Sports
Indomitable at home, Ducks continue playoff chase against Jets
Feb 25, 2026; Anaheim, California, USA; Anaheim Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville (back row, right) celebrates with his coaching staff after winning his 1,000th career coaching victory with a 6-5 win over the Edmonton Oilers at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images The red-hot Anaheim Ducks look to extend their home winning streak to seven games when the Winnipeg Jets visit on Friday.
The Ducks have won three straight overall and 10 of the last 12. That sterling streak includes six consecutive wins in their own rink, which bodes well for the remainder of a season-long nine-game homestand.
Even the NHL’s three-week Olympic hiatus couldn’t slow down the Ducks, though the team had plenty of shaky moments in Wednesday’s 6-5 win over the Edmonton Oilers. Anaheim had to come back from three deficits and never led until Cutter Gauthier broke a 5-5 tie with 1:14 left in regulation.
Such a wild game “kind of jolts us back into where we were” before the Olympic break, Ducks defenseman Jacob Trouba said.
“I think going down two twice and coming back is something to really pull from this game,” Trouba said. “I think that speaks a lot about the group and I guess the character we’re building in the room.”
The victory kept Anaheim five points behind the Vegas Golden Knights for first place in the Pacific Division.
The Ducks are simultaneously chasing a division title and trying to stay above the playoff cutline in the Western Conference’s crowded race.
Winnipeg isn’t out of that race yet, though the Jets sit 11 points behind Anaheim and nine points out of playoff position entering Thursday’s action. They escaped with a critical comeback victory against the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday, winning 3-2 without having led prior to Cole Perfetti’s overtime goal.
Kyle Connor and Gabriel Vilardi each scored on Wednesday, and Mark Schiefele assisted on both of their goals. The three forwards were back playing on the same line, as Jets coach Scott Arniel said he “knew that coming down the stretch here, we’re going to need their offense.”
“They were real good right from the get-go … with that chemistry that they have,” Arniel said. “But the thing I liked about (Connor) is he’s one of our best trackers. He’s one of the guys that pours back on that line and helps to defend. He’s a real solid two-way player for us.”
Scheifele has nine points (two goals, seven assists) and Connor has seven points (three goals, four assists) over their concurrent six-game point streaks.
Gauthier is on a three-game scoring streak and leads the Ducks in goals (26) and points (50).
Since backup Petr Mrazek sustained a season-ending hip injury in early January, Lukas Dostal is 9-3-0 over 12 starts with a .912 save percentage. The Ducks could keep rolling with Dostal, Czechia’s Olympic starter, on Friday or give Ville Husso his first action since Jan. 26.
After his superstar performance for the United States’ Olympic gold-medal-winning team, Connor Hellebuyck is expected to return to Winnipeg’s lineup on Friday. The Jets started Eric Comrie against Vancouver to give Hellebuyck a bit of extra rest after his hectic Olympic schedule.
Leo Carlsson and Beckett Sennecke both scored twice when the Ducks beat the Jets 4-1 in Anaheim on Nov. 9 in their first meeting of the season.
–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
