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COLUMBUS, Ohio -- With what lies ahead, it was particularly refreshing for the Columbus Blue Jackets to have a rare game that didnt come down to the final seconds. Tyler Thornburg Jersey . Boone Jenner and Mark Letestu each had a goal and an assist, and Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 31 shots for his second shutout in 72 hours to lead the Columbus Blue Jackets past the New York Islanders 4-0 on Sunday night. "We seem not to do anything the easy way," Letestu said with a laugh. "To get four (games) in five (days) to finish off the season, its very Blue Jacket of us -- doing things the hard way and probably earning our way into the playoffs." Columbus ends its home schedule on Tuesday night against Phoenix and then closes the regular season with games at Dallas on Wednesday, then at Tampa Bay and Florida on Friday and Saturday. The win not only boosted the Blue Jackets in the standings, it also helped them wipe away the bitter taste of Friday nights 4-3 home loss to Stanley Cup champion Chicago. Ben Smith jammed in a goal during a scrum with 3.9 seconds left in the Blackhawks win. "That was one of those (where) its a punch in the gut," coach Todd Richards said. "So, yeah, it was nice to get that one to put (Fridays loss) in the distance." The Blue Jackets, desperate to hang on to a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, matched a season high with three power-play goals. It wasnt lost on Jenner that his first goal was similar to Smiths on Friday. The goalie made the initial stop, but then couldnt get to a loose puck while several players crashed the net, sticks flying, all trying to get to it. "Especially with that first power play, we wanted to get on them early," Jenner said. "It was a big goal." Camped at the doorstep, he tipped a shot by Letestu that Islanders goalie Anders Nilsson got a piece of, but the puck slipped between his pads and rested behind him, just short of the goal line. It sat there for 3 seconds before Jenner worked his way around the goalie and jammed it in for his 14th at 4:26. On their next power play, the Blue Jackets swiveled the puck from the left boards to right, with Johnson tucking a one-timer inside the far post. It was his first goal in 21 games and fifth this season. Ryan Murray also ended a long scoring drought, and Brandon ubinsky had two assists. Bobrovsky, who won at Philadelphia 2-0 on Thursday, earned his fifth shutout of the season. He improved to 10-2 against the Islanders while allowing just under two goals a game. Columbus won at home after going 1-4-2 in its last seven games at Nationwide Arena. "Weve let some slip away, so we were pretty focused on not letting that happen," said Letestu, whose even-strength goal midway through the second period ended a string of 22 games in which he had not scored. "That was an important two points." Columbus has 87 points, two fewer than Philadelphia -- the third-place team in the Metropolitan Division race -- which beat Buffalo on Sunday night. The Blue Jackets currently hold the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. They created some breathing room Sunday as New Jersey and Toronto are now three points behind them, and Washington is another point behind those teams. Nilsson made 29 saves for the Islanders, who had their seven-game point streak (5-0-2) ended. Despite being without top players John Tavares and Kyle Okposo, they had played well with a lineup stocked with 10 rookies. "To be honest with you, this is the first game in a while I feel we werent there collectively as a group," Islanders defenceman Travis Hamonic said. "Weve been playing some really good hockey, especially the young players." New York coach Jack Capuano conceded this was a step back in the learning process. "Weve got some games left with these kids and were going to go out and teach and play structured and work hard," he said. NOTES: The Blue Jackets had failed to convert on 36 consecutive power plays, but they have turned things around by going 9 for 24 in the seven games since that drought. ... Jenners 14 goals are the second most by a Blue Jackets rookie (Rick Nash, 17 in 2002-03). ... D Scott Mayfield made his NHL debut for the Islanders. ... Nilsson faced the Blue Jackets for the first time. Carlton Fisk Jersey . -- Billy Donovans bench came up big, bailing out top-seeded Florida in a tight game against what was supposed to be an overmatched opponent. Roger Clemens Jersey . The young man, never lacking confidence, thought he could be really good. KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Georges Niang walked off the floor in the closing minutes with a bloody towel pressed tightly to his forehead, pumping his fist and riling up the Iowa State fans in the Sprint Center. Turns out he was just jumpstarting the celebration. Niang scored 25 points before leaving with that gash above his right eye, and the No. 16 Cyclones held on down the stretch to beat No. 10 Kansas 94-83 Friday night and reach their first Big 12 tournament title game since 2000. "We love competing for championships," Niang said later, a bandage over his wound. "Coach says take it one day at a time, but the Big 12 championship is one day away from us." DeAndre Kane had five 3-pointers and scored 20 points, and Big 12 player of the year Melvin Ejim added 19 points for the fourth-seeded Cyclones (25-8), who will play for just their second tournament title Saturday night against the winner of Texas-Baylor. The victory for Iowa State represented its first in four tries against Kansas in the Big 12 tournament, and its first over the Jayhawks in Kansas City since March 10, 1996, when the schools were still part of the Big Eight. It also allowed Iowa State to match its 2001 team for the second-most wins in school history, trailing only the 32 wins piled up by the 2000 team. Incidentally, it was that team that won the Cyclones only Big 12 tournament title. "Its a great win for us, for the fact it gives us confidence we can compete with anyone in the nation," Cyclones coach Fred Hoiberg said. "It was good to finally get one of these after struggling to close out games against Kansas the past few years." Relying on some hot outside shooting, Iowa State took charge in the second half, and then held on as the top-seeded Jayhawks (24-9) tried to make a late run to get back into the game. Perry Ellis led Kansas with 30 points. Andrew Wiggins finished with 22. The Jayhawks again were playing without 7-footer Joel Embiid, the leagues defensive player of the year, and his rim-protecting presence was sorely missed. The freshman has a stress fracture in his back and is likely out until at least the second weekend of the NCAA tournament. "Joel not being in there, he could probably guard Niang better," Kaansas coach Bill Self said, "but I think it was more a collection of everybody rather than just one individual. Chris Sale Jersey. " The Sprint Center was packed to the rafters with fans eager to see whether Iowa State could finally end its five-game losing streak against the Jayhawks, or whether Kansas could burnish what it hoped would be a resume worthy of a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. The teams got after it right from the tip, racing up and down the floor in what amounted to a series of 94-foot wind sprints. Iowa State got the better of it early, forging a 23-16 lead, but the Jayhawks countered with a brutally efficient 20-3 charge to take control. Things got so intense that the normally placid Hoiberg was rung up with a technical foul after Kane appeared to be hammered on the way to the basket and no foul was called. "I used a bad word," Hoiberg said sheepishly. "Im not going to say I didnt." The Jayhawks lead was also short-lived. Kane started the comeback by converting a three-point play, Ejim and Niang went to work inside, and the Cyclones tied it 46-all in the closing minutes of the first half when Kane knocked down another shot from the corner. Their hot perimeter shooting continued in the second half, when the Cyclones turned a 48-46 deficit into a 66-57 lead, the last points in the run on a deep ball from Naz Long. By that point, Iowa State was 11 of 16 from the 3-point line. "We were on our heels defensively throughout the game," Ellis said. "I felt in the first half we did a lot better. In the second half, we let too many straight-line drives to the basket." The Jayhawks eventually extended their defence to the perimeter, and thats when Iowa State started going to the basket again. Niang scored four straight baskets for Iowa State during one stretch that made it 81-72, and scored on three straight trips to make it 86-74. The lead never got much smaller, even after Niang was whacked in the face during a scrum under the basket, prompting him to start the party for the Iowa State fans in attendance. "We felt like we had these guys in the second half," Niang said. "We came out and threw the first punch and from there it was clear skies." Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '