KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- C.J. Sapong scored and Sporting Kansas City clinched a playoff berth with a 2-0 victory on Saturday over the New York Red Bulls, who lost forward Thierry Henry to a red card in the first half. Teal Bunbury also scored for Kansas City (12-9-12), which moved into a first-place tie with Philadelphia in the Eastern Conference. Both teams have 48 points with one game remaining. New York (9-8-16), which has 43 points, had to play much of the game a man down after Henry was sent off in the first half. Henry, who came in with 14 goals -- tying him for the league lead -- was given a red card in the 28th minute for kneeing Roger Espinoza in the back as Espinoza sat on the field. Henry will be suspended for the Red Bulls regular-season finale against Philadelphia on Thursday. Sapong entered in the 73rd minute and made it 2-0 in the 74th with a half-volley off an assist from Matt Besler. Bunbury, who shot wide right on two breakaways in the first half, didnt miss in the 57th minute. After a corner kick in New Yorks end, the ball bounced before Kansas Citys Julio Cesar headed it to Bunbury for a volley into the lower-left corner. Cheap Montreal Expos Jerseys . -- Rory McIlroy was six holes away from winning the Honda Classic and going to No. Cheap Washington Nationals Jerseys . - Green Bay Packers cornerback Casey Hayward, who led NFL rookies last season with a team-high six interceptions, may miss two weeks of training camp because of a hamstring injury. http://www.jerseyscheapnfl.us.com/yl702/ . Finally, the horn sounded. That first victory as an NBA head coach was his. Al Horford had 22 points and 16 rebounds, three other Atlanta starters scored in double figures and the Hawks won their home opener, defeating the Toronto Raptors 102-95 on Friday to give Budenholzer a night to remember. Cheap New York Mets Jerseys . Maclin went down at the end of a non-contact drill and appeared to be in pain while he was on the ground for several minutes. He was helped onto the cart and needed assistance getting off it and going into the teams practice facility. jerseys from china . The 27-year-old winger is set to undergo facial surgery on Wednesday after taking a puck to the face in the third period against the New York Islanders on Monday night.VANCOUVER -- Defenceman Keith Ballard didnt need much of an introduction to new teammate Maxim Lapierre, who the Vancouver Canucks acquired at the NHL trade deadline. The two became acquainted in a fight when Ballard was with the Florida Panthers and Lapierre was a member of the Montreal Canadiens. "It wasnt much of a fight," Ballard said with a smile after the Canucks practised Tuesday before their game with the Columbus Blue Jackets. "In that situation he was sticking up for a teammate who I had hit earlier. Thats a good sign. Hes one of those guys you dont like to play against, but you like having on your team." A Vancouver team that already has proven to be very good believes it got a little bit better by obtaining Lapierre and forward Chris Higgins in trades Monday. "We were a good team," said coach Alain Vigneault. "I think we are more complete, more balanced now. "Weve given ourselves more depth through our lineup. It should help us as we move forward." The Canucks went into Tuesdays game against Columbus with the best record in the NHL. Vancouver acquired Lapierre from Anaheim, along with minor-league centre MacGregor Sharp, in exchange for centre Joel Perrault and a third-round pick in the 2012 draft. Higgins came from Florida for defenceman Evan Oberg and a third-round pick in the 2013 draft. Higgins, who is still recovering from a broken thumb, wasnt scheduled to arrive in Vancouver until later Tuesday. In Lapierre, the Canucks get a six-foot-two, 207-pound centre who isnt afraid to hit and can agitate other players with his trash talking. Higgins, who is six foot and 205 pounds, also brings size and the ability to play on any line. The 27-year-old has shown a scoring touch, having scored 20 or more goals three times in his career. Centre Ryan Kesler said the two players strengthen Vancouvers lineup. "It makes our potent offence that much more dangerous," he said. "We dont have any weaknesses. We like that feeling. "Were going into games knowing we are going to win. Its just how." Forward Alex Burrows is happy the Canucks made some additions without subtracting from the team. Both Perrault and Oberg were minor leaguers. "We have such a good team chemistry here," said Burrows. "Everybody gets along really well. We didnt want to lose anyone. "Its nice to see management felt the same way and added a couple of pieces." While Canuck players said all the right things, some red flags have been raised about Lapierre. He started the season in Montreal, making his trade to Vancouver hiss third team in a year.ddddddddddddIn 21 games with the Ducks, the 25-year-old had just three assists and nine penalty minutes. In 38 games with Montreal he had five goals, three assists and 63 penalty minutes. "What happened in the past is over for me," said Lapierre, who practised on Vancouvers fourth line with Tanner Glass and Jeff Tambellini. "You always trust yourself as a player. I have to be honest. I havent been playing my greatest hockey lately. I know I can help this team. Ill do it during the playoffs. Thats my type of game." Lapierre had three goals and an assist in 19 playoff games for Montreal last spring. Maybe more troubling, Lapierre has been compared to former Canuck Matt Cooke. Now with Pittsburgh, Cooke has a reputation for taking cheap shots and running his mouth after the whistle. Lapierre was given a four-game suspension last March after cross-checking San Joses Scott Nichol into the end boards. Canucks management made a point this season of telling Kesler and Burrows to concentrate on playing hockey and stop the after-whistle trash talking both used to relish. Vigneault is confident Lapierre can adapt to the Canucks style. "I had a talk with him this morning," said Vigneault, who coached Lapierre in junior. "Hes not the type of player that takes a lot of penalties. "He is the type of player who tries to get under the other teams skin and gets them to take penalties. The perception people might have is he does talk a lot in between whistles. We are going to get him to play whistle to whistle, to play hard." Lapierre has heard the message. "The rule here is you play between the whistles and thats what Im going to do," he said. "Ill just play hard and finish my checks, play sound defensively and bring energy to this team." Daniel Sedin isnt worried about Lapierre becoming a squeaking cog in the finely tuned Canuck machine. "Hes a smart player," said Sedin. "Everyone in here has really bought into what we are trying to do here. "Hes going to do the same thing." Lapierre is looking forward to playing for Vigneault again. "I had a great experience with him in junior," said the native of St. Leonard, Que. "I played for him for three years. Hes the guy who taught me how to play hockey first. "Its great to be back." Lapierre broke into a grin when reminded of his past skirmish with Ballard. "When two guys fight its because they did something right on the ice," he said. "We havent talked about it yet but he seems like a great guy." cheap jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '