NHL; Rangers To Eastern Conference Final With Win Over Carolina

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Chris Kreider had a third-period hat trick to help the New York Rangers erase a two-goal deficit and beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-3 to close out the second-round playoff series in six games and advance to the Eastern Conference Final. Kreider single-handedly erased the Hurricanes’ 3-1 lead entering the final period. He had the winner when he tipped in Ryan Lindgren’s pass to make it 4-3 at the 15:41 mark. Barclay Goodrow added an empty-netter. Martin Necas, Seth Jarvis and Sebastian Aho scored for Carolina, which had won two straight after falling into a 3-0 hole.