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NEWARK, N.J. — Coach Lindy Ruff said he has never been as disappointed in a crucial game as he was watching the New Jersey Devils‘ humbling 6-1 Game 4 loss at home to the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night.

“That’s a hard one to explain. That’s about as poorly we’ve skated and supported the puck in any game this year,” said Ruff, whose team trails 3-1 in its Eastern Conference second-round series and faces elimination in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Thursday.

Ruff said the cohesion the Devils showed in their 8-4 win against Carolina in Game 3 was missing in action.

“We had guys that just went rogue. You can’t call that lack of experience. Even the power play turned into one man trying to do something and the next guy trying to do something,” he said. “There was no team effort. We weren’t good.”

Ruff said the effort reminded him of the first two losses of this series, as the Devils couldn’t build on the momentum from their Game 7 win over the rival New York Rangers and were outscored 11-2 by Carolina.

“I look at the way we played after Game 7 and it resembled some of this. Are we having a tough time dealing with a little bit of success? Play a really good game, and then you bounce back with a game like that?” he said. “Playoffs are hard. We didn’t make it to a high enough level to win a hockey game tonight.”

For the first half of the opening period, New Jersey looked like the team that rolled in Game 3, using speed and pinpoint breakouts to keep the Hurricanes on their heels. The Devils took a 1-0 lead on a Jack Hughes goal just 1:55 into Game 4.

But then things started to change. Carolina’s forecheck got going. The Devils’ breakouts were as sloppy as their neutral zone had become. Martin Necas tied the game at 1-1 with 2:20 left in the period. The vibe was shifting.

“We played great the first period. I don’t know what happened in second period,” goaltender Vitek Vanecek said.

The Devils goalie gave up a second goal to Necas at 7:26 of the second period, and then the onslaught was on. Defenseman Brett Pesce, forward Jesper Fast and defenseman Brent Burns all scored goals to build a 5-1 lead. In total, the Hurricanes scored four goals in 5:20 to chase Vanecek (five goals on 17 shots), who was pulled for rookie Akira Schmid, the goalie who started the first two losses of the series.

“If you look at how we played and what we gave up, I don’t think we should point the finger at the goaltender,” Ruff said of Vanecek. “Even if he gave us a fabulous effort, we didn’t skate well enough to really generate anything after that first period.”

The Devils were zombified after the Hurricanes took the lead.

“We just stopped playing,” captain Nico Hischier said.

“We got the wind taken out of our sails really bad there in the second period and it was unfortunate,” defenseman Damon Severson said. “We’re in the second round of the playoffs. Now we’re facing elimination. There wasn’t any pushback from us. It’s not fun losing that way. We didn’t give our fans something to cheer about tonight. So that’s on us.”

When the Devils lose in the playoffs, they lose big. They’ve been outscored in their six losses to the Rangers and Hurricanes by a count of 32-7.

“We get down and then every game’s kind of been like that for us. Just grows and grows. We started pretty good in the first period and then the late goal gave them some juice. And then they took it to us,” defenseman Dougie Hamilton said.

After their Game 3 loss, the Hurricanes not only responded with more effort but with tactical changes that didn’t allow the Devils to get to their speed game.

“It turned into a game of pingpong. Didn’t you see it there,” Ruff asked. “They got guys out of the zone. We got guys out of the zone. Their game was similar to our game. Try to spread the zone out. But again, it comes down to battles. It’s not tactical. Win your battles. Move your feet.”

Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour was happy with the way his team limited the Devils’ chances.

“We didn’t come here to win one game. We came here to win them both. But we didn’t,” he said. “But the guys understand that it goes like this sometimes. It’s always about how you respond.”

Now it’s on the Devils to respond on Thursday — or their season ends.

“It definitely sucks, but no time for feeling sorry about ourselves. Got to regroup, fast,” Hischier said.

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Cristobal: QB Beck cleared for summer workouts

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Cristobal: QB Beck cleared for summer workouts

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. — Miami coach Mario Cristobal said Monday that quarterback Carson Beck has been cleared to participate in all team summer activities and is approaching 100 percent following elbow surgery last year.

Cristobal said Beck has been throwing for the past three weeks as part of his rehab regimen. Beck missed all of spring practice and has yet to throw to Miami’s receivers as part of organized team activities. But that is all about to change when Miami begins summer workouts next week.

“He’s good to go,” Cristobal told ESPN at the ACC spring meetings. “He’s exceeding every benchmark.”

Beck underwent surgery on his right elbow to repair his ulnar collateral ligament, which he injured on the final play of the first half in second-ranked Georgia‘s 22-19 overtime win against Texas in the SEC championship game Dec. 7.

Beck started at Georgia for two seasons, going 24-3, and ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. had him rated as the No. 5 quarterback for the 2025 draft. But given his injury and inconsistent performance in 2024, Beck entered the portal in January. He quickly opted for Miami, where he will replace No. 1 NFL draft pick Cam Ward.

Beck threw for 7,426 yards over his two seasons as Georgia’s starter, fifth most among all FBS passers since 2023, with 57 total touchdowns and 23 turnovers.

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Canes LB Hayes out of hospital after tragic crash

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Canes LB Hayes out of hospital after tragic crash

Miami Hurricanes linebacker Adarius Hayes, who was one of the drivers in a two-vehicle crash that left three people dead and at least two others injured, has been released from the hospital, the university said Monday.

The three people who died as a result of the crash were all in a Kia Soul, which collided with a Dodge Durango being driven by Hayes on Saturday afternoon in Largo, Florida, police said.

A 78-year-old woman who was driving the Kia and two of her passengers — 10-year-old Jabari Elijah Solomon and 4-year-old Charlie Herbert Solomon Riveria — died in the crash, police said. Another passenger in the Kia was hospitalized with serious injuries, police said.

No tickets or criminal charges have been filed, though the investigation is continuing.

“We are deeply saddened to learn the crash resulted in three fatalities, as confirmed by Largo Police, and our thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of those lost,” the Hurricanes said in a statement.

The school is still working to gather further information.

“There were no signs of impairment with either driver of the vehicles,” Largo Police public information officer Megan Santo said in a statement distributed Sunday.

Hayes, a four-star recruit coming out of Largo High, played in 12 games for the Hurricanes as a freshman in 2024, mostly on special teams. He finished the season with four tackles and one interception, which he returned 25 yards in Miami’s 56-9 victory over Florida A&M on Sept. 7.

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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NCAA prez is open to Trump’s idea of commission

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NCAA prez is open to Trump's idea of commission

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. — NCAA president Charlie Baker said Monday he was “up for anything” when asked about a President Donald Trump-proposed commission on collegiate athletics.

Reports surfaced last week that Trump was going to create the commission.

While his conversations at ACC meetings with league football coaches, men’s and women’s basketball coaches, athletic directors and other school officials focused on governance and the pending House settlement, Baker was asked during an informal media availability for his thoughts on the presidential commission.

“I think the fact that there’s an interest on the executive side on this, I think it speaks to the fact that everybody is paying a lot of attention right now to what’s going on in college sports,” Baker said.

“I’m up for anything that can help us get somewhere.”

Baker noted the NCAA has already spent time in Washington asking for congressional help that is focused on three big issues. Among the biggest: a patchwork of state laws that relate to how collegiate athletics work in individual states; and whether student-athletes should be considered employees.

“I think [Congress] can help us. I really do,” ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said during an interview with ACC Network. “We have been very bold in the desire for a national standard when it comes to name, image and likeness. We need to make sure that we have something that comes out of Washington that connects all 50 of the states because we’ve had a piecemeal project and it’s really undermined college sports. It’s been a race to the bottom. So that’s one. Two is we need some legal protection. We cannot sustain one legal case after another legal case after another legal case. A reaffirmation that these are student-athletes. Those three things to me will be very important to see if that can come out of the commission.”

Baker said, “People in our office have talked to folks who are working on this, but I don’t think they’ve decided the framework around who they want to put on.”

When asked whether he felt the creation of a commission would enhance the NCAA’s chances at legislative relief, Baker said, “I don’t have a crystal ball on that one. I don’t know. I do think, though, that it’s quite clear at this point that there are a lot of people interested in college sports, and we do need some help at some point to create some clarity around some of these issues in Washington. Creating clarity one lawsuit at a time is just a really bad way to try to move forward.”

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