Sports
Sputtering Flames seek better outcome against lowly Sharks
Feb 4, 2025; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames left wing Blake Coleman (20) controls the puck against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the third period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images The Calgary Flames are desperate for a bounce-back performance when they return from the 4 Nations Face-Off break to host the struggling San Jose Sharks on Sunday.
The Flames, who have defied the prognosticators by remaining in the playoff mix through two-thirds of the campaign, sputtered into the break winless in three games and having managed only two victories in eight outings (2-5-1).
The swoon was extended when they surrendered a two-goal lead in the final seven minutes of regulation en route to a 3-2 overtime loss to the visiting Seattle Kraken on Feb. 8.
Calgary, which had fallen to three points out of a playoff spot before the league resumed on Saturday, is facing a make-or-break point of the season to keep any playoff hopes alive, but coach Ryan Huska wants to keep his charges from looking too closely at the big picture.
“The only message we have is for Sunday night,” Huska said. “We have a big game coming up after a long layoff, we’ve lost a few in a row at home, and we want to make sure we’re playing our best game of the year.”
The Flames will receive a much-needed boost with defenseman Kevin Bahl, who has missed eight games, and forward Connor Zary, who has been sidelined 15 games, both expected to return.
“Both the guys that were out missing for that period of time, it was a noticeable hole in our lineup,” forward Blake Coleman said. “I played with Connor a lot early in the year and felt that there was a lot of chemistry and we created a lot of offense.”
As badly as the Flames struggled heading into the break, the Sharks went through an even worse run. San Jose, which sits last in the league standings, is winless in four games and managed only one victory in 11 outings (1-9-1), with the most recent loss an 8-3 beating at the hands of the Dallas Stars on Feb. 8.
Although it is no surprise the Sharks are one of the league’s weakest squads, the organization expects to see a strong finish to the campaign.
“We’ve got 25 games to really push and be competitive,” coach Ryan Warsofsky told the San Jose Mercury News. “I thought there was, in the last couple years, (a feeling of) you just try to get through the games and get to the end of the season. We’re going to try and compete.”
As the Sharks embark on a seven-game road trip, they should have a couple of key players back from injury in forwards Alexander Wennberg and Nico Sturm.
However, as they head to a sixth consecutive season without playoffs, changes are coming before the league’s March 7 trade deadline. San Jose already dealt a pair of veterans in defenseman Cody Ceci and forward Mikael Granlund, who was leading the team with 45 points, for draft picks.
Pending unrestricted free agents Sturm and fellow forward Luke Kunin are trade candidates, as are defenseman Jan Rutta and both goaltenders, Vitek Vanecek and Alexandar Georgiev.
Despite the looming moves, the Sharks expect their youth-laden lineup to learn the commitment necessary to win.
“We’re not here to mess around,” said veteran center Tyler Toffoli. “We’ve been saying that all year. We’ve just got to get our game consistent and it starts with practice.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
WNBA All-Star Game tickets soar to $340
May 9, 2026; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (22) passes the ball while Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers (5) defends in the first half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images Ticket prices for the WNBA All-Star Game continue to rise leading up to the tipoff on Saturday night in Chicago.
The get-in price at United Center escalated from $74 on June 19 to $118 on July 19 to $233 by Friday, according to ticket-tracking service TicketData.com. At 12:20 p.m. ET on Saturday, the price stood at $343.
The game is sold out, TicketData.com reported.
Chicago last hosted the WNBA All-Star Game in 2022 at Wintrust Arena, the 10,387-seat home of the Sky.
Per Front Office Sports, last year’s WNBA All-Star Game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis had a gameday get-in price of $71. And that was in a smaller venue than the United Center.
Gainbridge Fieldhouse fits about 17,200 fans. The United Center, home of the NBA’s Bulls and NHL’s Blackhawks, can seat more than 20,000 people.
The All-Star teams will be headlined by Paige Bueckers of the Dallas Wings and Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever, the leading vote-getters.
Bueckers’ team features three former UConn players — Bueckers, Breanna Stewart of the New York Liberty and Gabby Williams of the Golden State Valkyries — in the starting lineup, along with Kelsey Mitchell of the Fever and Natasha Howard of the Minnesota Lynx.
Joining Clark in the starting lineup are her teammate, Aliyah Boston, rookie Olivia Miles of the Lynx, Jessica Sheapard of the Wings and Las Vegas Aces superstar A’ja Wilson.
A four-time WNBA MVP, Wilson is leading the WNBA in scoring (25.5 points) and blocks (2.0) per game.
ABC will televise the game, which has an 8:30 p.m. ET tipoff.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Richard Carapaz, Tadej Pogacar stand tall at Stage 20 of Tour de France
Richard Carapaz of Ecuador is in action during Stage 20 of the Tour de France on Saturday. The race ends Sunday. Richard Carapaz of Ecuador won the stage and Tadej Pogacar of Slovenia all but wrapped up his fifth general classification title in seven years during a wild penultimate day at the Tour de France on Saturday.
The 33-year-old Carapaz capped a monumental week with his second victory in three stages, and third of his career, while also taking over the polka-dot jersey for top climber of the three-week stage race. He also finished third in Friday’s Stage 19.
Stage 20 unfolded in dramatic fashion as Sepp Kuss of the United States held a comfortable lead with just over 7 kilometers remaining in the 170.9-kilometer stage as it approached the finish at the resort town of Alpe d’Huez.
Kuss then crashed against a curb on the right side of the road while exiting a tunnel but got back on his bike and continued with the lead. Misfortune struck again when Kuss crashed against a left-side curb with 5.8 kilometers remaining.
Carapaz passed Kuss after his second solo crash and went on to the stage victory for the U.S.-based EF Education-EasyPost team. Remco Evenepoel of Belgium passed Kuss near the finish line to take second place, while Kuss made his way to the podium with a disappointing third-place finish.
Kuss was trying for his second career stage and stands as the last American man to win a Tour de France Stage when he reached the finish line first in 2021.
Race leader Pogacar finished fourth in the stage, while his UAE Team Emirates teammate Isaac del Toro of Mexico was fifth. The finish kept del Toro in the white jersey given to the top rider under 26 years old.
All that remains is Sunday’s mostly ceremonial final Stage 21. Barring major disaster, Pogacar will wrap up his third consecutive Tour de France title as he takes a 6-minute, 26-second lead over Evenepoel into the final day.
In third place overall is del Toro, who is 9:42 off his teammate’s pace. Paul Seixas, the 19-year-old sensation from France, is fourth overall and nearly two minutes behind del Toro for the white jersey. Seixas finished 10th in Stage 20.
The final stage into Paris on Sunday was cut from 133 kilometers to 89 kilometers because of nearby wildfires, with fans now treated to two extra circuits along the Champs-Elysees before a climbing finish on the nearby Montmartre loop.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Tour de France final stage rerouted due to wildfires
A firefighter works to battle wildfire near the A9 motorway near Beziers, France, July 3, 2026. Wildfires in southwest France have forced organizers of the Tour de France to reconfigure the final stage, set for Sunday.
The change is necessary because multiple first responders have been diverted to the fires. The new route will leave a smaller race footprint for local officials to secure.
“As numerous wildfires are currently affecting France, particularly the Gironde region, emergency services are fully mobilized to combat the blazes, while internal security forces are working to secure the affected areas and protect the population,” the Amaury Sport Organisation said in a statement.
“In light of this, the Ministry of Interior has decided to redeploy a portion of the internal security forces initially mobilized to ensure security for the final stage of the Tour de France, in order to reinforce the response efforts in the areas affected by the wildfires.”
The wildfires have led to the evacuations of about 200,000 people.
Stage 21 had been set as a 132.5-kilometer ride from Thoiry down the Champs-Elysees in Paris.
The re-imagined Stage 21 still will end along the famed road, just after a circuit on the Montmartre. But the run now will occur solely within the Paris boundaries and travel just 89 km. Cyclists will take two extra circuits along the Champs-Elysees before heading out for the Montmartre climb.
The Montmartre circuit has proven to be popular after it was used in the 2024 Paris Olympics and then added to the 2025 Tour de France. The area can accommodate large gatherings of fans, who turn the area into a party atmosphere.
Earlier in the Tour de France, fans were asked to stay away from the final 40 kilometers of Stage 3 because of wildfires and the need to deploy first responders to the area.
–Field Level Media
WNBA All-Star Game tickets soar to $340
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