Tkachuk sends Panthers to Cup Final

Associated Press

SUNRISE, Fla. — Matthew Tkachuk delivered for Florida, again. Sergei Bobrovsky denied Carolina, again.

The wait is over: After 27 years, the Florida Panthers — a hockey punchline no more — are again going to play for the game’s grandest prize.

Tkachuk got his second goal of the game with 4.9 seconds left, lifting the Panthers past the Carolina Hurricanes 4-3 and into the Stanley Cup final for the first time since 1996.

Bobrovsky stopped 36 shots to cap his stellar series — four games, four one-goal wins, three of them basically in sudden death. The first two were in overtime, and this one may as well have been.

The Panthers will play either Vegas or Dallas for the Stanley Cup starting sometime next week; Vegas currently leads the Western Conference title series 3-0.

The Panthers scored 10 goals in the series, and Bobrovsky ensured those were all they needed. They were the No. 8 seed, the last team in, the longest of long shots.

And now, beasts of the East. Tkachuk arrived last summer saying he wanted to bring Florida a Cup. He’s four wins away.

“It’s amazing,” Bobrovsky said. “We showed the resilience ... and we’re lucky to have Chucky on our side. He knows how to score big goals.”

NHL Senior Vice President Brian Jennings was the one tasked with presenting the Prince of Wales Trophy. After some photos, Aleksander Barkov — the captain — grabbed it, and skated it away. Some teams touch it. Some don’t. A few of the Panthers did, but Barkov didn’t pass it around.

That’ll wait for the big prize.

Ryan Lomberg and Anthony Duclair had the other goals for Florida, which swept a series for the first time in franchise history.

Jordan Staal — his brothers Eric and Marc play for the Panthers — took a tripping penalty with 57 seconds left in regulation, setting up the power-play that Tkachuk finished off.

Jesper Fast seemed like he might have saved the season for Carolina, getting a tying goal with 3:22 left in regulation. Paul Stastny and Teuvo Teravainen had the first two goals of the night for the Hurricanes, while Brady Skjei and Jordan Martinook each had two assists.

But the night — the series, too — belonged to the Panthers. They were swept by Colorado in the 1996 final.

Towels waved, strobe lights flashed, and the fans wasted no time letting the Panthers know that they were ready to a clincher.

Tkachuk made it 2-0 on the power play midway through the first. Carolina — a 113-point, division-championship-winning team in the regular season — made it 2-1 later in the first on Stastny’s goal, and Teravainen tied it early in the second.

Lomberg’s goal midway through the second gave Florida the lead again. It stayed that way until Fast got the equalizer with 3:22 left, and then Tkachuk finished it off — getting the Panthers to the title round in his first season.

AROUND THE RINK

Panthers general manager Bill Zito was announced earlier Wednesday as a finalist for NHL GM of the year. ... Tkachuk’s two goals gave him 21 points in the playoffs — extending his Florida single-season postseason record, which was 17 by Dave Lowry in 1996. ... Slavin was quickly ruled out for the remainder of the game after Bennett’s hit, with what the Hurricanes said was “an upper-body injury.” Slavin wobbled as he tried to get to his feet. ... Miami Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel — who has also been a regular at Miami Heat games during their playoff run this spring — banged the drum before the game. When done, without a mic to drop, he simply dropped the mallet instead.

NEW YORK — Adam Frazier hit a three-run homer and pinch-hitter Gunnar Henderson had a go-ahead, two-run double in an eight-run seventh inning as Baltimore rallied and stopped New York’s season-high winning streak at five games. Baltimore sent 12 batters to the plate in the seventh against Nestor Cortes and the bullpen. It was the Orioles’ highest-scoring inning this season.

Ryan Mountcastle homered in the fourth inning, and Anthony Santander and Austin Hays had hit RBI singles in the seventh for the Orioles. New York’s Gleyber Torres hit a two-run homer in the third and a solo drive in the fifth, giving him nine homers this season and 14 career multi-homer games. Isiah Kiner-Falefa tripled and homered for the Yankees.

Brewers blank Astros 4-0

MILWAUKEE — Adrian Houser allowed two hits in 5 1/3 scoreless innings and Milwaukee homered three times in its win over Houston.

Willy Adames hit a two-run blast in the first inning to put the Brewers ahead for good. Owen Miller and Brian Anderson added solo shots in the seventh.

The Astros mustered four hits, two off their season low and went scoreless in the last two games of the series.

Houser struck out three and walked one in his fourth appearance of the season, which followed six shutout innings in a 1-0 loss at Tampa Bay.

The Brewers got all the offense they would need in the first inning against Astros starter Brandon Bielak (1-2). After Christian Yelich led off with a double to left, Willy Adames delivered a 429-foot blast over the center-field wall.

Stroman shines in Cubs win

CHICAGO — Marcus Stroman had his longest outing of the season, pitching eight efficient innings in Chicago’s 4-2 win over New York.

Nico Hoerner homered in Chicago’s second straight victory since coming home after a 2-7 trip. Seiya Suzuki also drove in a run with a double off Japanese countryman Kodai Senga.

Stroman (4-4) threw just 88 pitches, 59 for strikes. The right-hander allowed four hits, struck out three and walked two. Mark Leiter Jr. worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his second save.

6-1), 1:10 p.m.

Baseball

Jr., Toronto, .300; Yoshida, Boston, .300; Semien, Texas, .299.

RUNS —Semien, Texas, 45; A.García, Texas, 41; N.Lowe, Texas, 37; Verdugo, Boston, 37; Y.Díaz, Tampa Bay, 35; Robert Jr., Chicago, 34; Arozarena, Tampa Bay, 33; Jung, Texas, 33; Judge, New York, 32; Ju.Rodríguez, Seattle, 32; Trout, Los Angeles, 32.

RBI —A.García, Texas, 49; Alvarez, Houston, 46; Devers, Boston, 44; Semien, Texas, 40; Mullins, Baltimore, 39; Arozarena, Tampa Bay, 37; J.Lowe, Tampa Bay, 34; Jung, Texas, 34; Mountcastle, Baltimore, 34; Judge, New York, 33; Heim, Texas, 33; Tucker, Houston, 33; Guerrero Jr., Toronto, 33.

HITS —Bichette, Toronto, 68; Semien, Texas, 60; Rizzo, New York, 57; N.Lowe, Texas, 56; E.Ruiz, Oakland, 56; M.Chapman, Toronto, 55; Guerrero Jr., Toronto, 54; Arozarena, Tampa Bay, 53; Franco, Tampa Bay, 53; Verdugo, Boston, 53.

DOUBLES —M.Chapman, Toronto, 19; N.Lowe, Texas, 16; Franco, Tampa Bay, 15; Verdugo, Boston, 15; Benintendi, Chicago, 14; Ja.Duran, Boston, 13; T.France, Seattle, 13; Pasquantino, Kansas City, 13; Robert Jr., Chicago, 13; E.Ruiz, Oakland, 13; Vaughn, Chicago, 13.

TRIPLES —Rosario, Cleveland, 4; Witt Jr., Kansas City, 4; Mullins, Baltimore, 3; 15 tied at 2.

HOME RUNS —Judge, New York, 14; A.García, Texas, 14; Robert Jr., Chicago, 13; Devers, Boston, 13; Alvarez, Houston, 12; 10 tied at 11.

STOLEN BASES —E.Ruiz, Oakland, 25; Franco, Tampa Bay, 14; Mateo, Baltimore, 14; Merrifield, Toronto, 14; Witt Jr., Kansas City, 14; Mullins, Baltimore, 13; Volpe, New York, 13; Straw, Cleveland, 10; Kwan, Cleveland, 9; J.Lowe, Tampa Bay, 9; Walls, Tampa Bay, 9.

PITCHING —McClanahan, Tampa Bay, 7-0; Ryan, Minnesota, 7-1; M.Pérez, Texas,

6-1; Eflin, Tampa Bay, 6-1; Eovaldi, Texas,

6-2; Cole, New York, 5-0; Ohtani, Los Angeles, 5-1; Javier, Houston, 5-1; Kremer, Baltimore, 5-1; Kikuchi, Toronto, 5-1.

ERA —S.Gray, Minnesota, 1.82; McClanahan, Tampa Bay, 2.05; E.Rodriguez, Detroit, 2.19; Ryan, Minnesota, 2.21; F.Valdez, Houston, 2.46; Cole, New York, 2.53; Eovaldi, Texas, 2.60; Kirby, Seattle, 2.62; Wells, Baltimore, 2.94; L.Castillo, Seattle, 2.97.

STRIKEOUTS —Gausman, Toronto, 81; Ohtani, Los Angeles, 80; P.López, Minnesota, 75; F.Valdez, Houston, 72; Cole, New York, 70; Ryan, Minnesota, 70; McClanahan, Tampa Bay, 68; Lynn, Chicago, 67; L.Castillo, Seattle, 66; Eovaldi, Texas, 66; S.Gray, Minnesota, 66.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Gallen, Arizona, 6-2; Kershaw, Los Angeles, 6-4; Keller, Pittsburgh, 5-1; Smyly, Chicago, 5-1; Wacha, San Diego, 5-1; Kelly, Arizona, 5-3; F.Peralta, Milwaukee, 5-3; Ty.Megill, New York, 5-3; J.Urías, Los Angeles, 5-4; Morton, Atlanta, 5-4.

ERA —Elder, Atlanta, 2.06; Cobb, San Francisco, 2.17; Steele, Chicago, 2.20; Keller, Pittsburgh, 2.44; Gray, Washington, 2.65; Webb, San Francisco, 2.91; Smyly, Chicago, 2.93; Gallen, Arizona, 2.97; Strider, Atlanta, 2.97; Kelly, Arizona, 2.98; Kershaw, Los Angeles, 2.98. STRIKEOUTS —Strider, Atlanta, 97; Keller, Pittsburgh, 77; Gallen, Arizona, 75; Greene, Cincinnati, 69; Kershaw, Los Angeles, 69; Webb, San Francisco, 65; Wheeler, Philadelphia, 64; Gore, Washington, 63; Luzardo, Miami, 63; E.Cabrera, Miami, 61.

BASKETBALL

NBA Playoffs

CONFERENCE FINALS (Best-of-7; x-if necessary)

EASTERN CONFERENCE Miami 3, Boston 1

Wednesday, May 17: Miami 123, Boston 116

Friday, May 19: Miami 111, Boston 105

Sunday, May 21: Miami 128, Boston 102

Tuesday, May 23: Boston 116, Miami 99

Thursday, May 25: Miami at Boston, TBA x-Saturday, May 27: Boston at Miami, TBA x-Monday, May 29: Miami at Boston, TBA

WESTERN CONFERENCE Denver 4, L.A. Lakers 0

Tuesday, May 16: Denver 132,

Lakers 126

Thursday, May 18: Denver 108, L.A.

NOTE: Three points for victory, one point for tie.

Saturday’s Games

Miami at CF Montréal, 7:30 p.m.

Chicago at New England, 7:30 p.m.

Philadelphia at New York City FC, 7:30 p.m.

Atlanta at Orlando City, 7:30 p.m.

D.C. United at Toronto FC, 7:30 p.m.

Austin FC at Houston, 8:30 p.m.

Real Salt Lake at Minnesota, 8:30 p.m.

Vancouver at Saint Louis City SC, 8:30 p.m.

Cincinnati at Colorado, 9:30 p.m.

Charlotte FC at LA Galaxy, 10:30 p.m.

FC Dallas at San Jose, 10:30 p.m.

New York at Seattle, 10:30 p.m.

BETTING ODDS

NBA

Thursday

Favorite Line O/U Underdog at BOSTON 8 (215½) Miami MLB

Thursday American League

Favorite Line Underdog Line at TAMPA BAY -130 Toronto +110

White Sox -142 at DETROIT +120 at N.Y YANKEES -126 Baltimore +108 at SEATTLE -250 Oakland +205

National League

Favorite Line Underdog Line St. Louis -168 at CINCINNATI +142

Miami -176 at COLORADO +148

San Diego -188 at WASHINGTON +158 at ATLANTA OFF Philadelphia OFF N.Y Mets -112 at CHICAGO CUBS -104 at MILWAUKEE OFF San Francisco OFF NHL

Thursday

Favorite Line Underdog Line at DALLAS -122 Vegas +102

Transactions

Wednesday BASEBALL

Major League Baseball

American League

Jeahze is cleared to resume play after suspension.

FC CINCINNATI — Announced M Stiven Jimenez was called up to the United States Youth National Team’s U-16 squad for an upcoming tournament.

On This Date

May 25 at Tampa Bay (Eflin

1935 — Babe Ruth hits his last 3 home runs in Pittsburgh, Boston Braves still lose the game 11–7 to the Pirates.

1935 — Legendary American athlete Jesse Owens equals or breaks 4 world records in 45 minutes at a Big Ten meet at Ferry Field in Ann Arbor, Michigan; remembered as “the greatest 45 minutes ever in sport”.

1948 — Ben Hogan wins the PGA championship, beating Mike Turnesa in the final round, 7 and 6.

1951 — NY Giant Willie Mays 1st major league game (goes 0 for 5).

1965 — Muhammad Ali knocks out Sonny Liston a minute into the first round in the controversial rematch for Ali’s heavyweight title. Listed as the fastest knockout in a heavyweight title bout, Liston goes down on a short right-hand punch.

1967 — European Cup Final, Estádio Nacional, Lisbon: Glasgow Celtic beats Internazionale, 2-1; first British team to win the Cup.

1972 — Heavyweight Joe Frazier KOs Ron Stander.

1975 — The Golden State Warriors become the third team to sweep the NBA finals, beating the Washington Bullets 96-95 on Butch Beard’s foul shot with 9 seconds remaining.

1977 — 21st European Cup: Liverpool beats Borussia Monchengladbach 3-1 at Rome.

1978 — The Montreal Canadiens defeat the Boston Bruins 4-1 in Game 6 for their third straight Stanley Cup.

1980 — Johnny Rutherford wins his third Indianapolis 500 in seven years and becomes the first driver to win twice from the pole position.

1983 — 27th European Cup: Hamburg beats Juventus 1-0 at Athens.

1986 — KC Royal George Brett gets his 2,000th hit.

1987 — Herve Filion becomes the first harness racing driver to win 10,000 races. Filion reaches the milestone driving Commander Bond to victory in the third race at Yonkers Raceway.

1988 — 32nd European Cup: PSV Eindhoven beats Benfica (0-0, 6-5 on penalties) at Stuttgart.

Chicago White Sox (Giolito 3-3) at Detroit (Faedo 0-2), 6:40 p.m.

Baltimore (Gibson 5-3) at N.Y. Yankees (Schmidt 2-4), 7:05 p.m.

Oakland (Sears 0-3) at Seattle (Gilbert

2-2), 9:40 p.m.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

Tuesday’s Games

Texas 6, Pittsburgh 1

St. Louis 8, Cincinnati 5

Arizona 4, Philadelphia 3

L.A. Dodgers 8, Atlanta 1

San Diego 7, Washington 4

Milwaukee 6, Houston 0

San Francisco 4, Minnesota 3

Chicago Cubs 7, N.Y. Mets 2

Colorado 5, Miami 4

Wednesday’s Games

Texas 3, Pittsburgh 2

Milwaukee 4, Houston 0

Minnesota 7, San Francisco 1 Philadelphia 6, Arizona 5, 10 innings

Cincinnati 10, St. Louis 3

Washington 5, San Diego 3

Chicago Cubs 4, N.Y. Mets 2

Atlanta 4, L.A. Dodgers 3

Miami 10, Colorado 2

Thursday’s Games

St. Louis (Mikolas 2-1) at Cincinnati (Weaver 1-2), 12:35 p.m.

Miami (Garrett 1-2) at Colorado (Freeland

4-5), 3:10 p.m.

San Diego (Snell 1-6) at Washington (Irvin

1-2), 4:05 p.m.

Philadelphia (Nola 4-3) at Atlanta (TBD),

7:20 p.m.

N.Y. Mets (Carrasco 0-2) at Chicago Cubs (Taillon 0-3), 7:40 p.m.

San Francisco (Alexander 4-0) at Milwaukee (TBD), 7:40 p.m.

Leaders Through May 23

AMERICAN LEAGUE

BATTING —Bichette, Toronto, .324; Y.Díaz, Tampa Bay, .322; Rizzo, New York, .310; Arozarena, Tampa Bay, .305; Hays, Baltimore, .303; Urshela, Los Angeles, .303; M.Chapman, Toronto, .302; Guerrero

BATTING —Arraez, Miami, .371; E.Díaz, Colorado, .345; Acuña Jr., Atlanta, .337; Freeman, Los Angeles, .327; Gurriel Jr., Arizona, .317; T.Estrada, San Francisco, .309; De La Cruz, Miami, .302; Nimmo, New York, .301; Gorman, St. Louis, .297; Hoerner, Chicago, .296.

RUNS —Acuña Jr., Atlanta, 46; Freeman, Los Angeles, 42; India, Cincinnati, 38; Olson, Atlanta, 38; Betts, Los Angeles, 36; Goldschmidt, St. Louis, 36; Yelich, Milwaukee, 34; Alonso, New York, 33; Castellanos, Philadelphia, 33; Carroll, Arizona, 31; L.Thomas, Washington, 31.

RBI —Alonso, New York, 43; Gorman, St. Louis, 39; Murphy, Atlanta, 36; Muncy, Los Angeles, 35; Olson, Atlanta, 35; Bohm, Philadelphia, 35; C.Walker, Arizona, 34; Arenado, St. Louis, 34; Fraley, Cincinnati, 33; Lindor, New York, 33.

HITS— Freeman, Los Angeles, 65; Acuña Jr., Atlanta, 63; Arraez, Miami, 62; T.Estrada, San Francisco, 58; Stott, Philadelphia, 57; Meneses, Washington, 56; Nimmo, New York, 56; Castellanos, Philadelphia, 55; Goldschmidt, St. Louis, 55; Gurriel Jr., Arizona, 53; L.Thomas, Washington, 53.

DOUBLES —Freeman, Los Angeles, 18; Castellanos, Philadelphia, 16; Goldschmidt, St. Louis, 16; B.Reynolds, Pittsburgh, 16; Lindor, New York, 15; Acuña Jr., Atlanta, 14; Betts, Los Angeles, 14; Gurriel Jr., Arizona, 14; India, Cincinnati, 14; C.Santana, Pittsburgh, 14.

TRIPLES —Marsh, Philadelphia, 4; K.Marte, Arizona, 4; Cronenworth, San Diego, 3; Friedl, Cincinnati, 3; Hayes, Pittsburgh, 3; Joe, Pittsburgh, 3; Outman, Los Angeles, 3; Realmuto, Philadelphia, 3; 7 tied at 2.

HOME RUNS —Alonso, New York, 18; Muncy, Los Angeles, 15; Gorman, St. Louis, 13; Soler, Miami, 13; Olson, Atlanta, 13; Wisdom, Chicago, 12; Tellez, Milwaukee, 12; Schwarber, Philadelphia, 12; C.Walker, Arizona, 11; Acuña Jr., Atlanta, 11.

STOLEN BASES —Acuña Jr., Atlanta, 20; Bae, Pittsburgh, 14; Carroll, Arizona, 14; Chisholm Jr., Miami, 14; T.Estrada, San Francisco, 12; Hoerner, Chicago, 12; S.Marte, New York, 12; Yelich, Milwaukee, 10; Bellinger, Chicago, 9; India, Cincinnati, 8; Robles, Washington, 8.

PITCHING —Steele, Chicago, 6-1;

Dallas, TBA x-Wednesday, May 31: Dallas at Vegas,

SOCCER

BALTIMORE ORIOLES — Agreed to terms with 2B Joseph Rosa on a minor league contract. Sent 2B Ramon Uiras on a rehab assignment to Aberdeen (SAL).

CHICAGO WHITE SOX — Sent LF Eloy Jimenez on a rehab assignment to Birmingham (SL)

LOS ANGELES ANGELS — Sent CF Brett Phillips outright to Salt Lake (PCL).

TAMPA BAY RAYS — Selected the contract of RHP Ben Heller from Durham (IL).

Designated RHP Zack Burdi for assignment. Recalled 2B Vidal Brujan from Durham. Placed RHP Zack Littell on the 15-day IL. National League

CHICAGO CUBS — Recalled RHP Javier Assad from Iowa (IL). Placed RHP Nick Burdi on the 15-day IL retroactive to May 21.

CINCINNATI REDS — Selected the contract of RHP Eduardo Salazar from Louisville (IL). Designated RHP Silvino Bracho for assignment.

COLORADO ROCKIES — Released LHP

Fernando Abad.

MILWAUKEE BREWERS — Sent 3B Luis Urias on a rehab assignment to Nashville (IL).

SAN DIEGO PADRES — Released CF Adam Engel.

FOOTBALL National Football League

BALTIMORE RAVENS — Signed DT Angelo Blackson.

CINCINNATI BENGALS — Announced the retirement of RB Jeremy Hill.

CLEVELAND BROWNS — Announced collegiate level coaches Chris Labidou, Brittany Bushman, Jamael Lett, Edwin Pata, Deonte Gibson and Graziella Napoli will be participating in the Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship on staff throughout the remainder of the preseason practices.

DETROIT LIONS — Signed OL Germain

Ifedi. Waived LB Isaac Darkangelo.

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS — Signed TE Kaden Smith. Waived G Harris LaChance. Signed DT Adetomiwa Adebawore to rookie contract.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS — Signed OL

Jake Andrews to a rookie contract.

PITTSBURGH STEELERS — Signed OLB

Markus Golden to a one-year contract.

SOCCER

Major League Soccer

D.C. UNITED — Announced D Mohanad

1989 — Stanley Cup Final, Montreal Forum, Montreal, Quebec: Calgary Flames beat Montreal Canadiens, 4-2 to win series 4 games to 2; Flames’ first SC title.

1991 — The Pittsburgh Penguins, led by Mario Lemieux, win the Stanley Cup for the first time with an 8-0 rout of the Minnesota North Stars.

1998 — Princeton punctuates its claim as one of college lacrosse’s great programs by beating Maryland 15-5 for its third straight NCAA Division I title and fifth in seven years.

2002 — Boston sets an NBA record, overcoming a 21-point fourth-quarter deficit in a 94-90 win over New Jersey. The Celtics outscore the Nets 41-16 in the quarter.

2003 — Juli Inkster shoots a 10-under 62 — tying the lowest final-round score by a winner in LPGA Tour history — to beat Lorie Kane by four strokes in the LPGA Corning Classic.

2005 — 13th UEFA Champions League Final: Liverpool beats Milan (3-3, 3-2 on penalties).

2007 — Bjarne Riis is the first Tour de France winner to admit using performance-enhancing drugs to win the sport’s premier race, further eroding cycling’s credibility after a series of doping confessions. His admission means the top three finishers in the 1996 Tour are linked to doping — with two admitting to cheating.

2008 — Seven crashes and spinouts mar the first Indianapolis 500 since the two warring open-wheel series (CART and IRL) came together under the IndyCar banner. Scott Dixon stays ahead of the trouble to win the race.

2008 — Senior PGA Championship, Oak Hill CC: Jay Haas wins his second title in the event by 1 stroke from Germany’s Bernhard Langer.

2009 — Syracuse rallies from a three-goal deficit in the final 3:37 of regulation to beat Cornell 10-9 and win its second straight and unprecedented 11th NCAA lacrosse title.

2013 — UEFA Champions League Final, London: Arjen Robben scores twice as Bayern Munich beats Borussia Dortmund, 2-1 in first all-German final.

2014 — Senior PGA Championship, GC at Shore Harbor: Colin Montgomerie of Scotland wins first of 3 Champions Tour majors by 4 strokes from Tom Watson.