BUFFALO, N. Jacob Tamme Mens Black Jersey .Y. -- Dallas Stars coach Lindy Ruff had an opportunity to experience an entire range of emotions in his first trip back to Buffalo to face his former team. Ruff went from holding back tears during a first-period tribute that culminated in a standing ovation, to feeling anxious after the Stars nearly squandered a three-goal lead. And finally he felt relief after Dallas hung on for a 4-3 victory over the Sabres on Monday night. "It was kind of a huge relief," Ruff said. "I was really glad once the tribute was over. I wanted to get the game over with. A lot of good memories here." Add another one to the list. The Sabres winningest coach came away a victor on the visitors bench after goalie Kari Lehtonen stopped the final 10 shots he faced to preserve the win. Tyler Seguin capped a three-goal, first-period outburst, and Jamie Benns goal midway through the second period stood up as the winner in Ruffs first game against his former team after his 16-year tenure in Buffalo ended with him being fired on Feb. 20. "Well, we couldnt just give it to him. We had to make sure he earned it," Seguin said, with a smile referring to how close the Stars came to spoiling Ruffs homecoming. "No, it was a good win. And were moving on now." Alex Goligoski and Vernon Fiddler also scored, and Erik Cole had two assists for the Stars (5-5-1), who snapped a four-game road losing streak. They also won for the first time in eight regular-season trips to Buffalo. Not including playoffs, Dallas had gone 0-5-2 at Buffalo since a 4-2 win on Oct. 7, 1997, which happened to be Ruffs first home game as Sabres coach. Matt Moulson scored twice his Sabres debut a day after being acquired in a trade that sent Thomas Vanek to the New York Islanders, and Buffalo (2-11-1) showed encouraging signs of progress despite matching its worst start to a season in franchise history. "Tonight, there were some of probably the most positive signs Ive seen in a long, long time," said Steve Ott, who also scored for Buffalo. "Obviously, weve got to find the end result to the game. But thats where were at. Theres no sugar-coating where we need to be, and our record indicates what it is." The Sabres dropped to 0-7-1 at home, their longest home winless skid to open a season. The eight-game home drought is also the teams second-longest single-season skid, and four short of the franchise-low set in 1990-91. Another slow start proved too much to overcome. Buffalo has now been outscored 19-2 in the first period this season after Seguin put the Stars ahead 3-1 with 2:08 left in the opening frame. Benns goal 10:55 into the second period put the Stars up 4-1 and stood up as the game-winner. Seguin started the play by checking Ville Leino off the puck at the left circle. After a give-and-go with Cole, Seguin fed a pass through the crease to Benn who beat goalie Ryan Miller at the right post. Ott scored a power-play goal 1:59 later, and Moulson cut the Stars lead to 4-3 with 2:43 left in the second period, when he converted a loose puck in front. Aside from the victory, the highlight for Ruff was the warm welcome he received in Buffalo, where he still maintains a home. Ruff, who was hired by Dallas in June, received a loud and lengthy standing ovation during the first break, when the Sabres showed highlights of him as a player and coach. Ruff couldnt resist in glancing up the board, at times smiling and at another point biting his lip. Several fans brought Ruff jerseys and hand-drawn signs, among which read, "We love you Lindy," and "Welcome home." That was a distinct change for Ruff from the last time he was behind a bench in Buffalo. Ruff and the Sabres were booed off the ice following a 2-1 loss to Winnipeg on Feb. 19. Ruff hadnt set foot into the arena since holding a farewell news conference three days later. "The answer to that is yes, obviously," Ruff said, referring to feeling a sense of closure. "I guess from the Buffalo side, it was great to see the emotion come back into the building as they started to come back. It turned out to be a darn good hockey game." Von Miller Mens Two Tone Jersey . - The Washington Wizards are in a great position to make the playoffs for the first time in six years, and John Wall has a lot to do with it. Karl Mecklenburg Jersey For Sale . Sotnikova trailed the 2010 Olympic champion by just .28 points after the short program on Wednesday, but had a brilliant free skate on Thursday. She earned a top score of 149.HOUSTON -- The Houston Rockets had trouble hitting shots and finding a rhythm through the first three quarters against New Orleans on Saturday night, doing just enough to hang with the Pelicans. In the fourth, the Rockets -- led by James Harden and Jeremy Lin for a second straight game -- were able to finish things off. Dwight Howard had 24 points and 18 rebounds, and Harden scored 11 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter in the Rockets 107-98 comeback victory. "It was winning time," Harden said. "I was struggling the first three quarters and couldnt find the rhythm when my teammates needed me the most. We got the ball moving and Jeremy made a couple of good threes. Chandler (Parsons) had a good put back and then Dwight got an and-one. Everybody picked up the intensity a little bit." It was the second straight game Houston rallied in the fourth for a win and marked the first time since December 2009 that the Rockets have won three straight games within the division. Houston beat San Antonio on Christmas and topped Memphis on Thursday night. "We didnt shoot it well," Houston coach Kevin McHale said. "I know at one time I looked up, I thought we were two for 19 from the three-point line. It felt like they made every three. They were 10 for 22. ... We found a way to win, but it was another in a long line of games that feel like you are pulling teeth." Howard was 10 of 12 from the floor, helping to keep Houston in the game through the first three quarters with 20 points in that span. "I just tried to play out of the double team," Howard said. "When they doubled, I tried to make the good play, and when they didnt double, I tried to make the better play for myself." Parsons added 19 points and seven rebounds, and Terrence Jones had 17 points and eight rebounds to help Houston win its third straight game and snap New Orleans winning streak at two. Lin had all 10 of his points in the fourth quarter after scoring 14 of his 18 points in the fourth against Memphis. The Rockets made three of five 3-point attempts in the fourth quaarter after going 3 of 21 from long range in the first three quarters. Brandon Marshall Elite Jersey. "Its definitely not the ideal plan or ideal strategy," Lin said. "Im thankful Coach McHale let me keep going. I was able to finally get a little bit of a rhythm in the last two games. I have to do a much, much better job and be more aggressive in the first three quarters." Houston was 25 of 32 from the free-throw line, while New Orleans was 6 of 8. "Anything I say is going to get me in trouble," New Orleans coach Monty Williams said about the free-throw difference. "OK, so lets just leave it at that. Thirty-two to eight." Ryan Anderson had 22 points and 12 rebounds for New Orleans. Anthony Davis added 18 points and 16 rebounds, and Tyreke Evans had 16 points and nine assists. "I think we really didnt execute down the stretch," Evans said. "It was a tough loss. I think we played hard and fought, but in the fourth quarter, our execution wasnt that good. They hit some big shots. ... They were shooting it from far out, and it kind of tough, but they made their shots, and we cant do anything about that." After New Orleans opened a 92-88 lead with 4:54 left on Davis alley-oop dunk, Jones started Houston on a game-ending 19-6 run with a three-point play. Following Davis jumper, Lin tied it at 94 with a 3-pointer with 3 1/2 minutes remaining. Then, Harden put the Rockets ahead for good with a 3-pointer to give with 3:14 remaining. "We were in it the whole game, and we were giving ourselves a chance to win the game," Davis said. "We tried to send a couple of guys at Dwight and give him different looks. He found Jeremy Lin in the corner for a three and then James came down and hit a three. They just made big shots, and we didnt execute at the end. We have to come out and know what were running and execute." NOTES: New Orleans guard Eric Gordon sat out his second straight game because of a right hip contusion. ... Houston forward Greg Smith missed his fourth straight game with a sprained right knee. ' ' '
