Sports
Slumping Oilers look to get back on track vs. short-handed Panthers
Feb 4, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Edmonton Oilers center Leon Draisaitl (29) is congratulated by defenseman Evan Bouchard (2) and left wing Zach Hyman (18) after scoring the game tying goal against the St. Louis Blues during the third period at Enterprise Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images Leon Draisaitl is dominating, but his Edmonton Oilers are slumping.
That, in essence, is the state of the Oilers, who are set to visit the Florida Panthers on Thursday night.
Draisaitl has scored 43 goals, leading the NHL by a wide margin. He also has at least one goal in six straight games.
Yet, the Oilers have lost four straight games.
“We’re a fragile group right now, and we’re reluctant to play our game,” Oilers coach Kris Knoblauch said. “Confidence is a little hard right now.
“I think everyone is a little discouraged. We have to put these adversity moments behind us.”
Knoblauch said the Oilers — with superstars Draisaitl and Connor McDavid on their side — view themselves as one of the best teams in the NHL, and they are feeling pressure to live up to that status.
With 72 points — one less than the Panthers — the Oilers are still, at the moment, a playoff team, but the losing streak is of obvious concern.
“We’re going to have to dig one out sooner or later,” Oilers defenseman Mattias Ekholm said. “We’re in a bit of a hole right now.”
Draisaitl is doing his part during a nine-game point streak. He also has at least one point in 17 of his past 18 games. During that span, he has 14 goals and 14 assists.
McDavid leads the Oilers with 51 assists and ranks behind only Draisaitl with 73 points in 52 games.
But goalie Stuart Skinner is struggling with six losses in his past eight starts.
Meanwhile, the Panthers — the reigning Stanley Cup champions — are coming off a 4-1 road win over the Nashville Predators on Tuesday. Florida won without two of its forwards as Matthew Tkachuk missed his second straight game with a lower-body injury suffered during the 4 Nations Face-Off. In addition, Eetu Luostarinen missed the game as he and his wife are expecting a child.
The Panthers, who have won three of their past four games, beat Nashville with backup goalie Spencer Knight in net.
“We’re not thinking about patterns, streaks, trends or whatever,” said Knight, who made 18 saves. “We’re just trying to bring the game that we want to play every night.
“That’s our focus. We want to bring good habits every day.”
The Panthers are likely to rely on starting goalie Sergei Bobrovsky against the Oilers. Bobrovsky is 23-13-2 with a .903 save percentage and 2.65 goals-against average.
Sam Reinhart leads the Panthers in goals (31) and points (63). Aleksander Barkov tops the team with 40 assists, including two on Tuesday.
Playing without Tkachuk is no doubt difficult for Florida. He is the team’s emotional leader, and he is productive with 22 goals and 35 assists. He also leads the team with 11 power-play goals.
However, other Panthers players are stepping up in his absence. Defenseman Gustav Forsling leads the team with a plus-30 plus-minus rating. Fellow defenseman Aaron Ekblad (plus-nine) has also been solid.
Then there’s Carter Verhaeghe, who had the key goal with 6:55 left in the third period as Florida earned a 6-5 road win over Edmonton on Dec. 16. That goal snapped a 5-5 tie in a game that Florida once trailed 4-2.
Skinner and Bobrovsky were the goalies in that game — the most recent Edmonton-Florida matchup.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Dodgers acquire RHP Seth Halvorsen from Rockies
May 29, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Seth Halvorsen (54) delivers a pitch in the sixth inning against the San Francisco Giants at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired right-handed reliever Seth Halvorsen in a trade with the Colorado Rockies on Monday.
The Rockies received a pair of minor leaguers in right-hander Nick Frasso and outfielder Landyn Vidourek.
Halvorsen, 26, is 0-1 with a 4.74 ERA in 21 relief appearances for the Rockies this season. In three major league seasons with Colorado, he is 3-4 with a 4.31 ERA in 75 relief appearances.
After just spending time on the injured list because of right shoulder inflammation, Halvorsen made a rehab appearance at Triple-A Albuquerque on Sunday and pitched a scoreless inning. Los Angeles is expected to send Halvorsen to Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Frasso, 27, was 1-0 with a 4.74 ERA in 21 appearances (one start) with Oklahoma City this season, while Vidourek, 22, was batting .170 with six home runs and 24 RBIs in 59 games at Single-A Ontario.
Also on Monday, the Dodgers optioned right-hander Kyle Hurt to Oklahoma City. Hurt was the additional 27th man on the roster for the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader against the New York Yankees and pitched two scoreless innings.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Royals star SS Bobby Witt Jr. (back tightness) exits vs. Giants
Jul 18, 2026; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (7) makes a diving stop during the third inning against the San Diego Padres at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images Royals All-Star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. left Kansas City’s game against the San Francisco Giants after four innings Monday due to low back tightness.
Witt, who has dealt with back issues of late, returned to the lineup Monday after he was given the day off Sunday against the San Diego Padres. He went 0-for-1 with a walk before exiting the contest.
Nick Loftin replaced Witt at shortstop.
An All-Star for each of the past three seasons, including the starting shortstop for the American League in last week’s Midsummer Classic, Witt is batting .279 in 94 games with 13 home runs, 39 RBIs and an AL-high 30 stolen bases. He has been durable since reaching the majors in 2022, playing at least 150 games in every season.
Meanwhile, San Francisco starting pitcher Trevor McDonald came out for the bottom of the fifth, but never threw a pitch in the inning as he exited with a trainer. His injury was not yet known. The right-hander allowed three runs on four hits, walked two and struck out three on 67 pitches.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Guardians go deep seven times as they club Twins
Jul 20, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians designated hitter Rhys Hoskins (8) celebrates his solo home run in the first inning against the Minnesota Twins at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images Rookie Petey Halpin hit his first two home runs and Rhys Hoskins had his 14th career multi-homer game as the Cleveland Guardians went deep a season-high seven times, rolling to a 13-4 victory over the visiting Minnesota Twins on Monday night.
Travis Bazzana and Brayan Rocchio also cleared the fence against Twins starter Joe Ryan (6-6), who allowed a franchise- and ballpark-record six homers in four innings — the most in the majors this season — in his first appearance since the All-Star Game.
Patrick Bailey belted Cleveland’s seventh homer off Woo-Suk Go in the seventh, tying the club’s mark for most ever at home. It was the second-most home runs for any team in a game this season.
Rookie Chase DeLauter had four hits and three RBIs, Bailey totaled four hits and drove in a pair, and Halpin had three hits and three RBIs.
The Guardians scored in each of the first seven innings, hitting six homers in the first four for the initial time since the franchise was founded in 1901. They moved within one-half game of the Chicago White Sox in the American League Central Division.
Tanner Bibee (4-9) won his second consecutive start, working six innings and giving up two runs on six hits. The right-hander struck out five and walked one to post his second victory in 12 home outings this season.
Minnesota lost its third straight, falling 2 1/2 games behind the Boston Red Sox for the final wild-card spot in the AL. The Twins got as close as 3-2 in the second on Brooks Lee’s RBI triple and a sacrifice fly by Alan Roden.
All-Star Byron Buxton went 2-for-3 in his return from the injured list with a right hip strain for Minnesota. Backup catcher Alex Jackson pitched a scoreless eighth.
Ryan, who entered the contest with a 1.72 ERA in six starts in Cleveland, gave up eight runs on a career-high 10 hits with three strikeouts and zero walks. Halpin had a two-run homer in the second for his first blast in 68 at-bats in the majors.
The Guardians’ three runs in the first came on Rocchio’s two-run homer and Hoskins’ solo shot, both after Kody Clemens failed to turn an inning-ending double play on a routine grounder.
Cleveland took its largest lead at 13-3 in the seventh on DeLauter’s two-run double off Go. Its 10 extra-base hits, 13 runs and 19 hits were season bests.
–Field Level Media
Dodgers acquire RHP Seth Halvorsen from Rockies
Royals star SS Bobby Witt Jr. (back tightness) exits vs. Giants
