Sports
Bruins look to regain 'mojo' against visiting Islanders
Jan 5, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Bruins center Pavel Zacha (18) and New York Islanders left wing Anthony Duclair (11) battle for the puck during the second period at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images After back-to-back overtime losses, the Boston Bruins look to bounce back when they host the New York Islanders on Thursday night to conclude a three-game homestand out of the 4 Nations Face-Off break.
The Bruins entered Wednesday in a three-way tie for third place in the Eastern Conference wild-card race with the Ottawa Senators and New York Rangers, with the Columbus Blue Jackets holding a two-point lead for the final spot.
A crucial point slipped away Tuesday, though, as the Toronto Maple Leafs overcame 3-0 and 4-3 deficits to beat Boston 5-4 in overtime. Captain Brad Marchand knows such a letdown en route to a fourth straight loss (0-2-2) cannot happen given the current position in the standings.
“If we play like that every night, we’re going to win a lot of games,” Marchand said. “We can’t give points up right now, and we gave one away.”
There were, indeed, some encouraging signs despite the Toronto loss. The Bruins piled up 36 shots and scored multiple power-play goals for the second time in their last six games.
Interim coach Joe Sacco liked what he saw for most of the night.
“We were ready to play. I thought we had a great start to the game. For the first 40 minutes, I really liked what we were doing in the hockey game,” Sacco said. “If you give (a team like Toronto) a little bit of life … they start to push.”
Star winger David Pastrnak, who is coming off a two-goal, one-assist performance to move his NHL season-high point streak to 15 games, hopes that one win can help his team turn the tide.
“We’ve gotten two out of four points since the break, but haven’t got the W,” Pastrnak said. “We need to put some games together to get that mojo because it wasn’t a bad game on our side (on Tuesday).”
The Islanders arrive in Boston having lost a season-high four consecutive games in regulation, including a 5-1 home defeat to the rival Rangers on Tuesday. The loss dropped them five points back of the Bruins.
While Boston remains much closer to the hunt, hopes on Long Island are slimming as the regular season nears its final full month.
“At this point, the next game’s huge,” Islanders defenseman Ryan Pulock said. “We’re kind of fighting for our life here, so we have to learn here and we have to be ready for the next one.”
The Islanders had netted three goals in three straight games prior to Tuesday. Alexander Romanov’s goal made it a 1-1 game in the first period, but it was not enough as the Rangers scored on five of their first 10 shots against Ilya Sorokin.
“It was not his best game. There (were) a few bad bounces, so I know he will bounce back,” Islanders coach Patrick Roy said. “He’s a character person. … I know we can count on him, there’s no doubt in my mind.”
Roy delivered some good news leading into Thursday’s game, as defenseman Noah Dobson is expected to return from an 11-game absence due to a lower-body injury. With the Islanders’ top scorer from the back end returning, Scott Perunovich is expected to be the healthy scratch.
“What I want to see from (Dobson) is controlling the puck, jumping in the rush, defending well, doing things he’s been doing very well since he’s been here,” Roy said.
Forward Hudson Fasching (upper body) could also return, having practiced on a line with Kyle MacLean and Massachusetts native Marc Gatcomb on Wednesday. Fasching has not played since Jan. 5, when the Islanders earned a 5-4 overtime win in Boston.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Celtics' Brad Stevens named NBA Executive of Year
Feb 28, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens before their game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-Imagn Images Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens was named the NBA Basketball Executive of the Year for the second time in three seasons on Tuesday.
Stevens’ Celtics finished with the second-best record (56-26) in the Eastern Conference in 2025-26 and secured a top-two playoff seed for the fifth time in his five seasons in his current role.
Boston accomplished that despite parting ways with Al Horford, Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday before the season and only having All-NBA forward Jayson Tatum for 16 games after he recovered from an Achilles injury.
Stevens, who also won the award in 2023-24, is the 12th executive to receive the honor multiple times since it was first presented in 1972-73.
Stevens, 49, received 11 first-place votes and 69 total points in voting by his fellow executives. Atlanta Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh was second with 41 points, one more than Detroit Pistons president of basketball operations Trajan Langdon.
Before joining Boston’s front office, Stevens served as the team’s head coach for eight seasons and tallied a 354-282 record. During his 13-year tenure with the franchise, the Celtics have made 12 playoff appearances.
The Celtics currently have a 3-1 lead in their first-round series with the Philadelphia 76ers. Game 5 is on Tuesday night in Boston.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Mexico makes Liga MX call-ups ahead of pre-World Cup camp
Nov 17, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Mexico Coach Javier Aguirre Onaindia speaks to the media ahead of his Mexican National Team match against Paraguay at the Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Jefferson-Imagn Images Mexico’s FIFA World Cup roster began to take shape Tuesday with a dozen Liga MX players invited to the camp that begins on May 6.
Manager Javier Aguirre’s crew will be joined in training later in the month by players who are based in Europe and elsewhere. His final roster for this summer’s tournament is due at the end of May.
The 12-member Liga MX contingent includes 17-year-old midfielder Gilberto Mora of Club Tijuana, Toluca forward Alexis Vega, Club America defender Israel Reyes and five players from Chivas: goalkeeper Raul “Tala” Rangel, forward Armando Gonzalez and midfielders Brian Gutierrez, Roberto Alvardo and Luis Romo.
Also on the list are goalkeeper Carlos Acevedo of Santos Laguna, defender Jesus Gallardo of Toluca, midfielder Erik Lira of Cruz Azul and forward Memo Martinez of Pumas.
Mora is rounding into shape after missing two months with a groin injury and has a chance to become Mexico’s youngest World Cup participant, supplanting 18-year-old Manuel “Chaquetas” Rosas in 1930. Seven 17-year-olds have participated in the tournament, including Brazil’s Pele in 1958.
Mexico is co-hosting the FIFA World Cup along with the U.S. and Canada. Mexico is currently ranked No. 15 in the world, one spot ahead of the Americans.
Placed in Group A with South Africa, South Korea and the Czech Republic, Mexico opens the World Cup against South Africa on June 11 in Mexico City.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Pistons aiming to avoid historic early exit vs. Magic
Apr 27, 2026; Orlando, Florida, USA; Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) looks to pass in front of Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (2) during the second half during game four of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Kia Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Images The Detroit Pistons need a three-game winning streak to avoid joining an infamous list. Only six top seeds in NBA history have flamed out in the first round of the playoffs to a No. 8 seed.
The Pistons trail Orlando 3-1 in their best-of-seven series after a 94-88 road loss on Monday. The series resumes in Detroit on Wednesday night.
Detroit has to regain its swagger or join the 2023 Milwaukee Bucks as the only top seed since 2012 to get knocked out this early in the postseason.
The troubling reality for the Pistons, who won 60 regular-season games, is that the Magic — with the exception of Detroit’s third-quarter outburst in Game 2 — consistently have looked like the better team.
The Magic have throttled the All-Star pick-and-roll combination of Cade Cunningham and Jalen Duren, leaving Detroit’s offense in tatters.
“The way that we’ve been playing, that stuff’s not good enough to win games in this league,” Cunningham said. “This league’s too good, they’re a good team. They’re outrebounding us, turning me over and we haven’t hit enough shots. Our defense hasn’t caught its footing. It’s not shocking that we’re losing games playing like that.”
With Duren neutralized by counterpart Wendell Carter Jr. and Orlando’s defensive coverage, Cunningham has been left to carry the offense. He’s averaging 29.5 points in the series but shooting just 42.4% overall and 28.6% from 3-point range. Turnovers have been a bigger issue. He’s averaging 6.8 giveaways in the series and committed eight in Game 4.
“Yeah, it’s frustrating,” Cunningham said. “A lot of it was on myself; I was frustrated with my own play. Having numbers, not making plays in transition. Things like that, the things I do best, just not being able to make plays for my team. They killed us on the offensive glass, our defense didn’t hold up. All that stuff. We’re all frustrated with all that stuff. We’ve gotta fix it and come back better.”
The Pistons’ lack of 3-point shooting has come back to bite them — they’re making just 27.5 percent of their attempts in the series.
Orlando realizes that in order to complete the upset, it will have to grind out another victory against a now desperate club.
“This is a team that won 60 games,” guard Desmond Bane said. “I’m sure they will not blink an eye about being able to win three games in a row. They did it multiple times during the regular season. We are going to have to come ready to play. I’m excited about the challenge.”
Paolo Banchero (21.0 points per game) and Bane (19.0) have been the Magic’s offensive leaders in the series. Franz Wagner scored 19 points in Game 4 but left with calf tightness. His availability for Wednesday and the remainder of the series is a big question mark.
In his absence, Jamal Cain made a major impact, including a monster dunk over Duren in the second half. Cain finished with eight points and nine rebounds.
“We’ve put ourselves in position to try to get four (wins),” coach Jamahl Mosley said. “Right now, it means nothing. We have the advantage and now we’ve just got to make sure we’ve try to keep that advantage.”
–Field Level Media
Celtics' Brad Stevens named NBA Executive of Year
Mexico makes Liga MX call-ups ahead of pre-World Cup camp
