Sports
NHL roundup: Rangers' Jonathan Quick gets win No. 400
Feb 2, 2025; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers goalie Jonathan Quick (32) celebrates after his 400th career win following a 4-2 victory against the Vegas Golden Knights at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images K’Andre Miller’s tiebreaking goal helped the New York Rangers pull off a rare third-period comeback to beat the visiting Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 on Sunday night, making Jonathan Quick the first American-born goaltender to reach 400 career regular-season victories.
The Rangers stopped a three-game losing streak and improved to 8-3-3 in their past 14. They are 2-20-1 this season when trailing after two periods. Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin each had a goal and two assists, and Alexis Lafreniere also scored for the Rangers.
Quick made 34 saves. He joined Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky and Minnesota’s Marc-Andre Fleury as the third active goalie to reach 400 wins. He is the 15th player in NHL history with at least 400 victories.
Jack Eichel scored both goals for Vegas, and Adin Hill made 24 saves. The Golden Knights lost their third straight game and dropped to 3-7-3 in their past 13.
Red Wings 3, Canucks 2 (OT)
Alex DeBrincat scored two goals, including the game-winner in overtime, as Detroit extended its winning streak to six games by edging host Vancouver.
Ben Chiarot also scored for Detroit, which climbed into a wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Goaltender Alex Lyon stopped 25 shots. DeBrincat has 23 goals, tying him with Dylan Larkin for the team lead. The decisive goal came with 42 seconds left in the extra session, as DeBrincat led an odd-man rush from one end of the ice to the other and made good on a give-and-go with Lucas Raymond in the Vancouver zone.
Filip Chytil and Pius Suter scored for Vancouver, which lost its second straight game. Kevin Lankinen made 15 saves.
Panthers 6, Islanders 3
Carter Verhaeghe scored his fourth career hat trick and added an assist to lead Florida past visiting New York in Sunrise, ending the Islanders’ season-high seven-game winning streak.
Sam Reinhart and Matthew Tkachuk each had a goal and an assist for the Panthers, who have won three straight. Aleksander Barkov had three assists, Gustav Forsling had two, and Spencer Knight made 31 saves.
Kyle MacLean, Jean-Gabriel Pageau and Marc Gatcomb scored for the Islanders, who got 27 saves from Jakub Skarek in his NHL debut.
Stars 5, Blue Jackets 3
Evgenii Dadonov scored two goals in the third period to lift Dallas over visiting Columbus for its fifth straight win.
Mason Marchment, Logan Stankoven and Wyatt Johnston also tallied for Dallas, which didn’t lead until Dadonov redirected the puck off a drive from defenseman Thomas Harley (two assists) past Columbus netminder Elvis Merzlikins with 8:38 left in regulation. Dadonov added some insurance with 4:13 left as the Stars, who are 15-4-1 since Dec. 23. Casey DeSmith finishes with 27 saves for Dallas.
Cole Sillinger, Adam Fantilli and Ivan Provorov scored for the Blue Jackets, who had won three straight but couldn’t hold three different one-goal leads Sunday. Columbus lost leading goal scorer Kirill Marchenko after he took a puck to the face while on the bench late in the second period and did not return. Merzlikins made 34 saves.
Avalanche 2, Flyers 0
Mackenzie Blackwood made 24 saves for his second straight shutout while Philadelphia failed to score for a third straight game as Colorado beat the Flyers in Denver.
Blackwood got his third shutout of the season — his second with the Avalanche — and the 13th of his career. It is the third time he has had shutouts in consecutive games.
Nathan MacKinnon and Samuel Girard supplied the goals for Colorado. Samuel Ersson made 30 saves for Philadelphia, which has not scored in its last 180 minutes, 15 seconds.
Sabres 4, Devils 3
Tage Thompson, JJ Peterka and Ryan McLeod scored three straight goals in the first period for host Buffalo, which fended off a third-period comeback by New Jersey.
Jason Zucker scored what proved to be the game-winning goal late in the second period for the Sabres, who equaled a season high with their third straight win. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 21 saves.
Paul Cotter scored twice before Jack Hughes added a goal in the third for the Devils, who have lost 11 of 16 (5-8-3) since Dec. 28. Jake Allen made 23 saves before being pulled after the second period for Nico Daws, who stopped all seven shots he faced in the third
Ducks 3, Canadiens 2
Alex Killorn scored the go-ahead goal in the third period and added an assist as host Anaheim scored three unanswered goals to rally for a victory over Montreal.
Mason McTavish and Frank Vatrano also scored goals and Leo Carlsson had two assists for Anaheim, which won for the fourth time in its last five games. Lukas Dostal finished with 21 saves as the Ducks improved to 21-0-2 when scoring three goals or more in a game.
Joel Armia and Christian Dvorak scored goals and Sam Montembeault made 19 saves for Montreal, which lost its fifth straight game.
Blues 2, Utah Hockey Club 1
Jordan Binnington made 24 saves as St. Louis snapped its four-game losing streak by edging Utah in Salt Lake City.
Alexandre Texier and Jordan Kyrou scored for the Blues, who were outscored 16-4 in their losing streak. Michael Kesselring scored and Connor Ingram made 27 saves for Utah, which is winless (0-3-2) in its last five games.
Blues defenseman Tyler Tucker left the game during the third period after taking a hard shoulder-first fall into the boards.
Flames 3, Kraken 2
Morgan Frost scored his first goal with his new team as Calgary held on to defeat host Seattle.
Yegor Sharangovich had a goal and an assist and Jonathan Huberdeau also scored for the Flames, who won for just the second time in their past five games. Goaltender Dan Vladar made 29 saves to earn his first victory since Dec. 10.
Kaapo Kakko and Brandon Tanev scored for Seattle, which dropped 10 points behind the Flames in the race for the Western Conference’s second and final wild-card spot. Joey Daccord stopped 32 of 35 shots.
–Field Level Media
Sports
NHL scores highest TV ratings in 14 seasons
May 6, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Jaccob Slavin (74) is interviewed by ESPN reporter Emily Kaplan (R) after scoring the overtime goal against the Washington Capitals in game one of the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images A year after NHL viewership shrunk, the league drew its highest average television audiences in 14 years for the just-concluded regular season, Sports Business Journal and Sports Media Watch reported on Tuesday.
In games on ESPN, ABC and TNT/truTV, the NHL posted averages of 546,000 viewers, per the reports. That’s a year-on-year increase of at least 23% and a better average than all seasons since 2012-13, when NBC and NBCSN averaged 590,000.
Nielsen’s change in methodology might explain a part of the decade-plus high, as ratings across all sports are higher based on the new measurement system. NBA ratings were up 35% this year, other sports also seeing double-digit-percentage increases.
The 54 games airing on ESPN and ABC drew 760,000 viewers on average, a 30% jump from 2024-25. ESPN games in particular saw a major rating improvement, with games attracting 602,000 on average, a 48% hike from the prior season.
TNT/truTV carried 72 games that brought in 381,000 viewers on average, a rise of 21% year-on-year. Those contests saw a significant bump after Team USA won hockey gold at the Milan Olympics, as NHL viewership on TNT Sports rose to 453,000 on average following the league’s midseason break.
The top-rated NHL game of the regular season was the Stadium Series game at Tampa on Feb. 1, when the Tampa Bay Lightning edged the Boston Bruins 6-5 in a shootout. ESPN drew 2.07 million viewers for that contest, a cable-TV record for an NHL regular-season game.
NHL ratings declined in the 2024-25 season despite the league replacing the All-Star Game with the wildly popular 4 Nations Face-Off that saw Canada defeat the United States 3-2 in overtime in the final.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Nicolas Roy's OT tally gives Avalanche 2-0 advantage over Kings
Apr 21, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Avalanche goaltender Scott Wedgewood (41) makes a save against Los Angeles Kings right wing Alex Laferriere (14) in the first period in game two of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images Nicolas Roy scored at 7:44 of overtime to lift Colorado to a 2-1 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Tuesday in Denver, giving the Avalanche a 2-0 lead in a Western Conference first-round playoff series.
Roy got to a loose puck in the slot and shot it through the legs of Kings defenseman Brandt Clarke and past goalie Anton Forsberg for the win.
Game 3 will be played Thursday night in Los Angeles.
Gabriel Landeskog scored the tying goal late in regulation and Scott Wedgewood made 24 saves for the Avalanche, who won the series opener 2-1 on Sunday.
During the regular season, Wedgewood led the NHL in goals-against average (2.02) and save percentage (.921).
Anton Forsberg made 34 saves for the Kings in his second career postseason start, both in the current series. He has allowed two goals or fewer in eight of his past nine starts.
Neither team scored until the final seven minutes of the third period.
The Kings were on a power play when Trevor Moore brought the puck along the goal line before making a backhand pass to Panarin just above the left hashmarks. Panarin had time to gather the puck before shooting it into the net for a 1-0 lead at 13:04.
The Avalanche tied it with 3:35 left in regulation.
Devon Toews made a diagonal pass from above the left point to Martin Necas on the opposite goal line. Necas passed the puck back through the top of the crease to Landeskog, who was cutting to the net, and he scored with a one-timer.
Kings forward Quinton Byfield was hooked by Cale Makar on a short-handed breakaway at 3:12 of the second period, resulting in a penalty shot, but Wedgewood made a lunching glove save to keep the game scoreless.
During the penalty, fans broke the glass behind the Los Angeles bench, causing shards to fall on Kings interim coach D.J. Smith. Play was halted for 19 minutes as the glass was cleaned up and replaced.
The Avalanche briefly celebrated nine seconds into the third period after defenseman Sam Malinski took a one-timer from the left point that hit the net, but replays showed the puck had stuck in the net on the outside of the left post.
–Field Level Media
Sports
NBA roundup: After Victor Wembanyama's exit, Blazers level series
Apr 21, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) talks with guard Stephon Castle (5) after falling to the ground during the first half of game two of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs against the Portland Trail Blazers at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images Scoot Henderson poured in a season-best 31 points as the visiting Portland Trail Blazers came back from 14 points down in the fourth quarter to outlast the short-handed San Antonio Spurs 106-103 on Tuesday and even their first-round Western Conference playoff series at one win each.
The teams will play Game 3 on Friday in Portland, and it’s unclear if the Spurs will have Victor Wembanyama available. The NBA Defensive Player of the Year hit his face on the floor in the second quarter and was diagnosed with a concussion. He is scheduled for further testing on Wednesday.
The Spurs, led by Stephon Castle’s team-high 18 points, carried a one-point lead into the fourth quarter but reeled off the first 13 points of the final period to build their advantage to 93-79. The Trail Blazers roared back to take the lead via a 7-0 run capped by a Jrue Holiday layup with 2:02 left and held on from there.
Holiday produced 16 points and nine assists, and Deni Avdija added 14 points for the Trail Blazers. The Spurs got 17 points from De’Aaron Fox plus 16 points and 12 rebounds from Devin Vassell.
Lakers 101, Rockets 94
LeBron James compiled 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists to lead Los Angeles to a victory over visiting Houston, giving the Lakers a 2-0 lead in their first-round Western Conference playoff series.
With leading scorers Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique) watching from the bench, Los Angeles’ Marcus Smart added 25 points, shooting 5 of 7 from 3-point range, and Game 1 hero Luke Kennard contributed 23 points, going 3 of 6 from deep.
Kevin Durant, who missed the opening game with a right knee contusion, scored 23 points for the Rockets, but he had nine turnovers and was held to three points after halftime. Alperen Sengun paired 20 points with 11 rebounds.
76ers 111, Celtics 97
VJ Edgecombe and Tyrese Maxey combined to make 11 3-pointers and score 59 total points as Philadelphia bounced back to even its Eastern Conference playoff series with host Boston.
Seventh-seeded Philadelphia shook off a dismal Game 1 performance, which included making just four 3-pointers in a 123-91 loss, with a complete reversal on the offensive end. The Sixers, who got 19 points from Paul George, shot a torrid 19 of 39 (48.7%) from beyond the arc in Game 2.
Jaylen Brown went for a game-high 36 points and Jayson Tatum finished with 19 points to go with his game-high 14 rebounds for the Celtics. No other Boston player reached double figures in scoring, a stark contrast from Game 1, when the Celtics’ entire starting five notched at least 10 points.
–Field Level Media
NHL scores highest TV ratings in 14 seasons
Nicolas Roy's OT tally gives Avalanche 2-0 advantage over Kings
