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NEWARK, N.J. — The New Jersey Devils won their first playoff series in 11 years, eliminating the rival New York Rangers in Game 7, 4-0, with a dominant defensive effort to claim victory in the Battle of the Hudson.

Rookie goalie Akira Schmid made 31 saves for his second shutout of the playoffs, having taken over as starter in Game 3 with his club trailing the series at the time, 2-0.

The Devils advance to take on the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round of the Eastern Conference playoffs, starting Wednesday night in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes eliminated the New York Islanders in six games.

For the Rangers, it was a frustrating end to a promising season. New York made the Eastern Conference Final last season and loaded up at the NHL trade deadline with star wingers Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko, both pending free agents. They won the first two games of the series in New Jersey, only to see the Devils roll off three straight wins. New York pushed it to a seventh game with a win at home in Game 6, only to fall short.

The Devils took a 1-0 lead on a spectacular bit of penalty killing by Ondrej Palat. With Jesper Bratt in the penalty box for tripping, Palat hounded both defenseman Adam Fox and forward Chris Kreider in their own zone, eventually forcing a turnover. The Rangers’ Mika Zibanejad made a desperation slide to cut off Palat from the Rangers’ net, but he found teammate Michael McLeod with a pass. McLeod sent a slow-motion backhand shot into the net at 9:53 of the second period.

New Jersey made it 2-0 on a play that started with a brilliant rush to the net by defenseman John Marino. Shesterkin made the save, Marino controlled the puck and sent it back towards the crease. That’s where Tomas Tatar quickly flicked the puck behind Shesterkin at 15:39 of the second, and the Devils carried that lead into the second intermission.

The third period saw emotions run hotter after Rangers captain Jacob Trouba administered yet another thunderous hit in the playoffs, as he did several times last postseason. As the Devils’ Timo Meier cut through the middle of the Rangers zone, Trouba tucked his arm in and laid Meier out. The Devils winger was flat on his back until finally leaving the ice on his own for the dressing room. Trouba wasn’t penalized.

The Devils put a dagger in their rivals at 14:27 of the third period on an Erik Haula goal, which sent many of the Rangers fans that had invaded Prudential Center walked towards the exits. Jesper Bratt added an empty netter for the 4-0 win.

For the Devils, the game was a microcosm of the rest of the series — for better and for worse.

They exhibited the lack of discipline that helped the Rangers using their power play to win three games in the series, including the first two in New Jersey. The Devils handed their rivals four power-play chances in the first two periods. They weren’t just tempting fate; they were also keeping their best offensive players off the ice while killing those penalties.

But kill them they did, which was indicative of another series-long trend in the Devils’ wins: Controlling play with their speed, puck possession and defense. They were careful with the puck and patient on their passes. When they needed him, Schmid was there for several key saves. They included high-dangers chances by Artemi Panarin and Kane, and a flashy glove stop on a Vincent Trocheck late in the third period.

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Cubs blow lead in 10-run 8th, storm back in thriller

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Cubs blow lead in 10-run 8th, storm back in thriller

CHICAGO — Kyle Tucker had the fans on their feet, roaring and pumping their fists as he rounded the bases after hitting the go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning. His screaming line drive cleared the right-field wall with plenty of room to spare.

The Chicago Cubs went from giving up 10 runs in the eighth to scoring six in the bottom half and beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 13-11 on Friday in one of the wildest games on record.

The two teams combined for 21 runs in the seventh and eighth innings, with the Cubs scoring 11 runs and the D-backs plating 10. It was the first nine-inning game in MLB history in which both teams scored 10 or more runs from the seventh inning on, and the third game overall, according to ESPN Research.

“That’s kind of baseball,” Tucker said. “There’s a lot of ups and downs in this game, especially with how many games we play.”

There haven’t been many games like this, though.

The Cubs are just the seventh team in at least the past 125 seasons to allow 10 or more runs in an inning and win. They are also the fifth team to give up 10 or more runs and score six or more in the same inning.

The 16 combined runs in the eighth were the most in an inning at Wrigley Field, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

“If you’ve seen that one, you’ve been around for a while,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said with a laugh. “It was crazy. You know, we gave up 10 runs in an inning and we won. So it was a wild game, but we kept going, and, you know, there’s 27 outs in a game and this kind of proves it, and you’re just happy to get out with a win.”

On a warm day with the ball carrying, Carson Kelly homered twice. Ian Happ belted a grand slam and Seiya Suzuki went deep, helping the Cubs open a weekend series on a winning note.

“You’ve seen it early — having some tough losses, coming back winning the next day,” Happ said. “Losing the first game of the series, winning the series. Little things like that. Today’s a great example of professional hitters going out there and continuing to have really good at-bats.”

The way things transpired in the final two innings was something to see.

Kelly hit a two-run homer in the second against Corbin Burnes, and Happ came through with his grand slam against Ryne Nelson as part of a five-run seventh. But just when it looked as if the Cubs were in control with a 7-1 lead, things took a wild turn in the eighth.

Eugenio Suarez cut it to 7-5 with a grand slam against Porter Hodge, Geraldo Perdomo singled in a run and Randal Grichuk put Arizona on top by one with a two-run double. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit a three-run homer, making it 11-7.

The crowd of more than 39,000 let the Cubs hear it, but their team regrouped in the bottom half. Bryce Jarvis hit Nico Hoerner leading off and walked Pete Crow-Armstrong before Kelly drove a three-run homer to center. Tucker, the Cubs’ prized offseason addition, came through after Happ singled with one out. Suzuki followed with his drive against Joe Mantiply to give the Cubs a 13-11 lead.

Arizona, which had won five straight, became just the third team over the past 50 seasons to lose a game in which it had a 10-run inning at any point, according to ESPN Research.

“You just got to stay locked in,” Kelly said. “Obviously, you don’t want to … give up 10 in an inning. Obviously, you don’t want to do that. I think the biggest thing is coming back, regrouping and continuing to fight.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Chisholm suspended 1 game for conduct, tweet

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Chisholm suspended 1 game for conduct, tweet

Major League Baseball suspended New York Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. for one game and fined him an undisclosed amount, the result of his actions during Thursday night’s win against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Chisholm was ejected in the seventh inning by plate umpire John Bacon for arguing after a called third strike on a full-count pitch from Mason Montgomery that appeared low.

Minutes later, he posted on his X account, “Not even f—ing close!!!!!” then deleted the post.

“I didn’t think before I had anything that I said was ejectable but after probably,” Chisholm said after the game. “I’m a competitor, so when I go out there and I feel like I’m right and you’re saying something to me that I think doesn’t make sense, I’m going to get fired up and be upset.

“I lost my emotions. I lost my cool. I got to be better than that. … I’m definitely mad at myself for losing my cool.”

Michael Hill, the league’s senior vice president for on-field operations, said Friday’s discipline was for Chisholm’s “conduct, including his violation of Major League Baseball’s Social Media Policy for Major League Players.”

MLB regulations ban the use of electronic devices during games. The social media policy prohibits “displaying or transmitting content that questions the impartiality of or otherwise denigrates a major league umpire.”

Chisholm did appeal the decision, allowing him to play in Friday night’s 1-0 win against the Rays. He started at second base and went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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First-time father-to-be Ohtani away from Dodgers

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First-time father-to-be Ohtani away from Dodgers

ARLINGTON, Texas — Shohei Ohtani is away from the Los Angeles Dodgers for the birth of the two-way superstar’s first child.

Manager Dave Roberts said before the Dodgers’ series opener Friday night against the Rangers that Ohtani was with his wife and going on MLB’s paternity list.

“He and Mamiko are expecting at some point. That’s all I know,” Roberts said. “I don’t know when he’s going to come back and I don’t know when they’re going to have the baby, but obviously they’re together in anticipation.”

The 30-year-old Ohtani posted on his Instagram account in late December that he and his 28-year-old wife, a former professional basketball player from his native Japan, were expecting a baby in 2025.

“Can’t wait for the little rookie to join our family soon!” said the Dec. 28 post that included a photo showing the couple’s beloved dog, Decoy, as well as a pink ruffled onesie along with baby shoes and a sonogram that was covered by a baby emoji.

Ohtani can miss up to three games while on paternity leave. The Dodgers have a three-game series in Texas before an off day Monday, then play the Cubs in Chicago on Tuesday.

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