he was 5-8 with a 3.92 ERA in 19 starts. After working th

NEW YORK -- Initially, New York Rangers coach Alain Vigneault wasnt pleased with Derek Stepan and his linemates. By the end of the night, Vigneaults assessment of his top line had changed dramatically. Derek Stepan scored his first three goals of the season, and Carl Hagelin added his first two as the Rangers had their best offensive output of the season Saturday night in a 5-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes. "It didnt start the way I wanted, not just the game but (Stepans) line. Their first three shifts were totally in our end," Vigneault said. "I mustve sat that line out eight, nine minutes of the first period." The trio of Stepan, Mats Zuccarello and Chris Kreider finished with three goals and six assists, and a combined rating of plus-7. "I like the way they responded," Vigneault said. "Challenged them, and they responded the right way. They went out onto the ice and had some solid puck possession shifts. "That line ended up being real good for us at the end of the night after having a so-so start." Henrik Lundqvist made 27 saves and grabbed first star honours for New York (6-7), which is on a season-high, three-game winning streak. Hagelin scored the Rangers first two goals of the game, and Stepan netted the final three. Andrej Sekera scored a power-play goal with 37 seconds left in the second period to provide the only offence for the Hurricanes. Justin Peters, subbing for Carolinas top two goalies who are injured, made 33 saves in the loss and fell to 0-5. "Weve been chasing the game lately, and were not getting the timely saves," Carolina coach Kirk Muller said. Hagelin opened the scoring 8:46 into the game. Brad Richards sprung Hagelin and Benoit Pouliot with a clearing pass. Hagelin cut to the slot before beating Peters with a backhander. "Hags speed definitely helps us," Vigneault said. "When he scored the way he did tonight and backing down their defence the way he can does, its so important to a team having success and winning games." Before Hagelins goal, the Hurricanes had outshot the Rangers 6-2. New York finished the game with a 38-28 edge. Hagelin increased New Yorks lead to 2-0 at 8:16 of the second period. As the Rangers finished killing Hagelins hooking penalty, Taylor Pyatt fired a clearing pass from the defensive zone that ricocheted off of Peters pads to the corner. Hagelin corralled the loose puck, then cut toward the net before slipping his second goal of the game through Peters legs. "I was going on the forecheck," Hagelin said. "It wasnt like I (thought) it was going to bounce off him and go in the corner. Soon as I saw the puck go in the corner I knew he wasnt going to go there, so I decided to take it to the net." Stepan pushed the advantage to 3-0 with a power-play goal at 15:54 of the second. Stepan found a rebound of Ryan McDonaghs point shot through a maze of players before beating Peters with a high shot. New York, which went 1-for-4 on the advantage, has scored power-play goals in three straight games. The Rangers are 4-for-11 on the power play in that stretch. "Goals on the power play, thats going to help a power play," Stepan said. "Weve certainly simplified things. Our power-play goal was a play out of the corner. Mac takes a slapper, and a mad scramble in front. If you look around the league, thats how the power-play goals are being scored." Outside of Sekeras goal, not much went right for the Hurricanes (4-7-3), who have lost five straight. "We were a fragile team (after) giving up the first goal," Muller said. "It seems to be a pattern. It pushes you back on your heels a bit after that first goal." Sekera scored with a seemingly harmless shot that hit Rangers defenceman Anton Stralman and found its way past Lundqvist. Stepan scored his second of the game 9:09 into the third to complete a strong forechecking sequence by his line. Kreiders hit on Tuomo Ruutu in the offensive zone forced a turnover, which Zuccarello corralled behind the net before feeding Stepan. Stepan completed his hat trick at 14:37 when his attempted pass to Kreider hit Sekera and deflected in off the goal post. It was Stepans first three-goal game since Oct. 9, 2010, against Buffalo, where he made his NHL debut. "My two linemates have created pretty good looks for me, and I wasnt able to find the back of the net," Stepan said. "Tonight they continued to do it, and I was fortunate enough to find the net a couple times, so thats good." NOTES: New York is 63-48-7-2 against the Hurricanes. ... Carolina activated D Brett Bellemore from the injured list. Bellemore had missed three games with a lower-body injury. ... Vigneault said he had "mixed emotions and mixed feelings," about Manny Malhotras return to the NHL. The veteran centre signed a one-year deal with Carolina on Thursday. Vigneault was Malhotras coach with Vancouver when Malhotra was struck near the left eye in a 2011 game. ... Rangers LW Rick Nash missed his 10th straight game with a head injury. There is no timetable for his return. Giorgio Chiellini Jersey . -- DeMarcus Cousins had 29 points, nine rebounds and six steals to lead the Sacramento Kings to their third straight preseason win, a 107-90 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Thursday night. Custom Juventus Jerseys . Juventus announced details of the deal Saturday, saying that Morata signed a five-year contract with the club. The deal also includes an option for Madrid to buy Morata back for up to (euro)30 million ($40. http://www.juventusfcpro.com/Kids-Rodrigo-Bentancur-Jersey/ . Stiverne stopped Chris Arreola in the sixth round Saturday night, claiming the WBC heavyweight title belt vacated by Vitali Klitschko. Leonardo Bonucci Jersey .J. Ward appeared in court Friday on misdemeanour charges that he threw a glass mug at a bartender at a Denver strip club. Wojciech Szczesny Juventus Jersey . The Braves optioned outfielder Jose Constanza to Triple-A Gwinnett. As expected, the Braves also called up right-hander Julio Teheran from Gwinnett to start Sundays game and optioned backup catcher J. NEW YORK -- Miguel Cabrera and the hard-hitting Tigers were too much for Daisuke Matsuzaka in his return to the majors. Cabrera hit a three-run homer, Torii Hunter also connected and Detroit tagged Matsuzaka early in his Mets debut to beat New York 6-1 on Friday night. "When I used to catch him in Boston, he had a little more on it," Tigers slugger Victor Martinez said. "Today I think his ball was pretty straight. He left a few pitches up in the zone, and the big guys didnt miss." Hunter added a long RBI double and Doug Fister (11-6) pitched into the seventh inning to help Detroit win the interleague series opener. Austin Jackson went deep for the second straight day for the AL Central leaders, back in New York after dropping two of three at Yankee Stadium two weeks ago. The series resumes Saturday afternoon with a rematch of All-Star game starters at Citi Field: Max Scherzer puts his 18-1 record on the line against New York ace Matt Harvey in a nationally televised game. "You cant beat that matchup," Hunter said. "If you blink youre going to miss something." The Mets said its the first time All-Star game starters will square off in a regular-season game during the same season, according to research by the Elias Sports Bureau. "I figure this place will be hopping pretty good," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "It should be fun." Minus two injured starters, the Mets signed Matsuzaka on Thursday to fill a hole in the rotation and immediately handed him a difficult assignment. Led by Cabrera and Prince Fielder, the Tigers began the night leading the majors in batting average and second in runs. The right-hander from Japan, a former Red Sox star who had been pitching in Clevelands farm system, got off to a promising start. Working on three days rest and wearing No. 16, he threw a called third strike past Jackson and was ahead 0-2 on Hunter when the five-time All-Star sent a booming drive far beyond the left-field fence. Cabrera and Fielder followed with singles, but Dice-K prevented further damage. He wasnt as fortunate in the second. Omar Infante led off with an infield single and Jackson walked with two outs. Hunter hit a ground-rule double that bounced over the 408 sign in straightaway centre field to put the Tigers up 2-1. Cabrera crushed the next pitch, a 91 mph fastball that he sent soaring just inside the left-field foul pole for his 41st home run. "I was thinking about how I wanted to pitch him from before the game, but it was hard to figure it out until you face him," Matsuzaka said through a translator. "I dont think it was a bad pitch, but he hit a home run off it." Chassing his second consecutive AL Triple Crown, Cabrera has comfortable leads in batting average and RBIs.dddddddddddd He moved within five home runs of Baltimore slugger Chris Davis. "Its just unbelievable," Fister said, then changed his tune. "Its no longer unbelievable. Its definitely believable, and hes doing it for a long time in a row now." Working with rookie Travis dArnaud, catching his fifth major league game, Matsuzaka settled in from there and did not allow another baserunner. He retired his final 10 batters and was charged with five runs on six hits over five innings. "I thought the last three innings he was very, very good," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "The arm issues have caused his velocity to go down a little bit. But I tell you what, his breaking stuff is still very good. I was happy with the way he finished up." Jackson added a solo shot in the seventh off reliever Carlos Torres, originally scheduled to start the game before the Mets signed Matsuzaka (0-1) for the remainder of this season. The Red Sox shelled out more than $100 million to import Matsuzaka in 2007. He won 33 games and a World Series ring during his first two years in the majors, but injuries and poor performances followed. He had Tommy John surgery on his pitching elbow in 2011. Matsuzaka went 1-7 with an 8.28 ERA in 11 starts for Boston last season and was beaten out by Scott Kazmir for the final spot in Clevelands rotation this spring. The 32-year-old pitcher agreed to go to Triple-A Columbus, where he was 5-8 with a 3.92 ERA in 19 starts. After working through early season injuries, Matsuzaka had been effective in recent weeks. He was granted his release by the Indians on Tuesday, and the third-place Mets decided he was their best option to fill a void the rest of the way. "I just kind of studied his old video and went off that," Hunter said. Fister gave up only an RBI single to Marlon Byrd in the first. The big right-hander induced two double plays and allowed eight hits in 6 1-3 innings before three relievers finished up. NOTES: Martinez, normally a DH, made his first start at catcher for Detroit since Aug. 4, 2011. "It felt great all-around," he said. ... The Tigers said C Alex Avila left his rehab game Thursday with Triple-A Toledo after three innings due to dizziness. Avila is on the disabled list with concussion symptoms. ... Fister was 0-1 in his previous three starts after winning four in a row. ... Collins said he wears No. 10 in grateful tribute to Leyland and credited the Detroit skipper with being a mentor. Leyland gave Collins his first big league coaching job in 1992 with Pittsburgh. ' ' '