The Predators outshot the Bruins 34-33

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LOS ANGELES -- Nearly eight months after Kobe Bryant limped off the Lakers home court with a torn Achilles tendon and a career in doubt, he struggled to keep his composure when he finally stepped back onto the same hardwood. And though his comeback night didnt quite go to script, Bryant couldnt help reflecting on the work necessary to get back on that court -- and all the months of steady labour ahead to reclaim his game. Bryant had nine points and eight rebounds in his season debut, but Amir Johnson scored a career-high 32 points in the trade-depleted Toronto Raptors 106-94 victory over Los Angeles on Sunday night. Bryant began his 18th NBA season by going 2 for 9 with four assists and eight turnovers in 28 minutes. The fourth-leading scorer in NBA history got hurt April 12 and persevered through several months of rehabilitation to return for Los Angeles 20th game of the new season, only to struggle with his shot, his timing and his new teammates. "My rhythm is completely out of sync," Bryant said. "But this is a start, and I guess a start is good." Nick Young scored 19 points for the Lakers, who went 10-9 without Bryant this season, forging a winning record without the five-time NBA champion and with little help from fellow injured MVP Steve Nash. Adoring fans cheered Kobes every move and forgave every misstep, but Bryant couldnt rally the Lakers late despite another huge game by Los Angeles reserves. Bryant was touched by the fans reception and his teammates encouragement, although his ruthless competitive nature chafed against his natural emotions before the opening tip. "You try to control it as much as you can, but you cant help thinking about the hard work," Bryant said. "You try to put it to the side as much as possible and do your work. ... It makes you appreciate the game, this franchise and this city, and all weve been through." The Lakers never led, and Toronto improbably snapped its five-game losing streak despite playing without forward Rudy Gay, who is expected to be traded to Sacramento on Monday as the centerpiece of an apparent seven-player deal. Kyle Lowry had 23 points and eight assists, and DeMar DeRozan added 10 of his 26 points in the final 4:35 of the Raptors first road win over the Lakers in 11 tries since Dec. 28, 2001. "(Bryant) was a little rusty, and you could tell because a lot of his shots were short," said DeRozan, who grew up in Los Angeles watching Kobe. "We were going against him his first game back, but hes going to get it going again and hell be back to the old Kobe." The Raptors had 11 players available after holding out Gay, centre Aaron Gray and forward Quincy Acy, all set to head to the Kings in exchange for Greivis Vasquez, Patrick Patterson, John Salmons and Chuck Hayes. That turned out to be plenty, thanks to two Los Angeles natives. Johnson, who attended nearby Westchester High School, went 14 for 17 and surpassed his previous career high early in the third quarter. Johnson didnt take a shot in the fourth, but USC product DeRozan and Lowry held off the Lakers. "We knew we were down because half our team got traded, so our mindset was just to go out there and play hard and win this game," Johnson said. "It was real emotional. It happened to us last year in Atlanta, too. We talked to those guys, and Rudy was still at the hotel, so we called him in and told him how much we all appreciated what they did for this team and the city." The building had the buzz of a playoff game before the opening tip, with thousands of fans training cameras on Bryant during opening warmups. The building erupted in loud applause at every mention of Kobe, who was introduced last in the starting lineup to the thunderous strains of "The Imperial March" -- Darth Vaders theme from "Star Wars." The crowd roared again the first time Bryant touched the ball, and he found Robert Sacre underneath the hoop for an assist on Los Angeles first possession. With his wife, Vanessa, and two daughters sitting courtside, Bryant hit a free throw for his first point in the second quarter, followed shortly by an 8-foot, double-pump, left-handed bank shot for his first field goal. Bryant added a signature 22-foot face-up jumper later in the period, but also showed clear signs of rust and unfamiliarity with his new teammates. "Were going to have to carry Kobe a little bit, because of course hes not 100 per cent, not in game shape," said Xavier Henry, who scored 17 points. "Its going to be fun. Its a long year, and hes just getting back." NOTES: The officials allowed Toronto C Jonas Valanciunas to make two free throws out of a timeout late in the first quarter, but belatedly realized Lowry was supposed to take the shots. 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On Monday night, Matt Fraser and Ryan Spooner, two players with 17 NHL games between them this season, and a potent power play led the Bruins to a 6-2 victory over the Nashville Predators that gave Boston coach Claude Julien his 400th career win. "That is something I will look back on after I retire," Julien said. "I prefer to look at how we are going to do the rest of this season." Tuukka Rask, who stopped 32 shots for the victory, was unaware of the milestone. "That is great," Rask said. "Nashville had a lot of chances, especially in the third period. This was a great way for us to go into the break." Reilly Smith scored a power play goal at 10:47 of the first period, one of three for the Bruins. "There is depth in this organization," Smith said. "A lot of teams may have looked past us in the last few games because we have so many guys who arent regulars on the roster like Spooner and Fraser." Fraser scored his first goal of the season at the 5:59 mark of the first period. Spooner added three assists, two on power play goals. "You know, the first couple of games, you get nervous out there," Spooner said. "But now that Ive been playing a solid two-way game Ive just been trying to focus on using my speed to create some chances." The Bruins opened a 3-0 first period lead. But they were mindful that in Nashvilles previous outing with Montreal Saturday night for force overtime. At the 3:25 mark of the third period when Nashvilles Craig Smith scored his second goal of the game to trim the lead to 3-2 it was time for Boston to find a way to retaliate. The answer was the power play which produced two goals in the span of 49 seconnds.dddddddddddd Jarome Iginla scored first at 5:01, his second goal of the game. At 5:50 Carl Soderberg, who also had a pair of assists, found the net to give the Bruins a 5-2 edge. Brad Marchand closed out the scoring with 4:06 left to play. Reilly Smith, who assisted on Soderbergs goal also had the assist on Marchands goal. The Predators outshot the Bruins 34-33. Nashville coach Barry Trotz was frustrated with the play of his goaltenders, pulling starter Carter Hutton at 5:59 of the first period after he gave up his second goal in four shots. Marek Macanec closed out the game and faced 25 shots. "Once I saw the second goal I had seen enough," Trotz said. "Right now they are going through a little bit of a dry spell," he said. "Its like getting hit with stun gun. But the goalies we have are trying their best, plain and simple." Despite the late rally by the Predators, the Bruins never felt they were losing momentum. "I thought we played well pretty much the entire game," Reilly Smith said. "They had that power play goal and they created a lot of good chances from what they had, but I thought we dominated the game for the most part. "The power play was really clicking because when they jumped back in we were able to shut the door," he said. "Carl did a great job of putting it in the back of the net when he got the opportunity." NOTES: This was the second game in a row that the Predators had been outscored by three goals in the first period. . This was the first meeting between the Predators and Bruins since March 17, 2011. . The Predators have scored eight power play goals in six consecutive games. . Spooner had a season high three assists. . Soderberg recorded two assists for the third time this season and has six points in his last eight games. Wholesale NFL Jerseys ' ' '