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Victor Wembanyama 'very much' could return to court Saturday in NBA Cup semifinals

LOS ANGELES — Before his San Antonio Spurs went on to beat the Lakers with him watching in street clothes Wednesday night, Victor Wembanyama was out on the court, getting in a little light work. He looked good, moved well and didn't have any kind of wrap on his strained calf.

Is there a chance we see Wembanyama on the court in Las Vegas on Saturday for the NBA Cup semifinals against the Thunder?

"Very much," Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said after the Spurs' win. "He had a really good day today. He had a very intense day this morning, and we have to see how he responds and reacts tomorrow."

It has been reported that Wemby was close to a return, and his on-court pregame work on Wednesday evening after an intense workout earlier in the day is a good sign.

Wembanyama has been out since Nov. 15 with a calf strain, missing a dozen games. Behind inspired play from De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper as a guard trio the Spurs have gone 9-3 in those 12 games, including beating the Lakers Wednesday to advance to the NBA Cup semifinals in Las Vegas.

Already an All-Star, Wemby looked like a player making another leap this season, averaging 26.2 points, 12.9 rebounds and 3.6 blocked shots a game prior to his injury. He looked like an All-NBA player and someone who, in his third season, could even end up on a lot of MVP ballots.

San Antonio will need that guy to have a chance against the 24-1 Thunder in the NBA Cup semifinal Saturday in Las Vegas.

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Top Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Picks: 6 Breakout Players to Add Now

With the NBA Cup creating an unusual schedule, this is an ideal moment to reassess your roster and dig into the latest fantasy basketball news. Evolving NBA depth charts and unexpected injuries are reshaping roles across the league, creating new opportunities to add impact players before the rest of your league reacts. Let's break down six widely available options worth consideration.

Top Fantasy Basketball Waiver Wire Picks

Derik Queen, New Orleans Pelicans (48% rostered)

Queen made history Monday when he recorded 33 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists and four blocks in a loss to the Spurs. He became one of five players ever to post a 30-point triple-double before turning 21 years old. The other four on that list are big names in LeBron James, Luka Dončić, Victor Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox.

Zion Williamson (adductor) is out for at least the next three weeks. Given his checkered injury history, it's difficult to have much faith in him staying on the floor, even when he does return from his most recent ailment. With their 3-22 record, the Pelicans aren't likely to push Williamson to play if he's not completely healthy. Queen has the potential to be a fantasy difference maker from here on out.

Neemias Queta, Boston Celtics (38% rostered)

Queta is logging 24 minutes per game as the starting center for the Celtics. That's not exactly a hefty workload, but it has still enabled him to average 10.1 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. He has also shot 65.8% from the field. Although his 62.8% shooting from the free-throw line isn't great, he's not tanking fantasy managers in that department because he has only averaged 2.0 free-throw attempts per game.

Despite the moves that the Celtics made to weaken their roster during the offseason, they are 15-9 out of the gate. It would be a shock if they didn't at least make the Play-In Tournament at this point. If Jayson Tatum (Achilles) comes back, they could really make some noise in the Eastern Conference. They are still thin at center, though, so unless they make a trade, Queta is in line to play a prominent role in their playoff push.

Jay Huff, Indiana Pacers (30% rostered)

The writing was on the wall with Huff when he averaged 0.9 blocks in just 12 minutes per game with the Grizzlies last season. It took him some time to work his way into a prominent role with the Pacers, but he has now started six straight games. During that span, he averaged 10.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.8 three-pointers and 3.7 blocks. The key is, he logged 25 minutes per game.

The Pacers are 4-2 since moving Huff into their starting lineup. Given his contributions on the defensive end, he has a great opportunity to remain in the role moving forward. His only real competition for minutes right now is Isaiah Jackson, who has played just 18 minutes a game since Huff became a starter. Fantasy managers who need blocks should make adding Huff a priority.

Jeremiah Fears, New Orleans Pelicans (29% rostered)

Queen isn't the only exciting rookie on the Pelicans. They didn't waste much time putting Fears in a prominent role, moving him into the starting lineup in their third game of the season. He hasn't relinquished the job. As a starter, he has averaged 15.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.3 three-pointers. The downside has been him shooting 42.3% from the field.

Jordan Poole (quadriceps) is nearing a return, but even when he does come back, it's not likely that he removes Fears from the starting five. If anything, the Pelicans might be looking to trade Poole. The long-term concern with Fears is that Dejounte Murray (Achilles) is aiming to return in January. Still, when he does come back, he could be on a minutes restriction for a while. We could get at least another month of Fears being a significant fantasy contributor, and possibly longer.

Ryan Nembhard, Dallas Mavericks (23% rostered)

After being inserted into the Mavericks' starting lineup, Nembhard immediately provided some juicy fantasy stat lines. He was then tested in his last two games with difficult matchups against the Thunder and Rockets, who are the top two teams in the league in defensive rating. First, he produced 10 points, four assists and two three-pointers against the Thunder. He followed that up with 11 points, seven assists and a steal against the Rockets.

Nembhard playing well against the best defensive teams in the league is certainly encouraging for his fantasy outlook moving forward. The Mavericks lost to the Thunder (who doesn't?), but they pulled off the upset over the Rockets. With Nembhard as a starter, they have a 4-2 record. That should help him retain his starting job moving forward.

Maxime Raynaud, Sacramento Kings (22% rostered)

Domantas Sabonis has played at least 70 games in each of the last three seasons. That won't happen this season, as he is currently out with a partially torn meniscus in his left knee. Drew Eubanks was provided an opportunity to start when Sabonis got hurt, but he wasn't able to make much of an impact. That has resulted in Raynaud surpassing him on the Kings depth chart. Across the last five games, the rookie center has averaged 15.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.0 blocks.

The Kings can make some odd lineup decisions, but with how well Raynaud has played, it would be shocking if he lost minutes to Eubanks moving forward. Those in deeper formats who need a big man should look for Raynaud on their waiver wire.

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Kyle Schwarber glad to have five more years to leave his mark on Phillies, fans

Kyle Schwarber glad to have five more years to leave his mark on Phillies, fans originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

ORLANDO – The $150 million no doubt played a big part in keeping Kyle Schwarber with the Philadelphia Phillies. But the community, those who run the organization, his teammates and the Phillies faithful played as much a part in him inking a five-year deal to stay with the two-time defending National League East champions.

Schwarber met with the media via zoom on Tuesday from his home in Ohio, sitting in front of a beautiful stone wall with high-end liquor bottles placed on various shelves. He is back there after making a one-day sprint to Philadelphia to get his physical and tie up some other loose ends before signing his new monster contract. The quick trip was because his wife is expecting the couple’s third child, a daughter.

“Right after the season was over with, I was able to sit down with Dave (Dombrowski, president of baseball operations) and we had a really good conversation,” Schwarber said. “Then right before we went home, (owner) Mr. (John) Middleton was able to come over to our house and we were able to spend a really good amount of time just sitting down and talking about the Phillies and his family and about what’s the future looking like for us here.

“Those were conversations that I just never forgot. You go through a season, you start having different conversations with different teams. I took notes. And once I had everything all said and done I could really sit down and make the decision. John is committed to winning and Dave wants our organization to keep pushing for a World Championship. We want to continue to win the East. What else for a player can you ask for? We have such a great fan base that on a Wednesday get away day there can be 40-some thousand there. Those are things that I don’t take lightly.

“There are others in the league that I wish could experience that. Those are things that are driving factors on a daily basis. Nothing is given, everything is earned in this game. You earn a fan base’s respect, you earn people’s respect in the game. When you get that, it’s awesome. It’s a decision that I’m not going to regret by any means and it’s going to be a great investment for both sides.”

His signing was the obvious first order of business for the Phillies, who seem to be light on power after Schwarber. Following his 56-home run, 132 RBI National League MVP runner-up season, the designated hitter doesn’t want that season to be an outlier.

“Come to four years in Philadelphia and you really feel like you’ve hit your stride and got the identity of who I wanted to be in the big leagues,” Schwarber said. “And there’s still things to improve on. The nature of having experience and that you can come out on the other side of things. I think it’s given me a whole new perspective on baseball. And it’s way more enjoyable. You could be in that slump, and you know what you have to do to get out of it. Being able to look myself in the mirror and undress yourself from top to bottom and realizing that these are things I didn’t do well and just because 2025 was a great statistical season for me it doesn’t mean this offseason I’m going to go out and do the same thing. I have to go from top to bottom and undress everything and be able to find things to get better at and keep evolving, because the game keeps evolving.

“There’s always going to be more information out there on how to get a player out. It’s my job to make sure that I’m the most prepared person to attack it and not be surprised by anything. That’s how I try to continue to play the game and that’s what I’m going to do on a year-to-year basis. I don’t want to be a one-hit wonder. I want to play this game for a long time and I want to continue to be great and help the Phillies win a World Series and multiple World Series throughout my time here.”

While the decision to stay will make sense 150 million times with fans, it was so much more that played into Schwarber’s decision to wear the red, white and blue. It’s the love of the fans. It’s the fact that a piece of paper was sent around the park and signed by thousands begging for his return.

“Resonating with an organization and resonating with a fan base is a huge part of why you do it,” he said. “You want people, you want young kids, you want anyone to be at a game and look up and see them wearing your jersey or look up at their mom and dad and say ‘Hey, I want to be like Kyle.’ Whatever it is, those are things you don’t take lightly, and those moments are awesome. I know the whole constitution thing that went around Citizen’s Bank Park, I’ve got that. I have that in my possession. Those are things that you truly do respect as a fan base.

“You hope at the end of the day as a player that you leave your mark on an organization and a fan base and I’m glad that I’m gonna have five more years to do that here in Philadelphia.”

Dombrowski and company still have plenty of work to do moving forward for the 2026 season and beyond. J.T. Realmuto has now become the top subject for the team. There are holes to fill and young players to groom, which is another place where Schwarber is so valuable.

“We’ve all been in constant communication throughout the offseason, not just J.T.  We all have great relationships with each other,” said Schwarber when asked if he’s communicated with Realmuto. “I think that’s a great thing we’ve had here in Philadelphia, that we’ve all really come together and that we’re all going to have some really good friendships through our days here. I sent him a text. I would not be lying if I said I sent one to J.T. that said trying to see where he’s at.

“At the end of the day I know the process he’s going through, and I want to be respectful of that. You want him to feel like he’s making the best decision for himself and his family. Selfishly we would all like to have J.T. back because we know what he brings to the table and how important he is to not only the clubhouse and the team but what he means to Philadelphia and how he carries himself and how he cares. How he makes sure he’s going to be available to catch as many games as he can. The catching position is such a difficult position and how he’s done it for years, he should be highly sought after and I’m hoping that at the end of the day he’s back in Philadelphia. But I know that there could be a lot of different circumstances that could come in.

“We have some really exciting talent that is going to be coming up, and you want to make them feel welcomed right away. We need them performing to their best abilities. We don’t need them worrying about how does Kyle Schwarber, how does Trea Turner, how does Bryce Harper, whoever, think about what I’m doing right now. No, we’re all here together. We’re all pulling on the same rope. We need everyone pulling just the same. This is a whole collective effort. We’ve made a clubhouse that is welcoming.”

Just like Philadelphia has made it a welcoming place for Schwarber. And that will now continue for five more years.

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NBA Cup 2025: Spurs run past Lakers, Thunder crush Suns to advance to Las Vegas, semifinals

LOS ANGELES — Oklahoma City continues to look dominant, and San Antonio earned the right to be the next team to test them — and maybe with Victor Wembanyama back in the lineup. Here is what happened on Wednesday night in the Western Conference quarterfinals matchups in the NBA Cup.

Spurs 132, Lakers 119

San Antonio came in with a plan.

First, get out in transition. Trust the team's depth of ball handling guards to run past the Lakers — and the Spurs executed that, with a ridiculous 188.9 net rating in transition (stat via Cleaning the Glass).

"I think our pace was great from the start of the game kind of opened up the court for us," said Stephon Castle, who led the Spurs with 30 points. "They had a couple loud plays, but I feel like we came together and clamped down when we needed it most."

The Spurs also wanted to make Luka Dončić a scorer, and avoid fouling and putting him and Austin Reaves on the line, which is what cost the Spurs when they lost to the Lakers earlier in the season. That part of the Spurs plan worked, too. Doncic had 35 points and eight assists, but never got his teammates going until one too-little, too-late push in the fourth. The Spurs also got to the free-throw line 36 times to the Lakers' 23, and San Antonio finished with a dozen more points from the line.

Finally, San Antonio wanted to trust its depth and 3-point shooting. The Spurs won the bench scoring battle 48-31 and shot 17-of-38 (44.7%) from beyond the arc.

The result was a 132-119 San Antonio win that sends them to Las Vegas and the semifinals against the Thunder on Saturday.

After the game, multiple Spurs players spoke about the spark Keldon Johnson provided off the bench. He was red-hot to open the game, shooting 3-of-3 from beyond the arc (5-of-6 overall) with 13 first-quarter points, and behind him and that pace, the Spurs led 39-30 after one.

The Lakers started the second quarter 0-for-6 from the field, while the Spurs were knocking down 3-pointers and San Antonio stretched its lead to 17.

Midway through the second quarter, after coach J.J. Redick picked up a technical, the Lakers started playing harder on defense — not coincidentally, Marcus Smart was in the middle of it — and cut into the Spurs' lead with an 11-2 run. It's then that LeBron had the highlight of the night.

Still, the Spurs showed some composure and pushed their lead back up to a dozen, 70-58, at the half.

That trend continued into the third — every time the Lakers made a play that fired up the crowd and started to close the gap, the Spurs answered.

The Lakers made a fourth-quarter push behind a small-ball lineup with LeBron James (or maybe Rui Hachimura) as the center, cutting the lead to eight in the fourth quarter. Once again, the Spurs responded.

"You don't want to speak it to existence, but when you play a team like that, it's not a matter if, it's a matter of when that run is going to happen," Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. "You're not going to blow out a team like that for 48 minutes. And so when they start making some plays… you just got to maintain the course, play the game and what's being called upon, and execute. I thought we did a phenomenal job of that."

Johnson also said postgame that Victor Wembanyama had "a very good day" and there is "very much" a chance we will see him in Las Vegas against Oklahoma City. Wemby warmed up pregame, without any kind of sleeve or wrap on his strained calf, and seemed to move well and without pain.

The Spurs could use him, they are going to need everything to beat the Thunder.

Oklahoma City 138, Phoenix 89

Any other questions?

Oklahoma City went up double-digits within the first four minutes of the game. That lead reached 20 less than 10 minutes into the contest. By halftime, it was 74-48 Thunder, and in the third quarter they put up 36 points and had a 17-6 run in the middle of the frame.

Oklahoma City came into the most meaningful game of the young season — with a trip to Vegas and a larger player bonus on the line — and just thrashed the upstart Phoenix Suns, ultimately winning by 49, 138-89.

With the win, Oklahoma City improves to 24-1 on the season, tying the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors — the team that set the NBA record with 73 wins in a season — for the fastest start in league history.

As has been the pattern all season, the Thunder offense gets the headlines — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 28, Chet Holmgren 24 — but it was really their defense, holding the Suns to under 40% shooting (39.3%) that was the real difference on the night. OKC forced 21 Phoenix turnovers and converted those to 34 points (the shorthanded Suns were without Devin Booker and Jalen Green, their two best shot creators).

That win gave the Thunder a franchise-record 16th straight victory, and they head to Las Vegas to face the Spurs on Saturday in the NBA Cup semifinals.

Phoenix showed some fight — literally. Grayson Allen got ejected for leveling Chet Holmgren on a screen.

At that point, the Suns were down 36, and Allen's move did not spark some kind of Phoenix run. Dillon Brooks led the Suns with 16 points, but on 4-of-16 shooting. It was that kind of night for Phoenix, but Oklahoma City is doing this to a lot of teams.

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LeBron James is just focused on the now as Lakers fall to Spurs in the NBA Cup

LOS ANGELES, CA - DECEMBER 10, 2025: Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) reacts after he is called for a foul against the San Antonio Spurs in the first half at Crypto.com Arena on December 10, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Luka Doncic reacts after he is called for a foul in the first half Wednesday. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

LeBron James refused to look too far into the future to say what kind of team the Lakers might be when the playoffs arrive in April while they are still playing games in December.

Even though it was the NBA Cup quarterfinal game the Lakers lost to the San Antonio Spurs, 132-119, James didn’t want to venture into how things would unfold.

Two years ago, when the Lakers went to Las Vegas and won the inaugural NBA Cup championship, James cautioned then that they had a long way to go and that that wasn’t an indicator or what that team could accomplish.

Not making it to Las Vegas this time and instead now having to play the Suns in Phoenix on Sunday, James was asked where the Lakers stand long term when it comes to competing for the playoffs.

"It's December what?" James responded.

He was told it was December 10.

“And you're talking about the playoffs? Nah, can't do that. It's not OK. Not my mindset,” James said. “I don't. I can't think about what we can do in the playoffs in December. What I can say is that the habits that we built throughout the regular season each month, if we are in a position to make it to the postseason and be able to get to that point, well, we have to build it now. But as far as talking about what type of damage we're gonna do in the postseason in December, that's not right for the basketball gods, not for me."

Read more:Lakers' Luka Doncic channels his girl dad strength for triple-double against 76ers

James’ team showed they still have so many holes to fill on defense, a sign of how far they have to go to be a championship-quality team.

The Lakers allowed the Spurs to shoot 50% from the field, 44.7% from three-point range, seemingly being unable to slow down the faster and more athletic young Spurs who were playing without their best player, center Victor Wembanyama (left calf strain).

Still, the Spurs had seven players score in double figures, led by Stephon Castle’s 30 points and De’Aaron Fox’s 20.

They will face the defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the semifinals in Las Vegas on Saturday.

“Obviously, it's a unique team. They got six guys that can literally, six or seven guys that can break you down off the dribble,” James said about the Spurs. “Super fast, super quick. Some of them are stronger, some of them are faster, some are quicker ball-handlers. Unique team and they definitely got the best of us."

For the 17-7 Lakers, they will improve on defense.

“I think it was more defensively tonight,” said Luka Doncic, who had 35 points and eight assists. “ They were just dragging us. We scored (119) points. So, I think it’s enough to win. We just got to be better (on defense).”

The Lakers got down by as much as 24 points in the fourth and made a run to get to within eight points late in the fourth quarter.

Marcus Smart came off the bench to score 26 and James had 19 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists.

When the Lakers needed someone to lift them when they got down by 18 points in the second, they got it from the oldest player on the court, 40-year-old James.

James drove down the lane and threw down a thunderous dunk over Spurs 7-1 center Luke Kornet, bringing the Lakers to within eight points and charging up the crowd in the process.

James growled and yelled in the face of the reeling Kornet. The crowd stood and cheered, now happy that there was a Lakers’ awakening.

Lebron James and Jaxson Hayes react after James dunked against Spurs center Luke Kornet in the first half.
Lebron James and Jaxson Hayes react after James dunked against Spurs center Luke Kornet in the first half. (Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)

But the Lakers couldn’t hold on to that momentum, falling behind 70-58 at the half.

And then when the third quarter started, the Lakers came out flat, giving up back-to-back threes and two more easy baskets for the Spurs to fall into an 80-60 hole early in the third.

“It was just a play. You always wish, you hope that momentum plays would carry over,” James said. “And that was a moment where we had an opportunity. We had two straight turnovers after that. It went from an eight-point game to a 12-point game to end the half. So we did have some momentum going into the halftime and then started the third, we went back down 20.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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Red Wings Hold Off Flames With 4-3 Victory in Calgary

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Things got dicey for the Detroit Red Wings in the third period of Wednesday evening's game against the Calgary Flames, but they would ultimately walk away with the two points.

With their 4-3 win, the Red Wings moved back into the top spot in the Atlantic Division with a 17-11-3 record through the first 31 games of their centennial campaign. 

They've also now gone 3-0-1 in the first four games of their season-high six-game road swing. 

Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. 

The Red Wings built up a comfortable 4-0 lead by the end of the second period, and appeared in good position to keep their opponent off the scoresheet for the second consecutive game. However, the Flames refused to quit and made the Red Wings sweat for the entire final 20 minutes, which included the loss of defenseman Simon Edvinsson to a lower-body injury.

It was Alex DeBrincat who scored the game's first tally just 62 seconds after the opening puck drop, while rookie Axel Sandin-Pellikka increased the lead to 2-0 just three and a half minutes later.

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Detroit then struck twice in short order in the game's middle frame thanks to the second of the game from DeBrincat followed by the team-leading 17th tally of the season from Dylan Larkin. 

Goaltender John Gibson was in the zone again, looking just as comfortable in net as he did during Monday evening's 39-save performance in a 4-0 shutout win over the Vancouver Canucks.

But Calgary began chipping away at Detroit's lead in the third period beginning with a penalty shot goal from Joel Farabee, followed by a goal from Matt Coronato just 1:05 later. 

With 5:20 left in regulation, the Flames drew back to within a goal after defenseman MacKenzie Weegar's shot through traffic found its way past Gibson. 

Despite a late furious attempt to knot the score by the Flames with goaltender Devin Cooley on the bench for an extra attacker, their efforts would fall short. 

Gibson won his third straight contest for Detroit, stopping 34 shots, while Cooley countered with 23 saves. 

The Red Wings will be back at it on Thursday evening with a matchup against the Edmonton Oilers from Rogers Place. 

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Tommy Novak’s Game Is Coming Together In A Big Way For The Penguins

The Pittsburgh Penguins heartbreakingly lost their second straight game on Tuesday to the Anaheim Ducks.

They were gifted a power play with 17 seconds left in regulation, and instead of keeping the puck away from the Ducks, they allowed rookie Beckett Sennecke to get it and skate around Bryan Rust and Kris Letang for the game-tying goal with .1 seconds left on the clock. Sennecke sent a centering pass into the goal crease, and Erik Karlsson's glove deflected it in. 

The Penguins went on to lose in a shootout, and this loss comes on the heels of Sunday's shootout loss to the Dallas Stars. The Penguins dominated play in that game as well, only to allow the tying goal with less than two minutes left in regulation. 

While they were annoying losses, there were a couple of big, bright spots in them, including Tommy Novak's play. He deflected a Kris Letang shot into the goal for a 2-1 Penguins lead in the second period of Sunday's game before tying the game late in the second period against the Ducks on Tuesday. Novak banked the puck off Ducks goaltender Ville Husso and into the net during Tuesday's game. 

I bring these two instances up because Novak has been outstanding over the last couple of weeks. At the end of November, I wrote about how the Penguins needed more out of him because he had been a bit inconsistent to start the season. He was fighting it a bit and was second-guessing himself.

At the time, he had been pointless in his last four games and five out of six. However, since then, he has put together some excellent performances, scoring three goals and adding seven points in his last seven games. He's on a four-game point streak and will try to extend it to five on Thursday when the Penguins welcome the Montreal Canadiens to PPG Paints Arena.

Novak was especially great against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Nov. 28, a big reason the Penguins came back to win in overtime. He banked a pass off the boards to Sidney Crosby, leading to the tying goal before setting up Kris Letang for the overtime winner. They were both nifty feeds. 

He scored against the Philadelphia Flyers on Dec. 1 before adding two assists against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Dec. 4, including the game-winning one on Evgeni Malkin's second goal that made it 4-3. He found Malkin at the side of the net for an easy one-timer. 

Beyond the raw production, Novak's versatility has been on full display. He has looked excellent next to Malkin, and even when Malkin got hurt following the game against the Lightning, he went up to Crosby's wing and hasn't looked out of place. Per Natural Stat Trick, Novak and Crosby have played 39:36 at 5v5 together this season and have been on the ice for 59% of the shot attempts, 74.8% of the expected goals, 71.4% of the scoring chances, and 88.2% of the high-danger chances. It's a small sample, but they're making life extremely difficult for the opposition when they're in the offensive zone. 

Penguins' Top Goaltending Prospect Posts Impressive Shutout, Continues AHL DominancePenguins' Top Goaltending Prospect Posts Impressive Shutout, Continues AHL DominanceThe <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/pittsburgh-penguins/">Pittsburgh Penguins</a>' goaltending situation has certainly been an interesting one to follow as a whole this season.

Novak has also played with first-round pick Ben Kindel on the third line, and they have looked solid together at times. It's been more mixed compared to Novak's play with Malkin and Crosby, but he's still an option to go down to the third line once Malkin and Rakell are back from their respective injuries. Malkin is currently week-to-week, while Rakell is getting closer to a return.

I said it over the offseason, and I'll repeat it here: Novak is a jack-of-all-trades player who can play up and down the lineup and in almost any situation. He doesn't kill penalties, but he's been featured on both power play units outside of his usual 5v5 minutes. 

He's been a solid playmaker with an underrated release throughout his career, and you're seeing both of those qualities shine as of late. He makes the Penguins a much scarier team when he's on top of his game. Let's see if he keeps it up.

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Barry O’Farrell to be reinstated as Wests Tigers chair after club owners bow to NRL pressure

  • Four independent directors sacked by Holman Barnes Group invited back

  • No bearing on Shane Richardson’s exit as hunt for new CEO starts

Barry O’Farrell is set to return as Wests Tigers chair alongside his ousted independent directors after the joint-venture club’s owners bowed to NRL demands.

In the latest bizarre twist after 10 days of Tigers turmoil, the Holman Barnes Group (HBG) on Thursday agreed to invite back the board members sacked last Monday.

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Penguins' Top Goaltending Prospect Posts Impressive Shutout, Continues AHL Dominance

The Pittsburgh Penguins' goaltending situation has certainly been an interesting one to follow as a whole this season.

Tristan Jarry is having his best season in recent memory and is now involved in some trade speculation. Arturs Silovs started off the year well and was involved in some Rookie of the Year conversations until a recent slide in play. 

But it's hard to ignore what top goaltending prospect Sergei Murashov is doing in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (WBS), too. And his most recent performance was, perhaps, his most impressive and dominant of his AHL career so far. 

On Wednesday, Murashov posted a 34-save shutout - which included 20 saves in the first period - en route to a 3-0 WBS victory against the Hartford Wolf Pack.

And his latest performance is only the latest example of the spectacular AHL season that he's putting together.

In 11 appearances this season for WBS, the 21-year-old Murashov is 8-2 with two shutouts, a 1.56 goals-against average, and a .943 save percentage. Both his goals-against average and save percentage are the top marks in the AHL by a decent margin, as Sebastian Cossa of the Grand Rapids Griffins is second in both categories at 1.76 and .935, respectively.

Simply put, Murashov is dominating the AHL this season. He put together a pretty good run of games at the NHL level earlier this season, too, as he was 1-1-1 with a shutout, a 1.90 goals-against average, and a .913 save percentage. 

It will be interesting to see how the Penguins' goaltending situation at the NHL level shakes out the rest of the season. Regardless, they could just have a long-term answer waiting in the wings at WBS.

NHL Rumors: 2 Potential Trade Fits For Penguins' Tristan JarryNHL Rumors: 2 Potential Trade Fits For Penguins' Tristan JarryThese two teams should be watched when it comes to Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry.

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No. 7 Houston routs Jackson State for third straight victory

Emanuel Sharp scored 23 points, Isiah Harwell added 20 points and No. 7 Houston won its third straight game, routing Jackson State, 80-38 on Wednesday night. Sharp had 19 points in the first half on 6 of 7 shooting, including 5 of 6 on 3-pointers, as the Cougars (9-1) built a 40-16 lead at the half. Sharp and Harwell combined to shoot 16 of 25 from the field and were 9 of 17 on 3 pointers for the game.

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Blackhawks Return Home And End Slump With Original Six Win Vs Rangers

CHICAGO - The Chicago Blackhawks had a tough road trip out west. They went 1-2-1 against the Vegas Golden Knights, Anaheim Ducks, and Los Angeles Kings twice.

In the final two games of the trip, the Saturday and Sunday games in Southern California, the Blackhawks were blown out of the building. 

4 Takeaways From Blackhawks Latest Road Trip Out West4 Takeaways From Blackhawks Latest Road Trip Out WestThe Chicago Blackhawks are coming off a road trip out west. There is a lot to unpack when evaluating that time away from home.

Now, back at the United Center, it was Chicago's next chance to end its slump to get back to its winning ways. They may not be a playoff-caliber team just yet, but they are better than the team that went out west last week. 

The first period didn't have any scoring, but the Blackhawks controlled play. Thanks to some miraculous saves by Igor Shesterkin, the game went to the second intermission in a scoreless tie. 

In the second period, the Blackhawks started to see some reward for their effort. It started at 7:08 of the middle frame, when Louis Crevier scored a shorthanded goal. He found himself with a mini breakaway and beat Shesterkin to make it 1-0, Blackhawks. 

Shortly after, Ryan Donato put the puck in the net to make it 2-0, but the Rangers challenged it for a missed stoppage of play. After review, it was determined that before the goal was scored, Colton Dach used his hands to make a pass, waiving it off. 

The Blackhawks didn't stop grinding away after that, however, as they still found a way to make it 2-0 before the period ended. At 14:27, Connor Bedard roofed one top shelf to extend the lead to two. A great play by Andre Burakovsky using speed and skill set up the goal for Bedard. 

In the final period of regulation time, the Blackhawks did not stop. Tyler Bertuzzi took advantage of a nifty play made by Connor Bedard and Ryan Greene to make it 3-0. There was some high-end effort and stick-to-itiveness on the part of all three players. 

Spencer Knight earned his second shutout of the season as the 3-0 score held as the final. Knight made 21 saves in the effort. After the way the team was giving up goals in Southern California over the weekend, it was important for them to come out this week and be solid defensively. Getting goaltending like that from Knight made it even easier to have a bounce-back in that regard. 

Watch Every Chicago Goal

What’s Next For The Blackhawks?

Next up for the Chicago Blackhawks is a one-game stop in Missouri to play the St. Louis Blues. This will be a Friday night ESPN+/Hulu exclusive. 

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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