Sports
Sabres score 7 straight goals, force Game 7 vs. Canadiens
May 16, 2026; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; Buffalo Sabres center Konsta Helenius (94) celebrates with his teammates his goal against the Montreal Canadiens during the second period in game six of the second round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images Rasmus Dahlin tied a franchise postseason record with five points (one goal, four assists) and Tage Thompson posted one goal and three assists to pace the visiting Buffalo Sabres to a 8-3 comeback victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday, forcing a seventh game in their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Jack Quinn tallied twice in a three-point performance, Zach Benson and Jason Zucker both collected one goal and one assist, and Konsta Helenius and Zach Metsa added a goal apiece for the Sabres, who finished the game with seven unanswered goals.
“It’s unreal to win this game. Now we have a chance to advance,” Dahlin said postgame to Sportsnet. “The whole group stepped up and played an ‘A’ game. Every individual had their best game. That’s what we need.”
Goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen made 18 saves after starter Alex Lyon was pulled when he surrendered three goals on four shots.
It’s the first time since Game 3 of the 1975 Stanley Cup Finals that the Sabres won a playoff game after making a performance-based goalie change.
Game 7 will be Monday in Buffalo. The winner will face the Carolina Hurricanes in the conference final.
“That’s why I play hockey. That’s what I want to do. I live for this,” Dahlin said.
“There’s no panic or anything. I think we’re all excited. Just more hockey for us,” Montreal’s Lane Hutson countered. “We don’t like it easy. We like the challenge. They brought their best and we’ve got to answer the bell.”
Jake Evans collected one goal and one assist, while Arber Xhekaj and Ivan Demidov each tallied once for the Canadiens.
Goalie Jakub Dobes was tagged for six goals on 33 shots before being pulled. Jacob Fowler stopped one of two shots in relief.
With his team trailing 3-2, Benson tied the clash when he cashed in a loose puck 60 seconds into the second period.
Things got away quickly there from Montreal, which took its first loss in franchise history in a potential series-clinching home playoff game it led by multiple goals.
Quinn’s power-play marker at 10:54 of the frame, his first career playoff goal, put Buffalo ahead, and Helenius made it a 5-3 count by finishing a 2-on-1 rush at 12:59 of the period.
“We’re up a goal in the second period and in a good spot and lost control of the game there,” Montreal captain Nick Suzuki said. “We were pushing in the third and they get that power-play goal that put it out of reach.”
Quinn added his second of the game midway through the third period, Thompson netted an empty-net goal and Metsa notched his first career playoff goal with a late power-play marker — Buffalo’s fourth of the game — to round out the scoring.
“I feel like every game’s had a lot of chaos to it, so I think we’re getting used to it,” Quinn said to Sportsnet postgame. “We knew we played well in the first (period) in stretches and just had to stick with it.”
It was a wasted opportunity for the Canadiens after holding a 3-2 lead at the first intermission. Buffalo tallied first when Dahlin converted the first shot 32 seconds into the clash, but Montreal responded with a trio of goals.
Xhekaj tied the game 68 seconds later on his team’s first shot for his first of the playoffs, Demidov put Montreal ahead on the power play at 8:12 and Evans added a short-handed goal at 10:14 to make it a 3-1 lead.
But Zucker sparked the Sabres with a power-play goal of his own at 13:56 of the wild frame and swung the pendulum the other direction.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Sporting KC upset Austin FC with pair of late goals
May 16, 2026; Austin, Texas, USA; Sporting Kansas City forward Calvin Harris (11) moves after the ball during the first half against Austin FC at Q2 Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dustin Safranek-Imagn Images Substitutes Stephen Afrifa and Manu Garcia scored goals within three minutes of each other late in the game as visiting Sporting Kansas City rallied to stun Austin FC 2-1 on Saturday in a Western Conference match.
Sporting (3-8-2, 11 points) captured their second game in four days after snapping a seven-game winless streak on Wednesday with a 3-1 victory at home over the LA Galaxy. Kansas City earned points for the first time ever in a match in Austin against the Verde after losing on their first five trips to the capital of Texas.
Garcia, who entered in the 63rd minute, started the rally with a goal on a blistering shot from outside the box in the 79th minute. The goal came on the counterattack and after an assist by Assisted by Shapi Suleymanov.
That set the table for Afrifa. Austin failed to clear its zone after a missed shot by Calvin Harris and Afrifa pounced on the loose ball, uncorking a shot that went over the Verde defense, clanged off the crossbar and bounced down into the net for the deciding tally.
The Verde (3-6-5, 14 points) lost their second game in four days after forging a three-match unbeaten streak (2-0-1) that had included back-to-back shutout wins at home.
Seven players from Sporting were making their third start in an eight-day period. Still, Kansas City dominated the first 45 minutes of play, producing 12 shots, three of them on target and all saved by Austin goalkeeper Brad Stuver.
Harris tester Stuver with a weak shot to the lower right corner in the 12th minute that the keeper dove to stop. Capita Capemba’s chance in the 32nd minute was also easily swallowed up by Stuver, keeping the match scoreless.
All that changed on the half’s final shot, which came one minute into stoppage time. The Verde’s Desler waited unchecked at the far post for Guilherme Biro’s high, cross-box pass and made quick work of opportunity, calmly directing the ball into the open net past Kansas City goalkeeper Stefan Cleveland to give Austin a 1-0 lead.
After Afrifa’s go-ahead goal the Verde did not even manage to produce a shot on goal over the final eight minutes and four minutes of added time.
–Field Level Media
Sports
D.C. United score late to salvage home draw vs. St. Louis City
May 16, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; St. Louis City defender Mamadou Mbacke (4) pushes D.C. United defender Lucas Bartlett (3) down during the second half at Audi Field. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images Joao Peglow scored in the 90th minute as D.C. United salvaged a 1-1 draw with St. Louis City on Saturday in the second-ever meeting of the teams, the first in Washington.
Former D.C. player Chris Durkin scored in the 50th minute for depleted St. Louis (3-6-4, 13 points), which swapped out seven starters from its last match on Wednesday against Los Angeles FC.
In second-half stoppage time, Louis Munteanu scored what appeared to be the go-ahead goal for D.C. United, but Lucas Bartlett, who fed Munteanu with a header, was called for offside on the set-piece play after a video review.
Sean Johnson had two saves for D.C. United (4-5-5, 17 points), who have gone 2-1-4 in their last seven matches.
St. Louis was attempting to win its third straight MLS game in a span of eight days.
Roman Burki made four saves for St. Louis City, who were without starters Jaziel Orozco (hamstring) and top threat Marcel Hartel (illness), who has three goals and two assists.
St. Louis, however, was bolstered by the return of Durkin after he served a one-game suspension for sustaining a red card a week ago in a 1-0 win at the Colorado Rapids.
Durkin, who debuted 10 years ago at age 16 as a D.C. United homegrown, made 96 MLS appearances for D.C. between 2016-23 before joining St. Louis.
His goal came in the 50th minute and was set up with a wide transition run down the right side by Jeong Sang-bin, who passed to Durkin at the penalty arc.
Durkin ran onto the ball and blasted a right-footed shot into the left side of the net for his second goal of the season.
Peglow scored the equalizer off a corner-kick feed from Chris Stroud. Peglow’s right-footed rocket from beyond the box was placed just inside the left post for his first goal since July of last year.
Two minutes later, in stoppage time, St. Louis’ Conrad Wallem picked up his second yellow card and was ejected.
Burki’s best save came in the 79th minute when he dove to his right and slapped away a header from point-blank range by top D.C. scorer Tai Baribo.
The first half was full of free-flowing action but it led to few quality scoring opportunities. St. Louis City out-shot D.C. United 11-7 but put only one attempt on target compared to two for D.C.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Lottie Woad seizes 3-shot lead at Queen City Championship
Lottie Woad, of Farnham, England, prepares to putt during the first round of the LPGA Queen City Championship at Maketewah Country Club in Cincinnati on Thursday, May 14, 2026. England’s Lottie Woad fired a 5-under-par 65 on Saturday to secure a 3-shot lead over Amanda Doherty through three rounds of the Kroger Queen City Championship in Cincinnati.
Woad delivered four birdies on the back nine to move to 11-under 199 going into Sunday’s final round. The 22-year-old Woad and Ryann O’Toole tied for the best round of the day at Maketewah Country Club.
“Looking forward to being back in contention again,” said Woad, who hasn’t finished higher than a tie for seventh this season. “I think this year I’ve kind of been backdooring top 10s, top 15s. I haven’t really been challenging on Sunday, so looking forward to actually playing under the pressure a little bit.”
Woad began Saturday one shot behind Doherty. They both made the turn at 8 under for the tournament, but Woad posted birdies at Nos. 10, 11, 14 and 16 before notching a bogey at 17. Doherty managed just one birdie and one bogey on the back nine on a damp day meant for good scores.
“I didn’t hit it awesome,” Doherty said. “But I got it around all right.”
The 28-year-old Doherty has yet to finish better than tied for eighth in any LPGA event since joining the Tour in 2022, so she’s eager to be in the final pairing with Woad on Sunday.
“There is definitely excitement, definitely nerves,” Doherty said. “But that’s what comes with it. That’s why I’m out here, to play in the final group and feel that way.”
World No. 1 Nelly Korda will have to pull off a massive rally to win her third straight event. Korda shot 2 over on Saturday to drop to 2 under for the tournament, nine shots off the pace.
South Korea’s Haeran Ryu produced her second straight 66 to stay within four shots of the lead. New Zealand’s Lydia Ko (69) dropped five shots behind Woad, but holds sole possession of fourth place.
Five golfers are locked in at 5 under through 54 holes: Rose Zhang (66), Anne Chen (66), Lindy Duncan (67), Thailand’s Jeeno Thitikul (69) and Japan’s Rio Takeda (69).
If Woad holds on to her lead in this $2 million tournament, then she’ll collect the second LPGA Tour title of her nascent career. She claimed the ISPS Handa Women’s Scottish Open last July, less than two weeks after going pro.
–Field Level Media
Will Ferrell confronts his look-alike during his SNL monologue
Sporting KC upset Austin FC with pair of late goals
