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LAS VEGAS — A healthy scratch to start the series, Ty Dellandrea scored two pivotal, third-period goals in the Dallas Stars‘ 4-2 victory on Saturday against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals.

The win kept the Stars’ season alive for at least two more days. Game 6 is Monday night in Dallas.

Dellandrea’s winning and insurance goals also came with another accomplishment in that it guaranteed Stars captain Jamie Benn will return for Game 6 after being suspended for the past two games for a cross-check on Golden Knights captain Mark Stone in Game 3.

“It’s a lot of desperation, we have a lot to play for here,” Dellandrea said. “Our group’s really come together and leaned on one another. Guys have stepped up. … We’ve really been leaning on one another and playing for a lot here. It’s been a group effort for sure.”

Stars defenseman Thomas Harley set up Dellandrea’s goal by breaking up a Golden Knights’ entry with his stick, passing it to Joel Kiviranta, who then played a diagonal cross-ice pass to Dellandrea for what was a 1-on-3 rush.

Creating time and space was a challenge, yet Dellandrea temporarily had both right when he launched a wrist shot from the top of the right faceoff circle. Even then? His window started to close when Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo tried closing down on the shot only to have the puck deflect off his stick and sneak just underneath Adin Hill‘s glove to give the Stars a 3-2 lead with 9:27 remaining in the third period.

Barely 90 seconds later, Dellandrea scored again to practically guarantee Game 6.

Golden Knights defenseman Zach Whitecloud was behind the net when he tried playing the puck off the boards that led to Stars forward Max Domi scooping a loose puck that he tried throwing on net as he was being pushed from behind. Dellandrea recovered the rebound and lifted a shot over Hill to double the lead with 7:58 remaining.

Dellandrea said after Game 4 that he’s been more mindful about utilizing his shot which led to him referencing a scoring chance he felt he should have converted in Game 5.

“It shows how special you are when you get taken out and it’s he didn’t make it about him,” Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger said of Dellandrea, who is one of his closest friends on the team. “It’s all about the team. He wanted us to win. When you get your opportunity to step up and that’s what he did. I’m so proud of him. I tell him to shoot it all the time. He’s got a great shot, so, I’m happy it was him.”

Finding secondary and tertiary scoring became a priority for the Stars considering Benn was suspended and that Evgenii Dadonov suffered a lower-body injury early in Game 3 that has led to him missing the last two games.

Dellandrea’s goals helped fill that void. So did the second-period goal by Luke Glendening, who has now scored two goals in 16 playoff games after scoring three goals in 70 regular-season games.

Now add what Jason Robertson has achieved to this point for the Stars in the conference final. A 100-point scorer in the regular season, he didn’t score in the second round. But in the conference final, he’s become one of the Stars’ most consistent players. He scored the first game-tying goal, which means he’s accounted for five of the 12 goals the Stars have scored against the Golden Knights in this round.

Those contributions add to the composite of how the Stars are among the deepest teams in the playoffs. They’ve had 16 players score at least one goal in the postseason — the same number as the Golden Knights.

It’s another reason why Benn’s return has a chance to be crucial. It gives the Stars a forward who scored 33 goals in the regular season and has added to those totals with 11 points in 16 playoff games before his suspension.

“Our whole thought process was we win two games, and we get him back,” Glendening said of Benn. “[We] didn’t want his season to end that way and wanted to give him the opportunity to play again.”

Benn’s return for Game 6 on Monday could also lead to one of two outcomes.

Either the Golden Knights will win the series and advance to the Stanley Cup Final to face the Florida Panthers.

Or the Stars will tie the series and return for Game 7 with a chance to advance to their second Stanley Cup Final in four seasons.

Yet what makes the Stars’ recent accomplishments even more intriguing is the context that comes with teams that have trailed in a series. The Panthers rallied from a 3-1 hole in the first round to upset the Boston Bruins before they eventually punched their ticket to what is just the second Cup final appearance in franchise history.

And there’s also a bit of the personal experience Stars coach Pete DeBoer has when it comes to mounting a comeback. DeBoer was in charge of the San Jose Sharks when they fell into a 3-1 hole in the 2018-19 playoffs before they won the series in seven games.

The opponent? It was the Golden Knights.

“I don’t think you can compare any series to any other series,” DeBoer said. “But I know our group and we weren’t happy about being in the hole we were in, and they’ve decided to do something about it. Now, we’re rolling.”

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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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