Rolling, not rusty. The Detroit Red Wings looked as

sharp as they have throughout the playoffs — and perhaps in any postseason — jumping out to a big lead and beating the Dallas Stars, 4-1, Thursday night in Game One of the Western Conference finals.

Detroit played for the first time since sweeping the Colorado Avalanche a week earlier.

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Rob Ray has dropped the gloves once again, this time for a second legal bout with the NHL Players’ Association.

The longtime Buffalo Sabres enforcer has filed suit in New York State Supreme Court in an attempt to secure payment from the union’s lockout funds from the canceled 2004-05 season.

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Olaz Kolzig told the Washington Post that he has played his final game for the Capitals, the franchise that drafted him in 1989.

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Zach Parise’s power-play goal with 8:57 remaining snapped a tie and gave the United States a 6-4 victory over Germany in a qualifying-round game at the world hockey championship on Thursday night.

The Americans appeared to have the game in hand when they scored three times in the opening 2:52, but Germany chipped away at the lead.

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Some NHL rivalries evolve from a big game, a major trade or a short-lived scuffle, then fade after a few years. Not the Philadelphia Flyers versus the Pittsburgh Penguins.

This rivalry is real, perpetual, and, mostly, downright nasty.

Evolving from state lines and bloodlines — and it’s mostly bad blood— it’s been one of the league’s most heated since the teams were born in 1967.

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Johan Franzen, Brian Rafalski and Tomas Holmstrom scored power-play goals for the Detroit Red Wings, who built a big lead in the second period and coasted to a 4-1 win over the Dallas Stars in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals on Thursday night.

“Our starts have been great, and we’ve played well after that,” goalie Chris Osgood said.

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The Buffalo Jr. Sabres, one of the region's top-ranked youth hockey teams, has been jointly purchased by the Buffalo Sabres and Buffalo Sabres Alumni Association.

The team had been operated by Chuck Giambra since 1987, who served as its president and general manager.

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Mike Babcock has been nothing short of sensational during his three seasons coaching the Detroit Red Wings. Three 50-win campaigns, three Central Division titles and two Presidents’ trophies make for a sterling resume.

But, not a full one. That’s because unless the Red Wings win the Stanley Cup, the season is considered a disappointment.

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Throughout the shellings, blown leads and other indignations he’s endured at Joe Louis Arena, Dallas Stars goaltender Marty Turco has pacified himself with one thought: “At least it’s not the playoffs.”

Well, now it is. Turco is carrying an 0-7-2 record and a 3.17 goals-against average at “The Joe” into the Western Conference finals against the Detroit Red Wings starting Thursday night.

Uh-oh, eh?

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Buffalo Sabres GM Darcy Regier announced today the Sabres have agreed to terms with forward Felix Schutz (pronounced SHOOT-z), who played last season with ERC Ingolstadt of the German Elite League. The Sabres selected Schutz in the fourth round (117th overall) of the 2006 Entry Draft.

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Dany Heatley scored on a four-on-two rush with under a minute to play as Canada outlasted the United States 5-4 in the world hockey championship, Tuesday afternoon in Halifax.

The victory gave Canada a 3-0 mark in Pool B while the Americans fell to 2-1. Both teams move on to the medal round.

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The Toronto Maple Leafs made their first big move of the off-season on Wednesday, firing head coach Paul Maurice.

He took over from the fired Pat Quinn on May 12, 2006, but failed to guide the Maple Leafs into the NHL playoffs in two seasons at the helm.

The Maple Leafs finished 12th in the 15-team Eastern Conference this season with a 36-35-11 record.

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With each step forward in the pursuit of the Stanley Cup, the challenges get steeper and the pressure mounts. At this stage in the game, any weaknesses are typically far outweighed by the strengths that enabled the competitors to get this far, making it harder and harder to advance.

And although the second round of these playoffs was surprisingly pitfall-free for the four Conference Finalists — the Detroit Red Wings, Dallas Stars, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Philadelphia Flyers — all four clubs would be wise to remember not to brim with overconfidence.

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The Buffalo Sabres' ownership isn't against selling the team, unless the buyer wants to relocate.

That was made clear Tuesday when, responding to a story in the Toronto Star, Sabres managing partner Larry Quinn issued a statement designed to reassure fans their NHL team will not be moved out of its current home.

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Nathan Gerbe has decided to leave college and has signed with the Buffalo Sabres, the team announced late this afternoon.

Gerbe, the Boston College junior who led the Eagles to the national championship last month, is in Buffalo today for a physical, multiple sources have told The News.

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