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Adrian Kempe's Two-Goal Night Lifts Kings Past Lightning

Tonight's game against the Tampa Bay Lightning (18-13-3), Los Angeles (15-10-9) leaned on its defense, physical play, strong goaltending from Anton Forsberg, and Adrian Kempe's pair of goals to snap the Kings' four-game losing streak. 

Tampa Bay struck first on their only power play on the night after a cross-checking penalty called on Kempe, giving Tampa the early 1-0 lead in the first period. But, Kempe made up for his early play by scoring two second-period goals, which proved to be the difference tonight in Tampa, shutting down the Lightning's top 10 offense, despite the Kings being outshot 32-20. 

Lightning Strike First 

The opening period was fast, physical, and chaotic, with both teams trading hits and giveaways, especially the Kings, who ended the night with 20 giveaways. Tampa Bay scored its only goal of the game midway through the first period after the Kings were called for a penalty. 

Oliver Bjorkstrand was able to convert for the Lightning in the power play, finding his own rebound in front and slipping the puck through the net. Despite the goal from Tampa Bay, Forsberg did a terrific job anchoring the defense, saving 31 shots and giving up just one goal. 

The Lightning also had a chance to extend their lead 2-0 to end the first period, but the goal was shut down by Forsberg after Dominic James came very close to expanding Tampa's lead. 

Kempe Takes Over In the Second

Los Angeles flipped the script to begin the second period with Kempe leading the charge. 

The Kings tied the game five minutes into the period with Kempe scoring on the rush, beating Andrei Vasilevskiy from the high slot through traffic with Tampa Bay unable to close the shooting lane. 

Off the goal from Kempe, Anze Kopitar assisted it, marking his 200th career point in the month of December, only the second skater to record 200 or more career points in multiple calendar months, joining Marcel Dionne. 

Over 10 minutes later, Kempe delivered the decisive moment. A turnover by Pontus Holmberg helped Kempe break through the ice on a clean breakaway. The Kings winger surged past Tampa Bay's defenders, stayed patient, and snapped the shot past Vasilevskiy to give Los Angeles a 2-1 lead. 

Kings Clamp Down Late

The third period belonged to Forsberg and the defense he played on the Lightning. Tampa Bay wasn't giving up at all, pushing hard and putting pressure on Forsberg, but he stood tall and stopped every shot that came at him. 

It was a crucial game for Los Angeles because of everything they've gone through during their four-game losing streak, including players getting frustrated, coaching problems, and ongoing discussions about roster changes. 

But the Kings can play like this on any given night, so it's not a surprise; it's just a question of whether Los Angeles can stay consistent, rather than be a roller coaster ride as they've been throughout this season. 

The Kings will head home for a three-game home stand, starting on Saturday against the Columbus Blue Jackets (14-14-6) at 10 p.m. EST. It'll be a good test for the Kings to see if they can start playing well at home, as they're 4-6-4 at the Crypto.com Arena this season. 

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Coming off historic win, Nets fall to Heat 106-95

NEW YORK (AP) — Norman Powell scored 24 points, Kel’el Ware had 22 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks, and the Miami Heat snapped a five-game losing streak with a 106-95 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday night.

Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 19 points and Bam Adebayo had 17 rebounds despite battling foul trouble as the Heat won for just the second time in December. They came into the month with 13 wins, tied for their most ever before December, but had gone 1-5 since.

Michael Porter Jr. scored 28 points for the Nets, who went cold after equaling the most lopsided victory in franchise history in their last game. Nic Claxton added 16 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists.

Brooklyn beat Milwaukee 127-82 on Sunday but shot under 39 percent from the field in this one and was just 11 for 49 (22 percent) from three-point range.

Still, Miami's lead was just 86-82 with under five minutes remaining. Ware made a three-pointer and Jaquez followed with consecutive baskets to extend the Heat lead to 93-82 with 4:01 left.

The Nets missed 10 of their 13 three-point attempts in the fourth quarter.

Up next

Heat: Visit Boston on Friday.

Nets: Host Toronto on Sunday.

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Frank Nazar Ends Goal Drought But Blackhawks Lose To Canadiens 3-1

The Chicago Blackhawks were defeated by the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Thursday night. They were not beaten by a slim margin, either. The final score was 4-1, but the game wasn't even that close based on how each team played. 

Chicago was outshot 35-15. One of Montreal's goals was an empty netter, so Spencer Knight made 31 saves on 34 shots. He was excellent, but even he couldn't overcome the lackluster performance that the team put forth in front of him. 

This game was tied 1-1 after two, despite how badly they were outperformed. The third period got away from them on the scoreboard, and that's now four straight regulation losses for Chicago. 

After the game, Jeff Blashill was not quick to torch his team. He said that they had a chance to win after two but blamed the bad third period for the loss. In a vacuum, he is correct because of the scoreboard, but the team had not played well and was bailed out by the goalie through the first 40 minutes. 

There were three goals waved off in this one, so the score could have been even worse for the Blackhawks if the video replay coaches had a bad night. One was a Chicago goal canceled for goalie interference, and two for Montreal due to off-sides. 

Despite the bad loss, Knight isn't the only Blackhawks player who is going to walk away with something positive about their game. Frank Nazar scored Chicago's only goal, and it was a big one for him personally. 

This was Nazar's first goal in 21 games. It was on October 28th when Nazar last scored for the Blackhawks. When he skated to the Blackhawks bench after claiming the goal, he made the gesture of getting the monkey off his back. 

Now that Nazar has this goal drought behind him, especially without Connor Bedard for a little while longer, he is going to be relied on to step up. The Blackhawks are sliding, and someone must take control offensively. Nazar is the most likely to do that due to his skill. 

When asked about Nazar after the game, Blashill said that he continued to discuss the process with his young forward. He said that playing the right way would eventually lead to his offense coming back. He was right. 

Watch Every Chicago Goal

What’s Next For The Blackhawks?

Next for Chicago is the final game of this eastern Canadian road trip. They will finish off on Saturday afternoon against the Ottawa Senators. This matinee matchup will be at 2 PM CT. 

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Jalen Brunson's late three gives shorthanded Knicks unlikely 114-113 win over Pacers

The Knicks overcame a pair of 16-point deficits before Jalen Brunson's three-pointer with 4.4 seconds remaining stole a 114-113 win over the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night.

Brunson, who was 2-for-8 from the floor in the second half, including missing two attempts with the score tied and under two minutes to play, hit the bucket when it counted. He finished with 25 points on 10-for-23 shooting (3-for-8 from deep) with seven rebounds, seven assists, three steals, but with three turnovers and was a minus-16 in 34 minutes.

Tyler Kolek, who has been seeing his workload and production increase of late, kept the Knicks in the game with 18 points off the bench and several crucial stretches of solid play deputizing Brunson.

"I was garbage to start the game. And then my stint in the second half was garbage, as well," Brunson said in a postgame interview. "I want to thank the lord for Tyler Kolek, for playing the way he's playing  and saving me."

With Karl-Anthony Towns, Josh Hart, and Mitchell Robinson (joining Landry Shamet and Miles McBride) out with injury, the Knicks were short-handed and had Mohamed Diawara and Ariel Hukporti in the starting lineup. And the mishmash lineups did not gel for much of the game. Fortunately, Indiana is equally banged up, missing several key contributors, and suffered through stretches of horrible shooting, including going 8-for-26 from the floor in the second quarter and 8-for-24 from the fourth.

Here are the takeaways...

- The first quarter was anything but well-executed basketball for the Knicks, and that set the tone for what would be a sloppy game at times by both sides. Through the game's first six and a half minutes, New York had committed more turnovers (five) than made field goals (three on 13 attempts) and trailed by 15. Mike Brown called a timeout with his team down 28-12 and Indiana shooting 71.4 percent (10-for-14 from the floor). And, somehow, those numbers beguile what was a dreadful watch as the Knicks trailed by 11 after one.

Naturally, the Pacers started the second as poorly (3-for-13 from the floor) as the Knicks did the first, and New York (6-for-12 from the floor with several second-chance opportunities) trimmed the lead to three midway through the period. The Knicks got as close as one, but entered the half down 62-59.

The Knicks opened the third 3-for-10 from the floor with four turnovers and allowed Indiana to make it a 13-point lead after six minutes of play. After falling behind by 16, matching the largest deficit to that point, the Knicks cut it to 10, forcing a Rick Carlisle timeout with two to play in the quarter as the Pacers’ bench unit struggled whenever called upon, and the Knicks made it just a six-point game entering the fourth.

Under four minutes into the fourth, the Knicks had their first lead since the game’s opening 100 seconds, with a 10-2 run, and Indiana called for time with New York up 97-94. 

But Pascal Siakam, who started poorly, scored seven straight to put the Pacers back up two and give him 22 for the game, forcing a Brown timeout with seven to play. All together, the Pacers used a 15-5 spurt, including Aaron Nembhard connecting on a three to give him 29, to make it a seven-point deficit. After levelling the score with under two to play (thanks to some more poor Indiana shooting), Siakam knocked down from the line with 16.9 to play. Brunson’s bucket sealed it as Siakam fell over on the final inbound play, meaning the Pacers never got a shot at the win.

- Brunson, who played 12 minutes of the first quarter, had 10 points on 4-for-9 shooting (1-for-4 from deep) with three rebounds, two assists, two steals, and yet was a minus-11. The lone superstar in the game added eight points in the second, and the diminutive guard looked to be head and shoulders better than any other player on the floor. He proved that when it mattered most, despite not having his best night

- Kolek knocked down his first three of the night to start the second and put together several nice passages of play to finish with nine points (4-for-6 shooting) with four assists, two rebounds in the first half, and was a plus-4 in 13 minutes. Kolek was at the heart of all the action to start the fourth four points, an assist, a block, and a charge drawn, giving him 16 for the game and nine assists.

- Mikal Bridges had a quiet start, but started getting more aggressive in the third, hitting three from behind the arc in the third to give him 18 to that point on 7-for-16 shooting. He finished with 22 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and was a plus-9 in 37 minutes.

- OG Anunoby picked up two quick fouls and hit the bench under three minutes into the game. He struggled from the floor (1-for-5, 0-for-2 from deep) in the first half, with four points and three rebounds, but was a plus-6 in 14 minutes. Anunoby, who had a dreadful shooting night through three quarters, connected on a pair of threes when the Knicks needed it to tie the game with 1:51 to play. He finished with 16 points on 5-for-13 shooting with six rebounds, two steals, an assist, and was a plus-11 in 34 minutes.

- Jordan Clarkson picked up where he left off, knocking down his first three attempts to give him nine first-quarter points, with two threes. He poured in 18 points on 6-for-12 shooting (5-for-9 from deep) with three rebounds and was a plus-7 in 29 minutes.

- Diawara made a hustle play to open the scoring, corralling a steal and driving to the basket for a lay-up. But he looked less than convincing with the ball in his hands, committing two turnovers in the first. He finished with five points (2-for-5) with three rebounds and was a minus-6 in 19 minutes.

- Hukporti finished with four points (1-for-3) with five rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and a steal in 27 minutes.

- Guerschon Yabusele and Trey Jemison were the first two off the bench for Brown in the first quarter’s early minutes. Both had two turnovers and just three points (from Yabusele) in the quarter.

Yabusele’s struggles continued as he went 1-for-5 from the floor (1-for-4 from deep) for three points, with three rebounds and was a minus-17 in 11 minutes. Jemison finished with five points and five rebounds in 18 minutes.

- As a team, the Knicks shot 46.7 percent (43-for-92) from the floor and 39.5 percent (17-for-43) from deep, and held the Pacers to 46.2 percent overall and a poor 32.4 percent (11-for-34) from deep.

Game MVP: Tyler Kolek

Yes, Brunson made the big shot, but the guard off the bench is the reason this game stayed within reach. He finished with 16 points and was a plus-13 in his 26 minutes.

Highlights

What's next

The Knicks are back in action Friday night, hosting the Philadelphia 76ers for a 7 p.m. tip at Madison Square Garden.

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NHL Trade Rumors: Should Sabres Target Skilled Flyers Forward?

With the Buffalo Sabres struggling again this season, they should be open to the idea of shaking up their roster. When looking at their current group, it is fair to argue that they could use another skilled forward. 

Yet, with the Sabres being at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings right now, they should not be looking to bring in rentals. Instead, their targets should be players who have multiple years left on their deals and can make a long-term impact for them. 

When looking at trade candidates with term, one player who stands out as a potential fit for the Sabres is Philadelphia Flyers forward Owen Tippett. 

Tippett would be far more than just a rental for the Sabres if acquires, as he has a $6.2 million cap hit until the end of the 2031-32. With this, he would have the potential to be a big part of the Sabres' roster for a long time if acquired.

If the Sabres landed Tippett from the Flyers, they would be getting a 26-year-old forward who would slot nicely in their top nine and on their power play. The 2017 first-round pick has appeared in 32 games so far this season with the Flyers, where he has recorded nine goals, 11 assists, and 20 points. He also scored at least 20 goals in each of his previous three seasons, including a career-high 28 goals in 2023-24. 

With all of this, Tippett could be a very interesting player for the Sabres to add if the Flyers make him available near the trade deadline. 

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Mets re-sign RHP Kevin Herget to minor league deal: report

The Mets are reuniting with a depth arm from last season.

According to The Athletic's Will Sammon, Herget and the Mets agreed on a minor league deal with an invite to spring training.

Herget, 34, made six appearances for the Mets this season, allowing five runs (four earned) across 12 innings pitched. The New Jersey native started the 2025 season with the Braves, but Atlanta DFA'd him in July before the Mets picked him up.

In his four-year major league career, Herget has only appeared in 31 games, pitching to a 4.20 ERA (55.2 IP) and a 1.20 WHIP.

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Ex-Flyers Coach John Tortorella Shuts Down Talk of NHL Return… For Now

Former Philadelphia Flyers head coach John Tortorella isn't close to throwing in the towel on his coaching career, but the veteran bench boss was well prepared to say any talk of an NHL return right now is premature.

Tortorella, 67, is without a job at the start of a season for the first time since the 2021-22 season, when he was between jobs after spending six seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

With the Blue Jackets, of course, Tortorella worked closely with GM Jarmo Kekalainen, who just took over the Buffalo Sabres in the wake of Kevyn Adams's firing.

Longtime NHL head coach Lindy Ruff is back with the Sabres for his second stint, but there are no guarantees that arrangement remains in place with the Sabres sitting last in the Eastern Conference with a 14-14-2 record and just 32 points while playing the Flyers at the time of this writing.

As such, Tortorella, now an analyst with ESPN for the time being, was asked by reporter Emily Kaplan if he had gotten any calls from his old friend Kekalainen, which he vehemently denied in classic Tortorella fashion.

Ex-Flyers Coach John Tortorella Recounts Golden Matvei Michkov StoryEx-Flyers Coach John Tortorella Recounts Golden Matvei Michkov StoryTortorella dished on Michkov's surprising but enthusiastic penalty box strategy, which goes to show how well the two understood each other while they were together on the Flyers.

"No, I have not, Emily," Tortorella was quoted as saying to Kaplan by Mike Harrington of Buffalo News. "Don't even start."

Tortorella is live in-studio covering the Flyers-Sabres game on Thursday night and offered commentary, in his own way, on some things the Sabres players are doing, what they aren't doing, and how they can respond to their GM's dismissal.

One thing is for sure, though: the connection to Kekalainen and the success those two men had in Columbus with talents like Artemi Panarin, Sergei Bobrovsky, Zach Werenski, and even Seth Jones, is an obvious link.

Plus, Tortorella kicked off his NHL coaching career with the Sabres, serving as an assistant coach for the franchise from 1989-90 to 1994-95 before taking over as the head coach of the AHL Rochester Americans for two seasons.

Matvei Michkov Says He Was 'Very Upset' When Flyers Fired John TortorellaMatvei Michkov Says He Was 'Very Upset' When Flyers Fired John TortorellaThe relationship between star <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers">Philadelphia Flyers</a> rookie Matvei Michkov and fired head coach John Tortorella was much better than many have made it out to be.

Tortorella, of course, has been out of work since being fired by the Flyers on March 27, though he is on the United States' staff for the 2026 Winter Olympics - a team that could feature Flyers star Trevor Zegras.

A return to an NHL bench doesn't appear to be imminent just yet, but don't be surprised to see Tortorella back coaching at some point this season.

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Flames Roster Update: Kirkland, Hunt, Bean

Calgary, AB — The Calgary Flames announced a series of roster moves on Thursday, including a reassignment, a recall, and a medical update.

Forward Dryden Hunt has been placed on waivers  and will be assigned to the AHL’s Calgary Wranglers, pending clearance. Hunt appeared in two games with the Flames this season. At the AHL level, he has been productive, recording five goals and 18 points in 16 games with the Wranglers.

© John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

The Flames have also recalled forward Justin Kirkland from the Wranglers. Kirkland has suited up for nine NHL games this season, registering one assist. With the Wranglers, he has tallied five goals and two assists in 14 contests.

Additionally, the club announced that defenceman Jake Bean will undergo surgery and will be out indefinitely. The 27-year-old has appeared in 16 games with the Flames this season, posting one goal and two points during the 2025–26 campaign.

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Premier League: 10 things to look out for this weekend

Ngumoha could step up for Liverpool, injury-hit Newcastle need to bounce back and Parker feels the heat

Chelsea are fourth in the Premier League and Newcastle 12th but the gap between them is only six points. It dictates that, given Eddie Howe’s ambitions of qualifying for the Champions League via the league, this is a pivotal fixture. How Newcastle’s manager must hope Enzo Maresca’s recent cryptic hints about potential discord behind the scenes at Stamford Bridge somehow help to undo the visitors on Tyneside, cutting the aforementioned gap in half. If off-pitch harmony endures at St James’ Park, Newcastle’s Saudi Arabian ownership will, nonetheless, be keen to see Howe and his players make further amends for last Sunday’s ignominious defeat at Sunderland. Falling nine points behind Chelsea may not be well received in Riyadh. Howe might have been tempted to start with a back five but with Tino Livramento the latest victim of a defensive injury crisis, he only possesses sufficient fit personnel to staff a four-man rearguard. Assuming Howe sticks with his preferred 4-3-3 it will be intriguing to see whether he drops a winger and fields Yoane Wissa to Nick Woltemade’s left in attack. Or does he opt for a potentially more fluid 4-2-3-1 with Woltemade as the No 10 and Wissa at No 9? Louise Taylor

Newcastle v Chelsea, Saturday 12.30pm (all times GMT)

Bournemouth v Burnley, Saturday 3pm

Brighton v Sunderland, Saturday 3pm

Manchester City v West Ham, Saturday 3pm

Wolves v Brentford, Saturday 3pm

Continue reading...
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Preview: Senators Host Sidney Crosby, Erik Karlsson, And The Pittsburgh Penguins Thursday

Pittsburgh Penguins (14-9-9) at Ottawa Senators (15-13-4)

7 pm at Canadian Tire Centre
TV: RDS2, TSN5
Radio: TSN 1200 AM, TSN1200.ca

After a 2-1-0 road trip and a couple of days off, the Ottawa Senators get back to work on Thursday night with a home game against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Despite being in different divisions, the two clubs have had a pretty good rivalry over the years. No team has faced the Senators in the playoffs more often than the Penguins, who own a 1-4 record in those series.

After a decade under head coach Mike Sullivan, there's a new sheriff in Steeltown. Sullivan and the Penguins agreed to part company after missing the playoffs last season for a third straight year. So he signed on to replace Peter Laviolette as head coach of the New York Rangers, while the Penguins hired Rangers assistant coach Dan Muse to replace Sullivan.

Muse isn't exactly one of those recycled coaching stories. The 43-year-old is a longtime assistant at different levels but has never been a head coach in the pros until now. So far, he has the Penguins in a playoff position (based on points percentage), and they're also one of the best road teams in the league (8-3-4).

Despite Linus Ullmark leaving practice early on Wednesday, head coach Travis Green said on Thursday that he will start in goal. Arturs Silovs will go for the Penguins.

Thomas Chabot, who has missed 11 games because of an upper-body injury, finally got in a full practice on Wednesday but he's not ready to return just yet. Shane Pinto skated on Wednesday. He's been out for the past two weeks since taking an awkward hit from New York Rangers centre Mika Zibanejad. There's no official word when he'll return.

Evgeni Malkin is the big injury for the Penguins (upper body). At 39, Malkin is still rolling with 29 points in 26 games, but won't play on Thursday.

Erik Karlsson returns to the city where he broke into the NHL. He's off to a flying start with 25 points in 32 games, good for 10th among NHL defenseman, one point behind Ottawa's Jake Sanderson. Tim Stutzle has 33 points for the Sens, including nine in his past four games.

Senators projected lineup

Brady Tkachuk - Tim Stutzle - Fabian Zetterlund
David Perron - Dylan Cozens - Drake Batherson
Michael Amadio - Ridly Greig - Claude Giroux
Kurtis MacDermid - Stephen Halliday - Nick Cousins

Jake Sanderson - Artem Zub
Tyler Kleven - Jordan Spence
Nikolas Matinpalo - Nick Jensen

Linus Ullmark
Leevi Merilainen

Scratched: Dennis Gilbert, Olle Lycksell
Injured: Thomas Chabot (upper body), Shane Pinto (lower body), Lars Eller (broken foot)

Penguins projected lineup

Rickard Rakell - Sidney Crosby - Bryan Rust
Anthony Mantha - Tommy Novak - Justin Brazeau
Kevin Hayes - Ben Kindel - Rutger McGroarty
Danton Heinen - Connor Dewar - Noel Acciari

Parker Wotherspoon - Erik Karlsson
Ryan Shea - Kris Letang
Brett Kulak - Jack St. Ivany

Arturs Silovs
Stuart Skinner

Injured: Evgeni Malkin (upper body), Caleb Jones (lower body), Filip Hallander (blood clot), Blake Lizotte (undisclosed)

By Steve Warne
The Hockey News - Ottawa