NHL
Carter Verhaeghe scored the game-winner at 8:35 of overtime to lead the Florida Panthers to a 4-3 Game 7 victory and eliminate the record-setting Boston Bruins from the playoffs. Brandon Montour tied it with 1 minute left in regulation to force the overtime. Sergei Bobrovsky made 28 saves as the Panthers won three in a row after falling behind 3-1 in the series. They advance in the postseason for just the second time since reaching the Stanley Cup Final in 1996. The Panthers open the second round against the Maple Leafs in Toronto on Tuesday night. Boston rallied from a two-goal deficit to take a 3-2 lead. 2) The Bruins set NHL records with 65 wins and 135 points in the regular season but become the second Presidents’ Trophy winner in five years to lose in the first round.
Oliver Bjorkstrand scored twice, Philipp Grubauer was stellar in stopping 33 shots and the Seattle Kraken eliminated the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche with a 2-1 win in Game 7. The Kraken became the first expansion team to beat the reigning champs in their inaugural playoff series, according to NHL Stats. Bjorkstrand scored one goal off a fortuitous deflection — the puck hit off a stick and glove — and another with a liner past goaltender Alexandar Georgiev that clanged off the post. Seattle grabbed the lead in every game in the series. Next up for the second-year Kraken is a second-round series against Dallas. Colorado has now lost its last six Game 7s.
Meanwhile, The New Jersey Devils and the New York Rangers face off in game seven of their first round of the NHL Playoffs in New Jersey tonight at 8.
NBA
Jimmy Butler had 25 points and 11 rebounds, and the No. 8-seeded Miami Heat kept rolling after barely reaching the postseason, beating the New York Knicks 108-101 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Gabe Vincent scored 20 points for the Heat, who became the sixth No. 8 seed to beat a No. 1 when they toppled Milwaukee in the first round. They continue to look nothing like a team that needed to win a play-in game just to get the final postseason berth in the East. RJ Barrett scored 26 points and Jalen Brunson had 25 for the fifth-seeded Knicks, who were without Julius Randle.
Stephen Curry scored a playoff career-high 50 points and answered time and again to will the defending champions on in their quest for a repeat, Kevon Looney grabbed 21 rebounds, and the Golden State Warriors advanced to the Western Conference semifinals by beating the Sacramento Kings 120-100 in the winner-take-all Game 7. Curry’s points are the most in NBA history in a Game 7, topping former teammate Kevin Durant’s 48 for the Nets against Milwaukee in 2021. The Warriors fell behind 2-0 in this series then won twice on the road in front of a hostile, cowbell-clanging crowd in the state capital to become the first reigning champion to drop the first two games and win any postseason series.
Grizzlies sparkplug Dillon Brooks is being fined $25,000 for not talking to the media after some of Memphis' losses in its first-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Lakers. The NBA says Brooks violated league rules for “media interview access” by not participating in “team postgame media availability” during the playoffs. Brooks bolted from the Memphis locker room after Friday’s series loss before reporters were allowed inside.
The Phoenix Suns’ star quartet of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton looked mighty average in their Game 1 loss to the Denver Nuggets. Now it’s gut check time when the Suns try to even the series in Game 2 on Monday in Denver. There’s certainly reason to believe the Suns have what it takes to bounce back. Phoenix lost Game 1 to the Los Angeles Clippers in the opening round before reeling off four straight wins to advance. The biggest problem for Phoenix? This Denver team appears vastly superior to the Clippers team the Suns eliminated in round one.
Meanwhile, Philadelphia is at Boston for game 1 of the second round series tonight at 7:30.
Phoenix at Denver 10 p.m.
NFL DRAFT
The Texans got two of the best players in the NFL draft in the first three picks. The Eagles added three more defensive standouts from Georgia. While it takes two or three years to judge whether players panned out, it’s easy to identify the potential winners of the 2023 NFL draft. Houston selected quarterback C.J. Stroud at No. 2 and traded up to get Alabama edge rusher Will Anderson Jr. with the third pick. In a 10-minute span, the Texans added two players who could dramatically change the future of the franchise. Defending NFC champion Philadelphia needed to replenish the defense so it looked toward the two-time national champion Bulldogs.
The 2024 NFL draft class could quickly transform losers into winners. With a full season of college football still to be played, two future franchise quarterbacks are already being penciled into the top of draft boards: Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams of Southern California and North Carolina’s Drake Maye. Things can change, of course, but barring injuries the top prospects in 2024 should include the two QBs, a wider receiver with Hall of Fame bloodlines, a couple of foundational left tackles and several Alabama defensive players.
The New York Jets finished a busy week that started by trading for Aaron Rodgers and was capped by adding seven young players in the NFL draft. Building in the trenches was the theme for the Jets early on, starting with the selection Thursday night of edge rusher Will McDonald with the 15th overall pick. Wisconsin center Joe Tippmann was New York’s second-round pick Friday night. Pittsburgh offensive tackle Carter Warren went in the fourth round. The Jets also added Pitt running back Israel Abanikanda, Western Michigan linebacker Zaire Barnes, LSU cornerback Jarrick Bernard-Converse and Old Dominion tight end Zack Kuntz.
The New York Giants capped their second draft under general manager Joe Schoen by adding four players on Saturday. Schoen was happy with the seven players he selected and excited about the three taken in the first three rounds. Cornerback Deonte Banks of Maryland, center John Michael Schmitz of Minnesota and dynamic receiver Jalin Hyatt of Tennessee could start right away. The last four players the Giants added were Oklahoma running back Eric Gray, Old Dominion cornerback Tre Hawkins III, Oregon defensive tackle Jordon Riley and Houston safety Gervarrius Owens.
Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane placed an emphasis on upgrading his offensive talent around Josh Allen in the NFL draft. Beane used Buffalo's first two selections on offensive players. Buffalo traded a fourth-round pick to move up two spots in the order to draft Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid at No. 25. Beane then provided Allen some protection by using his second-round pick to draft hulking Florida guard O'Cyrus Torrence. The focus on offense comes following a season in which the Bills stagnated, and Allen acknowledged he was trying to do too much.
After focusing exclusively on defense with their first three picks, the New England Patriots used the final day of the NFL draft to address their offense and special teams. The Patriots entered Saturday expecting to be busy with nine draft picks spread over the final four rounds. They came in as one of two teams to not draft an offensive player during the first two days, but ended up spending multiple picks on offensive linemen and wide receivers. The possibility of New England featuring rookies at both punter and kicker is in play after it used some of the team’s draft capital to select players from each position. Shifting to the other two phases of the game after the Patriots stocked up on defenders starting with their first pick — cornerback Christian Gonzalez — on Thursday. Defense remained the focus on Friday with the additions of edge rusher Keion White and safety-linebacker hybrid Marte Mapu. On Saturday, New England completed its draft class with center Jake Andrews (fourth round), kicker Chad Ryland (fourth), guard Sidy Sow (fourth), guard Atonio Mafi (fifth), receiver Kayshon Boutte (sixth), punter Bryce Baringer (sixth), receiver Demario Douglas (sixth), cornerback/special teams Ameer Speed (sixth), and defensive back/kick returner Isaiah Bolden (seventh).
MLB
Connor Wong hit a two-run homer, Alex Verdugo singled home a pair of runs and added a late solo homer, and the Boston Red Sox beat the Cleveland Guardians 7-1 on a cold and rainy day at Fenway Park. Chris Sale struck out five, holding the Guardians to three hits over 6 1/3 innings. Boston climbed one game above .500. Christian Arroyo added a two-run double during a three-run seventh inning that sealed it for the Red Sox. Rookie Logan Allen got the loss but held Boston to one hit through the first four innings before getting tagged for two runs.
Josh Jung hit a first-inning grand slam against Nestor Cortes, Nathanial Lowe and Adolis García added home runs off the All-Star, and the Texas Rangers routed the Yankees 15-2 and sent slumping New York to its sixth loss in eight games. Cortes had the worst outing of his Yankees career, allowing seven runs and five hits in 4 2/3 innings along with four of New York’s eight walks. Fellow All-Star Martín Pérez gave up one run and six hits in six innings for Texas, which has won three straight following a four-game losing streak.
Jake Meyers homered, Martín Maldonado broke out of his slump with an RBI double and the Houston Astros defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 4-3 to avoid a three-game sweep. The Astros beat Philadelphia in six games to win last year’s World Series. But the Phillies dominated the first two games of the rematch, winning by a combined score of 9-2. Houston finally mustered some offense Sunday night to end the weekend on a high note. Kody Clemens homered for a second straight game and J.T. Realmuto also went deep for the Phillies, who had won a season-best four in a row. Ryan Pressly threw a perfect ninth for his third save.
Josiah Gray pitched six strong innings, Joey Meneses had four hits and the Washington Nationals finally cooled off the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-2 in a game delayed nearly 2 1/2 hours by rain. Jeimer Candelario and Victor Robles each had an early two-run double for Washington, which had lost three straight. Luis García delivered a two-run single in the second, and every Nationals starter got at least one hit. The surprising Pirates had won four straight and 11 of 12. Pittsburgh finished April with a 20-9 record. Gray allowed one run on three hits and three walks while striking out six. He retired 10 of the last 11 batters he faced
Atlanta at N-Y Mets was postponed yesterday due to rain and the Braves will take on the Mets this afternoon at 1:10.
Star slugger Bryce Harper could return to the Philadelphia Phillies lineup as early as Tuesday if an exam on his surgically repaired right elbow goes well. On Monday in Los Angeles, the two-time National League MVP will visit Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who performed Tommy John surgery on Harper last November. Harper will learn if he’s cleared to play.
Texas Rangers ace Jacob deGrom is frustrated he’s landed on the injured list with right forearm tightness. He’s hoping the inflammation goes down in the next couple of days and he can resume throwing. DeGrom exited after 3 2/3 innings in his last start against the New York Yankees on Friday night. It's the second time in his past three starts that he left early with an injury. DeGrom signed a $185 million, five-year contract with the Rangers in December after leaving the New York Mets. He is 2-0 with a 2.67 ERA over 30 1/3 innings in his first six starts with Texas. He’s taking a wait-and-see attitude on whether he’ll be ready to come off the IL when he’s eligible to return on May 14.
MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER
Final tie FC Dallas 0 Minnesota 0
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