TORONTO (AP) — William Nylander broke a tie on a power play 36 seconds into the third period and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Anaheim Ducks 6-4 on Thursday night to end an eight-game losing streak.
The victory was tempered by the loss of captain Auston Matthews on a knee-on-knee hit from Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas with four minutes left in the second period. Matthews stayed down favoring his left leg before being helped to the locker room. Gudas was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct.
Matthews scored earlier to end a 12-game goal drought.
Matias Maccell had a goal and two assists, and John Tavares and Benoit-Olivier Groulx also scored. Matthew Knies had three assists to go along with an empty-net goal, and Nylander added two assists. Joseph Woll made 36 saves.
Cutter Gauthier, Ian Moore, Pavel Mintyukov and Alex Killorn scored for Pacific Division-leading Anaheim. Lukas Dostal stopped 22 shots.
The Maple Leafs are 1-6-2 since the Olympic break to sink any realistic hope of a 10th straight playoff appearance. They won at home for the first time since Jan. 10.
MIAMI, FL - MARCH 11: A general view of loanDepot park during the national anthem of the Dominican Republic prior to the 2026 World Baseball Classic Pool D game presented by Capital One between Team Dominican Republic and Team Venezuela on Wednesday, March 11, 2026 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Kelly Gavin/WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Place your bets!
The pool stage of the World Baseball Classic is complete, the matchups are set, and we’re gearing up for what should be five days of incredible baseball starting Friday night with Team USA taking on Canada in Houston and the Dominican Republic facing Korea in Miami. The following night, Puerto Rico will face Italy and Japan will take on Venezuela.
There are eight teams remaining, which includes eight remaining Rockies:
Team Canada: Eduoard Julien, Antoine Jean
Team Italy: Michael Lorenzen
Team Dominican Republic: Juan Mejia
Team Puerto Rico: Willi Castro
Team Venezuela: Ezequiel Tovar, Antonio Senzatela
Team Japan: Tomoyuki Sugano
On Monday, we asked you who you thought was having the best WBC and which team you were rooting for. Tonight, we ask you a separate question: who do you think will win the whole thing?
Japan, USA and the Dominican Republic appear to be the favorites on paper, but anything can happen! (That’s baseball, and all that.)
Let us know your thoughts!
And in the meantime, see what the WBC means to some of the players:
PEORIA, ARIZONA - MARCH 5: Nick Castellanos #21 of the San Diego Padres swings and hits the ball during a Spring Training game against the Seattle Mariners at Peoria Stadium on March 5, 2026 in Peoria, Arizona. (Photo by Matt Thomas/San Diego Padres/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Introduction
After reviewing the offseason of the Colorado Rockies and the Los Angeles Dodgers the last two weeks, today we continue our NL West Offseason reviews with a look at the San Diego Padres.
2025 Season Overview/Recap
The Padres got off to a great start to begin the 2025 season, matching their best-19 game start in franchise history with a 15-4 record. The team experienced a roster makeover thanks to a busy trade deadline, trading for Ramon Laureano, Ryan O’Hearn, Nestor Cortes, Freddy Fermín, JP Sears, and probably the most impactful piece, All-Star closer Mason Miller. The Padres held a lead at top of the NL West on August 23, the latest they’ve held a lead in the division during a season since 2010, however, they finished in second place in the division behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for the second straight season. They did make the postseason as the fifth NL Wild Card seed though, but ultimately lost to the Chicago Cubs 2-1 in the Wild Card series, ending their season in disappointment. In spite of the disappointing end to their season, I still think it’s fair to call the Padres 2025 season a success.
UTIL Jose Iglesias, SP Dylan Cease (Blue Jays), 1B/2B Luis Arraez (Giants), RP Robert Suarez (Braves), 1B/OF Ryan O’Hearn (Pirates)
Offseason Summary and Review
The Padres have one of the biggest subtractions of the offseason in the NL West with Dylan Cease leaving sunny San Diego for the exact opposite weather in Toronto, Canada. However, the Padres did manage to avoid also losing starting pitchers Michael King and Kyle Hart to free agency. While German Marquez and Walker Buehler are a big step down from Cease, they are very low risk additions, especially considering the market for free agent starting pitching. I really like the addition of German Marquez, who in theory should have a much easier time pitching at sea level in San Diego, especially compared to the challenge that is pitching at altitude in Denver’s Coors Fields. Walker Buehler probably won’t come close again to what he did when he was with the Dodgers, but I wouldn’t be shocked if he returned to form in 2026. Starting pitcher Griffin Canning, who ruptured his Achilles tendon playing for the Mets in 2025, might be one of the better under-the-radar signings of the offseason. While he’s still rehabbing that injury, he’ll likely provide a boost to the Padres rotation early into the 2026 season. While not a free agent signing, Joe Musgrove, who missed all of 2025 thanks to Tommy John surgery he had back in October of 2024, should provide a boost to the Padres rotation early in the season as well.
Before going into the details of the Sung-Mun Song, Nick Castellanos, or Miguel Andujar signings, it’s worth noting that they’re improvements just from the fact that the Padres won’t have to suffer through Jose Iglesias playing in 112 games games in 2026. Despite having a career high 2.5 fWAR and 136 wRC+ in 86 games for the Mets in 2024, Iglesias fell off hard in 2025, putting up an anemic 73 wRC+ and negative defensive value when not playing shortstop, leading to a -0.2 fWAR/-0.7 bWAR season.
Sung-Mun Song is coming off two excellent seasons in the Korean Baseball. In 2024 Song played in all but one of the Kiwoom Heroes games and hit .340/.409/.518, finishing with a career high 19 homeruns and 21 stolen bases, which works out to a 143 wRC+ or 43% better than league average. He’d follow that up with an arguably better 2025 season. He played in all 144 games, hit .315/.387/.530 with 26 homeruns and 25 stolen bases. In a season where offense was down in the KBO, that works out to a 151 wRC+ or 51% better than a league average hitter. The real concerns with Song are that prior to 2024 he had been a below average hitter in all but one of his prior seven seasons, in addition to having only one season where he had appeared in more than 105 games. So the big question for Song will he able to continue his offensive breakout in a more competitive league, while staying healthy for a full season? ZIPs and other projection systems are skeptical of Song succeeding in MLB, but he does at least project to be an average hitter.
Miguel Andujar is coming off his best season in MLB since 2018. While not anywhere close to his production that season, in 2025 he still managed to hit .318/.352/.470 with a 125 wRC+ in 98 games split between the Athletics and Reds. While I wouldn’t expect him to follow up with an equal or better 2026, he should at least give the Padres an offensive boost.
Adding Nick Castellanos is possibly the biggest surprise of the Padres offseason. Castellanos, who turned 34 a week ago, was DFA’d by the Phillies after a disappointing 2025 campaign in which he hit .250/.294/.400 with a 90 wRC+. Although Castellanos will be used as part of a platoon, the fact that his hitting against both left and right handers cratered in 2025 is a massive red flag entering the 2026 season. While Castellanos might have been a good fit for Petco earlier in his career, I don’t think the ballpark will do him any favors in 2026. All that said, taking a flier on Castellanos for league minimum is definitely worth the risk.
This is still a very talented roster, especially with the core of Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr, Xander Bogaerts, and Jake Cronenworth, which doesn’t even get into Jackson Merrill and flamethrowing closer Mason Miller, both of whom should only be getting better going forward. While there are some concerns with the lengthy deals the Padres inked over the last decade, that’s really a problem for next year.
On paper this looks like the NL West with the best chances of beating the likely division winner the Los Angeles Dodgers. I really love the moves they made to improve their pitching staff and lineup, especially the lower risk moves. My offseason grade for the San Diego Padres is an A.
PHOENIX –– Kiké Hernández has been to the MLB postseason 10 times, played in 103 playoff games and taken part in five World Series.
But what he experienced last week, while cheering on Team Puerto Rico from the dugout during two group stage games on his native island in the World Baseball Classic, might have rivaled anything he’s ever felt in his baseball career.
Kiké Hernández takes in the moment before Team Puerto Rico’s WBC game earlier in March. MLB Photos via Getty Images
“Getting the W and having a stadium of 18,000 people singing a pretty significant song for our island all together, it’s a moment that I’ll never forget,” he said. “I’m still bummed that I don’t get to be a part of it, but I still support my people. I’m still hoping that they can win.”
However, he got permission from the Dodgers to leave spring training last week to join Team Puerto Rico for the first two group stage games it hosted at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in the island’s capital of San Juan.
That meant, when Darell Hernáiz hit his epic walk-off home run in Puerto Rico’s extra-inning, come-from-behind win over Panama last Saturday, Hernández was there in the home plate celebration, pouring out of the dugout alongside his Puerto Rican teammates (including new Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz) in what instantly became one of the defining moments of WBC history.
“It’s not a walk-off homer in the World Series or anything like that,” he said. “But it’s still up there as one of those really cool moments that I’ll always remember.”
Afterward, Hernández also made headlines with postgame comments that went viral on social media, when he said in Spanish: “I’ve played in five World Series, and I don’t know if it’s because of what’s across my chest, but the Classic feels above that.”
On Thursday, Hernández expounded on that message, clarifying that the WBC often “feels bigger” than the World Series –– even if there is no apples-to-apples comparison for an MLB title.
“You don’t always choose who you play for (in MLB). Sometimes that’s not in your control,” he said. “But when you’re representing your country and playing along with your homies, sometimes you’re playing along with people that you grew up with. People back home are rooting for you.
“For us, coming from a little island, the things we can do for our island while the tournament is going on, it becomes a lot bigger than baseball, to where it not always feels that way when you’re playing for an organization in Major League Baseball.”
Kiké Hernández is not playing in the WBC this year for Team Puerto Rico. Getty Images
Hernández will rejoin Team Puerto Rico in Houston this weekend for its quarterfinal game Saturday against Team Italy –– joking that he texted Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman for permission immediately after last week’s walk-off win.
“He knows how much these games mean to me,” said Hernández, who still had his hair dyed white as part of Team Puerto Rico tradition. “It might have been an emotional text, but he was like, ‘After watching that game, it’s a pretty easy yes.’”
When asked if he would stay with Team Puerto Rico if it advances to the semifinal in Miami after that, Hernández then cracked a sly grin.
“I haven’t had that conversation yet with Andrew,” he said. “I only asked permission to go to Houston. So if we win again in Houston, he might get another text message asking if I can go along for the ride. But I haven’t decided that yet. We’re going to go one day at a time.”
Hernández’s rehab will factor into that equation. He said his progress is “starting to move along really rapidly” and that he has been able to take swings in the batting cage off a tee and against flipped balls from coaches.
Still, he wants to be there for as much of Puerto Rico’s WBC run as possible –– embracing his role as part cheerleader, part de facto coach on a team that has already surpassed expectations by reaching the knockout round despite missing most of its best MLB players because of insurance issues or injuries.
“I accepted the fact and came to peace with the fact that I couldn’t play,” he said. “Then you show up, you wear the uniform, you go out there for the anthem and you look around you can’t do it. It was really cool, but it was also really hard.
“I had to do a good job of hiding (that disappointment) and be there for the other guys that were there with less experience. It was tough being there (and not playing), but I’ll be there again in Houston, cheering them against Italy and providing whatever it is I need to provide as far as guidance or cheerleading. Whatever it is, I’ll be there. I’m all for it.”
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SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Sam Reinhart scored 2:20 into overtime to lift the Florida Panthers over the Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1 on Thursday night.
Sam Bennett also scored for the Panthers. His power-play wrist shot 1:28 into the third period sent the game to overtime. Sergei Bobrovsky made 30 saves in the win for the Panthers.
Adam Fantilli scored for the Blue Jackets, and Elvis Merzlikins had 19 saves.
The Blue Jackets dominated the first two periods, outshooting the Panthers 24-10. Florida came back strong in the third period and dominated in overtime.
Reinhart scored his team-leading 29th goal of the season on the power play. Matthew Tkachuk assisted on Reinhart’s goal, giving him three goals and four assists over his last four games.
The Panthers played without Brad Marchand, Anton Lundell and Carter Verhaeghe.
Up next
Blue Jackets: Wrap up a three-game road trip at Philadelphia on Saturday.
Panthers: Begin a four-game road trip at Seattle on Sunday.
While the shorthanded Detroit Red Wings didn't play a poor road game by any means, they didn't get the bounces needed to take down a team like the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Tampa dealt the Red Wings, who were shorthanded without Dylan Larkin, Andrew Copp, and David Perron, a 4-1 setback. It was their third regulation loss in their last four games.
However, they remain in the first Wild Card playoff position in the Eastern Conference thanks to the 4-2 loss by the Boston Bruins (WC2) to the San Jose Sharks.
Following a scoreless opening 20 minutes of play, the Lightning struck first early in the second period thanks to Jake Guentzel, who was a teammate of Larkin's for Team USA's successful gold medal run last month.
Tampa then scored again early in the third period, as a shot from Brayden Point deflected off Ben Chiarot and then off the skate of Gage Goncalves, giving them a 2-0 lead.
Detroit was able to break the shutout attempt of Andrei Vasilevskiy after J.T. Compher, who was elevated to the top center position, got his stick on a shot from Alex DeBrincat.
Minutes later, Patrick Kane had a glorious opportunity at the side of the net after taking a feed from Compher, but his shot missed wide right by a foot and hit the outside netting of the goal.
Point then managed to beat Gibson on a screen shot in the waning minutes of regulation, restoring Tampa's two-goal lead. Guentzel then added his second goal of the evening with Gibson on the bench for an extra attacker.
Gibson finished with 24 saves, the same number of saves Vasilevskiy finished with.
To compensate for the absences of Larkin and Copp, the Red Wings called up forwards from the Grand Rapids Griffins, including Sheldon Dries, who played for the first time since 2023 while he was with the Colorado Avalanche.
He played 10:16 of total ice time and had two shots.
The Red Wings will conclude their road trip on Saturday evening with a stop in Dallas to face the Stars.
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While the NHL trade deadline ended on March 6th, another hockey deadline was still a week away: the AHL deadline. The AHL trade deadline is different from the NHL's, as its official deadline ends March 13th, which is tomorrow. Last Friday, the Kings and Senators made a trade involving Warren Foegele, who went from Los Angeles to Ottawa.
The Trade
The official trade is that the LA Kings acquire forward Jan Janik in exchange for defenseman Samuel Bolduc. The trade is a one-for-one, and both players will remain in the AHL as of now.
Jan Janik, this season with the Belleville Senators, has played in 41 games, registering 9 goals, 8 assists, and 17 points. In his NHL career, the 26-year-old has played 24 games, recording 4 goals and 2 assists for 6 points.
The Kings are trading away Samuel Bolduc, who this season has played in 56 games for the Ontario Reign, recording 5 goals and 16 assists for 21 points. In the NHL, he has played 52 games, recording 4 goals and 4 assists for 8 points.
Ontario Reign
With the LA Kings fighting for a playoff spot, the Ontario Reign are the opposite, as they currently sit atop the Pacific Division with 79 points. In the overall AHL league standings, the Ontario Reign are 4th, only behind the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, Providence Bruins, and Grand Rapids Griffins.
Leading the Ontario Reign is Glenn Gawdin, who has 44 points in 57 games and leads the team in points. 25-year-old Andre Lee leads the Ontario Reign with 23 goals this season and has 40 points.
There is a good chance the Kings and the Reign make the playoffs in their respective leagues, and while it seems pretty likely the Reign will make it, it will come down to the final couple of games to see if the Kings can make it in.
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jimmy Snuggerud scored twice to lead the St. Louis Blues to a 3-1 win over the Eastern Conference-leading Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday night.
Snuggerud scored a tying goal in the second period and added a go-ahead score in third for the Blues, who were coming off an overtime loss to the New York Islanders on Tuesday.
Jordan Binnington starred for St. Louis, stopping 31 of the 32 shots he faced. Pavel Buchnevich scored his 15th of the season into an empty net in the final minute and Dylan Holloway assisted on both goals by Snuggerud, who has been on a offensive tear recently as the Blues won for the sixth time in eight games.
Snuggerud had his fourth straight multi-point game and scored in his fourth straight. The 21-year-old forward had a goal and two assists against the Islanders after recording a goal and assist in wins over Anaheim and San Jose. He has 15 goals and 19 assists in 53 games.
Mark Jankowski scored for the Hurricanes, who had their 12-game home points streak halted. Brandon Bussi made 14 saves.
Carolina, which entered having won three of their last four games and eight of their last 10, dominated at the outset, outshooting the Blues 13-2 in the first period.
Jankowski scored his seventh of the season after making a steal at center ice, moving around the Blues' Tyler Tucker and beating a sliding Binnington with a high shot for a 1-0 lead.
Snuggerud tied the game less than four minutes into the second period, beating Bussi with a snap shot from the high slot. He added the tiebreaking goal with just under five minutes remaining in the third period, sending a shot beneath Bussi's blocker from close range.
Up next
Blues: Host the Edmonton Oilers on Friday.
Hurricanes: At the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 07: Ilya Samsonov #35 of the Vegas Golden Knights makes a save as Blake Lizotte #46 of the Pittsburgh Penguins looks for a rebound in the first period of their game at T-Mobile Arena on March 07, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Calgary Flames continued their road swing with a stop in the Garden State on Thursday night and came away with a solid 5–4 victory over the New Jersey Devils.
It was a memorable night for several Flames players. John Beecher delivered his best performance since joining the club with a two-goal outing, Kevin Bahl added his fourth of the season, Yegor Sharangovich tallied his 14th, and captain Mikael Backlund reached a major milestone by recording the 600th point of his NHL career. Between the pipes, Dustin Wolf turned aside 27 Devils chances to secure the win.
Calgary wasted little time getting on the board. On just their second shot of the game, Beecher opened the scoring at 5:04 of the first period. The Flames forward carried the puck into the zone on a partial odd-man rush and elected to shoot, slipping a shot through former Flames goaltender Jakob Markstrom on the blocker side. The goal marked Beecher’s first as a Flame in his 31st game with the club, with Matvei Gridin picking up his fifth assist of the season on the play.
The Flames doubled their lead later in the period thanks to a strong sequence at the blue line. Bahl kept the puck alive in the offensive zone before the play cycled to Olli Maatta, who quickly returned the puck to Bahl for a booming one-timer at 14:07. The defenceman’s fourth of the season made it 2–0, with Adam Klapka also earning an assist.
New Jersey pushed back before the period ended. A turnover in front of the Calgary net created an opportunity for Maxim Tsyplakov, whose shot deflected off traffic in front and slipped past Wolf at 16:24 to cut the Flames lead to 2–1.
Late in the opening frame, Joel Hanley was assessed a four-minute high-sticking penalty, giving the Devils an extended power play that carried into the second period.
Instead, Calgary struck first when play resumed.
Just 54 seconds into the second, Beecher forced a turnover deep in the Devils zone and drove the net. His initial attempt was stopped by Markstrom, but Beecher followed up his own rebound and banked the puck in to restore the Flames’ two-goal advantage at 3–1.
New Jersey responded moments later on the same power play. After Luke Hughes’ shot created a scramble in front, Simon Nemec located the loose puck and pushed it past Wolf at 1:36 to make it a one-goal game again.
The Flames answered before the period ended with a well-executed rush. Ryan Strome led a two-on-one and slid the puck across to Sharangovich, who shifted to his backhand and lifted the puck over Markstrom to make it 4–2 heading into the third.
Calgary’s captain added a milestone marker early in the final frame. Backlund walked into the slot at 4:10 and snapped a shot past Markstrom to extend the lead to 5–2. The goal not only gave the Flames some breathing room, but it also marked career point number 600 for the longtime Calgary forward.
The Devils managed one more push late in the period. Jesper Bratt spotted Jack Hughes jumping onto the ice during a line change, and Hughes stepped into the play before wiring a wrist shot past Wolf to trim the deficit to 5–3.
Luke Hughes added a late powerplay tally, but that would be as close as New Jersey would get, as Calgary closed things out to secure the road victory.
The Flames have been waiting for a night like this from John Beecher. The former first-round pick showed the full package with two goals, strong defensive play, and key penalty-killing work.
Maatta Making the Most of His Opportunity
Olli Maatta continues to settle in nicely since arriving via trade from Utah. The veteran defenceman added another assist and now has three helpers in his first four games with Calgary.
Backlund Reaches 600 Points
Another milestone for the Flames captain. With his third-period goal, Mikael Backlund recorded the 600th point of his NHL career, further cementing his long-standing legacy in Calgary.
The Florida Panthers are starting to string some wins together, hoping that their effort is not too little, too late.
Florida once again had to come from behind, erasing a third-period deficit and taking down the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1 in overtime on Thursday night in Sunrise.
It was a quiet evening on the scoreboard, with both teams struggling to light the lamp until well into the night.
Columbus finally got on the board just over 13 minutes into the second period.
After a failed Florida 2-on-1 attempt while killing the final seconds off a Donovan Sebrango interference penalty, the Blue Jackets took advantage of the quick transition and went on an odd-man rush of their own.
Entering Florida’s zone on a 3-on-1, Adam Fantilli carried the puck into the right circle and instead of passing, wound up and fired a shot that went past Sergei Bobrovsky and into the net with 6:59 remaining in the middle frame.
The Blue Jackets carried that lead into the third period, but an early power play for Florida led to the game-tying tally.
A shot by Sam Reinhart was partially blocked and ended up hitting Sam Benentt in the chest at the back post.
Bennett quickly swatted the puck into the back of the net, knotting the score at one at the 1:28 mark of the final frame.
That’s how the score would remain through the end of regulation.
Florida would pick up the bonus point during overtime, once again cashing in on the power play.
The play started with the puck on the stick of rookie Mike Benning, who was playing in his first NHL game.
Benning fed Matthew Tkachuk in the right circle, and his centering pass went through the slot and all the way to Sam Reinhart at the goal line.
Reinhart saw an opening and fired a sharp-angle shot past a sprawling Elvis Merzlikins, giving Florida their third straight victory.
For Benning, he picked up his first NHL point on the game-winning goal in his first NHL game.
Photo caption: Dec 6, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Elvis Merzlikins (90) makes a save on a shot tipped by Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett (9) during the second period at Amerant Bank Arena. (Jim Rassol-Imagn Images)
The incident occurred in the latter stages of the second period, shortly after Matthews − who captained the United States men's hockey team to the gold medal at the 2026 Winter Olympics − scored his first goal for the Leafs since Jan. 27. Matthews had gotten the puck alone in front of the net and a hard-charging Gudas drove right through the American star, Gudas' left leg taking out Matthews' left.
Matthews, 28, immediately clutched at his leg and needed assistance to get off the ice. Gudas, a 35-year-old veteran defenseman, was assessed a 5-minute major for kneeing and a 10-minute game misconduct, ending his night.
Radko Gudas has been ejected from the game for kneeing and Auston Matthews has gone to the dressing room. pic.twitter.com/wTiR9t7Tzw
The Leafs announced that Matthews would not return to the game due to a lower-body injury.
The Maple Leafs won 6-4, cashing in twice on the 5-minute power play brought on by Gudas' hit.
Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube called Gudas' hit a "dirty play." He didn't have any updates on Matthews' status, saying Matthews would be "looked at tomorrow."
SAN ANTONIO (AP) — San Antonio Spurs All-Star Victor Wembanayama will miss Thursday night's game against the Denver Nuggets due to right ankle soreness.
Wembanyama was questionable and ruled out after going through pre-game warmups.
The 7-foot-4 center from France went through his pre-game workout about 25 minutes earlier than normal. He walked off the court after shooting free throws and speaking to a member of the Spurs training staff.
San Antonio, which has won five straight and 16 of its last 17 games, is second in the Western Conference at 48-17. Denver (40-26) is fifth in the West.
Wembanyama was named the West's Player of the Week after leading the Spurs to a 4-0 record for the week ending March 8. He averaged 26 points, 10.5 rebounds and 4.8 blocks.
Wembanyama must play in 13 of San Antonio's final 16 games for end-of-season award eligibility. The NBA requires players to play at least 20 minutes for 65 games during the 82-game regular season.
Wembanyama has played in 51 games this season. He is credited with a 52nd game after playing in the NBA Cup Final, which does not count toward the regular-season standings or statistics, but is part of the 65-game requirement.
Spurs forward Harrison Barnes, who missed five straight games with a left ankle injury will play Thursday. Barnes played in 364 consecutive games before sitting out.
TORONTO (AP) — Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews left Thursday night against Anaheim after a knee-on-knee hit from Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas.
Trying to make a move around Gudas in the slot in the second period, Matthew stook a direct blow to his left leg and crashed to the ice. The U.S. Olympic captain stayed down before being helped to the locker room.
Gudas, the bruising Czech defender whose hit ended Canadian captain Sidney Crosby’s Olympics in the quarterfinals, was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct.
Matthews snapped a 12-game goal drought earlier in the period on a power play. The center has 27 goals and 26 assists in 60 games this season.
GLENDALE, ARIZONA - MARCH 10: Miguel Rojas #72 of the Los Angeles Dodgers tosses the ball during a Spring Training game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Camelback Ranch on March 10, 2026 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Dodgers are back after their day off on Wednesday as they host the Cincinnati Reds at Camelback Ranch on Thursday. Cole Irvin gets the start for the Dodgers, facing left-hander Nick Lodolo.
