Howard said. “I expect it just to get faster Thursday night. They’re going to step it up. We need to come even harder.”

Detroit will host Game 4 on Thursday night, shooting for a surprising win that would put Chicago on the brink of elimination.

Howard’s glove, pads and mindset give the Red Wings a shot to win every time they put on sweaters with winged wheels. Since Detroit trailed second-seeded Anaheim 3-2 in the first round, Howard has won four of five games and is averaging two goals against and 34-plus saves.

“You have to have a good goalie to go anywhere in the playoffs and we have it,” Red Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg said.

The Blackhawks seem confident they also have a netminder good enough to finish their season as strong as it started. Lately though, Corey Crawford has been shaky – or at least he hasn’t been able to overcome enough of his teammates’ mistakes in front of him.

Crawford won five of his first six games in the playoffs, shutting out Minnesota once and allowing a total of eight goals during his strong start. But he has given up a combined seven goals over the last two games after allowing one goal in the first period of the series opener.

When Chicago began its season-opening run of 24 games with at least a point backup goalie Ray Emery was 10-0 during the NHL record-breaking stretch while Crawford was injured. Emery finished the regular season 17-1 with a 1.94 goals-against average, leaving his last outing early because of a lower-body injury nearly a month ago at Edmonton.

Is Emery an option for Game 4?

“We’re not talking about that right now,” Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said Monday night. And the next day, he was succinct when asked to assess how Crawford has played the past few games.

“He’s been fine,” Quenneville said.

The Blackhawks probably don’t want to put more pressure on Crawford, but they were likely looking for more than him being “fine” in his third postseason as their No. 1 goalie.

Chicago couldn’t afford to keep Antti Niemi after he was the franchise’s backstop when it hoisted the Stanley Cup in 2010 and he beat out Marty Turco for the job the next season.

Crawford has been an impressive 82-40-18 the last three regular seasons, but a lackluster 10-11 in the playoffs. The Montreal native sounds as if he’s ready to bounce back to help the team respond well enough to avoid their first three-game losing streak since the 2011-12 season.

“We haven’t had a lot of adversity this year,” Crawford said. “We just have to dig deep and battle.”

The Red Wings, meanwhile, barely made the playoffs and they leaned on Howard a lot because their team was challenged offensively because of injuries and the retirement of Nicklas Lidstrom.

Howard had to play in 42 of 48 games during the lockout-shortened season because he didn’t have a healthy, or capable, backup for much of the season. He was 21-13-7 and tied for the league lead with five shutouts, leading to him getting a $31.8 million, six-year contract to keep him off the market as a free agent this summer.

Like Crawford, Howard has been really good during the regular season – for four seasons as a No. 1 goalie – and average in the playoffs with a .500 record going into Game 4.

In a town where the goalie is in the spotlight, win or lose, Zetterberg said Howard has the perfect temperament for the job.

“Nothing really bothers him,” Zetterberg said. “If he lets in a goal, he just flushes it and moves on.”

Copyright 2013 by STATS LLC and The Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and The Associated Press is strictly prohibited.

Sidney Crosby, Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis also scored for Pittsburgh, and Tomas Vokoun made 30 saves. Down 2-1 after the first period, the Penguins scored twice in a 40-second span early in the second and added four goals in the first 10 minutes in the third.

Milan Michalek, Kyle Turris and Daniel Alfredsson scored for Ottawa. Senators goalie Craig Anderson was benched after Pittsburgh’s sixth goal, and Robin Lehner finished the game.

Game 5 is Friday night in Pittsburgh.

The Senators, coming off a double-overtime victory Sunday night in Game 3, opened the scoring on Michalek’s short-handed goal at 2:29 of the first period. With defenseman Sergei Gonchar in the penalty box, Alfredsson fed the puck up the middle to a streaking Michalek, who broke through the defense and beat Vokoun low on the glove side for Ottawa’s second short-handed goal of the series.

It was the Senators’ first lead of the series. It wouldn’t last.

Neal tied it with 5:04 left in the period, picking up the loose puck in the slot and putting it in the back of the net. Turris put Ottawa back in front off a rebound with 3:45 left in the first.

Pittsburgh tied it early in the second when Kunitz got behind the defense and went in alone to beat Anderson. Less than a minute later, Anderson gave up a rebound on Kris Letang’s shot that landed on the tape of Iginla’s stick to make it 3-2.

Neal started the third-period flurry with a power-play goal at 1:59. Dupuis added a short-handed goal at 8:07, Crosby followed at 8:39, and Iginla scored on a power play at 9:53.

Alfredsson finished the scoring with a late power-play goal for his 100th career playoff point.

RELATED LINKS:
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(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

They have outclassed the New York Rangers all over the ice in surging to a 3-0 lead in a series that could be over Thursday.

If the Bruins start firing on all cylinders, the Rangers will have little hope of even forcing a Game 5 let alone entertaining thoughts of matching the greatest comeback in sports.

The Bruins could afford to relax Wednesday, and many of them did, as the team held an optional practice at Madison Square Garden — the site of Boston’s 2-1 comeback win a night earlier that pushed the Rangers within one loss of elimination.

HARTNETT: RICHARDS REDUCED TO PASSENGER ROLE

New York also got back on the ice at its suburban practice facility, and it was clear the sting of Tuesday night’s disheartening defeat lingered.

The Rangers are just over one week removed from back-to-back shutouts by Henrik Lundqvist in Games 6 and 7 against the Washington Capitals in the first round, but those good times feel a whole lot longer ago now.

Any kind of comeback now starts with Game 4 in New York. Three teams have recovered from an 0-3 hole to win an NHL series.

“We’re not looking at odds or anything like that,” Rangers captain Ryan Callahan said. “We’re looking at one game at home, and we’ll try to bring this thing back to Boston. That’s the only way we can look at it, to try to win one game in our building.”

The Bruins want to cut this short and not give the Rangers any reason to believe. New York trailed Washington 2-0 in the opening round and then 3-2 before advancing.

There is history hanging over Boston, including a blown 3-0 lead to Philadelphia in a series loss in 2010 and a squandered 3-1 edge in this year’s first round to Toronto before the Bruins rallied to win Game 7.

“You learn from the past, but you live in the moment. You don’t live in the past,” Bruins coach Claude Julien said. “I like where our team is right now. We’re certainly not looking at it the way other people will look at it — trying to find reasons to give New York some hope, saying ‘These guys have done this, these guys have had trouble doing this.’

“We’re certainly not even going there.”

Rangers forwards Darroll Powe and Arron Asham were on that Philadelphia team that stunned the Bruins with an epic comeback in 2010.

CBS BOSTON: BRUINS’ SEIDENBERG COULD RETURN

While several players said Wednesday they believe this series can still be won, the mantra was the same as it has been all season — following the words of coach John Tortorella that the focus must be completely on the next game.

“Obviously, we can’t win four games (Thursday) night. We have to focus on just the task at hand, which is coming out strong on our first shift,” said Powe, who is currently sidelined by injury. “We go shift by shift, we just chip away. You’ve got to try to win every shift. That’s how we’re going to get back in the series.”

The Rangers had been 3-0 at home in the playoffs and had won nine straight at Madison Square Garden, dating to the regular season.

Tuesday’s loss was their first in regulation in which they led going into the third period since February 2010.

A fluke goal with 3:31 remaining by fourth-liner Daniel Paille, who put in a puck Lundqvist never saw, made the disappointment that much greater. Boston defenseman Johnny Boychuk scored his fourth goal of the postseason earlier in the third with a shot that might have clipped forward Shawn Thornton — Paille’s bruising linemate along with Gregory Campbell.

That was enough to give the Bruins their second one-goal win of the series.

Paille had a goal and assist in Game 3 for his first points of the series. Thornton assisted on both goals, to get himself on the score sheet for the first time against the Rangers, and Campbell had an assist on the game-winner to go along with a goal he scored in Game 2.

“Hopefully it keeps going,” Thornton said of the production from the line that was put together during the 2010-11 season. “We’re trying to get back out there so we’ve got to give it everything we have. I have said it a million times, I am very fortunate to play with those two guys. They are extremely good hockey players and they would probably be on better lines than the fourth line on other teams.”

The Rangers would be happy to get offense from anywhere. After busting out in a 5-0 win in Game 7 against the Capitals, New York has been held to five total goals in three games against goalie Tuukka Rask and the rest of the Bruins.

New York seemed to lack the required energy and urgency to take advantage in Game 4. The Rangers have also failed to capitalize on an injured Boston defense that is using three rookies with success.

“I like our team,” Rangers coach John Tortorella said. “We’ve got good people. We need to have more people playing more minutes, consistently. We’ll be ready to play. I hope we get to another level of desperation. That’s not just running around all over the place, it’s about winning those battles at key times.”

While injured Bruins defensemen Dennis Seidenberg and Wade Redden continue to practice and move closer to returning, the Rangers are dealing with the loss of defenseman Anton Stralman, who got hurt when he was checked hard Tuesday night by Milan Lucic and left the game in the second period.

“Losing Stralsy is a big blow,” said Tortorella. “He puts himself in a situation there where he’s trying to make a play and gets hurt. He’s done that really through the playoffs here.”

His status for Game 4 is questionable at best. If he sits out, the Rangers could turn to Roman Hamrlik or Matt Gilroy. Marc Staal doesn’t appear ready to play because of an eye injury.

“To a defense that I think is lacking a little depth right now, it hurts us,” Tortorella said of Stralman’s injury. “We’re down 0-3. There’s no sense of feeling pressure. Players that get to play … grab a hold of it and let it happen.”

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(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

One of the things that has kept the series fresh is the willingness to reinvent, to continuously tweak and adjust exactly what kind of movies these are, not unlike the under-the-hood tinkering that motivates our gearhead heroes and their vehicles.  If 2011′s truly excellent Fast Five was this franchise’s take on an Ocean’s Eleven-style heist, then 6 is without a doubt their Bond film.  From the high stakes of the villainous Shaw’s master plans, to the wild and inventive gadgets employed by both sides in this ongoing cat and mouse game, to the bravado and confidence of each one of our heroes. Whether they’re breaking into an L.A. prison, running down a henchman through the London subway or anchoring a getaway plane to the tarmac, each of our returning heroes from Ludacris’ Tej, to Tyrese’s Roman, to Dwayne Johnson’s Hobbs have their own chance to shine.

The center of the story, though, is the mysterious return of Letty, the love of Dom’s life though dead after the events of the fourth movie.  Not only is Letty alive, she’s working for Shaw, the war profiteer/ terrorist who’s been collecting parts to build a Weapon of Mass Destruction and hold the entire world for ransom.  So we essentially get a two-layered story, with high stakes action in trying to stop Shaw’s evil Bond villain scheme, and the more personal side as Dom and his crew all react to Letty’s reappearance, and do what they can to bring her back into their “family.”

It’s the personal angle that gives the film much of its charm– we get plenty of interplay between the cast of characters, and half the fun comes from watching these guys bounce off one another.  Many of these players entered the series in different films, gradually coming together as a team like a nitrous-fueled version of The Avengers.  Yet, despite the late-in-the-game union of these distinct characters into one crew (or perhaps because of it?) there is a simple wonder in watching their mutual chemistry on screen.  The best ensemble casts can play with one another any way they are put together, and that sense of modular chemistry between this team is wonderful.  Just when I thought there could be no pairing more entertaining than vain Roman and practical Tej, Roman and Han share a fantastic action sequence as they chase one of Shaw’s goons through the subway that plays as hilarious as it is action-packed.

Luke Evans even brings a certain humanity to the villain Shaw.  While his plot feels fairly generic and half-boiled, Shaw has an interesting scene in which he shows genuine compassion for Letty, proving that there may be more to him than a mustache to be twirled.  With his sinister plot in place and seemingly endless supply of truly fierce resources (the flip cars he employs are killer!), Shaw absolutely feels like a true match for Dom, and his team serves as dark mirrors to Dom’s crew.  With his proclivity for gadgets and henchmen, it would seem like Shaw is a Bond villain, but his suave demeanor and steely determination make him feel more like Bond himself, gone bad.

With a cast this size, it can be a challenge to keep all the plates spinning in the air, but returning director Justin Lin proves more than capable of the challenge.  While the Dom-Letty relationship anchors the film, each character is given a satisfying arc and lots to do… often in different directions.  As the mystery of Letty’s survival and her employment with Shaw are discovered, Brian digs up his own past by infiltrating a prison to shake down an informant. Hobbs, in the meantime, follows clues to stay on the trail of Shaw and his gang, as they attempt to steal the last piece they need to assemble a weapon of mass destruction.

At the center of it all, though, is the reunion of Dom and Letty. Diesel has a lot more personal drama to play with in this role, as Toretto investigates what exactly happened to his presumed-dead lover, and attempts to swoon her away from Shaw and back into his crew.  The undeniable chemistry between Diesel and Rodriguez is as palpable as ever, as they share some great scenes that work toward bringing Letty back home to her rightful family.  For Toretto, it’s more than rekindling their romance– the one thing Dom cares about more than anything is family, and as he does whatever it takes to make his family whole again by bringing Letty home, the global stakes at play with Shaw’s WMD feel very much rivaled by Dom’s personal agenda.

But don’t think this is some deep character study– the high velocity mayhem that made this series famous shares the spotlight with these thoroughly entertaining performances, and director Lin once again becomes the movie’s MVP as he moves the story forward at a fast, confident pace and consistently thrills with the action scenes while cleverly connecting dots within the overall film series that are genuinely surprising.  There is a sense of escalation to this movie, as the action gets bigger and bigger, and much of it is once again realized in some spectacular practical stunt sequences, with a welcome shortage of CGI “enhancements.”  Keeping things practical adds a sense of visceral energy to the best early set pieces, and by the midpoint of the two-part finale, the character work and action converge into a real show stopper.

The first part of the finale feels like an extension of the physics-defying closer from Fast Five, replacing the giant safe with a tank that Shaw and his henchmen tear across a bridge, literally crushing anything in their path.  As Dom and the others figure out how to stop their foe, we get plenty of bombastic moments, which as thrilling as they might be, also always come back to the characters.  The sequence closes with what may be the most absurd moment of the entire series, but by the time it happens I was so invested in what was going on, I stood up and cheered.

The second half of the final action scene is even more thrilling, combining another intense chase (as the crew attempts to anchor Shaw’s getaway plane), as well as some well-choreographed fight scenes on the plane itself.  It’s an insurmountable amount of action going on at once, but Lin handles it like a pro, creating a smooth sequence that is as easy to follow as it is exciting.  The payoff includes a few twists which, while not necessarily shocking, carry a weight thanks to the investment we have in these people.

It’s rare for a franchise to even reach a number six, but that a series like Fast and Furious can not only hit that mark, but hit their stride and make the sixth outing one of the finest yet is a testament to just how unique and interesting this franchise has become.  It’s absolutely popcorn entertainment, but it’s so well done it feels like something special.  The action is well paced, visually striking and thoroughly entertaining.  There’s an impressive amount of continuity and world-building, tying in seemingly separate characters and plot threads into one greater story.  And at the center of it all, there’s still a lot of heart in these characters.  It’s that heart that makes Dom and his crew so entertaining to watch, what makes us care about their increasingly high-stakes struggles… and what will keep me coming back to this franchise time and time again.

–Bill Sencio, CBS Connecticut

And if Quick needed any extra motivation to stop the Sharks again in the pivotal Game 5 on Thursday night, TJ Galiardi provided it.

Galiardi accused the Conn Smythe Trophy-winning goalie of exaggerating contact with opposing players Wednesday, claiming Quick attempts to draw undeserved penalties.

“What kind of bugs me about him, I don’t know if I should say it, but a little embellishment every now and then,” Galiardi said after the Sharks’ workout in San Jose. “You skate by and you don’t even touch him, or you barely even touch him, and he’s throwing his hands in the air. So that’s one of those things. It’s playoffs. Everyone is trying to draw a penalty. Whatever.”

Galiardi apparently was displeased by Quick’s reaction to an encounter during the Sharks’ 2-1 victory in Game 4 on Tuesday night, with Quick fruitlessly arguing for an interference call after Galiardi made contact with him. Galiardi’s comments added even more spice to this lively series heading back to Staples Center, where the Kings have won 12 straight games since March.

“The thing is, with video, something we like to say around here is, `Ball don’t lie,’” Galiardi said. “It’s an old basketball term, but when you watch the video, the video doesn’t lie. So I’m skating by and I barely touch him, and he’s throwing his hands in the air. It’s kind of one of those things. He looks bad on video, not me.”

Galiardi has never scored a playoff goal in his five-year NHL career, so he’s hardly the most likely candidate to challenge Quick’s postseason sportsmanship. Quick wasn’t in the Kings’ dressing room after practice at their training complex Wednesday.

The Los Angeles goalie turned in one of the most dominant playoff performances in recent hockey history for the Kings last year before following it up with another stellar postseason effort this spring. After holding St. Louis to 10 goals in the six-game first round, Quick has allowed just seven goals in four games against San Jose, stopping 122 of 129 shots in an otherwise frequently one-sided series.

Quick clearly hasn’t the problem during the Kings’ difficult defense, which now includes as many playoff losses as they took during the entire 2012 postseason. After consecutive 2-1 losses in San Jose, the Kings clearly haven’t backed up their star goalie’s efforts with consistent goal-scoring from their stars or contributions from all four lines, the offensive hallmarks of last season’s surge to the franchise’s first title.

“Recently, we all haven’t done the necessary things to score goals in the playoffs,” said first-line right wing Justin Williams, who has two goals in the postseason. “It’s pure broken record is all it is. Scorers have got to score. If they don’t score, they’ve got to create more offense. We’ve been outplayed so far, top line to top line, I feel in this series. We’re a proud bunch, but it’s still 2-2. We’re still in a good spot.”

Los Angeles has scored just one goal apiece in five of its 10 playoff games, and the Kings have managed just two even-strength goals in the last three games against San Jose. The Kings’ putative top line is struggling mightily: Captain Dustin Brown has just two goals – both on power plays – in the playoffs, and leading scorer Anze Kopitar has just one goal while getting outplayed by San Jose’s Joe Thornton.

“There’s a fine line between desperation and panic, and I’m thinking the guys we have in here will be a desperate group,” said Kings defenseman Rob Scuderi, a two-time Stanley Cup winner. “But we’re not going to do anything out of the ordinary or try to do it ourselves. … We were down 2-0 in the St. Louis series. I know it’s not as easy as everyone thinks it was last year, being up 3-0 in every series, but we have a good mentality in here, and we’re trying to stay upbeat and confident, and realize our best 60 minutes are ahead of us.”

The Kings figure they’re due to break out of their offensive skid, but Los Angeles coach Darryl Sutter also is contemplating line switches to create more offense, shuffling the mix in practice Wednesday. Los Angeles has spent much of the series barely surviving against San Jose’s forecheck and high-volume offense, frequently pinned in its own end for long stretches of all four games, particularly in the opening period.

“We’ve got to come out and have a great start,” Kings defenseman Robyn Regehr said. “That’s where it all needs to be focused for us. Just come out and have a good start, play the way we know we can right off the bat, and go from there.”

The Sharks are radiating confidence with two straight wins following Los Angeles’ late heist of Game 2 with two power-play goals in the waning seconds. San Jose is two wins away from its third conference finals appearance in four years, but only if the Sharks manage to crack the Kings’ formidable advantage at Staples Center.

“They’re a great team. They’re the champs,” Thornton said. “They’ve been good on home ice all year, but we feel like our game is getting better and better, and each series keeps getting better. I don’t know if there’s an advantage or not. It’s just we’ve got to go into L.A. now and win one.”

While the Kings’ sellout crowds can be tough, the Sharks are confident they can pick up right where they left off with a few minutes to go in Game 2 before Los Angeles’ electric comeback.

“They stick around,” San Jose defenseman Dan Boyle said of the Kings. “That’s why going after that second and third goal is really important. It’s one of those teams where sitting on a one-goal lead is probably not going to cut it. We need to do a better job of scoring the next one, and the next one after that.”

AP Sports Writer Josh Dubow in San Jose, Calif., contributed to this report.

An MRI revealed the tear, the Daily News reported. The team previously announced Anthony would have the shoulder examined.

Anthony first hurt his shoulder on April 14 against the Indiana Pacers. Now it seems he played the entire Knicks playoff run — 12 games — with a partial tear.

SIMS: SHOULDER WOES MORE THAN WARNING SIGN

“It was bothering me since it happened,” Anthony said Monday. “To be able to play with that and get through the pain, it just came a point where you just try not to think about it. That’s where I was at mentally.”

He aggravated the injury in the first round against Boston. After the Celtics series, a banged-up Anthony said his arm “just kind of popped in and out a little bit.”

The team is “hopeful” that Anthony won’t need surgery, telling the NBA’s scoring champ to take it easy “for the next three to four weeks” until he can be reevaluated, the Daily News reported.

New York was eliminated Saturday by the Pacers.

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NORWICH, Conn. (AP) _ A historic city landmark was the site of a real-life ghost story as ghost hunters surveyed the Leffingwell House Museum on Washington Street.

This was the second time a team from Paranormal Revelations, based in Hartford’s northern suburbs, have surveyed the nearly 350-year-old former inn.

In February, museum board members and the ghost hunters themselves where shocked to see a well-defined shadow sit down and stand up _ twice _ from a large pink chair in the living room. All they could make out was the torso, said Donna Fasulo, the case manager and co-founder of the group.

“That was very intriguing,” Fasulo said of the February sighting. It was part of the reason the group wanted to come back, she said.

The group expanded its search of the historic inn recently, looking at the living areas as well as the basement, which was not explored in February. The survey of the home began at dusk on a Saturday night and finished about 1 a.m. Sunday.

“There were a few times where it sounded like we might have caught something (on recording equipment),” Myron Curtiss, the lead investigator and a co-founder of the group, said.

They’re not sure what they found. Curtiss said the team hasn’t yet finished processing the data acquired through a full night of recording in every room in the house with audio and video equipment, full-spectrum camera photography and electromagnetic field measurement equipment.

The group found out about the Leffingwell building, a 338-year-old homestead that served as an inn and tavern during the time of the Revolutionary War, on the Internet, and contacted its owners for permission to visit and search for ghosts.

Curtiss said he hoped to make a third visit, should the Leffingwell Inn board approve one.

Greg Farlow, the vice president of the Leffingwell House Museum board, was around for both the February ghost hunts. He said he’s neutral on ghosts, but excited _ his eyes went wide as he pointed to the chair where he said he saw the shadowy figure in February. He’s done his research on the owners and residents of the home from the 18th and 19th centuries, and said he’s narrowed down the possibilities.

“The Leffingwells lived here only until after the Revolution, then it went to the Huntington family. I think it would be Ruth Huntington in that chair,” he said as the ghost hunters prepared their equipment.
___
Information from: Norwich Bulletin, http://www.norwichbulletin.com

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.) 

Police say 36-year-old Wen Qi was a list of potential trespassers provided a security agency.

The Stamford Advocate reports (http://bit.ly/187RIvr) Qi told authorities she was a freelance journalist after being caught on private property near the Greenwich Polo Club.

Shewas originally charged with third-degree criminal trespass, but pleaded guilty in state Superior Court in Stamford to a lesser charge of simple trespass last Thursday and paid a $50 fine.

The May 15 charity match was attended by a crowd of about 400 people including many high-profile fashion industry figures. It wrapped up a weeklong visit to the United States for Prince Harry.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)   

The bill passed on a 74-55 vote Thursday morning after an overnight debate that lasted more than seven hours.

House Speaker Brendon Sharkey says the legislation would lead to fewer untrained and unregistered drivers, lower insurance rates, and help the economy.

Under the legislation, applicants for driver’s licenses would still need documentation showing they have lived in the state for at least 90 days.

Opponents argued the legislation could encourage immigrants to enter the state illegally and could lead to abuses in voting. They had pushed for further studies of the issue.

The bill now heads to the state Senate.

Kathleen Gombos, the principal at the R.M.T. Johnson School in Bethel, was hired Tuesday night to become principal at Sandy Hook. The school was established in Monroe after the Dec. 14 shootings that killed 20 children and six educators, including the principal, Dawn Hochsprung.

Gombos succeeds an interim principal and is to start on July 1.

A task force of elected officials has recommended tearing down the Sandy Hook school and rebuilding on the site. The proposal now goes to the school board and ultimately to voters in a referendum.

The Connecticut Commission on Children scheduled a forum for Thursday.

Commission Director Elaine Zimmerman said she hopes the participants can obtain information about the steps they can take to create a positive school climate and how they can comply with Connecticut’s 2011 anti-bullying law.

That law requires all school employees, teaching candidates and beginning teachers to receive annual training on how to prevent and respond to student bullying. School employees must report acts of student bullying to school officials and schools must investigate them promptly.

Part of Thursday’s forum includes a panel discussion of youth, parents and educators who’ve dealt with different kinds of bullying.

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) _ A massive, 11-year study of brain cancer at jet engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney is coming to an end with what could be definitive information about fatal occupational illnesses at Connecticut plants.

The subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. is set to unveil on Thursday the third and final phase of a university study that already found an incidence of cancer was the same as or less than for the general population. The researchers from the University of Pittsburgh and University of Illinois at Chicago studied work records, cancer registries and other information related to 212,513 employees who worked at one of eight Connecticut plants from 1952 to 2001.

A widow of a worker who died 13 years ago said she’s frustrated at the study’s pace and hopes it’s conclusive, showing that a cancer cluster was the cause of the death of her husband and his co-workers.

“We have hundreds of cases and they can’t figure this out as a cluster?” Carol Shea said. “This isn’t rocket science.”

Her husband, John Shea, died of brain cancer in 2000 at age 56. He worked at Pratt & Whitney’s North Haven plant for 35 years.

The principal researcher, Gary Marsh, said when releasing the second phase in 2010 that the third part of the study is looking at whether workplace factors caused cancer. He said the final stage is “really the definitive step” where researchers can link mortality incidence to exposures to possible workplace hazards and characteristics of the work environment.

Researchers found slightly higher rates of brain cancer at the North Haven plant, but said the difference was not statistically significant and did not appear linked to workplace factors.

Of the workers during the 1952-2001 period who were alive between 1976 and 2004, researchers said they identified 489 cases of malignant central nervous system cancers. Of those, 275 were brain tumors.

The first phase, which was released in September 2008, said it did not find statistically significant excesses in deaths from malignant brain tumors among North Haven workers.

Researchers did not return calls seeking comment and a spokesman for Pratt & Whitney said the company does not have access to the third phase of the study.

The Machinists union and some workers said chemicals used to clean and degrease turbine blades and other engine components filled the air with mists and vapors and mixed with metal dusts from grinders. Workers seldom wore masks, respirators or other protective devices, the union said.

Pratt & Whitney commissioned the $12 million study, which is being overseen by the Connecticut Department of Public Health, in 2002 after complaints from families of workers who died from a form of brain cancer.

Debra Belancik, safety representative of the International Association of Machinists, which represents Pratt & Whitney workers, said she hopes the report ends the matter with conclusive information.

“I have no idea what we’re walking into,” she said. “I hope they come up with some sort of conclusion. We’ve been waiting a long time.”

___

Follow Stephen Singer on Twitter at http://twitter.com/SteveSinger10.

CLEARWATER, Fla. – Centerfielder Billy Ferriter went 4-for-5 with the go-ahead RBI in the top of the 12th inning to lift eighth-seeded Connecticut past No. 1-seeded Louisville Wednesday in the first round of the Big East Baseball Championship at Bright House Field.

The win was the first by a No. 8 seed over a No. 1 seed in the Big East Championship since Villanova beat St. John’s 12-0 in the 2008 first round. It also ended Louisville’s winning streak at 16 games, which was the longest active winning streak in the nation.

Ferriter’s base hit to centerfield brought in Eric Yavarone from second base with two out in the 12th, breaking a 2-2 deadlock that stood since the fifth inning.

Connecticut starting pitcher Carson Cross – an All-Big East Second Team selection – kept the Huskies in it by pitching into the 10th inning and allowing just two runs on seven hits in the no-decision. Cross threw 119 pitches and held the Cardinals without a run after the first inning. The Huskies’ bullpen worked three innings of perfect relief, with David Mahoney going 2.1 innings to get the win (1-2) and Pat Butler getting the last two outs of the 12th for his third save.

The Huskies (31-26), who were outscored by a combined score of 17-1 in three regular-season meetings with Louisville this season, built a 1-0 lead before the Cardinals came to bat. Ferriter reached on a bunt single, took third on L.J. Mazzilli’s base hit to right and scored on Vinny Siena’s sacrifice fly to take a 1-0 lead.

The advantage was short-lived, however, as Louisville (46-11) scored two in the bottom of the first. Coco Johnson roped a double down the leftfield line to bring in Adam Engel, who led off with a single. Ty Young scored on Cole Sturgeon’s hit deep in the shortstop hole to give the Cardinals a 2-1 lead after one inning.

UConn tied it in the top of the fifth inning when Siena’s double to right-center brought in Mazzilli, tying the game at 2-2.

The Huskies threatened to take the lead in the top of the 10th inning, but Ferriter was out on a close play at third base on Mazzilli’s base hit to center. UConn coach Jim Penders was ejected arguing the call, and the Cardinals ended the threat when reliever Nick Burdi stranded Mazzilli at second.

Louisville got its leadoff man aboard in the bottom of the 10th when Zak Wasserman smacked a base hit to right-center. But Mahoney came on to relieve Cross and retired the Cardinals in order on a sacrifice bunt, a fly ball to center and a grounder to first.

Mazzilli went 2-for-3 with three RBI for the Huskies, while Yavarone finished 2-for-5. The Cardinals were led offensively by second baseman Nick Ratajczak, who was 2-for-5. Burdi took the loss for Louisville, falling to 2-2.

Connecticut will face the winner of Wednesday’s final first-round game between USF and Rutgers. The Huskies will play at 8 p.m. Thursday, while Louisville faces the USF-Rutgers loser at 5 p.m. in an elimination game.

CHICAGO (AP) _ Clay Buchholz pitched five-hit ball over seven innings to improve to 7-0, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Chicago White Sox 6-2 Wednesday night to avoid a three-game sweep.

David Ortiz delivered a two-run single in the first off Hector Santiago (1-3), and the Red Sox backed Buchholz with several neat defensive plays on the way to their sixth win in eight games.

Jonny Gomes made a sliding catch on Paul Konerko’s line drive to left with two on to end the first. Jacoby Ellsbury raced to the center-field warning track to snag Alexei Ramirez’s liner with a runner on and two out in the fifth to preserve a 2-1 lead.

Boston added to it in the eighth when Will Middlebrooks hit a sacrifice fly to right off Nate Jones after the Red Sox loaded the bases against Brian Omogrosso in the eighth, and Mike Napoli scored on a passed ball by Tyler Flowers to make it 4-1. The Red Sox scored two more in the ninth to put this one away.

Buchholz allowed just one run while lowering his American League-leading ERA to 1.73. He also matched the best start by a Boston pitcher since Josh Beckett in 2007 and joined Tampa Bay’s Matt Moore and Arizona’s Patrick Corbin as the only unbeaten pitchers in the majors with seven or more wins.

The only run he allowed came on an RBI groundout in the third by Alex Rios, who also extended his career-high hitting streak to 17 with a single in the sixth.

The White Sox also got a solo homer from Paul Konerko off Andrew Bailey. Otherwise, the White Sox couldn’t get the big hit. They were 0 for 5 with runners in scoring position after doing all their scoring with two outs while winning the previous two games 6-4 and 3-1.

Santiago wasn’t quite as dominant after Jose Quintana took a no-hitter into the seventh the previous night, but he gave the White Sox exactly what they needed.

He settled down after the shaky start and threw six solid innings for the White Sox with Chris Sale scratched because of mild tendinitis in his left shoulder. The left-hander allowed two runs and three hits, struck out nine and walked four pitching on three days’ rest in what might be his last start for a while.

That’s because he or Dylan Axelrod could be headed to the bullpen with John Danks expected to return from his shoulder injury.

NOTES: The Red Sox held OF Shane Victorino out of the lineup for the second straight game because of tightness in his left hamstring. Manager John Farrell said there has been improvement and is hopeful he won’t have to go on the disabled list. … Farrell said backup C David Ross (concussion) will go on a rehab assignment Thursday at Double-A Portland. … Chicago manager Robin Ventura said Sale wanted to start on Wednesday, but the White Sox decided to take a more cautious approach. He also said there was no MRI scheduled and that he expects the left-hander to be ready to start against the Cubs on Tuesday, although that isn’t necessarily etched in stone.

Two plastic beverage bottles  containing some type of solid  substance were in the roadway.Initial responders  said they appeared to resemble  items used to make homemade explosives.

The road was blocked and the  Connecticut State Police Bomb Squad was called in to assist in the investigation.It was determined the  bottles were explosive or hazardous.

No homes were evacuated , but residents were advised to remain indoors during the investigation.

The road reopened  at about 8:15 p.m.

Nick Markakis added a solo home run for the Orioles, who took two of three from New York to pull within three games of the first-place Yankees in the AL East.

Curtis Granderson homered, doubled and singled for New York. Needing a triple to reach the cycle, he drew a walk in the seventh inning.

David Adams hit a ninth-inning homer for the Yankees, his second in three games. The teams combined for 13 home runs in the series, including five in the finale.

Yankees starter Hiroki Kuroda left in the third with a bruised right calf, one inning after he was struck in the leg by a line drive off the bat of Manny Machado. Kuroda (6-3) allowed five runs and eight hits in two-plus innings.

Jason Hammel (6-2) gave up two runs and seven hits in 6 2-3 innings to even his lifetime record against the Yankees to 3-3. The right-hander allowed a combined 13 earned runs over 8 2-3 innings in his previous two starts.

After Kuroda retired the first two batters he faced, Markakis homered. Adam Jones followed with a single and Davis hit a 3-2 pitch over the wall in center.

In the second, Nate McLouth singled with two outs, stole second and took third on Machado’s single off Kuroda’s leg. Although Markakis hit a fly to end the threat, at that point the Orioles had six hits _ one more than Kuroda allowed in his complete game shutout against Baltimore on April 14.

The Yankees got a run back in the third when Granderson doubled and scored on a single by Robinson Cano.

But Baltimore pulled away in the bottom half. Jones doubled and after Davis singled, Kuroda grimaced near the mound. A discussion involving the New York trainer, Kuroda and manager Joe Girardi ensued. The right-hander eventually walked off the field.

Preston Claiborne entered, and Wieters homered on the rookie’s second pitch. It was the first run allowed by Claiborne after seven straight scoreless outings in the majors.

Granderson homered in the fifth to make it 6-2. Playing in his seventh game since returning from a broken wrist, Granderson batted leadoff and played center field for the first time.

“It’s like an opening week of the season for me. No different,” he said before the game.

 NOTES: The Orioles will recall RHP Kevin Gausman on Thursday, and the 22-year-old will make his major league debut against Toronto. Gausman was the fourth overall pick in the 2012 draft. … After a day off Thursday, the Yankees begin a three-game series on the road against Tampa Bay. … Orioles INF prospect Jonathan Schoop will need 6-8 weeks rest after an MRI revealed a stress fracture in his lower back, Orioles VP Dan Duquette said. … New York 1B Mark Teixeira (wrist) and INF Kevin Youkilis (lumbar spine sprain) faced six minor league pitchers in a simulated game at the team complex in Tampa, Fla. … Ichiro Suzuki extended his hitting streak at Camden Yards to 21 games.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Medicine, water and  urgently needed relief supplies   were delivered in the first 48 hours after the storm.The AmeriCares disaster response team is on the ground in the tornado -ravaged area.

Aid deliveries  include,Tetanus vaccines to protect residents  and first responders digging through  the rubble.Insulin and  medicines  for Medcare  United Charitable Pharmacy at Oklahoma University Hospital in Oklahoma City, which fills prescriptions for low-income and uninsured patients.Wound care  supplies, emergency  kits and flashlights  for Crossings Community Clinic in  Oklahoma City and bottled water for food banks  serving as aid  distribution centers.

For more information or to donate go to americares.org.

The Metro-North crash at rush hour Friday evening injured 72 people. It snarled commutes for roughly 30,000 people who normally use the train, forcing travelers to navigate a patchwork of cars, trains and buses.
The repairs will require a reduced speed of 30 mph for several days, which officials say is standard for new track installations. Donovan said the reduced speed was extending travel time by only a few minutes.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the accident. Officials have said they are looking at two sections of rail after finding a fracture to determine if the damage occurred during or before the crash.

George Cahill, an attorney, said he is representing seven Metro-North workers injured in the crash as they pursue a claim for damages. He said it’s not clear what caused the crash but said repair work done in the area weeks before it may have weakened the track, and he expressed concern that wheels on the new trains were too tight.
Metro-North spokeswoman Marjorie Anders declined to comment, citing the ongoing investigation.
“What one person calls repairs another calls maintenance,” she wrote in an email.

Robert Kulat, a spokesman for the Federal Railroad Administration, said Metro-North visually inspected the tracks on May 15, two days before the accident, and found they were properly aligned, and the wood, steel and other construction materials were in good shape. He also said an inspection in April with a machine found no defects.
“It’s like an ultrasound for rail,” Kulat said of the earlier inspection.
Donovan could not confirm the inspection, referring all questions on the investigation to the NTSB.

The tracks have been rebuilt to current Federal Railroad Administration standards using all new materials and underwent rigorous testing, officials said. Railroad officials said the speed of the rebuilding effort was the result of hundreds of skilled people in multiple crafts working around the clock since Saturday night.

Some commuters used a shuttle train that ran between New Haven and Bridgeport, where a bus connection to Stamford circumvented the accident scene, and finally customers boarded a train for New York.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

He’s going back to Boston.

For the first time as an opposing manager, Francona will walk into famed Fenway Park to face the Red Sox, the team he led to two World Series titles during eight seasons.

Francona, who was let go after the Red Sox collapsed in 2011, said he hasn’t given much thought to his homecoming, but he’s certain it will conjure up some memories.

“I’m sure I’ll have a lot of emotions,” he said Wednesday before his AL Central-leading Indians prepared to face the Detroit Tigers.  “The one thing I want to remind myself _ and I have _ is that this game is tough enough to play and I don’t want our guys having extra baggage during that series. I need to be very cognizant of that, that whatever feelings I’m having, I’ll deal with `em.

“It’s hard enough to play this game.”

Francona returned to Fenway in 2012 when he was working for ESPN. But this time will be different because he’ll be wearing a uniform, and the 53-year-old made it clear that although he’ll forever be remembered for what he helped the Red Sox accomplish, he’s Cleveland’s manager.

“I’m proud to go back there as an Indian,” he said. “I don’t want that to ever get lost in the shuffle.”

Francona said he hasn’t considered what kind of reaction he may get from Red Sox fans, who welcomed him warmly when he took part in Fenway’s 100th anniversary ceremony last year.

“I don’t really think about stuff like that,” he said. “I never really spent much time. Just not part of what I’m hopefully about.”

With Francona as their manager, the Red Sox ended an 86-year drought by winning the World Series in 2004 and then won it again in 2007.

Indians pitcher Justin Masterson, who played parts of two seasons for Francona in Boston, hopes Red Sox fans show him deserved love.

“I think fans should be cheering, overjoyed and excited simply because the season maybe didn’t end well in his last year, but I mean he put Boston on the map,” Masterson said. “He revitalized the city by bringing Red Sox Nation back because it hadn’t really been much before he got there and it helped, along with many other people, to put them back on the map.”

Masterson has seen Francona’s emotional side, and he expects his manager to be moved by the experience.

“I don’t think he will let anyone see if it is emotional for him, but I think the caring individual that he is, there’s always going to be a soft spot in his heart for Boston and for Fenway Park and for everything that took place there _ and rightfully so,” Masterson said. “So there will be some joy there, which is why whether or not he gets a good reception, he should because he deserves it.”

Francona said he has become more emotional as he’s gotten older.

When first baseman Nick Swisher called to tell Francona that he and his wife were about to have their first baby, the manager got weepy.

“I caught myself laying in bed,” he said, “and I was like tearing up, `What the hell’s wrong with you?”’

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

With Game 3 tied 1-1 in the third period, Boston turned to it’s fourth line — dubbed the “merlot line” — for an injection of energy. The line’s havoc had already led to Boston’s first goal — a rocket off the stick of defenseman Johnny Boychuk — and their strong forecheck and desire to cause a downtown-like traffic jam in front of the net put Boston on top for good with just 3:31 left to play.

Gregory Campbell stepped up and delivered a slapper on Henrik Lundqvist, which deflected off the netminders mask and straight up in the air. When the puck returned to the ice it danced along the line, but changed directions before crossing into the goal. It looked as though it had taken a Rangers’ bounce, as Lundqvist had no idea where the puck was.

It nearly trickled out of harm’s way.

That was until Daniel Paille rushed in and took a swing at it, sending it to the back of the net and putting Boston on top 2-1.

“I felt the pressure when we were on them and had a perfect view of it from the corner. I thought it was going to bounce in but it went the other way somehow,” Paille explained after the game. “Lundqvist didn’t know where it was and I was able to come around the net and out-battle the player with it; I think we hit at the same time and it hit off my stick and went in.”

After less-than-stellar showings in Games 1 and 2, Lundqvist was on his game Tuesday night. He was stuffing breakaway bids and turned away nearly all rebounds, so those funky goals were Boston’s best chance to put one — or two — past him.

“It was one of those nights where he was on his game and you could see the confidence he had throughout the game,” said Paille. “The goals that went in, there really wasn’t much he could do; there was a screen on one and a redirect on another. We tried to do as much as we could but it wasn’t going to be one of those where you beat him clean.”

Now Boston finds themselves one win away from returning to the Eastern Conference Finals for the second time in the last three seasons. But after nearly letting a 3-1 lead slip away last series to the Toronto Maple Leafs, and that 2010 collapse against the Philadelphia Flyers still in the back of their minds, the Bruins know their work is far from over.

“We’re confident going in for the series, but it’s not over. I’ve been in this situation before and seen it go the other way,” said Paille. “For us, we have to have the instinct to play as hard as we did tonight. They’re going to be a team that does not want to lose that way.”

Game 4 is Thursday night in New York.

Tune in to every Bruins playoff game on 98.5 The Sports Hub — the flagship station of the Boston Bruins! Pregame coverage begins 30 minutes prior to each game.

Police arrested 24-year-old Ashly McFarline and 25-year-old Pedro Galindez on multiple charges after troopers found them in possession of 87 ecstasy tablets during a search and seizure operation in their Danielson apartment Wednesday morning.

State police arrested McFarline and Galindez on multiple charges, including charges for possession of ecstasy, intent to sell, and operation a drug factory.

Also among the charges was risk of injury to a minor, after police entered the apartment to find a 4-month-old infant sleeping in a bedroom with a 14-inch butcher’s knife under the baby’s pillow. The Department of Children and Families (DCF) was then called to the scene and took custody of the baby.

The arrests were conducted on the scene without incident. Both McFarline and Galindez are being held on $25,000 bond and both are scheduled to appear in Danielson Superior Court on May 23.

Connecticut state police report that this is the second significant drug arrest made by the state’s Troop D Quality of Life Task Force in the last two days.

By MIKE FITZPATRICK,  AP Sports Writer

NEW YORK (AP) _ Brandon Phillips bounced a bizarre double over first base to snap a ninth-inning tie, and the Cincinnati Reds completed a three-game sweep of the struggling New York Mets with a 7-4 victory Wednesday.

Joey Votto homered and Zack Cozart had a career-high four hits, all off Matt Harvey, in a game that featured a little bit of everything–  including a testy exchange in the dugout between Cincinnati starter Mat Latos and teammate Jay Bruce.

Still, the Reds regrouped and won for the 10th time in 12 games. They finished a 7-2 trip against the bottom three teams in the NL East, moving a season-best 11 games over .500 at 29-18.

Harvey appeared headed for his first defeat of the season before the Mets rallied in the seventh. But they fell to 2-11 in their last 13 home games.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)    

The lawsuit was filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Bridgeport. The plaintiffs include the Coalition of Connecticut Sportsmen, the Connecticut Citizens Defense League, gun retailers in Monroe and Norwalk, and several gun permit holders.

The plaintiffs are challenging provisions that extend Connecticut’s assault weapons ban to more guns and ban large-capacity ammunition magazines. They argue both provisions violate their rights to bear arms and to have equal protection under the law.

Attorney General George Jepsen’s office said it is reviewing the complaint, but believes the legislation is lawful and will vigorously defend it in court.

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)