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Observations From Blues' 4-3 Win Vs. Canadiens

Another set of back-to-backs for the St. Louis Blues, and another set of wins.

The road trip started with a thud Thursday against the Boston Bruins, but the Blues followed up a Joel Hofer masterpiece 2-1 win against the Ottawa Senators on Saturday with another tough one on Sunday.

And it was Brayden Schenn and Dylan Holloway that hoisted the team on their shoulders, each collecting three points, with Schenn scoring twice with an assist – including the game-winner in the third period – and Holloway adding a goal and two assists as the Blues took down the Montreal Canadiens, 4-3, at Bell Centre in Montreal.

Pavel Buchnevich also scored, and Jordan Binnington made 23 saves for the Blues (11-12–7), who now play five of the next six on home ice after taking four of six points on this three-game road trip through the Eastern Conference and scoring more than two goals for just the second time the past 12 games.

It's the second straight weekend that the Blues have taken both ends of back-to-back games, winning 4-3 against the Ottawa Senators on Nov. 28 and 1-0 against the Utah Mammoth on Nov. 29.

Let’s get to the game observations:

* Schenn, Holloway delivered with major components out of lineup – The Blues have already been down three players (Jimmy Snuggerud, wrist; Alexey Toropchenko, leg burns; and Nathan Walker, upper-body) and and they’ll have to do without Jordan Kyrou, who departed early in the first period Saturday with a lower-body injury.

Who was going to step up for a team already challenged on the offensive side of the puck?

Each was instrumental and worked well as a unit with Mathieu Joseph on their line, combining for seven points.

Schenn opened the scoring with a power-play goal when old friend Zack Bolduc was in the box for slashing at 7:59, and Schenn made it count when he was in the right spot inside the right circle when Holloway worked the puck off the lefthand boards to the point, and Cam Fowler’s wrister caromed off Canadiens defenseman Mike Matheson right to Schenn, who made no mistake beating Jakub Dobes at 8:57:

And the winner by Schenn was crucial, because with the Blues holding a 3-2 lead in the third period, and they were maintaining it well through the first half of the period, his insurance goal at the time made it 4-2 with all three linemates having a hand in it.

With a puck in the neutral zone, Joseph’s hustle play disrupted Canadiens forward Joe Veleno from getting to the puck, allowing Holloway to race in, scoop it up and essentially turn it into a mini 2-on-1, feeding Schenn for a one-timer to the near post past Dobes:

It was critical because the Canadiens would pull to within one late on Noah Dobson’s goal at 16:15 but the Blues were able to thwart any chance by the Canadiens to tie, although Cole Caufield had a chance at the buzzer that was denied by Binnington:

But with Kyrou down, Schenn and Holloway stepped up big time for an offense that has obviously been scuffling.

The entire line worked well together and was a threat on multiple occasions for the few scoring chances the Blues created, finishing with only 18 shots on goal.

Schenn, who has 31 points (12 goals, 19 assists) in 32 career games against Montreal, had his first three-point game since also scoring twice and adding an assist Nov. 30, 2023 against the Buffalo Sabres in a 6-4 win.

But that trio led the way.

Not only did Holloway have a three-point night, but he also helped save a goal in the second period when Binnington was without a stick, on another old friend, Alexandre Texier:

* Quick strike second – The Blues had to be feeling down a bit after surrendering the lead late in the first on Caufield’s quick strike with 57 seconds remaining in the period, the sixth time the Blues have allowed a goal this season in the final minute of a period to fall behind 2-1:

It's the sixth time this season the Blues have allowed a goal in the final minute of a period, even getting the attention of Blues great Chris Pronger:

But they didn’t allow it to affect them, scoring twice in 39 seconds to take the lead for good.

Holloway and Schenn combined on the tying goal at 2-2 on a heads-up play by Colton Parayko springing the two forwards loose with a pass through the neutral zone after Jayden Struble got caught pinching high, leaving Lane Hutson to fend the 2-on-1. Schenn fed Holloway, who pulled it to his backhand and lift it over Dobes 26 seconds into the period. Holloway got behind Texier on the play.

And Buchnevich made it 3-2 at 1:05 when the Blues had a good forecheck and cycle of the puck along the righthand side and wall, with Justin Faulk getting the puck to Robert Thomas below the goal line and he found Buchnevich at the top of the crease for the finish:

The Blues (minus-16) and Canadiens (minus-13) each came into the game with two of the worst goal differentials in the second period but winning it 2-0 on those two quick strikes served St. Louis well and enabled them to take the lead into the third period.

* Binnington follows Hofer’s exceptional outing with a strong one of his own – He didn’t nearly see as much rubber as Hofer did on Saturday (42 shots), but Binnington was looking to build off what the Blues have for the most part been getting from their goaltending position.

Not only did he have to be on the spot to deny a Caufield chance at the horn, but Binnington’s best save was when he kicked out the left pad to deny Canadiens Russian phenom Ivan Demidov, not once but twice:

Should the Blues be able to get their goaltending back in a groove, and it’s been trending in that direction, they will undoubtedly win more hockey games.

* Mailloux, Bolduc meet for first time – Since the 1-for-1 trade on July 1, Blues defenseman Logan Mailloux and Canadiens forward Zack Bolduc had been waiting for this game from the moment the deal was made.

Mailloux was on the ice when Hutson got behind him for the tying goal at 12:20 of the first when it tied the game 1-1, and Bolduc was in the box when Schenn’s goal initially gave the Blues the lead:

But Mailloux finished the game an even on the plus-minus, playing 15:35 with two hits and two blocked shots, and Bolduc had an assist on Huston’s goal and was a plus-1 in 13:21.

Neither 22-year-old hurt their teams on this night, and each had a decent game. Now, can we put the trade comparisons in the rear view mirror once and for all?

* Things got a little hairy late – The Blues were doing a good job protecting that two-goal lead until the final 3:45 got dicey when Dobson’s shot from distance made it 4-3.

You could see Binnington wasn’t thrilled when Faulk skated right through his line of vision and he lost sight of the shot off the left hand wall. I don’t get why D-men do that to their goalies in those situations unless you’re 100 percent certain you’re blocking the shot. Otherwise, you’re taking away the line of vision of the goalie, like Faulk did there:

But the Blues only surrendered three shots and blocked two (Faulk and Broberg) down the stretch to finish the job.

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Rangers fall to Golden Knights, 3-2, in second straight home OT loss

NEW YORK (AP) — Jack Eichel scored at 4:52 of overtime and the Vegas Golden Knights beat the New York Rangers 3-2 on Sunday night for their fourth straight win.

Brett Howden and Tomas Hertl also scored, and Mark Stone had two assists for the Golden Knights, who improved to 6-2-2 in their last 10 games. Carter Hart finished with 21 saves.

Mika Zibanejad and Alexis Lafreniere scored for the Rangers, who lost in overtime at home for the second straight day to fall to 3-8-3 at Madison Square Garden. Jonathan Quick had 26 saves.

After Hart denied Zibanejad to force a whistle in the Vegas end late in overtime, Eichel raced the other way following the ensuing faceoff and beat Quick for his 12th goal and the win.

Hertl forced overtime with a tying goal with 52 seconds remaining in regulation.

Lafreniere gave New York a 2-1 lead at 13:01 of the second, firing a shot past Hart for his seventh goal.

Howden, a former Ranger, scored his fifth goal just 36 seconds into the game.

Zibanejad tied it at 9:08 of the second, tapping a loose puck past Hart for his team-leading 11th. Zibanejad has 261 goals as a Ranger, one behind Vic Hadfield for sixth place on the franchise list.

Stone has 20 points in 12 games this season.

Hart was playing his second game since returning to the NHL. The 27-year-old goalie was one of five 2018 Canada world junior hockey players acquitted of sexual assault in July. He made his first appearance for Vegas last Tuesday at home, a 4-3 shootout win over Chicago.

Up next

Golden Knights: Visit the New York Islanders on Tuesday night.

Rangers: Visit Chicago on Wednesday night.

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Brian Cashman explains Yankees' Cody Bellinger pursuit, Tatsuya Imai interest at 2025 MLB Winter Meetings

Brian Cashman appeared Sunday on YES Network for an interview from the 2025 MLB Winter Meetings in Orlando, Fla. Here is the latest from the Yankees' general manager on New York's pursuit of Cody Bellinger and Tatsuya Imai, plus where things stand at key spots after Trent Grisham's qualifying-offer acceptance and Ben Rice's breakout season.

Bellinger 'still in play'

Bellinger opted out of his contract with the Yankees and became a free agent last month, but he is "still in play," Cashman said.

"I talked to (agent) Scott Boras (Saturday)," Cashman said. " ... We're going to continue to have dialogue. He's got a number of players in the marketplace. He's got a very deep roster. Cody Bellinger also is one of 'em. Again, my job is to stay fluid, make sure I have all the intel that's coming in -- as much as I can share with ownership -- and, at some point, something might materialize."

Imai and 'big swings'

The Yankees are reportedly among the most interested clubs for Imai, the Japanese right-hander who is among the prizes of this offseason.

"Very talented player coming over from Japan, and we've certainly taken our big swings for trying to add some more talented players -- whether they're local or overseas, as far as Japan," Cashman said. "So, Scott Boras represents him. So, he's got a long list of talented players on his roster. So, I'm talking to a lot of different agents. But he's obviously one of 'em as well."

Grisham's 'reassurance'

After Cashman explained Grisham's return last month, where does the move leave the Yankees' outfield?

"It gave us some reassurance because, ultimately, we entered the winter down two highly productive, impactful players that led us to be tied with the best record in the American League in the toughest division -- and some of those reasons were Cody Bellinger and Trent Grisham," Cashman said. "So, when Trent accepted the qualifying offer, it gave us -- now we've got our center-field situation locked down for the next year.

"We believe the changes he made with his swing were real. And so, we were very happy with that. So, now it's a little bit less pressure to -- now, instead of being down two, we're down one and it gives us a little bit more flexibility. Go with the kids, see what the price tags are in free agency, whatever challenge trades come your way and make a decision when they come your way. And so, the Grisham qualifying-offer acceptance is a good thing for us."

Rice 'manning first base'

Cashman does not feel like he needs "outside help" beyond Rice, who enters 2026 "manning first base for" the Yankees.

"No, Rice at first is fine," Cashman said. "He can catch, he can play first and first base was a secondary position for him -- one he was learning on the run -- and he got better and better as the year went on, so we're really proud of what Rice is and what he brings to the table. And as far as I'm concerned, he's manning first base for us with (Austin) Wells catching. But the one thing, as I touch base on all that stuff, is we're obviously too left-handed.

"So, we need to find a way to balance out. I thought we had a good trade deadline last year 'cause we were able to bring in few right-handed bats. We already had (Paul) Goldschmidt, you had (Giancarlo) Stanton. We had (Amed) Rosario coming in on the trade deadline with (Austin) Slater. ... At the end of the day, it gave Booney some more choices, balanced us out. The deadline we also just had, that we came off of, was fruitful in the fact that it gave us some more controllable inventory.

"A lot of the players we brought in are collapsing right into our winter. They weren't here for three months and gone. They protected us in many ways. So, for instance, if we try to rebuild the bullpen, we have (Camilo) Doval and (David) Bednar now as we move into the 2026 season, but we've lost Devin (Williams) and (Luke) Weaver. So, thankfully, a lot of the things we did at the deadline -- we still have to show, and it gives us some protection, but we need to add to it."

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LeBron James crowns himself King after sparking Lakers' late surge in win over 76ers

Lakers star Lebron James controls the ball in front of Philadelphia's Dominick Barlow.
Lakers star Lebron James controls the ball in front of Philadelphia's Dominick Barlow during the first half of the Lakers' 112-108 win Sunday. (Emilee Chinn / Getty Images)

LeBron James needed to send this message.

He still sits on his throne.

The Lakers superstar scored 10 consecutive points late in the fourth quarter to seal a 112-108 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, helping the Lakers (17-6) nab two wins out of their difficult three-game road trip.

Lakers star LeBron James dunks in front of Philadelphia's Joel Embiid, left, during the first half Sunday.
Lakers star LeBron James dunks in front of Philadelphia's Joel Embiid, left, during the first half Sunday. (Chris Szagola / Associated Press)

After knocking down a 20-foot fadeaway over Quentin Grimes, James held both hands low to the ground, signaling “too small,” before placing an imaginary crown on his head and punctuating it with his signature silencer celebration. James, who sat out of the Lakers’ last game in Boston because of sciatica and left-foot joint arthritis, finished with 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists, including 12 points in the fourth quarter to hold off the 76ers. Philadelphia (16-7) came back from a 10-point deficit in the third quarter and tied the score with 1:28 remaining on a shot by Joel Embiid.

Luka Doncic returned from a two-game absence to record a 31-point, 15-rebound, 11-assist triple-double. Now a father of two daughters, Doncic rejoined the team in Philadelphia on Saturday after he and his fiancee welcomed their second child, Olivia.

Despite traveling from Slovenia, Doncic didn’t miss a beat Sunday. He scored five of the Lakers’ first seven points and took the most shot attempts of anyone on the Lakers. With 10 points, five rebounds and four assists in the first quarter, Doncic was already flirting with a triple-double after 12 minutes.

The Lakers erased a 10-point deficit in the first quarter only to find themselves down by 10 again in the second. After Austin Reaves hit a corner three — just his second basket after he missed his first eight attempts from the field — to bring the Lakers to within two points, the 76ers answered with a 10-2 run that pushed their lead back to 10 with 38.9 seconds remaining in the half.

Reaves, who was averaging 41 points a game without Doncic, had just 11 points. Deandre Ayton had 14 points and 12 rebounds.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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Sabres Ex-Files – Atlantic Division

There are a number of former Buffalo Sabres players scattered throughout the NHL, having a varied level of success this season. Periodically, we will check in to see how their players are faring. Today, we look at ex-Sabres playing for the seven other teams in the Atlantic Division. The Montreal Canadiens do not have any former Buffalo players currently on their roster, but here are those on the other six clubs.

Boston 

Casey Mittelstadt - F, Henri Jokiharju, Nikita Zadorov - D: The Bruins have surprised many by bouncing back from a horrible season to tie for the division lead with 34 points. Mittelstadt, acquired in the deal that sent Charlie Coyle to Colorado, has 12 points (6 goals, 6 assists) in 20 games. Jokiharju was dealt by the Sabres for a draft pick and re-signed with Boston instead of testing free agency. He has six assists in 25 games. Zadorov continues to be a physically punishing blueliner and has nine points, and leads the Bruins with 25 penalty minutes. 

Detroit 

Jacob Bernard-Docker - D: Bernard-Docker was acquired from Ottawa in the Dylan Cozens / Josh Norris deal and was not given a qualifying offer by the Sabres last summer. Signed to a one-year deal by Detroit, he has played part-time and has one assist in 16 games. 

Florida

Sam Reinhart, Evan Rodrigues - F, Dmitri Kulikov - D: Reinhart continues to thrive in Florida and is second only to Brad Marchand in scoring with 15 goals in 28 games. Rodrigues has been elevated in the lineup due to the injuries to Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, and has 14 points (8 goals, 6 assists) in 28 games. Kulikov suffered a torn labrum in the second game of the season and is expected to be out until after the Olympics. 

Other Sabres Stories

Six Former Sabres Who Signed Elsewhere

Guerin Gathering Info On Possible Olympic Options 

 

Ottawa

Dylan Cozens - F, Dennis Gilbert - D: Cozens has settled into a third-line center role behind Tim Stutzle and Shane Pinto and has 17 points (9 goals, 8 assists) in 28 games, but his glaring -12 plus/minus is worst on the club. Gilbert signed with Philadelphia in the summer and was dealt back to the Sens last month for Maxence Guenette. Since the deal, the Buffalo native has played one game. 

Tampa Bay

Zemgus Girgensons - F, Jonas Johansson - G: The long-time Sabre has settled into a fourth-line role with the Lightning, and has five goals in 21 games. The workload being the backup to Andrei Vasilevskiy is usually light, but this season, the former Vezina winner struggled with back issues early on and forced Jon Cooper to use Johansson more than normal. In nine starts, he is 5-4-0, with a 2.85 GAA and .896 save percentage. 

Toronto

Jake McCabe - D: McCabe has settled into being a minutes-eating matchup defenseman who averages close to 22 minutes a night for the Leafs. In 28 games, he has 11 points (3 goals, 8 assists) and leads the club with a +13 plus/minus. 

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Former Mets infielder Jeff Kent inducted into Baseball Hall of Fame by Era Commitee

Jeff Kent will finally have a permanent home in Cooperstown.

The longtime infielder, who spent five seasons with the Mets during the mid-1990s, earned induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame on Sunday via the Contemporary Baseball Era committee ballot.

The magic number for enshrinement was 12 votes from the 16-person group -- a mark of 75 percent that's also required for candidates on the annual BBWAA ballot -- and of the eight players under consideration, only Kent earned enough support (14 votes).

Kent's election was long overdue in the eyes of many voters and fans. He hit 351 of his 377 home runs as a second baseman, making him baseball's all-time leader at the position. He also collected 2,461 hits across 17 seasons, and 510 of them came in a Mets uniform.

In his 10th and final year on the BBWAA ballot (2023), Kent earned a personal-best 46.5 percent of the vote.

Among the Contemporary Era candidates who fell short was Don Mattingly, and his hopes of receiving a plaque in the Hall of Fame will once again linger for a few more years.

The former Yankees capatin was denied entry for a 19th time on Sunday, as he fell six votes shy on the ballot.

Mattingly's next crack at the Hall of Fame will come in 2028, when the Contemporary Era committee votes again. But the latest results reaffirm the chances of him achieving the feat are rather slim. 

In spite of collecting 2,153 hits, nine Gold Gloves, and one AL MVP award across 14 seasons (1982-95), Mattingly never came remotely close to crossing the 75-percent threshold in 15 years on the BBWAA ballot. He topped out at 28.2 percent in 2001, his first year as a candidate.

Interestingly enough, Mattingly received less 2025 support than another former New York first baseman in contention. Carlos Delgado, who slugged his way through four 2000s seasons with the Mets, finished with a second-best nine votes on the Contemporary Era ballot.

Delgado received an insufficent 3.8 percent of the 2015 BBWAA vote -- his first year in the running -- which disqualified him from future ballots. Nevertheless, he was one of baseball's most feared sluggers during the Steroid Era, as he smacked 473 homers and 483 doubles (2,035 totals hits) in 17 seasons.

Baseball icons Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Dale Murphy, Gary Sheffield, and Fernando Valenzuela were the other six players denied Hall of Fame honors on Sunday.

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Jeff Kent elected to baseball Hall of Fame, which again keeps doors shut for Bonds and Clemens

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Jeff Kent was elected to baseball’s Hall of Fame on Sunday by the contemporary era committee, while steroids-tainted stars Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens were among seven players who fell short once again.

Kent appeared on 14 of 16 ballots, two more than the 12 ballots needed for the 75% minimum.

Carlos Delgado received nine votes, followed by Don Mattingly and Dale Murphy with six each.

Bonds, Clemens, Gary Sheffield and Fernando Valenzuela each received fewer than five votes.

Kent will be inducted at the hall in Cooperstown, New York, on July 26 along with anyone chosen by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America, whose balloting will be announced on Jan. 20.

A five-time All-Star second baseman, he batted .290 with 377 homers and 1,518 RBIs over 17 seasons with Toronto (1992), the New York Mets (1992-96), Cleveland (1996), San Francisco (1997-2002), Houston (2003-04) and the Los Angeles Dodgers (2005-08).

His 351 home runs as a second baseman are the most by a player at that position.

Kent received 15.2% in his first BBWAA appearance in 2014 and a high of 46.5% in the last of his 10 times o the ballot in 2023.

The Hall in 2022 restructured its veterans committees for the third time in 12 years, setting up panels to consider the contemporary era from 1980 on, as well as the classic era. The contemporary baseball era holds separate ballots for players and another for managers, executives and umpires.

Each committee meets every three years. Contemporary managers, executives and umpires will be considered in December 2026, classic era candidates in December 2027 and contemporary era players again in December 2028.

Under a change announced by the Hall last March, candidates who received fewer than five votes are not eligible for that committee’s ballot during the next three-year cycle. A candidate who is dropped, later reappears on a ballot and again receives fewer than five votes would be barred from future ballot appearances.

Bonds and Clemens fell short in 2022 in their 10th and final appearances on the BBWAA ballot, when Bonds received 260 of 394 votes (66%) and Clemens 257 (65.2%). Sheffield received 63.9% in his final BBWAA vote in 2024, getting 246 votes and falling 43 shy.

Bonds denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs and Clemens maintains he never used PEDs. Sheffield said he was unaware that substances he used during training ahead of the 2002 season contained steroids.

A seven-time NL MVP and 14-time All-Star outfielder, Bonds set the career home run record with 762 and the season record with 73 in 2001.

A seven-time Cy Young Award winner, Clemens went 354-184 with a 3.12 ERA and 4,672 strikeouts, third behind Nolan Ryan (5,714) and Randy Johnson (4,875).

The December 2027 ballot is the first chance for Pete Rose to appear on a Hall ballot after baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred decided in May that Rose’s permanent suspension ended with his death in September 2024. The Hall prohibits anyone on the permanent ineligible list from appearing on a ballot.

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Islanders' win streak snapped at three in 4-1 loss to Panthers

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Carter Verhaeghe stayed red-hot with his sixth goal in his last six games, Seth Jones scored for the second consecutive game and the Florida Panthers closed a homestand by topping the New York Islanders 4-1 on Sunday.

Uvis Balinskis got a rare goal for the Panthers, who finished off a three-game, four-day stint with five points — going 2-0-1. Florida wrapped up a stretch where it played 11 out of 12 games at home, going 5-5-1 in those home contests.

Sam Reinhart added an empty-netter for Florida.

Mathew Barzal got his ninth goal for the Islanders, who had won three straight and were 7-1-0 in games when he had scored this season. No. 1 overall pick Matthew Schaefer had an assist on that goal, giving him 21 points through 30 games of his rookie season.

Balinskis sent the puck toward the net from the left point and it sailed past screened Islanders goalie David Rittich for a 1-0 lead. It was the first goal of the season for Balinskis and just the seventh of his career — including playoffs — in 126 NHL games.

Verhaeghe made it 2-0 at 7:05 of the second period off an assist from Jeff Petry. Verhaeghe — who got his 146th goal as a member of the Panthers, breaking a tie with Stephen Weiss for seventh on the team’s all-time list — has six goals and five assists in his last six games, by far his most productive stretch of the season.

Jones made it 3-1 with 6 minutes left, scoring for the second straight game — the first time he’s done that as a Panther.

The Islanders fell to 3-10-0 in games where they score two goals or fewer this season.

Up next

Islanders: Host Vegas on Tuesday.

Panthers: Visit Utah on Wednesday.


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Celebrini Leads Sharks to 4-1 Win Over Hurricanes, Snapping Two-Game Skid

Macklin Celebrini recorded a goal and two assists as the San Jose Sharks snapped their two-game skid with a 4-1 win over the Carolina Hurricanes Sunday night at the Lenovo Center. 

Alex Wennberg also contributed a goal and an assist, while John Klingberg added a goal. Collin Graf chipped in a goal, and Alex Nedeljkovic made 29 saves to secure the victory. 

For Carolina, Jordan Staal scored their lone goal, and Pyotr Kochetkov made 17 saves in the losing effort. 

First Period 

The Sharks struck almost instantly, taking a 1-0 lead just 33 seconds into the game. Celebrini set up Graff for a backdoor tap-in, giving San Jose an early jolt. The play originated when Jordan Martinook turned the puck over in his own zone, allowing Will Smith to seize possession and feed Celebrini, who wasted no time finding Graff for the finish. 

Carolina’s Jesperi Kotkaniemi was sent to the penalty box at 6:15 for hooking Dmitry Orlov, putting San Jose on the power play, but the Sharks were unable to capitalize. 

Later, with less than seven minutes remaining in the period, Celebrini was penalized for holding. The Canes took full advantage, tying the game when Eric Staal redirected a shot from Nedeljkovic past the Sharks’ netminder on the power play. 

Second Period 

Nearly eight minutes into the second, Celebrini dazzled again, threading a perfect feed to Klingberg for a one-timer in the slot. The former Edmonton Oiler buried it, restoring San Jose’s lead. 

Carolina’s Jackson Blake went to the box with 5:09 left for tripping Celebrini as he approached Kochetkov with a scoring chance. The Sharks made him pay: Wennberg slammed home a rebound from a William Eklund one-timer, extending the Sharks’ advantage to two goals. 

Third Period

Just over five minutes into the third, Jeff Skinner received a two-minute minor for cross-checking Alexander Nikishin into the boards. Despite the man advantage, Carolina failed to convert as the Sharks killed the penalty. 

Later, Eklund carried the puck into the right circle on a 2-on-1 rush. He faked a pass and fired a shot, but Kochetkov wasn’t fooled, making the stop. 

With 1:53 remaining, Kochetkov was pulled for the extra attacker. Jarvis tried to shovel a shot from the doorstep, but Nedeljkovic held firm amid a crowd of players. 

Carolina’s efforts ultimately fell short. Nikolai Ehlers turned the puck over, which Celebrini recovered and quickly moved up the ice to Wennberg, who was tripped by Jarvis. While the officials initially raised their hands for a penalty, play continued, and Wennberg managed to pass to Celebrini while still on the ice. Celebrini calmly deposited the empty-netter with 1:20 left, sealing a 4-1 victory for the Sharks. 

Notables

With a three-point night, Celebrini now has 43 points on the seasonm which is 2nd best in the NHL behind Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon, who has 49 points. With his two assists on the day, Celebrini is now in a first-place tie with Edmonton’s Connor McDavid with 28 assists on the year. 

It's safe to say, the 19-year-old is making a name for himself. Take a look at these stats.

Celebrini isn't of legal drinking age in the United States and he's already a legend in the making. 

Next Game 

The Sharks (14-13-3) continue their road trip on Tuesday when they take on the Philadelphia Flyers (15-9-3) at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Coverage begins at 4 p.m. local time.  

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Fernando Valenzuela falls short of induction into National Baseball Hall of Fame

Fernando Valenzuela the rookie left hander of the Los Angeles Dodgers sits in the Shea stadium.
Fernando Valenzuela burst on the scene during the 1981 season, winning the NL rookie of the year and Cy Young awards as the Dodgers also won the World Series. (Richard Drew / Associated Press)

A Chavez Ravine dream was yet again dashed on Sunday.

Fernando Valenzuela was once more denied induction to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

Fourteen months removed from his death at the age of 63 in October 2024, and 27 years removed from the end of a pitching career measured by more than just wins, losses and ERA, Valenzuela failed to be elected for the 2026 Hall of Fame class by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee — a 16-person group that once every three years considers players from the 1980s or later who had not been elected to the Hall through the traditional media vote.

Needing 12 votes from that committee to attain Hall of Fame status, Valenzuela instead came up short by receiving fewer than five.

Read more:Shaikin: It's past time to elect Fernando Valenzuela to the Hall of Fame

Because Valenzuela didn’t receive five votes, he will be ineligible to be back on the Contemporary Era Committee’s ballot in 2028. The next time the committee could review his case won’t be until 2031.

Until then, his name will remain among the most notable snubs from Hall of Fame induction.

In his first year of traditional Hall of Fame voting eligibility in 2003, Valenzuela received just 6.2% of the writers’ vote, far from the 75% threshold required for election. In 2004, his name fell off the ballot after garnering a vote total of just 3.8%.

The problem then was that Valenzuela did not boast typical Hall of Fame numbers. Though he was a six-time All-Star, a Cy Young and rookie of the year award winner in 1981, and World Series hero in the Dodgers’ championship run that season, the left-hander posted only a 3.54 ERA in his 17-year, 173-win, 2,074-strikeout career, and amassed only 37.3 wins above replacement according to Baseball Reference.

Of the other 90 pitchers in the Hall of Fame, only one fellow modern-era inductee (Jesse Haines) had a career WAR below 40.0 and a career ERA above 3.50 (excluding players from the Negro Leagues).

Valenzuela’s impact, however, was defined far more than by just production and statistics — seemingly epitomizing the Hall's motto of “preserving history, honoring excellence, connecting generations” with a career that changed the popularity of both the Dodgers and the sport.

Ever since his historic “Fernandomania” rookie season in 1981 — which started with eight consecutive victories for the then-20-year-old southpaw, and ended with his Cy Young, rookie of the year and World Series honors — the Mexican-born hurler had been an enduring cultural icon.

Valenzuela’s success greatly expanded baseball’s reach in Mexico and Latin America. His celebrity fueled a boom in Dodgers fandom, especially among Los Angeles’ Hispanic base.

This winter, hopes of that legacy being recognized in Cooperstown were rekindled when Valenzuela was named as one of eight finalists to be considered by the Hall of Fame’s Contemporary Era Committee.

He joined a group that also had Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Carlos Delgado, Jeff Kent, Don Mattingly, Dale Murphy and Gary Sheffield — all of whom were evaluated by a 16-person panel made of former Hall of Fame inductees, former general managers, writers and a statistician, plus two current MLB owners (one of them, Arte Moreno of Angels).

In the end, only Kent (a former MVP and five-time All-Star who spent the final four years of his career with the Dodgers) received enough votes to earn a Hall of Fame election.

Bonds, Clemens and Sheffield joined Valenzuela among those to receive fewer than five votes.

Though Valenzuela never quite recaptured the heights of that singular 1981 campaign, he remained a celebrated and uniting figure over the rest of his 11-year Dodgers career, as well as in stops with the Angels and San Diego Padres, among others, over the back half of his playing days.

Read more:World Series hero Miguel Rojas agrees to return to Dodgers on one-year deal

And since he first dropped off the traditional Hall of Fame ballot 21 years ago, there has been a persistent push from many in the baseball community — and especially the Dodgers’ fan base — to get Valenzuela into Cooperstown.

In 2023, the Dodgers even broke their unofficial rule of retiring only the numbers of the club’s Hall of Fame players, adding Valenzuela’s No. 34 to its ring of honor in a long-overdue celebration.

But for now, that will remain the most recognizable honor of Valenzuela’s contribution to the sport.

Once again, a doorway to Hall of Fame induction has been closed.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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Islanders Fall To Panthers 4-1, Snap Three-Game Win Streak

SUNRISE -- After shutting out the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-0 on Saturday, the New York Islanders failed to sweep the back-to-back, falling 4-1 to the Florida Panthers on Sunday evening. 

The Islanders were 4-0-0 on the second leg of back-to-backs prior to this game.

Here's how it happened: 

Goaltender David Rittich did a phenomenal job tracking pucks early, but a seeing-eye shot from Uvis Balinskis at 12:14 of the first gave the Panthers a 1-0 lead:

That snapped the Islanders' three-game streak of scoring first.

The Islanders' fourth line started to shift momentum, ever so slightly, garnering some chances. 

Kyle MacLean got a glorious feed from Casey Cizikas but he rang the left post at 19:16 of the first. 

The Panthers took a 2-0 lead at 7:05 of the second period after Maxim Shabanov committed his second turnover of the shift and third mistake. After making a great read in the offensive zone, he waited too long to shoot, leading to a blocked shot. 

Then, as he tried to get a cycle going down low, he didn't get enough on the pass, turning the puck over. He made a strong effort to get back -- which he did --, but then he turned the puck over to Carter Verhaeghe, who ripped the rubber glove side:

Head coach Patrick Roy swapped Shabanov with Simon Holmstrom for the remainder of the game. 

Mathew Barzal got the Islanders on the board at 9:03 of the second. He received a quick feed from Matthew Schaefer stationed at the point, before his backhander went off of Florida defenseman Gustav Forsling's behind and in:

 The Islanders couldn't get the equalizer before the second period came to a close. 

In the third period, the Islanders struggled to create much, with just three shots on goal. 

During 4-on-4 play, Seth Jones scored off the rush at 13:57 of the third after Tony DeAngelo and Matthew Schaefer got crossed up:

Sam Reinhart added an empty-net goal at 17:05 of the third for the 4-1 final. 

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Verhaeghe stays hot, Panthers wrap up homestand with second straight win

The Florida Panthers wrapped up an extended homestand when they hosted the New York Islanders on Sunday night in Sunrise.

For just the third time this season, the Panthers have picked points in three straight games after taking down the Islanders 4-1.

Florida picked up the game’s opening goal, and it came off the stick of one of their defensemen.

Cats youngster Mackie Samoskevich carried the puck from behind New York’s net and into the corner, sliding it to a waiting Balinskis at the point.

He fired a wrist shot that traveled through a screen and past Islanders goalie David Rittich to give Florida a 1-0 lead at the 12:14 mark.

The Cats doubled their lead just past the seven-minute mark of the middle frame thanks to a great steal by Sam Bennett.

With the puck in the corner to Rittich’s right, Bennett dug the puck out from between two Islanders and backhanded a pass to the high slot, where Jeff Petry poked the puck to Carter Verhaeghe at the side of the net.

Verhaeghe’s quick shot snuck between Rittich and the near post to give Florida a 2-0 lead with 12:55 to go in the second period.

Almost exactly two minutes later, Matthew Barzal fired a shot that went off the backside of Gustav Forsling before awkwardly bouncing underneath Tarasov to cut Florida’s lead in half.

It took a while before we saw the game’s next goal.

This time it was Anton Lundell finding Seth Jones moving into the Islanders zone, and Jones cut to the middle of the ice before wiring a nasty wrist shot over Rittich’s glove to put Florida back in front by two with 6:03 to go.

A Sam Reinhart empty-net goal would seal the deal for the Cats.

The win was Florida’ second straight, improving their record to 14-12-2 on the season.

On to Utah.

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Photo caption: Dec 7, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Carter Verhaeghe (23) celebrates with defenseman Jeff Petry (2) after scoring against the New York Islanders during the second period at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)