Tkachuk's power play goal sends Panthers to Stanley Cup Final
SUNRISE, FLA. >> Matthew Tkachuk scored a powerplay goal with 4.9 seconds left, Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 36 shots to cap off a brilliant series, and the Florida Panthers earned their first trip to the Stanley Cup Final in 27 years by beating the Carolina Hurricanes 4-3 on Wednesday night to win the Eastern Conference title in a sweep.
Tkachuk's goal was his second of the night — and maybe the biggest in Panthers' history. 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. Four games, four one-goal wins, three of them coming from Tkachuk in dramatic fashion — two in overtime to end Games 1 and 2, and then this one to cap Florida's stunning rise from No. 8 seed to East champions.
Ryan Lomberg and Anthony Duclair had the other goals for Florida, which swept a series for the first time in franchise history.
Pro basketball
MORANT TAKING A SOCIAL MEDIA BREAK AFTER WELFARE CHECK >> Police in Tennessee conducted a welfare check on suspended Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant and say “he is fine” after cryptic messages appeared on his Instagram account and were later deleted.
The post from earlier in the day included messages and pictures saying “Love ya ma,” “Love ya pops” and “You da greatest babygirl
love ya.” A fourth message simply read: “Bye.”
Shelby County Sheriff's Office spokesman John Morris told The Associated Press in a phone call that deputies checked on Morant at his home.
“He advised us that he is taking a break from social media,” Morris said.
Morant, 23, was suspended from all team activities following a video of him holding a gun that circulated May 13 on social media. The video was the two-time All-Star's second display of a firearm within three months in a social media video.
Pro football JETS WORK OUT PUNTER ARAIZA >>
The New York Jets hosted punter Matt Araiza for a workout at the team's facility, six days after a San Diego State investigation found no wrongdoing by him in an alleged gang rape at an off-campus party in October 2021.
The San Diego District Attorney decided late last year to not press criminal charges against Araiza, who had a lawsuit filed by a woman against him and two other former SDSU players. The women alleged in the suit that Araiza, then 21, had sex with her in a side yard at an off-campus house before bringing her into a bedroom where a group of men took turns raping her.
The woman, who was 17 at the time, reported the alleged rape the following day to the San Diego Police Department, which investigated the allegations for nine months before turning over its investigation to prosecutors on Aug. 5.
Earlier this month, several media outlets obtained an audio recording of a meeting on Dec. 17 between prosecutors and the woman in which deputy district attorney Trisha Amador said she concluded, based on a witness statement, that
Araiza “wasn't even at the party anymore” when the alleged gang rape could have occurred and wasn't visible in videos that were recovered. The witness testimony was included in evidence that prompted the DA to not press criminal charges against Araiza.
College basketball JUDGE DENIES BOND FOR EXALABAMA PLAYER >>
A judge denied bond for former Alabama basketball player Darius Miles, who is facing a capital murder charge related to a fatal shooting near campus.
Tuscaloosa County Circuit Judge Daniel Pruet said at a hearing that the bond issue could be revisited later.
Miles has pleaded not guilty in the January shooting death of 23-year-old Jamea Harris. The former reserve forward and Michael Lynn Davis, both 21 at the time, are charged with capital murder.