Crosby, Penguins force Game 7 with Lightning
TAMPA, Fla. — The Pittsburgh Penguins are headed home for Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final.
Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist, and Phil Kessel, Kris Letang, Bryan Rust and Nick Bonino also scored Tuesday night in a 5-2 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning that evened the best-of-seven series at three games.
Game 7 is Thursday night, with the Penguins hoping to reach the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2009 and the Lightning looking to advance to the Cup Final for the second straight year.
Crosby assisted on Kessel’s 5-on-3 powerplay goal in the opening period and skated around Tampa Bay defenseman Anton Stralman into the clear before sending a wrist shot between goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy’s legs for a 3-0 lead in the final minute of the second period.
Rookie goaltender Matt Murray returned to the lineup after being replaced as the starter for Game 5 by Marc-Andre Fleury.
Guzan aiming to excel for U.S.
Brad Guzan wants to put a rough Premier League season behind him and take a break from uncertainty over his club future.
U.S. coach Jurgen Klinsmann gave the Aston Villa goalkeeper plenty to think about in the next month, picking him to play in the Copa America over Tim Howard, the starter during the past two World Cups.
“My sole focus is on the summer, on this team, helping this team,” Guzan said Tuesday, a day before a match against Ecuador at Frisco’s Toyota Stadium in the second of three exhibitions ahead of the tournament. “For me, I’ve been looking forward to this. It should be a good summer.”
Aston Villa’s top goalkeeper since September 2012, Guzan lost his starting job to Mark Bunn in January, regained it in late March, then lost it again in late April as the Villans headed toward a last-place finish and relegation to the League Championship. He figures to transfer to another Premier League club or return to Major League Soccer, where he played for Chivas USA from 2005-08.
After 13 years in England, including 10 with Everton, Howard is coming back to MLS with Colorado in July. He lost his starting job on the Toffees to Joel Robles in late January, although he did return to start the club’s last two home games.
McIlroy worried over Zika virus
Rory McIlroy has concerns about the Zika virus as he prepares to play at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
The four-time major winner said he is monitoring the outbreak of the mosquito-borne virus, which has been linked to serious birth defects.
“I have been reading a lot of reports about Zika and there have been some articles coming out saying that it might be worse than they’re saying, and I have to monitor that situation,” McIlroy told the BBC.
McIlroy is scheduled to play for Ireland as golf makes its return to the Olympics for the first time since 1904.
McIlroy, 27, said he and his fiancee, Erica Stoll, may consider starting a family “in the next couple of years.”
Zika has been linked with microcephaly, a condition in which babies are born with undersized brains and skulls.
Australian golfer Marc Leishman has pulled out of the Olympic tournament, citing concerns over the health of his family because of the Zika virus. Leishman’s wife, Audrey, nearly died last year from toxic shock syndrome.
Stanford, UW to meet for title
Sarah Rhee rallied from 3 down with three holes to play and then holed a bunker shot to win her match and lead Washington into the final of the NCAA women’s golf championship against defending champion Stanford in Eugene, Ore.
Mariah Stackhouse, the star of Stanford’s title last year, won the decisive match in a quarterfinal victory over South Carolina and won again in the afternoon as the Cardinal eliminated Duke. Stanford is trying to become the first repeat champion since Duke won three in a row from 2005-07 in the stroke-play era.