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Steve Sarkisian gives honest review of Arch Manning ‘athlete football’ vs UTEP
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian gave an honest answer about Arch Manning's performance against UTEP on Saturday, Sept. 13. What he said:
Top-20 Penguins' Prospects 2025: Defenseman Exceeds Expectations, Eyes NHL Roster Spot
Heading into the 2025-26 season, the Pittsburgh Penguins have shifted the focus to youth and development.
With more talent in the system than Pittsburgh has had in years - and 13 picks in the 2025 NHL Draft - top prospects lists are becoming more competitive and more difficult to discern. Since the prospect pool is deepening, The Hockey News - Pittsburgh Penguins takes a look at the top-20 prospects in the organization.
Ville Koivunen easily could have taken this spot, and it was even further evidenced by his toying with everyone else during the Penguins' first exhibition game at the 2025 Prospects Challenge. Rutger McGroarty could have slotted here, too, and that would have been a pretty safe choice considering his common place at the top of most Penguins' prospects lists.
Maybe this is too bold, maybe it isn't. But Harrison Brunicke has done nothing but impress so far in his short tenure as part of the Penguins' organization to the point that it seems like I'm running out of things to say.
So, without further ado, here he is at the top of my list as the Penguins' No. 1 prospect.
#1: D Harrison Brunicke
There are so many things to like about how Brunicke plays the game.
Selected in the second round (44th overall) by the Penguins in 2024, Brunicke, 19, was the final return piece of the blockbuster deal that sent Jake Guentzel to the Carolina Hurricanes prior to the 2024 NHL trade deadline. The 6-foot-3, 202-pound blueliner - coming into the draft - was known for his ability to shut down the opposition, and his two-way upside was intriguing.
Then, there was training camp in 2024. Barely anyone prior to training camp gave Brunicke a second thought after the draft, and he quickly began to get people's attention. Only 18 at the time - and a few months removed from the draft - Brunicke put on such an impressive training camp that the Penguins kept him through to the end, as he nearly made the team out of camp and earned at least a nine-game trial.
And one year later, drafting Brunicke in round two - which, the pick used on him was originally a conditional first - is looking like a steal.
When looking at the raw numbers, nothing jumps out like crazy. Brunicke had five goals and 31 points in 40 games last season for the Kamloops Blazers of the WHL - he missed a huge chunk of the season due to a broken wrist - and he got the call to the AHL after his junior season and put up two points in 10 games for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS).
Bruno with an absolute SNIPEEE pic.twitter.com/IxuZ3gHR81
— Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (@WBSPenguins) April 26, 2025
But a lot of it is about the process for Brunicke. Even if the points aren't piling up yet, his skating is top-notch, his ability to evade defenders is elite, he is great in his own zone and on the penalty kill, he defends well one-on-one, he excels in transition, he plays with some edge, and he dominates the offensive blue line like clockwork. Brunicke's a very cerebral player, too, as his reads are excellent in all three zones and he knows how to find the open man with a first pass.
What is most impressive about the blueliner from South Africa, though, is the way he skates with the puck. Brunicke explodes in transition and glides effortlessly as he takes the puck end-to-end, blowing by opponents and creating scoring chances off the rush. It's easy to see how his skating is miles above pretty much everyone around him, and it's the best quality of his game.
The Penguins' organization is wildly impressed by Brunicke, and when asked about his growth this past year, there has been no hesitation from anyone to speak glowingly about him. In fact, when I asked WBS head coach Kirk MacDonald about Brunicke's growth from the beginning of his AHL stint to the end of it - when he recorded a goal and two points in two playoff games and played in the top-four for WBS over some guys who had spent the entire season there - he started his response before I could even finish my question.
“Huge,” MacDonald said. “Honestly, it was. Credit to him, he figured it out quick. Came in initially, and - you know, he had junior habits where you can just skate by people and hold on to the puck for a long time - I thought he did a really good job with the last couple of regular season games and the playoff stint. He was moving pucks quick, jumping into the rush… that goal he scored in the playoffs was outstanding. The less he does in certain areas, the more he accomplishes just by making a really good first pass, activating and jumping in the rush."
Penguins' Director of Player Development Tom Kostopoulos also didn't hesitate to praise Brunicke's growth and ability to apply constructive feedback immediately.
"I think he took the constructive criticism and was able to apply it right away,” Kostopoulos said. “If you watched his games in Wilkes-Barre, there was growth, but it took off. It was impressive how he grew into the games in the playoffs. He looked very confident for a young kid.
“So, we’re really excited about his potential that he’s got to be a really good two-way defender with offensive upside.”
The NHL and NHLPA is still pushing for the CBA's new CHL-AHL rule this season, which would allow one 19-year-old CHL player per season to play in the AHL on loan. If the rule gets pushed through this year, there is no doubt that Brunicke would - more than likely - be the beneficiary, as he's clearly outgrown junior hockey and is ready for the AHL.
For One Penguins' Top Prospect, New AHL-CHL Rule Could Prove CrucialOn Tuesday, the NHL released its transition schedule for the new rules under the Collective Bargaining Agreement that is set to take full effect during the 2026-27 season.
But if it doesn't take effect - and Brunicke manages to have an even more impressive training camp than he did last season - the Penguins will have some tough decisions to make. They already have Erik Karlsson, Kris Letang, Matt Dumba, and Connor Clifton on the right side, and it would certainly take a lot for Brunicke to assert himself into a starting NHL role. But, if he wouldn't crack the NHL roster, he would need to be sent back to Kamloops, where he'll have to remain until the end of his junior season - and which risks stunting his development and opening the door for him to lean on bad, high-risk habits.
Brunicke has made it clear that his goal is to stay in the NHL this time around. The Penguins desperately need top-end talent on the blue line in their system, and Brunicke is the one with the most promise. If he develops to his potential, he could be a top-pairing defenseman, should be a top-four defenseman, and might see a floor as an effective bottom-pair blueliner.
Regardless, Brunicke has certainly proven himself in his short time with the Penguins and fills a dire positional need for the team - and he only figures to get better. His upside, intrigue, and sharp growth over the last year is what earned him the No. 1 spot on our Top-20 Penguins' Prospects 2025 list.
Now, let's see if he can earn a spot on the NHL roster come training camp.
Top-20 Penguins' Prospects 2025: Biggest Piece In Guentzel Trade Proving HimselfHeading into the 2025-26 season, the Pittsburgh Penguins have shifted the focus to youth and development.
The complete Top-20 Penguins' Prospects 2025 list:
- No. 1: D Harrison Brunicke
- No. 2: F Ville Koivunen
- No. 3: F Rutger McGroarty
- No. 4: F Ben Kindel
- No. 5: G Sergei Murashov
- No. 6: D Owen Pickering
- No. 7: F Tanner Howe
- No. 8: G Arturs Silovs
- No. 9: G Joel Blomqvist
- No. 10: F Tristan Broz
- No. 11: F Will Horcoff
- No. 12: F Mikhail Ilyin
- No. 13 F Filip Hallander
- No. 14: F Bill Zonnon
- No. 15: F Melvin Fernstrom
- No. 16: D Emil Pieniniemi
- No. 17: F Avery Hayes
- No. 18: F Cruz Lucius
- No. 19: D Finn Harding
- No. 20: D Peyton Kettles
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Former NHLPA Executive Director Bob Goodenow Dies At 72
Bob Goodenow, the former leader of the NHL Players' Association, has died at 72 years old.
The NHLPA announced Goodenow's sudden passing Saturday evening. No cause of death was given.
Goodenow led NHL players during the 1994-95 and 2004-05 lockouts, when they opposed the implementation of a salary cap.
"The modern NHLPA, and the work it has done to improve the quality of life for thousands of players past and present, is a direct result of the foundation that Bob Goodenow built," the association said in a statement. "His impact on the game of hockey is lasting and profound."
The NHLPA is deeply saddened to learn of the sudden passing of former NHLPA Executive Director Bob Goodenow.
— NHLPA (@NHLPA) September 13, 2025
Full statement: https://t.co/TNQFtPyDSEpic.twitter.com/zjyDpuUutG
Goodenow joined the NHLPA in 1990 as its deputy executive director. Before that, he captained Harvard's hockey team and later played professionally for the Flint Generals in the now-defunct IHL. He then graduated from the University of Detroit Law School and became a player agent.
He became the NHLPA's second-ever executive director in 1992 after Alan Eagleson, who held the role since 1967, resigned due to allegations of fraud. Goodenow held the position for 13 years.
Goodenow tirelessly worked to educate the players and build trust in the NHLPA's work, the association said.
"During his tenure, Bob was relentless in the fight for players’ rights," the NHLPA said. "He negotiated landmark gains in salary, free agency, pension and health benefits, and he led the players in taking control of their name, image and likeness rights in 1992.
"He also helped to establish pioneering programs, such as player salary disclosure, the second medical opinion program for players, the agent certification program, and he worked with the NHL to implement the Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health Program for players and their families."
Goodenow also grew the staff of the NHLPA from three to more than 50 employees, built licensing and sponsorship programs, co-founded NHLPA Goals & Dreams where players donate complete sets of new hockey equipment and resources to grassroots programs and, with the NHL, launched the World Cup of Hockey in 1996 and brought NHL players to the Olympics for the first times in 1998 and 2002.
In October 1994, Goodenow led the players union in the beginning of a lockout as the NHL and team owners wanted a luxury tax on salaries that exceeded the average.
The lockout lasted until Jan. 11, 1995, for a total of 103 days. A rookie salary cap was introduced, but there was no luxury tax or overall salary cap. The 1994-95 regular season was shortened to 48 games as a result of the lockout.
When that collective bargaining agreement ended in 2004, the NHL wanted a salary cap, while the NHLPA offered a luxury tax, a five percent rollback in salaries and revenue sharing, among other proposals.
With no agreement in time, another lockout began in 2004 and ended up wiping out the full season, meaning the Stanley Cup wouldn't be awarded for the first year since 1919.
In July 2005, the 10-month lockout ended, with some key additions being the salary cap, NHL team revenue sharing, a 24 percent player salary rollback and a gradual decrease to the age a player needed to be to become a UFA from 31 to 27.
"Bob was a skilled attorney and tenacious advocate for the players he represented as an agent and as the head of the Players' Association," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement. "We send our deepest condolences to his wife, Wendy, their three children, Joe, Katharine and Kerry, and his many friends and admirers throughout hockey.
Glaring mistakes add up to deflating Mets loss as season slips away
If ever there were a day that told you it’s just not happening for the Mets this season, it was Saturday at Citi Field.
It wasn’t only that they blew a 2-0 lead after seven innings to lose 3-2 to the Texas Rangers. There have been plenty of bad losses lately, and indeed their losing streak is now eight and counting, leaving them three games over .500 with the third wild-card spot slipping away from them.
No, this was more about the way they lost, making so many dumb or inexplicable mistakes that manager Carlos Mendoza couldn’t deny the obvious.
“Fundamentally, we’re not playing good baseball,” he said at his postgame news conference.
They’re back to failing badly in the clutch as well, going 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. Maybe that was inevitable after their hot August with the bats, but it’s crunch time now and nobody’s getting it done.
Worse, in some ways, were the glaring mistakes.
There was Brett Baty getting picked off second base with no outs in the sixth inning, the second time this week he’s been picked off a base in a close game. It just can’t happen.
There was Francisco Alvarez getting called for catcher’s interference to allow Josh Smith to reach base leading off the eighth inning -- a crucial blunder that led to the Rangers’ first run.
Mendoza seemed especially upset about that one, noting that with Tyler Rogers pitching, hitters are going to let the ball get deep, not fearing the velocity.
“We don’t have the awareness there,” he said, speaking of Alvarez, “and it cost us.”
Then, with the game tied 2-2, there was Francisco Lindor’s failure to catch Cody Freeman's relatively routine line drive that started the Rangers’ winning rally. Lindor had to jump, which was why the play was ruled a hit, but even Lindor afterward said, “I should have caught it, 100 percent.”
Finally, there was Edwin Diaz making costly mistake pitches, a hanging slider to Rowdy Tellez in the eighth that was roped for a game-tying double, and a fastball in the middle of the plate that Wyatt Langford lined to right-center for what turned out to be the game-winning hit.
Add it all up and this was one of the most deflating losses of all, even in this sea of deflating losses.
It had been such a feel-good day at Citi Field, too, with a big crowd seeming to thoroughly enjoy the Alumni Classic, and then young Brandon Sproat adding to the festivities by throwing a gem in his second major league start, going six shutout innings on only 70 pitches.
It’s a great sign for the future, but it only made Saturday’s loss feel like another lost opportunity.
Sproat surely could have gone another inning, but Mendoza took him out, saying that his velocity dropped significantly in the sixth inning, as he gave up a few hard-hit balls. However, Sproat only threw two fastballs in the inning, a four-seamer and a sinker, both at 93 mph, and otherwise relied on his off-speed stuff.
By comparison, Sproat had thrown a 93 mph sinker as early as the fourth inning, though his four-seamer was as high as 97 mph earlier in the game.
In any case, Sproat said he had no issues with his arm, and didn’t really have an answer for any drop in velocity, saying “I just go out there and compete.”
Bottom line, you can’t blame Mendoza for being cautious with a 24-year-old who seems to have a big future with the Mets, and as it turned out, the bullpen was okay on this day. Brooks Raley worked a clean inning and Rogers’ inning was compromised by the catcher’s interference.
In the end, the Mets got the ball to Diaz with a lead, but his was the rare day when he didn’t have it.
The timing couldn’t have been worse, obviously, and still another head-shaking loss left the Mets’ players continuing to say they believe they’ll turn this thing around, even as their words sound more hollow by the day.
On this day, Juan Soto, whose eighth-inning home run gave the Mets a 2-0 lead and made him the first 40/30 man in team history, was particularly emphatic in saying the ball simply isn’t bouncing the Mets’ way at the moment.
“It’s crazy how the games have been going,’’ he said. “But we’ve gotta keep grinding. I still 100 percent believe this is a playoff team. We’re going to turn this thing around. Just look around at the talent. We have everything we need to go all the way.”
Soto even downplayed his personal achievement and said, “We’ve got bigger things in front of us. We’ve gotta go out and get it.”
Soto certainly sounded like he believed his words; it’s just tough for anyone who has been watching this team, especially on Saturday, to believe them.
It’s not as if this is merely some flukey stretch of losing at this point. These Mets are 18 games under .500 since June 13, so even when you factor in the occasional sparks, the seven-game winning streak in late July, or the three-game sweep of the Phillies in late August, the body of work offers little evidence that this team can suddenly go on a tear to lock down the wild card berth, never mind fulfill Soto’s promise of sorts that they can still go “all the way.”
As it is, this late-season collapse is becoming more defining of their season by the day. That reality never felt quite as inevitable as it did on Saturday.
From The Archives: Fedorov Captures Magic
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Fedorov Captures Magic - July 1, 1994 - Volume 47, Issue 38 - Michael Ulmer
Wayne Gretzky found out when he stopped in at his Toronto restaurant. A reporter told Martin Brodeur the night before.Anticlimax was the theme of the NHL Awards June 17 in Toronto.
The process garnered as much attention as the winners. On June 16, the Quatre Saisons television network in Quebec announced a list of winners that corresponded exactly to the roster of awards unveiled the following night.
The league promised to investigate the leak.
“It’s disappointing,” said Bernadette Mansur, NHL vice-president, corporate communications. “It doesn’t diminish the achievements, but it does take a bit of the magic away.”
Much of the magic that remained be-longed to double winner Sergei Fedorov, who became the first non-North American to win the Hart Trophy as league MVP.
He also won the Frank Selke Trophy as the top defensive forward. Fedorov, who had 56 goals and 120 points in 82 games for the Detroit Red Wings finished on top of the Hart Trophy voting ahead of two goalies, Dominik Hasek of the Buffalo Sabres and John Vanbiesbrouck of the Florida Panthers.
Hasek did receive the Vezina Trophy as the league’s best goalie and shared the Jennings Trophy with teammate Grant Fuhr for the league’s best combined goals-against average.
Boston Bruins’ defenseman Ray Bourque won his fifth Norris Trophy as the league’s best defenseman after a two-year absence.
“I wanted to prove I was still here,” Bourque said, “still kicking and still playing at a high level.”
Los Angeles Kings’ superstar Gretzky, meanwhile, hit the quarter-century mark for major NHL awards with his Art Ross Trophy as the NHL’s top scorer and Lady Byng Trophy for sportsmanship.
They go along with his nine Art Ross Trophies, nine Harts, three Lady Byngs and two Conn Smythes.
The New Jersey Devils took home their first two major awards in franchise history when Brodeur was awarded the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie and Jacques Lemaire the Jack Adams Award as top coach.
In other awards, Boston Bruins’ right winger Cam Neely won the Bill Masterton Trophy for perseverance and dedication and Adam Graves of the New York Rangers won the King Clancy Trophy for leadership on and off the ice.
Fedorov also won the Lester B. Pearson Award for league MVP as voted by members of the NHL Players’ Association. Devils’ defenseman Scott Stevens took the Alka-Seltzer Plus Award for his plus-58 ranking and Rangers’ defenseman Brian Leetch took the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
Carlos Mendoza: Mets 'fundamentally not playing good baseball' during crucial stretch run
With 13 games left in the regular season, the Mets are playing their worst baseball.
Stuck in an eight-game losing streak after Saturday's 3-2 loss to the Texas Rangers, New York finds itself on the outside looking in of the postseason, 0.5 GB of the San Francisco Giants who are just getting underway against the Los Angeles Dodgers, with no answers to fix it.
Following some duds on the mound lately, the Mets wasted an excellent performance out of Brandon Sproat in his Citi Field debut. The rookie right-hander pitched six scoreless innings and left (after only 70 pitches thrown) with a lead.
But even after Juan Soto doubled his team's lead with a mammoth solo homer in the seventh, it still wasn't enough as the bullpen, this time Tyler Rogers and Edwin Diaz, allowed the game-tying and game-winning runs in the eighth and ninth innings.
New York had its chances to extend (and in the later innings tie or retake) the lead, but failed to do so as its ugly numbers with runners in scoring position showed up once again.
The recurring losing seems to be getting to the Mets who were out of answers on why they continue to play so poorly, especially during such an important stretch of the season.
"I don't know. We’re definitely trying to figure out what’s going on," Soto said. "We’re playing our ass off every night it’s just not going in our way. It’s just crazy how the games have been going, but like I said we just gotta keep grinding and keep moving forward. There’s no excuses, we just gotta go out there and keep trying to beat them."
No matter what New York tries to do to get out of this funk, nothing is working.
And although the players say they believe they will win every time they step foot onto the field, it's getting to the point where the nightly expectation is something will go wrong for this team.
"We have the energy, we have the guys, we have everything we need to go all the way," Soto said. "The only thing is we keep losing games. I don’t know what else to do right now."
"It’s not easy right now, especially when you’re not able to finish the job in a game where you felt like you had it and then before you know it you’re behind," said manager Carlos Mendoza.
"Everybody has a sense of urgency but for some reason we haven’t been able to close out games," added Francisco Lindor.
Of course, the Mets are not out of the playoff picture and depending on what happens later tonight they could still be holding the final wild card spot. However, things need to drastically change, and quickly, for New York to have any shot of the playoffs.
Right now, losers of eight straight and a 31-49 record since being a season-high 21 games above .500, the Mets look finished.
"We gotta get going here, fast. That’s the bottom line. We gotta get the job done. Period. It’s been too long," Mendoza said.
While that's the message, it's hard to execute when the team continues to hurt itself on the field. On Saturday, it was Francisco Alvarez's catcher's interference that began the eighth-inning rally and Lindor's missed catch on a line drive that ended up coming around to score the go-ahead run. Brett Baty was also picked off in the sixth inning for the second time this week, deflating a potential rally.
"It’s just about the results now and when you’re going through stretches like this everybody has to do their part. We gotta find a way to get the job done here. Feels like fundamentally we’re not playing good baseball right now."
If New York wants to save its season from complete and utter disaster, it will need to come from everyone looking within, digging deep and simply playing better. The roster is talented enough to go on a run, but it's time the players start acting like it.
"We believe in every single guy here," Soto said. "We’re trying to do our best and trying to come through."
"We have to put it together. We haven’t put it together. Tomorrow is a new day," Diaz said.
"Everyone here is fighting for each other," Lindor said. "Everyone feels like we’re preparing the right way. Hopefully baseball turns on our side and once we grab the momentum hopefully we can maintain it."
"We still got an opportunity. You still gotta believe, right? But you got to get going," added Mendoza.
South Carolina QB, Heisman Trophy candidate LaNorris Sellers ruled out after blow to head vs. Vanderbilt
The injury took place on a hit late in the second half that was eventually ruled targeting and resulted in the ejection of Vanderbilt linebacker Langston Patterson.
Bryce Anderson injury update: Texas A&M DB stretchered off field in Notre Dame game
Texas A&M defensive back Bryce Anderson suffered a scary injury in the Notre Dame game and was stretchered off the field while holding a thumbs-up.
Oliver Moore Scores In Overtime, Blackhawks Beat Blues At Tom Kurvers Prospect Showcase
After a week of rookie camp, the Chicago Blackhawks prospects finally got to play in a game. The Tom Kurvers Prospect Showcase features the Blackhawks in addition to the St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild.
This event is taking place in St. Paul, Minnesota. The participating roster traveled there on Saturday afternoon after having a practice in Chicago during the morning hours.
After going down 1-0 and having a sluggish start to the game for Chicago, they started to get their legs under them.
The Blackhawks got on the board in the second period when Taige Harding scored, thanks to a great chance created for him by Sam Rinzel. The captain for the night, Rinzel, danced around the zone before making a brilliant pass to Harding, who didn't miss.
Scott Powers (@ByScottPowers) on XSam Rinzel sets up Taige Harding for a Blackhawks' goal.Towards the end of the middle frame, the Blackhawks took a 2-1 lead on a goal scored by Ryan Mast. Before the game was over, the Blues did find a way to tie it and force overtime.
Not long into the extra frame, Oliver Moore made a power move using his speed and slid the puck into the net for the game-winner. This was an impressive display of the skills, tenacity, and skating that he brings to the table.
CHGO Blackhawks (@CHGO_Blackhawks) on XOliver Moore burns the defender and buries the OT winner for the Blackhawks !Whether it was the impressive plays that led to goals by Oliver Moore or Sam Rinzel, amongst others, or big-time scoring chances created by the impressive Nick Lardis, the Blackhawks have a lot of exciting pieces who are just getting going.
Maybe the most impressive performance for the Blackhawks came in the net. Stan Berezhnoy made 31 saves on 33 shots in the win. A fair amount of them came on grade-A chances. The Rockford IceHogs could see him in the mix during the 2025-26 season.
Chicago's prospects are going to be back at it again on Sunday when they take on the Minnesota Wild prospects at 3 PM central to close out the Tom Kurvers Prospect Challenge.
Visit The Hockey News Chicago Blackhawks team site to stay updated on the latest news, game-day coverage, player features, and more.
LaNorris Sellers injury update: South Carolina QB leaves game after Vanderbilt hit
South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers left the Vanderbilt game after taking a hit from a defender. The Commodores player was ejected for targeting.
College football betting, odds: Villanova causes one of the worst bad beats you’ll see this year in college football
Penn State bettors suffered one of the worst bad beats you'll see in college football this season.
Texas A&M’s Mike Elko throws chair in frustration after Notre Dame touchdown
Texas A&M coach Mike Elko launched a chair in frustration after the Aggies allowed a touchdown vs. Notre Dame in Week 3.
No need to overreact with Bump, Grebenkin shows bite and more as Flyers lose
No need to overreact with Bump, Grebenkin shows bite and more as Flyers lose originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The Flyers’ prospects weren’t the comeback kids this time.
They fell to the Rangers, 5-2, Saturday night at PPL Center in the second of two rookie games.
The teams split the weekend series. Game 2 was chippy and sloppy.
“I felt like there were a ton of whistles tonight,” AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley head coach John Snowden said. “I didn’t think there was a whole lot of flow in general in the game.”
Ethan Samson and Alexis Gendron provided the Flyers’ goals. Gendron finished with two in the series.
The Flyers rallied to win Game 1 in overtime, 4-3. Nikita Grebenkin, who scored the winner for the Flyers, had two assists in Game 2.
• Alex Bump, arguably the most NHL-ready prospect in rookie camp, went scoreless over the weekend.
That may be seen as a disappoint to some fans who have heard so many good things about him. But it’s important to remember that a pair of rookie games won’t decide a prospect’s fate for main camp.
Two years ago, Tyson Foerster was the rookie camp headliner. He went scoreless in the two games against the Rangers. The Flyers, though, weren’t too worried about it. Foerster went on to make the big club’s roster and had a 20-goal rookie season.
Bump could be one of those complementary guys who gets better around NHL players. And it’s not like the 21-year-old winger looked bad offensively in the rookie series. He showed some of his strengths.
In the first period Saturday, he put a pass through two Rangers and right to Matthew Gard at the doorstep. But Gard was unable to get his stick on it as he streaked to the net.
• Grebenkin impressed in both games.
Not only can he make plays with quick hands and good vision, but he also competes through contact. You can see why the 22-year-old winger played seven games for the Maple Leafs last season before coming to the Flyers in the Scott Laughton trade.
“He plays with a ton of bite,” Snowden, who runs rookie camp, said. “He’s a highly skilled player, but he is not easy to play against at all. He’s going to whack you when you come off the bench, he’s going to crosscheck you, he’s going to stick his nose in there. He wants to take contact and create his space.”
• Coming off a 20-goal year for the Phantoms last season, Gendron knows he has good offensive tools. But he also knows he needs to continue to round out his overall game if he wants to climb to the Flyers.
“Last year, I thought my game grew up a little bit,” the 21-year-old winger said. “I had a chance to play on the PK yesterday and today, so that’s pretty big for me. I’m trying to be more of a complete player — PK, power play, 5-on-5.
“I’m just trying to prove that I can be an NHLer; not just an AHL guy.”
• Samson had another strong game. His second-period goal came on a missile from the circle.
“One of his greatest strengths is his shot,” Snowden said. … “He can score when he gets his opportunities.”
The 22-year-old defenseman could be a call-up option at some point this season. He has steadily improved in two seasons with Lehigh Valley.
“That’s everyone’s goal at the end of the day, to make that jump,” Samson said. “I’ve just got to keep playing my game and doing what they tell me do, and hopefully I can get to the next step.”
• Carson Bjarnason started in net and played a little over half the game, giving up three goals on 17 shots.
The 2023 second-rounder really wasn’t to blame for any of them.
He allowed a first-period power play goal to Scott Morrow, who played 14 games for the Hurricanes last season.
New York struck again in the opening minute of the middle stanza when the Flyers gave up a 3-on-1 rush. Later in the period, the Flyers surrendered a 5-on-3 power play goal.
Camp invite Joey Costanzo finished the game and stopped 12 of 13 shots.
The Rangers’ final goal was an empty-netter.
• Oliver Bonk ended up missing the second rookie game, as well. The 2023 first-round defenseman was out Friday because of maintenance.
“Just getting him ready for main camp,” Snowden said after Saturday’s loss.
One would think the Flyers didn’t feel there was any need to rush Bonk back, but we’ll see how his status trends over the course of early next week.
Denver Barkey had the night off after an excellent game Friday.
• The Flyers are scheduled to have two more days of rookie camp in Voorhees, New Jersey.
Throwback: Red Wings' Pavel Datsyuk Handles Corey Perry In Fight
The Los Angeles Kings received unfortunate news when veteran forward Corey Perry, signed to a one-year contract after spending the past season and a half with the Edmonton Oilers, was injured during a training session.
He has since undergone surgery and is expected to miss several weeks. Even at 40, Perry has proven he can still contribute, scoring 19 goals and 11 assists in 81 regular-season games for the Oilers, then adding 10 more goals in the postseason before Edmonton once again fell to the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final.
It’s a cruel twist of irony for Perry, who has now been on the losing side in the Stanley Cup Final in five of the last six seasons with four different teams (Dallas in 2020, Montreal in 2021, Tampa Bay in 2022, and Edmonton in 2024 and 2025).
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Detroit Red Wings fans are all too familiar with Perry from his many years with the Anaheim Ducks. He and the Ducks faced Detroit three times in the postseason (2007, 2009, 2013), with the Red Wings winning each of the last two series in seven games.
While Perry has never backed down from dropping the gloves, he likely never would have imagined himself getting handled in a bout against Pavel Datsyuk, a multi-year winner of the Lady Byng Trophy as the NHL's most gentlemanly player.
The Red Wings hosted Perry and the Ducks in their 2010–11 season opener at Joe Louis Arena, a 4–0 Detroit victory. With the game already well in hand in the third period, Perry’s frustration boiled over as he confronted Pavel Datsyuk along the half-wall.
After landing a few punches, Perry found himself on the receiving end, as Datsyuk fired back and eventually wrestled him to the ice as the sellout crowd roared in approval.
“I’m not a very big guy to talk about what happened,” Datsyuk explained years later. "What happened, happened. It’s part of hockey, part of the show.
“When you watch a fight from the side, you see how people grab each other and try to protect themselves. So, I was trying to defend myself.”
Datsyuk, who had already scored a goal with adding an assist, picked up his first and only Gordie Howe Hat Trick of his NHL career with the fight.
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