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A look at the best-of-seven National League Championship Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Chicago Cubs:---Schedule: (All times EDT) Game 1, Saturday, at Chicago (8:08 p.m.); Game 2, Sunday, at Chicago (8:08 p.m.); Game 3, Tuesday, Oct. 18, at Los Angeles (8:08 p.m.); Game 4, Wednesday, Oct. 19, at Los Angeles (8:08 p.m.); x-Game 5, Thursday, Oct. 20, at Los Angeles (8:08 p.m.); x-Game 6, Saturday, Oct. 22, at Chicago (TBA); x-Game 7, Sunday, Oct. 23, at Chicago (TBA). (All games on FOX or FS1).x-if necessary.---Season Series: Cubs won 4-3.---Projected Lineup:Dodgers: 2B Chase Utley (.252, 14 HRs, 52 RBI) or Charlie Culberson (.284, 1, 7, in 34 games and 67 ABs), SS Corey Seager (.308, 26, 72), 3B Justin Turner (.275, 27, 90), 1B Adrian Gonzalez (.285, 18, 90), RF Josh Reddick (.258, 2, 9 in 47 games with Dodgers; .296, 8, 28 with Oakland) or Yasiel Puig (.263, 11, 45 in 104 games), CF Joc Pederson (.246, 25, 68), C Yasmani Grandal (.228, 27, 72), LF Howie Kendrick (.255, 8, 40) or Andrew Toles (.314, 3, 16 in 47 games).Cubs: CF Dexter Fowler (.276, 13, 48), 3B or LF Kris Bryant (.292, 39, 102, 121 runs, 176 hits), 1B Anthony Rizzo (.292, 32, 109, 170 hits), 2B or LF Ben Zobrist (.272, 18, 76), SS Addison Russell (.238, 21, 95), RF Jason Heyward (.230, 7, 49), 2B or 3B or SS Javier Baez (.273, 14, 59), C Miguel Montero (.216, 8, 33) or Willson Contreras (.282, 12, 35 in 76 games) or David Ross (.229, 10, 32).---Projected Rotation:Dodgers: RH Kenta Maeda (16-11, 3.48 ERA, 179 Ks in 175 2/3 IP), LH Clayton Kershaw (12-4, 1.69 ERA, 172 Ks in 149 IP), LH Rich Hill (3-2, 1.83, 34 1/3 IP with Dodgers; 9-3, 2.25, 76 IP in 14 starts with Oakland), LH Julio Urias (5-2, 3.39, 84 Ks in 77 IP).Cubs: LH Jon Lester (19-5, 2.44, 197 Ks), RH Kyle Hendricks (16-8, MLB-best 2.13), RH Jake Arrieta (18-8, 3.10), RH John Lackey (11-8, 3.35).---Relievers:Dodgers: RH Kenley Jansen (3-2, 1.83, career-high 47/53 saves), RH Pedro Baez (3-2, 3.04), RH Joe Blanton (7-2, 2.48), LH Luis Avilan (3-0, 3.20), RH Ross Stripling (5-9, 3.96), LH Grant Dayton (0-1, 2.05, 39 Ks, 26 1/3 IP in 25 games), RH Josh Fields (1-0, 4.63, 42 Ks, 35 IP in 37 games for Astros and Dodgers).Cubs: LH Aroldis Chapman (4-1, 1.55, 36/39 saves, 90 Ks, 58 IP for Yankees and Cubs), RH Hector Rondon (2-3, 3.53, 18/23 saves), RH Pedro Strop (2-2, 2.85), RH Carl Edwards Jr. (0-1, 3.75, 2 saves), RH Justin Grimm (2-1, 4.10), LH Mike Montgomery (4-5, 2.52, 49 games, 7 starts for Mariners and Cubs), LH Travis Wood (4-0, 2.95).---Matchups:One of these big-market teams is going to end a substantial drought. While the Cubs are looking for their first pennant since 1945 and World Series title since 1908, the Dodgers havent been to the Fall Classic since winning their 1988 championship. ... Series features two of baseballs oldest and most popular ballparks in Wrigley Field and Dodger Stadium. ... Chicago took three of four from Dodgers in a low-scoring series at Wrigley from May 30 to June 2, getting wins from Lester and Hendricks. Los Angeles won two of three meetings at home in late August, dropping the opener 6-4 in 10 innings before winning the final two games 3-2 and 1-0. ... Cubs avoided Kershaw and Maeda during the regular season. They also never faced Hill, who was acquired from Oakland on Aug. 1. ... Blanton had two wins out of the bullpen against Cubs this season. ... Second-year Chicago manager Joe Maddon was the skipper in Tampa Bay under front-office executive Andrew Friedman, now the Dodgers president of baseball operations. ... Cubs wanted to make sure Hendricks was healthy before committing to him in Game 2. Hendricks left Game 2 of the Division Series against San Francisco when a comebacker went off his right forearm in the fourth inning. He had a bullpen session Thursday. Hendricks was 9-2 with a 1.32 ERA in 15 home games this year. ... Cubs led the majors with 103 wins in the regular season, 12 more than Los Angeles. ... Cubs have power arms on a staff that ranked third in majors with 1,441 strikeouts this season. ... Third in majors in runs (808) and second in on-base percentage (.343) during the season, Chicago had a tough time at the plate against Giants in the Division Series. Cubs hit .200 with a .247 on-base percentage, and a big chunk of their offense came from pitchers. Arrieta and Wood combined for two of Chicagos five homers, and those two along with Hendricks accounted for six of teams 17 RBI. Rizzo, a contender for NL MVP, and Russell each went 1 for 15 in series. Baez, however, made one slick play after another at second base and delivered two of the biggest hits -- an eighth-inning homer off Johnny Cueto for the lone run in Game 1 and the go-ahead single in the ninth inning of Game 4. ... Dodgers went 53-28 at home and 38-43 on the road this season. But they won two of three games at Washington in Division Series, including Game 5 clincher. Kershaw came out of bullpen to get final two outs for his first major league save, two days after throwing 110 pitches in Game 4 on short rest. So he almost surely wont start until Game 2 or Game 3 against Cubs. ... A tiring Jansen was pushed to career-high 51 pitches in Game 5, so his availability -- and effectiveness -- will be a question mark early in NLCS. ... Dodgers have struggled against left-handed pitching all year and figure to face Lester twice if series goes five games.---Big Picture:Dodgers: With a $234 million opening day payroll, highest in the majors, Los Angeles (91-71) reached the playoffs for the fourth consecutive year in Dave Roberts first season as manager. The Dodgers have won four straight NL West titles, a first for the storied franchise, and surpassed 90 wins for the fourth season in a row. But they are still looking for their first trip to the World Series since Kirk Gibson, Orel Hershiser & Co. won it all as big underdogs in 1988. Los Angeles was beaten in the NLCS three times from 2008-13, then lost in the NLDS each of the past two years. They just squeezed by Washington, though, with a trio of one-run wins. ... Roberts and Tom Lasorda (1977) are the only rookie managers to lead the club to a division title. ... Gonzalez had 90 RBI for the 10th consecutive season, becoming the only major leaguer to do so. ... Grandal, Seager, Justin Turner and Pederson gave the Dodgers four players with 25 or more home runs for the fourth time in franchise history and first since 1997. ... The Dodgers put 28 players on the disabled list this season, the most for any team since at least 1987. ... Roberts used a franchise record-tying 55 players, including 31 pitchers. ... Seagers 193 hits were the most by a big league rookie since 2001. ... Dodgers pitchers recorded 1,510 strikeouts, a major league record.Cubs: Is this the year the Cubs at long last win the World Series? Favorites since opening day, Chicago (103-58) entered the playoffs with a large, excited fan base hoping against hope that the first championship in more than a century was finally around the corner. The Cubs jumped out to a 25-6 start on the way to a runaway title in the NL Central, then knocked off San Francisco in a thrilling NLDS. They rallied for four runs in the ninth inning of Game 4 to eliminate the pesky Giants and secure their second straight trip to the NLCS -- a first for the franchise. Swept by the New York Mets last season, theyre hoping for a better result this time. ... Bryant, a favorite for NL MVP after winning Rookie of the Year last season, was 6 for 16 with a homer against the Giants. During the regular season, he joined Rogers Hornsby (1929), Hack Wilson (1930) and Derrek Lee (2005) as the only players in franchise history with at least 120 runs, 35 doubles, 39 homers and 100 RBI. ... Hendricks and Lester became the first teammates to run 1-2 in the majors in ERA since Houston pitchers Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte in 2005. Both figure to get strong consideration for the NL Cy Young Award, which Arrieta won last year. ... Lester matched his career high for wins. ... Cubs pitchers led the majors with a 3.15 ERA. They gave up the fewest runs (556) and hits (1,125).---Watch For:- The Target. Well aware of the clubs 108-year championship drought, the Cubs showed up for spring training bolstered by the additions of Heyward, Zobrist and Lackey, and with a neat new slogan coined by Maddon: Embrace the Target. The phrase went on a T-shirt, and the Cubs could not have worn it any better during the regular season. They won the division by 17 1/2 games and finished with eight more wins than any other team. They had the depth and versatility to withstand injuries and the poise to pull out 14 wins in their final at-bat. Then they added two more in the NLDS against playoff-tested San Francisco. But the Cubs are still chasing that target, and the postseason pressure remains.- Ace In The Hole. As sensational as Kershaw has been throughout his career, hes struggled in the postseason. The three-time Cy Young Award winner and 2014 NL MVP is 3-6 with a 4.79 ERA in 16 playoff games, 12 starts, over eight series since 2008. Kershaw again was far from his best in two NLDS starts against Washington, but he won the opener and saved the finale. Maybe coming through in that signature moment will finally get him going in October -- if hes not worn out. The left-hander missed more than two months with a back injury before returning in September. While he was sidelined, the Dodgers surged into first place past slumping San Francisco.- Top That. Lester will have a hard time even approaching his performance in the playoff opener, when he went toe-to-toe with Cueto in a 1-0 win. Lester dominated over eight innings and retired his final 13 batters. He held the Dodgers to one run in 15 innings over two starts this season. The lefty tossed a four-hitter in a June 1 win and went six scoreless innings but did not get a decision on Aug. 28. SUNRISE, Fla. -- Vincent Viola has insisted for the past three years that his sole focus as owner of the Florida Panthers was to win the franchises first Stanley Cup.Hell be otherwise occupied now.Violas nomination by President-elect Donald Trump on Monday to be the next secretary of the Army means he will be giving up his roles as chairman and governor of the Panthers, pending his confirmation by the Senate.But the Panthers said the move -- which top team executives learned was coming late last week -- will not change the day-to-day hockey operations.Zero effect on us, Panthers President and CEO Matthew Caldwell said. His ownership still stays with his family. Therell be no changes in positions, and nothing for the front office or management team.Viola, a 1977 West Point graduate who bought the Panthers in 2013, plans to have the chairman and governor positions filled by his longtime business partner Doug Cifu.The NHL offered Viola congratulations.The club has assured us that the day-to-day operations of the Panthers franchise will not be affected by this development, and we will certainly work closely with the club to ensure that is the case, the NHL said in a statement.Mr. Viola and team ownership have further advised that they remain completely committed to South Florida and to the Panthers fans.Viola is in line to become the Armys top civilian official.It is an honor to be nominated to serve our country, Viola said.Trump called Viola an incredibly accomplished and selfless individual.Whether it is his distinguished military service or highly impressive track record in the world of business, Vinnie has proved throughout his life that he knows how to be a leader and deliver major results in the face of any challenge, Trump said. He is a man of ouutstanding work ethic, integrity, and strategic vision, with an exceptional ability to motivate others.dddddddddddd.Violas family has had a role in Panthers operations and will continue to do so.All three of Violas sons have various responsibilities with the team -- Michael Viola is involved in budgeting, Travia Viola works in hockey operations and scouting, and John Viola helps run the team foundation.I dont think there will be much of a change, Caldwell said.Violas Army ties run deep and have carried over into his time leading the Panthers. The team has held training camps at West Point, played exhibition games there, has several West Point graduates and military veterans working in the front office and incorporates some military thinking into its day-to-day marketing strategies.Our hockey team has always been proud to be part of Mr. Violas legacy, Panthers President of Hockey Operations Dale Tallon said. We admire his dedication to his country and are excited to watch him pursue this new endeavor.Trump, in announcing Viola as his pick, said he was living proof of the American dream.Violas father served in the Army during World War II. Viola became the first member of his family -- Italian immigrants living in Brooklyn -- to attend college, served in the 101st Airborne Division, then was part of the U.S. Army Reserve after his active duty.Hes a graduate of New York Law School, has long been involved with philanthropic projects and is a past winner of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.In 2003, he founded and helped fund the creation of the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point.He said he wont let us down, Caldwell said. ' ' '