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Ray continues to flourish in win vs. Rockies as Giants snap skid

Ray continues to flourish in win vs. Rockies as Giants snap skid originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

On a three-game skid after a home loss to the MLB-worst Colorado Rockies on Thursday, the Giants needed an answer on Friday night.

They found it.

Insert veteran left-hander Robbie Ray, who tossed seven shutout innings with eight strikeouts in San Francisco’s much-needed 4-0 win over Colorado at Oracle Park. 

For Ray, who remains undefeated in 2025, it marked the first time he completed seven innings in back-to-back outings since June 12 and June 17, 2022.

Naturally, any pitcher, especially one that has allowed two runs or fewer in five of his last six starts, would feel confident after seeing constant improvements in his game. That’s certainly the case for the 2021 AL Cy Young Award winner, who has found his groove on the mound.

“I think it’s just comfortability with my mechanics,” Ray told reporters after the win. “My delivery, these last two games, has felt really well.

“I feel like the ball is coming out well. I’m kind of hitting all of my cues in my delivery when I need to, and it just makes my stuff better. Earlier in the year, I was kind of fighting it a little bit. A couple of bad-weather games. That was a little tough, but, right now, I feel really good.” 

Along with limiting walks, Ray improved to 4-0 with a 3.05 ERA on the season. Manager Bob Melvin, for one, is satisfied with the 33-year-old’s recent production.

“It’s something everyone knows now,” Melvin told reporters. “Even in the games that he hasn’t gone deep in the game, we end up supporting him afterwards too [by] getting good outings out of the bullpen.

“He’s getting close to almost a 2.00 ERA. [He’s] just over 3.00 right now. We feel good when he takes the mound.”

Offensively, the Giants piled on three runs in the second inning, with LaMonte Wade Jr., who entered the game with a .123 batting average, earning an RBI double.

When Matt Chapman went to the plate in the third, he took Rockies right-hander Antonio Senzatela deep to left for his sixth homer of the season.

With Ray’s inertia behind them, San Francisco (20-13) will now look to take the series lead over Colorado on Saturday.

Given the circumstances heading into Friday night, it’s the exact answer the Giants needed.

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Why the Dodgers' Max Muncy has started wearing glasses in games: 'Anything that can help'

Max Muncy has a new look.

And, he hopes, slightly better sight.

On Friday night at Truist Park, Muncy took the field for the Dodgers’ series opener against the Atlanta Braves wearing clear prescription eyeglasses. He subtly did the same during the Dodgers’ last game of the most recent homestand on Wednesday afternoon, using sunglasses with prescription lenses when he hit his first home run of the season.

It’s not that Muncy has bad eyesight. His vision, he said, is actually an excellent 20/12.

Read more:After 'rough' month, Dodgers' Max Muncy hopes first homer is 'something to build on'

However, Muncy did learn he has astigmatism in his right eye, making him slightly left-eye dominant. Given that he’s a left-handed hitter — positioning him with his right eye forward in the batter’s box — he thus decided the glasses were worth a try.

“If there’s anything that can help out a little bit,” Muncy said, “I’ll try it.”

Based on his results from Wednesday, the benefits might have already been felt.

After enduring a career-long 28-game home run drought to start the season, Muncy went deep in his first at-bat Wednesday, launching a low-and-away sinker to straightaway center field.

He struck out in his next trip to the plate, then flied to left in the fifth inning. After that, however, he tripled and drew a walk, giving him his most productive performance of what had been a slow start to the season.

Granted, Muncy’s performance had started to tick up before he started using his new glasses.

Thanks to some recent swing adjustments, he entered Wednesday with three hits in his previous two games (he’d recorded just four in the 11 before that) and as many walks as strikeouts in his prior 13 contests overall (10 each).

The Dodgers' Max Muncy reacts as he runs the bases after hitting a solo homer during Wednesday's game at Dodger Stadium.
Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy wore sunglasses with prescription lenses during Wednesday's game against the Marlins, and hit his first home run of the season. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

“The swing feels like it’s getting closer and closer,” said Muncy, who entered Friday with a .194 batting average on the season. “I still have to clean some things up. Have to be better in certain situations. It’s a work in progress. But … it’s just getting the ball to go forward.”

Still, in recent days, Muncy decided it was time to break out the glasses, too.

The 34-year-old third baseman had been testing his glasses in pregame batting practice and infield drills since the start of last week’s homestand. He’d initially been hesitant to take them into game action, noting a “fish-bowl” effect he felt while wearing them, but said he has since adjusted by using them even when he’s away from the field.

Muncy isn’t the first Dodger player to begin utilizing glasses midseason.

Last year, Kiké Hernández did the same thing after discovering astigmatism (a condition caused by imperfections in the curvature of the eye that can impact vision) in his own right eye.

Like Muncy, Hernández described an adjustment period when his glasses arrived midseason.

“It took me like a week or two to really feel like my depth perception felt normal,” Hernández recalled.

Unlike Muncy, Hernández began wearing them in games as soon as they arrived.

“You can’t be afraid to fail,” he quipped.

Fail, Hernández did not. Before last year’s All-Star break, Hernández was batting .191 with just five home runs in 71 games, wearing glasses for only the final series of the opening half. After the break, once his eyesight adjusted to his new lenses, Hernández finished the year batting .274 with seven home runs in his final 55 games. He then proceeded to have a monster postseason (.294 average, two home runs, six RBIs) during the Dodgers’ run to a World Series title.

Read more:Shaikin: The Dodgers are good, and old. Should they try NBA-style load management?

This year, the glasses have remained a fixture. And even though he batted just .188 in March and April, he did tally five home runs and 13 RBIs.

The biggest benefit Hernández noticed from his glasses: An ability to see the actual spin on the baseball, and more easily identify each pitch type.

“Before the glasses, I was trying to see the shape of each pitch,” Hernández said, which forced him to wait a split-second to see if the ball would dive or slide away from its starting location.

“Once I got the glasses,” he added, “I could actually see the spin.”

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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Butler declares Warriors' confidence at ‘all-time high' for Game 7

Butler declares Warriors' confidence at ‘all-time high' for Game 7 originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

After Friday’s 115-107 Game 6 loss to the Houston Rockets, the Warriors’ 3-1 series lead is gone.

A lot of teams and players might start to panic in this situation — as well as Canon Curry.

But, as a new leader on an experienced Golden State roster, veteran star Jimmy Butler says he isn’t worried whatsoever.

After Wednesday’s Game 5 loss, Butler asserted, “We’re fine. Our confidence isn’t going to waver any.”

And despite another defeat Friday to force a decisive Game 7, Butler took it one step further — no matter how many 3-1 jokes the internet will prepare over the next 48 hours.

“[It’s] at an all-time high,” Butler told reporters when asked about the Warriors’ current confidence level. “It’s now, out of all times. It’s win or go home. It’s not wavering. We know how good of a team we are. …

“A couple of us have been here before multiple times. So, it’s on us to make sure we get it done.”

Likewise, Golden State forward Draymond Green, who has a 3-2 career record in Game 7s, displayed a calm assurance after another disappointing loss.

“It’s a little frustrating,” Green explained in his postgame presser. “Nonetheless, it’s a seven-game series. We know we can win there. Got to go get the win.”

Against a much less experienced Rockets squad, that mindset could be the difference in Sunday’s winner-take-all matchup. But the Warriors will need a better performance on the floor if they want that mental advantage to matter.

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Warriors pestered by Rockets' zone defense in frustrating Game 6 loss

Warriors pestered by Rockets' zone defense in frustrating Game 6 loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — The Warriors, when they needed them most, couldn’t get shots to fall to save their lives. Both metaphorically and potentially in the series.

Despite falling behind to the Houston Rockets early and staying behind for nearly the entire game, Golden State trailed by just two points (86-84) to begin the fourth quarter. A series win was well within reach before the Warriors went on to miss 14 of their next 15 field-goal attempts in the fourth quarter preceding an eventual 115-107 lifeless Game 6 loss on Friday at Chase Center.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr was asked postgame what happened offensively in the fourth after Golden State’s impressive 36 points in the third and credited Houston’s pesky defensive scheme.

“They were in a zone,” Kerr said. “They played [Steven] Adams quite a bit. He’s at the center of that zone, kind of a 2-1-2. I thought we got some good looks against the zone. But then once they pulled away by 10 or 12 [points], it was easier for them to run us off the line.

“We had a lot of openings, but they were using their length to run us off the 3-point line, knowing we had to make threes to get back in it. I thought they did a good job of kind of running us off the line and keeping us from knocking down threes to get us back in the game.”

Opposing teams don’t often have much success in a zone defense when Warriors superstar Steph Curry, the greatest shooter in NBA history who is capable of igniting an offense in an instant with his 3-point shooting alone, is on the floor.

There is risk to deploying the defensive scheme, but the Rockets executed it almost to perfection in the fourth quarter.

“The communication is probably even better in our zone than in man-to-man,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said postgame. “Obviously, we’re dominant with our size. We put Jabari [Smith Jr.] in the three in the bigger lineup there. Don’t have a lot of cross-matches or mismatches, and have gone to it and saw that it worked.”

One of the big reasons for Houston’s success in zone on Friday night was veteran big man Steven Adams, who played a series-high 31 minutes in Game 6 and scored 17 points with five rebounds and three blocks. Adams has been a pest for the Warriors all series, especially on the glass, but it was the size of Houston’s two-big lineup with him and Alperen Şengün at times that made the Rockets’ zone defense so effective.

“The thing with the zone is that there are windows to attack, weak spots, obviously,” Adams explained postgame. “We just managed to scramble and get to those spots like pretty good, you know what I mean. So the window for error, we keep it very tight.

“We do a good job rebounding and keeping them to one shot, you know what I mean. That’s a key weakness with the zone. Because usually you’re out of place to rebound. It’s good. It’s a weird zone … It’s just like a bizarre one but it works.”

Warriors forward Draymond Green, whose stellar defense played a pivotal role in Golden State initially jumping out to a 3-1 series lead, gave Adams his flowers.

“He’s having a great impact,” Green said of Adams. “He’s doing a great job on the offensive glass. He’s doing a great job defensively.

“I just wish we could get a three-second call. You stand in the paint, whole possession, it’s hard to box out. He’s strong as hell, so… Being outweighed by, what, 40, 50 pounds, six inches, standing in the paint, it’s tough to box him out, so…”

Houston, now with back-to-back decisive victories to even the series, might have the Warriors figured out, both schematically and personnel-wise.

Golden State will need more than just whistles to counteract the Rockets’ stout defense, which only will feed off the energy from the home crowd in Game 7 on Sunday at Toyota Center.

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Playoff Event Week 2 In NHL 25 HUT

EA SPORTS NHL 25

Week 2 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs Event is now live in NHL 25 Hockey Ultimate Team. 

The five new 94 overall master set players are Andrei Vasilevskiy, Larry Murphy, Ryan McDonagh, Bryan Trottier, and Jarome Iginla. 

16 additional Stanley Cup base cards were added, led by 93 overall Thomas Steen, Olaf Kolzig, Deryk Engelland, and Borje Salming and 92 overall Sergei Zubov, Cory Sarich, and Bernie Nicholls. 

Six new Wildcard players were added and are playable, all are 94 overall. The players are David Pastrnak, Nikita Kucherov, Connor McDavid, Jacob Markstrom, Zdeno Chara, and Cale Makar. 

Four new Game Day players, two 91 overall players from the Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars are also available, Evgenni Dadonov and Cody Ceci for the Stars and Josh Manson and Jonathan Drouin for the Avalanche. 

Each master set Playoff player costs three 91+ Playoff cards and any two 91+ cards.

Players can trade any three 89+ Playoff cards for a 91 Playoff card or any three 87+ cards for an 89 overall Playoff card. 

There are Collectible sets where players can trade in Stanley Cup Collectibles for player packs. Players can trade in 30 Stanley Cup Playoff Collectibles for a 91 overall untradeable or 93 overall BND card. 

Check out Week 1 of the Playoff Event here. 

EA SPORTS NHL 25EA SPORTS NHL 25EA SPORTS NHL 25

Check out the recent Team Builder release and roster update. 

For more NHL 25 news make sure you bookmark The Hockey News Gaming Site or follow our Google News Feed. For gaming discussion check out our forum.  

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Amen Thompson enjoyed silencing ‘annoying' Warriors fans in Rockets' Game 6 win

Amen Thompson enjoyed silencing ‘annoying' Warriors fans in Rockets' Game 6 win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

The Warriors didn’t give the Chase Center crowd much to cheer about during their 115-107 Game 6 loss Friday night, and Houston Rockets wing Amen Thompson liked it that way.

The second-year NBA pro, who was born in Oakland, attended Warriors games as a kid and participated in Steph Curry’s basketball camps, didn’t mind quieting Dub Nation.

“It meant a lot,” Thompson told Space City Home Network’s Vanessa Richardson moments after the Rockets forced a winner-take-all Game 7 of the first-round NBA playoff series. “This crowd be annoying. So just silenced them, obviously. Hometown, it feels good. I got my family.”

Thompson finished with 14 points, seven rebounds, two assists and was a plus-10 in 36 minutes Friday night.

The Rockets did a good job keeping Warriors fans from getting loud throughout the game, and now, Houston gets to go home and host a Game 7 with their fans creating a hostile environment for Curry and Co.

But the best revenge for Curry would be to silence Rockets fans on Sunday at Toyota Center.

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The Hockey Show: Eetu Luostarinen discusses Florida's quest to repeat, Tara Slone chats about the playoffs

Florida Panthers forward Eetu Luostarinen joined this week's episode of The Hockey Show. (Meadowlark Media)

The first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs is wrapping up, and there has been no shortage of entertaining highlights and storylines for hockey fans to enjoy.

This week on The Hockey Show, co-hosts Roy Bellamy and David Dwork discussed much of the happenings that have occurred so far during an exciting start to the postseason.

Several of the opening round series’ are complete, and we already know our second round matchups in the Eastern Conferene.

The Metro-winning Washington Capitals will host the Carolina Hurricanes while the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Atlantic Division champs, will face last season’s Stanley Cup winners, the Florida Panthers.

To discuss the postseason and current NHL news, including the New York Rangers hiring Mike Sullivan and the amazing season from rookie Macklin Celebrini, Roy and Dave welcomed San Jose Sharks host and reporter for NBC Sports California Tara Sloan to the show.

As many of you know, Roy and Dave have been closely following the journey of the team they cover, the Panthers.

Last week, Florida advanced past the opening round of the playoffs when they eliminated their cross-state rivals, the Tampa Bay Lightning, in five games for the second consecutive postseason.

Joining this week’s show to discuss Florida’s mission to repeat, their opening round win, becoming a new dad and lots more was Panthers forward Eetu Luostarinen!

You can check out both interviews and the full show in the video below:

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Lightning's Nikita Kucherov Failed To Replicate Regular-Season Dominance In The Playoffs Again

Nikita Kucherov (Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images)

Tampa Bay Lightning star right winger Nikita Kucherov is one of three finalists for the Hart Trophy, underscoring his excellent regular-season performance this year. 

But after the Lightning were eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs by the Florida Panthers Wednesday night, Kucherov’s output does not compare well to his regular-season showings.

For years now, Kucherov has produced a tremendous amount of offense. In the past three regular seasons, he’s generated a combined 267 assists and 378 points. He won the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL’s best point-producer in the past two years and he recorded at least 30 goals each time. This season alone, he had 1.55 points per game. You can’t deny him his due respect as a needle-mover.

However, the playoffs are a different story for Kucherov since winning the Stanley Cup back-to-back and losing in the final the year afterward. 

In the past three playoffs, where the Lightning have won a combined four games in three playoff rounds, Kucherov has only one goal. 

The 31-year-old Russian has put up 17 points in 16 playoff games in the past three years, which is still quite a drop from his regular-season rates, but posting just a single goal in that span is a problem.

Can you imagine the outcry that would be taking place if Kucherov were a Toronto Maple Leaf, and he only posted one goal in three playoff years when his team loses in the first round? Leafs fans and media would be tearing him apart. 

Even if you give Kucherov a bit of a break for earning only $9.5 million per season, that’s still a lot of money you’re giving to a player who has put up a combined 111 goals in the past three regular seasons but can’t make it translate into playoff success.

It would be one thing if the Lightning scored bucket-loads of goals this spring, and Kucherov was responsible for creating that offense as a playmaker extraordinaire. But against the Panthers, Tampa Bay managed only seven goals in its four losses.

Why The NHL's Three Ted Lindsay Award Finalists Each Deserve To WinWhy The NHL's Three Ted Lindsay Award Finalists Each Deserve To WinThe NHL revealed the three finalists for the Ted Lindsay Award on Wednesday. 

Now, Kucherov told reporters on Friday that he suffered a left hand extensor injury on Feb. 25, and that he did not want to miss any games.

“The trainers did a hell of a job getting me to games, and we go through some hard time,s but it is what it is,” Kucherov said. “Guys are playing with a bunch of bruises and something else, but I just wanted to play hockey and enjoy the moment and be with the guys.”

For an injured player, 11 goals and a league-leading 36 points in 24 games since Feb. 25 is very impressive. But he also proved he can still play and produce at an elite level, which means those expectations remain in the playoffs.

And to Kucherov’s credit, he has been a strong playoff performer throughout his career. He has 53 goals and 118 assists for 171 points in 152 career playoff games. He had 34 points in 25 games in 2019-20 en route to the Stanley Cup, 32 points in 23 games to defend the title and 27 points in 23 games when they just missed out on the three-peat. He had seven or eight goals in each of those years.

As one of the world’s best players, Kucherov deserves credit for what he’s been able to do in the regular season and in past post-seasons. But he shouldn’t be protected from criticism. 

Athough he deserves to be in the mix for the Hart Trophy as one of the NHL’s most valuable regular-season performers, a fair estimation of his playoff production indicates that he’s been nowhere near as dynamic when the games matter most from 2022-23 to now.

Get the latest news and trending stories by following The Hockey News on Google News and by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.

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Ottawa Senators Fans Enter Off-Season With Newfound Pride and Optimism

It was a bittersweet sight for Senators supporters to see a packed house cheering their team off the ice for the 2024–25 season after a hard-fought series.

What’s important to remember for Senators fans is that this team took a major step this season — one worth celebrating. They could have rolled over when the series was at 3–0, but instead, they put a scare into the first-place Leafs. Game 5 in Toronto ended in boos and fans fleeing early, despite the Leafs still holding the series lead.

May 1, 2025; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; The Canadian Tire Centre before game six of the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Marc DesRosiers-Imagn Images

The “Brady sucks” chants gave way to silence.

This young, inexperienced team started a “here we go again” narrative against the heavily favoured Leafs. This was the moment the Senators put the league on notice: they’re back and won’t be an easy out for years to come. Three overtime games, one blowout each way, and a Game 6 tied late — this series could have gone either way.

The Leafs played an excellent series and were a formidable opponent. Full credit to them for blocking out the noise and closing out the series after an insane 1–13 record in elimination games during the Matthews/Marner era before Game 6. Their rebuilt defense made it very difficult to get rebounds and traffic in front of goalie Anthony Stolarz. Their power play was absolutely lethal and struck quickly and often.

The Leafs may be 5–0 against the Senators in the playoffs, but the vibes were never this positive in those previous defeats. Those series featured two teams at similar points in their contention windows. Now, the Leafs are likely down to their final opportunity with this core, while Ottawa is just opening its window. This was likely always going to be the end result when comparing the skill and experience of the two teams.

Still, there are small consolations for Ottawa fans. This series didn’t end in a sweep, and Toronto broke its second-round playoff drought against Tampa two years ago — not against the Sens. Either point would have led to a full season of Leafs fan ammunition in “friendly” social media banter.

Speaking of Ottawa fans — major credit goes to them for finally taking their building back from the invading horde of Leafs supporters. Thanks to grassroots efforts from the team and die-hard supporters like Kevin Lee, tickets ended up in Senators fans' hands. It was a three-game party in Kanata. The regular season may return to business as usual, but those playoff nights gave the team real home-ice advantage — and the players noticed.

Captain Brady Tkachuk wore his emotions on his sleeve in his final media scrum: “You just feel the support... I just really wanted to do it for them. They were absolutely amazing.”

A far cry from a year earlier, when he said: “I just finished Year 6 and haven’t done a thing... I’m sick and tired of losing. At the end of the day, I’m just disappointed.”

Tkachuk, who led the team with 7 points in 6 games, will be an even better leader for having felt the sting of this experience and the love and support of the fans. He and the rest of the squad have plenty of reasons for optimism — even if moral victories might feel a bit hollow immediately after losing a series to their provincial rivals.

Young stars Tim Stützle (5 points) and Jake Sanderson (OT winner in Game 4) had their coming-out parties. Core pieces like Thomas Chabot and goalie Linus Ullmark settled in after shaky starts. Tyler Kleven showed playoff readiness. Even Drake Batherson, despite some untimely penalties, will be wiser from the experience.

The window is now open for contention. Minor tweaks could mean winning one more OT or one-goal game. With a supportive owner and a patient GM, they’ll look to carry this year’s momentum forward.

Core pieces are locked up on reasonable deals. Useful free agents like Claude Giroux, Nick Cousins, and Adam Gaudette have every reason to return.

Gaud's Plan: Adam Gaudette's Decision To Sign In Ottawa Works Out PerfectlyGaud's Plan: Adam Gaudette's Decision To Sign In Ottawa Works Out PerfectlyAdam Gaudette has quietly been one of the best stories of the Ottawa Senators’ season – a tale of a player struggling to get back to the NHL, joining forces with a team struggling to get back to the NHL playoffs.

New addition Dylan Cozens will benefit from a full camp. Young goalie Leevi Meriläinen looks ready to platoon with Ullmark.

Coaching was a major bright spot. Travis Green made adjustments that helped the team rally in the series. His defensive structure created buy-in where others failed, frustrating top opposition forwards all year.

One more fast forward to complement Stützle, and a tough right-handed defenseman to support the strong left side and the penalty kill, would be welcome. Strong veteran playoff experience in either role would be a bonus — and GM Steve Staios likely knows it.

Much ink has been spilled about Ottawa’s lack of top-end prospects, but this group has made wise choices with key picks. Carter Yakemchuk looks like a future top-four righty. Mid-rounders like Blake Montgomery, Tomas Hamara, and Stephen Halliday are all trending upward. If they repeat the success of savvy drafting like Ridly Greig, Shane Pinto, Meriläinen, and Batherson — and if the NHL eases its first-round penalty — the farm could rebound quickly. Expect the team to keep their pick this year and delay the penalty.

It’s been so long since Ottawa saw playoff hockey, many forgot what it brings: heartbreak on the way to greater success. This year’s mission was to take a big step — and they did. From the energized fans to the steady management and finally playoff-tested players, the light at the end of the tunnel has arrived. They’ve given every reason to believe another leap is coming.

Maybe it’ll even mean a long-overdue victory in the next Battle of Ontario.

By Andrew Sztein
The Hockey News 

Eight Positive Takeaways From The Ottawa Senators 2024-25 Season - Community PostEight Positive Takeaways From The Ottawa Senators 2024-25 Season - Community PostIt is difficult to take solace in consolation prizes so soon after losing to your arch-nemesis for the fifth time in modern-day franchise history.
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Marc-Andre Fleury’s Brilliant NHL Career Is Complete

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The Chicago Blackhawks have had a ton of great players over the years, whether the team was winning or not. For a short time, one of those great players was the wonderful Marc-Andre Fleury.

Over his legendary NHL career, Fleury also spent time with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Vegas Golden Knights, and Minnesota Wild. Most recently, he was part of a great duo in Minnesota. 

On Thursday night, Fleury’s career came to an end with a first-round series loss to one of his old teams in the Golden Knights. Vegas beat Minnesota in six games. 

By his final season, Fleury served as the backup to Filip Gustavsson. Fleury only played in relief for Gustavsson in game five as the latter left the game due to illness. That would end up being his final in-game appearance of his NHL career. 

Once the handshake line between Vegas and Minnesota ended, Fleury stepped off the ice for the final time as an NHL player. His personality, smile, and skills will be missed by all hockey fans. 

This won't be the end of Fleury in the public eye, though. He is someone who could end up in the front office of an organization or in hockey one way or another. He will also have special ceremonies in Pittsburgh over time as they celebrate their run during the Sidney Crosby era. 

Fleury will be in the Hockey Hall of Fame one day soon, now that he is officially hanging them up. He leaves the game with a record of 575-339-92. Those 575 wins are the second most in NHL history (Martin Brodeur). He also had a career 2.60 goals-against-average, a .912 save percentage, and 76 shutouts. 

Fleury is a three-time Stanley Cup champion, a winner of the Jennings Trophy, and a Vezina Trophy recipient. All of these accolades put him in the stratosphere of the game's all-time greats. 

Pittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) on XPittsburgh Penguins (@penguins) on XWhat a ride, Flower! 🌸 Congratulations to Marc-Andre Fleury on a phenomenal @NHL career. We've been privileged to be a part of it.Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) on XChicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) on Xcongrats to the one and only Flower on a legendary career👏🌸x - Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) on Xx - Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) on XA career people will talk about forever 🌸

The Blackhawks were lucky to be a small part of it. He played for them during the pre-trade deadline portion of the 2021-22 season. Fleury appeared in 45 games for Chicago before being traded to Minnesota. He was a great warrior for a team going through some massive change. 

On his way out of the league, Fleury was nominated for the NHL's Bill Masterton Trophy, which goes to the player voted to best exemplify the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey. This is a well-deserved honor. 

Now that his career is over, his fans can look forward to seeing what the next chapter of his life is. On the ice and off, he was one of the NHL's supreme talents. The league was a better place for having him in it for so long. 

Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.

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Watch Steph console heartbroken son Canon after Warriors' Game 6 loss

Watch Steph console heartbroken son Canon after Warriors' Game 6 loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Like the rest of Dub Nation, Steph Curry’s young son Canon hoped the Warriors would eliminate the Houston Rockets on Friday night at Chase Center.

But after Golden State’s 115-107 loss in Game 6 of the first-round NBA playoff series, Canon wasn’t up for much talking.

After Curry tried talking to Canon, the 6-year-old buried his head in his mom Ayesha’s chest as his grandma, Sonya, looked on with an understanding smile.

Canon’s dad played 42 minutes in the Warriors’ tough postseason loss, scoring 29 points on 9-of-23 shooting from the field and 6 of 16 shooting from deep with seven rebounds, two assists and five turnovers.

It might take a while for Canon to cheer up after watching Curry and Co. drop the ball, allowing the Rockets to even the series at three games apiece after the Warriors held a 3-1 lead. But he doesn’t have much time to sulk — Golden State and Houston face off in a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday at Toyota Center.

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After fan's terrifying fall in Pittsburgh, a look at safety measures across MLB

After fan's terrifying fall in Pittsburgh, a look at safety measures across MLB originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

When a fan flipped over the railing and fell off the 21-foot-high Clemente Wall in right field at Pittsburgh’s PNC Park on Wednesday night, it elicited memories of spectators who have died from similar falls at other major league stadiums.

Kavan Markwood was in critical condition as of Thursday after falling onto the warning track in right field just as Pirates star Andrew McCutchen hit a two-run double in the seventh inning to put Pittsburgh ahead 4-3. Markwood was tended to for approximately five minutes by members of both the Pirates and Cubs training staffs as well as PNC personnel, before being removed from the field on a cart. He was taken to the trauma center at Allegheny General Hospital.

Pittsburgh Public Safety, which includes Pittsburgh Police and EMS, posted on X Thursday that the “incident is being treated as accidental in nature.”

Fans died after steep falls at ballparks in Arlington, Texas, in 2011 and Atlanta in 2015.

Here’s a look at some safety measures instituted by MLB and its teams:

Ballpark railings

Railing heights at ballparks are team decisions based on local laws and codes. The railing that runs along the Clemente Wall is three feet (36 inches) in height, which exceeds the building code requirements of 26 inches, according to Pirates vice president of communications Brian Warecki.

Those rail heights have come under scrutiny at other ballparks after fans died. The Rangers raised the height of the front row rails at their former ballpark by as much as 12 inches to 42 inches in July 2011 after a fan named Shannon Stone fell about 20 feet.

The Atlanta Braves settled a lawsuit in 2018 with the family of Gregory Murrey, who died after falling from Turner Field’s upper deck three years earlier. Murrey fell over a rail that was 30 inches high — industry code standards mandated 26 inches or taller.

Foul ball netting

Until 2015, many ballparks had netting separating fans and the field only directly behind home plate. Following several incidents that season in which fans were hospitalized after being hit by foul balls, MLB encouraged teams to extend netting or screens to run dugout-to-dugout behind home plate in December 2015. Three years later, all 30 ballparks had netting reaching to the far ends of each dugout.

In 2019, a 2-year-old girl fractured her skull when struck by a foul ball at the Houston Astros’ stadium. The club later reached a settlement with the girl’s family. The following offseason, MLB announced seven major league teams would expand protective netting to the foul poles and 15 others would expand their netting generally to the area in the outfield where the stands begin to angle away from the field. The remaining eight clubs already had installed netting that extended substantially beyond the far end of the dugouts.

Alcohol sales

MLB does not mandate alcohol sales cutoffs, but most clubs have stopped selling alcohol around the end of the seventh inning for years. After new rules aimed at increasing the pace of play led to shorter game times in 2023, several clubs extended alcohol sales until the end of the eighth inning. Many of those teams have reverted back to the seventh-inning cutoff.

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Mets' Pete Alonso, Yankees' Aaron Judge named MLB Players of the Month for April

The two biggest sluggers in New York have been recognized for their early-season power at the plate. Major League Baseball announced its NL and AL Players of the Month for March/April on Friday, and the accolades were duly given to Mets first baseman Pete Alonso and Yankees captain Aaron Judge.

It didn't take long for Alonso to demonstrate his long-standing worth in Queens. The 30-year-old resembled a complete hitter in April, slashing .343/.475/.657 with seven home runs, 11 doubles, and 28 RBI across 31 games (137 plate appearances). The hits often came in bunches, too, as he collected 13 multi-hit games.

Alonso's torrid start to the 2025 campaign also featured some Mets history on Tuesday, as he moved into fifth place on the franchise’s all-time RBI list (614) by crushing a solo homer. With an NL-leading .475 on-base percentage and 19 extra-base hits (tied for second in MLB), Alonso is taking full advantage of a short prove-it contract that he signed this past winter and boosting his future market value.

As for Judge, his level of production thus far has been staggering. He finished the first month tied for the league lead in homers (10), and his .427 average and 1.282 through 31 games rank second to none. Judge has registered a league-high 2.9 WAR, and according to OptaStats, he's the only player in the designated hitter era (since 1973) to lead the AL in all three Triple Crown categories entering May.

The Yankees are also reaping the benefits from their biggest offseason acquisition, as lefty ace Max Fried was named the AL's Pitcher of the Month.

The 31-year-old veteran enters Friday's start with a pristine 1.19 ERA -- tied for the top mark among AL starters -- through six outings, and his perfect 5-0 record also ranks tied for best in the majors. Fried has undoubtedly lived up to his hefty free-agent contract thus far, holding opponents to a .207 average.

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Matthew Mayich Commits To Clarkson

Ebony Cox-Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Ottawa 67's defenseman Matthew Mayich has committed to Clarkson, it was announced on Thursday.

A native of Stoney Creek, ON, Mayich played 256 regular season games for the 67's, where he scored 21 goals and recorded 78 assists.

Mayich was selected in the sixth round, 170th overall, by the St. Louis Blues in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft.

A 2004-born skater, Mayich will make the jump to the NCAA and join the Golden Knights for the 2025-26 season.

Make sure you bookmark The Hockey News' NCAA Page for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns and so much more.

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Mets' Luisangel Acuña named NL Rookie of the Month

Mets infielder Luisangel Acuña was named the National League Rookie of the Month for games played in March and April, MLB announced Friday.

Acuña has collected 21 hits in his first 27 games with five doubles and three RBI with a .288/.342/.356 slashline.

He's scored 13 runs and has seven steals (one caught). Per Statcast, the speedster is in the 97th percentile in speed and carries a two baserunning run value (98th percentile in baseball).

Among NL rookies to start the year, the 23-year-old infielder is second in games played, third in at-bats, third in hits, third in doubles, second in average, third in OBP, and sixth in OPS (minimum 50 at-bats).

Acuña wasn't the only Met to be honored for his performance to start the year, as Pete Alonso took home the NL Player of the Month award.

After making an impression in 14 games at the end of last season after his big-league debut – when he went 12-for-39 at the plate with six extra-base hits, including three home runs, for a .308 average and .966 OPS – Acuña made the Opening Day squad and beat out Brett Baty to stay in Queens after Jeff McNeil returned for the IL.

At the start of March, Acuña was the No. 11 prospect in the Mets' system, per Joe DeMayo's rankings.