BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - MAY 27: Bryce Elder #55 of the Atlanta Braves delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on May 27, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Paul Rutherford/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Braves are back home after another successful road trip. They’ll face Toronto and Pittsburgh now at home, but Toronto comes first and former Brave Kevin Gausman will take the mound Tuesday.
Gausman has essentially pitched at a star level since leaving the Braves, as they seem to have done the right scouting, but couldn’t quite get the development right with him. The 35 year old righty is essentially a two-pitch pitcher, throwing his four-seamer and sinker over 90% of the time, with a token slider for a different look. The fastball sits around 94 with good extension and great life, particularly in the horizontal axis. His splitter has strong horizontal break as well and he throws it below the zone often for a bunch of whiffs. He’s a very good pitcher, but a righty probably is better for the Braves’ current platoon splits, so hopefully they can hit him well.
Bryce Elder will be on the mound and while he has looked more like an enhanced Bryce Elder than prime Corey Kluber of late, he is having a good year and giving the Braves a chance to win when he takes the mound. He is coming off of his worst start by far, as a lack of strikeouts, bad defense, and BABIP luck resulted in 6 runs over 3.1 innings. He’ll hope to bounce back against a Toronto lineup that has talent but has been a huge disappointment this season, with a bottom 10 team wRC+ of 94. Hopefully they stay disappointing and don’t find their talent again while in Atlanta. This seems like a solid bounce-back opportunity for Bryce and the Braves might need that from him against Gausman.
Relief Pitcher Taylor Clarke with catcher Aramis Garcia. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Inspiration.
In May, the Diamondbacks had 17 quality starts. Quality starts often require the bullpen to pitch less innings. Those starts should keep them rested. More importantly, the interesting question is whether the Diamondbacks relievers pitch better in games in which the starter executed a quality start? Let’s look at that question. Data from Baseball Reference, FanGraphs, and Baseball Savant.
The 17 Quality Starts in May.
There were seven relief pitchers with at least 14 PAs in those quality starts (Pfaadt was not considered because of too few PAs in quality starts).
Zero Earned Runs. Three relievers (Jonathan Loaisiga, Brandyn Garcia, and Taylor Clarke) allowed zero earned runs. That could imply that they were not challenged by their batters. To test that idea, I looked at stats (OBP, SLG, and RBIs/PA) for the batters they faced. I found seven dangerous batters: Luis Arraez, Jake Burger, Oneil Cruz, former Diamondback Jake McCarthy, Bryan Reynolds, Casey Schmitt, and Juan Soto. To my surprise, they each had exactly four PAs against those dangerous batters. My conclusion is they were indeed challenged and pitched admirably. The following table shows the dangerous batters they faced.
Side Note: In 2022, Jake McCarthy was voted Rookie of the Year by the AZ Snake Pit. After last season’s career low .591 OPS, the Diamondbacks traded him during the offseason. This season with the Rockies, Jake McCarthy had a career best .784 OPS and a career best .149 RBIs/PA. Those career best statistics made him a dangerous batter.
Win Probability Added (WPA). In May, which of the seven pitchers made the most impact as measured by WPA? To my surprise, despite allowing earned runs, Kevin Ginkel and Paul Sewald ranked third and fourth ahead of Loaisiga. Another note is that two games (13 and 21 May) were responsible for Juan Morillo ranking last in WPA. The following table shows their WPAs.
Quality Starts in the Entire Season.
Now, let’s look at the big question, “This season, did the Diamondbacks relievers pitch better in quality starts?” Each of their game-WPAs were placed into one of two bins: games with quality starts and games without quality starts. Each reliever had between 7 and 9 quality start games, with the exception of Thompson, who had 5. Sample size was not an issue.
The following table shows the WPA for each reliever.
The answer is that it depends on which relief pitcher.
Three relievers pitched better in quality starts (Clarke, Garcia, and Loaisiga). It makes sense that those three allowed zero earned runs in May’s quality starts.
One Reliever pitched about the same in both, with a slight edge to no-quality starts (Ginkel).
Three relievers pitched better in non-quality starts (Thompson, Sewald, and Morillo).
Summary.
In May, three relievers allowed zero earned runs in their quality starts, despite facing dangerous batters. They were Jonathan Loaisiga, Brandyn Garcia, and Taylor Clarke. This season, some relievers pitched better in games with quality starts (Loaisiga, Garcia, and Clarke), and some relievers (Morillo, Sewald, and Thompson) pitched better in games with non-quality starts. One reliever (Ginkel) pitched about the same in each type of game.
Last week the MLBPA and MLB each submitted their initial offerings to each other as they staked out their arguments for what the terms of the next Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) should contain. There are a lot of interesting elements to those proposals we’ll talk about in detail over the coming weeks and months, but in today’s “Reading the CBA Leaves” I’m focusing on one in particular: MLB’s proposal for a salary floor.
MLB formally proposed a salary cap of $245.3 million and a salary floor of $171.2 million. The cap is a non-starter. The 2026 first tier for the Competitive Balance Tax (CBT) kicks in at $244 million. The idea that MLB would cap salaries at a substantially less than inflation increase above that is laughable. But the more interesting number for discussion today is the proposed salary floor, which almost looks compelling until you start to dig into it a little bit.
The devil really is in the details here. Baking those fixed costs into the salary floor allows MLB to offer a floor that looks reasonable while actually just reallocating items the players have already won to bolster a floor that frankly isn’t high enough with those elements included.
In 2027, the salary floor would be set at $171.2 million, meaning that 12 teams would be required to increase payroll by a combined $617 million to meet the floor, enabling more clubs to pursue free-agent players and retain their homegrown stars.
Those 12 teams, based on 2026 Opening Day payrolls, are the Marlins, Guardians, Rays, White Sox, Cardinals, Nationals, Pirates, Twins, Brewers, Athletics, Rockies and Reds.
It all sounds well and good that 12 teams would need to increase salaries by $617 million, but Feisand goes on to note that “eight clubs – the Dodgers, Mets, Yankees, Blue Jays, Phillies, Red Sox, Padres and Braves – would be required to reduce payroll by a combined $578 million.” That’s a recipe for relatively flat salary numbers for players with a heavy hand in redistribution.
Which payroll number you use matters more than just the bonuses and benefits that are included, as Jon Becker of Fangraphs noted when he looked at team salaries last year:
Please note that for contracts with significant deferrals, the league’s Labor Relations Department (LRD) will recalculate their value to a significantly lower number than what is displayed on the RosterResource pages to account for the discounted rate. For each year, we show the money that ultimately will be paid out to each player. So, for example, RosterResource lists Shohei Ohtani’s real-dollar payroll value for 2025 as $70 million, even though his 10-year, $700 million contract is heavily deferred.
The CBT payrolls shown on RosterResource, and in the AAV column for each player, do accurately reflect how the league discounts contracts. I wrote more about Ohtani’s deal in particular here. Ken Rosenthal wrote more about the nuances of Ohtani’s contract’s three values ($700 million, about $460 million, and about $280 million) here; RosterResource only accounts for the first two values, while the league’s LRD calculation reflects the third.
CBT payrolls include ancillary expenses that the real-dollar payrolls don’t, including player benefits (estimated at $17.5 million this year), payment into the $50 million pre-arbitration bonus pool ($1,666,667 per team), and minor league salaries for 40-man roster players (estimated at $2.5 million per team).
You should read that whole piece, and pay special attention to how using the CBT numbers for salaries impacts the amount of compensation going to players. It really is telling that MLB’s proposal would be based on a calculation that shows the 2025 Athletics paid their players $115.3 million in 2025 as opposed to the $76.5 million the LRD number indicates they paid their players. Here is the full chart from Becker’s piece:
And therein lies the rub, this isn’t a move towards competitive equity and a fairer playing field. This is an attempt to fix labor costs under the guise of moving to a more fair playing field. So of course the league is using a dataset of payroll values that is most favorable to the ownership group and includes all sorts of additional compensation the players would probably argue are distinct from their salaries.
The average baseball team is worth $2.9 billion, more than double MLB’s $1.3 billion average from a decade ago, per Forbes’ annual estimates. But some franchises are appreciating at a much slower rate than others. When they put their teams up for sale in recent years, the owners of the Los Angeles Angels, Washington Nationals and Minnesota Twins were disappointed by the bids that came in.
What’s perhaps most irksome to baseball owners, however, is that they keep getting trounced by owners in other leagues. The average National Basketball Association team is worth $5.4 billion, and the average National Football League team $7.1 billion, per Forbes
Drellich continues:
The owners are emboldened not only because they see a problem — they also believe they see a solution.
Every day, they watch other leagues make use of the system they want in baseball. The NBA, NFL and National Hockey League all have a salary cap and floor. MLB does not.
The leading reason MLB valuations trail is a lack of “payroll certainty,” according to Sal Galatioto, president of the sports banking firm Galatioto Sports Partners.
It is an audacious move for a league with an estimated $12.5 billion value to attempt an increase in franchise values across the board by orders of magnitude by limiting the cost of player labor across the board. It is perhaps a sign of the times that the owners and MLB believe they can define what counts as salaries in the most favorable possible terms to owners as the negotiations begin.
The terms of the debate matter a lot and $171 million just isn’t what it used to be, especially when those terms result in a salary floor that is actually closer to $128 million.
As Mike Breen prepares to call his 21st NBA Finals on ABC, he’s also preparing to do something he’s never done before.
Breen has been the Knicks’ play-by-play voice on MSG Networks since 1998 — but this is the first time during that stretch that he’ll announce the Knicks in the Finals.
“It’s kind of a bucket list thing,” Breen said. “Twenty-one Finals is impossible to comprehend for me, and I always thought it’d be pretty cool to have the Knicks in one. And to see the growth of the team the last couple of years and to see what this team has done for the fan base of New York — I’ve lived in New York my whole life. It’s really energized the city like nothing I’ve ever seen, so I’m really looking forward to it.”
Breen announced the Knicks’ 1994 Finals series loss to the Rockets on the radio for New York’s WFAN. In 1999, when the Knicks made it back to the Finals, Marv Albert was on the call instead of Breen.
Now, Breen is getting a second chance. This year’s Knicks-Spurs championship series is a rematch of the 1999 Finals, when the Knicks became the first 8-seed to make the Finals at the conclusion of the lockout-shortened NBA season. But with Patrick Ewing out injured and Larry Johnson banged up, New York couldn’t finish the job and the Spurs won the first of coach Gregg Popovich’s five NBA titles.
“That’s when you started to realize Tim Duncan was going to be one of the greatest players of all time,” Breen recalled. “It was actually a great year for both teams, even though the Knicks fell short. But San Antonio, you started thinking, OK, this could be a team that’s going to win a lot of titles in a row.”
Breen grew up in Yonkers, New York, just north of the Bronx. He was 9 when the Knicks won the franchise’s first NBA championship in 1970, a sports-crazed kid who never imagined he’d one day be announcing games for his hometown team. He uniquely understands how generations of Knicks fans, some of whom haven’t witnessed the team win a title in their lifetime, ache for another championship.
When the cameras and the mics turn on, however, expect Breen to be the consummate professional. Breen has announced plenty of Knicks playoff games on national TV over the years, including this year’s Eastern Conference finals series against the Cavaliers.
“Watching him call it straight down the middle and watching him celebrate both teams, that’s the one thing that I gained so much respect for,” Jefferson said. “While people are always kind of looking at him and his love for the Knicks, I think his love for basketball and telling stories, I think that is so great.”
Breen is nonetheless prepared for what he described as an annual Finals tradition, fans accusing him of bias.
“The funny thing is, every year, even when the Knicks are not in it, if it’s Celtics-Lakers, Laker fans think that we’re rooting for the Celtics and the Celtic fans think we’re rooting for the Lakers,” Breen said. “The other thing, too, is that I just love basketball so much. So when De’Aaron Fox or Wemby or Stephon Castle make a spectacular play, I’m going to go crazy, because I love watching great basketball.”
The Knicks haven’t won an NBA championship since 1973, but Breen isn’t allowing himself to consider yet how he will feel if Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns and company are victorious. The Hall of Fame broadcaster is in work mode, preparing to summarize immense heartbreak for one team and triumph for another, whatever the outcome.
“The number one thing for me is I’ve got a job to do,” Breen said. “I do know what it would mean to the city and to the fans of the city. It might be one of the greatest sports moments in the history of New York sports if they win because of what the fan base has gone through and how loyal they’ve been to the team. As for my emotions, it’s hard to predict that.”
As for how Knicks fans would react to another title, Breen predicted, “I think it’s going to be one of the all-time reactions in terms of people being emotional. There’ll be a lot of crying.”
The Vegas Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes begin their quest for hockey's ultimate prize when they meet in Game 1 tonight at Lenovo Center in Raleigh, NC.
With both teams just four wins away from lifting the Stanley Cup, puck drop is set for 8 p.m. ET as our Covers experts break down their top NHL picks and predictions for the series opener.
img alt="Get a first bet encore up to $800 with the BET99 promo code COVERSNHL" width="100%" loading="lazy" src="https://img.covers.com/promo-articles/bet99nhlcreative2526.jpeg"Get a first bet encore up to $800 with BET99 bonus code COVERSNHL. (not available in Ontario)
Todd Cordell's expert pick: Pavel Dorofeyev Over 0.5 points
Price: -120 at BET99
Pavel Dorofeyev has taken off since being promoted to the top line alongside Jack Eichel. He has averaged an ultra-efficient 3.53 points per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play while generating expected goals at an elite clip.
Dorofeyev is also a big threat on the man advantage, where he leads the Vegas Golden Knights in goals and shots during the playoffs.
He is an exceptional shooter and generates plenty of looks. He will really test Frederik Andersen, who is riding a high now but posted a highly underwhelming .874 save percentage during the regular season.
Expect Dorofeyev to hit the scoresheet in Game 1.
Betable to -130.
Todd Cordell's expert pick: Jackson Blake Over 0.5 points
Price: -135 at BET99
The Noah Hanifin - Rasmus Andersson pairing has lost their 5-on-5 minutes on the scoreboard and controlled just 41.20% of the expected goals share, ranking them 16th out of 17 pairings to log 100+ minutes in the playoffs.
John Tortorella is giving them a lot of defensive zone starts, which doesn’t make life easy, but they’re still struggling to limit chances and keep the puck out.
Jackson Blake leads the Carolina Hurricanes in offensive zone start percentage (89.57%), expected goals, and time on ice at 5-on-5. He is the most likely candidate to take advantage. Play to -150.
Quinn Allen's expert pick: Logan Stankoven to score
Price: +220 at BET99
Logan Stankoven is flourishing in these playoffs with nine goals in just 13 games, but the underlying metrics suggest the production is no fluke.
His 4.1 individual expected goals rank third on the Carolina Hurricanes behind only Taylor Hall and Jackson Blake, while he also sits third on the team in high-danger chances created per 60 minutes (17.98).
Carolina is also controlling 67.8% of shots on goal with Stankoven on the ice at 5-on-5, highlighting his ability to drive offensive-zone pressure. He registered 11 shots across the final two games of the Eastern Conference Final and scored in both contests.
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
New York Post may be compensated and/or receive an affiliate commission if you click or buy through our links. Featured pricing is subject to change.
Getting into the notoriously expensive 2026 NBA Finals finally got a little cheaper.
Just one day after our team reported that ticket prices for Game 1 at the San Antonio Spurs’ Frost Bank Center started at $1,000 including fees on SeatGeek, prices have plummeted.
At the time of publication, seats now start at $767 including fees to see Victor Wembanyama, Stephon Castle, De’Aaron Fox, Julian Champaigne and Dylan Harper in the Alamo City.
While still quite pricey, a $233 discount simply for waiting 24 hours to pull the trigger on tickets is not a bad deal at all.
Throw in the fact that you can score an additional $10 off if you use promo code NYPOST10 for purchases over $250 at checkout and you’ll practically be gaming the system (Editor’s Note: this discount is only valid for users’ first purchase on SeatGeek).
Should you attend a game at the New York Knicks’ Madison Square Garden, you’ll be ponying up quite a bit more moolah.
Over the past week, prices have steadily risen to catch Jalen Brunson, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, OG Anunoby, Josh Hart and co. on their home court.
On May 26, we found seats going for $3,543 including fees (for Game 4).
And that was the best deal.
Now, the lowest price we can find on tickets is a whopping $4,112 including fees.
For those without a calculator on hand, that’s a $569 (!) jump in just seven days.
Demand is high — tickets cost roughly the same what it’ll run you to get into the Super Bowl — but might be worth the eye-popping price tag.
“Nothing compares to Knicks playoff energy,” Post social media guru and Knicks diehard Olivia Silio told us.
“The roar of the crowd, the fans jumping up and down after every shot, the celebrities hyping up the crowd, the MSG organist leading the chants, the announcer after every point. MSG makes you feel like you’re a part of history.”
Want to save and go to a game in the House that Duncan Built or witness the 1999 NBA Finals rematch in the Big Apple?
We’re here to help, hoops-heads.
Our team has everything you need to know about seeing the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs in the 2026 NBA Finals live below.
San Antonio Spurs NBA Finals home game tickets
All Spurs playoff home game dates at the Frost Bank Center and the cheapest tickets available (versus what they cost on June 1) can be found here:
San Antonio Spurs home game dates
Ticket prices start at
Ticket prices started at on June 1
Game 1 Wednesday, June 37:30 p.m.
$767(including fees)
$1,000 (including fees)
Game 2 Friday, June 57:30 p.m.
$1,094(including fees)
$1,297 (including fees)
Game 5 Saturday, June 13 7:30 p.m.
$1,735(including fees)
$1,742 (including fees)
Game 7 Friday, June 197:30 p.m.
$3,881(including fees)
$3,983 (including fees)
New York Knicks NBA Finals home game tickets
A complete calendar, including all announced Knicks NBA Finals home game dates and the best prices on tickets are listed below.
New York Knicks NBA Finals home game dates
Ticket prices start at
Game 3 Monday, June 8
$4,258(including fees)
Game 4 Wednesday, June 10
$4,112(including fees)
Game 6 Tuesday, June 16 (if necessary)
$5,597(including fees)
Knicks playoff home game giveaways
Silio also let us know that there are some additional perks to attending games at MSG.
“The first home game of the series, you’ll go home with a souvenir t-shirt, commemorating the game,” she said.
“Other games have ‘Always Knicks’ towels for fans to keep as well as interactive arena bracelets, used for light shows and hyping up the crowd. Another bonus is you may see your favorite actor, singer or athlete, rooting alongside you.”
About Knicks-Spurs
The Knicks and Spurs played three times over the course of the 2025-26 season.
In their first contest, the stakes were high. New York and San Antonio met in the championship game of the 2025 NBA Cup on Dec. 16. OG Anunoby dropped 28 points while Brunson netted 25 and ended up winning MVP for the in-season tourney.
“This is great and we’re going to enjoy this,” Brunson said. “But once we leave tomorrow, we’re moving on.”
Game number two — just a good, old-fashioned regular season showdown — saw Julian Champagnie score 36 and lead San Antonio to a surprise, come-from-behind 134-132 victory on New Year’s Eve.
When the elite clubs played a third time, New York stomped on the Spurs and walked away with a commanding 114-89 blowout. Mikal Bridges scored 25 while Karl-Anthony Towns and Josh Hart chipped in double-doubles.
Notable storylines swirling around the Finals are center Mitchell Robinson’s broken left pinky finger, whether Anunoby and/or Hart will be able to stop Wemby, New York’s week of rest versus San Antonio’s non-stop schedule following their seven-game bloodbath with the Oklahoma City Thunder and NYC local ties for Spurs players Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle.
This article was written by Matt Levy, New York Post live events reporter. Levy stays up-to-date on all the latest tour announcements from your favorite musical artists and comedians, as well as Broadway openings, sporting events and more live shows – and finds great ticket prices online. Since he started his tenure at the Post in 2022, Levy has reviewed a Bruce Springsteen concert and interviewed Melissa Villaseñor of SNL fame, to name a few. Please note that deals can expire, and all prices are subject to change.
Knicks forward OG Anunoby gifted Emmy-winning TV host Martha Stewart a pair of his shoes after she posted about them on Instagram.
The shoes were size 15.5 and included a “very nice message” and autograph, Stewart said on her Instagram.
The footwear flirtation started when Stewart commented on Instagram recently: “OG Anunoby wears my favorite Skechers while playing for the Knicks tonight at the Garden!!!!!“
Martha Stewart on IG: "A few days ago I posted a photo of OG Anunoby's Skechers. Today I received this pair––autographed with a very nice message!!!!! Size 15 1/2!!!! Thanks OG and best of luck to you and my favorite team!!!!!" pic.twitter.com/7y3c0oGvEC
Anunoby responded: “i’m glad you like them martha.”
Stewart has appeeared at a couple of games this postseason at MSG as the Knicks have made a run to the NBA Finals — most recently at Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Cavaliers.
Stewart, who was convicted of five felony charges related to the ImClone stock trading case, spent five months in federal prison for fraud. She was released in March 2005.
The media entrepreneur returned to professional life after her release, becoming Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia’s chairwoman again in 2015.
Her company has since been acquired by Sequential Brands Group and then sold for $175 million.
Martha Stewart attends Game Two of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals between the New York Knicks and the Cleveland Cavaliers at Madison Square Garden on May 21, 2026 in New York City. Getty Images
Stewart became the oldest woman to appear on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue at age 81 in 2023.
Anunoby, who sent Stewart a pair of Skechers, signed with the company in May 2025 during the Knicks’ previous playoff run.
The former Indiana Hoosier joined Joel Embiid, Julius Randle and Josh Green on the Sketchers team.
Anunoby is averaging 19.7 points per game, 6.9 rebounds, 1.9 assists and one block per game this postseason spanning 12 games.
Many of his numbers are up from the regular season, when he averaged 16.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 0.7 blocks per game.
Anunoby missed part of the second-round 76ers series after suffering a hamstring injury in Game 2. He also missed nine games during the regular season with a similar injury.
Knicks forward OG Anunoby speaking to the media after practice at the Knicks practice facility. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
The forward and his Knicks teammates face the San Antonio Spurs in Game 1 of the 2026 NBA Finals on Wednesday night.
Anunoby averaged 16.3 points per game against the Spurs this season, with a high of 28 in December.
He also added 6.3 rebounds, two assists and one turnover per game.
After calling Knicks fans “annoying” during the conference semifinals, Charles Barkley has changed his tune.
Barkley raved about the “energy” of New York fans on Adam Schein’s “Mad Dog Sports Radio” show on Monday morning — while still having a little dig for the orange and blue faithful.
“I’m not gonna lie, last year in the Conference Finals, we traveled, and man, it’s a different thing being in New York,” Barkley told Schein, according to Awful Announcing. “I know New Yorkers are annoying. But man, they’re right. When the Knicks are doing good, it’s a different energy in that city.”
Charles Barkley has previously been critical of Knicks fans. Getty Images
“It was one of the most amazing things those three games we went to in New York,” Barkley said, referring to the Knicks’ Conference Finals matchup against the Pacers last year. “And then now you’re gonna put it on steroids going to the Finals.”
With “Inside the NBA” serving as the NBA Finals’ primary studio show for the first time in the show’s 38-year history, Barkley is especially looking forward to the series.
New York fans are eagerly awaiting the start of the NBA Finals. AP Photo/Tim Phillis
“For me, being able to do the Finals for the first time, to get the New York Knicks in the Finals…I’m so glad we’re gonna get to do the games,” Barkley said. “But for Adam Silver, this is a dream matchup to get the Knicks against Victor (Wembanyama).”
Barkley hasn’t always sided with New York, though, as he complained about the “annoying” Knicks fans during the first round series against Atlanta.
He claimed that Knicks fans who were staying in the same hotel as him questioned coach Mike Brown and suggested the team trade for Giannis Antetokounmpo when the Knicks fell 2-1 down in the series.
The Knicks, though, have won 11 straight games since and are on the doorstep of their first title since 1973.
Game 1 tips off on Wednesday night in San Antonio.
The Montreal Canadiens are one of the most exciting teams in the NHL. They not only made it to the Eastern Conference Final this year but also have plenty of promising prospects in their system. Florian Xhekaj is among them, as the 21-year-old forward has the potential to emerge as an impactful NHL forward.
Xhekaj appeared in his first five career NHL games this season with the Canadiens, where he recorded an assist, seven penalty minutes, and nine hits. Down in the AHL with the Laval Rocket this season, he had 17 goals, 29 points, and 182 penalty minutes in 64 games. This is after he had 24 goals, 35 points, and 175 penalty minutes in 69 games for Laval in 2024-25.
Overall, Xhekaj has shown promise at the AHL level. Because of this, the 6-foot-3 forward is a breakout candidate to watch for the 2026-27 season. It would not be surprising in the slightest if the young forward takes another step forward in his development and cements himself a spot in the Canadiens' bottom six because of it.
Xhekaj's toughness and grit are hard to ignore, but he has also shown at the AHL level that he has a bit of a scoring touch. It will be interesting to see if he can translate this kind of play over to the NHL next season with Montreal, but it is hard not to feel optimistic about his future with the club.
An Amazon Prime membership unlocks all kinds of benefits for users, but the best — and most relevant, as Knicks fans on a bit of a time crunch — is the ultra-fast shipping. If you aren’t already a member, you can take advantage of a 30-day free trial (which will also run through this year’s annual Prime Day) and get your Knicks gear in less than 24 hours.
NBA Court Classic Adult Short Sleeve Knicks T-Shirt
Amazon
This classic tee with a vintage vibe is a perfect fit — especially since it’ll be on your doorstep in time for your next watch party.
AMAZON $29.99 $23.56
Subscribe to Sports+ for unlimited access to Knicks coverage
If you want the latest news, opinions and exclusive insights, subscribe to Sports+ for unlimited access to Knicks coverage. Subscribers also can sign up for the exclusive, in-depth weekly Inside the Knicks newsletter.
This article was written by Angela Tricarico, Commerce Streaming Reporter for Post Wanted Shopping, Page Six, and Decider.com. Angela keeps readers up to date with cord-cutter-friendly deals, and information on how to watch your favorite sports teams, TV shows, and movies on every streaming service. Not only does Angela test and compare the streaming services she writes about to ensure readers are getting the best prices, but she’s also a superfan specializing in the intersection of shopping, tech, sports, and pop culture. When she’s not writing about (or watching) TV, movies, and sports, she’s also keeping up on the underrated perfume dupes at Bath & Body Works and testing headphones. Prior to joining Decider and The New York Post in 2023, she wrote about streaming and consumer tech at Insider Reviews.
LeBron James is still in the business of keep receipts.
On an episode of his “Mind the Game” podcast with Steve Nash, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar took a pointed shot at former Lakers champion Ron Harper while discussing Harper’s son, San Antonio Spurs rookie Dylan Harper.
“Yeah, Dylan’s great. I mean, his daddy ain’t s–t, but he’s good,” James said. “I’ll see him when I see him.”
The comment seemed to be a direct response to remarks Ron Harper made during NBA All-Star Weekend earlier this year. When asked whether he always envisioned both of his sons, Dylan Harper and Ron Harper Jr., reaching the NBA, the five-time NBA champion took an apparent swipe at James.
“I’m not LeBron James,” Harper said. “I’m not going to tell my kids what they have to do. I just want them to play and enjoy the game and whatever they can get back out of the ball game, we will take it.”
New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden – Former Chicago Bulls player Ron Harper pointing from his seat during the game. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Harper later doubled down during an appearance on the “It Is What It Is” podcast, ranking Scottie Pippen ahead of James on his all-time small forward list while criticizing LeBron’s defensive style.
James’ latest comment came while praising Dylan Harper, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. The former Rutgers star has quickly become one of the league’s most promising young players and is helping fuel a Spurs team that beat the odds by making the 2026 NBA Finals, beating out the favored Oklahoma City Thunder.
Dylan Harper #2 of the San Antonio Spurs and Jared McCain #3 of the Oklahoma City Thunder NBAE via Getty Images
For now, the exchange adds another chapter to an unexpected feud between two former NBA champions. And judging by LeBron’s response, it’s clear he hasn’t forgotten Harper’s comments anytime soon.
RALEIGH, N.C. — Rod Brind’Amour knows the exact moment he realized the Carolina Hurricanes could be Stanley Cup contenders.
“Eight years ago,” he said. That was when Brind’Amour took over as coach, beginning a journey of making the playoffs every year and falling short of the final each time until now.
The Vegas Golden Knights were born nine years ago, but from the time they pillaged the rest of the NHL in the expansion draft through this spring, they have set championship expectations. They made the final in their inaugural season and won it all in 2023. Their third visit to the Cup Final perhaps is their most surprising.
This Vegas-Carolina final almost is a decade in the making for a pair of teams in non-traditional markets that have become powerhouses. The collision course brought them to this moment, a best-of-seven series that begins with Game 1.
“It’s for all the marbles,” Golden Knights forward Cole Smith said. “Just the way they play, they play a really fast game. So do we. It’s going to be a really great series.”
Brind’Amour has been a Carolina constant
The Hurricanes won their only Stanley Cup championship in 2006, when Brind’Amour was their captain. He played 9 1/2 seasons for them and spent seven more as an assistant before getting named coach in 2018. He has been a part of 98 of Carolina’s 100 playoff victories since the franchise formerly known as the Whalers moved from Hartford in ’97.
“Roddy’s been at the helm of it the whole time and just establishing the culture that we do have here,” said defenseman Jaccob Slavin, now in his 11th season with the team. “It’s been building and building and we’ve been close and knocking at the door. I think we finally just have the right personnel, the right commitment, the right buy-in because our game really hasn’t changed.”
Slavin, captain Jordan Staal, grinder Jordan Martinook and center Sebastian Aho have been together since the time Brind’Amour got promoted, and wingers Andrei Svechnikov and Seth Jarvis and goaltender Frederik Andersen got added the well-established core along the way. The Hurricanes won at least one series every year but had never strung together three in a row.
“We’ve been trying really hard for eight years, and it’s not anybody’s fault,” Martinook said. “It’s just we’ve fallen short.”
What has been different for the Hurricanes
Logan Stankoven, acquired at the trade deadline last year when Mikko Rantanen was sent to Dallas six weeks after Carolina got him from Colorado, has thrived at center on the second line between Taylor Hall and Jackson Blake. Stankoven leads the team with nine goals.
Hall, who came from Chicago in that initial three-way trade with Rantanen, tops the Hurricanes with 16 points. Nikolaj Ehlers, signed last summer as a free agent, had a monster Game 2 of the East final after they lost the series opener, including scoring the overtime winner.
“I don’t think I’ve done anything special to get this group (here),” Ehlers said. “This group was ready for it.”
Carolina is 12-1 this playoffs, the fewest losses to get to the final since 1983. Brind’Amour feels like this is where his team has belonged for a long time but still has unfinished business.
“I don’t think we have broken through,” Brind’Amour said. “You’ve got to win. I know everyone makes a lot about getting this far, but nobody’s going to remember who comes in second.”
The Golden Knights were winners from the start
Vegas came in second during its inaugural season when no one expected the expansion team to be any good. The Golden Knights went all the way to the final before losing to Washington in five games.
“Set the tone right away,” said center William Karlsson, one of the three original so-called “Misfits” who are still around from the beginning. “That came out of nowhere.”
First general manager George McPhee plucking Karlsson, defensemen Shea Theodore and Brayden McNabb and winger Reilly Smith — back after a year and a half absence — from other teams put Vegas in position to succeed. Smart selections in the draft, free agent signings and trades by McPhee and now-GM Kelly McCrimmon established a standard of winning at all costs.
“It’s what you want to be as an athlete,” McNabb said. “You want to be on a team that does that.”
In came Mark Stone, Jack Eichel, Ivan Barbashev and Alex Pietrangelo, and the Knights won the Cup in their sixth season. They’ve only missed the playoffs once.
What has been different for the Golden Knights
Pietrangelo’s career-ending injury opened space to deal for Mitch Marner on June 30. Marner leads all scorers in the playoffs with 21 points, succeeding at a time of year that he never did in nearly a decade with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“I think our team is deeper and a better team than what he had played on in Toronto,” McCrimmon said. “Not that Toronto didn’t have real good teams, but you have to have that depth throughout your roster because to go through three rounds or ultimately, hopefully, four rounds, everybody’s got to take their turn.”
Pavel Dorofeyev has been a breakout star on that front, and he and teammate Brett Howden are tied for the most postseason goals with 10 apiece. Karlsson returned in the second round after missing the previous six months with an undisclosed injury.
Goaltender Carter Hart, a controversial signing last fall after he and four other Hockey Canada junior players were acquitted of sexual assault, has rounded into form. Hart stopped 118 of 125 shots in a West final sweep of Colorado.
And, most notably, Vegas has won 19 of 24 games since McCrimmon fired coach Bruce Cassidy in late March and hired John Tortorella, whom he had never met or spoken with before.
“We asked ourselves, ‘Who can come in and give us that kind of a bump?’” McCrimmon said. “John was the guy that we really felt strongly could do that.”
RALEIGH, N.C. — On the eve of the Stanley Cup Final between the Vegas Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes, one of the general managers involved laid out his thinking when making roster moves.
“We want to be aggressive off the ice,” the GM said. “When you have a chance to add really high-end players, we never want to miss out on it.”
While the Golden Knights under Kelly McCrimmon deservedly have earned their reputation for going after every high-end player available, that sentiment came from Carolina’s Eric Tulsky, whose team generally has been considered far more selective.
The Hurricanes have taken bigger leaps since Tulsky took over two years ago, but his challenge has been finding particular players who fit coach Rod Brind’Amour’s demanding style. The Golden Knights have added one big star after another, in the name of trying to win it all for a second time in less than a decade of existence.
One approach will end with hoisting the Cup.
“It probably should be more fun than we appreciate in the moment,” McCrimmon said. “We have made a lot of big decisions over our time in the league — very bold. I always say that to be big or bold is one thing. You’ve got to make good decisions, and I think that we’ve collectively through our hockey ops have done a good job of that. It’s exhilarating to win.”
Building the Hurricanes
Six Carolina players were drafted and developed, including No. 1 defenseman Jaccob Slavin, top-line forwards Seth Jarvis, Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov, and young building-block winger Jackson Blake.
Starting goaltender Frederik Andersen was a free-agent signing, and second-liners Taylor Hall and Logan Stankoven were acquired in trades. Tulsky, a Harvard graduate with a Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of California at Berkeley, worked under previous GM Don Waddell and pieced the rest of the puzzle together himself.
McCrimmon pointed to Waddell as a positive influence and complimented his counterpart for smart draft picks and trades.
“They’ve consistently been building their team, and they’ve done it different ways,” McCrimmon said. “Looking at it from the outside, they’ve been aggressive in their way of doing that. They have an idea what they want it to look like, the type of players that their organization will make good use of and they go out and get those guys.”
Sometimes those guys do not fit. One of the big gambles Tulsky made came in January 2025 when he gave up young forwards Martin Necas and Jack Drury in a three-way trade that landed the Hurricanes big winger Mikko Rantanen and the veteran Hall.
Rantanen was not interested in re-signing, so Tulsky explored options and flipped him to Dallas for young Logan Stankoven and picks.
“Sometimes it doesn’t go the way you hoped, and you’ve got to be ready to figure out how you’re going to move forward from there,” Tulsky said. “One of the strengths of our organization is we’re not afraid to take those swings, but we’re confident that if we just keep staying aggressive, some will work out, some won’t (and) we’ll end up ahead of where we would be if we just stayed passive the whole time.”
Stankoven, free-agent signing Nikolaj Ehlers and other additions like Eric Robinson and Mark Jankowski have fit Brind’Amour’s mold like a glove. Tulsky was a hockey blogger before moving into management and he thinks analytically but also credits his staff for talent evaluation to play for this coach.
“We’ve really focused on finding people who fit the way we want to play,” Tulsky said. “We ask players to play a very distinctive style, and our scouts have done a great job finding players who can come in and look their best playing the way Rod needs them to play.”
Building the Golden Knights
From the start, Vegas was built to win. Original GM George McPhee aced the expansion draft, from picking players from the other 30 teams in the league to making side deals that brought even more talent into the fold.
The initial bunch delivered an unexpected trip to the final during the club’s inaugural season in 2017-18, with goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury the backbone of a group that included forwards William Karlsson and Reilly Smith and defensemen Shea Theodore and Brayden McNabb. Karlsson, Theodore and McNabb have been around the entire time, and Smith returned after a brief absence.
Along the way, McPhee and McCrimmon never shied away from making big moves. They made trades for Mark Stone, Jack Eichel, Tomas Hertl and Noah Hanifin, signed Alex Pietrangelo and made a sign-and-trade for Mitch Marner.
“We appreciate how George and Kelly operate,” McNabb said. “They’re always trying to build a winning team, and they’ve done a great job for the nine years.”
The Golden Knights have made the playoffs in eight of them, won the Cup in 2023 and consistently been championship contenders.
“It’s a privilege,” McCrimmon said. “We don’t take it for granted. We work real hard. You have to get lucky along the way at times, also. That’s kind of been our objective right from the opening season.”
McNabb said McCrimmon is doing his job. There are no complaints from players about Vegas going big-game shopping all the time.
“I don’t know if he’s in on every player, but he’s trying to make the team better and that’s what you want and you appreciate,” McNabb said. “You want to be on a team that’s trying to get better and have the best team going into playoffs and performing in playoffs.”
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Manny Malhotra was hired as coach of the Vancouver Canucks.
The former Canucks forward takes over for Adam Foote, who was fired after Vancouver finished last in the NHL during his only season behind the bench.
Malhotra becomes the 23rd head coach in franchise history and the latest Canucks player to be promoted by the team as it begins its rebuild.
“Manny and I have been in the battle together before, so I know firsthand what a good teacher, leader, and quality person he is,” general manager Ryan Johnson said in a statement.
The pair previously worked together in the minors with the American Hockey League’s Abbotsford Canucks.
“Manny is a great coach who has the right skill set and mentality to help players develop and get better each day,” Johnson said. “We both believe that pressure is a privilege, and learning to become a good pro takes patience, dedication and a ‘be better than yesterday’ mindset.”
Foote was fired on May 19 after the Canucks went 25-49-8 last season. Malhotra immediately emerged as a prime candidate to replace him, with Johnson saying he would sit down with the 46-year-old former NHL player and “talk about the future.”
Malhotra previously served as a development coach and an assistant coach for the Canucks, then spent four seasons as an assistant with the Toronto Maple Leafs before becoming Abbotsford’s head coach.
There, he guided the AHL team to a Calder Cup championship during the 2024-25 campaign. The club then missed the playoffs last season as several players dealt with long-term injuries.
It was the way Malhotra led Abbotsford through a challenging year that showed exactly the kind of coach and person he is, Johnson said.
“To see that when you can rely on the foundation of the consistent environment and the coaching through the worst of times and really continue to propel players forward, even though the wins and losses aren’t there, it tells you a lot about him,” he said.
“That entire staff showed that they’re champions based off of not the year before, but of what they did last year, and what people around them took out of a pretty tough season.”
The promotion reunites Malhotra with former teammates Daniel and Henrik Sedin, who were named Vancouver’s co-presidents of hockey operations on May 14.
Malhotra, from Ontario, spent 16 seasons playing in the NHL after getting drafted by the New York Rangers in 1998.
He had 116 goals and 295 points in 991 regular-season games with Vancouver, New York, the Dallas Stars, Columbus Blue Jackets, San Jose Sharks, Montreal Canadiens and Carolina Hurricanes.
Malhotra took a puck to the face while playing for the Canucks in March 2011, an injury that left him with limited vision in his left eye. He missed much of the team’s run to the Stanley Cup Final that year and was given a reduced role the following season.
“He loves the game and getting to know what makes his players tick, and I am very confident Manny will help us ice a competitive and hard-working team that our fans will be proud of moving forward,” Johnson said.
The White Sox are having fun, and we should, too! | (Michael Hirschuber/Getty Images)
White Sox fans, you’ve been hurt, and don’t I know it.
You hesitate to recognize the 2026 White Sox as postseason contenders, which, based on the trauma of the 2024 season alone, is valid. You don’t trust the front office or the organization as a whole, and may harbor anger towards the team. You’re exhausted from growing attached to a lineup, a player, or the cultural climate, only to have it ripped from you. You’re unwilling to expose your defenseless baseball bosom, which has been weakened more gravely than Jerry Reinsdorf’s aging brain, to any sense of hope. You’re tired of being gacha’d like a three-year-old with their own mobile phone, because Chicago Sports Network charges $20 per month to watch White Sox games if you don’t have cable. It feels rotten to be nickel-and-dimed in the current day and age for a team that has let you down so far into your baseball grave that you can no longer see the sun.
I’ve been there, right where you are. I took an entire year off baseball, not watching a single game, which caused psychic damage to my innermost self. I came into this season with a barrel of wishes and not much to lose, my bar aflame in the depths of hell and being used as a leaning post by Arnold “Chick” Gandil. Re-entering the fold, I was primed for pain and ready for losses in the high nineties, feeling dissatisfied with the 6-13 start, my brain burning with knowledge of the team’s potential. My doubt was the suit of armor I was clad in, but it rusted quickly in April and completely corroded by mid-May, revealing that classic pinstripe jersey underneath.
The White Sox haven’t just obtained a pulse; they’ve gained a new life and are already sprinting on the base paths.
This isn’t the same old Chicago White Sox, and only one active position player on the roster remains from the accursed 2024 squad. With Jacob Gonzalez as the 11th player to make their Chicago debut this season, this is a brand new team.
And boy, is it a fun squad! If you permit yourself to enjoy it again, White Sox baseball is a paramour, gathering you back into its arms with seductively dramatic dingers, magic wands in the hand of a smiling dingus (affectionately, from a fellow dork), projectile run-killing missiles from the outfield to home plate, walk-offs, winning months, and excited players, having fun. They celebrate one another. They play until the game is over.
Bewilderingly, even the national media are noticing the Good Guys, and not just because of Munetaka Murakami. Even during the modern-era South Siders’ best year, the harsh criticism never stopped, and the national media discredited the 2005 White Sox every step of the way, right up to the very end. When they swept the World Series, critics yawned, complaining that it was boring. Usually, this team can’t please everyone, but before this season, they couldn’t please anyone.
Just as Big Media wants to dislike the White Sox and is usually actively rooting against them, fans feel they have earned the right to hate on their team because they put in the time to learn the stat lines. I agree with this. Like you, I’m critical of the White Sox. As a lifelong fan, I’ve been hurt before, but I’ve also hopped on board for the greatest rides. I was there in the ’80s, but don’t remember much. In the early ’90s, the strange feeling of watching Comiskey’s demolition is drowned out by memories of my love for Frank Thomas and his dingers, and fireworks after the game. I never got busted for smoking Marlboro Reds in the nosebleeds in the late ’90s, but I should have been. In the early ’00s, I wised up and started getting better seats. Mid-season 2004, I knew the team could go all the way. It was easy to see in the way the guys played after the All-Star break, and I was lucky to watch them sail that headwind directly into a 2005 World Series title, never running out of steam along the way. That’s what this current White Sox team reminds me of: post-All-Star break 2004. This current team has the power, drive, and unity to go deep into the postseason, and maybe even all the way.
Will the White Sox win a World Series this year? I don’t know. Can they?
Yes, they can.
Look at how they play. They give it their all until the game is over. They’re 12-6 in one-run games this season, a stat that would make the 2024-era past you do a spit take. This past weekend, with the White Sox up by enough against the Tigers and no one on base, Sam Antonacci made a killer outfield catch when there was nothing at stake. That’s the energy in the entire clubhouse, and you can see it in every sprint to first, every low-stakes catch, and every pinch hit. They believe in one another and are finally a team that’s good enough to have fun.
Something was missing the last time the White Sox were in a position to think about the playoffs. While 2021 was dynamic and exciting, it felt like we were watching many individual players who lacked a team mentality. That vibe is long gone. Every cog in this machine is operating for the greater whole, and every game is important. This is evident in every play.
The White Sox have turned the tide and have been putting the spanking the AL Central, a feat that’s not small to this team. Once the next series is done in Minnesota, a test is nigh for both players and fans. A daunting 13-game gauntlet against four formidable playoff contenders is in our immediate future, and it will define who this White Sox team is, for all of us, fans and players alike. June 5 is the start of the series with the Phillies, then it’s the Braves, Dodgers and Yankees. It won’t be easy, but the White Sox aren’t stopping any time soon.
At the start of this season, the Milwaukee Brewers didn’t just sweep the White Sox; they obliterated them and left no opportunity to the wind. Despite this, Brewers manager Pat Murphy said about the White Sox, “Mark my words right now: That Chicago White Sox team will be something to be reckoned with in that division.”
I’d like to believe he’s onto something.
No matter what happens, let’s permit ourselves to enjoy this ride. This team is a pure pleasure to watch, and I haven’t had this much fun watching baseball since 2005. In the present moment, the White Sox are a squad of remarkable talent, and they’ve made us fall in love with the South Siders again, despite how shattered our fandom had become.
You can wait until the June gauntlet is over to decide whether you believe in this White Sox team. I believe now.
Pavel Dorofeyev over 0.5 points
Jackson Blake over 0.5 points
