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ABBOTSFORD, B. Hoyt Wilhelm Braves Jersey .C. -- The Grand Rapids Griffins made a statement Saturday that the defending American Hockey League champions intend to make another long playoff run. Andrej Nestrasils three-point night helped Grand Rapids to a 7-2 win over the Abbotsford Heat and a 2-0 lead in its best-of-five first-round series. The third-year pro scored his first two career AHL playoff goals and added an assist in the blowout victory. "Hes been good," said Griffins captain Jeff Hoggan. "He was in Toledo (ECHL) last year but hes a skilled player. When we lose guys like (Tomas Tatar) and (Tomas) Jurco, guys who go up to the Red Wings, we need somebody to fill that role and hes done a fantastic job for us." The Griffins now head back home in hopes of a sweep after taking both games at the Abbotsford Centre. The Griffins won 2-1 on Friday in double overtime. "Yesterday was the first game of the playoffs, so everyone was kind of nervous," said Nestrasil. "I felt that sometimes we were trying to make plays, even if they werent there. Today we started a little more simple and it came out of that. We didnt let them shoot. They scored two first-period goals, five shots on net, so were going to try to play better defensively, because when you play well defensively you get the offensive chances after." Ryan Sproul, the Game 1 overtime hero, and Teemu Pulkkinen each had a goal and two assists for Grand Rapids while Trevor Parkes, Cody Emmerton and Hoggan also scored for the visitors, whose parent club Detroit was eliminated from the NHL playoffs and is expected to send some bodies back for Game 3 on Wednesday. "Weve got some talented young guys back there," said Hoggan of rookie defencemen like Sproul. "This is the time when you want to see what theyre all about. Playoff hockey is the toughest hockey. For them to step up, its going to be huge for us to go on and go far. We know theyre capable and theyre doing it at crunch time." Petr Mrazek had to stop just 15 shots, compared to his 55-save performance the night before. Max Reinhart had a goal and an assist for Abbotsford, which may have played its final home game after it was announced last week that the franchise will not be back in the city next season. Emile Poirier had the other goal, while Joni Ortio stopped 25-of-30 shots before being pulled. Doug Carr mopped up, making 14 saves. Though the Heat were embarrassed on home ice, and cancelled their regular post-game presser, the Griffins know that Game 3 wont be easy. "We have to make sure its hard for them to get opportunities," said Nestrasil. "Every chance, they need to earn it and make sure they have to come through us all the time." Abbotsford opened the scoring at the 7:40 mark of the first. Reinhart stepped into a shot in the high slot. Mrazek kicked it right to Poirier, who quickly brought the puck to his forehand and snapped it blocker side for his first professional playoff goal. The visitors, however, tied the game not long after. Mattias Janmark drove hard to the net and centred for Parkes, who chipped it by Ortio for his first AHL playoff goal at 10:13. The Heat regained the lead with a power-play goal at 15:32. Reinhart tried to centre for Ben Hanowski but it ricocheted off the skate of Brennan Evans. Just 35 seconds later the Griffins again drew even when Sprouls one-timer from the point was deflected by Nestrasil. Grand Rapids scored a short-handed goal late in the first to take their first lead. Emmerton made a move around one defender, then fought off another and chipped the puck past Ortio while falling to his backside, giving Detroits 2006 second-round selection his first AHL playoff goal in five years. Hoggan doubled the lead two minutes into the second period when he took a cross-ice feed from Pulkkinen and fired a wrist shot over the glove of Ortio, giving him 14 career AHL playoff goals. Nestrasil chased Ortio at 11:19 of the second, snapping a shot short side from a bad angle. "I just wanted to dump the puck in, but nobody came to me," said the Prague native. "I was basically walking into the zone. I just threw it at the net and it went through. Im glad I can score a goal like that. Im glad we scored a lot of goals because it gives the guys confidence." Sproul scored a power-play goal at 6:45 of the third and Pulkkinen added another on the power play at 12:09. Julio Teheran Braves Jersey . - No matter the lineup or location, the San Antonio Spurs are rolling through the NBA again this spring, just the way they have for most of the last two decades. Jeremy Walker Jersey . - Wesley Matthews got a chance to practice his bow-and-arrow 3-point celebration on Sunday night. https://www.cheapbraves.com/1743o-bob-horner-jersey-braves.html . Marian Gaborik had two goals and an assist and Martin Jones made just 17 saves to record his fourth shutout of the season as the Kings snapped a three-game losing skid with a 3-0 victory over the lowly Oilers on Thursday.With time running out in the regular season, the Vancouver Canucks will try to make up ground in the Western Conference playoff race on Sunday when they host the lowly Buffalo Sabres. Sitting five points out of a playoff spot with only 10 games left on their schedule, the Canucks are in danger of missing the postseason in their first campaign under head coach John Tortorella. Although Vancouver didnt make it out of the first round in each of the last two springs, the club hasnt missed the playoffs since 2008. With 74 points, Vancouver is five behind Phoenix for the second wild card spot in the West. The Coyotes hold a game in hand over the Canucks, but with Phoenix idle on Sunday, Tortorellas club has a chance to cut the deficit to three points, Ryan Kesler and Daniel Sedin will return to action on Sunday and could help with Vancouvers postseason push. Sedin has missed the last nine games with an injured left hamstring, while Kesler has sat out the last four with a sprained right knee. Fellow forward Alexandre Burrows, however, expects to miss Sundays tilt after injuring his left hand in Vancouvers recent win over the Nashville Predators. Vancouver has won two of its last three games and is coming off Wednesdays 2-0 victory over visiting Nashville. Another win Sunday against the basement- dwelling Sabres would give the Canucks consecutive victories for the first time since beating Calgary and Edmonton from Jan. 18-21. The Canucks used a strong performance from rookie goaltender Eddie Lack to down the Predators. Lack made 30 saves for his fourth shutout of the season, while Alexander Edler and Nicklas Jensen scored in the third period for Vancouver. Jensen snapped a scoreless tie 6:06 into the third stanza. He scored from the top of the right circle after Henrik Sedin lost the puck in the slot. "Its being confident and not panicking and just trying to put it on net," Jensen said of his shot, which went just under the crossbar. Patrick Weigel Jersey. "The fact the coach gives me that opportunity is really good, but at the same time you have to show you want to be in those situations too." Vancouver is 17-11-6 as the host this season and is wrapping a brief two-game homestand on Sunday. Buffalo is last in the NHL with just 48 points this season, but the Sabres were able to snap a seven-game losing streak in their last trip to the ice, picking up a 3-1 win in Edmonton. Cory Conacher had two goals on deflections and picked up an assist to back Buffalo neophyte Matt Hackett in Thursdays win over the Oilers. Hackett, the fifth goaltender to start for Buffalo this season, made 35 saves and helped the Sabres kill off 5-of-6 Edmonton power plays. "I think we deserved that one," said Conacher. "We kept it pretty simple for the most part. We ran into a bit of penalty trouble, but our PK came up huge." Hackett, who was recently called up from Rochester of the American Hockey League, made his debut with the club that acquired from Minnesota last April. With Jhonas Enroth and Michal Neuvirth still out with lower-body injuries, 22- year-old rookie Nathan Lieuwen will make his second career start on Sunday. Hackett will serve as the backup. Buffalo is 8-22-3 on the road this season and is playing the third test of a five-game swing on Sunday. The Sabres will continue the trek Tuesday in Montreal before completing the trip Thursday against Nashville. The Sabres have won four of the last six meetings with Vancouver, but the Canucks recorded a 3-0 win in Buffalo on Oct. 17. Sundays game marks Buffalos first road game against the Canucks since posting a 5-3 win on March 3, 2012. Before that victory two years ago, the Sabres had been winless in their previous six trips to B.C., going 0-5-0 with a tie. ' ' '