Winnipeg advances to Western Finals

The Winnipeg Jets are headed to the first Western Conference final in their short history after knocking off the NHL’s best team in the regular season.

Tyler Myers and Paul Stastny scored 2:06 apart in the first period, and the Jets stunned the Predators, 5-1, on Thursday night.

Stastny finished with a second goal and an assist, and Mark Scheifele also had two goals. Blake Wheeler and Kyle Connor each had two assists.

Connor Hellebuyck made 36 saves for Winnipeg, which won three of four games in Nashville after missing the Presidents’ Trophy by three points to the Predators.

The Jets now host Vegas in Game 1 on Saturday night.

P.K. Subban scored for Nashville.

CHECKERS-PHANTOMS SET AHL RECORD FOR LONGEST GAME » This one kept going. And going. And going. And going. And going straight into the American Hockey League record books.

Alex Krushelnyski scored 6:48 into the fifth overtime period and Alex Lyon made 94 saves to lead the Lehigh Valley Phantoms to a 2-1 win over the Charlotte Checkers early Thursday morning in the longest game in the AHL’s 82-year history.

The Phantoms took a 3-1 series lead in the Atlantic Division finals by outlasting the Checkers in a game that began shortly after 7 p.m. EDT Wednesday night and ended at 1:09 a.m. after more than seven periods and 146 minutes and 48 seconds of play.

The seemingly endless game surpassed the Philadelphia Phantoms’ 3-2 win over the Albany River Rats that took 142:58 to decide in 2008.

Golf

SIX SHARE LEAD AT PLAYER’S CHAMPIONSHIP » Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson delivered plenty of entertainment at The Players Championship.

The lead belonged to just about everyone else.

Dustin Johnson and Matt Kuchar were among six players who shared the lead at 6-under 66, the largest logjam ever at the TPC Sawgrass and the most players tied at the top in the tournament in 40 years.

Woods had the best score in his star group and didn’t even break par. He had to save bogey on the 18th for a 72.