Bruins

Jim Montgomery added more established veterans to the Bruins' lineup on Thursday night.

But the presence of stars like David Pastrnak and Charlie McAvoy wasn't enough to beat Boston. Boston lost to the Rangers 5-2 at Madison Square Garden.

Brett Harrison and Mark Kastelic scored for the Bruins, while Brandon Bussi stopped 28 of 32 shots within the loss.

Here are five takeaways from Thursday's loss:

A shaky performance from Brandon Bussi on the online

With 4 preseason games left on the schedule after Thursday, the Bruins need to start out getting more clarity on their current goaltending corps.

As Boston continues to try to barter a contract with Jeremy Swayman, the Bruins are moving forward with an expected tandem of Joonas Korpisalo and Brandon Bussi.

So far, Bussi hasn't conveyed much confidence ahead of what could possibly be his first regular-season appearances within the NHL.

After conceding two goals on 12 shots in Sunday's home loss to the Rangers, Bussi allowed 4 goals on 32 shots in his first full game of this preseason on Thursday.

Admittedly, a few of Bussi's poor stats on Thursday were a byproduct of the sport he had in front of him. The first tally he gave up was a Rangers 5-on-3 game while among the net front coverage in front of him was severely lacking.

But Bussi didn't do himself any favors along with his rebound control, because the Rangers had several opportunities to extend their lead with the numerous pucks scurrying around on the Class A ice.

The Bruins highly value Bussi and the potential the 26-year-old goaltender has shown over the past few seasons in Providence. But he must tighten things up before the conclusion of the preseason, especially if Swayman returns before the beginning of the regular season.

Mark Kastelic brings the boom

A not-so-daring prediction for this season? Bruins fans will enjoy what Kastelic has to supply in his fourth-line role.

After serving as a one-man demolition crew on Sunday, the 6-foot-2 Kastelic once more made his presence felt at Madison Square Garden.

Not only did Kastelic fend off Drew Bavaro's shot within the second period, but he was also beaten by Connor Mackey after executing a heavy check near the top boards.

Kastelic's physicality, faceoff talent, speed and penalty-taking ability will turn out to be useful on Boston's controlling unit. But the 25-year-old forward could have more to supply on offense, because the Phoenix native almost scored one other goal within the third period by hanging around the online.

Kastelic must be a lock for a starting spot on Boston's fourth line.

Trevor Kuntar continues to harass skaters

Unlike Kastelic, Trevor Kuntar might not be a candidate for a spot on Boston's roster outside of camp.

But the Boston College product has consistently stood out through the preseason by being a downer on every shift. The 23-year-old winger scored an enormous goal on Sundayand was once more a nuisance against the Blueshirts at MSG.

After sending multiple crosschecks into the back of Will Cuylle during a netfront scrum, Kuntar tried to combine it up with the combative Rangers striker after taking a heavy hit from him later in the sport.

Even at this stage of his development, it is evident that Kuntar knows what his identity is on the skilled level. If he sticks with it and continues to round out his game as an lively agitator, the NHL officials will probably be there for him in the end.

His teammate Cole Koepke was also a threat on Thursday, scoring a team-high five goals in his 14:07 minutes of ice time.

Not a powerful debut for several games from the Bruins lineup

Yes, it's just the preseason.

But this wasn't essentially the most bombastic debut for several regulars in Boston's lineup.

Nikita Zadorov specifically had a difficult time at times. The imposing defenseman misplayed a puck on the blue line late in the primary period, allowing Rangers forward Brennan Othmann to race past him and beat Bussi on a breakaway attempt.

Zadorov was as advertised when it got here to shelling out some penalties, but he must be certain that his propensity for slamming skaters into the glass doesn't come on the expense of his D-zone play.

Boston's top team of David Pastrnak, Matthew Poitras and Pavel Zacha also delivered mixed results. The Bruins fell 2-0 in 14:13 of 5-on-5 replays from that line, with New York creating 4 high-danger scoring possibilities during that period.

However, there have been just a few shiny spots on this grouping, particularly when it got here to Poitras.

The 20-year-old pivot could possibly be a placeholder for Elias Lindholm in the mean time, but his confident puck handling and possession led to some longer O-zone shifts for Boston. He has been impressive to date this fall.

board Harrison's sharp fall continues

After a powerful performance on the annual Prospects' Challenge in Buffalo earlier this month, Brett Harrison took one other step forward on Thursday.

The 2021 third-round pick opened the scoring for Boston with 14:44 left in the primary period after he was fed by Morgan Geekie and eventually pushed a puck past Jonathan Quick.

It was a powerful display of patience for Harrison, who must be in line for a bigger role in Providence in 2024-25. His totals from his rookie AHL season might not be stellar (five goals, 14 points in 47 games), but Harrison scored 34 goals in 57 OHL games in 2022-23 and boasts a powerful shot.

Don't be surprised if his stats skyrocket this winter as he climbs up Providence's depth chart.

ARLINGTON, Texas – Oakland A's right-hander Mason Miller can have established himself as one among the American League's best closers through the primary five months of the regular season.

But his September got off to a rocky start.

Josh Jung hit a three-run homer against Miller within the tenth inning to steer the Texas Rangers to a 6-4 win over the A's on Sunday.

This loss marked the second consecutive time the A's were hit by a walk-off hit, as Leody Taveras hit a game-winning single with one out within the ninth inning within the Rangers' 3-2 win over Oakland on Saturday.

Texas has won five of its six home games by walk-off since August 5.

Miller (1-2), the American League's winning pitcher on the All-Star Game in Texas this summer, managed a scoreless ninth inning and got the primary two outs within the tenth before Adolis García hit a 2-2 slider for an RBI single and Wyatt Langford got a walk after a four-pitch foul.

Then Jung hit a 101 mph fastball from Miller in the other way and just inside the best field pole for his fifth home run.

“For some reason, Langford always seems to be able to get to my fastball when it deflects,” Miller said. “And then during the at-bat (against Jung), I kind of lost the feel of my slider, which basically allowed him to eliminate that pitch and just wait for the fastball.”

Jung, who was playing in only his twenty eighth game since missing 102 games with a broken right wrist, wasn't sure the ball was gone until it landed just a couple of rows back.

“It's positive; it gets things moving in the right direction,” said Jung, who still regretted missing an RBI opportunity earlier in the sport. “I went out and started swinging too wide again, and it felt like I had corrected that just the other day. So it's great for me that I wasn't able to swing at 100 (mph) and turn it over.”

Oakland took the lead within the tenth inning against Matt Festa (3-1), who struck out his first two batters before Seth Brown hit a decisive RBI triple and Zack Gelof followed with a double.

Miller, who hadn't pitched since Wednesday, threw 34 pitches in his 1 2/3 innings because the A's finished their road trip with a 3-3 record. Their only loss in a three-game series against Cincinnati on Thursday also got here by walk-off, when TJ Friedl capped a three-run ninth inning with a two-run single within the Reds' 10-9 victory.

Miller entered Sunday with a 1-1 record this season and a 2.08 ERA in 52 innings over 44 games. His 23 saves were sixth-best within the AL.

“The last at-bat of the game is a fastball up and in. Jung got the ball with the barrel and it goes to right field,” A's manager Mark Kotsay said. “It's a tough loss. But we had the right guy on the mound and today it just didn't go the way we wanted it to.”

Lawrence Butler and Brent Rooker each had 4 hits for the A's (59-78), who had runners on first and third base within the ninth inning before Shea Langeliers hit a ground ball into an inning-ending double play. Oakland had 16 hits and left 11 runners on base.

Corey Seager hit a one-out double in the primary inning for Texas (65-72) and scored on a double by García, who had scored 6 of 40 runs in his last 11 games. García hit one other double within the sixth inning when the Rangers loaded the bases without scoring.

The Rangers at the moment are 9 1/2 games out of the third and final wild card spot within the AL, but they clinched that spot and won the series against Oakland.

“They keep fighting, that's all I have to say about them,” said Bruce Bochy, who tied Bucky Harris with 2,158 wins and is eighth on the managerial win list. “When you're down two in extra innings, you've got your hands full with one of the best closers in the game.”

Squad additions

With MLB rosters expanded by two to twenty-eight players on Sunday, the A's recalled INF Tristan Gray from Triple-A Las Vegas and signed Janson Junk, who they acquired via waivers from Houston on Saturday. Texas recalled RHP Owen White and INF Jonathan Ornelas from Triple-A Round Rock.

Next

Athletics: RHP Osvaldo Bido (5-3, 3.21 ERA), who’s 3-0 with a 1.17 ERA in his last 4 starts, is scheduled to pitch in the primary home game against Seattle on Monday.

Red Sox

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Jonah Heim and Leody Taveras hit back-to-back home runs from the underside of the batting order to beat a three-run deficit within the fourth inning and the Texas Rangers beat the Boston Red Sox 7-4 on Saturday night.

Rob Refsnyder, who tied a profession high with 4 hits and three RBIs, hit solo home runs in his first two appearances – his sixth and seventh of the season – to assist the Red Sox take a 3-0 lead before Heim tied the sport with a three-run shot.

Two pitches after Heim's tenth home run with a high hit down the right-field line, Taveras hit a liner into the primary row in right for his ninth, the second win within the last eight games for the defending World Series champions.

Texas reliever José Leclerc (5-4) struck out Ceddanne Rafaela with a controlled full-pitch swing within the dirt when the Rangers were down 3-0 within the fourth inning with all of the bases loaded.

Kirby Yates, the sixth Texas pitcher and the one reliever in the key leagues and not using a blown save in at the least eight opportunities, got the ultimate 4 outs for his twentieth save.

Yates ended the eighth inning with a bases-loaded strikeout of Jarren Duran, who was the All-Star Game MVP after hitting the game-winning two-run home run within the AL's 5-3 victory on the Rangers' home stadium last month.

“Really hard-fought game. Bullpen. Gutsy effort by everyone,” said Rangers manager Bruce Bochy. “Everyone did something to cheer each other up. It was really a well-played game for us.”

Texas' fourth set of consecutive home runs of the season got here after Tanner Houck threw seven strikeouts in the primary three innings, including six consecutive outs by strikes, capped by a 13-pitch at-bat against Marcus Semien to bottom the third inning.

“Two pitches, right? And it went pretty quickly against the bottom of the batting order,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “I think he threw well.”

Houck (8-8) was replaced after allowing three straight hits to begin the sixth, and the Rangers scored three more in a row in a three-run inning against Brennan Bernardino. Ezequiel Duran, Taveras and Josh Smith, who had three hits, each scored a run with a single.

The first multi-home run game of Refsnyder's nine-year profession was followed by Connor Wong's RBI single within the fourth inning against Cody Bradford. The left-hander, who opened the season with wins in his first three starts, was making his second appearance and first start after missing 3 1/2 months with a back injury.

Refsnyder also reached base five times for the primary time in his profession by walking.

TRAINING ROOM

Red Sox: Duran needed to be examined by the training staff during an at-bat but remained in the sport. Cora said Duran felt something in his side during a swing, however the manager didn’t expect the All-Star to be out. … OF Tyler O'Neill was unavailable due to an illness. He remained on the team hotel, and Cora said it could likely be Monday before O'Neill would play again. … RHP Chris Martin, out for a month due to elbow inflammation, threw a 35-pitch bullpen session and will begin a rehab effort Wednesday.

Rangers: RHP Jacob deGrom threw a 45-pitch bullpen session with no apparent problems and is predicted to face hitters for the primary time since undergoing right elbow surgery in June 2023.

NEXT

Red Sox RHP Nick Pivetta (5-7, 4.47 ERA) faces Texas RHP Nathan Eovaldi (8-4, 3.38) within the series finale. Eovaldi, who spent greater than 4 seasons in Boston before joining the Rangers last 12 months, has gone 43 innings and 166 batters and not using a walk in six consecutive starts, the longest such streak in franchise history.

Red Sox

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Wilyer Abreu gave Boston the lead with an RBI single following his earlier two-run home run, Nick Sogard hit his first big league hit with a two-run single and the Red Sox beat the Texas Rangers 11-6 on Friday night.

Ceddanne Rafaela and Rafael Devers also homered for the Red Sox, who won two games in a row for the primary time because the All-Star break. They are 5-8 during that stretch and remain two games behind Minnesota, which earned the AL's third wild card.

“We were very aggressive at the beginning, but we didn't try to do too much,” said the Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “We had some good at-bats, we ran the bases well and then of course we hit the ball out of the stadium.”

Corey Seager hit two solo home runs, added a sacrifice fly and scored three of the runs for Texas. Marcus Semien and Leody Taveras also had long balls.

All 4 of Texas' home runs were by starter Kutter Crawford (7-8), who allowed five strikeouts and one walk in 5 1/3 innings.

“My execution has to be better. … I allowed some damage and all of those throws were pretty much over the middle of the plate,” Crawford said. “It feels good when your offense can score seven, eight, nine runs. We can compete with the best, we've seen it all this year. Luckily for me, they had my back tonight.”

Rangers right-hander José Ureña (3-6) allowed seven runs and eight hits through the fifth inning.

The defending World Series champion Rangers have lost three straight games, six of seven, since a five-game winning streak that brought them inside one game of their .500 record. They haven't won since a 24-23 loss on May 18 and have been in third place within the AL West since June 20.

“You just have to play better,” Seager said. “There's always pressure. You have to. I've talked about it all year, it's about winning series, that's what we've tried to do all year. We haven't been doing that so well lately.”

Seager gave Texas a 1-0 lead in the primary inning before Abreu hit a two-run shot within the second. After Taveras and Seager hit home runs within the third inning for a 3-2 lead, the Red Sox responded with a four-run fourth.

Boston's big inning began with 4 consecutive hits. Connor Wong's RBI single tied the sport before Abreu followed together with his own. Both scored on a pointy liner to right by Sogard, the 26-year-old second baseman who made his MLB debut after being called up from Triple-A Worcester on Wednesday.

Rafaela hit a house run within the sixth inning and Devers hit his twenty fifth within the ninth inning against Andrew Chafin, who made his first appearance for the Rangers since being traded from Detroit on Tuesday.

Luis García, in his first game against the Red Sox since they acquired him in a last-minute deal from the Los Angeles Angels, retired all three batters he faced within the ninth inning.

DOUBLE

The Rangers managed double plays in three consecutive innings, including Ezequiel Durán fielding a ball in right field after which throwing out Tyler O'Neill attempting to advance to 3rd base to finish the fifth inning. It was Durán's first profession start in right field.

TRAINING ROOM

Red Sox: RHP Chris Martin (right elbow inflammation) is anticipated to throw a bullpen session Saturday and will then go to a minor league rehab task. He last pitched on July 3. … RHP Kenley Jansen strained his back in his last appearance Wednesday, but manager Alex Cora said before the sport that the closer “is fine and ready.” Jansen warmed up before Boston scored two runs within the ninth inning.

Rangers: Three-time Cy Young Award winner and lively strikeout leader Max Scherzer was placed on the 15-day injured list due to right shoulder fatigue. … Two-time Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom will face a bullpen again on Saturday. If all goes well, he could face hitters for the primary time since undergoing elbow surgery last June.

NEXT

All-Star right-hander Tanner Houck (8-7, 2.79 ERA) will pitch for Boston on Saturday night. The Rangers haven’t yet announced their starter.

RALEIGH, N.C. — Evgeny Kuznetsov, in his inimitable, mischievous way, promised the New York Rangers “hell” in the event that they needed to return to North Carolina for Game 6 of this increasingly indescribable second-round series.

Oh, but that wasn't hell. Not even with a “Raise Hell” theme for the evening. Not even when AC/DC's “Hells Bells” plays before the puck drop. Not even when Carolina's notoriously loud fans reached recent heights because the Hurricanes took a two-goal lead within the third period at PNC Arena. That was nothing.

No, hell would have been the results of a possible Game 7 had the Rangers not pulled themselves out of the slump in time to avoid wasting that series. Hell would have been living with the utter failure of losing within the second round after winning the primary seven games of the playoffs. Hell would have been the shame of becoming the fifth team in Stanley Cup playoff history to blow a 3-0 lead. Hell would have tried to sleep while reliving Jordan Martinook's one-of-a-kind, spectacular save within the second period of Game 6, when he swept Ryan Lindgren's gut shot over the goal line after it had already beaten Frederik Andersen through the legs.

Hell would have all the time known that they passed up a golden opportunity to win the Rangers' second Stanley Cup in 84 years, squandering among the finest seasons in franchise history.

“I was just scared to think about it,” said Artemi Panarin.

Panarin can admit that now. Now the Rangers have proven their skills. Now Chris Kreider, alongside players like Matteau and Messier, etched himself in Rangers history with a natural hat trick, turning a 3-1 third-period deficit right into a 5-3 Game 6 win in front of a silenced, shell-shocked Carolina transforms crowd. Now the Rangers' next game at Madison Square Garden shall be against either the Florida Panthers or Boston Bruins in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, reasonably than a winner-take-all Game 7 against the never-say-die Hurricanes .

Post-game locker rooms are never this loud within the NHL after series victories that don’t have anything to do with the Stanley Cup itself. The players are too drained and there continues to be an excessive amount of to do. Save the champagne, plastic wrap and ski goggles for the tip of June. That's why there wasn't much to have fun within the narrow visitors' room on the PNC Arena after this game. But there was palpable relief knowing the Rangers were flirting with shame reasonably than embracing it.

“To be honest, I felt kind of nervous on the bench when we were down a few goals,” said Panarin, who sometimes seems unable to beat the same old wall of casual bravado that almost all skilled athletes throw up. “And we were still on the ground in the third period. I was actually nervous. But we did it – thank God.”

Funny how quickly things can change.

Trailing 3-1, the Rangers handled the puck like a hand grenade, repeatedly missing the web. Then Carolina goaltender Frederik Andersen lost a puck from Mika Zibanejad in his skates and Kreider knocked it in.

Rangers' power play was lifeless as they created nine possibilities in a row, barely scored a goal and had only a few real possibilities. Then Kreider tipped in a rising Panarin shot and the sport was tied.

The game seemed destined for extra time as each teams closed the gaps. Then Kreider crowned his hat trick and the Hurricanes remained in trouble.

Nine minutes. Nine minutes to show a 3-1 deficit right into a 4-3 lead, for Kreider to go from franchise pillar to franchise legend, for an all-time Rangers choke job, for the Rangers- Gut check of all time, for an all- It's time for the Hurricanes' comeback to grow to be a what if of all time.

“They're a great team,” said Barclay Goodrow, who eased the sport with a 143-foot empty-netter with 48.1 seconds left. “It's not like we're 3-0 up and they turn around and give up. They are a really good team and we knew they would bounce back. We may have had a disappointment last game, but I think throughout the season, whenever that happened, we recovered and came back stronger the next game.”

It's one thing to make it within the regular season. It's completely different to do it within the postseason. And now the Rangers know what they’re able to. New York's two best lines might have been standing on milk cartons in recent games. In Game 6, they combined for 4 goals and 6 assists in the ultimate 35 minutes. Like Kreider, Shesterkin found his all-world form, denying Carolina captain Jordan Staal from point-blank range just before Kreider's equalizer on the facility play after which uncontrollably hitting Andrei Svechnikov from the low slot with 2:39 left as Andersen pulled away . The Rangers were tested for the primary time – really tested – they usually pulled it off.

The Rangers would never come into the sport 16-0; That just doesn't occur within the NHL. It's higher this manner. Championship teams are forged within the fires of frustration and futility. Championship teams discover a way.

On the opposite end of the handshake line was a team still trying to seek out that path. For the fourth straight season, the Hurricanes seemed to be an actual contender. For the fourth time in a row, the playoff run ended and not using a win beyond the second round. There were the same old culprits too. For all their strengths – the relentless forecheck that wreaks havoc within the offensive zone, the Rod Brind'Amour-esque work ethic that results in miraculous plays like Martinook's save, the deep back end that enables them to pace themselves so well control – the Hurricanes still haven't scored enough points from the front and still haven't made enough saves from goal. Jake Guentzel, their big signing, the long-sought sharpshooter, has been absolutely great in his short time in Carolina, but has no goals and just one assist within the last three games. Midway through the second period, Sebastian Aho scored on a shot from Andrei Svechnikov an enormous goal to make it 3-1, but this dynamic top team still finished the postseason 5-4 in five-on-five systems.

And then there’s Andersen. Playoff Freddie (technically an unfair nickname, but late within the A Series Freddie isn't exactly a looker) reared its ugly head again, falling to 5-8 (including wins in Games 4 and 5) before elimination. He managed just 19 saves on 23 shots, along with his save percentage dropping to a paltry .897 in elimination games. He's 0-4 with an .856 save percentage in Game 7, so Carolina would have had so much to beat on Saturday night even when the Rangers hadn't capitalized on this chance.

It's a well-recognized refrain and a well-recognized pain.

“It's a tough end to a really good year,” Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said. “These guys have been working their asses off all year. But that's what you'll remember. That’s the hard part.”

Now the Rangers have just a few days off and may sit back and watch the Bruins and Panthers go at one another for an additional game (preferably two). All the stress that has weighed on them since their loss in Game 4 has now worn off, but it should come back with a vengeance the subsequent time the puck drops. All this work and all this sweat and all this energy expended, they usually're only halfway there. This is playoff hockey – a relentless, excruciating, torturous mental and physical battle, beautiful but brutal at the identical time.

Damn, you would possibly say.

But one the Rangers now know they’ll handle. One that they now know they might be successful at.

“We just tried not to get frustrated,” Panarin said. “This is the playoffs. It goes up and down each time. Sometimes it's difficult. But we did it.”