The Carolina Hurricanes scored twice in the final 80 seconds to stun the New Jersey Devils 4-3 on Tuesday and advance to the NHL Eastern Conference semi-finals with the Game Seven victory.
The win before 17,625 stunned fans at the Prudential Center gave Carolina a 4-3 victory and put them into a best-of-seven series against the top-seeded Boston Bruins.
The second-seeded Washington Capitals, who advanced with a 2-1 Game Seven victory against the New York Rangers on Tuesday, will meet the fourth-ranked Pittsburgh Penguins in the other conference semi-final.
PHOTO: EPA
The Devils appeared poised to advance with NHL all-time wins leader Martin Brodeur protecting a 3-2 lead when Jussi Jokinen blasted home the equalizer off a pass from Joni Pitkanen at 1:20.
With 31.7 seconds remaining in regulation, Eric Staal beat Brodeur with another rocket from in close to seal an improbable victory for sixth-seeded Carolina.
“We were battling so hard the whole third period,” Jokinen told reporters by his locker. “We had some chances, they had some chances. Then Joni had a great pass to me and I had a great shot. It’s a great feeling. Obviously it feels good if you can be a difference maker in a game like that.”
PHOTO: EPA
CAPITALS 2, RANGERS 1
At Washington, thanks to sage Sergei Fedorov and a monumental comeback, the home side headed to the second round of the playoffs for the first time in more than a decade.
The 39-year-old Fedorov beat New York goalie Henrik Lundqvist with 4:59 left in the third period for the Capitals to become the 21st team in NHL history to win a series after trailing 3-1.
It’s also the franchise’s first series victory since the 1997-1998 season, when Washington made it all the way to the Stanley Cup finals. It must feel particularly sweet to the 16 players who were on the team a year ago, when the Capitals also trailed 3-1 in the first round, and also forced a Game 7 at home — only to lose to Philadelphia in overtime.
New York’s Nik Antropov and Washington’s Alexander Semin traded first-period goals. Fedorov, a three-time Stanley Cup winner with Detroit, took a pass from Matt Bradley on his winner and, with Rangers defenseman Wade Redden screening Lundqvist, sent a shot inside the far post.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Team Taiwan avoided missing the World Baseball Classic (WBC) for the first time by defeating Spain 6-3 in a do-or-die game in Taipei last night. After narrowly escaping a mercy-rule loss to Spain in the WBC Qualifiers opener on Friday last week, the home team — winner of last year's WBSC Premier12 title three months ago — got their revenge against the 2023 European champions at Taipei Dome. "It felt quite different from when we won the Premier12," Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) said after the game, recalling the ups and downs the team has experienced over the past few days. Unlike in
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tomorrow for the final berth at next year's World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome yesterday. The home team's loss means that Nicaragua finishes No. 1 in the qualifier round held in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to the games. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier yesterday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan, competing under the name Chinese Taipei, finished third, while South Africa placed at the bottom
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