Kraken ride second-period outburst, thump Stars 7-2
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Kraken ride second-period outburst, thump Stars 7-2

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SEATTLE (AP) — The demands of a seven-game series in the opening round and the immediate transition into the conference semifinals left the Seattle Kraken needing a breather.

An extra day off proved wonders for the playoff newcomers.

Jordan Eberle sparked a five-goal outburst in the second period with his fourth goal of the playoffs, Philipp Grubauer made 24 saves and the Kraken beat the Dallas Stars 7-2 on Sunday night to take a 2-1 series lead in their Western Conference semifinal.

“We’ve been going steady here every other day since the start of the playoffs,” Eberle said. “So you get a couple of days off, not just for your body but for your mind, too.”

Seven different Seattle players scored and 12 different players picked up a point as the rejuvenated Kraken took control of the series.

Eberle got it all started as the recipient of an unfortunate bounce, beating Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger at 2:10 of the second period after the puck hit Stars defenceman Miro Heiskanen in the face and fell to Eberle’s stick.

That was just the start. Alex Wennberg doubled the lead 1:26 after Eberle’s goal; Carson Soucy became Seattle’s 16th different goal scorer this post-season, beating Oettinger five-hole at 6:30; and Matty Beniers made it 4-0 at 8:22.

Seattle’s first four shots of the period beat Oettinger, and the Kraken made it 5-1 when Eeli Tolvanen finished a rebound with 37 seconds left in the period.

“We wanted to get into it early. I think that’s why the physical play helped us and then after our first period, we kind of realized we’re fresh, we got some momentum and then we just took it and ran in the second,” Soucy said.

It was the second time in three games of the series that Oettinger had surrendered five goals after Dallas lost the opener 5-4 in overtime. Oettinger gave up four goals in the first period of Game 1 and Seattle became the first team this post-season to score five times in a single period.

Oettinger had 12 saves on 17 shots and was replaced for the third period by backup Scott Wedgewood. Wedgewood was greeted with a short-handed breakaway by Seattle and Yanni Gourde’s third goal of the playoffs on the Kraken’s first shot of the third period. Justin Schultz added a seventh for Seattle with 2:30 left on the power play.

Game 4 is Tuesday night.

“They came out and played hard tonight. We probably deserved what we got,” Dallas’ Jamie Benn said. “They were the hungry team.”

It’s the second straight series the Stars split the first two games at home only to be routed in Game 3. Dallas lost 5-1 to Minnesota in Game 3 in the opening round before winning the final three games of the series.

“I think the good news is it really mirrors our Game 3 in Minnesota. We were in the exact same spot, and we played pretty much the exact game,” Dallas coach Pete DeBoer said. “We responded the right way in that series, and we gotta make sure that happens here.”

Equally concerning for the Stars was Heiskanen, who was left bloodied on his left cheek by the puck to the face and did not return to the game. The original shot from Tye Kartye appeared to deflect off Ryan Suter’s stick and Heiskanen was not prepared for the ricochet.

DeBoer said the score played a role in the decision not to have Heiskanen return, but didn’t provide clarity on whether he’d be available for Game 4.

Meanwhile, Grubauer was excellent again for Seattle. Mason Marchment pulled Dallas within 4-1 late in the second period finishing a one-timer from Evgenii Dadonov, but Grubauer was very good the rest of the period with breakaway saves on Roope Hintz and Jason Robertson, and a lunging save with his blocker on a deflected puck that looked to be going over his head and toward the net.

Jani Hakanpää scored his first of the playoffs with 13 minutes left.

“That team on the other side can score and they can score in bunches, and their veteran presence can find momentum in those situations, so (Grubauer) was key at those times for us,” Seattle coach Dave Hakstol said.

SWEET 16

According to the NHL, the Kraken are the fifth team in the past 25 years to have 16 different players score a goal within the first 10 games of a single post-season. That group doesn’t include Jared McCann, who led Seattle with 40 goals in the regular season, but has been out since Game 4 of the opening round due to injury.

WATCH PARTY CANCELLED

The Stars cancelled a watch party that was planned during Sunday’s game in the plaza outside their home arena. That is less than 50 kilometres from a Texas outlet mall where an assailant killed eight people on Saturday. The Stars said they cancelled the watch party outside the American Airlines Center out of respect for the victims, families and community of Allen.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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Jays reliever Green and Canadian slugger O’Neill nominated for comeback player award

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NEW YORK – Toronto Blue Jays reliever Chad Green and Canadian slugger Tyler O’Neill of the Boston Red Sox were named finalists for the Major League Baseball Players’ Association’s American League comeback player award on Monday.

Chicago White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet was the other nominee.

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. were named player of the year finalists.

The award winners, selected via player voting, will be named Saturday before Game 2 of the World Series.

Green, who missed most of the 2022 and ’23 seasons after undergoing Tommy John surgery, was a high-leverage option for the Blue Jays this past season and filled in at closer over the second half of the campaign.

The right-hander converted his first 16 save opportunities and finished the year with a 4-6 record, 17 saves and a 3.21 earned-run average over 53 appearances.

O’Neill, a native of Burnaby, B.C., also endured back-to-back injury-plagued seasons in ’22 and ’23.

After being traded to the Red Sox in the off-season, O’Neill set an MLB record by hitting a homer in his fifth straight Opening Day. He finished with 31 homers on the year and had an OPS of .847.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Panthers’ Reinhart named NHL first star after posting nine points over four games

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NEW YORK – Florida Panthers centre Sam Reinhart was named NHL first star of the week on Monday after leading all players with nine points over four games last week.

Reinhart had four goals, five assists and a plus-seven rating to help the Stanley Cup champions post a 3-0-1 record on the week and move into first place in the Atlantic Division.

New York Rangers left-winger Artemi Panarin took the second star and Minnesota Wild goaltenderFilip Gustavsson was the third star.

Panarin had eight points (4-4) over three games.

Gustavsson became the 15th goalie in NHL history to score a goal and had a 1.00 goals-against average and .962 save percentage over a pair of victories.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Browns QB Deshaun Watson’s season ended by ruptured Achilles tendon, team said he’ll have surgery

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CLEVELAND (AP) — Deshaun Watson won’t finish the season as Cleveland’s starting quarterback for the second straight year.

He’s injured again, and the Browns have new problems.

Watson ruptured his right Achilles tendon in the first half of Sunday’s loss to Cincinnati, collapsing as he began to run and leading some Browns fans to cheer while the divisive QB laid on the ground writhing in pain.

The team feared Watson’s year was over and tests done Monday confirmed the rupture. The Browns said Watson will have surgery and miss the rest of the season but “a full recovery is expected.”

Watson was injured on a noncontact play in the second quarter of Cleveland’s 21-14 loss to the Bengals and carted off the field in tears.

It’s the second significant injury in two seasons for Watson, who broke the glenoid (socket) bone in his throwing shoulder last year after just six starts.

The 29-year-old went down Sunday without being touched on a draw play late in the first half. His right leg buckled and Watson crumpled to the turf. TV replays showed his calf rippling, consistent with an Achilles injury.

He immediately put his hands on his helmet, clearly aware of the severity of an injury similar to the one Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers sustained last year.

As he was being assisted by the team’s medical staff and backup Dorian Thompson-Robinson grabbed a ball to begin warming up, there was some derisive cheers and boos from the stands in Huntington Bank Field.

Cleveland fans have been split over Watson, who has been accused of being sexually inappropriate with women.

The reaction didn’t sit well with several Watson’s teammates, including star end Myles Garrett, the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, who was appalled by the fans’ behavior.

“We should be ashamed of ourselves as Browns and as fans to boo anyone and their downfall. To be season-altering, career-altering injury,” Garrett said. “Man’s not perfect. He doesn’t need to be. None of us are expected to be perfect. Can’t judge him for what he does off the field or on the field because I can’t throw stones for my glass house.

“Ultimately everyone’s human and they’re disappointed just like we are, but we have to be better than that as people. There’s levels to this. At the end of the day, it’s just a game and you don’t boo anybody being injured and you don’t celebrate anyone’s downfall.”

Backup quarterback Jameis Winston also admonished the uncomfortable celebration.

“I am very upset with the reaction to a man that has had the world against him for the past four years, and he put his body and life on the line for this city every single day,” he said. “The way I was raised, I will never pull on a man when he’s down, but I will be the person to lift him up.

“I know you love this game. When I first got here, I knew these were some amazing fans, but Deshaun was treated badly and now he has to overcome another obstacle. So I’m going to support him, I’m going to lift him up and I’m going to be there for him.”

The injury is yet another twist in Watson’s tumultuous time with the Browns.

Cleveland traded three first-round draft picks and five overall to Houston in 2022 to get him, with owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam approving the team giving Watson a fully guaranteed, five-year $230 million contract.

With a solid roster, the Browns were desperate to find a QB who could help them compete against the top AFC teams.

The Browns had moved on from Baker Mayfield despite drafting him No. 1 overall in 2018 and making the playoffs two seasons later.

But Watson has not played up to expectations — fans have been pushing for him to be benched this season — and Cleveland’s move to get him has been labeled an abject failure with the team still on the hook to pay him $46 million in each of the next two seasons.

Watson’s arrival in Cleveland also came amid accusations by more than two dozen women of sexual assault and harassment during massage therapy sessions while he played for the Texans. Two grand juries declined to indict him and he has settled civil lawsuits in all but one of the cases.

Watson was suspended by the NFL for his first 11 games and fined $5 million for violating the league’s personal conduct policy before he took his first snap with the Browns. The long layoff — he sat out the 2021 season in a contract dispute — led to struggles once he got on the field, and Watson made just six starts last season before hurting his shoulder.

Cleveland signed veteran Joe Flacco, who went 4-1 as a starter and led the Browns to the playoffs.

Before Watson got hurt this year, he didn’t play much better. He was one of the league’s lowest-rated passers for a Cleveland team that hasn’t scored 20 points in a game and is back in search of a franchise QB.

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