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RALEIGH, N. Steven Stamkos Jersey .C. -- Marek Zidlickys shot hit a teammate, then the post. It spun in front of the net, and took a left turn across the goal line. A few more breaks like that, and these New Jersey Devils might follow a similar, meandering path to a playoff berth. Dainius Zubrus scored two goals and the short-handed Devils beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-1 on Saturday night. Travis Zajac scored the go-ahead goal on his deflection of Zidlickys second-period shot to help the Devils earn a point in their seventh straight game. "Weve been so close to these kind of wins all throughout the year and just somehow havent racked them up in a row," winning goalie Cory Schneider said. "If youre going to go on a run, these are the ones you need to grind out, and thats what weve been doing the last couple of games." They found a way to do it without some of their cornerstone players -- forwards Patrik Elias and Adam Henrique, who were both hurt the night before in a win against Washington. "I knew we had character in that room," Devils coach Peter DeBoer said. "A lot of people were writing us off, and I knew there was no quit in that dressing room. These guys are going to play right until they tell us we cant play anymore." The Devils improved to 4-0-3 during a stretch that has given their playoff chances a significant boost. "Weve been picking up points, and weve been playing some good hockey," Zajac said. "Weve got to try to find a way to keep this going and see what happens." Jeff Skinner scored for Carolina, which had its two-game winning streak snapped. The Hurricanes had kept their faint playoff hopes alive by earning points in their previous five games. "I think a lot of guys" played with desperation, coach Kirk Muller said. "We just didnt have everybody. Its too bad, because we had a few good games here that we went on the road and played hard and earned the points. "I dont want to take it away from the group of guys that came and did what theyre supposed to do and played hard," he added. "But we didnt have everyone on the page tonight, and when youre playing tight games like this, playoff mentality, youre not going to get the result." Schneider stopped 26 shots for the Devils, including all eight he faced in the third period, for his second straight victory. Anton Khudobin made 20 saves in his first loss since March 25. New Jersey won the season series 3-1, and a strange goal initially credited to Zidlicky at 6:34 of the second turned out to be the winner. His shot from between the circles had some english on it as it hit the left post, and it spun in the blue paint behind Khudobin before curving across the red line. It was later determined that the puck clicked off Zajac on its way toward the net. "I thought it went in the first time" off the post, Zajac said. When the Hurricanes couldnt tie it during the final 13 1/2 minutes of the period, the Devils could just about count on a victory: They improved to 22-1-5 when leading after two periods while the Hurricanes fell to 4-24-4 when trailing after 40 minutes. Zubrus then iced it with an empty-netter with 37.6 seconds left. Both teams entered on the outside of the playoff picture, though the Devils had a significantly better chance to crack the Easts field of eight. New Jersey entered with 82 points -- three behind Columbus, which holds the second wild-card spot in the East, and three ahead of the Hurricanes, who were coming off consecutive 4-1 wins over playoff-calibre teams Pittsburgh and Dallas. "You get out of it what you put into it," Muller said. "We had some guys that really put everything into it. Some guys didnt, and at the end of the night, you fall short." Zubrus put the Devils up 1-0 with 4:27 left in the first when he took a feed from Michael Ryder near the blue line, skated in on Khudobin and beat him with a slick backhand. Skinner tied it 5:31 into the second -- with a little help from the video-review crew. His high, knuckling shot from the right circle appeared to hit the crossbar. A review showed the shot actually hit the camera inside the net -- giving him his career-high-tying 31st goal. "We were engaged, we had good focus and I think we responded well when they scored," Zajac said. "I thought for the most part, we controlled that game." NOTES: Carolina RW Alexander Semin was back after missing two games with an undisclosed illness. ... New Jersey RW Tuomo Ruutu had an assist in his first game in Raleigh since he was dealt to the Devils at the deadline by the Hurricanes. Custom Tampa Bay Lightning Jerseys . Carreno Busta broke his opponent five times in the match, but also lost his serve three times in the second set before prevailing in the tiebreaker. Both players struggled with their first serve, as Carreno Busta landed just 51 per cent of his to 47 per cent for Kukushkin. Vincent Lecavalier Jersey .Impact president Joey Saputo confirmed Thursday that he is part of a group of investors whose offer to buy the 105-year-old Italian club was accepted by the teams board of directors. http://www.hockeylightning.com/authentic-martin-st-louis-lightning-jersey/ . -- Canadas Nicole Vandermade won the Four Winds Invitational on Sunday for her first Symetra Tour title, closing with a 4-under 68 for a one-stroke victory. MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The Memphis Grizzlies are headed on a three-game road trip with a better grip on the Western Conferences final playoff spot. Marc Gasol scored 19 points, Zach Randolph added 18 points and 12 rebounds as the Grizzlies defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 109-99 on Tuesday night. The victory kept Memphis in the conferences eighth spot with a one-game edge over the idle Phoenix Suns. But players are not satisfied with the current position. "Even though we are in, we want to be higher," guard Courtney Lee said. "Were still chasing, and I think thats the right mindset to have going forward because if you continue to chase, youll never get complacent and fall off." Mike Conley added 17 points and Lee finished with 16. Mike Miller had 14 for Memphis, which won its third straight. Damian Lillard led the Trail Blazers with 32 points on 8-of-21 shooting from the field, but connecting on 12 of 13 free throws, including six in the fourth quarter when he was fouled on a pair of 3-point attempts. LaMarcus Aldridge had 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Nicolas Batum contributed 15 points for Portland, which lost its third straight, matching its longest skid of the season. Memphis built its lead to double-digits early in the fourth quarter and Portland got it under 10 -- to nine -- on only two occasions the rest of the way. The common refrain from the Trail Blazers was it was "just one of those nights." "They would just get a tip ball or a loose ball and they would hit a 3 with it," Lillard said. "It was just one too many of those situations." While Memphis heads on a road trip to New Orleans, Toronto and Philadelphia holding the final playoff spot, Portland sits in the conferences fifth slot. Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts was pleased with the way his team competed and shooting 22 of 29 from the foul line. "I thought we had a lot of shots we normally make," Stotts said. ";We took care of the ball (eight turnovers). Tampa Bay Lightning Jerseys. We got to the free-throw line. We were aggressive. "I thought it was just one of those nights." Portland struggled from the field, connecting on 41 per cent for the game. In addition to Lillards percentage, Aldridge was 8 of 23 and Batum was 5 of 13. Wesley Matthews managed only one field goal on seven attempts. "I think he had good looks," Stotts said of Aldridges shooting. "But you cant make them every night." Aldridge considered it just part of a shooting slump that will end at some point. "I am going to find my rhythm, and I am going to make those shot Ive been missing soon. It will get a lot better," he said. The Grizzlies, who shot at least 50 per cent in each quarter, finished the night at a season-best 56 per cent including 6 of 12 from outside the arc. Memphis held a 54-47 lead at the break, but Portland was close despite shooting 41 per cent. The Trail Blazers gathered nine offensive rebounds for 10 second-chance points. Memphis stretched the lead back to 15 to open the second half, and kept the advantage through the middle stages of the quarter. Lee was the catalyst for Memphis, scoring 13 in the quarter, a difference, he said, of not playing as passive as he had in the first half. "Coaches and my teammates were telling me to go out and be more aggressive," Lee said of the second half. "You dont have to tell me that twice." The Trail Blazers closed the stanza on a 10-4 run to cut the lead to 78-69 entering the fourth. After Nick Calathes connected on a 3-pointer to open the fourth period, Memphis had its double-digit lead back. NOTES: Memphis has won five straight in the series. ... Portland G Will Barton, who played at the University of Memphis, got in for the final minute of the game. ... Five of the previous seven games in the series were decided by six points or less. ... Memphis has a seven-game home winning streak. ' ' '