Sports
Canadiens aim to halt four-game slide vs. Hurricanes
Mar 27, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Montreal Canadiens right wing Brendan Gallagher (11) skates off the ice after loss to the Philadelphia Flyers during the third period at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images On the surface, there’s much more at stake for the Montreal Canadiens than the Carolina Hurricanes during their matchup Friday night in Raleigh, N.C.
The Canadiens are scrambling down the stretch of the regular season to secure a spot in the postseason.
“We need results,” Montreal forward Brendan Gallagher said. “We’re not getting them. We need to rise to the challenge here.”
But the Hurricanes aren’t interested in taking a dip either as they’ll aim to avoid consecutive losses — something they haven’t experienced in more than a month.
The Hurricanes (43-24-4, 90 points) have lost two of their last three games following an eight-game winning streak. Carolina has had two days off since a 3-1 home loss to Nashville on Tuesday night.
The Canadiens (33-29-9, 75 points) have a four-game losing streak (0-2-2) after Thursday night’s 6-4 setback at Philadelphia.
“Everybody is disappointed,” Montreal coach Martin St. Louis said. “If you take a snapshot of where we are right now, it should still be fun. We just have to remind them of that.”
So getting the spirits up will be one area of emphasis for the Canadiens’ quick turnaround. They need a full group effort to get back on track.
“We need everybody,” St. Louis said. “To me, it’s a little bit of pressure vs. pleasure. You got to have fun with this, the 10 or 11 games we have left.”
Taylor Hall has been a good source of offense for Carolina. The former Hart Trophy recipient has racked up four goals across the past two games. Those are also the team’s last four goals.
Hall has been on a good stretch with 10 points (six goals, four assists) in the last nine games. He said it’s critical that both ends of the ice are taken care of properly.
“If you’re on for a goal against, you always feel a little culpable,” Hall said. “There’s something you could have done better at the end of the day.”
But for the Hurricanes, the key to their stretch drive could be if Sebastian Aho’s line can get rolling. That group has generally lagged in some recent games.
“It has been the case for a while now for our line,” Aho said. “We’re creating a bunch and getting good looks, but obviously, it doesn’t matter. Other guys have been bailing us out as of late. We’ve had some good wins as of late, but as a top line, we’ve got to produce.”
Carolina has been in flux with its lineup as winger Andrei Svechnikov has missed the past seven games with an upper-body injury. Svechnikov said Thursday that he expects to be in the lineup against Montreal.
The Hurricanes will have Frederik Andersen in the crease.
The Canadiens thumped the Hurricanes 4-0 on Feb. 25 at Montreal in the first meeting of the season. Patrik Laine and captain Nick Suzuki each had one goal and two assists and Sam Montembeault made 20 saves in that game.
Laine recorded his 18th goal of the season Thursday.
Montreal and Carolina also will meet at the end of the regular season in less than three weeks at Montreal.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Stars run win streak to 8 with OT defeat of Predators
Feb 28, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger (29) stops a shot by Nashville Predators right wing Jonathan Marchessault (81) during the first period at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Jason Robertson’s goal 1:47 into overtime capped a comeback and gave the host Dallas Stars a 3-2 win over the Nashville Predators on Saturday night.
Wyatt Johnston had a goal and an assist and Nathan Bastian also scored for the Stars, who trailed 2-0 with less than four minutes left in the second period. Jake Oettinger stopped 25 shots.
It was Dallas’ eighth win in a row.
Michael Bunting and Steven Stamkos scored the goals for the Predators, who are 1-1-2 in their last four. Luke Evangelista had two assists and Juuse Saros made 22 saves.
Robertson converted a cross-crease pass from defenseman Miro Heiskanen for the OT winner.
Bastian tied the game at 2 5:31 into the third period. He controlled and deposited the rebound of a shot by defenseman Thomas Harley.
Johnston’s power-play goal with 3:42 remaining in the second period put Dallas on the board and made it 2-1. He put in a cross-crease pass from Jamie Benn. It was Johnston’s 20th power-play marker of the season. He has 32 goals overall.
The Predators took a 2-0 lead in the first period with goals 1:09 apart.
Bunting opened the scoring with a power-play goal with 5:34 left in the opening period when he whipped in a shot from the left circle.
Stamkos started the rush on his goal by stealing the puck from Benn along the boards just outside the Dallas blue line. After taking a pass from Evangelista, Stamkos fired in his 30th goal from the inside edge of the right circle with 4:25 remaining in the first. It’s the 10th time in his career that Stamkos has reached the 30-goal mark.
Saros made a spectacular save on Johnston with a little less than nine minutes left in the opening period. Johnston took a pass cutting in off the right wing and skated across the top of the crease. But Saros used his right pad and stick to deny Johnston’s shot.
Nashville defenseman Adam Wilsby left early in the second period with a lower-body injury.
The Stars’ Roope Hintz missed his second consecutive game due to an illness.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Crew earn draw vs. Sporting KC on late goal
Feb 28, 2026; Kansas City, Kansas, USA; Sporting Kansas City forward Shapi Suleymanov (93) controls the ball during the first half against the Columbus Crew at Children’s Mercy Park. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images Diego Rossi scored in the 82nd minute Saturday night, allowing the visiting Columbus Crew to salvage a 2-2 draw with Sporting Kansas City.
Rossi took advantage of a failed clearance by defender Wyatt Meyer, who tried to head a crossing pass out of danger but instead deflected the ball right to Rossi. Given time to settle the ball and fire, Rossi wired a dart by goalie John Pulskamp and into the left corner for his second goal in as many matches.
Wassou Abou Ali also tallied for the second straight game for the Crew (0-1-1, 1 point). Dejan Joveljic registered a brace for Kansas City (0-1-1, 1 point), giving it a 2-1 lead in the 72nd minute when he gathered in a loose ball in the box and threaded a shot through a defender’s legs that rolled into the left corner.
Joveljic brought his team level in the 48th minute, finishing a beautiful counterattack. Jacob Davis fed him directly in front of the net and Joveljic toed a shot that goalie Patrick Schulte (two saves) had no chance to stop.
After a slow start, Columbus finished the match with slight advantages of 10-8 in shots and 5-4 in shots on frame. The Crew possessed the ball 52.5% of the time and attempted 16 crosses, 11 more than Kansas City.
Both teams opened the season last weekend with road losses. Columbus gave up a late goal to fall 3-2 against Portland and Kansas City experienced a lapse just before halftime, giving up two quick goals in a 3-0 defeat against San Jose.
Kansas City had the run of play for most of the first half-hour before Pulskamp made a shocking mistake in the 33rd minute. He tried to play the ball off the ground and offered up a nonchalant pass that Abou Ali was able to intercept, giving him an easy right-footed kick into an open net.
That play aside, Pulskamp (three saves) might have been the difference in enabling Kansas City to at least earn a draw. Columbus generated enough quality chances to log 3 1/2 expected goals, according to the league’s statistical service.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Henri Veesaar, No. 18 North Carolina hold off Virginia Tech
Feb 28, 2026; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) and Virginia Tech Hokies forward Amani Hansberry (13) fight for the ball in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images Henri Veesaar matched his career high with 26 points as No. 18 North Carolina pulled away from Virginia Tech in the second half for an 89-82 victory on Saturday night in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Seth Trimble put up 20 points as the Tar Heels (23-6, 11-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) won for the fourth time in their last five games without top scorer and rebounder Caleb Wilson, a star freshman who is out with a broken left hand.
Reserves Jonathan Powell and Zayden High added 15 and 12 points, respectively, as the North Carolina bench outscored its counterparts from Virginia Tech 32-13.
The Tar Heels shot 55.8% from the floor (29 of 52) as they remained perfect at home, marking the first season they’ve won their first 17 home games since the Dean E. Smith Center opened 40 years ago.
Veesaar also pulled down seven rebounds to help North Carolina to a 34-22 edge on the boards and an 11-2 margin on second-chance points.
Neo Avdalas supplied 19 points and five assists for Virginia Tech (18-11, 7-9), which came up short of gaining its third Quad 1 victory in its pursuit of a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
Tobi Lawal and Ben Hammond scored 16 points apiece and Amani Hansberry provided 11 points in 19 minutes before fouling out for the Hokies, who have not won at North Carolina since 2007.
After a 3-pointer by Virginia Tech’s Jaden Schutt tied it 57-57 with 13:51 left, North Carolina took the lead for good with a seven-point run.
Veesaar triggered it with a two-handed slam off an alley-oop feed from Powell, who followed with a 3-pointer. Trimble finished off the burst, spinning free off his dribble for a driving layup that made it 64-57.
A 3-pointer by Veesaar with 6:22 left gave North Carolina a 76-65 lead, which matched its largest of the game.
In the first half, the teams traded nine-point runs and finished a fast-paced period tied 44-44.
The Tar Heels’ run came midway through the half and was fueled by reserves including Kyan Evans, who drilled a 3-pointer to cap the burst and give North Carolina a 21-16 lead.
Powell later made a triple to give the Tar Heels the biggest lead of the half at 30-22.
But the Hokies answered with a 9-0 spurt triggered by a 3-pointer from Schutt.
–Field Level Media
Stars run win streak to 8 with OT defeat of Predators
Crew earn draw vs. Sporting KC on late goal
