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Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals went about as well as it could have for the Florida Panthers. For the Carolina Hurricanes? Not so much.

Following a 5-2 win, the Panthers carry a 1-0 advantage into Game 2 (8 p.m. ET, TNT) on Thursday night.

Will the Hurricanes punch back before the series heads to South Florida? Which players will be most critical to each team’s success? Here are key players, matchup notes and stats to know from ESPN Research ahead of Game 2.

More: Game 1 recap | Grades

Matchup notes

Florida Panthers at Carolina Hurricanes
Game 2 | 8 p.m. ET | TNT

With the Panthers up 1-0, they are now -250 favorites to win the Eastern Conference finals, while the Hurricanes are +200, per ESPN BET. The Panthers now have the shortest odds to win the Stanley Cup, at +160, while the Canes have the longest, at +500.

The Panthers have scored 38 goals on the road this postseason, tied with the 2022 Avalanche for the most through a team’s first eight road games of a single postseason. They are outscoring opponents 17-4 on the road over their last three road contests. The 17 goals are their most in a three-game span on the road in a single postseason in franchise history

The Game 1 defeat was the Hurricanes’ 13th straight loss in the conference finals, going back to 2009. This extends the longest streak in NHL history for losses in the round before Stanley Cup Final; the next highest was the Toronto Maple Leafs with 10 straight losses between 1954-56.

Aaron Ekblad‘s goal in Game 1 gives the Panthers 12 from their defensemen this postseason. That is four more than any other team, and ties the franchise record for most in a single playoff run (both 2023 and 2024).

With goal No. 7 of the postseason, Sam Bennett became the third Panther to score seven or more goals in consecutive playoff runs, joining Carter Verhaeghe and Sam Reinhart (who both accomplished it in 2023 and 2024).

The Hurricanes’ penalty kill was a strength leading into the conference finals — they allowed two power-play goals on 30 chances. That wasn’t the case in Game 1, as they allowed two goals on three chances.

Sebastian Aho joined an impressive list with his Game 1 goal: He is now tied for the most goals in series-opening games in Whalers/Hurricanes history (with five). The others on the list are Ray Whitney, Andrei Svechnikov and his head coach, Rod Brind’Amour.


Current scoring leaders

GP: 11 | G: 4 | A: 8

GP: 13 | G: 4 | A: 9

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Rodriguez makes history with another 20-20 year

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Rodriguez makes history with another 20-20 year

SEATTLE — Julio Rodriguez homered to become the first player in major league history with 20 or more home runs and 20 or more stolen bases in each of his first four seasons, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers 5-4 on Sunday.

Rodriguez hit a two-run shot in the third inning — his 100th career homer — and the slugging and speedy center fielder also added his 21st stolen base of the season after singling in the fifth inning.

“That’s a very big accomplishment,” Rodríguez told reporters, according to MLB.com. “I know my family’s very happy, and I’m sure they’re thinking of all the things I had to do to be able to get here. To be able to do it with this team and this organization is awesome. I’m just excited to see where things are going to go from here.”

Jorge Polanco added a solo shot in the second, and shortstop J.P. Crawford smacked a two-run blast in the fourth against Rangers starter Jacob deGrom (10-4), who became the fastest pitcher in major league history to reach 1,800 career strikeouts by games and innings Sunday.

The Rangers kept things close by pushing across three runs against Mariners starter Logan Evans (5-4), but tallied only one run against the Mariners bullpen before closer Andrés Muñoz locked down his 25th save of the season.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Marlins def. Yankees, earn 1st-ever sweep of N.Y.

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Marlins def. Yankees, earn 1st-ever sweep of N.Y.

MIAMI — Kyle Stowers hit a three-run homer and the Miami Marlins defeated the New York Yankees 7-3 on Sunday, completing their first-ever sweep of the Yankees in a series of three or more games.

The Marlins (55-55) reached .500 for the first time since April 15, when the team was 8-8. Since June 13, the Marlins are 30-14; that’s tied with the 2003 team for the most wins in a 44-game span in franchise history, according to ESPN Research.

The 2003 Marlins went on to beat the Yankees in the World Series in six games.

Marlins starter Edward Cabrera (5-5) pitched six innings of two-hit ball with seven strikeouts and one walk. His only blemish came against the first batter he faced. Trent Grisham drove Cabrera’s 98.1 mph four-seam fastball to right-center.

Miami rookie Jakob Marsee, who made his major league debut on Friday, was 2-for-4 and finished a single short of the cycle.

Stowers made it 6-1 when he connected on an 0-2 fastball from Brent Headrick, who entered in the fourth with two on after starter Luis Gil (0-1) was lifted 3⅓ innings into his season debut.

Gil, the reigning AL Rookie of the Year, struck out three and surrendered five runs and five hits while issuing four walks in his return from a high-grade lat strain. He threw 77 pitches.

Gil’s shaky debut comes at a rough point in the season for the Yankees, whose inconsistency has prompted a rash of criticism, the latest coming from former Yankees stars Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez on Fox’s pregame show Saturday night.

“They make way too many mistakes,” Jeter said. “Way too many mistakes, and you can’t get away with making that number of mistakes against great teams.”

Added Rodriguez: “Where’s the accountability?”

Boone addressed those criticisms before Sunday’s game, saying it comes with the territory of being the Yankees, but he added after the loss that it’s “gut-check” time for his club.

New York’s weekend series at Miami included the Yankees blowing a six-run lead in a wild 13-12 loss on Friday, before a 2-0 loss on Saturday.

The Yankees had a seven-game lead in the AL East in late May. By July 2, the lead was gone and the Yankees have been looking up at Toronto in the division ever since. The red-hot Boston Red Sox, who were more than 10 games behind the Yankees about two months ago, have overtaken their rival for the second spot in the AL East and AL wild-card lead.

“It’s getting late,” Boone said. “And it’s certainly not too late for us. I am confident that we’re going to get it together. But that’s all it is right now is, you know, it’s empty until we start doing it.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Rodriguez makes history with 4th 20-20 season

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Rodriguez makes history with another 20-20 year

SEATTLE — Julio Rodriguez homered to become the first player in major league history with 20 or more home runs and 20 or more stolen bases in each of his first four seasons, and the Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers 5-4 on Sunday.

Rodriguez hit a two-run shot in the third inning — his 100th career homer — and the slugging and speedy center fielder also added his 21st stolen base of the season after singling in the fifth inning.

Jorge Polanco added a solo shot in the second, and shortstop J.P. Crawford smacked a two-run blast in the fourth against Rangers starter Jacob deGrom (10-4), who became the fastest pitcher in major league history to reach 1,800 career strikeouts by games and innings Sunday.

The Rangers kept things close by pushing across three runs against Mariners starter Logan Evans (5-4), but tallied only one run against the Mariners bullpen before closer Andrés Muñoz locked down his 25th save of the season.

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