Manchester wins
Manchester won Game 1 over Worcester, 5-2. Oleg Tverdovsky had one goal and two assists (yes, really) and Peter Harrold, Petr Kanko, Marty Murray and John Zeiler had goals. Jeff Likens had two assists and Barry Brust stopped 27 of 29 shots. It was a messy game, with a combined 16 minor penalties. Game 2 is Friday in Manchester.

Rich Hammond has covered the Kings, on a full-time or part-time basis, since the 2000-01 season. He was the beat writer for the entire John Torchetti era and has witnessed Bob Miller singing country music in a Nashville honky-tonk bar. A native of Los Angeles, Rich has worked at the Daily News since 1999 and also serves as the paper's deputy sports editor. E-mail Rich at 

I heard Lewis was a healthy scratch. Is this true? Any idea why?