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Red Sox place INF Yu Chang on paternity list

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Red Sox place INF Yu Chang on paternity list

Red Sox place INF Yu Chang on paternity list

BOSTON, MA—The Boston Red Sox today placed infielder Yu Chang on the Paternity List. To fill Chang’s spot on the active Major League roster, the club recalled infielder/outfielder Enmanuel Valdez from Triple-A Worcester. Valdez will wear number 47.

Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom made the announcement.

Chang, 27, has played in 12 games with the Red Sox this season, making six starts at shortstop and two at second base. In Saturday’s win against the Los Angeles Angels, he went 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBI, turning a 7-6 deficit into an 8-7 lead with a two-run single in the eighth inning. On the season, Chang is 2-for-26 (.077). He has played in 208 Major League games, third most among players born in Taiwan behind Wei-Yin Chen (219) and Hung-Chih Kuo (218).

Valdez, 24, is ranked as a top 20 Red Sox prospect by both MLB.com (No. 17) and Baseball America (No. 19). In 11 games with Worcester this season, the left-handed hitter has gone 7-for-39 (.179) with three doubles, one home run, and six walks, while making 11 starts at second base. Acquired from the Houston Astros on August 1, 2022, Valdez recorded at least 25 home runs and 90 RBI in both 2021 and 2022. In his minor league career, he has appeared at every defensive position other than center field and pitcher.

Orioles roster moves

MLB Editor
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Orioles roster moves

The Orioles have made the following roster moves:

  • Reinstated RHP Kyle Bradish from the 15-day Injured List. He will start tonight’s game.
  • Optioned RHP Logan Gillaspie to Triple-A Norfolk after yesterday’s game.

NHL Preview: Los Angeles Kings (1-0) at Edmonton Oilers (0-1)

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NHL Preview: Los Angeles Kings (1-0) at Edmonton Oilers (0-1)

LOS ANGELES KINGS NOTES:

ROUND ONE, GAME 2
Kings leads series 1-0

APRIL 19 vs. Edmonton Oilers – 8:00 PM MT (7:00 PM PT)
Venue: Rogers Place // TV: Bally Sports SoCal, ESPN // Radio: LA Kings iHeart Audio Network

2023 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS | ROUND ONE SCHEDULE
Game 1: at Edmonton, April 17, 7 p.m. PT Bally Sports West, ESPN, LA Kings iHeart Audio Network –- LA: 4 EDM: 3 OT
Game 2: at Edmonton, April 19, 7 p.m. PT Bally Sports SoCal, ESPN, LA Kings iHeart Audio Network
Game 3: in Los Angeles, April 21, 7 p.m. PT Bally Sports SoCal, TNT, LA Kings iHeart Audio Network
Game 4: in Los Angeles, April 23, 6 p.m. PT Bally Sports West, TBS, LA Kings iHeart Audio Network
Game 5: at Edmonton, April 25, TBD KCOP-TV/13, TBD, LA Kings iHeart Audio Network Game 6: in Los Angeles, April 29, TBD, TBD, LA Kings iHeart Audio Network
Game 7*: at Edmonton, May 1, TBD Bally Sports West, TBD, LA Kings iHeart Audio Network
*If Necessary

WARM-UPS
1) The Kings held Connor McDavid pointless during Game 1 and for the 10th time in his career (regular season and playoffs combined), which trails only Calgary (11x) for the most such outings since he entered the league in 2015-16.

2) Jaret Anderson-Dolan made his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut in Game 1 while Viktor Arvidsson, Vladislav Gavrikov and Joonas Korpisalo all made their Kings postseason debuts.

3) Quinton Byfield assisted on Adrian Kempe’s second goal in Game 1 for his career playoff point (0-1=1).

4) Per NHL PR, the Kings earned a third-period multi-goal comeback win in the playoffs for the sixth time in franchise history in Game 1 on Monday night (also Game 2 of 2014 SCF, Game 4 of 2001 CQF, Game 1 of 1990 DSF, Game 3 of 1982 DSF & Game 6 of 1976 QF). Game 1 of the 1990 Division Semifinals marked the only other instance where the Kings did so in a postseason opener.

5) Following tonight’s game, the series will shift to Crypto.com Arena for Games 3 (April 21) and 4 (April 23) this weekend.

vs. EDMONTON PLAYOFFS ALL-TIME:
All-Time Record: 16-28
Home: 8-12
Away: 8-16
OT: 4-7
Game 2’s vs. EDM: 2-6
2021-22 Playoffs: 3-4
2022-23 Regular-Season: 2-2-0

FRANCHISE PLAYOFF LEADERS vs. EDMONTON:
Luc Robitaille – 28 GP, 31 PTS (15-16=31)
Wayne Gretzky – 22 GP, 26 PTS (7-19=26)
Bernie Nicholls – 20 GP, 23 PTS (10-13=23)
Dave Taylor – 32 GP, 20 PTS (6-14=20)
Steve Duchesne – 22 GP, 18 PTS (5-13=18)
*-denotes active roster player

GAME 1 vs. EDMONTON: Apr. 17, 2023 – LAK 4 vs. EDM 3 (OT)
Venue: Rogers Place
LAK Goals: Kempe (1, 2), Kopitar (1), Iafallo (1 – OT)
EDM Goals: Draisaitl (1, 2), Bouchard (1)
Goalies: LAK: Korpisalo (W; 37 saves – 40 shots) EDM: Skinner (OTL; 31 saves – 35 shots)
LAK PP: 2-for-6
LAK PK: 2-for-3

2022-23 REGULAR-SEASON INJURY & MGL REPORT
Player, Games Missed, Date(s), Status
F Trevor Moore, 23 games, Dec. 27 – Jan. 31 (upper-body); Feb. 23 – Mar. 6 (upper-body)
F Alex Iafallo, 23 games, Oct. 18 – Dec. 3 (lower-body)
F Brendan Lemieux, 18 games, Nov. 14 – Dec. 20 (lower-body)
F Arthur Kaliyev, 18 games, Dec. 22 – Jan. 31 (lower-body)
F Gabriel Vilardi, 17 games, Nov. 27 (lower-body); Jan. 19 – Feb. 13 (undisclosed); Mar. 28 – Apr. 13 (upper-body)
F Carl Grundstrom, 15 games, Jan. 19 – Feb. 26 (lower-body)
F Kevin Fiala, 13 games, Mar. 11 – Mar. 25 (lower-body), Mar. 30 (lower-body), Apr. 2 – Apr. 13. (lower-body)
D Sean Durzi, 9 games, Nov. 19 – Nov. 22. (lower-body); Mar. 9 – Mar. 25 (lower-body)
F Quinton Byfield, 6 games, Oct. 27 – Nov. 5 (illness)
D Alex Edler, 5 games, Apr. 4 – Apr. 13 (upper-body)
D Mikey Anderson, 5 games, Apr. 1 – Apr. 8 (upper-body)
F Viktor Arvidsson, 3 games, Oct. 13 (illness); Oct. 25 (illness); Jan. 11 (illness)
D Drew Doughty, 1 game, Dec. 11 (lower-body)
2022-23 Total Regular-Season Man-Games Lost: 156

2023 PLAYOFFS INJURY & MGL REPORT
Player, Games Missed, Date(s), Status
F Kevin Fiala, 1 game, Apr. 17 – Pres. (lower-body)
F Gabriel Vilardi, 1 game, Apr. 17 – Pres. (upper-body)
2023 Total Playoffs Man-Games Lost: 2

RECENT TRANSACTIONS (as of 4/18/23)
Apr. 5 – Jordan Spence (D) recalled on emergency basis from Ontario (AHL).
Apr. 8 – Tobias Bjornfot (D) loaned to Ontario (AHL).
Apr. 9 – Jordan Spence (D) loaned to Ontario (AHL).
Apr. 9 – Alex Laferriere (F) signed to a three-year entry-level contract.
Apr. 10 – Tobias Bjornfot (D) recalled on emergency basis from Ontario (AHL).
Apr. 10 – Tobias Bjornfot (D) loaned to Ontario (AHL).

EDMONTON OILERS NOTES:

ALL-TIME PLAYOFFS vs. LOS ANGELES GP RECORD HOME AWAY GF GA
OILERS ALL-TIME vs. LOS ANGELES 43 28-15-0 – – 181 144
OILERS vs. LOS ANGELES – 2022-23 4 2-2-0 1-1-0 1-1-0 9 10

QUICK FACTS
This year’s first round matchup against the Kings marks the second time in the last 31 years Edmonton and Los Angeles have faced off in the playoffs. It is the ninth series between the franchises overall – Edmonton holds a 6-2 edge in the previous eight series.

The 2023 first round is the 23rd time the Oilers enter game 1 in a best-of-seven series as the home team and just the fourth time in 31 years (also 2021 R1 vs. WPG, 2017 R1 vs. SJS, 2022 R1 vs. LAK). They own a series record of 18-4 in the previous 22 matchups.

These teams met four times in the 2022-23 regular season, splitting the season series 2-2.

Connor McDavid leads the Oilers with 14 career playoff points against the Kings and 10 Oilers have appeared in eight career playoff games against Los Angeles.

PLAYOFF PRECISION
Leon Draisaitl recorded his first two goals of the 2023 post season in game one against the Kings, giving him a total of 20 career playoff goals and recorded his 5th career multi-goal playoff game. His first goal in game one marked his 7th career opening-goal in the postseason, tied with Esa Tikkanen for 5th most in Oilers history. Draisaitl is the 3rd fastest player in NHL history to reach 60 career playoff points (38 games). (Wayne Gretzky- 26 games, Mario Lemieux- 34 games).

THE ROOKIE
Stuart Skinner started in net for the Oilers in game one versus Los Angeles. The last rookie to start a playoff game for the Oilers was Grant Fuhr against the Kings during a winner-take-all game 5 of the 1982 Division Semifinals.

POWER PLAY PROWESS
The Oilers concluded the 2022-23 season with the top three power play point getters in the NHL, with McDavid (71), Draisaitl (62) and Nugent-Hopkins (53) ranking first, second and third respectively. Connor McDavid’s 71 power play points on the year, gave him the new Oilers single season record for most PPP’s in a season, a record previously held by Wayne Gretzky (57 – 1981-82). Leon Draisaitl scored his league leading 32nd power play goal of the season on Apr. 13 vs. SJS, passing his own franchise record for most PPG’s in one season, a mark he set in 2021-22. Draisaitl’s 32 power play goals are the most by any player since Mario Lemieux posted 31 in 1995-96. Only one other active player has scored 26+ PPG’s in a single season – Chris Kreider (26 in ’21-22 w/NYR).

GONE STREAKING
Leon Draisaitl posted his 8th career regular season hat-trick on Apr. 1 vs. ANA, including his 50th goal of the season and achieving the 50 goal milestone for the third time in his career and second straight season. He finished the season registering points in 28 of his last 30 games, accumulating 52 points (23G, 29A) in that span, including 15 multi-point efforts. He has recorded eight separate point streaks of 10+ games in his career.

FIVE OF A KIND
The Oilers scored 5+ goals 32 times in 2022-23, posting a record of 30-2-1 when scoring five or more goals in a game.

GOALS BY PERIOD
The Oilers finished the 2022-23 season as the team with the most goals in both the first and second periods:
1st Period Goals – 1st (92)
2nd Period Goals – 1st (128)

LAST 10 GAMES vs. LOS ANGELES
Record: 5-5-0
GF: 30 GA: 27
*2022-23 4/17/23 @ EDM 4-3 L (OT)
2022-23 4/4/23 @ LAK 3-1 W
2022-23 3/30/23 @ EDM 2-0 W
2022-23 1/9/23 @ LAK 6-3 L
2022-23 11/16/22 @ EDM 3-1 L
*2021-22 5/14/22 @ EDM 2-0 W
*2021-22 5/12/22 @ LAK 4-2 W
*2021-22 5/10/22 @ EDM 5-4 L (OT)
*2021-22 5/8/22 @ LAK 4-0 L
*2021-22 5/6/22 @ LAK 8-2 W
*Notes playoff game

NHL Preview: Minnesota Wild (1-0) at Dallas Stars (0-1)

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NHL Preview: Minnesota Wild (1-0) at Dallas Stars (0-1)

MINNESOTA WILD NOTES:

REGULAR-SEASON SERIES NOTES
DALLAS STARS
All-Time Wild Record: 37-37-13 (24-13-5 at Xcel Energy Center, 13-24-8 at Dallas)

2023-23: The Wild went 2-2-0 in the season series with the Stars…Minnesota won the series opening game at American Airlines Center, 6-5, in a shootout (12/4), lost 4-1 at Xcel Energy Center in the second game (12/29), lost 4-1 at Dallas in the third game (2/8) and won, 2-1, in shootout in the final meeting at St. Paul (2/17)… LW Kirill Kaprizov (2-1=3) and RW Mats Zuccarello (1-2=3) led Minnesota with three points each…C Joel Eriksson Ek (2-0=2), D Jared Spurgeon (0-2=2), RW Ryan Reaves (0-2=2) each recorded two points…G Marc-Andre Fleury went 1-1-0 with a 3.87 GAA and a .896 SV% after starting the first two meetings for the Wild…G Filip Gustavsson started the final two games and went 1-1-0 with a 1.97 GAA and a .939 SV%…C Roope Hintz paced Dallas with seven points (4-3=7)…LW Jason Robertson had five points (1-4=5)…C Wyatt Johnston tallied four points (1-3=4)…G Jake Oettinger went 2-0-1 with a 1.87 GAA and a .947 SV% in four starts for Dallas…G Scott Wedgewood entered during the first game (12/4) and stopped 14 of 15 shots faced, earning the loss.

WILD LEADERS: Zuccarello (3-16=19 in 22 games) leads Minnesota with 20 points (4-16=20) in 23 games against Dallas…Spurgeon owns 19 points (6-13=1) in 42 contests…C Ryan Hartman has 14 points (7-7=14) in 27 matches…Kaprizov has 12 points (6-6=12) in eight contests…D Matt Dumba owns 12 points (6-6=12) in 30 games.

WILD GOALIES: Fleury is 13-6-1 with a 2.18 GAA, a .927 SV% and one shutout in 20 games played (20 starts) vs. the Stars…Gustavsson is 3-1-0 with a 1.73 GAA and a .950 SV% in four starts.

STARS LEADERS: C Tyler Seguin (18-27=45 in 41 matches) and LW Jamie Benn (20-25=45 in 52 games) lead the Stars with 45 points each against Minnesota…C Joe Pavelski owns 44 points (21-23=44) in 53 games against the Wild…Hintz has 15 points (7-8=15) in 16 contests.

STARS GOALIES: Oettinger is 4-0-1 with a 2.40 GAA and a .917 SV% in seven career games (six starts)…Wedgewood is 0-1-2 with a 3.25 GAA and a .887 SV% in four games (two starts).

FAST FACTS: Minnesota is 20-14-5 in the last 10 seasons (2013-23) against Dallas…The Wild is 6-4-0 in the last 10 games against the Stars at Xcel Energy Center…Minnesota has points in 11 of the last 19 games (9-8-2) played at American Airlines Center…Minnesota was defeated by Dallas in six games in the 2016 First Round.

NOTES AND NUMBERS
Team: Earned a 3-2 double overtime victory in Game 1 at DAL (4/17)
• Played the longest contest in franchise history, earning the win 32:20 into extra time. The previous mark was 28:06 on 5/10/03, a 1-0 double overtime loss vs. ANA (CF-Game 1)

• Recorded 48 shots on goal, the second-highest postseason total in franchise history (52 SOG vs. STL, 4/12/17)

• Is now 22-11 all-time in postseason games where they score the first goal

• Is appearing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the fourth consecutive season, 13th time in franchise history and the 10th time in the last 11 seasons Jonas Brodin: Appeared in his 62nd career Stanley Cup Playoff game in Game 1 at DAL (4/17), further extending his tie for the franchise record Brock Faber: Made his Stanley Cup Playoff debut in Game 1 at DAL (4/17), skating 17:55 and blocking three shots
Filip Gustavsson: Made his Stanley Cup Playoff debut in Game 1 at DAL (4/17)

• Earned the win and set a Wild postseason record with 51 saves, besting the previous mark set by Niklas Backstrom (44 saves), 4/14/08 at COL (R1-Game 3)

• Per NHL Stats, became the fifth NHL goaltender to record 51-plus saves in his playoff debut (since 1955-56 when shots on goal were officially tracked). He joined Roberto Luongo (72 in Game 1 of 2007 CQF), Jean-Sebastien Giguere (63 in Game 1 of 2003 CQF), Jose Theodore (56 in Game 4 of 1997 CQF) and Jiri Crha (55 in Game 1 of 1980 PRLM). Ryan Hartman: Scored the first overtime goal of his Stanley Cup Playoff career in Game 1 at DAL (4/17)

• Became the 10th player in franchise history to score an OTG in the Stanley Cup Playoffs Kirill Kaprizov: Scored his 10th career postseason goal in Game 1 at DAL (4/17)

• Has recorded nine points (6-3=9) in his last six postseason games

• Currently ranks fourth in franchise history in postseason goals

• With 10 goals through 14 career postseason games, his 0.71 goals-pergame average in the Stanley Cup Playoffs ranks first among all active NHL skaters (per NHL Stats) Gustav Nyquist: Made his eighth career trip to the Stanley Cup Playoffs and skated in his first postseason game in a Wild sweater Game 1 at DAL (4/17) • Registered an assist in Game 1. Has recorded a point in all four games played for Minnesota this season (regular and postseason) Jared Spurgeon: Appeared in his 62nd career Stanley Cup Playoff game in Game 1 at DAL (4/17), further extending his tie for the franchise record

• Recorded an assist to reach 28 career postseason points (8-20=28), tied with Mikko Koivu (11-17=28) for second-most in franchise history

• Needs one assist to tie Zach Parise for most in Wild postseason history Sam Steel: Made his Stanley Cup Playoff debut in Game 1 at DAL (4/17)

• According to NHL Stats, became the seventh player in team history to score a goal in his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut, following Matt Dumba
(2015 R1), Erik Haula (2014 R1), Cal Clutterbuck (2013 CQF), Petteri Nummelin (2007 CQF), Marian Gaborik (2003 CQF) and Filip Kuba (2003 CQF)

INJURIES
Joel Eriksson Ek: lower body
John Klingberg: lower body
Mason Shaw: torn ACL, out for season
Oskar Sundqvist: lower body

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
4/17/23 Recalled G Hunter Jones from Iowa
4/15/23 Reassigned F Nic Petan to Iowa
4/14/23 Reassigned F Damien Giroux, F Marco Rossi, F Nick
Swaney and F Sammy Walker to Iowa
4/13/23 Recalled F Damien Giroux from Iowa
4/12/23 Recalled F Nick Swaney and F Sammy Walker from Iowa
4/9/23 Signed D Brock Faber to a three-year, entry-level contract
4/9/23 Recalled F Nic Petan and F Marco Rossi from Iowa

POSTSEASON NOTES
• The Minnesota Wild clinched a postseason berth for the fourth straight season and 13th time in franchise history, including 10 of the last 11 seasons.

• Per NHL Stats, the Wild (2000-01) can become the first expansion franchise from the NHL, NBA, NFL or MLB to play its inaugural season in the 2000s or later and win a title. Only two clubs that have entered the NHL since the start of the 1990s have won a Stanley Cup: Tampa Bay (3) and Anaheim (1).

• Of the 26 players beginning the postseason on the Wild’s roster, eight had not appeared in a Stanley Cup Playoff Game with Minnesota: Brock Faber, Filip Gustavsson, John Klingberg, Gustav Nyquist, Ryan Reaves, Mason Shaw, Sam Steel and Oskar Sundqvist. Four players had not appeared in a Stanley Cup Playoff game: Faber, Gustavsson, Shaw and Steel. Faber, Gustavsson, Nyquist, Reaves and Steel all skated for the Wild in Game 1 at DAL (4/17).

• Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury is set to play in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 17th consecutive season, which would extend his NHL record among goaltenders. Fleury would also tie Martin Brodeur and Patrick Roy for the most total playoff years among goaltenders.

• Fleury won a Stanley Cup alongside D Alex Goligoski and Wild general manager Bill Guerin with the 2009 Penguins. Fleury and Goligoski can become the third set of teammates in NHL history to win a Stanley Cup together with different franchises 14+ years apart – they would join Red Kelly and Marcel Pronovost (1950 DET & 1967 TOR) as well as Kelly, Pronovost and Terry Sawchuk (1952 DET & 1967 TOR)

• LW Kirill Kaprizov has 12 points (10-2=12) in 14 career playoff games, including a franchise-record seven (7-0=7) against St. Louis in the 2022 First Round. Per NHL Stats, Kaprizov became become the 10th player since 1943-44 to score 10 playoff goals in 14 career playoff games or fewer, joining Vladimir Tarasenko as the only players to do so in the past 32 years.

• D Jared Spurgeon (8-19—27 in 62 GP) is the franchise’s all-time leader for playoff goals, assists and points among defensemen, while D Jonas Brodin (2-14—16 in 62 GP) and D Matt Dumba (5-8—13 in 44 GP) also rank among the top five on each of those lists (outright or tied). Spurgeon needs three postseason assists to pass Zach Parise (16-21=37) for most in franchise history

DALLAS STARS NOTES:

LAST DALLAS STARS GAME
Game 1: April 17, 2023 – STARS 2 vs. WILD 3 (2OT)
The Stars opened their 2023 Western Conference First Round series against the Minnesota Wild with a 3-2 loss in double overtime. Forwards Roope Hintz (1-0—1) and Jason Robertson (1-0—1) tallied goals for the Stars, with both goals coming on the power play. Captain Jamie Benn (0-1—1), forward Joe Pavelski (0-1—1) and defenseman Miro Heiskanen (0-1—1) recorded assists for Dallas, while goaltender Jake Oettinger made 45 saves on 48 shots. Heiskanen recorded a game-high 41:42 TOI, while defenseman Jani Hakanpää paced the Stars with eight hits.
PP: 2-5 | PK: 3-4 | SF: 53 | SA: 248 | DAL TOI: M. Heiskanen (41:42 – game high) | Attendance: 18,532 (sellout)
Three Stars: 1. MIN – R. Hartman 2. MIN – F. Gustavsson 3. DAL – J. Oettinger

FIRST ROUND SERIES SCHEDULE
Date Time (CT) DAL [C2] vs. MIN [C3] Location TV/Radio/Result
Game 1 Mon, April 17 8:30 p.m. Minnesota at Dallas American Airlines Center Wild 3, Stars 2 (2OT)
Game 2 Wed, April 19 8:30 p.m. Minnesota at Dallas American Airlines Center BSSW, ESPN2/KTCK
Game 3 Fri, April 21 8:30 p.m. Dallas at Minnesota Xcel Energy Center BSSW, TBS/KTCK
Game 4 Sun, April 23 5:30 p.m. Dallas at Minnesota Xcel Energy Center BSSW, TBS/KTCK
Game 5 * Tue, April 25 TBD Minnesota at Dallas American Airlines Center BSSW (National: TBD)/KTCK
Game 6 * Fri, April 28 TBD Dallas at Minnesota Xcel Energy Center BSSW (National: TBD)/KTCK
Game 7 * Sun, April 30 TBD Minnesota at Dallas American Airlines Center BSSW (National: TBD)/KTCK

  • if necessary

INJURIES
Man-games lost, 2023 playoffs: 0
Dallas Stars: Media Notes

DALLAS STARS NOTES
TONIGHT’S GAME: Dallas’ First Round series continues tonight with Game 2 against the Minnesota Wild at American Airlines Center. (8:30 p.m. CT, TV: BSSW, ESPN2, Radio: The Ticket 96.7-FM/1310-AM). Game 1 went into the depths of the night with Minnesota scoring the game-winning goal at the 12:20 mark of double overtime. Following tonight’s matchup, the series will shift to St. Paul for Games 3 and 4 beginning Friday, April 21.

THINGS ARE GETTING WILD OVER HERE

  • This marks the second time the Stars and Wild have met in the playoffs, with the Stars winning the 2016 First Round series in six games.
  • Roope Hintz (1-0—1) and Jason Robertson (1-0—1) lit the lamp for Dallas in Game 1, while Jamie Benn (0-1—1), Joe Pavelski (0-1—1) and Miro Heiskanen (0-1—1) recorded assists.
  • Goaltender Jake Oettinger made 45 saves on 48 shots in 92:05 TOI – the longest game of his postseason career (10 GP).
  • Benn enters tonight’s game with four goals and 11 points (4-7—11) in seven playoff games vs. the Wild.

ENTERING THE POSTSEASON

  • The Stars are in the postseason for a second straight year, 18th time since relocating to Dallas in 1993-94 and 35th time in franchise history. Dallas became the 10th team to clinch a berth in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
  • The Stars are looking for their 20th series win since relocation (19-16; .543 series W%) and to advance past the opening round for the first time since their run to the 2020 Stanley Cup Final. They have required at least six games in 13 of their last 14 Stanley Cup Playoffs series dating to the 2007 Conference Quarterfinals.
  • Goaltender Jake Oettinger enters the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs after a 64-save performance for the Stars in Game 7 of the 2022 First Round when he became the second goaltender on record to post 60+ saves in a Game 7. Oettinger, 24, can become the second goaltender in franchise history to win a series-clinching game before his 25th birthday (Don Beaupre: age 19: Game 5 of 1981 QF; age 22: Game 5 of 1984 DSF & Game 7 of 1984 DF).
  • Forward Jason Robertson (Arcadia, Calif.) can become the third different California-born Stanley Cup winner in NHL history, joining Brooks Orpik (2009 PIT & 2018 WSH) and Scott Parker (2001 COL). Robertson recorded four points (1-3—4) in seven games during the 2022 First Round vs. Calgary.
  • Defenseman Miro Heiskanen (9-25—34 in 48 GP) has a share of the fifth-best points-per-game among active defensemen in the postseason (min. 10 GP). He needs six points to climb three spots into sole possession of fourth place in franchise history for playoff points by defensemen; he can also ascend lists for goals and assists.
  • Captain Jamie Benn (20-32—52 in 67 GP) is one of 12 players in franchise history with 20 career playoff goals and one of eight with at least 50 points, highlighted by a 19-point performance (8-11—19) in 2020 when he finished fourth in team scoring. With another double-digit performance in 2023, Benn (3x) can join Mike Modano (7x) and Bobby Smith (4x) as the third player in franchise history with at least four postseasons with 10 or more points.
  • Forward Joe Pavelski (64-62—126) has the fourth-most postseason points among U.S.-born players, behind Mike Modano (58-88—146 in 176 GP), Chris Chelios (31-113—144 in 266 GP), and Patrick Kane (52-80—132 in 136 GP). Pavelski’s 64 goals are the most among U.S.-born players and the fourth most among active skaters. He also ranks third among players drafted in the seventh round or later for career playoff points, behind Doug Gilmour (60-128—188 in 182 GP) and Luc Robitaille (58-69—127 in 159 GP).
  • Pavelski (169 GP) is one of five players in NHL history to appear in 165+ playoff games without yet hoisting the Cup (or who retired without one); the others are Patrick Marleau (195), Joe Thornton (187), Dale Hunter (186) and Steve Thomas (174). To date, the three highest playoff game counts before winning a championship are 214 (Ray Bourque, 2001 COL), 169 (Glen Wesley, 2006 CAR) and 162 (Dave Andreychuk, 2004 TBL). Pavelski ranks third in terms of regular-season games played for active players who have yet to win.
  • Forward Tyler Seguin is the only Dallas player with a Stanley Cup, winning as a 20-year-old with Boston in 2011 (3-4—7 in 13 GP). He can become the fourth player in the NHL’s expansion era (since 1967-68) to win a Cup at age 20 or younger and at age 30 or older – only Greg Gilbert (1982 NYI & 1994 NYR), Claude Lemieux (1986 MTL, 1996 COL & 2000 NJD) and Patrick Roy (1986 MTL, 1996 COL & 2001 COL) have done so in that timeframe.
  • Head coach Peter DeBoer, in his first season with Dallas, has advanced past the opening round in his first postseason behind the bench with three franchises (2012 w/ NJD, 2016 w/ SJS & 2020 w/ VGK). Two head coaches in NHL history have won a series in their first postseason with four clubs: Alain Vigneault (1998 w/ MTL, 2007 w/ VAN, 2014 w/ NYR & 2020 w/ PHI) and Roger Neilson (1978 w/ TOR, 1981 w/ BUF, 1982 w/ VAN, 1990 w/ NYR).
  • The Stars/North Stars franchise has advanced to the Stanley Cup Final five times, twice while based in Minnesota and three times in Dallas. They stand as one of two non-Original Six franchises with a Final berth in four different decades (1980s, 1990s, 2000s & 2020s), alongside Philadelphia (1970s, 1980s, 1990s & 2010s).

NHL Preview: Florida Panthers (0-1) at Boston Bruins (1-0)

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NHL Preview: Florida Panthers (0-1) at Boston Bruins (1-0)

FLORIDA PANTHERS NOTES:

BAPTIST HEALTH INJURY REPORT

  • F Patric Hornqvist | Games Missed: 1
  • F Sam Bennett | Games Missed: 1
    Total Playoff Man Games Lost Due to Injury: 2
    Total Regular Season Man Games Lost Due to Injury: 239

LAST GAME
Panthers 1, Bruins 3 – April 17 – TD Garden
FLA Goals: Tkachuk (1)
BOS Goals: Pastrnak (1-PPG), Marchand (1), DeBrusk (1)
FLA Goalie: Lyon (L) – 26 Saves
BOS Goalie: Ullmark (W) – 31 Saves
FLA Shots: 32
BOS Shots: 29

Notes: Matthew Tkachuk scored his first playoff goal with the Panthers…Alex Lyon, Givani Smith and Josh Mahura skated in the first NHL playoff games…Carter Verhaeghe led Florida with six hits…Gustav Forsling paced the Cats with three blocked shots…FLA PP: 0-2, FLA PK: 1-2

RECENT TRANSACTIONS:

  • April 18: D Uvis Balinskis agreed to terms on a one-year, entry-level contract commencing in 2023-24
  • April 17: F Zac Dalpe recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
  • April 12: D Mike Benning agreed to terms on a 3-year, entry-level contract

PANTHERS vs. BOSTON
ALL-TIME vs. BOS: 44-50-6-10
ALL-TIME ROAD vs. BOS: 22-27-4-3
2022-23 vs. BOS: 2-2-0

CATS STATS

  • Florida’s 288 goals for ranked sixth in 2022-23, the second-most single season goals in club history. Since 2021-22, the Cats’ 625 total goals leads all teams.

BACK WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
The Panthers will begin the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs – their franchise-record fourth consecutive postseason appearance – against the Presidents’ Trophy winner Boston Bruins. Florida captured the trophy during the 2021-22 campaign. The series will mark the second time the two clubs have faced off in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Florida won the first matchup (the Panthers first-ever playoff series) in the 1996 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals four games to one, starting a postseason run that saw the Cats reach the Stanley Cup Final. Ray Sheppard, who scored Florida’s first-ever playoff goal in Game 1, led all skaters with eight points (4-4-8) in the series, while Jason Wooley led Cats blueliners with seven points (2-5-7).

SEASON SERIES STATS AND NOTES

  • Florida and Ottawa were the only two clubs to beat the Bruins twice in 2022-23.
  • Aleksander Barkov’s six points (2-4-6) against Boston were the most by one player against the Bruins this season. Barkov only faced the B’s three times in 2022-23.
  • Sam Reinhart (3-2-5 in 4GP) and Matthew Tkachuk (1-4-5 in 4GP) tied for second-most points against the Bruins this season.
  • Aaron Ekblad’s four points (1-3-4 in 4GP) tied for most points by a defenseman against the Bruins this season.
  • Florida’s 15 goals against the Bruins were the most of any team, four more than the next-closest squad (Ottawa, 11). Only Seattle (4.00 GF/GP) held a higher goals for per game against Boston in 2022-23, having only played them twice. Florida averaged 3.75 goals per game against the B’s this season.
  • Florida averaged 37.0 shots per game against the Bruins, the most of any team that played Boston more than twice in 2022-23.
  • Matthew Tkachuk registered 20 total shots on goal against the Bruins, the most of any skater in 2022-23.
  • The Panthers were one of just six teams to score three total power-play goals against the Bruins this season.
  • Seven different Cats totaled at least three points against Boston in 2022-23, while 16 recorded at least one point and 11 tallied at least one goal.

POWER UP
The Panthers finished the regular season scoring a power-play goal in 13 of their final 17 games, scoring on 28.8% of their power plays since March 10. Over that span, the Cats tied for third-most PPGs with 17, Sam Reinhart tied Artemi Panarin for the league lead with seven power-play tallies, and Brandon Montour tied for the league lead with 13 power-play points. Aaron Ekblad also led all NHL blueliners over that span with three PPGs. Montour’s 33 power-play points ranked third among blueliners in 2022-23, while Ekblad’s eight power-play tallies are tied for most by a defenseman.

BOSTON BRUINS NOTES:

TONIGHT’S GAME

  • The Bruins host the Panthers tonight in game 2 of their best-of-7 Round One series.
  • They enter tonight’s game with a 1-0 lead in the series and they have a 32-24 record in game 2s when leading a best-of-7 1-0.
  • They have a 25-7 record in best-of-7 series in which they have a 2-0 record and they are 26-19 in best-of-7 series in which they are tied 1-1..
  • Boston is in the post-season for the 7th straight season and 76th all-time in their history … Their 76 post-season berths are 2nd all-time in NHL history to MTL’s 85.
  • This is the 8th Round One series for Boston since the NHL adopted the format in 2013-14 and they are 5-2 in those series … Overall, they are playing their 37th first round series (preliminary series, division semifinals, conference quarterfinals and round one series) with a 19-17 record entering this post-season … They are 16-12 in those series which have been best-of-7 formats.

2023 ROUND ONE SERIES

  • The Bruins are 1-0 in this series so far, opening with a 3-1 win in Boston on 4/17.
  • Gm 1, April 17: Fla 1 at Bos 3 – David Pastrnak (PP), Brad Marchand (GW) and Jake DeBrusk scored goals and Tyler Bertuzzi added 2A for the series lead … Linus Ullmark earned the win in net … SOG: Bos 29, Fla 32 … PP: 1/2 … PK: 0/2
  • Notes: Linus Ullmark recorded his 1st career playoff victory … Tyler Bertuzze played his 1st NHL playoff game and his 1st
    playoff points with 2A … Charlie Coyle played his 100th NHL playoff game … Brad Marchand scored his 50th career playoff goal,
    moving into 2nd place on the team’s all-time goals list.
  • Gm 2, April 19: Fla 0 at Bos 0 –
  • Gm 3, April 21: Bos 0 at Fla 0 –
  • Gm 4, April 23: Bos 0 at Fla 0 –
  • Gm 5, April 26: Fla 0 at Bos 0 – if necessary
  • Gm 6, April 28: Bos 0 at Fla 0 – if necessary
  • Gm 7, April 30: Fla 0 at Bos 0 – if necessary

MAN-GAMES LOST TO INJURY – 153 Regular Season – 1 Playoff

BOSTON vs FLORIDA, LIFETIME SERIES

  • The Bruins and Panthers are playing their 2nd lifetime playoff series … The Panthers hold a 4-2 record in 6 lifetime games between these teams and have a 23-19 scoring edge in those games.
  • They played their 1st series with the 1996 Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series, won by Florida in 5 games … Florida held a 4-1 advantage in games and a 22-16 goals for/against totals.
  • Garnet Hathaway and Dmitry Orlov are the lone Bruins to have played a playoff series vs. the Panthers (2022 while with Washington) prior to this postseason

2022-23 SEASON SERIES vs. FLORIDA

  • The BOS went 2-1-1 vs. Florida this season (2-0-0 in BOS, 0-1-1 at Fla) with BOS holding a 17-15 scoring advantage in those 4 games.
  • Boston won game 1 with a 5-3 win in Boston on 10/17; Florida took game 2 by a 5-2 road score on 11/23; Boston won game 3 with a 7-3 home victory on 12/19; and the series ended with a 4-3 Panthers win in OT on 1/28.
  • Patrice Bergeron led the series with 3-3=6 totals with David Pastrnak, Jake DeBrusk, Connor Clifton and Brad Marchand adding 4 points each.
  • Linus Ullmark (2-0-0, 3.00 GAA, .925 Sv%) and Jeremy Swayman (0-1-1, 4.03 GAA, .881 Sv%) split the series in net.

2022-23 REGULAR SEASON RECAP

  • The Bruins finished the season with the top record in NHL history at 65-12-5, as they topped both the wins mark at 65 and the points record at 135 … They went 34-4-3 at home and 31-8-2 on the road … They ranked 1st overall in the NHL with a .823 points percentage.
  • They ranked 2nd overall with 301 goals for and was 1st overall with 174 goals against … Their power play ranked 12th at 22.2% while they ranked 1st on the penalty kill at 87.3%.
  • The Bruins also led the NHL with a +128 goal differential.
  • The Bruins had opened their home schedule with an NHL-record 14-game win streak … They also had a 22-game home point streak from 10-15-2022-1/2/2023 at 19-0-3.
  • Five Bruins had 20-or-more goal seasons, led by David Pastrnak 61 and followed by Patrice Bergeron (27), Jake DeBrusk (27), Brad Marchand (21) and Pavel Zacha (21).
  • 27 individual Bruins established career-highs in either goals, assists or points – Clifton (G, A, Pts), Jake DeBrusk (G tied, Pts), Forbort (G), Frederic (G, A, Pts), Greer (G, A, Pts), Grzelcyk (A, Pts), Lindholm (A, Pts), Nosek (Pts tied), Orlov (A, Pts), Pastrnak (G, A, Pts), Swayman (W), Ullmark (W), Zacha (G, A, Pts).

OVERTIME STATS

  • The Bruins have played 144 OT games in their playoff history with a 62-79-3 overall record, 33-35-1 at home and 29-44-2 on the
    road.
  • They have gone to multiple OTs in 27 games and they are 11-10 in 2OT games, 3-2 in 3OT games and 0-1 in the 6OT 1933 semifinal vs. TOR that was the longest such game in their history.
  • 5 current Bruins have career OT playoff goals – Bergeron (team-record 4), Marchand (3), David Krejci (2), Coyle, Foligno.

PLAYOFF NUMBERS
3 – Players on Boston’s current playoff roster who were members of the 2011 Stanley Cup championship Bruins team – Patrice Bergeron, David Krejci, and Brad Marchand.

4 – Current Bruins who have played 100+ NHL post-season games – Patrice Bergeron (167), David Krejci (157) and Brad Marchand (140) with Boston; Charlie Coyle (100 with MIN/BOS)

6 – Stanley Cups won by Boston (1929, 1939, 1941, 1970, 1972, 2011) … That is tied with CHI for 4th among NHL teams, trailing only MTL (24), TOR (13) and DET (11).

29 – Game 7 appearances by BOS, which is the most by a team in NHL history … Their 15-14 record in those games are also an NHL record for wins and represent more wins than 20 current teams have played game 7s.

76 – Overall playoff appearances for the Bruins … The Bruins hold the NHL record for consecutive playoff appearances with 29 straight from 1968-1996.

NHL Preview: New York Islanders (0-1) at Carolina Hurricanes (1-0)

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NHL Preview: New York Islanders (0-1) at Carolina Hurricanes (1-0)

NEW YORK ISLANDERS NOTES:

LAST GAME
DATE NYI RESULT SCORE NYI SCORERS IN GOAL
April 17, 2023
Game One
Loss CAR 2 vs. NYI 1 Pulock Sorokin (35/37)
Ryan Pulock found the back of the net in the second period after the Carolina Hurricanes opened up a two-goal lead, but the New York Islanders fell to the Hurricanes, 2-1, in Game One of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Ilya Sorokin turned aside 35 of 37 shots faced as the Islanders fell to 0-1 in their best-of-seven series against Carolina.

INJURIES PLAYOFF GAMES MISSED

26 Oliver Wahlstrom 1

28 Alexander Romanov 1

2022-23 Man Games Lost: 209

ROUND ONE SCHEDULE
Game One Monday, April 17 PNC Arena L, 2-1
Game Two Wednesday, April 19 PNC Arena 7pm
Game Three Friday, April 21 UBS Arena 7pm
Game Four Sunday, April 23 UBS Arena 1pm
Game Five (if necessary) Tuesday, Apr. 25 PNC Arena TBD
Game Six (if necessary) Friday, Apr. 28 UBS Arena TBD
Game Seven (if necessary) Sunday, Apr. 30 PNC Arena TBD

VS. CAROLINA:
Last five regular season meetings
(3-0-2)
Apr. 2, 2023 PNC Arena L, 2-1
Jan. 21, 2023 UBS Arena L, 5-2
Dec. 10, 2022 UBS Arena L, 3-0
Oct. 28, 2022 PNC Arena W, 6-2
Apr. 8, 2022 PNC Arena W, 2-1

Last playoff meeting – 2019
EASTERN CONFERENCE SEMIFINAL
(Carolina wins series 4-0)
APR 26 NYI 0 vs. CAR 1 L OT
APR 28 NYI 1 vs. CAR 2 L
MAY 1 NYI 2 at CAR 5 L
MAY 3 NYI 2 at CAR 5 L

2022-23 Reg. Season 1-3-0
Franchise History 65-74-9-7
NYI Home 30-38-4-4
NYI Away 35-36-5-3
Playoffs 0-5-0 (0-2-0 home/0-3-0 away)

ISLANDERS IN THE PLAYOFFS
Record 172-142
Home 96-53
Road 76-89
Last Playoff Appearance (2021) 11-8

Shutouts For 12; Last: Greiss, 5/9/20 at PHI
Shutouts Against 27; Last: Vasilevskiy, 6/5/21 at TBL
Hat Tricks 12; Last: Ray Ferraro, 4/26/93 (4)
Overtime Wins 40; Last: 6/23/21 SF (Beauvillier)
Overtime Losses 22; Last: 6/3/21 2nd Rnd (Marchand)

SERIES NOTES This year is the first season that the Islanders have qualified for the playoffs with Lane Lambert as Head Coach, and their fourth appearance in the playoffs in their last five seasons. While this is Lambert’s first postseason as a Head Coach, he has a 69-52 career record across eight postseason campaigns as an Associate and Assistant Coach, including a Stanley Cup championship in 2018 with the Washington Capitals.

The Islanders and Hurricanes have met in the playoffs once before, in the Second Round in 2019. These teams also met four times in their 2022-23 regular season series (1-3-0), most recently on April 2 at PNC Arena, a 2-1 decision in the Hurricanes’ favor. The Islanders captured a 6-2 victory at PNC Arena on October 28, as Mathew Barzal and Brock Nelson each recorded multi-point games. The Islanders finished the 2022-23 regular season with a 16-8-2 record against Metropolitan Division, one of three teams (Carolina, New Jersey) to collect at least 16 intra-division wins in the Metro. The Islanders and Hurricanes have combined for three Conference Final appearances in the past four years (2019, 2020 and 2021).

11 Islanders skaters enter the series with prior playoff experience vs. the Carolina Hurricanes. They are led by Zach Parise, who has recorded eight points (three goals, five assists in 13 games against the Hurricanes, but has not recorded a point against them as a member of the Islanders. Mathew Barzal has two goals in five career playoff games against the Hurricanes. Josh Bailey leads active Islanders in playoff points and assists with the club, with 50 (16 goals, 34 assists) in 71 career playoff games. Brock Nelson leads active Islanders in playoff goals, as he has scored 23 in 68 playoff games in his career.

CAROLINA HURRICANES NOTES:

GAME ONE
The Hurricanes earned a 2-1 win over the New York Islanders in their playoff opener at PNC Arena on Monday, improving to 8-1 in their nine home playoff games over the last two seasons. Sebastian Aho scored Carolina’s first goal of the playoffs on the power play, and
Stefan Noesen added a second power-play goal in his Hurricanes playoff debut as Brent Burns (2a) and Martin Necas (2a) registered the assists on both goals. Antti Raanta stopped 25 of 26 shots faced in net and has now posted a 7-0 record on home ice in his Hurricanes
playoff career.

INJURY REPORT
Jake Gardiner, upper-body, missed 83 games (10/12-4/17)
Ondrej Kase, concussion, missed 82 games (10/14-4/17)
Max Pacioretty, torn Achilles, missed 38 games (1/21-4/17)
Andrei Svechnikov, knee, missed 19 games (3/12-4/17)
2022-23 Regular-Season Man-Games Lost Due to Injury: 334
2023 Playoffs Man-Game Lost Due to Injury: 4

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
April 17 Recalled Pyotr Kochetkov from Chicago (AHL)
April 14 Signed Domenick Fensore to a two-year, entry-level contract
April 11 Signed Yaniv Perets to a two-year, entry-level contract

PLAYOFF STREAKS
None

UPCOMING GAMES
DATE OPPONENT TIME TV RADIO
April 19 NY Islanders 7 p.m. ESPN2, BSSO HRN
April 21 at NY Islanders 7 p.m. TBS, BSSO HRN
April 23 at NY Islanders 1 p.m. TNT, BSSO HRN
April 25 NY Islanders (if nec.) TBD TBD TBD
April 28 at NY Islanders (if nec.) TBD TBD TBD
April 30 NY Islanders (if nec.) TBD TBD TBD

  • All times are Eastern | BSSO = Bally Sports South | HRN = Hurricanes Radio Network

UPCOMING PRACTICE SCHEDULE
DATE DAY LOCATION TIME
April 19 Wednesday PNC Arena 10:30 a.m.
April 20 Thursday PNC Arena 12 p.m.
April 21 Friday UBS Arena 11:30 a.m.
April 22 Saturday Northwell Health Ice Center 1 p.m.
April 23 Sunday No morning skate

  • All times are local. Times and locations are subject to change.

HURRICANES vs. ISLANDERS SERIES NOTES
— Carolina is facing New York in the playoffs for the second time in franchise history. The Hurricanes earned a 4-0 series sweep of the Islanders in the 2019 Eastern Conference Second Round.

— The Hurricanes and Islanders have met 155 times in their regular-season histories. Carolina holds an 81-54-9-11 overall record, including a 39-29-5-6 home record and a 58-26-0-11 record since relocation.

— The Hurricanes won the regular-season series 3-1-0 in 2022-23 (Islanders: 1-3-0), and they are 9-2-0 in the teams’ last 11 regular-season matchups dating back to 1/8/19.

— The Hurricanes suffered a 6-2 loss against the Islanders at PNC Arena on 10/28. Martin Necas and Brent Burns each scored for Carolina, while Frederik Andersen made 26 saves in net.

— Carolina earned a 3-0 win over New York at UBS Arena on 12/10. Paul Stastny, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Jordan Staal scored for the Hurricanes, with Stastny’s goal marking his first tally with his new team, and Pyotr Kochetkov posted a 16-save shutout.

— The Hurricanes posted a 5-2 win over the Islanders at UBS Arena on 1/21. Sebastian Aho scored his second hat trick of the season (3g), and Jordan Staal (1g, 1a) and Teuvo Teravainen (2a) each recorded two points as Frederik Andersen stopped 29 of 31 shots faced in net.

— Carolina recorded a 2-1 win over New York at PNC Arena on 4/2. Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Jordan Martinook scored for the Hurricanes, while Frederik Andersen stopped 21 of 22 shots faced in net.

— Brent Burns has recorded 19 points (7g, 12a) in 26 career regular-season games against New York.

— Teuvo Teravainen has tallied 20 points (7g, 13a) in 25 career regular-season games against New York. He has also earned five points (3g, 2a) in four career playoff games against the Islanders in 2019.

— Calvin de Haan was selected 12th overall by New York in the 2009 NHL Draft and earned 81 points (12g, 69a) in 304 games with the Islanders from 2011-17.

— A native of Tarrytown, N.Y., Brett Pesce has recorded eight points (2g, 6a) in 25 career regular-season games against the Islanders and added three assists in four playoff matchups in 2019.

— Jaccob Slavin’s has scored six career regular-season goals against New York, including his only career hat trick in an 8-4 win at Barclays Center on 3/3/17. He has tallied 13 points (6g, 7a) in 25 career regular-season games against the Islanders, marking his most points against any opponent, and he also posted two assists in four playoff games against New York in 2019.

— Islanders Assistant Coach Doug Houda played 142 games with Hartford from 1991-93, posting 20 points (6g, 14a) and 356 penalty minutes. Acquired from DET in exchange for Doug Crossman on 2/20/91, Houda was traded to LAK in exchange for Marc Potvin on 11/3/93.

THE HOUSE IS ROCKIN’
With a win over the Islanders in Game 1, the Hurricanes improved to 40-25 as the home team in the playoffs since 1998, and their .615 win percentage ranks third among all NHL teams over that span (CHI: .686 in 70 GP, DET: .629 in 105 GP). Carolina went 7-1 on home ice during the playoffs last season, and the team has now posted a 16-6 record in 22 postseason games at PNC Arena since 2019. The Hurricanes have won nine of their last 11 best-of-seven series starting on home ice (2002-2022), and they earned a 28-10-3 record (59 points) at home in 2022-23, with the third-most home wins and fourth-highest home points percentage (.720) in any season in franchise history.

SERIAL KILLERS
The Hurricanes went 4-for-4 on the penalty kill in Game 1, with their last successful kill coming in the final five minutes of regulation to ice their 2-1 win. They went 216-for-256 on the penalty kill during the regular season, and their 84.4% penalty kill percentage ranked second in the NHL behind only the Bruins (87.3%). Carolina held its opponents scoreless on the man-advantage in 49 of its 82 games, including 31 of its final 42 contests (1/10-4/13: 21-8-2).

NHL Morning Skate: Stanley Cup Playoffs Edition – April 19, 2023

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NHL Morning Skate: Stanley Cup Playoffs Edition – April 19, 2023

* The Kraken became the first team in NHL history to win their first-ever playoff game against the reigning Stanley Cup champions and were one of two Western Conference Wild Card teams to take a 1-0 series lead Tuesday.

* Adam Fox and Chris Kreider skated atop the Rangers playoff record book as New York took Game 1 in the latest rendition of the “Hudson River Rivalry”.

* Nikita Kucherov continued to pile up the points in the Stanley Cup Playoffs as he registered his 21st career three-point game and helped the Lightning achieve a franchise-first in their Game 1 victory.
 

* Six road teams have taken 1-0 series leads in the 2023 First Round, marking the third time at least six Game 1s in the opening round were won by the visiting team (also 6 in 1991 DSF & 7 in 2003 CQF). 


KRAKEN DEFEAT REIGNING CHAMPIONS IN FIRST-EVER PLAYOFF GAME
Eeli Tolvanen scored the first of three Kraken goals 3:26 into the contest and Philipp Grubauer notched 34 saves as Seattle stunned the Avalanche in Game 1 of their First Round series. The Kraken became the first team in NHL history to win their first-ever playoff game against the reigning Stanley Cup champions.



* The Kraken became the seventh franchise in NHL history to win their first-ever Stanley Cup Playoffs game on the road. The others: Minnesota (2003 CQF at COL), San Jose (1994 CQF at DET), NY Islanders (1975 PRLM at NYR), St. Louis (1968 QF at PHI), Boston (1927 QF at CHI) and the Montreal Maroons (1926 NHLSF at PIR).

* Seattle also became the seventh franchise in the past 40 years to score three or more goals in its first-ever postseason outing. They joined Atlanta (3 in Game 1 of 2007 CQF), Minnesota (4 in Game 1 of 2003 CQF), Anaheim (4 in Game 1 of 1997 CQF), Florida (6 in Game 1 of 1996 CQF), Tampa Bay (3 in Game 1 of 1996 CQF) and San Jose (5 in Game 1 of 1994 CQF).

DID YOU KNOW?
The Victoria Cougars of the WCHL also defeated the NHL’s reigning champions in their first-ever Stanley Cup Playoffs game after skating to a 5-2 victory against the Montreal Canadiens in Game 1 of the 1925 Stanley Cup Final. The two teams met in the championship series after Victoria defeated the Saskatoon Sheiks in the WCHL Semifinal and the Calgary Tigers in the WCHL Final.

FOX JOINS COFFEY ON RARE NHL LIST, KREIDER ESTABLISHES FRANCHISE RECORD

Adam Fox (0-4—4) matched a franchise record with a four-assist outing and Chris Kreider (2-0—2) established a Rangers postseason record for goals to help New York take a 1-0 series lead in the “Hudson River Rivalry”.

* Kreider scored his 35th and 36th postseason goals to surpass Rod Gilbert (34) on the Rangers’ all-time Stanley Cup Playoffs list. Kreider also became one of seven active players (Sebastian Aho w/ CAR; tied, Filip Forsberg w/ NSH, Nikita Kucherov w/ TBL, Jonathan Marchessault w/ VGK, Alex Ovechkin w/ WSH & Mark Scheifele w/ WPG) to lead his current franchise in postseason goals and the only one to hold the title for an Original Six club.

* Tuesday marked the second time Fox has matched the franchise record for most assists by a defenseman in a postseason contest following Game 6 of the 2022 First Round; Dave Maloney first set the benchmark in Game 3 of the 1983 Division Semifinals. In doing so, Fox became the second blueliner in NHL history with multiple four-assist outings in his playoff career, joining Paul Coffey (4x; last: Game 2 of 1991 DF). 



* Fox improved his career totals in the Stanley Cup Playoffs to 5-22—27 (24 GP) and required the second-fewest games by a defenseman in NHL history to record 20 career postseason assists, trailing only Gary Suter (23 GP). Among all skaters in Rangers history, Fox also required the fewest contests to reach the mark, besting Brian Leetch (26 GP).


LIGHTNING SCORE EARLY AND OFTEN TO TOP TORONTO IN PLAYOFF OPENER
Pierre-Edouard Bellemare (1:18) netted the fastest goal to begin a postseason in Lightning history and Nikita Kucherov (1-2—3) factored on three of Tampa Bay’s subsequent six goals to register his 21st career three-point game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs and propel his club to a 1-0 lead in its First Round series.


* Meanwhile, Brayden Point (40-40—80 in 77 GP) scored twice to reach the 80-point mark in his postseason career. The only active players to reach the plateau in fewer games are Nathan MacKinnon (59 GP), Sidney Crosby (59 GP) and Evgeni Malkin (66 GP).

* Tampa Bay’s seven goals were the most in a playoff opener in franchise history (previous: 5 in 2021 R1 & 2018 R1). The Lightning are the fourth team in the past 34 years to score seven or more times in that scenario, joining the Penguins (7 in 2000 CQF), Blues (8 in 1998 CQF) and Flyers (7 in 1996 CQF).

WHEELER, HELLEBUYCK PILOT JETS TO WIN VERSUS TOP SEED IN WEST
Blake Wheeler (1-2—3) recorded a game-high three points and Connor Hellebuyck stopped 16 of 17 shots as Winnipeg potted five goals en route to a Game 1 victory against the Western Conference’s top seed.

* Wheeler matched the franchise record for points in a playoff game – a feat he has achieved three other times – and did so thanks to his eighth career postseason goal for the Jets. The only other player in Jets/Thrashers history with multiple three-point contests is Paul Stastny (2x).

* Hellebuyck, who earned his 17th career postseason victory, has tended the crease for every win in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the Jets/Thrashers. He is the only active goaltender to have the decision for every playoff win by an active NHL franchise.



HUGHES SCORES PENALTY-SHOT GOAL IN #NHLSTATS: LIVE UPDATES

Skating in his postseason debut, Jack Hughes became the first player in Devils/Rockies/Scouts history to score a penalty-shot goal in the playoffs. This note and more are featured in the second 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs edition of #NHLStats: Live Updates.  



LAST CALL FOR BRACKET CHALLENGE
There’s still time for fans to join in the fun in the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs Bracket Challenge presented by GEICO by submitting brackets outlining their predictions for each playoff series online at NHL.com/Bracket or via the NHL App.

Brackets will remain open through Game 1 of each series in the First Round, giving fans the chance to change their predictions for each series based on Game 1 outcomes. Brackets will be locked before the puck drops for the first Game 2 of the First Round – Wednesday’s 7 p.m. ET New York Islanders @ Carolina Hurricanes.


QUICK CLICKS

* CHEL Intel – Issue No. 10
*Connor Bedard tops Central Scouting North American ranking for 2023 NHL Draft 
* Stanley Cup creates ‘special moments’ in visit to school for the blind
* David Harbour stars as Gordo St. John in TNT commercial
* FLA-BOS: Most-viewed Game 1 of First Round series ever on cable


WHAT WILL UNSUNG HEROES DO FOR AN ENCORE IN GAME 2?
All four teams that skated away with a Game 1 victory on Monday night received an integral contribution from at least one unsung hero, from standout goaltending performances to impressive postseason debuts with a new franchise to overtime goals.



* A pair of players making their first career postseason appearance helped the Wild survive a double-overtime thriller with a Game 1 victory. Filip Gustavsson (51 saves) got the call in the opener for Minnesota, with three-time Stanley Cup champion Marc-Andre Fleury serving as his backup, and set a franchise record for saves in a playoff game. Ten goaltenders have made 80 or more saves across their first two career playoff appearances (since 1955-56), with two topping 100: Igor Shesterkin (106 in 2 GP w/ NYR from 2020 to 2022) and Jose Theodore (101 in 2 GP w/ MTL in 1997). His teammate Sam Steel (1-1—2), who waited 262 regular-season games before making his playoff debut, scored the game-tying goal and assisted on the overtime winner.


* Tyler Bertuzzi, who was traded to Boston on March 2 after spending the better part of seven seasons with Detroit, had 0-2—2 in his Stanley Cup Playoffs debut Monday. Should he notch multiple points again Wednesday, Bertuzzi would become the sixth player to record two points in each of their first two career playoff games with the Bruins, following Tyler Seguin (Game 1 & Game 2 of 2011 CF), Michael Nylander (Game 1 & Game 2 of 2004 CQF), Adam Oates (Game 1 & Game 2 of 1992 DSF), Barry Pederson (Game 1 & Game 2 of 1982 DSF) and Jean Ratelle (Game 1 & Game 2 of 1976 QF).

* Stefan Noesen was signed by the Hurricanes as a free agent prior to 2021-22 and played 70-plus games in a regular-season for the first time since 2017-18 (13-14—27 in 72 GP), while tying for second on the team with seven power-play goals. In Game 1, Noesen scored the game winner with the man advantage, the second Carolina power-play goal of the contest. It marked the first time in 21 outings dating back to the regular season that the Hurricanes scored multiple power-play goals in one game (4 PPG on March 5 vs. TBL).

* Alex Iafallo, who was signed by Los Angeles as an undrafted free agent exactly five years ago yesterday (April 18, 2017), capped his team’s multi-goal comeback by playing overtime hero in Game 1. Iafallo is no stranger to big moments after reaching the NCAA National Championship with the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2016-17. 

MLB Preview: Toronto Blue Jays (11-7) at Houston Astros (8-10)

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MLB Preview: Toronto Blue Jays (11-7) at Houston Astros (8-10)

TORONTO BLUE JAYS NOTES:

THE LATEST: The Blue Jays took the middle match of their three-game series in Houston as they doubled up the Astros, 4-2, last night…Are now 10-5 while playing within the AL circuit. Toronto has now won 10 of its last 14 contests…Can claim a 5th consecutive series with a win tonight…Are 1-1 in rubber games this season.

CHAP-MAN ON FIRE: Matt Chapman belted a solo shot in the 4th inning last night…Was his 5th longball of the campaign, homering in consecutive games for 2nd time this season (3G from April 8-11) and the 21st time in his career. The third baseman also doubled to finish the night at 2-for-4…Now has 14 extra-base hits to lead the Majors, two more than any other player…Is now batting .415 (27-for-65) with nine doubles, five homers, seven walks, and 17 RBI…His .785 SLG, his 1.257 OPS, and his 51 total bases are all the highest in the Majors…Ranks 1st in the AL in batting average, OBP (.472), and doubles while 2nd in hits and T-4th in RBI. The 29-year-old also leads all MLB hitters in barrel
rate (23.6%), hard-hit (95+ MPH) percentage (66.0) and average exit velocity (97.4 MPH)…Now boasts a 1.4 fWAR, the highest in the Majors.

VLADIOS, BASEBALL: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. opened last night’s scoring with a liner into the right-field seats in the 4th…Was his 3rd home run of the season, all coming on the road…Has reached base safely in all but two games this season, now 25-for-70 with a double, three homers, nine RBI, and a 9BB/9K ratio for a .357 AVG (4th in the AL), a .439 OBP (3rd), and a .939 OPS (12th). The Gold Glove first baseman’s 25 hits are 3rd most in the AL, trailing only teammates Bo Bichette (29) and Matt Chapman (27)…Has recorded 36 hard-hit balls (95+ MPH) this year, the most in MLB (2nd: Matt Chapman – 33).

THE HITS ARE FLOWING: Bo Bichette singled and drew a walk to go 1-for-3 with an RBI last night…Has hits in 15 of the 18 games so far, going 29-for-78 (.372) with four doubles, four homers, 12 RBI, and 11 runs scored…The 29 hits are tied with Bryson Stott for the most in the Majors… Among AL batters, currently ranks 2nd in AVG, 3rd in total bases (45), 7th in SLG (.577), and 10th in OPS (.966).

THAT MERRI FEELING: Whit Merrifield singled twice and scored as part of a 2-for-4 evening…Has reached base safely in all 13 of his games played this season, batting .292 (14-for-48) with three doubles, six RBI, and three walks.

THE BASS IS IT: Chris Bassitt tossed 6.1 innings of scoreless ball last night, allowing three hits and a walk while fanning five batters to pick up his 2nd win as a Blue Jay… Was his longest scoreless outing since Aug. 3, 2022 at WAS (7.0 IP)…Marked his 3rd consecutive quality start, posting a 1.96 ERA (4 ER/18.1 IP) and a .156 opponents’ AVG over that span.

HITTING THE ROAD: The Blue Jays are on a six-game road trip, now holding a 7-5 record while away from Rogers Centre…Their 12 road games played are tied for the most in MLB… After this three-gamer in Houston, will have the day off tomorrow before taking on the Yankees (10-7) in the Bronx for three dates over the weekend. Toronto’s .583 road win% currently ranks T-5th in the AL…Blue Jays hitters lead the AL in road hits (119) while ranking 2nd in AVG (.275), 2nd in OBP (.338), 3rd in OPS (.756), and 6th in SLG (.418)…The pitching staff ranks 13th in the AL in road ERA (5.28), 13th in opponents’ batting average (.268), and 14th in WHIP (1.42).

ROMANO-MATIC: Jordan Romano got a two-on, two-out fly ball to end the 8th inning and then struck out two batters to go with a groundout in the 9th to record his 1st four-out save of the season…Now has seven saves to lead the Majors…Led the AL last year with 10 saves in the opening month of the season

HITTING IT: The Blue Jays have notched 169 hits so far this season, 2nd most in the AL (1st: TB – 176)…Are also 2nd in the AL in team batting average (.269), 3rd in OBP (.337), 3rd in OPS (.746), and 5th in SLG (.409)… Have had 236 batters reach base safely (2nd in the AL)…Are now on a streak of 33 games with 8+ runners on base, the longest of all MLB clubs (courtesy Stats Perform).

ALEJANDRO ABOARD: Alejandro Kirk went 1-for-4 last night…Has reached base in all 13 of his games with an at-bat for a .373 OBP while going 10-for-41 (.244) with a homer, nine RBI, and an 8BB/8K ratio…Last season, struck out just 58 times over 541 PA while drawing 63 walks as his
9.33 PA/K was 4th best among qualified MLB hitters.

VS. THE ASTROS: All-Time: 30-37
2023: 1-1 Road: 12-23
Road: 1-1 Minute Maid Park: 12-23

The Blue Jays went 4-2 in their six meetings with the Astros last season, taking two of three games at each ballpark…Scored 26 runs while the Astros scored 27 as Toronto claimed each of its four wins by one run… Are now 12-23 all-time at Minute Maid Park but have taken five of their last nine games there. George Springer played seven seasons for the Astros and hit .270 with 137 doubles, 13 triples, 174 home runs and 458 RBI (.852 OPS)…Made three All-Star teams and was named 2017 World Series MVP…In his seven games against them, has gone 5-for-25 (.200) with a double, three homers, three RBI, and three walks (.910 OPS). Whit Merrifield went 10-for-31 (.323) with a double, a triple, and a homer in his seven games vs. the Astros last season…In 33 career meetings, is batting .300 (42-for-140) with nine doubles, three triples, three home runs, and 20 RBI (.805 OPS). Matt Chapman leads all current Blue Jays with 74 games played vs. Houston…Has gone 64-for-270 (.237) with 19 doubles, a triple, 16 homers, and 35 RBI in those contests for a .795 OPS.

STARTING PITCHER – José Berríos, RHP #17
TODAY’S GAME:
Making his 4th start of the season and his 3rd on the road…Picked up his 1st win of the year on 4/14 vs. TB, tossing 5.0 innings of one-run ball with 4 hits, no walks, and 6 strikeouts…Was removed from the game with a left knee contusion after being hit by a comebacker from Yandy Díaz. Has made 143 starts since the beginning of 2018, tied for the 3rd most among MLB hurlers (Aaron Nola – 147, Gerrit Cole – 144).

2023 HIGHLIGHTS:
Lost his 2nd game of the year on 4/8 at LAA, surrendering 6R/4ER over 4.0+ frames with 6 hits, a walk, and 5 strikeouts (71 pitches – 43 strikes). Took the loss in his season debut on 4/3 at KC, giving up 8 runs on 9 hits and a pair of walks over 5.2 innings with 7 strikeouts.

HOUSTON ASTROS NOTES:

TONIGHT’S GAME: The Houston Astros, the reigning World Series champs, have alternated wins and losses in each of their last eight games and are looking to continue that streak tonight in the rubber game of their three-game series vs. Toronto… getting the start for Houston will be RHP Luis Garcia, a 15- game winner last season, who’s looking for his first win of the year…he’ll be opposed by RHP José Berríos and the
Rays.

ABOUT GARCIA:RHP Luis Garcia is making the fourth start of his fourth MLB season (2020-23) and is coming off a strong 2022 campaign in which he ranked tied for fourth in the AL in wins (15), ninth in opponent average (.222) and 10th in strikeouts per 9.0 (8.98)…he finished his season by winning seven consecutive decisions over his last eight starts.

ALL IN THE FAMILY: On Monday, the Astros signed minor league free agent RHP Heribert Garcia, who is the younger brother of tonight’s starter RHP Luis Garcia…the 23-year-old Heribert spent his 2022 season with Class A Columbia, in what was his fifth year as a professional in the Royals system after signing with the club in March of 2018…Garcia has reported to the Astros Spring Training facility in West Palm Beach, FL.

TONIGHT’S RING GIVEAWAY: Tonight, the Astros will give away a Chas McCormick World Series Replica Ring, presented by Jostens, to all fans in attendance…McCormick’s replica ring is the third of 13 scheduled replica ring giveaways this season.

TONIGHT’S SPECIAL GUEST: Through The Challenged Athletes Foundation, the Astros will welcome special guest Parker Byrd to Minute Maid Park tonight to attend batting practice and throw out a ceremonial first pitch…Parker received a 2022 scholarship to play baseball at East Carolina University, but last July he was in a tragic boating accident and lost his left leg below the knee…through a grant for an Ossur sports prosthetic from The Challenged Athletes Foundation, Parker is defying the odds and has continued to work towards his goal of playing baseball at ECU.

VS. THE JAYS: The Astros and Blue Jays, two perennial contenders, are concluding their first series of the 2023 season tonight…the Blue Jays won the season series last year, 4-2, taking both three-game series played…this series is a reunion between the Astros and OF George Springer, who played his first seven years (2014-20) as an Astro…IF Cavan Biggio, the son of Astros Hall of Famer Craig Biggio, also plays for the Jays.

AT THE HELM: Astros skipper Dusty Baker is in his 26th season as a manager and his fourth at the helm in Houston…Baker, who ranks ninth all-time in managerial wins with 2,101 wins, has an outside shot of moving up to sixth all time by seasons end…en route, he’d have to surpass Joe McCarthy (8th, 2,125), Bucky Harris (7th, 2,158) and Sparky Anderson (6th 2,194).

ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Astros and Blue Jays played a close game last night, with Toronto edging the Astros 4-2…the Jays scored early on RHP José Urquidy (4ER/4.1IP) and held on late to even the three-game series…the Astros scored their runs on RBI singles by LF Yordan Alvarez and RF Kyle Tucker, but their two-run rally ended prematurely in the 8th…2B Mauricio Dubón (1×5) scored one of the two runs after extending his
hitting streak to 13 games.

YESTERDAY’S ROSTER MOVE: Prior to last night’s game, the Astros recalled IF Rylan Bannon (#38) from Triple A Sugar Land…he took the roster spot of OF Chas McCormick, who was placed on the 10-day IL with lower back tightness… McCormick’s IL placement is backdated to Saturday, April 15.

RACKIN’ UP RBI: LF Yordan Alvarez (21 RBI) is the fourth player in club history to post 21 RBI within the team’s first 18 games, joining Lance Berkman (21 in 2002), OF Richard Hidalgo (22 in 2004) and CF César Cedeño (23 RBI in 1974)…Alvarez has done his work while playing in just 16 of the Astros 18 games on the season.

TRAFFIC:LF Yordan Alvarez has opened his season by reaching base safely in all 16 of his games…Alvarez’s streak ties as the longest on-base streak in the AL this season, along with White Sox 1B Andrew Vaughn.

EARLY LEAGUE LEADERS: LF Yordan Alvarez ranks first in the Majors in RBI (21) and ranks tied for ninth in the AL in home runs (4), along with RF Kyle Tucker…Tucker also ranks second in the AL in walks (15), fifth in OBP (.434) and ninth in OPS (.984)…SS Jeremy Peña ranks tied for sixth in the AL in doubles (6), while 2B Mauricio Dubón ranks seventh in the AL in batting average (.328).

MISSING PIECE: The Astros are playing without their leadoff man, 2B Jose Altuve, who suffered a right thumb fracture while playing in the WBC…Altuve is expected to be sidelined from baseball activity for approx. two months…in his stead, the Astros have started IF Mauricio Dubón (14g) and IF David Hensley (4g) at the keystone, while SS Jeremy Peña (8g), OF Chas McCormick (6g) and Dubón (4g) have shared leadoff duties.

FILLING IN NICELY: 2B Mauricio Dubón is on a career-long, 13-game hitting streak, which is the longest hitting streak in the AL this season and the longest active streak in the Majors…overall, Dubón is hitting .328 (19×58) on the year, which ranks seventh in the AL…Dubón, who started most of his games at shortstop and center field in 2022, has made all 14 of his starts at second base this season while filling in for
the injured 2B Jose Altuve.

TODAY’S CALL-IN: 2B Mauricio Dubón will be the special guest today on the Matt Thomas Show on SportsTalk 790…the call-in interview is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.

ON THE BUMP: The Astros pitching staff ranks fourth in the Majors in strikeouts (169) and fourth in the AL in ERA (3.43)… the starters have worked to a 3.44 ERA, which ranks fifth in the Majors.

TONIGHT’S ASTROS STARTER: RHP LUIS GARCIA

LAST START – 4/14 AT TEX: struck out a season-high 7 batters but also surrendered a season-high 5 runs through 5.0 IP while allowing 5 hits and 2 walks in a 6-2 loss to the Rangers…was the first time since 6/20/22 vs. MIA that he allowed 5 or more runs in a start…had gone 19 starts without allowing 5-or-more runs.

BROTHERLY LOVE: The Astros this week signed Garcia’s younger brother, Heribert (pronounced: eh-ree-ber) to a minor league contract and assigned him to the Florida Complex League…the 23-year-old has spent the last 5 years within the Kansas City minor league system, last appearing with Single A Columbia in 2022…is the latest instance of the Astros having brothers within their system, with Garrett and C.J. Stubbs both under contract from 2019-21, Carlos and J.C. Correa in 2021 along with Yainer and Victor Diaz 2022-current.

VS. THE BLUE JAYS: is set to make his 4th career appearance (4th start) against the Blue Jays…made 2 of the starts in 2022, with the Astros going 1-1 in those starts. • has gone 1-1 with a 4.00 ERA (8ER/18IP) in 3 career starts vs. Toronto…has held Blue Jays hitters to a .206 batting average throughout his career…is his 3rd-lowest opponent’s batting average against a team he’s pitched at least 15.0 innings against.

• has held Blue Jays hitters Matt Chapman, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette to a combined .130 batting average (3×23) throughout his career.

ABOUT GARCIA: Venezuelan starter has pitched in parts of 4 seasons (2020-23) in Houston, going 26-19 with a 3.74 ERA (141ER/339IP) in 66 games (60 starts). • recorded a career-high winning streak from Aug. 12, 2022-Oct. 2, 2022, which dated back 8 starts…in those 8 outings, he recorded a 3.20 ERA (16ER/45IP).

• has dominated right-handed hitters in his career, limiting them to a .196 average (129×657)…lefties have hit 70 points higher against Garcia, posting a .266 average (161×606)…in 2022, those numbers were close to evening out as he limited righties to a .213 (67×315) average and lefties to a .234 (64×274) mark.

GARCIA’S NEW LOOK: Prior to it being outlawed this season, had one of the most unique windups in the Majors, which was a mix of rocking a baby and a salsa dance…his windup was developed during the 2020 season as he worked at the Astros Alternate Training Site over the summer…Garcia did not have a strong origin story for his windup, instead saying he wanted a windup that he felt could be repeatable.

• according to Astros Pitching Coach Josh Miller, this offseason, Garcia simply returned to his windup style he used throughout his career prior to 2020 to get back in compliance with Major League rules.

MLB Preview: Minnesota Twins (10-7) at Boston Red Sox (9-9)

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MLB Preview: Minnesota Twins (10-7) at Boston Red Sox (9-9)

MINNESOTA TWINS NOTES:

THE TWINS: Have gone 2-3 through five games on their seven-game, eight-day roadtrip…they won the first two in Yankee Stadium on Thursday and Friday, followed by three consecutive losses from Saturday through last night, two in New York and one in Boston…tonight the Twins will continue the trip with the second of three against the Red Sox at Fenway Park… after tomorrow afternoon’s series finale, the Twins will travel back to Minneapolis to begin a 10-game homestand with three games against the Nationals (April 21-23), three games against the Yankees (April 24-26) and four games against the Royals (April 27-30).

WEIRD GAME ENDS IN 10-INNING LOSS FOR TWINS: The Twins lost to the Red Sox last night at Fenway Park by a score of 5-4 in 10 innings, making them 2-1 in extras this season… Sonny Gray was the starter but did not factor into the decision, allowing just one run on seven hits in 5.0 innings pitched with two walks and seven strikeouts…the Twins took a two-run lead in the top of the 10th but Jovani Moran allowed three runs to score in the bottom half on three hits and one walk…the offense recorded just four hits, highlighted by a Max Kepler home run in the seventh inning, his second of the season…Christian Vázquez made his return to Fenway, going 1-for-4 with a single and two strikeouts…the three hour and seven minute game marked the longest for the Twins this season.

GALLANT RETURN: The Twins have returned outfielder Joey Gallo from his rehab assignment and reinstated him from the 10-day Injured List…Gallo has missed the Twins’ last 10 games with a right intercostal strain, an injury he sustained on April 7 vs. Houston…he played in
three games on rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul, going 2-for-12 with one double… Gallo has hit .278 (5-for-18) with one double, three home runs, seven RBI, four runs scored and a 1.183 OPS in seven games for the Twins this season…to make room for Gallo on the 26-man roster, the Twins have optioned outfielder Kyle Garlick to Triple-A St. Paul…Garlick played in two games for the Twins, going 1-for-7 with a home run and one RBI.

LOVE THAT DIRTY WATER: The Twins have lost two straight to the Red Sox, dating back to August of 2022, but have gone 3-2 in their last five against Boston…after this series, the Twins will host the Sox for four games at Target Field from June 19-22.

Twins are looking to avoid losing a series to the Red Sox for the first time since dropping a three-game series at Fenway from August 24-26, 2021.

Carlos Correa is hitting .316 (54-for-171) with eight doubles, 10 home runs, 27 RBI, 36 runs scored, 33 walks, a .424 on-base percentage, a .538 slugging percentage and a .962 OPS in 46 career regular season games against the Red Sox…he is hitting .315 (29-for-92) with seven home runs and a .987 OPS in 24 career games at Fenway.

MAX POWER: Max Kepler has homered twice in his last four games…each of his last four home runs have been hit on the road (dating back to June of 2022)…Kepler has one career home run off Corey Kluber, which came on August 31, 2016 at Progressive Field…he hit his 131st career home run last night, moving within one of tying Jacque Jones for 14th on the Twins all-time list (since 1961):

TWIN HR TWIN HR TWIN HR
1) Harmon Killebrew……….475 8) Gary Gaetti ………………..201 15) Max Kepler………….. 131
2) Kent Hrbek………………..293 9) Brian Dozier……………….167 16) Eddie Rosario………. 119
3) Justin Morneau…………..221 10) Tom Brunansky…………163 17) Roy Smalley…………. 110
4) Tony Oliva………………….220 11) Miguel Sanó……………..162 18) Jason Kubel …………. 105
5) Torii Hunter ……………….214 12) Joe Mauer ………………..143 19) Corey Koskie………… 101
6) Bob Allison………………..211 13) Michael Cuddyer……….141 20) Byron Buxton ……….. 100
7) Kirby Puckett……………..207 14) Jacque Jones…………….132 21) J. Hall/J. Polanco…….. 98

NOTE: Kepler has one leadoff home run this season, coming on April 3 at Miami, off Johnny Cueto…he has 14 leadoff homers in his career, tied with Chuck Knoblauch for fourth-most in club history, trailing Brian Dozier (28) and Jacque Jones (20).

CARLOS ACROSS AMERICA: In his last 36 road games, dating back to August 13, 2022, Carlos Correa is hitting .309 (42-for-136) with six doubles, seven home runs, 20 RBI, 16 walks, a .378 on-base percentage and an .886 OPS…since that date, he ranks tied for eighth in the AL in batting average, ninth in on-base percentage and 10th in OPS (minimum 100 plate appearances).

Correa’s first-inning single last night was the hardest hit ball for a Twin this season, with a 113.9 mph exit velocity.

‘PEN STILL MIGHTY: The Twins bullpen has combined to go 3-2, 2.75 ERA (52.1 IP, 16 ER) with 15 walks, 56 strikeouts, a .197 opponent batting average and a .590 opponent OPS…they rank third among all bullpens in baseball in ERA, and fourth in opponent batting average and OPS.

The Twins’ bullpen has averaged 90.1 mph, the fourth-highest average pitch velocity in the AL and seventh-highest in baseball… they have an average fastball velocity of 94.7 mph, fourth-best in the AL and sixth-best in baseball.

After ranking third in baseball in innings pitched in 2022 (654.1), they have pitched the fewest innings in 2023 (52.1).

WELL PLAYED, MAUER: Joe Mauer is celebrating his 40th birthday today…Mauer shares a birthday with actor James Franco, actress Kate Hudson, former NFL star/former Head and Shoulders commercial co-star Troy Polamalu and tennis player Maria Sharapova.
AOther former Twins celebrating birthdays: Frank Viola (63), Joe Beimel (46), Dennys Reyes (46) and Zach Duke (40).

STARTING PITCHER – JOE RYAN 41
2023: 3-0, 2.84 ERA

Making his fourth start and appearance of 2023 and his third road start this year…also his 36th career start and appearance.

Has won a career-best six consecutive decisions, since September 13, 2022; is 6-0, 1.85 ERA (43.2 IP, 9 ER) with 11 walks, 53 strikeouts and a .140 opponent batting average in that seven-start span.

Facing Boston for the third time in his career and second time at Fenway Park…1-1, 4.91 ERA (11.0 IP, 6 ER) with one walk and 15 strikeouts in two previous starts vs. Red Sox.

BOSTON RED SOX NOTES:

IT’S A WALK-OFF: The Red Sox defeated the Twins last night, 5-4, when Alex Verdugo hit a walk-off RBI single with 2 outs in the 10th inning…The Twins challenged the ruling of a fair ball, but the call stood. Last night was the Sox’ 2nd walk-off win of the season (also 4/1 vs. BAL, Duvall 2-run HR). Last night marked the Red Sox’ 1st extra-inning game of the season…They had entered the day as 1 of 7 teams yet to play an extra-inning game.

IT AIN’T OVER ‘TIL IT’S OVER: The Red Sox earned their 7th come-from-behind win of the season last night, tied for most in the majors (also ARI, CLE, PIT)…They came to bat in the 8th inning with a 2-1 deficit and then trailed, 4-2, to start the bottom of the 10th inning. The Sox trailed by multiple runs in 5 of their 7 comeback wins, including by 4 runs on 4/15 vs. LAA and by 6 runs on 4/1 vs. BAL.

STATE OF THE SOX: The Red Sox are 4-1 in their last 5 games…They have alternated series wins and losses this season: 2-1 vs. BAL, 0-3 vs. PIT, 3-0 at DET, 0-4 at TB, 3-1 vs. LAA. The Sox are in a stretch of 19 days without an off day from 4/8-26 (6-5 so far), their longest stretch of the season…They will not play on more than 10 consecutive days again until 8/15-30 (16 games). Each of the last 3 World Series champions in a 162-game season was 9-9 or worse through 18 games: 2022 Astros (9-9), 2021 Braves (8-10), and 2019 Nationals (9-9).

VINTAGE PERFORMANCE: Chris Sale struck out 11 batters in 6.0 IP last night vs. MIN, allowing 1 run on 3 hits (2 BB, 2 HBP)…He generated 19 whiffs on 44 swings (43.2%). Last night marked the 15th time in his career Sale struck out 10+ batters, allowed 1 or 0 runs, and did not earn a win, passing Nolan Ryan for the most such games in MLB history.

MOST 10-STRIKEOUT GAMES BY RED SOX PITCHERS
Rk. Pitcher G

  1. Pedro Martinez 72
  2. Roger Clemens 68
  3. Chris Sale 44

MOST 10-STRIKEOUT GAMES IN MLB, 2012-2023
Rk. Pitcher G

  1. Max Scherzer 104
  2. Chris Sale 79
  3. Jacob deGrom 59

WHAT A RELIEF: In their last 5 games, Red Sox relievers have posted a 1.61 ERA (4 ER/22.1 IP) while striking out 22 batters and walking only 4. The Sox have posted a 3.30 relief ERA this season, compared to a 4.59 relief ERA in 2022.

RED SOX PITCHERS WITH A RELIEF ERA OF 2.00 OR LOWER
Pitcher Relief ERA IP ER
Kenley Jansen 0.00 6.0 0
Kutter Crawford 0.96 9.1 1
Josh Winckowski 1.93 14.0 3
John Schreiber 2.00 9.0 2

CLOSING TIME: In the 8th and 9th innings combined, the Red Sox lead MLB with a 1.13 ERA (4 ER/32.0 IP)…The Sox have outscored opponents in those innings, 20-5. The Sox are 6-0 when leading after 6 innings. The Red Sox are 1 of 3 teams in MLB without a blown save this season (5-for-5)…The other teams are TB (3-for-3) and MIA (3-for-3).

MOST SAVES IN MLB HISTORY
Rk. Pitcher SV

  1. Mariano Rivera …..652
  2. Trevor Hoffman …..601
  3. Lee Smith …………..478
  4. Francisco Rodriguez..437
  5. John Franco………..424
  6. Billy Wagner……….422
    T7. Kenley Jansen .. 395
    T7. Craig Kimbrel ……..395

CLOSE SHAVES: 14 of the Sox’ first 18 games have been decided by 3 runs or fewer…The only team in MLB with more such games is CLE (16). The Red Sox’ 7 games decided by 1 run are tied for 2nd most in MLB behind CLE (11)…Their 4 losses by 1 run are tied for 5th most in MLB behind CLE (6), WSH (5), SEA (5), and CIN (5). 7 of the Sox’ 9 losses have come by 3 runs or fewer, including 1 loss by 2 runs and 4 by 1 run. The Sox have come from behind in 7 of their 9 wins.

IT’S ALL RIGHT NOW: The Red Sox are scheduled to face a right-handed starting pitcher in each game of this series vs. MIN and 2 of their 3 games at MIL, after facing a left-handed starter in 8 of their previous 10 games. Left-handed starters are 1-4 with a 6.03 ERA in 9 games against the Sox (23 ER/34.1 IP), while righthanded starters are 4-1 with a 5.23 ERA in 8 games against them (25 ER/43.0 IP).

CHANGING TIMES: Prior to last night, each of the Red Sox’ previous 6 games had a different scheduled start time…From last Wednesday at TB through Monday vs. LAA, in order, they were: 6:40 p.m., 1:10 p.m., 7:10 p.m., 4:10 p.m., 1:35 p.m., and 11:10 a.m. On Sunday vs. LAA, the Red Sox defeated the Angels in 1 hour and 57 minutes, tied for MLB’s shortest game of 2023 (also MIN at MIA on 4/4). Sunday marked the Sox’ fastest 9-inning game since 4/22/99 at DET (1:49, 1-0 loss), their fastest at Fenway Park since 10/1/89 vs. MIL (1:50, 5-1 win).

HOME COOKING: The Red Sox are 4-1 so far on their 7-game homestand vs. LAA (3-1) and MIN (1-0). In home games, the Sox rank 2nd in the AL in runs (60) and AVG (.259), and rank 3rd on OBP (.339).

SLUGGING SOX: The Red Sox are tied for 3rd in the AL and 5th in MLB in runs scored (96), trailing TB (125), TEX (100), and ATL (97)…The Sox also rank in the AL’s top 5 in various offensive categories (see below). The Sox rank 8th in the majors in OPS against starting pitchers (.790), compared to 17th in OPS against relief pitchers (.679). The Sox have been hit by a pitch 11 times, tied for 2nd most in the AL and 3rd most in MLB (NYM-14, TB-14).

RED SOX OFFENSIVE RANKINGS
Stat AL Rank
96 R………………………… 3rd
147 H………………………. 5th
59 XBH………………….T-2nd
21 HR ……………………… 4th
Stat AL Rank
.410 SLG …………………….. 4th
.734 OPS …………………….. 4th
21.7 SO%……………………. 5th
9.4 BB%……………………… 5th

NINE IS FINE: Over their first 18 games, the Red Sox have scored 9+ runs 5 times (4-1 record), 4-8 runs 7 times (4-3 record), and 0-3 runs 6 times (1-5 record). The Sox’ 5 games with 9+ runs scored are tied for 2nd most in MLB, trailing only TB (8). The Red Sox have only scored 9+ runs in more than 5 of their first 20 games 4 times: 2012 (7), 1949 (6), 1924 (7), and 1901 (6).

RUNNING RED SOX: The Red Sox are 8-for-8 in stolen base attempts…That is their longest streak of successful attempts to begin a season since 2015 (12-for-12). The only other team that has not been caught stealing this season is KC (12-for-12).

PINCH ME!: The Red Sox have used a pinch-hitter 21 times this season, going 7-for-18 with 3 RBI (2B, HR, BB). The Sox’ .389 AVG (7-for-18) in pinch-hit situations leads MLB…Their 7 pinch hits are 3 more than any other team…Raimel Tapia leads MLB in pinch hits (3).

TONIGHT’S STARTER: 28 COREY KLUBER – RHP
Allowed 4 runs over 4.2 IP on Thursday at TB (4 H, BB, 7 SO, HR)…Allowed a leadoff HR in the 1st inning, then retired 12 of his next 13 batters faced through the end of the 4th inning. Is making his 10th start at Fenway Park…Is 4-3 with a 4.01 ERA (23 ER/51.2 IP) in 9 career starts at Fenway. Owns a 3.33 ERA (58 ER/156.2 IP) in 24 career starts vs. MIN…Allowed 1 run over 6.0 IP in his last start vs. MIN on 4/29/22 with TB (H, 6 SO, HB). Opponents are batting .111 (2-for-18, 4 SO, HR) this season in at-bats ending with his cutter

MLB Preview: Los Angeles Angels (9-8) at New York Yankees (10-7)

MLB Editor
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MLB Preview: Los Angeles Angels (9-8) at New York Yankees (10-7)

LOS ANGELES ANGELS NOTES:

LEADING OFF: Today, the Angels play the sixth (2-3) of seven games on a road trip against the Boston Red Sox (1-3) and New York Yankees (1-0; April 18-20)…Halos went 2-3 on opening homestand of the year vs. Toronto (1-2) and Washington (2- 1)…LAA was 4-2 on first road trip of year against Oakland (2-1) and Seattle (2-1).

MLB NETWORK SHOWCASE: Tonight’s game is being nationally televised as a Showcase Game on MLB Network, with Matt Vasgersian, Tom Verducci and JP Morosi on the call.

BROADWAY SHO: Last night, Shohei Ohtani hit his fourth career home run at Yankee Stadium, which is his most of any non-A.L. West ballpark.

VS. NEW YORK (A.L.): Today is the second (1-0) of six games this season against the Yankees…Last night, Halos snapped a four-game losing streak in the Bronx…In addition to the current three game series, the teams will meet again at Yankee Stadium from July 17-19…Last year, Yankees won the season series 4-2.

HOMECOMING: The Angels trip to New York serves as a homecoming for several Angels players: Logan O’Hoppe (Sayville, NY), Mike Trout (Millville, NJ), Matt Thaiss (Jackson, NJ)…Additionally, the roster features several former members of the Yankees, including INF Gio Urshela, Manager Phil Nevin, Hitting Coach Marcus Thames and Bullpen Catcher Jason Brown.

LOCAL CATCH: In 24 career games at Yankee Stadium, Mike Trout is batting .333 (30/90) with 11 doubles, seven home runs, 16 RBI and 12 walks.

HIGHEST CAREER OPS AT (NEW) YANKEE STADIUM
(min. 100 PA)

  1. José Ramírez – 1.344
  2. Mike Trout – 1.112
  3. Aaron Judge – 1.027

WINS AND LOSSES: Halos have won back-to-back games following a season-high three game losing streak from Friday-Sunday in Boston…With a win today, LAA would match longest win streak of season (won three straight April 1-3)…Halos have held leads in 16 of 17 games played this year and have scored first in 13 of the 17 games.

SHO OFF: Monday at Boston, Shohei Ohtani extended his franchise record streak to 11 consecutive pitching starts allowing two-or-fewer runs (Nolan Ryan had a nine game streak across the 1972-73 seasons for the previous record)… The 11-game streak is also the longest active streak in the Majors.

NETO IN THE SHOW: Zach Neto is ranked by Baseball America as the Angels #2 overall prospect (behind Logan O’Hoppe)… In seven games this season for Double-A Rocket City, Neto batted .444 (12/27) with 10 runs scored, one double, three HR, 10 RBI, six walks, three stolen bases and a 1.374 OPS… At the time of his promotion, he led the Southern League in average, OPS, hits and runs, while reaching base 19 times across seven games.

ROOKIE RAKING: Logan O’Hoppe has driven in a run in seven of his 14 starts this season…His four home runs are tied with Shohei Ohtani for the lead the team and his 11 RBI rank tied with Ohtani for second, behind Hunter Renfroe (16).

RECENT ROSTER MOVES: Sunday, the Angels recalled RHP Andrew Wantz from Triple-A Salt Lake and placed RHP Ryan Tepera (right shoulder inflammation) on the 15-day IL. ON WITH THE SHO: On Sunday, Shohei Ohtani’s career-best streak of reaching base safely (via hit, walk, or HBP) in 36 consecutive games came to an end…It was the longest active streak in the Majors and finishes tied for the third-longest in Angels history:

MOST CONSECUTIVE GAMES REACHING BASE SAFELY
In Angels history (via H, BB, or HBP)
Rank Player Year(s) # of Games

  1. Orlando Cabrera 2006 – 63
  2. Mike Trout 2013 – 40
    T3. Shohei Ohtani 2022-23 – 36*
    T3. Erick Aybar 2011 – 36
    T3. Chili Davis 1995 – 36
    *snapped on Sunday

WELCOME TO THE RENAISSANCE: Angels have had three lineups this season with Anthony Rendon, Hunter Renfroe & Luis Rengifo hitting consecutively in the order…On Opening Day, the trio hit in the 4-6 spots, marking the first lineup in franchise history to feature three straight players who have the same first three letters of their last name…The last MLB occurrence was by Detroit on July 20, 2015 (Victor Martinez, J.D. Martinez, Jefry Marte).

THE SHUTOUT: Last Tuesday night, Shohei Ohtani, José Quijada and Carlos Estévez combined on a one-hit shutout of the Nationals…It marked the 26th one-hit shutout in franchise history and the first at Angel Stadium since June 5, 2018 vs. Kansas City

TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER – RHP GRIFFIN CANNING
1-0, 3.60 ERA
Making first career appearance vs. Yankees

• TODAY’S GAME: Making second start of the season and first on the road…Is in fourth Major League season with Angels.

• LAST TIME OUT: Took no-decision in season debut on April 12 vs. Washington (5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 SO)…Marked first Major League appearance since July 2, 2021.

• HE’S BACK: Missed Angels first 11 games of the season on injured list with a left groin strain… Spent entire 2022 season and final two months of 2021 season on IL with a low back stress reaction.

• THAT’S RIGHT: Held Nationals righties to a .111 (1/9) average in his first start of the season.

• GETTING AHEAD: Recorded a first pitch strike on 70% (14/20) of his batter faced in first start vs. Washington.

• ON REHAB: Made one rehab appearance on with Low-A Inland Empire on April 6 in the 66ers season opener…Took the loss after tossing 5.0 innings and allowing two runs (one earned) on six hits with two walks and 10 strikeouts.

• VS. NEW YORK (A.L.): Today marks first career appearance vs. Yankees…Excluding Angels, the Yankees are one of two A.L. teams he has not yet faced (also, Guardians).

• AT YANKEE STADIUM: Today marks first career appearance at Yankee Stadium.

• GOLDEN GRIFFIN: Earned the 2020 American League Rawlings Gold Glove Award at pitcher…He was the second Angels pitcher to win the award, joining Mark Langston, who won five straight from 1991-95…Tied for the A.L. lead among pitchers with three Defensive Runs Saved during the 2020 regular season and also posted a .938 fielding percentage, committing just one error in 16 total chances.

• UNFAMILIAR FOES: In his career as a starter, has held opponents to a .206 average (67/325) in opposing batter’s first plate appearances of a game.

NEW YORK YANKEES NOTES:

AT A GLANCE: The Yankees continue their season-high 10-game homestand tonight with the second game of a three-game series vs. Los Angeles-AL (0-1 thus far)…are 2-3 on the homestand after splitting their four-game set with Minnesota and dropping the first game of their three-game set vs. Los Angeles-AL…will also play a three-game set vs. Toronto (Fri.- Sun.)…following this homestand, will embark on a seven-game road trip to Minnesota (4/24-26) and Texas (4/27-30).

Their +22 run differential is the third-best in the AL and the sixth-best in the Majors.

Are 5-1 following a loss this season…have lost back-to-back games just once (4/13-14).

YESTERDAY’S NEWS: The Yankees fell to the Angels, 5-2, in their series opener at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday…RHP Clarke Schmidt (3.2IP, 6H, 4ER, 0BB, 5K, 1HR, 1HP) made his fourth start of the season and took the loss… SS Anthony Volpe (0-for-3, 1RBI, 2BB) drew a bases-loaded walk in the fourth inning…RF/CF Aaron Judge (0-for-3, 1RBI, 1SF) drove in the Yankees’ second run with a sac fly in the fourth inning…1B Anthony Rizzo (1-for-4, 1 double) collected the Yankees’ only extra-base hit with a first-inning double…2B Oswald Peraza (1-for-3, 1R, 1BB) made his season debut and reached base twice…RHP Greg Weissert (0.1IP, 1BB) made his season debut…RHP Ron Marinaccio (2.0IP, 1R/0ER, 2K) tied his career high with 2.0IP…RHP Jimmy Cordero (2.0IP, 1H, 3K, 1BK) tossed 2.0 scoreless innings of relief and tied his career high with 3K…RHP Albert Abreu (1.0IP, 1H, 1K) tossed a scoreless ninth inning, extending his career-high scoreless streak to 8.2IP.

SERIES BUSINESS: According to Elias, the Yankees have won or split each of their first five completed series of a season for just the fourth time in the last 67 years (since 1957)…went undefeated in their first five series in 2010, first nine series in 2003 and first six series in 1976.

PITCH PERFECT: Yankee pitchers allowed 5R on Tuesday for just the fourth time this season (also 11R on 4/13 vs. Minnesota, 7R on 4/1 vs. San Francisco and 7R on 4/7 at Baltimore)…despite their 5R on Tuesday, have allowed just 54R in 17 games this season (3.18 R/G), their second-fewest runs allowed in their first 17 games of a season in the last 42 years since 1982 (52R in 2022).

Have allowed 3R-or-fewer in 11-of-17 games this season and 2R-or-fewer in eight of those games.

Rank third in the Majors in opponents’ BA (.214), opponents’ OBP (.284), WHIP (1.09) and K/9.0IP (10.01), tied for third in K/BB (3.50), fourth in ERA (3.10) and opponents’ OPS (.633), fifth in strikeouts (168) and sixth in opponents’ SLG (.349) and HR/9.0IP (0.83).

STRIKEOUT MACHINE: Yankees pitchers have recorded 168K, their fourth-most through their first 17 games of a season in franchise history, trailing only the 2018 Yankees (190K), 2021 Yankees (188K) and 2016 Yankees (170K).

Have recorded double-digit strikeouts in each of their last three games and 10-of-17 games this season…marks just the third time in franchise history the Yankees have recorded as many such games within their first 17 games of a season (13G in 2021 and 12G in 2018).

ALL RISE: OF Aaron Judge drove in the Yankees’ second run on Tuesday with a sac fly in the fourth inning…did not reach base for just the second time in his last 50 games (since 8/29/22)…has batted .345/.484/.726 (58-for-168) with 45R, 10 doubles, 18HR, 31RBI, 47BB, 4SB, 3SF and 1HP in that span…has reached base multiple times in 33 of those 50 games.

Has hit .382/.514/.782 (21-for-55) with 12R, 1 double, 7HR, 15RBI, 17BB/3IBB, 2SF and 2SB in his last 17 games vs. the Angels (since 5/26/18)…had his 17-game on-base streak vs. the Angels snapped on Tuesday.

CLOSE CALLS: Six of the Yankees’ seven losses this season have been by 3R-or-fewer…four of their seven losses have been by 2R-or-fewer and three of their losses have been by one run.

WALK IT OUT: Yankees batters recorded 7BB on Tuesday, their second-most in a game this season (9BB on 4/3 vs. Philadelphia).

COMMITMENT TO THE COMMUNITY: On Tuesday at Gracie Mansion, the New York Yankees and Food Bank For New York City were honored for their joint service to the community, receiving the Partnership Impact Award for their collaborative efforts in providing 150,000 meals to more than 21,338 New Yorkers in the 2022 calendar year…the award was one of four bestowed at yesterday’s Mayoral Service Recognition Ceremony following the review of more than 150 nominations…the Mayoral Service Recognition Program is an annual citywide celebration of volunteers and service members, recognizing efforts to build solutions in response to community challenges and meet residents’ most urgent needs…the recognition program takes place throughout National Volunteer Month in April as a way to recognize diverse volunteer efforts of the previous calendar year.

NEW KID ON THE BLOCK: INF Anthony Volpe drove in the Yankees’ first run on Tuesday with a bases-loaded walk… has reached base safely in each of his last six games…has reached base in 10-of-24 plate appearances (5H, 5BB) over that stretch (.417 OBP).

Is just the fourth Yankee (fifth time) in the last 34 years (since 1990) to record at least 7SB through the Yankees’ first 17 games of a season…joins Brett Gardner (9SB in 2010), Jacoby Ellsbury (8SB in 2014) and Derek Jeter (7SB in 1998 and 2002).

His 7SB are tied for the fourth-most in the Majors.

Is 7-for-7 in stolen bases attempts…joins Cedric Mullins (9-for-9) as the only two players in the Majors to be 7-for7-or-better in stolen base attempts.

BRONX BOMBERS: Yankees batters were held homerless for just the second time this season on Tuesday vs. the Angels (also 4/10 at Cleveland)…have homered in 15 of their first 17 games of a season for just the fourth time in franchise history (also 15G in 2001, 2011 and 2013).
 Entering today, their 26HR are tied with San Francisco (26HR in 16G) for the fourth-most in the Majors, trailing only Tampa Bay (41HR in 18G), Los Angeles-NL (32HR in 18G) and Atlanta (27HR in 18G).

Have hit multiple HR in eight of their 17 games this season.

TROPHY CASE: Prior to tonight’s game, OF Aaron Judge will be presented with his 2022 Silver Slugger Award.

WHAT A RELIEF: Yankees relievers allowed just one unearned run in 5.1 innings of relief on Tuesday vs. the Angels (2H, 1R/0ER, 1BB, 6K)…have posted a 2.17 ERA (66.1IP, 16ER) this season, the second-lowest ERA by a Major League bullpen this season (Milwaukee – 1.91).

Also lead the Majors in strikeouts (78), rank second in the Majors in opponents’ BA (.192), third in opponents’ OPS (.589) and WHIP (1.06) and fourth in opponents’ OBP (.279) and opponents’ SLG (.310).

Have posted a 1.87 ERA (57.2IP, 12ER) since 4/2.

Have not allowed an earned run in their last 9.0IP (since the ninth inning on Friday).

PEN PAL: RHP Ron Marinaccio has posted a 1.13 ERA (8.0IP, 1ER) in six relief appearances this season…has allowed just 1H to his 30BF this season, holding opponents to a .042 batting average (1-for-24)…his .042 opponents’ BA is tied for the fourth-lowest among Major League relievers.

Has struck out 13-of-30BF this season…has recorded multiple strikeouts in five of six appearances this season.

BLANK SPACE: RHP Albert Abreu has not allowed a run in five appearances this season (8.0IP, 6H, 3BB, 8K)…his current 8.2 scoreless streak (since 10/5/22) is the longest of his career.

NOBODY BEATS THE RIZZ: INF Anthony Rizzo collected the Yankees’ only extra-base hit on Tuesday, hitting a double in the first inning…has reached base in 15 of his first 16 games this season, batting .310/.397/.569 (18-for-58) with 8R, 3 doubles, 4HR, 9RBI, 6BB, 3HP and 1SF.

In 21 career games vs. the Angels, has hit .301/.378/.644 (22-for-73) with 18R, 7 doubles, 6HR, 18RBI and 9BB/1IBB.

Is batting .327/.414/.612 (16-for-49) with 2 doubles, 4HR, 5BB and 3HP vs. right-handed pitchers this season.

LEMACHINE: INF DJ LeMahieu has reached base safely in 11-of-12 starts this season.

TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER: RHP JHONY BRITO (2-1, 6.75 ERA)
RHP Jhony Brito will make his fourth career Major League start tonight vs. Los Angeles-AL…the 25-year-old will pitch on extended five days’ rest due to Monday’s team off day…last pitched on Thursday vs. Minnesota and suffered his first career loss, allowing 7ER in just 0.2IP (6H, 1BB)…is the first pitcher in Yankees history to throw at least 5.0IP, allow 3H-or-fewer and allow 1R-or-fewer in each of his first two career Major League starts… also became just the seventh pitcher in Yankees history to toss at least 5.0IP and allow 1R-or-fewer in each of his first two career appearances…made his Major League debut on 4/2 vs. San Francisco, tossing 5.0 scoreless innings (2H, 1BB, 6K) to earn his first career win…became just the 12th Yankees pitcher in franchise history (and fifth since 1935) to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League debut…is the ninth Yankees starting pitcher to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League debut and just the fourth since 1935…is the first Yankees starting pitcher in franchise history to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings, allow 2H-or-fewer and allow 1BB-or-fewer in his Major League debut…was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on 3/30 and made his first career Opening Day roster…over parts of five minor league seasons in the Yankees organization (2016-17, ’19, ’21-22), has gone 26-21 with two saves and a 3.71 ERA (392.2IP, 375H, 196R/162ER, 81BB, 344K, 28HR) in 86 career appearances (70 starts)…was signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent on 11/9/15.

LAST TIME OUT: Took his first career loss in the Yankees’ 11-2 defeat vs. Minnesota last Thursday (4/13), allowing 7ER in 0.2IP (6H, 1BB, 0K, 1HR).

Marked the shortest outing by a Yankees starter (not including openers) since Jameson Taillon on 6/12/21 at Philadelphia (0.1IP).

Were the most runs allowed by a Yankees starter who didn’t make it out of the first inning since Nathan Eovaldi on 6/16/15 at Miami (8R/ER in 0.2IP).

2023: Is 2-1 with a 6.75 ERA (10.2IP, 8ER) and 8K in three starts this season.
Earned his second career win in the Yankees’ 4-1 victory on 4/8 at Baltimore, allowing just 1ER over 5.0IP (3H, 2BB, 2K)…retired 14 of his final 17BF after surrendering two singles and a sacrifice fly to his first 3BF.…became the first pitcher in Yankees history to throw at least 5.0IP, allow 3H-or-fewer and allow 1R-or-fewer in each of his first two career Major League starts (also 5.0IP, 2H, 0R in his Major League debut on 4/2 vs. San Francisco).

Is just the seventh pitcher in Yankees history to toss at least 5.0IP and allow 1R-or-fewer in each of his first two career appearances, joining Cliff Markle (first five appearances from 1915-16), Luis Gil (first two in 2021), Orlando Hernández (first two in 1998), Rich Beck (first two in 1965), Jack Quinn (first two in 1909) and Slow Joe Doyle (first two in 1906)…was just the sixth to do so as a starter (Markle made his first career appearance as a reliever).

Is the 15th starting pitcher in franchise history to win each of his first two career games and the first since Orlando Hernández in 1998.

MAJOR LEAGUE DEBUT: Made his Major League debut on 4/2 vs. San Francisco, tossing 5.0 scoreless innings (2H, 1BB, 6K) to earn his first career win… was the first Yankees starting pitcher in franchise history to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings, allow 2H-or-fewer and allow 1BB-or-fewer in his Major League debut…struck out his first batter faced (LaMonte Wade Jr. swinging) for his first Major League strikeout.

Was just the 12th Yankees pitcher in franchise history (and fifth since 1935) to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League debut, joining Luis Gil (6.0IP on 8/3/21 vs. Baltimore), Jonathan Loáisiga (5.0IP on 6/15/18 vs. Tampa Bay), Sam Militello (7.0IP on 8/9/92 vs. Boston), Hank Borowy (5.0IP on 4/18/42 vs. Boston), Vito Tamulis (9.0IP on 9/25/34 at Philadelphia-AL), Russ Van Atta (9.0IP on 4/25/33 at Washington-AL), Neal Brady (5.2IP on 9/25/1915-G1 vs. Cleveland), Pete Wilson (9.0IP on 9/15/1908 at Boston), Tacks Neuer (9.0IP on 8/28/1907-G2 vs. Boston), Slow Joe Doyle (9.0IP on 8/25/1906-G1 vs. Cleveland) and Barney Wolfe (5.0IP on 4/24/1903 at Washington-AL)…among the group, joins Luis Gil (6.0IP, 1BB), Hank Borowy (5.0IP, 1BB) Vito Tamulis (9.0IP, 1BB) and Barney Wolfe (5.0IP, 0BB) as the only five to issue 1BB-or-fewer.

Was the ninth Yankees starting pitcher to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League debut and just the fourth since 1935.

Became the seventh Yankees pitcher to start against a National League opponent in his Major League debut, joining RHP Deivi García (8/30/20- G2 vs. New York-NL: ND, 6.0IP, 1R/0ER), RHP Chad Green (5/16/16 at Arizona: L, 4.0IP, 6R/4ER), RHP Chase Whitley (5/15/14 at New York-NL: ND, 4.2IP, 0ER), RHP Tyler Clippard (5/20/07 at New York-NL: W, 6.0IP, 1ER), LHP Brad Halsey (6/19/04 at Los Angeles-NL: W, 5.2IP, 2ER) and LHP Brandon Claussen (6/28/03-G2 at New York-NL: W, 6.1IP, 1ER).

Became the seventh Yankee to draw a start at the current Yankee Stadium in his Major League debut, joining RHP Luis Gil (8/3/21), RHP Deivi
García (8/30/20-G2), RHP Jonathan Loáisiga (6/15/18), LHP Jordan Montgomery (4/12/17), RHP Luis Severino (8/5/15) and RHP Adam Warren (6/29/12)…was the third starter to also record the win, joining Gil and Loáisiga.

At 25 years, 44 days old, became the seventh starter age 25-or-over to make his Major League debut for the Yankees since 1999, joining RHP Chien-Ming Wang (25y, 30d), RHP Masahiro Tanaka (25y, 154d), Christian Parker (25y, 277d), Alex Graman (26y, 155d), Matt DeSalvo (26y, 238d) and Kei Igawa (27y, 268d).

HOME SWEET HOME: Is 1-1 with an 11.12 ERA (5.2IP, 7ER) and 6K in two career Major League starts at home.

Earned the win in his Major League debut on 4/2 vs. San Francisco at home (5.0IP, 2H, 0R, 1BB, 6K)…became just the third starting pitcher in franchise history to record a win in his Major League debut at the current Yankee Stadium (Luis Gil on 8/3/21 and Jonathan Loáisiga on 6/15/18).

In 13 home games (12 starts) with Double-A Somerset and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2022, went 6-1 with a 1.95 ERA (60.0IP, 13ER) and 43K.

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