PHOENIX, AZ - MARCH 6: Jalen Green #4 of the Phoenix Suns drives to the basket as Zion Williamson #1 of the New Orleans Pelicans plays defense during the game on March 6, 2026 at PHX Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Kate Frese/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Going into the week, there was some uncertainty revolving around the Phoenix Suns’ starting wings as Dillon Brooks remains out. With Devin Booker returning from injury, Jalen Green or Ryan Dunn was destined for the bench. Jordan Ott and his coaching staff decided with keeping Green in the starting lineup and bringing Dunn of the bench, but fans think Green should be starting games with the second unit.
Considering how inconsistent Green has been on offense and his lack of size, I’m not surprised that nearly two-thirds of fans want him to come off the bench. He’s had two of his strongest games this season this week, with his 20-point, 44% shooting game against the Kings, and 25-point, 47% shooting performance playing the Pelicans on Friday, but he had another inefficient game Thursday, when the got upset against the Bulls, and he shot 25% from the field on 20 shots.
The fifth-year guard has had a hard time adjusting to the Suns’ offense as he’s been working back from his hamstring injury. His inefficient three-point shooting (Green is shooting a career-low 27% of his threes) has hindered the team’s deep shooting. When Green is playing, the Suns are shooting 34.8% from three, when he’s not, they’re shooting 36.3% from behind the arc.
Yes, the Suns have still been winning games of late. While they dropped a game they were more than 10 point favorites in to the Chicago Bulls, Phoenix has won three of four, and are still firmly in the race to finish with a top-six seed.
While it may not be a longterm solution, Green coming off the bench could give him more of an opportunity to utilize his playmaking abilities. He’d assuredly be spending less time playing alongside Devin Booker, Phoenix’s lead playmaker, so Green would have more opportunity to do what he’s best at, alongside Grayson Allen, who is making the most threes per game of his career by more than half a triple per game. Green clearly needs more room to operate as he continues to work his way back from his long absence.
Additionally, with Mark Williams out for the next few weeks, adding Green to the bench would not be disrupting any bench chemistry, as Oso Ighodaro has moved to the team’s starting center with Williams sidelined. The second unit is already dealing with change.
DALLAS, TX - OCTOBER 26: Scottie Barnes #4 of the Toronto Raptors drives to the basket during the game against the Dallas Mavericks on October 26, 2025 at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2025 NBAE (Photo by Sam Hodde/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Before a single possession takes place on the court, the Toronto Raptors are already expected to beat the Dallas Mavericks at home on Sunday.
At least that’s what the Raptors fan base believes, especially after being held hostage by exceeded expectations and a timeline that’s regrettably ahead of schedule.
Simply put – the NBA’s lone Canadian franchise isn’t very good against competitive teams.
Fine then.
But that means the Raptors can’t drop games against the bottom dwellers of the league. Their fragile lead over the play-in team is in danger of slipping away. With the Houston Rockets, Phoenix Suns, Detroit Pistons and the Denver Nuggets awaiting them later this month, the Raptors desperately need to take care of business against lower-ranked teams.
That begins with defending home court against the Mavericks, even if Cooper Flagg overcomes his questionable tag before the 6:00 p.m. EST tip-off on Sportsnet.
The last time the Raptors dropped a game to a team below .500 was in a 121-117 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 16. Former fun guy Kawhi Leonard sat the game out with a right ankle sprain, but James Harden bullied the Raptors defence and finished with 31 points and 10 assists. When adjusting the bar to a slightly lower level, the Raptors haven’t lost to an opponent currently in a playoff or play-in spot since falling 138-117 to the Washington Wizards on Dec. 26.
Since their last meaningful victory over a playoff staple – a 103-101 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder back on Jan. 25 – the Raptors have struggled mightily in the second half. Toronto is 3-5 in the third and fourth quarters against playoff teams during this stretch. Often, it’s a disastrous third quarter that leads to a comfortable final frame for the opponent, or it’s a Raptors meltdown in back-end of the fourth quarter.
For most supporters who have followed the team this season, it’s a script that’s repetitive in the worst possible way. It feels like the Raptors are destined to lose in the opening round of the post-season. It’s like Toronto is on a collision course that can be seen before the car leaves the driveway.
But despite the doom and gloom, there’s still basketball to be played, and the Raptors aren’t necessarily firing on all cylinders (yet).
Centre Jakob Poeltl’s minutes are back to where they should be. The Austrian big man is averaging 27.4 minutes in his last five games. However, there’s still ample room for improvement. Poeltl is often good for a double-double in roughly half the games he appears in. Still, he only has one double-double in seven games since returning from injury on Feb. 11. With Collin Murray-Boyles already ruled out due to a thumb sprain, it’s imperative that Poeltl quickly works his way back to full strength. The rookie performed admirably in the veteran’s presence, and Poeltl returning the favour would go a long way in sustaining the Raptors’ lifeline.
With Brandon Ingram listed as questionable, it’s important for Scottie Barnes to summon the aggression he showcased earlier in the 2025-26 campaign. Barnes’ February numbers (and his two-game sample size in March) are down across the board in comparison to his season averages. His three-point shooting is the most glaring downward spiral, but that’s been a concern since early January. The bigger red flag is the rebounding totals. Since the All-Star break, Barnes has averaged 3.3 rebounds against playoff teams. That’s a drastic dip from the eight boards he averages on the season. Understandably, it’s also affecting his assist numbers since he’s initiating fewer breakouts.
Historically, Barnes is the type of player that goes as his team does. The best version of Barnes have arguably come during his rookie season, when he was surrounded by championship-level auxiliary players, and earlier this year when the Raptors were one of the hottest teams in the NBA. But when the Raptors struggle, Barnes does as well. If he can eventually tap into a state where he can consistently will Toronto to victories, it’ll help the team stay afloat in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
On this day 75 years ago, Marilyn Monroe paid a visit to White Sox camp, posing here with Gus Zernial (catching) and Joe Dobson. | Phil Burchman
1942 Future White Sox MVP Dick Allen was born in Wampum, Pa.
Allen set a franchise mark with 37 home runs in his 1972 MVP year, along with 113 RBIs. His 8.6 WAR in 1972 ranks second all-time among White Sox hitters (Eddie Collins, 9.4, 1915) and 14th all-time among all White Sox players.
Perhaps most importantly of all, Allen was credited by numerous sources as saving the White Sox in Chicago, his play driving attendance when a move to Milwaukee or other cities loomed as a consistent threat.
Allen died in 2020, still short of Hall of Fame election. In the most recent Veterans Committee vote in 2021, Allen was just one vote shy of immortality.
1948 WGN announced that it would televise Chicago White Sox games for the first time during the upcoming season.
Veteran radio broadcasters Jack Brickhouse and Harry Creighton would become the first White Sox TV announcers in history. The first game WGN aired was an exhibition game against the Cubs from Wrigley Field on April 16, 1948, in the freezing cold!. The White Sox won, 4-1.
WGN televised White Sox games from 1948-67, 1981, and 1990-2019.
1951 The White Sox held Spring Training in Pasadena, Calif. after the war. It was near Hollywood, and on this day the team had a special visitor, as actress Marilyn Monroe came calling.
Monroe was going to be the mascot for a charity game played at Gilmore Field (home of the Pacific Coast League Hollywood Stars) that Sunday. The game featured a number of All-Stars.
Monroe arrived early and took a number of publicity photos with the players, including Hank Majeski, Joe Dobson and Gus Zernial. All of the Sox players would later receive autographed pictures from her.
The photo shoot that resulted caught the eye of a player on the other side of the country: Joe DiMaggio, who reached out to Monroe’s press agent to arrange a date after the season, as he began life as a retired player.
1961 Former White Sox player and bullpen catcher Mark Salas was born, in Montebello, Calif. The catcher, drafted in 1979 by the St. Louis Cardinals, made a major impact as a rookie, with 2.2 WAR and an eighth-place finish in AL Rookie of the Year polling as a member of the Minnesota Twins. However, Salas never played in as many as 92 games after that season, taking tours with the Yankees, Tigers, Cleveland, and in 1988, the White Sox. The catcher had a barely-positive season (0.3 WAR) backing up Carlton Fisk, but was released at the end of Spring Training 1989.
Salas spent much more than one year with the White Sox later, as a coach and scout. Immediately upon retirement, he went to work as a coach in the White Sox system. Later he served as White Sox bullpen catcher from 1996-99, and again under former teammate Ozzie Guillén starting in 2007. In-between coaching, Salas scouted for the Sox.
Salas is also one of 10 major-leaguers in history whose surname is a Palindrome.
2011 On International Women’s Day, former White Sox front office analyst Kim Ng moved from assistant GM of the Los Angeles Dodgers — the highest-ranking woman in baseball — to MLB senior vice president of baseball operations.
Ng got her start with the White Sox, hired for an internship in 1991 in what she thought would be public relations. Instead, assistant GM Dan Evans saw promise in her analytical thinking and background in the game (Ng was a University of Chicago softball player) and took her under his wing. When Evans lost out on the White Sox GM job that went to Ken Williams, Evans knew his future was outside of Chicago, and when he left for the Dodgers, Ng came with him.
Nine years after taking this executive position with MLB and after at least four failed attempts at landing a GM position, Ng was hired as the general manager of the Miami Marlins.
2019 Former White Sox catcher Mike Colbern passed away in Tempe, Ariz. He played his only 80 career games with the South Siders in 1978-79, tallying 0.1 WAR and a .627 OPS/73 OPS+. He played two full seasons for the White Sox in Triple-A after that, and wound up his career with a season in the Atlanta organization.
In retirement, Colbern became the lead plaintiff in a class action for what lawyers turned into (against Colbern’s wishes) a reverse-discrimination lawsuit against MLB demanding his health costs be paid akin to an approved plan that paid for pre-1947 Negro League players’ health bills. Although that lawsuit failed, Colbern later received $3,700 in medical payments as part of a partial restitution plan initiated by MLB.
GOLD COAST, Australia (AP) — Iran’s soccer team lost its last group match at the Women’s Asian Cup on Sunday and had to contemplate returning home to a country embroiled in war.
Their silence during the anthem before an opening loss to South Korea last Monday was viewed by some as an act of resistance and others as a show of mourning. The team hasn't clarified. But the players sang the anthem and saluted during the national anthem ahead of their 4-0 loss to Australia last Thursday and a 2-0 loss to Philippines on Sunday.
Amid concerns for player welfare following reported criticism in the Iranian media, the Australian Iranian Council wrote to Australia’s Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke urging the government to protect the squad members while they’re in Australia.
It launched an online petition, which had more than 50,000 electronic signatures before kick-off Sunday, urging Australian authorities to “ensure that no member of Iran’s women’s national football team is to depart Australia while credible fears for their safety remain” and also to provide independent legal advice, support and interpreters.
Iran team management and players have mostly declined to comment on the situation at home during more than a week preparing for and playing games on Australia’s Gold Coast, although Iran forward Sara Didar choked back tears in a news conference last Wednesday as she shared their concerns for their families, friends and all Iranians during the conflict.
The online petition asked local authorities to ensure any player seeking protection “can do so safely, privately, and without interference” and to “make clear that Australia will uphold its … humanitarian protection obligations in relation to any player at risk of persecution or serious harm.
“Where credible evidence exists that visiting athletes may face persecution, imprisonment, coercion, or worse upon return, silence is not a neutral position," it said. “The current wartime environment has intensified repression, fear, and the risks faced by anyone publicly perceived by the Islamic Republic as disloyal.”
Foreign Minister Penny Wong declined to comment on whether the Australian government had made contact with individuals but told domestic media Australia stood in solidarity with the Iranian women's team.
“It has been really moving for Australians to see them in Australia, and (Australia's women's team) swapping jerseys with them was a very evocative moment,” Wong told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Sunday. “We know this regime has brutally oppressed many Iranian women.”
Iranian Australian activist Tina Kordrostami, a local government member in Sydney’s Ryde Council, told The Australian newspaper the Iranian players “need an opportunity, a safe space, a chance to actually speak up about what their needs are and what their requirements are.”
“We can’t give them that space without the government helping us,” she said.
The Iranian women's team needed to beat Philippines on Sunday to maintain any chance of advancing to the Asian Cup quarterfinals, which would have extended its stay in Australia for more than another week, but conceded goals to Sara Eggesvik in the 29th minute and Chandler McDaniel in the 82nd in a tough loss in wet conditions at Gold Coast Stadium.
TOKYO, JAPAN - MARCH 07: Shohei Ohtani #16 of Team Japan celebrates with Seiya Suzuki #51 after hitting a solo home run in the third inning during the 2026 World Baseball Classic Pool C game between South Korea and Japan at Tokyo Dome on March 7, 2026 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welcome to Pinstripe Alley’s coverage of the 2026 World Baseball Classic! We previewed Pool A, Pool B, Pool C, and Pool D in the linked articles. Since the first several days of the WBC feature a bevy of games, we’ll be recapping them in batches. Enjoy!
Pool C: Japan 8 (2-0), South Korea 6 (1-1)
Japan-South Korea is a heated rivalry as far as international baseball is concerned (and, uh, in life really), and the clash lived up to it in this year’s WBC. While Japan blasted four home runs for the game, it was a couple walks and a single that gave them the three-run inning they needed to come away with the win.
Korea got off to a hot start, with a Bo Gyeong Moon double scoring three runs to cap off a three-run top of the first. However, two homers from Seiya Suzuki, one from Shohei Ohtani, and one from Masataka Yoshida allowed Japan to storm back and take a 5-3 lead in the third. Ohtani’s Dodgers teammate Hyeseong Kim answered with a two-run shot of his own, tying things up as the game went into the late innings.
In the seventh, Japan’s Shugo Maki drew a leadoff walk, with the pinch-runner for him advancing to third on two outs. Korea’s pitching then got sloppy, as while they intentionally walked Ohtani, they also issued two unintentional ones, allowing a run to score. Yoshida brought home two more with a single. While South Korea did get one run back, that three spot in the seventh ended up being the difference in the game.
Pool A: Canada 8 (1-0), Colombia 2 (0-2)
Thanks to a homer from Cubs-turned-Marlins up-and-comer Owen Caissie in the second, Canada never trailed in this one. But they didn’t fully put it away until a four-run eighth inning.
Canada was never not in control of this game, as the Caissie homer gave them a 2-0 lead, and they later went on to take a 4-1 lead thanks to a Josh Naylor single. However, Colombia got back within two runs in the eighth thanks to a Harold Ramírez RBI double and even brought the go-ahead run to the plate later in the inning.
That was as close as they got, though. Canada went on to bat around in the bottom half of the eighth, plating four runs in the process and staving off any upset bid.
Pool D: Netherlands 4 (1-1), Nicaragua 3 (0-2)
Nicaragua got within one out of pulling off the upset, but a stunning, walk-off, three-run homer from Atlanta’s Ozzie Albies swung the pendulum in the complete opposite direction and gave the Netherlands a crucial win to keep any hopes of advancing alive.
Much of this game was a pitching duel between Nicaragua’s Erasmo Ramírez and Jaitoine Kelly and the Dutch bullpen. The Netherlands had taken a lead after Albies was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the third, but Nicaragua answered when Cheslor Cuthbert drew a bases loaded walk in the fifth.
The game then stayed tied until the eighth. There, former Yankee farmhand Jeter Downs (most famously part of the trade package that netted the Dodgers Mookie Betts) hit a two-run home run to give Nicaragua the late lead and on the verge of their first-ever WBC win. Nicaragua pitcher Angel Obando then got through the eighth and picked up two quick outs in the ninth to get them right on the brink. Things quickly got away from them, though. Ceddanne Rafaela lined a single to center, and Xander Bogaerts caught a break when his 72.2-mph grounder hit the third-base bag and bounced into left. That set the stage for Albies, who launched one over the right-center-field fence for the first* walk-off homer in WBC history.
Through the first five innings, there was no score as Sam Aldegheri of Italy — who finished with eight strikeouts in 4.2 innings — and Enzo Sawayama of Brazil both had pretty decent days. When Italy did finally break through, the runs then came in bunches.
Zach Dezenzo and Jac Caglianone broke the deadlock with RBI hits in the sixth. Homers from Dante Nori and a moonshot from Seattle’s Dominic Canzone then helped Italy to a four-run seventh to put Italy in full control. Brazil never really troubled them after that, as Italy pitching combined to strike out 15 on the way to a win.
There will be another roundup post coming later, breaking down the rest of the games, including Aaron Judge and Team USA. Today will also be another busy day of WBC action with seven games ahead, so here’s the skinny of what’s on tap.
Australia vs. Japan (Pool C) Pitching Matchup: RHP Connor MacDonald vs. RHP Tomoyuki Sugano Time: 6:00 am ET TV: FS1 Venue: Tokyo Dome — Tokyo, Japan
Colombia vs. Cuba (Pool A) Pitching Matchup: RHP Luis Patiño vs. RHP Denny Larrondo Time: 12:00 pm ET TV: FS2 Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium — San Juan, PR
Netherlands vs. Dominican Republic (Pool D) Pitching Matchup: RHP Arij Fransen vs. RHP Luis Severino Time: 12:00 pm ET TV: FOX Venue: LoanDepot Park — Miami, FL
Great Britain vs. Italy (Pool B) Pitching Matchup: TBD vs. RHP Dylan DeLucia Time: 1:00 pm ET TV: Tubi Venue: Daikin Park — Houston, TX
Nicaragua vs. Israel (Pool D) Pitching Matchup: RHP Carlos Rodriguez vs. RHP Dean Kremer Time: 7:00 pm ET TV: Tubi Venue: LoanDepot Park — Miami, FL
Panama vs. Canada (Pool A) Pitching Matchup: TBD vs. RHP Jameson Taillon Time: 7:00 pm ET TV: FS2 Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium — San Juan, Puerto Rico
Brazil vs. Mexico (Pool B) Pitching Matchup: RHP Eric Pardinho vs. RHP Taijuan Walker Time: 8:00 pm ET TV: FS1 Venue: Daikin Park — Houston, TX
After suffering a tough loss in the sixth round of the shootout on Friday night, the Montreal Canadiens were back on the ice less than 24 hours later to complete their Western road trip with a duel with the Los Angeles Kings. While the Habs were very vocal in their frustration about how they played on Friday night, it didn’t show in the way they started the game in Los Angeles.
Despite the loss in Anaheim, Martin St-Louis stuck to the same lineup aside from Jakub Dobes manning the net after yet another subpar display from Samuel Montembeault on Friday.
For a second game in a row, the Canadiens just weren’t ready to start the game. In Anaheim, they gave 12 shots in the first period while taking only four, and somehow, they managed to do worse on Saturday night. The Kings pummelled Dobes’ net with 16 shots in the first 20 minutes, including nine on the man-advantage. The Czech netminder looked very sharp on the penalty kill, making nine saves while the men in black passed the puck around as if they were the Harlem Globetrotters playing a team of kindergarten students.
The only goal Dobes conceded was at even strength on an odd-man rush after a questionable play from a knackered Brendan Gallagher in the offensive zone. The veteran was on the ice for over a minute and didn’t have any gas left to defend when the play went the other way. Adrian Kempe served a perfect feed to captain Anze Kopitar, who only had to tip it over a powerless Dobes.
The Canadiens’ inability to start on time in these last two games has been puzzling, to say the least. Whatever the reason, it’s just unacceptable, especially as the season is entering its final stretch and every team is fighting for points with desperation. It’s not because the Kings are just a much stronger team either, in the second frame, Montreal put 11 shots on net.
Slafkovsky Strong
When Juraj Slafkovsky first came to the NHL, he struggled to stay on his feet in the league’s tough physical battles, but not anymore. In the second frame, he battled for puck possession in the offensive zone with Scott Laughton, and he almost carried him on his back as he made his way to the high slot to take a precise shot that gave the Canadiens a 2-1 lead.
It’s easy to forget that Slafkovsky is still only 21 years old because he’s already in his fourth NHL season, but it remains true. When he graduated with the Habs, he still had some growing up and some filling up to do. Now that it’s done, he’s become a force to be reckoned with.
That goal was his 50th point of the season, and with it, he became the first player in Canadiens’ history to have three consecutive 50-point seasons before the age of 22. That’s an impressive feat, especially when you consider how much history this franchise has. The big Slovak added another goal in the third frame, and an assist to get to 52 points, a new career high with 20 games left to play.
Watch Juraj Slafkovsky get open on the PP for the game-tying goal.
Once again tonight, the Canadiens failed to protect the lead they acquired in the second period when Laughton and Alex Laferriere found the back of the net. At that stage, the Habs looked defeated. Nick Suzuki had slouched shoulders, and Mike Matheson looked discouraged before heading to the bench and slamming the door. Given how L.A. scored the third goal, it was almost understandable.
Dobes made a couple of saves, but he couldn't smother the rebound, and it was pushed back in. While it’s obvious that he could have done a better job controlling the rebounds, Matheson, Suzuki, and Kaiden Guhle didn’t exactly cover the slot very well.
However, they were all able to shake it off, roll up their collective sleeves with just over 13 minutes left in the third, and claw their way back into the game. Slafkovsky’s second goal tied up the score with just over five minutes to go, and Suzuki scored what would stand as the game-winner less than a minute later.
With over four minutes left, the Canadiens finally protected a lead, even after the Kings pulled their goalie for an extra skater, something they have struggled with this season. Dobes surrendered three goals on 39 shots for a .923 save percentage. Granted, he gave up a weak goal to Laughton, but without his performance, the game could have been over after the first frame. Furthermore, he didn’t let that weak goal get to him; he shook it off and got right back on the horse, so to speak. This was the Canadiens' first win in L.A. since March 2019 and it was long overdue.
The Canadiens will now head back home for what will be another tiring week featuring a couple of back-to-backs. Given the schedule, it’s highly likely that we’ll see both goaltenders, but in an ideal world, St-Louis would be able to stick to Dobes going forward.
Former Toronto Maple Leafs forward Scott Laughton has gotten off to a strong start with his new team.
The 31-year-old, who was traded from the Maple Leafs to the L.A. Kings on Friday at the deadline for a conditional third-rounder in 2026, made his debut with his new club on Saturday against the Montreal Canadiens.
Laughton centered the Kings' third line, alongside Alex Turcotte and Jared Wright, and scored a game-tying goal for his new team in the second period.
Wright made a behind-the-back pass below the goal line to Laughton. He received the puck, spun, and then fired a shot under Jakub Dobes for his ninth goal of the season. It was Laughton's first goal since Jan. 23 against the Vegas Golden Knights, while with the Maple Leafs.
The Canadiens and Kings traded goals back and forth throughout the game, but Nick Suzuki's marker with less than five minutes to go in the third period turned out to be the game-winner for Montreal.
L.A. pushed to tie the game late in the third period, and Laughton was among the players on the ice fighting for a goal. Despite not scoring, the veteran forward finished the game with 15:08 of ice time in his Kings debut.
Laughton played more of a fourth-line role with the Maple Leafs and had only 10 games this season in which his ice time was higher than what it was in his debut with the Kings.
Growing up in the Greater Toronto Area, Laughton was living out his dream of playing for the Maple Leafs. Before being moved, he expressed a desire to remain with his hometown club.
However, with where Toronto sits in the standings, general manager Brad Treliving decided to sell, and Laughton — an unrestricted agent at the end of this season — was among the players traded before Friday's 3:00 p.m. ET deadline.
Hours after being shipped to the Kings, Laughton shared a post on X with a photo and video of him in Maple Leafs gear alongside his son, Reed. "Thank you Toronto," he wrote. "Dream come true."
Laughton joined the Maple Leafs via trade one year earlier from the Philadelphia Flyers. Toronto moved a conditional first-rounder in 2027 and Nikita Grebenkin for the bottom-six center.
"(Laughton) fit in right away," said Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews on Saturday morning, looking back on Laughton's tenure in Toronto. "I mean, he was only here for a year. I think a lot of guys kind of knew him from the Toronto area, and just an incredible guy."
The Oakville, Ontario-born forward finished his Maple Leafs tenure with 10 goals and 16 points in 63 regular-season games, plus two assists in 13 postseason games last spring.
NHL trade deadline addition David Jiricek made his debut for the Philadelphia Flyers organization in the AHL on Saturday night, and the results were a mixed bag. That's ok, and it's what the Flyers signed up for when they traded for him.
Paired with Helge Grans for his debut with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Jiricek found the back of the net with a power play strike from medium range.
The 22-year-old, unfortunately, also went semi-viral online for a mishap early in the Phantoms' game against the Charlotte Checkers.
After blocking a point shot from Brian Pinho, Jiricek pivoted to play the puck, only to fall down and allow Sandis Vilmanis to open the scoring in alone on Carson Bjarnason.
He did redeem himself with the power play goal, though, completing a comeback from 4-0 down and tying the game at 4-4 late in the third period.
In one game, the Flyers organization got all of the good and all of the bad with Jiricek, and again, that's what they signed up for. Fans criticizing their new top prospect after one awkward mistake need to resign themselves to this, too.
Flyers GM Danny Briere said himself that the goal was to get Jiricek ready to push for an NHL roster spot next year, which is seven months away.
In those seven months, the one thing Jiricek really needs to work on is his mobility. The hulking 6-foot-4 defender is never going to be skating around like a gazelle, but his hips are a bit stiff and he tends to take short, choppy strides. Jiricek's actual speed is perfectly adequate.
Defensively, Jiricek stood around a bit too much, and maybe that's a result of having just been traded for the second time and trying to learn a new system and new teammates on the fly. We'll see how that changes over the course of the rest of the 2025-26 season.
Initially, I wasn't too big a fan of trading an established middle-six scorer in Bobby Brink for a high-risk, high-reward defenseman in Jiricek who may or may not be an NHLer.
But, after seeing the talent and the puck skills, he's a few tweaks off from making it. Big tweaks, to be clear, but only a few.
Criticize the Flyers' development staff all you want - and maybe some of that is warranted over the years - but they've been doing a great job recently.
Forwards Alex Bump, Nikita Grebenkin, and Denver Barkey are all already NHL-caliber contributors, and Brink and Tyson Foerster came up from their system, too.
Brink, notably, was a small playmaker with not a whole lot of speed, and he worked like a dog to become faster, stronger, and better defensively. Who's to say a much more physically gifted and revered Jiricek can't do the same in a summer or two?
Coming into Philadelphia, a 21-year-old Jamie Drysdale was looking like a total zero from the 2020 draft. Wasn't putting up points, couldn't defend, and couldn't stay on the ice. See the above advanced stats chart for a visual of how bad it really was in 2023-24.
Now, though, Drysdale is beginning to emerge as a leader for the Flyers, and he's become one of their best defensemen overall. Maybe better than Cam York, and I think he'll continue to grow even more.
Drysdale, of course, is an elite skater, but he, like Jiricek, needed to work on his side of the ice and learn to defend at the NHL level.
Whether or not it works out, the Flyers deserve props for their unwavering willingness to take on high-risk projects in player development.
Drysdale was one, Jiricek is one, Jack Berglund with his skating coming in is another, and Jack Nesbitt is probably a worse skater than Jiricek. It's clearly not something the Flyers value, and it's something they also feel can be corrected to the level they require.
Jiricek is a player the Flyers have coveted for a long time, as have some fans. Now that the opportunity cost was deemed appropriate, Briere and Co. pulled the trigger and brought him in.
Now that you have your ticket for the Jiricek ride, you have to get on the train.
Kings forward Alex Laferriere, right, passes the puck in front of Montréal Canadiens goaltender Jakub Dobes during the first period of the Kings' 4-3 loss Saturday at Crypto.com Arena. (Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
You’re on your own.
That’s the message Kings general manager Ken Holland delivered to his team at the NHL trade deadline, when he turned his attention from the present to the future.
Rather than make a major move, Holland folded. The cards he was holding and the deficit he faced in the standings told him he didn’t have a winning hand.
“These are the decisions that I have to make,” he said. “Certainly where we are in the standings, I have to make some philosophical decisions.”
Where they are after giving up third-period goals just 49 seconds apart Saturday in a 4-3 loss to the Montreal Canadiens is sixth in the eight-team Pacific Division, four points out of a wild-card berth with 20 games remaining.
So Holland decided draft picks for next season and the season after were more valuable than immediate help this season. That’s a big change in philosophy from just a month ago, when Holland traded away part of the future — a prospect and two draft picks — for forward Artemi Panarin just ahead of the Olympic break.
“If Fiala was healthy and Armia was healthy, we’d be looking at our team different,” Holland said. “That’s why I did the deal before the deadline. We don’t have a lot of key pieces.”
“We want to continue to try to push to qualify for the playoffs,” he continued. “At the same time, behind the scenes, we’re trying to get some [draft] picks, looking to the future.”
So Holland called off the cavalry. If the Kings are going to make a run at a fifth straight playoff berth, they’re going to have to do it with an interim coach and the guys they already have. Holland made only a few cosmetic moves ahead of Friday’s trade deadline, shipping out forwards Corey Perry and Warren Foegele for draft picks and adding Scott Laughton and Mathieu Joseph, depth pieces, neither of whom are signed beyond this season.
Montreal forward Juraj Slafkovsky scores on Kings goaltender Darcy Kuemper during the third period Saturday. (Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
And if that sounded like a lack of confidence, D.J. Smith, the interim coach, said it was well-earned.
“It's up to the players and the coaching staff to get the team in a spot where the [general] manager feels that he's got to really help the group to try to win,” he said Saturday. “Obviously we didn't do that enough and it's unfortunate.”
But if the Kings’ breathing is shallow and their pulse faint, they aren’t dead just yet despite seven losses in their last nine games.
“We’re trying to win,” Holland said. “It’s the National Hockey League. We’re [four] points out of a playoff spot. Maybe the narrative changes if you’re 15 points out of a playoff spot. But we’re [four] points out of a playoff spot.”
Panarin — wearing the No. 10 sweater Perry had before he was traded to Tampa Bay — helped the Kings take a first-period lead Saturday, battling Montreal defender Mike Matheson for the puck entering the Canadiens’ zone. That allowed Adrian Kempe to skate in and take the puck off Matheson’s stick and feed Anze Kopitar at the far post for the tap-in.
That goal gave Kopitar 1,304 points for his career, just three shy of Marcel Dionne’s franchise record.
Samuel Helenius thought he had doubled the lead less than two minutes later but the goal was waved off by goalie interference. And the Kings should have had more after a period in which they outshot the Canadiens 16-1.
That proved costly when Montreal's Jake Evans drove a slap shot by Kings goalie Darcy Kuemper from the top of the left circle to tie the score in the second period.
Juraj Slafkovsky put Montreal in front less than five minutes before the second intermission, lifting a wrist shot over Kuemper’s glove from the slot. But Laughton, making his Kings debut, got that back two minutes later, lining a low wrist shot from a tough angle off the pads of Canadiens goalie Jakub Dobes. Jared Wright got his first NHL point with an assist on the play.
The Kings’ Alex Laferriere and Slafkovsky traded third-period goals, with Slafkovky scoring 31 seconds after Trevor Moore went to the penalty box for slashing. That set the stage for Nick Suzuki’s go-ahead goal 49 seconds later, following a Moore turnover deep in the Kings’ end.
And that moved the Kings a game closer to a new season Holland has begun preparing for.
“Time is running out,” Laferriere said. “We have 20 games left now and we need every single point. We can’t change what happened so we’ve got to try to take the positives from the game and make sure it doesn’t happen ever again.”
The San Antonio Spurs announced plans for their Barbie game day, presented by Trü Frü, taking place on Sunday, March 8 as the Spurs host the Houston Rockets, tipping off at 7 p.m. This theme night is part of the Spurs month-long celebration of Women’s History Month with the organization’s 2026 theme being “Give and Gain,” and will feature a $40,000 donation and in-game “Leaders and Legacies” spotlight, special jersey ticket package and more.
The Spurs Barbie Game Day jersey and fanny pack are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Prio to the game, the Spurs will host a special meet and greet with Eileen Collins, the first woman to pilot and command a space shuttle. The entirety of the game will feature an all-female cast with Ashley and Valerie leading the night in-arena, while music throughout the game will be curated by both DJ Sweetbeatz and DJ Catwalk.
In addition, the Spurs are distributing $40,000 in grants to five female operated local organizations whose leadership and service have made a lasting impact across the San Antonio community.
Fans can text HER to 210-444-5940 to learn more about the Barbie Game Day festivities and secure their exclusive jersey ticket package.
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BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - MARCH 7: Casey Mittelstadt #11 and Viktor Arvidsson #71 of the Boston Bruins celebrate the third-period goal against the Washington Capitals at the TD Garden on March 7, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Steve Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
Happy Sunday, folks!
The Bruins turned in a much-improved performance on Saturday afternoon, beating the Washington Capitals at TD Garden by a score of 2-1.
The B’s got goals from Pavel Zacha and Viktor Arvidsson, plus 22 saves from Jeremy Swayman.
The game probably could have gone a bit differently if Tom Wilson didn’t miss a couple of grade-A scoring chances, but coming off of Thursday night’s mess of a game in Nashville, yesterday’s team-wide performance was better in all areas.
The win coming in regulation had standings implications as well, with Washington falling to six points behind the Bruins for the second wild card spot.
The Caps are actually tied in points with Philadelphia now, with both Ottawa and Columbus ahead of them.
Other games on Saturday with playoff implications:
Buffalo beat Nashville, while Tampa beat Toronto. Those two wins mean Buffalo and Tampa remain tied atop the Atlantic Division, though Buffalo has played two more games.
Montreal beat Los Angeles to move into 3rd in the Atlantic and bump Detroit down to the first wild card spot.
Ottawa beat Seattle to stay in the wild card hunt.
Columbus lost to Utah in OT, allowing the B’s to gain a point in the standings on the Blue Jackets.
With 20 games left, there’s still plenty of time for all of this to change, so it’s probably silly to put too much thought into it, but hey, it’s Sunday. Something to read about.
Your highlights from yesterday’s win over Washington, if you’d like to review:
Sep 27, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday (7) at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images
Hello, friends.
There are now 18 days remaining until Orioles Opening Day. From now through March 23 will be near-daily exhibitions where hopefully nobody will get injured and everybody will get ready to fill the role they are needed to fill this season. This afternoon, they’ll play the Blue Jays at 1:05 in a game that will air on MASN as well as on the Orioles flagship radio stations in Baltimore. Many of your electronic devices have probably already reminded you that the “spring forward” part of Daylight Savings Time happened last night, but if they haven’t, don’t show up an hour late.
With the magic of spring training, the Orioles played two games simultaneously in two different places yesterday afternoon. At home in Sarasota, one group of Orioles beat the Twins, 3-2. Heston Kjerstad hit a two-run go-ahead home run in this game, and Coby Mayo later broke a tie with an RBI double.
A second group of Orioles was on the road to play the Braves in North Port, Florida. That game ended in a 2-2 tie. Not much of interest happened in this game. Samuel Basallo was on base twice, so at least there was that. Pitching prospect Boston Bateman got some action in and allowed two solo home runs, one to Austin Riley and one to Mike Yastrzemski. That’s some tougher competition than he’s seen in A-ball up to this point. Earlier in the game, pitching prospect Luis De León struck out those same two batters.
Within the next week, we’ll see more and more of the players who are obviously not going to make the MLB roster getting sent over to the minor league camp and there won’t be as many opportunities to see them in the major league spring games. The expected big league regulars will be playing more and more of the innings as the regular season gets closer. We’re not quite there yet, especially with there still being World Baseball Classic absences.
Updating Holliday’s advancements in recovery from hamate bone surgery (School of Roch) Yesterday’s development is that Holliday has progressed to swinging off a tee, with BP “within the next week or so.” They still haven’t put a timetable on his return. I’m sticking with my guess of Holliday missing a month.
Orioles option Brandon Young to minor league camp (Baltimore Baseball) As manager Craig Albernaz said, “There is no pathway for him to break with us for Opening Day,” so the team wanted to get him over to the minor league side to build up his innings there. 67 players are still on the camp roster after this lone cut.
Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries
Today in 2001, the Orioles announced that Albert Belle was no longer able to perform as an MLB player due to his degenerative right hip condition.
There are several former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2011 pitcher Mark Worrell, 2009 pitcher Chris Lambert, 2009 utility man Ryan Freel, 2002 infielder Mike Moriarty, and 1960-62 infielder Marv Breeding.
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: composer Carl Philipp Emmanuel Bach (1714), Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. (1841), baseball Hall of Famers Dick Allen (1942) and Jim Rice (1953), sports broadcaster Kenny Smith (1965), and actor James Van Der Beek (1977).
On this day in history…
In 1801, during the War of the Second Coalition (against Napoleon), the British successfully landed an expeditionary force in Egypt with a victory in the Battle of Abukir. Within six months, the French who had invaded the territory surrendered.
In 1917, protests made on International Women’s Day in Petrograd, Russia launched the February Revolution that, over the next eight days, overthrew the monarchy. If you’re wondering why the February Revolution happened in March, it’s because Russia at this time was still using the Julian calendar so for them it was February 23.
In 1979, electronics company Philips made the first demonstration of the compact disc.
A random Orioles trivia question
I received a random book of Orioles trivia questions for Christmas. I’ll ask a question in this space each time it’s my turn until I run out of questions or forget. Though the book gives multiple choice answers, I’m not giving you those because that would be too easy. Here’s today’s question:
The team’s combined no-hitter in 1991 against the Athletics saw three relievers pitch: Mike Flanagan, Mark Williamson, and Gregg Olson. Who was the starting pitcher in this game?
If you are answering the question early in the day, please be considerate of those coming later and place your answer in spoiler text in the comments. Thank you!
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And that’s the way it is in Birdland on March 8. Have a safe Sunday.
Nearly all of men's college basketball is through with the regular season, and only conference tournaments await before March Madness is fully underway.
Thirty-one automatic bids will be awarded over the next week via conference tournament winners. Another 37 at-large bids are up for grabs, although numerous teams are virtual locks for the NCAA Tournament already.
Will there be any bid stealers in 2026? Conference tournaments provide bubble teams with one final chance to boost their resumes prior to sweating out Selection Sunday.
Here's a look at the latest NCAA Tournament projections heading into conference tournament week in men's college basketball:
March Madness bracket bubble watch tracker
Based on games through Saturday, March 7
NCAA Tournament locks
ACC (6): Duke, Virginia, North Carolina, Louisville, Miami, Clemson
Big 12 (6): Arizona, Iowa State, Houston, Kansas, Texas Tech, Brigham Young
Big Ten (8): Michigan, Illinois, Purdue, Michigan State, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Iowa, UCLA
Each team on the locks list has a 99.9% chance or better to reach the NCAA Tournament, per Torvik's "TourneyCast."
Wisconsin has risen into lock territory after a strong February saw the Badgers finish 4-3 with a pair of top-10 wins over Illinois and Michigan State. Although Kentucky has lost four of its last six games, its ranked wins over Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Arkansas and St. John's is enough for a bid.
Saint Mary's will compete with Gonzaga for the WCC title, but defeated the Bulldogs on Feb. 28 and has a 27-4 record this season. That resume alone is enough to be a lock for the tournament.
NCAA Tournament likely ins
ACC (1): NC State
Big 12 (2): TCU, UCF
Big Ten(1): Ohio State
SEC (3): Texas A&M, Texas, Missouri
Big East: N/A
Other (1): Utah State
This late in the season, most teams are either NCAA tournament locks or bubble teams — hence the short list of teams as "likely ins." It would take disaster for most, if not all, of these teams to not reach the 2026 men's NCAA Tournament. However, the chance is still there for a meltdown.
Each team listed as a likely-in program has a 70% chance or higher to earn an at-large bid, per "TourneyCast."
NCAA Tournament bubble teams
ACC (4): Southern Methodist, Virginia Tech, California, Stanford, Southern California
Big 12 (3): Cincinnati, Arizona State, West Virginia
Big Ten (1): Indiana
SEC (2): Auburn, Oklahoma
Big East (1): Seton Hall
Other (5): Miami (Ohio), San Diego State, Santa Clara, VCU, New Mexico
Miami (Ohio) still hasn't lost this season, but will only feel comfortable heading into Selection Sunday if it wins the MAC tournament. The RedHawks rank No. 53 in the NCAA's Net Rankings and haven't played any Quad 1 games, which will make it tough to earn an at-large bid should they lose the MAC tournament.
San Diego State, Santa Clara, VCU and New Mexico are in a similar boat as non-Power conference teams. Santa Clara likely has the best chance of earning an at-large bid, although its chances of winning the WCC are slim over Saint Mary's and Gonzaga.
Auburn has seen its chances plummet in recent weeks, losing eight of its last 10 games under first-year coach Steven Pearl. Oklahoma has since its chances go from zero to slim during Auburn's fall, with wins in five of its last seven games. The Sooners would need to make quite the run at the SEC tournament to have an at-large shot.
The ACC tournament will also be interesting, as five teams are fighting for their lives on the bubble. Perhaps whichever teams do the most at the conference tournament will earn the NCAA Tournament nods.
TOKYO, JAPAN - MARCH 06: Yoshinobu Yamamoto #18 of Team Japan reacts in the third inning during the 2026 World Baseball Classic Pool C game between Japan and Chinese Taipei at Tokyo Dome on March 06, 2026 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Gene Wang - Capture At Media/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Dodgers have their first off day of the spring this week, with no game on the docket for Wednesday. It’s one of two off days on their Cactus League schedule, along with Thursday, March 19. Also this week, pool play concludes in the World Baseball Classic, which moves into elimination games next weekend.
Korea, at 1-2 in Pool C, needs a win over Australia on Monday and some help to stay alive in the tournament. If Japan advances out of Pool C as expected, expect Yoshinobu Yamamoto to pitch in the quarterfinals on Friday or Saturday.
Daylight saving time starts on Sunday, so Arizona will be on the same clock as those of us in and around Los Angeles now. Here is the schedule for the week ahead (all times PT):
Sunday, March 8
WBC: Japan vs. Australia, 3 a.m. (FS1) Dodgers at A’s, 1:05 p.m. (SportsNet LA)
Monday, March 9
WBC: Korea vs. Australia, 3 a.m. (FS1) Dodgers at Brewers, 1:10 p.m. (SportsNet LA) WBC: Puerto Rico vs. Cuba, 4 p.m. (FS1) WBC: United States vs. Mexico, 5 p.m. (Fox)
Tuesday, March 10
Dodgers vs. D-backs, 1:05 p.m. (SportsNet LA, AM 570) WBC: Puerto Rico vs. Canada, 4 p.m. (Tubi) WBC: United States vs. Italy, 6 p.m. (FS1)
Mar 3, 2026; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; Team USA outfielder Aaron Judge against the San Francisco Giants during a spring training game at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
The Yankees have spent a lot of time talking about their pitching this spring, Brian Cashman making a point to praise the high upside arms the team will have at their disposal throughout the season. To be sure, the thought of Gerrit Cole arriving midseason to reinforce a rotation that should already include Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, and Cam Schlittler is tantalizing, not to mention the potential on offer from new addition Ryan Weathers and prospects Carlos Lagrange and Elmer Rodríguez.
But perhaps we should be spending more time talking about offense. It was on offense, after all, that the Yankees shined in 2025, running a 119 wRC+ that was by far the best in baseball. Their 118 wRC+ in 2024 also led MLB, albeit by a lesser margin. Judge’s production is incomparable, but he’s been backed up by enough depth in recent years to put the offense into elite territory.
Yet the Yankees aren’t alone even in their own division in terms of offense, with particularly strong outfits in a few spots in the AL East. So let’s keep it simple: who’s got the best lineup in the division?
The Yankees are the incumbents, having paced the league last year and continuing to employ the greatest hitter of his generation. But will one of their rivals surpass them? At first blush, the Blue Jays seem like the strongest contenders. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and George Springer lead the way, backed up by a few group breakout players, a group that cut the Yankees pitching to death in the ALDS in 2025.
That said, the Orioles could be a dark horse. The O’s disappointed last year, but they made some serious power additions in the form of Pete Alonso and Taylor Ward, deepening a lineup that already included loads of talented young players, led by Gunnar Henderson. Baltimore would need bounce back seasons from Adley Rutschman and Jackson Holliday, among others, but this Orioles offense has the talent to be very, very good. The last two offenses here, in Boston and Tampa, probably don’t have quite the horses to get into this conversation, though the Red Sox could surprise. Roman Anthony is already a star, and Willson Contreras, Wilyer Abreu, and Jarren Duran round out a formidable top quartet of hitters.
What do you think? Is the best lineup in the division still in New York? Or will they be outstripped by the batters in Baltimore, Toronto, or elsewhere?
The WBC is roaring along, so this morning Matt and Peter will get you caught up on the latest action. We also have a fascinating figure for our Yankees Birthday series in Jim Bouton, while John takes a look at the Rangers as part of our 2026 MLB Preview, and also provides this week’s runaround Yankees social media.
