College football’s Powers That Be want to keep the playoff exclusive to them, but is that what fans want?
NHL Rumor Roundup: How Will The Stars Replace Tyler Seguin? Plus Danualt Speculation
The Dallas Stars suffered a blow to their forward lines last week when Tyler Seguin suffered an ACL injury against the New York Rangers. On Saturday, they placed the 33-year-old forward on long-term injury reserve.
According to Lia Assimakopoulos of The Dallas Morning News, that move provides the cap-strapped Stars with some salary-cap relief, but not the full $9.85 million of his average annual value. Due to recent changes in LTIR rules, the benefit is limited to last season's average annual salary of $3.8 million.
That's because the Stars don't know yet how long Seguin will be sidelined. If he can return later in the regular season or during the playoffs, then they only get the $3.8 million in LTIR relief.
However, if it's determined that Seguin's recovery period will stretch beyond the post-season, they can move him to season-ending LTIR (SELTIR) status, which would then enable them to receive cap relief up to his $9.85 million cap hit.
If Seguin goes on SELTIR, TSN's Chris Johnston believes they will aggressively search the trade market for a replacement. He indicated that the Stars were among the clubs linked to Vancouver Canucks winger Kiefer Sherwood.
The feisty 30-year-old Sherwood plays a different style than Seguin, but his physical game is suited for the grind of post-season hockey. He also carries an affordable $1.5-million cap hit for this season.
RG.org's James Murphy stated the Stars were among the clubs interested in Calgary Flames winger Blake Coleman. The 34-year-old is signed through next season with an average annual value of $4.9 million and a 10-team no-trade list.
Turning to the Los Angeles Kings, NHL insider Frank Seravalli reported Saturday that Phillip Danault has been the subject of growing trade chatter.
Danault, 32, is signed through 2026-27 with an average annual value of $5.5 million. He also has a 10-team no-trade list.
Seravalli said the thin market for centers this season has multiple teams inquiring into Danault's availability. He's seen third-line duty this season with the Kings.
Danault has a well-deserved reputation as a solid two-way center, especially when he helped the Montreal Canadiens reach the 2021 Stanley Cup final. He had a career-high 54 points with the Kings in 2022-23, but his production has declined, with just five points in 29 games this season.
The Kings have struggled recently, which could explain the interest in Danault. However, they're still jockeying for a playoff spot and aren't likely to become sellers unless they tumble out of contention by the March trade deadline.
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Notre Dame AD Pete Bevacqua still mad over CFP snub, says team was denied despite ‘one of the most dominant 10-game runs’
Pete Bevacqua continues to rail against the selection committee for snubbing Notre Dame in the CFP bracket.
Blackhawks Recall Dominic Toninato Following Sam Rinzel and Landon Slaggert’s Demotion
The Chicago Blackhawks on Monday announced that they sent Sam Rinzel and Landon Slaggert to the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League.
Landon Slaggert has been a healthy scratch a lot in recent games, so sending him down, where he will play big minutes every game, is great for him and his confidence.
Blackhawks Assign First-Rounder & Forward To AHLThe Blackhawks have sent two players down to the AHL. As for Rinzel, this is a move that the Blackhawks desperately didn’t want to do. They made him a healthy scratch for a game in mid-November, but he didn’t respond the way that they were hoping.
With the Blackhawks, Slaggert has 1 goal in 10 games played, while Rinzel has 1 goal and 7 assists for 8 points in 28 games played. Now, they can take their talents to the AHL, where they can work on things that will make them successful when they return to the NHL.
On Tuesday, the Blackhawks announced that Dominic Toninato would be called up to the NHL. 31-year-old Toninato has 5 goals and 12 assists for 17 points in 24 games played for the IceHogs this year. His two game-winning goals led the team.
hi Dominic👋
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) December 9, 2025
📰 ➡︎ https://t.co/duXmTFFicBpic.twitter.com/biVepaBjUQ
Toninato’s first chance to get in the lineup will come on Wednesday when the Blackhawks take on the New York Rangers.
Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.
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Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier pleads not guilty to sports betting charges
NEW YORK (AP) — Miami Heat player Terry Rozier pleaded not guilty Monday to charges he helped gamblers placing bets on his performance in NBA games.
The 31-year-old point guard formally entered the plea during his arraignment in federal court in Brooklyn on wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges, and was released on $3 million bond secured by his home in Florida and another property. Prosecutors say Rozier conspired with friends to help them win bets on his performance in a March 2023 game when he played for the Charlotte Hornets.
He was also instructed not to gamble, have firearms or to have any contact with victims, co-defendants and witnesses in the case. Rozier, who's from Ohio, additionally surrendered his passport and was restricted to traveling between Florida, Ohio and New York unless granted prior approval.
Rozier, wearing a gray suit, didn’t speak in court other than to answer the judge’s “yes” or “no” questions.
He declined to comment afterward, but his lawyer, Jim Trusty, said his client was “excited” to begin mounting his defense against the charges.
Trusty said at a hearing later with the five other defendants in the case that he would soon be filing a motion to dismiss the case based on constitutional grounds.
He also urged the judge to proceed with the case on “speedy” timeline, saying Rozier is dealing with “multiple layers of litigation,” including arbitration with the NBA.
But U.S. District Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall brushed those concerns aside, saying “arbitration with the league is of no concern for me.”
She set the next hearing in the case for March 3 after hearing from prosecutors that they would soon be handling over “voluminous” amounts of evidence to defense lawyers, including an initial set of 1,000 documents and more than 55 gigabytes of data.
More than 30 people have been arrested in the sprawling federal takedown of illegal gambling operations linked to professional sports, including several Mafia figures. Portland Trail Blazers coach and NBA Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups has pleaded not guilty in a separate scheme to fix high-stakes, Mafia-backed illegal poker games.
Prosecutors say Rozier informed the bettors that he intended to leave the game against the New Orleans Pelicans early with a supposed injury, allowing gamblers to place wagers earning them tens of thousands of dollars.
Rozier played the first nine minutes and 36 seconds of the game before leaving, citing a foot issue. He did not play again that season.
The other NBA figure ensnared in the investigation is Damon Jones, who pleaded not guilty last month to charges he provided sports bettors with nonpublic information about injuries to stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis while serving as an unofficial assistant coach for the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2022-2023 season. Jones, a former NBA player, is also indicted along with Billups and others in the separate poker scheme.
Both Billups and Rozier have been placed on unpaid leave from their teams as their court cases play out.
Rozier has earned about $160 million over a 10-year NBA career. He was a first-round pick for the Boston Celtics in 2015 after starring at the University of Louisville. Charlotte traded him to the Heat last year.
Penn State AD Pat Kraft apologizes for leaked audio: ‘I’m embarrassed’
Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft apologized on Dec. 8 for leaked audio in which he appeared to criticize other Big Ten programs.
Anaheim Ducks At Pittsburgh Penguins Preview: Lineup Changes, Where To Watch
The Pittsburgh Penguins will play their next five games at home, starting with the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night.
The Ducks are off to a great start this season with an 18-10-1 start, good for first in the Pacific Division. They've won two in a row and six of their last 10 games, including Sunday's 7-1 thrashing of the Chicago Blackhawks.
This is a team that has gotten great production from their young players and their veterans. Leo Carlsson, the Ducks' first-line center, has been outstanding this season, compiling 16 goals and 38 points in 29 games.
Cutter Gauthier is second on the team in points (33) and is tied for first on the team in goals (16). Troy Terry only has seven goals in 29 games, but thanks to his playmaking ability, he's a point-per-game player.
Beckett Sennecke is also someone to watch. He was the third overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft and is off to a heck of a start this season with nine goals and 24 points. His speed has been noticeable in each game he plays.
Penguins fans know a whole lot about Chris Kreider, dating back to his days with the New York Rangers. He's a Penguins killer, scoring two goals against them, including the game-winner, when these two teams met in Anaheim back in October. He also has nine goals and 13 points in his last 10 games against the Penguins.
The Penguins were getting closer to being fully healthy before Evgeni Malkin and Blake Lizotte got hurt. They got Justin Brazeau and Noel Acciari back for Sunday's game against the Dallas Stars, but will now be without Malkin and Lizotte on a week-to-week basis.
Before Tuesday's morning skate, the Penguins called up Danton Heinen and Sam Poulin from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Poulin didn't participate in line rushes, but is still an option to play while both centers are sidelined.
Here are what the full lines looked like during the skate:
Forwards
Novak-Crosby-Rust
Mantha-Hayes-Brazeau
McGroarty-Kindel-Koivunen
Dewar-Heinen-Acciari
Defense
Wotherspoon-Karlsson
Shea-Letang
Graves-Clifton
Arturs Silovs will start in goal for the Penguins, giving Tristan Jarry a night off. Silovs will look to bounce back from his last start, which came on Nov. 29 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. He gave up four goals before he was pulled.
Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET on SportsNet Pittsburgh. Fans can also listen to the game on 105.9 'The X.'
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NBA Trade Rumors 2025-26: The latest on Anthony Davis, Jonathan Kuminga, Giannis Antetokounmpo, more
We are six days away from Dec. 15, when the official start of the NBA Trade season begins (although much more happens once general managers from around the league gather in Orlando for the G-League Showcase Dec. 19-22). With that, the trade talk is ramping up around the league. Here are some of the latest rumors.
Anthony Davis
The Eastern Conference feels more wide-open than ever, which has three teams — Detroit, Toronto and Atlanta — thinking they are one move away from contending. That has them eyeing Anthony Davis, reports Shams Charania of ESPN.
The Pistons (19-5), Raptors (15-10) and Hawks (14-11) represent high-level threats in their conference and are having seasons that give hope that a player like Davis -- a 10-time All-Star who has spent his entire career in the Western Conference -- can elevate them into a viable championship-quality team.
Detroit also has been linked to Utah's Lauri Markkanen — who would be a better fit — on the theory that the team is looking for another shot creator and scorer at the four, to play off Cade Cunningham and next to the breakout center Jalen Duren. A Detroit trade for AD would be centered on Tobias Harris to balance salaries, plus picks and younger players.
Atlanta was hoping to get a boost from Kristaps Porzingis as a pick-and-pop five and rim protector next to Trae Young, but that has yet to happen in part due to injuries. Davis could slide into that role and Poringis' expiring salary plus a young player and picks could head back to Dallas. That said, Atlanta reportedly wants to assess what its roster looks like when Young returns from his sprained MCL, likely later this month. Toronto plays an up-tempo, five-out system with Jakob Poeltl as the big man. Davis would be an upgrade to that and push a team that is a surprising 15-10 and fourth in the East into another tier.
For all of these teams, they need to think about Davis' next contract extension — the 32-year-old Davis is eligible for and wants one after this season, and while he's not going to get the max (four years, $275 million) he's going to make $50+ million a season. Do teams want to sign up for multiple years of a mid-30s player with a lengthy history of nagging injuries at that price?
Klay Thompson/Daniel Gafford
Dallas' interim co-general managers — Michael Finley and Matt Riccardi — are open to trading more than just Davis, Charania reports.
The Mavericks are open to exploring the trade markets for Davis, center Daniel Gafford and guards Klay Thompson and D'Angelo Russell, sources said.
Gafford is the name we hear most around league circles as in demand — a rim-protecting, pick-and-roll big who had a real connection with Luka Dončić on the court (which is why the Lakers come up as a possible suitor, although good luck finding a Dallas GM who would make another trade with the Lakers). Gafford could help any team that runs a lot of pick-and-rolls.
The market for Thompson is smaller — he's a big name and a future Hall of Famer, but not the same player at this point in his career — but shooters who understand floor spacing always have a place. The market for Russell would be limited, but there are teams seeking depth at the one.
These three are people to watch, they may be more likely to be on the move than the massive contract of Davis.
Giannis Antetokounmpo
While Charanaia's sources are telling him "the writing is on the wall" with an Antetokounmpo trade, league sources NBC Sports speaks with are still hesitant to say a deal will happen before the Feb. 5 trade deadline. Antetokounmpo being sidelined for a few weeks with a calf strain has quieted the talk somewhat, but the core of the situation has not changed, according to league sources. The two big questions remain:
1) Will Antetokounmpo officially, formally, forcefully ask for a trade? The Bucks are not going to trade Antetokounmpo until he makes them. To make them do that by the deadline, Antetokounmpo has to be the bad guy and loudly ask for a trade (meaning his agent tells the Bucks that and makes sure it leaks to the media). Antetokounmpo pushed the Bucks to talk to the Knicks last summer, but that came late in the summer (after the Mikal Bridges extension), and with only one team, there was no deal to be made.
Just remember that Antetokounmpo has another, more passive path out of Milwaukee: Tell them next summer he will not sign an extension with the team. That has the same effect — the Bucks would have to trade him instead of risking losing him for nothing — but he can spin that he never asked for a trade. That and the fact that getting Antetokounmpo to a place he wants to be during the season — in a fair deal for both sides — is next to impossible in a tax apron era. Which is why a trade in the offseason is more likely.
2) Will the Bucks try to get Antetokounmpo where he wants to go, or will they take the best offer for them? Antetokounmpo has a well-reported fascination with playing for the Knicks and competing for a title with them. Putting aside questions of how well he would fit next to Jalen Brunson for now, the simple fact is a lot of teams — Atlanta, San Antonio, Houston and others — could put together much better trade returns for the Bucks than the Knicks could. Those teams have young players and a lot of draft picks to help a rebuilding team. If Antetokounmpo asks out, how big is his list of preferred teams? He is only going to end up in New York if he forces that to happen by saying that is the only place he would sign an extension (and even then, a team could take a one-year swing like the Raptors did with Kawhi Leonard in 2018-19).
Jonathan Kuminga
When Kuminga earned a DNP-CD from Steve Kerr on Sunday, it sparked another round of trade rumors for the fifth-year forward. It's no secret that the Warriors are open to trading him — they pushed him into a contract extension designed to be dealt: Two years, $46.8 million, with a team option on the second year.
Kuminga is averaging 12.4 points and 6.3 rebounds a game this season in what has been a roller coaster of a season for him. Teams will be willing to take a flyer on him, and it will be interesting to see after Jan. 15 — the day he becomes eligible to be traded — which teams step up and explore the idea. Over the summer it was the Kings and Suns, but things look different for both of those teams now and their interest level may not be the same.
LeBron James
LeBron is only on this list to squash the speculation about any potential trade. Much like Antetokounmpo, the only way LeBron would have been traded at the deadline was if he demanded it publicly, and his agent, Rich Paul, told Max Kellerman on the Game Over podcast that it is not happening. Paul was unequivocal that LeBron will be on the Lakers at the end of this season.
This summer, when LeBron becomes a free agent, things get interesting. For now, the Lakers and LeBron are going to chase another NBA Cup title and, after that, an NBA title this season (although Paul said in that same interview he does not think these Lakers are contenders or have enough to make the Western Conference Finals).
Domantas Sabonis/Zach LaVine/DeMar DeRozan
The Kings have come to realize it's time to pivot away from the roster that broke their playoff drought, but one that had a real ceiling (the Kings have long been the, well, kings of short-term front office thinking, such as trading Tyrese Haliburton for Domantas Sabonis). With that, all the big names are on the table, Charania reports.
They are open-minded about trade talks throughout the roster, sources said. Teams are monitoring veterans Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, along with 25-year-old guard Keon Ellis.
There is more buzz about Sabonis than the other two big names, a lot of teams could use a scoring and rebounding big. Ellis, the 25-year-old fourth-year guard who is a plus defender, has a lot of fans around the league and any team taking on one of the old-guard players will want Ellis thrown in the deal.
How to Watch the NBA on NBC and Peacock
Peacock NBA Monday will stream up to three Monday night games each week throughout the regular season. Coast 2 Coast Tuesday presents doubleheaders on Tuesday nights throughout the regular season on NBC and Peacock. On most Tuesdays, an 8 p.m. ET game will be on NBC stations in the Eastern and Central time zones, and an 8 p.m. PT game on NBC stations in the Pacific and often Mountain time zones. Check local listings each week. Both games will stream live nationwide on Peacock. NBC Sports will launch Sunday Night Basketball across NBC and Peacock on Feb. 1, 2026. For a full schedule of the NBA on NBC and Peacock, click here.
2025–26 College Football Playoff Schedule: Matchups, Dates, Times, and TV Channels
The playoff field is set. It’s time to find out who will be the national champion.
Texas Tech LB Jacob Rodriguez wins Bronko Nagurski Award as nation’s best college defensive player
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For years, Eric Morris admired what Mike Gundy built at Oklahoma State from afar.
Do The Maple Leafs Have Trade Candidates In Net After Hildeby's Emergence?
TORONTO - Dennis Hildeby earned the first shutout of his NHL career in a 2-0 win against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday night.
The 24-year-old rookie is the interim starter with Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz out with injury, and he has come up huge for Toronto in the meantime.
With Hildeby's recent performances, recording a .936 save percentage and a 2.15 goals-against average in nine appearances and five starts, he's giving the Leafs a luxury.
"What I see in that is he's trusting his ability and his size and, you know, staying pretty calm and cool in net," coach Craig Berube said afterward. "His puck play has been good, but overall, his mindset is really good."
With 'The Beast' playing the way he is now, along with Woll and Stolarz waiting to come off the injured reserve, the Maple Leafs could have the beginnings of a three-headed monster in the crease.
While Toronto's tandem hasn't been the most reliable in terms of health, they have tremendous depth at a bargain price. Hildeby earns $841,667 per year for the next three seasons, not to mention that Woll and Stolarz together earn less than a combined $7-million cap hit this season and less than $7.5 million next year.
With the Leafs owning three valuable goaltenders, should GM Brad Treliving consider trading one of them?
It's still relatively early in Hildeby's NHL career, but the Swedish netminder has been there when the Leafs needed him most in a limited sample size.
Plenty of teams around the NHL would love to have additional help between the pipes. Woll and Stolarz are exceptional goaltenders in their own right, even with their injuries.
A team like the Edmonton Oilers, which has been searching for a goalie at a low price, could be attracted to one of Toronto's netminders and would be willing to give up assets for help in net.
What that return for the Maple Leafs could be is uncertain, but depending on Woll and Stolarz's individual play, some clubs would be willing to throw a first-round pick for their services on their current contracts.
Stolarz, 31, has a 16-team no-trade clause on his contract for this year and the next, making $2.5 million against the cap this season, which jumps up to $3.75 million for the following three.
As for Woll, he earns about $3.67 million per season, and that deal lasts through the 2027-28 campaign. In addition, the 27-year-old has an eight-team no-trade list in the final year of his contract.
Sure, a first-round pick or prospects aren't helpful for a team looking to win now, but those future assets attract teams near the bottom of the standings who are looking to sell.
Toronto doesn't have a first-round pick until 2028 and is pretty thin in its prospect pool, too. So moving out a goaltender is a risk, but it provides an opportunity for Treliving to look for a way to bolster his roster toward the NHL trade deadline.
If teams are desperate enough for a goaltender, and the Leafs have three solid ones, it's not a terrible idea to see what could be received in return. Making a deal to move out a goaltender isn't about clearing cap space; it's about nabbing other resources that could be used to make some notable additions.
At the moment, Toronto has over $4 million in salary cap space. Moving off of either Woll or Stolarz could bring that up around the $7-million mark, leaving plenty of room for Treliving to work his magic.
In the meantime, Hildeby will look to build on a solid start to his NHL career. Every strong outing by Hildeby from this point onward will be a huge help to the Leafs – and also a pleasant problem if he's proven he's too good to head back to the minors.
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Texas A&M aims for national championship after first College Football Playoff berth
The Aggies certainly aren’t content just to be in the playoff.
Navy All-American Bowl’s Road to the Dome Digital Series to be Released December 10
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Canadiens Veterans Are Struggling
Martin St-Louis has said it many times since he was hired as the Montreal Canadiens coach: the toughest thing for young players to achieve is consistency. Which is why a team must know what they are getting when they use their tried-and-tested veterans: those players know what the league is about and how to play their best hockey.
This season, the Habs aren’t exactly getting that from some of their more experienced players. In fact, according to Moneypuck.com, Montreal has three of the bottom five players when it comes to on-ice goal differential.
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Canadiens: Big Divisional Clash
Amongst players with at least 50 minutes of ice time, Canadiens center Jake Evans is 722nd, dead last at minus-28, defenseman Alexandre Carrier is 720th with a minus-25, and Evans’ linemate Josh Anderson is 718th with minus-23.
When playing his contract year last season, Evans was on fire offensively and proved that he could be very reliable defensively, so much so that the Canadiens’ GM signed him to a four-year contract extension worth $2.85 million, which at the time sounded like a great deal. This year, however, Evans is on pace for just 23 points after scoring a career-high 36 points last season.
Clearly, the coach is starting to lose patience with the vet. In the Canadiens’ December 2 game against the Ottawa Senators, Evans saw just 9:22 of action spread across 14 shifts. In that game, he had a 25% success rate at the faceoff dot, winning just two of the eight draws he took. He bounced back in the following game, skating for 16:22 and winning 73% of his faceoffs, but then, on Sunday against the Blues, he won just 3 of his 12 faceoffs, meaning another 25% success rate that night and just 12:37 of ice time.
There’s no two ways about it, Evans needs to be better if the Canadiens are to make the playoffs this season. Granted, his life has changed this past year with the arrival of twins, but that’s a new reality he needs to adapt to, and the sooner, the better. With the hectic December calendar the Canadiens face, St-Louis has to be able to count on Evans to shoulder some of the ice time; Nick Suzuki cannot spend more time on the ice than he already does.
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