Sports
NHL roundup: Connor McDavid becomes 4th fastest to 1,000 points
Nov 14, 2024; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Edmonton Oilers forward Connor McDavid (97) celebrates after scoring a goal during the second period, his 1000th NHL point against the Nashville Predators at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-Imagn Images Connor McDavid accomplished what the home fans wanted to see on Thursday, and then he allowed them to go home happy as the Edmonton Oilers beat the Nashville Predators 3-2 in overtime.
After collecting his 1,000th career NHL point in the second period, McDavid fed Darnell Nurse in the three-on-three extra period with a no-look, behind-the-back pass. Nurse’s one-timer flew past Nashville goalie Scott Wedgewood to extend the Oilers’ winning streak to three games.
Nurse finished with two goals and an assist, while McDavid had a goal and an assist as he became the fourth fastest and fourth youngest to reach 1,000 points. Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl had a pair of assists, including the secondary helper on the winning goal. Calvin Pickard made 21 saves for the victory.
The Predators got goals from Michael McCarron and Cole Smith, the latter tying the game with 2:48 remaining in regulation. Wedgewood stopped 31 shots.
Flyers 5, Senators 4 (OT)
Matvei Michkov scored with 55 seconds left in overtime as Philadelphia rallied for a road victory over Ottawa.
Michkov’s game-winner came from a sharp angle, as he banked the puck off Linus Ullmark’s pad and into the net. His sixth goal of the campaign — and first career overtime tally — capped an impressive comeback by the Flyers, who trailed 4-2 with under 10 minutes left in regulation.
Ullmark finished with 14 saves and Josh Norris had a goal and an assist for the Senators, who had won their previous two games.
Lightning 4, Jets 1
Andrei Vasilevskiy became the fastest goaltender to notch his 300th career win, and host Tampa Bay stalled streaking Winnipeg.
Vasilevskiy stopped 23 shots for the Lightning to secure the landmark victory in his 490th career game, breaking the 61-year-old record held by Hall of Famer Jacques Plante (528 games). Vasilevskiy, 30, became the 40th netminder to eclipse 300 career wins.
Owning the NHL’s best record ever to start a season at 15-1-0, the Jets got a goal from Adam Lowry, while Eric Comrie made 25 saves.
Devils 6, Panthers 2
Jesper Bratt recorded his second career hat trick and Stefan Noesen scored two goals, lifting New Jersey to a victory in Sunrise, Fla.
Dawson Mercer also scored, and Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier had three assists apiece for New Jersey. The Devils defeated the Panthers for the second time in three days and have won seven of their past nine games overall.
Jake Allen turned aside 25 shots for the Devils to outduel Sergei Bobrovsky (23 saves) and send the Panthers to their second loss following a seven-game winning streak. Florida’s Sam Reinhart and Jesper Boqvist scored.
Sabres 4, Blues 3 (OT)
Rasmus Dahlin scored an overtime power-play goal to lift host Buffalo past St. Louis.
Ryan McLeod and Alex Tuch each had a goal and an assist for the Sabres, who won for the fourth time in five games. Zach Benson also scored for Buffalo, and Devon Levi made 24 saves.
Brandon Saad scored twice for the Blues, who lost for the seventh time in nine games (2-6-1). Pavel Buchnevich also scored and Brayden Schenn earned two assists for St. Louis. Jordan Binnington made 29 saves.
Stars 7, Bruins 2
Dallas never trailed and used three goals in a 5:34 span late in the second period to blow past the visiting Boston, sweeping the teams’ two-game season series.
Evgenii Dadonov posted his first multi-goal game of the season, scoring on a first-period penalty shot before closing the Stars’ quick-fire stretch in the second with only 10.6 seconds remaining in the period.
Charlie Coyle and David Pastrnak scored goals, and Jeremy Swayman (31 saves) allowed a career-high seven goals for the Bruins, who were on a three-game point streak (2-0-1).
Kraken 3, Blackhawks 1
Jaden Schwartz scored his 200th career goal as Seattle defeated visiting Chicago.
Matty Beniers and Brandon Tanev also tallied for the Kraken, who improved to 3-0-0 on their six-game homestand. Goaltender Joey Daccord made 18 saves.
Ryan Donato scored for the Blackhawks, and Petr Mrazek stopped 23 of 25 shots. Chicago took its third loss in four games.
Wild 3, Canadiens 0
Filip Gustavsson stopped all 19 shots he faced as Minnesota pulled away to beat Montreal in Saint Paul, Minn.
Matt Boldy, Marco Rossi and Kirill Kaprizov scored for the Wild, who have won three of their past four games.
Canadiens goaltender Sam Montembeault took a hard-luck loss despite turning aside 25 of 27 shots. He dropped to 4-8-1 this season.
Rangers 3, Sharks 2
Mika Zibanejad and Jimmy Vesey scored 94 seconds apart in the second period and host New York rallied to beat San Jose for the ninth time in 11 games (9-0-2).
Vincent Trocheck netted New York’s third goal of the middle period. Igor Shesterkin made 25 saves after allowing five goals apiece in his previous two starts.
Timothy Liljegren tallied 2:51 into the contest and Fabian Zetterlund scored a power-play goal with the extra attacker with 27 seconds left in the game for the Sharks, who are 5-3-1 since opening with a nine-game skid (0-7-2). Mackenzie Blackwood made 32 saves.
Islanders 5, Canucks 2
Scott Mayfield and Pierre Engvall scored early in the second period for New York, which extended its point streak by beating host Vancouver.
Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored late in the first period before Anders Lee and Noah Dobson added goals in the third for the Islanders, who are 3-0-2 in their past five games. Bo Horvat and Grant Hutton each had two assists, and Lee also finished with two points.
New York goalie Semyon Varlamov made 24 saves, and counterpart Kevin Lankinen stopped 27 shots. Jonathan Lekkerimaki scored his first NHL goal 2:40 into the game and Tyler Myers scored late in the third period for the Canucks, who have lost two of three.
–Field Level Media
Sports
A'ja Wilson has no shortage of motivation after Aces' early exit in '24
Oct 1, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Las Vegas Aces center A’ja Wilson (22) and New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart (30) during game two of the 2024 WNBA Semi-finals at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images LAS VEGAS — Entering her eighth season in the WNBA, Las Vegas Aces superstar A’ja Wilson is poised to build on what was arguably the most dominant individual campaign in league history.
Wilson joined Cynthia Cooper (1997) as the second player in league history to win a unanimous MVP award and joined an exclusive club as the fourth player to win the award three times. She averaged 26.9 points and 11.9 rebounds per game last season and set the all-time single-season mark for points (1,021) and rebounds (451).
Unfortunately for Las Vegas, injuries and fatigue from their two previous championship runs mounted and resulted in the team’s worst regular-season record (27-13) since 2019. The Aces’ three-peat hopes ended with a 76-62 home loss to the New York Liberty to drop their semifinal series 3-1.
It’s that loss on her home floor that served as Wilson’s motivation this offseason.
“Losing sucks, especially on your home court,” Wilson said “It still kind of burns a little bit, but I’ve used that as fuel to help my teammates understand how hard it is to win in this league. Yes, we can celebrate the two championships. They were great. But for us to move forward, we have to understand how hard this league is and value the basketball and the little things. I think that’s what we lacked last season, so we’re going to make sure that we can show up better than we did.”
While the Aces appeared to be on top of the world heading into their potential three-peat campaign in 2024, the reality inside the locker room was that both the internal and external pressure to win another championship had become suffocating. A common theme across media day was the fact that the team feels less pressure entering the 2025 season, a sentiment Wilson shared as the unquestioned leader of the team.
“(Three-peat talks) obviously impacted us, because it’s like, y’all think we don’t want to win? We’re trying as well,” Wilson said.
“I would definitely say it’s refreshing this year. I feel like this is one of my only years where it feels like there’s no weight. There’s a lot of weight to be defending champs. It’s a lot of weight to be trying to win one. We don’t have that. We actually have a clean slate to really dial into getting back to who we are culturally, like, in our system and everything.”
Leading the Aces back to the top of the mountain for a third time in four years is one of a few historically significant achievements Wilson can collect this upcoming season. Wilson could also become the first four-time MVP in league history, though the meaning of that is something she hasn’t quite allowed herself to ponder yet.
“I haven’t given it much thought, but it would be a blessing to have my name in that conversation,” Wilson said. “Every year, I try to be better than I was the year before just to give myself a chance in this league. Because the league is getting better. We’re growing. At this point, you just want to maintain your stamina. You want to maintain your mental, all of that, because the season gets hard. I can’t think too much about that just yet, but I’m definitely going to try to be better than I was last year.”
As Aces coach Becky Hammon put it, fans can expect to see an even better version of Wilson this season.
“What I see is, she went and got better,” Hammon said. “Which is hard to do when you’re already the best, but it speaks to her work ethic, her desire and her mindset this whole offseason. We talked a lot this offseason. She’s a busy lady, but I can tell you what she always does is her workouts. She’s always getting her workouts in. That comes first and foremost, she never gets her priorities jumbled up.”
When Hammon was asked what a player like Wilson would possibly need to improve after last season’s campaign, the coach did not feel like revealing too much.
“There was (something for Wilson to improve), and she did,” Hammon said. “I’m not going to tell you what it was. Actually, there were two things.”
–Will Despart, Field Level Media
Sports
Jacob Wilson joins Aaron Judge in spotlight for Yankees-A's series
May 5, 2025; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson (5) throws to first for an out against the Seattle Mariners during the seventh inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn Images The top two hitters in the majors square off Friday night when the New York Yankees face the Athletics in the opener of a three-game series in Sacramento, Calif.
It’s no surprise to see Yankees star Aaron Judge off to a superb start after winning American League MVP honors last season. He has a major league-best .400 batting average and entered Thursday’s play tied for the big-league lead with 12 homers and 34 RBIs.
But who had Athletics rookie Jacob Wilson ranking second in the majors at .357 as the season nears the quarter pole? Wilson has played in just 64 career games and quickly has solidified himself as a future All-Star, perhaps even this season.
Sharing the marquee board with Judge seems quite surreal for the 23-year-old shortstop who was the No. 6 overall pick of the 2023 draft.
“It’s a great feeling, for sure,” Wilson said of his name being mentioned with Judge. “Obviously, everybody has seen what he is doing. It’s pretty incredible watching him do his thing on a daily basis. To be up there with him is pretty cool for me.
“I’m excited to play against him this week and see what it looks like in person.”
Wilson had his first career four-hit game during Wednesday’s 6-5 home loss against the Seattle Mariners and has six multi-hit outings in the past eight games. He went 8-for-14 with one game-winning hit in the three-game series against the Mariners and is 16-for-34 (.471) with four walks during the eight-game stretch.
The hot hitting led to Athletics manager Mark Kotsay moving Wilson to the leadoff spot on Wednesday. Kotsay indicated Wilson may be sticking at the top of the lineup.
“I think you’ll see Jacob up there now,” Kotsay said. “Jacob’s earned it. … Jacob has shown enough over the last week. He’s walking and taking pitches, and, obviously, swinging the bat really well.”
Judge arrives in Sacramento in the midst of a four-game funk in which he is 2-for-15.
The two-time MVP just went 1-for-10 in a three-game home series against the San Diego Padres, but the one hit was a homer.
Judge grew up 50 miles south of Sacramento in Linden and starred for Linden High but wasn’t highly sought by major league teams. The then-Oakland Athletics selected him in the 31st round in 2010.
Judge instead went the college route and starred for Fresno State. He was chosen in the first round (32nd overall) by the Yankees in the 2013 draft.
Trent Grisham was one of the heroes of Wednesday’s 4-3, 10-inning win over the Padres. He hit a tying two-run pinch-hit homer in the eighth inning.
Grisham had two homers and five RBIs in the series against the Padres — one of his former teams — and already has 10 long balls in just 89 at-bats. He hit just nine last season in 179 at-bats.
“I’m having fun with the guys, I would say that more than anything,” Grisham said. “The clubhouse is really good in here, led by Cap (Judge). So, I would say the guys have been the most enjoyable part.”
New York is starting right-hander Will Warren (1-2, 5.65 ERA) in Friday’s series opener. Right-hander Osvaldo Bido (2-2, 4.71) will be on the mound for the Athletics.
Warren, 25, struck out a career-high eight in 4 2/3 innings while losing to the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday. He gave up five runs (three earned) and seven hits. Warren hasn’t previously faced the Athletics.
Bido, 29, received a no-decision against the Miami Marlins last Saturday when he gave up four runs on three hits over five innings. He is winless (0-1) over his last three starts. Bido hasn’t faced the Yankees.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao coming out of retirement
Aug 21, 2021; Las Vegas, Nevada; Manny Pacquiao (right) fights Yordenis Ugas in a world welterweight championship bout at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao plans to end his retirement and return to the ring on July 19 against Mario Barrios in Las Vegas, ESPN reported Thursday.
Pacquiao, 46, will be fighting for the first time since losing a unanimous decision to Yordenis Ugas in 2021.
The fight will be for Barrios’ WBC welterweight championship belt. Barrios turns 30 on May 18.
Pacquiao is an eight-division champion who is slated to be inducted into the boxing Hall of Fame in June. He reportedly will formally announce his return to boxing next week. The report stated that Pacquiao has been cleared to compete by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
In recent years, Pacquiao has been focusing on his political career in the Philippines.
The boxer nicknamed “PacMan” has a 62-8-2 record with 39 knockouts during his career. He won his first major title — the WBC flyweight crown — at age 19 in 1998.
Pacquiao was 54-3-2 prior to turning 33 and 8-5 afterward. One of those losses was to Floyd Mayweather Jr. via unanimous decision in 2015, a bout that reportedly drew nearly $400 million in pay-per-view sales.
Barrios (29-2-1, 18 knockouts) fought to a 12-round, split-decision draw against Abel Ramos last November. This will be his third defense since winning the title by beating Ugas in 2023.
–Field Level Media
A'ja Wilson has no shortage of motivation after Aces' early exit in '24
Best Mothers Day gifts: Show mom some love
