Sports
Special teams may decide intense Wild-Stars series
Apr 22, 2026; Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA; Dallas Stars right wing Mikko Rantanen (96) celebrates his goal against the Minnesota Wild during the first period in game three of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Grand Casino Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images It’s come down to a best-of-three in the Western Conference first-round series between the No. 2 seed Dallas Stars and the No. 3 Minnesota Wild with Game 5 set for Tuesday night in Dallas.
The teams split Games 1 and 2 in Dallas and then alternated overtime wins in Games 3 and 4 in Minnesota to set up a pivotal Game 5.
“It’s home ice, best-of-three,” said Stars forward Mikko Rantanen, who had two assists in Game 4. “This group has been in this situation before, so we’re pretty familiar.”
Dallas was on the verge of coming home with a commanding 3-1 series lead, but Marcus Foligno tied Game 4 at 14:40 of the third period, then Matt Boldy won it on a deflection with 29 seconds remaining in overtime.
“There’s a lot of belief in here,” Foligno said after the win. “These are two unreal teams, and we’ve got to understand they’re a heck of a hockey club, and it’s going to take this type of effort every night against this squad. … We took a lot of positives out of (a 4-3 double overtime loss in Game 3), and we got rewarded tonight.”
After compiling a career-high 42 goals and 85 points in his fourth NHL season, Boldy has five points (three goals, two assists) in the series and got to the right place at the right time to tip Jared Spurgeon’s shot past Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger to end Game 4.
“He’s a tenacious competitor,” Wild coach John Hynes said after Game 4. “He just continues to do the right things. He continues to play, he continues to push. Plays through whatever the circumstances are and got a huge goal for us.”
Brock Faber had a goal and an assist and Jesper Wallstedt made 43 saves (including nine in overtime) for the Wild. He has a 2.06 goals-against-average in the series and a .929 save percentage. Faber has three goals in the series, becoming the first defenseman in franchise history to do so.
“We just keep fighting, keep getting pucks to the net,” Wallstedt said. “We keep playing, and we never give up.”
Minnesota forward Mats Zuccarello, who has missed the last three games with an upper-body injury sustained in Game 1, practiced with the team Monday.
Jason Robertson scored in his fourth straight game for the Stars and has goals in six consecutive contests against the Wild going back to the regular season. Miro Heiskanen also scored for Dallas and Oettinger made 40 saves.
Both Dallas goals came on its power play, which has scored eight goals in 19 chances during the series. The Wild are 3-for-19 with the man advantage and have just one goal in their past 15 opportunities.
However, Minnesota has registered 11 even-strength goals to just three for Dallas.
“It’s almost the blue paint wars,” Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said. “If you get there and find some pucks and win some battles . . . it’s really hand-to-hand combat in the blue paint for both sides.”
Stars defenseman Nils Lundkvist was ruled out of Game 5 on Monday after leaving Game 4 with a facial cut from the skate of Wild forward Michael McCarron in the second period.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Blue Jays' Max Scherzer placed on IR with forearm, ankle issues
Apr 24, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Max Scherzer (31) touches his head during the first inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images The Toronto Blue Jays placed veteran right-hander Max Scherzer on the 15-day injured list with left ankle inflammation and right forearm tendinitis on Monday.
The 41-year-old has been one strikeout shy of a milestone 3,500 for the past nine days but couldn’t hit that mark in losses to the Arizona Diamondbacks on April 18 and the Cleveland Guardians on Friday.
His outing against the Guardians garnered no strikeouts and drove his ERA to 9.64 after giving up seven earned runs on 82 pitches in 2 1/3 innings, though Scherzer said after the game, “I would not characterize this start as the fault of my forearm.”
Scherzer has reportedly been dealing with the forearm tendinitis since early April.
“The doctor said, ‘Hey, take five or seven days, let this all heal, and then ramp back up and you’ll see,” Scherzer said Monday. “‘Your body will tell you how fast you can ramp up.'”
It’s unclear who will fill in for Scherzer’s next scheduled start on Wednesday. Left-hander Eric Lauer had been expected to move to the bullpen when Trey Yesavage is activated for his season debut Tuesday against the visiting Boston Red Sox after starting the season on the IL with a right shoulder impingement. Lauer could be moved back to the starting rotation in light of Scherzer’s injuries.
Reliever Chase Lee was called up to fill the 26-man roster on Monday but another move will need to be made for Yesavage’s return.
Scherzer’s move to the IL is one in a long list for the Blue Jays this season, a group of more than a dozen players that also includes designated hitter George Springer (fractured left big toe); outfielders Addison Barger (sprained left ankle), Anthony Santander (torn labrum in left shoulder) and Nathan Lukes (hamstring strain); catcher Alejandro Kirk (fractured left thumb); starting pitchers Bowden Francis (elbow surgery), Jose Berrios (stress fracture in right elbow), Cody Ponce (torn ACL in right knee) and Shane Bieber (right elbow inflammation); and right-handed reliever Yimi Garcia (elbow).
The Blue Jays sit in fourth place in the AL East with a 12-15 record. They open a three-game home series Monday against the Red Sox.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Seven-time Olympic champion Allyson Felix chasing comeback at 40
USA’s Allyson Felix, center, takes the baton from teammate Talitha Diggs for the second leg of the women’s 4×400 meter relay on day nine of the World Athletics Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon Saturday July 23, 2022.
Eug 072322 Worlds 12
Allyson Felix, the most decorated Olympic track athlete with 11 medals and seven golds, wants a ticket to the Games in her hometown of Los Angeles in 2028 and has no intention to buy it.
Felix, 40, said Monday she is launching a comeback four years after retirement to prove she remains worthy of representing the United States in the Summer Olympics and wants to do it as a mother of two children.
“Let’s go after the thing. Let’s be vulnerable,” she told Time magazine. “You know, at this age, I should probably be staying home and taking care of my kids, doing all that. And just, why not? Let’s flip it on its head.”
Felix said training is scheduled to begin in earnest in October with her longtime track coach, Bobby Kersee, and the intention would be to compete for a spot on the U.S. track team beginning in 2027.
Felix would be 42 by the time the Los Angeles Olympics begin in 2028.
Her 11 Olympic track medals are more than any woman and the count includes six gold medals in relay events and the 2012 gold in the 200 meters in London.
“I totally get the person who sticks around too long and you’re like, ‘What are they doing?'” Felix told Time. “I know, at 40, I am not at my peak. I have no illusions about that. I’m very clear in what it is and what I want to see. And so I hope it’s seen that way.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: Phoenix, Vegas potential options if Whitecaps relocate
Mar 23, 2024; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; The Vancouver Whitecaps FC logo displayed before their match against Real Salt Lake at BC Place. Mandatory Credit: Simon Fearn-Imagn Images Las Vegas and Phoenix are the top contenders to become an MLS city if the Vancouver Whitecaps were to relocate, The Athletic reported on Monday.
MLS declined to comment on the report.
Per the report, a special committee of MLS owners met earlier this month to conduct talks on the future of the Whitecaps, which could include relocation. Indianapolis and Sacramento are also among the markets who have expressed interest in joining the league.
MLS has met with a group interested in bringing a club to Las Vegas, per the report, and a separate group of Las Vegas investors called Starr Vegas unveiled a $10 billion development plan on the Vegas Strip. That plan would include a 50,000-seat soccer stadium, though the group has reportedly not engaged with MLS as of yet.
With their lease at BC Place set to expire at the end of 2026, the Whitecaps are working to find a new stadium in Vancouver.
“Since December 2024, ownership has prioritized finding a buyer committed to keeping the team in Vancouver, and to date, no solution has been found,” the Whitecaps said in a club statement provided to The Athletic.
MLS owners would have to approve any relocation, which would include a purchase price and relocation fee. San Diego FC, which joined MLS last season, paid a $500 million expansion fee, and per the report, the overall package for a group entering the league would exceed that $500 million price tag.
With the city of Vancouver, the Whitecaps entered an exclusive negotiation period last December that extends through 2026 to explore a new stadium and entertainment district at Hastings Park. However, there have been no updates since the club signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the city.
The Whitecaps date back to 1974, when they played their inaugural season in the NASL, and remained in the league until it folded in 1984. The Whitecaps began playing in the Canadian Soccer League in 1986 and were also in the American Professional Soccer League, the United Soccer League and the USSF Division 2 Pro League until joining MLS in 2011.
Winners of the last four Canadian Championships and coming off their first-ever MLS Cup final appearance (a 3-1 loss to Inter Miami CF), Vancouver is off to a strong start in 2026, sitting three points back of the Supporters’ Shield through nine matches, and is 7-1-0 at BC Place.
–Field Level Media
Blue Jays' Max Scherzer placed on IR with forearm, ankle issues
Seven-time Olympic champion Allyson Felix chasing comeback at 40
