National Sports

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Hurricanes were down big at home in the NHL playoffs, playing desperate hockey full of withering long shifts in the offensive zone as they tried to rally.

BOSTON — Auston Matthews desperately wanted to reach 70 goals in the regular season. After posts, crossbars and plenty of terrific looks, the Maple Leafs star finished one shy.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Bo Bichette had a bases-clearing triple, Daulton Varsho hit a two-run homer and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Kansas City Royals 5-3 on Monday night. The Jays have won seven of their past nine games.

GENEVA (AP) — The World Anti-Doping Agency said after reviewing various media reports that it stands by its decision to clear 23 Chinese swimmers who tested positive for a banned heart medication before the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.

MILAN (AP) — Winning the derby ended up being the cherry on top of a special night for Inter Milan.

BOSTON — William Nylander missed Game 2 of the Maple Leafs' first-round playoff series Monday with an undisclosed injury. Toronto's star winger also sat out his team's 5-1 loss to the Boston Bruins in Saturday's opener.

Lindy Ruff is returning to Buffalo for a second stint as coach of the Sabres. General manager Kevyn Adams announced the hiring Monday.

VANCOUVER — Rick Tocchet has long believed Dakota Joshua had something special to offer the Vancouver Canucks. The coach saw it when he took over the team last January, and he set to work getting the most out of the big winger.

WINNIPEG — Connor Hellebuyck made sure he did one important thing while winding down Sunday after the Winnipeg Jets beat the Colorado Avalanche 7-6 in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series.

TORONTO — Allison Sandmeyer-Graves always suspected there was a large fan base for women's sports in Canada, and now she has proof.