COHEN'S CORNER SPORTS

KINGS 2 DEVILS 1 LA leads 1-0 They had their chances. With the score tied at one, the New Jersey Devils dominated the third period of play against the LA Kings in Game One of the Stanley Cup Finals. They fore-checked extremely well, kept the Kings on their heels and were very aggressive with their shots on goal; yet it was not enough. The Devils had two great chances to take the lead in this game. Two great chances to go up 2-1 and take a 1-0 series lead, ending the Kings long road winning streak. Four minutes into the period, the Devils created a pile around Kings super star goalie Jonathan Quick, and Zach Parise had an open shot at the net, but Quick extended his hand the block the puck, and at the same time, bring down Parise with it. Parise then reached over and grabbed the puck with his hand, and shoved it into the goal. It was reviewed and the goal was taken away. Six minutes later, Mark Fayne had a wide open shot at the back of the Kings goal, but his shot was wide...

In hour one of the Open Mike program, Michael Cohen talks wall to wall Devils hockey, as New Jersey enters the Stanley Cup Finals against the red hot Los Angeles Kings. Bret Leuthner, host of Hudson Hockey, joins the discussion as the two hosts break down the series. Listen on Posterous !  In hour two of Open Mike, host Michael Cohen welcomes back Mike Sanfilippo of Triple Coverage to get his take on the Devils-Kings series. Mike and Mike discuss the impact Game One could have on this series. The discussion turns to the Mets, and the apparent lack of fan support for the franchise. Listen on Posterous ! 

DEVILS 3 RANGERS 2 NJ wins 4-2 Once again the Devils built a big lead early, once again the blew it, and once again the Devils found a way to win and beat their arch rivals the New York Rangers in overtime 3-2 to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals. Needing a victory to force a Game 7, the Rangers played with tremendous heart, taking 21 shots in the second and third periods combined and kept the puck inside the Devils zone for the most of the night. But, it was the play of Martin Brodeur, who was unbelievable behind the net making 33 saves. The 40 year-old goalie turned back the clock in this game, making one spectacular save after another in the third period, as the Jersey defense played on its heels for much of the period. The Devils took the lead midway through the first period. Ryan Carter, who scored the winning goal in Game 5, scored the opening goal of Game 6 to give New Jersey a 1-0 lead. Three minutes later Ilya Kovalchuck scored his seventh goal of the postseason, on ...

DEVILS 5 RANGERS 3 NJ leads 3-2  They came out like a bat outta hell at Madison Square Garden. Three goals in the first 10 minutes by the Devils gave New Jersey a 3-0 lead that stunned the MSG faithful; the once impenetrable Henrik Lundqvist was suddenly unraveled. While the Devils jumped all over New York early in the game, they had to hold on for dear lifeasthe evening progressed. The Devils managed only 16 shots on goal and watched their 3-0 lead disappear as the Rangers came back to tie it at three. Yet, through it all, New Jersey never wavered but found a way to win a crucial Game Five. If New Jersey should win on Friday night, the series will be over. The Devils then will advance to the Stanley Cup finals against the LA Kings, while the number one seed Rangers will limp home wondering what could have been. The Devils wasted no time in this match. Three minutes into the opening period, Stephen Gianta pushed the puck past Lundqvist for the quick 1-0 lea...

In hour one of "The Open Mike Program," host Michael Cohen looks at the topsy-turvy status of Major League Baseball. The Orioles, Nationals, Indians and Mets are rolling, while the Yankees, Angles, Red Sox, Tigers and Phillies are struggling. What is going on here, as we hit the quarter pole of the season? Michael talks about it. Listen on Posterous ! In hour two, Michael Cohen is joined by Sean Bretherick; the two talk Rangers vs. Devils as New Jersey jumps out to a 3-0 lead on the Blueshirts. New Jersey would go on to win 5-3. Listen to the two Jersey guys get pumped up about the one of most successful teams in the region. Listen on Posterous!

On this edition of Open Mike, host Michael Cohen and guest host Mike Sanfilippo talk about the Rangers-Devils Series, and what New Jersey has to do in order to get back into the series. The boys also look back at a failed post season for the Knicks, and a suddenly shaky Eastern Conference, as the Miami Heat are now the walking wounded. In hour two, Mike and Mike talk about the upstart New York Mets, and whether this team can really be a contender in the Topsy-turvy National League. Also, the Yankees have been bitten badly by the injury bug and some bad pitching. Can the Yankees turn it around, or are they about to be buried by the Rays, Blue Jays, and, yes, the Orioles! Listen to hour I Listen to hour II

RANGERS 3 DEVILS 0 NYR lead 1-0   The New Jersey Devils were supposed to be the team that looked well rested and spry. They had several days off after their quick series against the Philadelphia Flyers, while the New York Rangers had exhausted so much energy to get through two seven game series against Ottawa and Washington. Yet it was the Rangers who looked like the team with the most energy. After two scoreless periods, the Rangers broke through the Devils line, and beat up Martin Brodeur scoring three late goals on the future Hall of Famer. Dan Giradi got it going for the Blue Shirts with a wide open 47 foot slapshot, zipping the puck right past an unsuspecting Brodeur to give the Rangers a 1-0 lead. Once New York scored, it seemd that the energy came out of the Devils balloon. They started to drag accross the ice, and were not as aggressive as they had been earlier in the game. Perhaps the fact that Rangers blocked 26 shots by the New Jersey, and the fact that Henri...

MARINERS 6 YANKEES 2 It was like a blast from the past! Two years since Andy Pettitte walked off the Yankees Stadium mound with an injury that many thought ended his career, the crafty lefty returned to the Bronx with much fanfare. While he wasn't great, it wasn't a poor start either. Pettitte's line: 6-1/3 innings, 7 hits, 4 runs, 4 earned runs, 3 walks and two strikeouts. Not bad. Not great, either. Through three innings, it appeared that everything was going according to plan, as Pettitte ate up the Mariners lineup the first time through the order. He forced Ichiro Suzuki to ground into a double play to get out of the first. He then worked around a walk to get three ground ball outs in the second, and retired the side in order in the third inning. It was like time was nothing for Pettitte. But, as we all know, reality bites. After, Pettitte walked ex-Yankee Jesus Montero, Justin Smoak smoked one over the left field wall to give the Mariners a 2-0 lead. T...

It has been many years since hockey mattered in New York City. Not since the New Jersey Devils last Stanley Cup victory over the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in 2003, has hockey been on the tongues of sports fans throughout the tri-state. Not since 1994, have we seen the two local hockey teams go at for all of the marbles in the East, with a trip to the cup on the line. Two weeks ago the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers were on the cusp of being eliminated from the playoffs. Both trialed their respective first round series 3-2. Neither team had been past a first round in several years; and forget about the Rangers who have made playoff futility into a hobby. Now both are here, back in the Eastern Conference Finals. In many ways as the season played out, it felt like a Rangers/Devils collision was going to happen at some point in the playoffs. If both teams could get by Philadelphia or Boston, or if both of those teams were eliminated, which they were, it would open the door for...

CAPITALS 2 RANGERS 1 Series tied at 3 With the New Jersey Devils paitiently waiting for an opponent in the Eastern Conference Finals, the New York Rangers are once again on the brink of elimination in this playoff season. In a series where they haven't played all that well, the Rangers lost to the Capitals 2-1 in Washington to knot up their best of seven series at three apiece. After taking advantage of a late penalty in Game Five, a game New York was losing 2-1 with  six seconds to go, the Rangers tried to win it in overtime, but New York had no such luck this time. Earlier, the Rangers fell behind when Alex Ovechkin scored in the first period to give the Caps a 1-0 lead. Washington built this lead to 2-0 as Jason Chimera scored his fourth goal of the series. Offensively the Rangers had no answer for 22-year-old goalie Braden Holtby, who had 30 saves in 31 attempts on goal. Holtby had a very good Game Four for the Capitals before falling apart at the end of Game Fiv...

HEAT 106 KNICKS 94 It got to a point in this dismal first round playoff series against the Miami Heat that no matter what the Knicks tried to do, the Heat would still come out victorious in Game Five at home. It was as if the Knicks never bothered showing up for this game; they went through the motions in a heartless 106-94 loss. As a result, the Knicks are eliminated from the playoffs. The Knicks never gave themselves a shot in this game. They held an early 20-14 lead, thanks to a Mike Bibby three pointer, but that is where the Knicks momentum would end. A three pointer by Mike Miller cut the Knicks lead to 17-14. Then, Udonis Haslem's six foot hook shot cut the Knicks lead down to one, 20-19. After LeBron James tied the game with a free throw shot, Shane Battier and Miller went back-to-back from behind the arch to expand the Heats lead to four, 28-24. At that point, it was down hill for the Knicks. They never led again and trailed by 11 at halftime. At one point, Ne...

Mariano Rivera has been the greatest closer in the game of baseball. His tremendous career, begun in 1996 with the Yankees run at five World Series Championships, became one of the most storied careers in sports. When number 42 comes trouting out of the Yankees bullpen, it meant one thing: game over. Eventually, the Yankees would have to get accustomed to life without Rivera. The closer hinted at retirement before this season started; however, no one thought that the Yankees would have to get used to it as soon as now. While exercising in the outfield in a game of catch before the Yankees played the Kansas City Royals in Kansas City, Missouri, Rivera jumped to reach for a ball that fell behind him. As he twisted, Rivera dropped to warning track holding his knee. Word is Rivera tore his ACL and will be lost for the season. Rivera was put on a stretcher and carted off the field; now the Yankees are left to wonder. Watch video . Rivera will head back to New York where his injury...

HEAT 87 KNICKS 70 MIA leads 3-0  Here is a record the Knicks won't be proud of: 13 straight, as in 13 straight playoff losses. For three quarters,the Knicks showed their fans something they hadn't seen at all in this series against the Heat: some fight! Days after Amar'e Stoudemire smashed his fist through the glass casing of a fire extinguisher, that ill-consiered action may very well prevent Stoudemire from playing the rest of the season, New York trailed Miami by only two points. They held their own against Miami's big three for as long as they could, and trailing 58-56 heading into the fourth quarter, the Knicks momentum was on the rise. Then, it all fell apart ... again. The Heat outscored the Knicks 29-14, and, once more, LeBron James was at the center of it. James scored 17 points in the quarter, including two huge three pointers to build a ten point Heat lead three minutes into the fourth quarter. The Knicks had no answer for James who did whateve...