Sports
NHL roundup: Oilers stars hit milestones in rout of Kings
Feb 26, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid (97) and Los Angeles Kings right wing Alex Laferriere (14) battle for the puck during the second period at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Griffin Hooper-Imagn Images Connor McDavid had a goal and an assist for his sixth straight 100-point season, Leon Draisaitl notched his eighth straight 30-goal campaign, and the Edmonton Oilers ended a season-high four-game skid with an 8-1 romp over the host Los Angeles Kings on Thursday night.
McDavid has reached triple digits nine times overall in his career, third most in NHL history behind Wayne Gretzky (15) and Mario Lemieux (10).
Draisaitl had a goal and three assists, Zach Hyman a goal and two assists, Jake Walman scored twice, Andrew Mangiapane produced a goal and an assist and Connor Ingram made 21 saves for the Oilers, who were coming off a 6-5 loss at the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday.
Warren Foegele scored for the Kings, who have dropped five in a row (0-4-1) to remain three points out of a playoff spot. Darcy Kuemper stopped 11 of 15 shots before he was replaced by Anton Forsberg, who finished with 18 saves for Los Angeles.
Wild 5, Avalanche 2
Matt Boldy had two empty-net goals and added two assists, Joel Eriksson Ek also scored twice and Minnesota beat Colorado in Denver in a matchup of two of the league’s top teams.
Filip Gustavsson made 44 saves for Minnesota, which has won six in a row and tightened the race in the Central Division. Mats Zuccarello also scored, and Kirill Kaprizov had two assists.
Martin Necas had two goals, Nathan MacKinnon contributed two assists and Mackenzie Blackwood turned away 31 shots for the Avalanche. Colorado leads the NHL with 85 points and the Wild have 80, tied for second most in the league.
Hurricanes 5, Lightning 4
Carolina’s Sebastian Aho broke a third-period tie with a power-play goal and the Hurricanes overcame blowing a three-goal lead to beat Tampa Bay in a matchup of the Eastern Conference’s top two teams in Raleigh, N.C.
Logan Stankoven and Taylor Hall both had a goal and an assist and Nikolaj Ehlers also scored — all in the opening seven minutes — for the Hurricanes, who were in their first game since the Olympic layoff. Seth Jarvis also supplied a goal and an assist and Andrei Svechnikov assisted on two goals for Carolina. Brandon Bussi made 24 saves.
Brandon Point posted a goal and an assist for the Lightning, who opened their post-break schedule a night earlier by defeating the Toronto Maple Leafs. Brandon Hagel, Nikita Kucherov and Dominic James also scored for the Lightning, who were without head coach Jon Cooper for the second night in a row following the death of his father.
Red Wings 2, Senators 1 (OT)
Dylan Larkin scored his second goal of the game at 1:50 of overtime as visiting Detroit beat Ottawa.
John Gibson made 26 saves for the Red Wings, who had lost four of five (1-3-1) before the break. Lucas Raymond notched two assists.
Brady Tkachuk scored for the Senators, who had won five of six before the break. Linus Ullmark turned away 18 shots.
Panthers 5, Maple Leafs 1
Brad Marchand scored two goals as Florida resumed play following the Olympic break with a win over Toronto at Sunrise, Fla., in a battle of teams looking to climb into Eastern Conference playoff contention.
Evan Rodrigues added a goal and an assist for the Panthers while Carter Verhaeghe and Matthew Tkachuk also scored. Anton Lundell added two assists and Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 28 shots for Florida, which was on a 1-5-0 run ahead of the break.
John Tavares scored for the Maple Leafs, who have lost their first two games after the break. Joseph Woll made 32 saves.
Bruins 4, Blue Jackets 2
Boston erased an early one-goal deficit with three straight goals and held on to defeat visiting Columbus.
Viktor Arvidsson tallied twice and Sean Kuraly and Morgan Geekie also lit the lamp for the Bruins, who are 5-0-3 in their past eight games. Joonas Korpisalo made 36 saves, and Michael DiPietro stopped two shots after Korpisalo briefly exited in the second period with an injury.
Adam Fantilli had a goal and an assist, Kirill Marchenko also scored and Mason Marchment assisted on both goals for the Blue Jackets, whose seven-game winning streak ended. Elvis Merzlikins stopped 19 shots.
Islanders 4, Canadiens 3 (OT)
Jean-Gabriel Pageau scored the game-winner at 1:46 of overtime as New York rallied for a victory at Montreal.
Matthew Schaefer scored twice, Anders Lee tied the game late and Simon Holmstrom had two assists for the Islanders, who have won three in a row. Ilya Sorokin made 21 saves.
Noah Dobson tallied twice against his former team, Cole Caufield added a goal and Samiel Montembeault made 22 saves for the Canadiens, who have lost two of three (1-0-2) but extended their point streak to six (4-0-2).
Penguins 4, Devils 1
Connor Clifton and Egor Chinakhov scored 50 seconds apart during a three-goal third period to help Pittsburgh, minus superstar Sidney Crosby, break open a tight contest and beat visiting New Jersey.
Tommy Novak opened the scoring, Evgeni Malkin recorded two assists, Blake Lizotte added an empty-netter and Arturs Silovs was stout in making 28 saves for Pittsburgh. Crosby will miss at least four weeks with a lower-body injury suffered while playing for Canada at the Milan Cortina Games earlier this month.
Paul Cotter scored for the Devils, who are second-to-last in the Eastern Conference standings and matched a season high with their fifth consecutive loss, which is part of a 1-7-0 rut. Jacob Markstrom made 31 saves.
Predators 4, Blackhawks 2
Ryan O’Reilly scored a game-winner late in the third period to help power Nashville past visiting Chicago.
Roman Josi made a beautiful pass to O’Reilly, who tipped the game-winning goal past Spencer Knight to secure the victory for the Predators with 3:16 left . Filip Forsberg, Steven Stamkos and Matthew Wood also scored, while Justus Annunen improved to a perfect 4-0 in his career against the Blackhawks with the 21-save performance.
Connor Bedard was dominant in the loss while scoring for the Blackhawks and Tyler Bertuzzi also found the back of the net. Spencer Knight finished with 22 saves for Chicago.
Flyers 3, Rangers 2 (OT)
Matvei Michkov scored twice, including the overtime winner, as Philadelphia battled back to edge host New York and extend the Rangers’ slump.
Michkov skated around J.T. Miller and snapped a shot five-hole past Igor Shesterkin at 2:10 of the extra frame for his 15th of the season. Trevor Zegras scored the other goal for the Flyers, who trailed 2-0 midway through the game.
Samuel Ersson made 23 saves as Philadelphia won for just the fourth time in its past 11 games (4-4-3). Sam Carrick and Alexis Lafreniere had the goals for the Rangers, who have dropped five straight (0-4-1) and are 2-11-2 since their Winter Classic victory over the Florida Panthers on Jan. 2.
Flames 4, Sharks 1
Nazem Kadri scored twice and goaltender Dustin Wolf continued his mastery against the team he grew up supporting as visiting Calgary beat San Jose. The Flames have won 50 consecutive games when scoring four or more goals.
Connor Zary and Mikael Backlund both netted one goal and one assist for the Flames, who posted a second consecutive victory. Wolf, who hails from nearby Gilroy, Calif., made 34 saves to win for the 10th time in 12 career clashes with the Sharks.
Tyler Toffoli opened the scoring for the Sharks, who have lost five straight (0-4-1). Yaroslav Askarov stopped 25 shots.
Blues 5, Kraken 1
Dylan Holloway came off the injured list to produce three goals and an assist, leading St. Louis past visiting Seattle.
Pius Suter had a goal and two assists for the Blues, who won for just the second time in 10 games (2-7-1). It was St. Louis’ first game after the three-week Olympic break. Jordan Kyrou also scored for St. Louis. Jonatan Berggren and Justin Faulk earned two assists and Joel Hofer made 23 saves.
Kaapo Kakko scored for the Kraken, who have lost their first two games coming out of the break. Philipp Grubauer made 27 saves.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Cody Bellinger homers twice, as Yankees eclipse Royals
Apr 18, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees center fielder Cody Bellinger (35) hits a two run home run against the Kansas City Royals during the third inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Cody Bellinger homered twice and collected five RBIs Saturday afternoon, and the New York Yankees easily recorded a 13-4 victory over the visiting Kansas City Royals on Saturday afternoon.
The Yankees notched their most lopsided win this season after their previous five victories were decided in the final at-bat.
Amed Rosario hit a two-run homer, and Ben Rice hit a solo shot during a five-run third off Kansas City left-hander Noah Cameron. (1-1).
Rosario started the scoring with his two-run blast to left after a three-base error by Kansas City center fielder Kyle Isbel.
J.C. Escarra hit a fly ball to the warning track in center field, and the ball was not caught when Isbel and right fielder Jac Caglianone converged. Isbel knocked the ball out of Caglianone’s glove and was charged with a three-base error.
After Rosario’s homer, Aaron Judge walked, then Bellinger sent a first-pitch slider into the second deck in right. Rice homered two batters later when he hit a fastball into the right field seats for his third straight game with a homer.
Bellinger homered again in the sixth off Mitch Spence for a 10-0 lead. It was Bellinger’s 20th career multi-homer game and his eighth game with at least five RBIs.
Bellinger also had an RBI single in between homers. Rosario added a run-scoring single in the sixth and Escarra contributed an RBI double in the fourth.
Escarra also drove in two with his first career triple in the seventh as the Yankees collected 11 hits. Randal Grichuk added a sacrifice fly in the eighth for his first RBI with New York.
New York’s Will Warren (2-0) allowed two runs on five hits in seven innings. The right-hander matched a career-high with 11 strikeouts and walked none.
The Royals dropped their sixth straight. Kansas City was blanked until Carter Jensen hit a two-run homer in the seventh and got a two-run double from Michael Massey in the ninth.
Cameron was shelled for a career-worst seven runs (five earned) on seven hits in four innings.
Kansas City manager Matt Quatraro was tossed by second base umpire Nestor Ceja before Cameron threw a pitch after the Royals batted in the first.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Blazers face Victor Wembanyama, Spurs to open playoffs
Apr 8, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Portland Trail Blazers forward Deni Avdija (8) drives to the basket against San Antonio Spurs forward Carter Bryant (11) during the second half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images The Portland Trail Blazers will get their first look of the season at erstwhile league MVP candidate Victor Wembanyama when they travel to San Antonio to play the Spurs on Sunday in their opening game of the first round playoff series.
The Trail Blazers (42-40) clinched the seventh seed and a meeting with the second-seeded Spurs with a 114-110 road win over Phoenix on Tuesday in the West’s 7 vs. 8 matchup in the play-in tournament. That victory allowed Portland to earn its first trip to the playoffs since 2021.
San Antonio has won two of the three games with the Trail Blazers this year — most recently a 112-101 decision at home on April 8 — but Wembanyama missed all three contests with injuries. That doesn’t bode well for Portland’s chances to upset the Spurs, who lost just four times in their 34 games since March 1.
“He will play in the fourth game,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said about Wembanyama. “That feels good.”
Wembanyama’s numbers this season — 1,600 points, 736 rebounds, 199 assists, 197 blocked shots, 122 3-pointers –are a combination never before produced in the NBA. Portland acting head coach Tiago Splitter said his team will employ a combined effort to try to slow the Spurs’ star center.
“Of course Wembanyama is a big emphasis for us both offensively and defensively,” Splitter explained. “He’s a 7-foot-5 guy that can handle the ball, shoot, guard the rim, guard the perimeter and brings something different that other teams don’t have.
“Every game is a team effort,” Splitter added. “Stay connected on offense. Share the ball, play together. It’s a big team effort on both ends of the court.”
Deni Avdija led the way for Portland in Tuesday’s win, scoring 41 points that included his three-point play with 16.1 seconds remaining that capped the Blazers’ comeback from an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit.
San Antonio had the second-best record in the NBA this season at 62-20, trailing only defending champion Oklahoma City. The Spurs are on the hunt for their sixth NBA title in franchise history and are one of the favorites to lift the Larry O’Brien Trophy in June.
But this is lofty company for San Antonio, which hasn’t earned a spot in the playoffs since 2019. The Spurs are just the fourth team in league history to win 60 games in a season a year after they won less than 35.
“I can’t really help but dream about it, of course,” Wembanyama said about the team’s quest for a championship. “But we have to stay grounded, stay in the moment. And before even thinking about Game 1, I have to think about showing up the right way. Practice, doing all my stuff, preparing, being locked in on the scouts.”
San Antonio is far from a one-man team. The Spurs had seven players average in double-figure scoring, with Wembanyama leading the way at 25 points per game in 65 contests. De’Aaron Fox was second at 18.6 points, and Stephon Castle (who had five triple doubles) racking up 16.7 points.
“We know where we are,” Johnson said this week. “We will be ourselves. We’ll be excited to play. If that means we come out in the first three minutes and there’s some nerves, I think that’s excitement. But I think we’ll get back to being ourselves. That’s what I expect.
“As soon as we can get back to making it the basketball game we’ve been playing all year, we’ll be in a good spot.”
Game 2 will be Tuesday night in the Alamo City before switching to Portland for Games 3 and 4 on Friday and April 26, respectively.
–Field Level Media
Sports
CF Montreal wins first game under Philippe Eullaffroy, beat Red Bulls
Apr 18, 2026; Montreal, Province of Quebec, CAN; CF Montreal forward Prince Owusu (9) celebrates with teammate midfielder Victor Loturi (22) after scoring a goal against the Red Bull New York during the first half at Saputo Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images Prince Owusu recorded a goal and three assists as CF Montreal bested the visiting New York Red Bulls 4-1 in the home side’s first match under interim head coach Philippe Eullaffroy.
Owusu scored his fifth goal of the season, as Montreal (2-6-0, 6 points) claimed their 100th win all-time at Stade Saputo.
Montreal strode past the visitors’ backline with relative ease in the early going. Red Bulls (3-3-2, 11 points) captain Emil Forsberg failed to control a hurried pass from his goalkeeper, allowing Owusu to play in Victor Loturi, who blasted it past Ethan Horvath in the fifth minute to make it 1-0.
Owusu nearly extended their lead soon after when Ivan Jaime played him through on a one-on-one. The towering center forward opted to hold the ball up before sending it wide of goal.
Owusu made no mistake on his 39th-minute penalty, catching out Horvath with a sly stutter step and slotting it into the left corner to make it 2-0. The penalty came as a result of Dylan Nealis’s handball.
Montreal’s Matty Longstaff knocked balls into both nets at the start of the second half. Longstaff met Owusu’s perfectly threaded through ball to make it 3-0 in the 49th minute. The English midfielder then overhit an attempted backpass to goalkeeper Thomas Gillier four minutes later and inadvertently brought the Red Bulls back within two.
More than the flurry of goals, the single biggest change in Montreal’s approach was in their defensive setup. Eullaffroy’s zonal marking stood in stark contrast to Marco Donadel’s aggressive man-marking, the Red Bulls managing just one shot on goal all game long. Eullaffroy also started Samuel Piette in the midfield after the Montreal captain remained on the bench in their last two outings.
Owusu chipped the ball over Matthew Dos Santos and into the path of Kwadwo Opoku, who guided it into the open net to restore Montreal’s three-goal lead.
The victory marked Montreal’s first at home since August of last year. Both of Montreal’s wins this season have come against the Red Bulls. New York, meanwhile, has won just one of its last six league matches.
–Field Level Media
Cody Bellinger homers twice, as Yankees eclipse Royals
NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for April 19, 2026
