Nick Foligno sent the text message on Sunday to his family members Nyheim Hines Jersey , promising an enjoyable evening of experiencing and watching the NHL playoffs.

”This is going to be a big night for the Folignos,” he tapped out on his smartphone.

Make it a big week, actually.

For the first time in the seven years they’ve been in the league together, both Foligno brothers are skating in the postseason. Marcus Foligno is getting his first taste, with the Minnesota Wild. Nick Foligno has returned for a third appearance with the Columbus Blue Jackets and his sixth overall.

Their even-more-famous father, Mike Foligno, is having a blast as the unpaid consultant, proud pop and unabashed fan.

”He’s got no voice. He was yelling at the TV last night,” Marcus said Monday, the day after he scored for the Wild in their win over Winnipeg in Game 3. ”With him playing, I think he still gets that energy, gets that adrenaline pumping, when he sees us play.”

Mike scored 247 times over 15 seasons in the NHL, making his mark during a full decade with Buffalo when he celebrated goals with a signature two-legged leap straight up in the air from the ice . Marcus started his career there, too Sammie Coates Jersey , in 2011 before the Sabres traded him to Minnesota last summer . Nick debuted in 2007 with the Ottawa Senators until being dealt to Columbus in 2012.

”We’re trying to do something special here as a family,” Nick said after the Blue Jackets beat Washington in Game 2, ”and it’s been pretty cool.”

They’re dearly missing a critical member of the clan.

Janis Foligno, the mother to Nick and Marcus and their two sisters , died in 2009 of breast cancer. The boys have kept her memory alive through their performance on the ice and their philanthropy off it, with a foundation in her name created to fight the disease and support cancer victims. Nick and his wife also donated $1 million to children’s hospitals in Columbus and Boston, where their now-4-year-old daughter had a congenital heart defect repaired.

So they play on for a greater purpose, with Mike keeping a keen eye on the boys.

”There are always things to do better. He sees it. He watches the game. He scouted for a long time, and he coached for a long time in the league,” Marcus said. ”He just knows how we’re capable of playing, and that’s the biggest thing. He wants us to be the best players out there and be the best role players for our team.”

Nick has long had the more prominent role, as a first-round draft pick and now the captain of the Blue Jackets whose profile in the community includes pizza commercials and charitable endeavors. His 33 points was his lowest total in five seasons, and he missed time with a lower-body injury, but the 30-year-old’s versatility to play center or either wing spot on any of the first three lines has been ever valuable to coach John Tortorella.

Marcus has been more of a niche player. He had a career-high 13 goals and a career-most 80 games for the Sabres last season, but after arriving in Minnesota in a trade last summer his adjustment at age 26 to a deeper team and a lesser role took several months. It included some healthy scratches.

”We all want to score 30 goals and be impactful Jon Weeks Jersey ,” coach Bruce Boudreau said, ”but he’s got a four-year deal so in time he’ll get into that situation.”

The Wild trail the Jets 3-1 entering Game 5 on Friday, but their trouble has mostly been an unproductive series by some of their skilled forwards playing more minutes. Playing on the fourth line with Daniel Winnik and Joel Eriksson Ek, Marcus has found a groove down the stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs.

”Whether it’s 10 or 12 minutes, he gets out there, he plays really hard, and he’s been very effective,” Boudreau said.

Which brings us back to that Sunday prediction of a big night for the Foligno boys.

Marcus became a major figure in Game 3 for the Wild with a goal and his collision at the boards with Jets defenseman Tyler Myers that knocked his former Sabres teammate out of the game with a lower-body injury.

Nick and the Blue Jackets, who lead their series 2-1 entering Game 4 on Thursday, won in overtime about an hour later. Nick was sorry to have missed the goal by Marcus, but he was elated to hear his proclamation came true.

The brothers communicate almost daily, providing tips for each other along with standard pick-me-ups and sibling ribbing. After Nick took a puck to the face in Game 1, Marcus teased him by reminding him that goalie Sergei Bobrovsky was the one paid to get in the way of the pucks.

”You don’t realize how special it is, but I raced back after dinner to watch your brother play in the playoffs,” Nick said. ”It’s a pretty cool feeling.”

—

AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno in Washington and AP Sports Writer Mitch Stacy in Columbus LeGarrette Blount Jersey , Ohio, contributed to this report.

—


The bottom line does not tell the story of Michael Fulmer’s last start.

The Detroit Tigers right-hander overpowered the Cincinnati Reds for 5 2/3 innings on June 20, holding them scoreless while striking out nine.

Fulmer then gave up back-to-back homers on what he felt were well-located sliders. Scooter Gennett, who badly missed a Fulmer slider earlier in the at-bat, golfed a two-run shot over the right-field wall. Eugenio Suarez followed with a blast over the left-field wall.

Fulmer wound up with his sixth loss of the season.

He’ll hope for some better luck in a Thursday matinee against the Oakland Athletics.

The Tigers will be trying to break an eight-game losing streak after dropping the first three games of the series while Oakland will attempt to get its first four-game sweep of Detroit since 2001.

“Last start, everything was kind of on cruise control and then Gennett hit a good pitch out,” Fulmer said. “But people don’t see the pitch, they see the results. They look at the linescore and that’s it.

“They don’t see that my fastball velo is up, my sinker’s moving more, my slider has been a lot sharper as of late,” Fulmer continued. “That’s the problem from a player’s standpoint and a spectator’s standpoint. ‘Oh, he gave up two home runs in one inning last start, it wasn’t a very good start.’ Don’t worry about the other five innings where I did really well. Sometimes, people don’t think just to give the hitters credit.”

Fulmer (3-6, 4.17 ERA) limited Minnesota and Cleveland to one run in seven innings in each of his previous two outings. He’s throwing as hard as ever Seth DeValve Jersey , with his four-seamer and sinker averaging over 97 mph this month.

Other than his changeup being a little faster than he’d like, Fulmer believes he’s in top form.

“I’m not frustrated with the way I pitched or my stuff,” said Fulmer, who is 2-0 with an 0.57 ERA in two career starts against Oakland. “I’m frustrated with the results and that’s the way it’s kind of been for me so far this season. I’m still very positive. I still trust everything, I feel like we’re very close to being dominant for a full game.”

The Tigers could certainly use one of those outings.

Left-hander Sean Manaea (7-6, 3.40 ERA) will oppose Fulmer after having his scheduled start pushed back a day. He has delivered three consecutive quality starts following a rough patch in May. Manaea allowed four or more earned runs in five of his six May starts but he’s held opponents to a combined six runs in his last three outings.

“I was trying to be too perfect and it was causing me to overthink things,” he said. “Now, I’m trying to keep things simple.”

Manaea has walked just one batter in those three starts while collecting 17 strikeouts. He held the Chicago White Sox to one run on five hits in seven innings during his last start. He lost his only career start against Detroit while giving up three runs in six innings.

Oakland’s streak of hitting a homer in 27 consecutive road games, a major league record, ended on Wednesday but it still came away with a 3-0 victory. Jed Lowrie has seven hits in the series, including two homers and two doubles.

Marvin Bagley III Jersey ,