LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 21: A detailed view of the court before the game between the Houston Rockets and the Los Angeles Lakers during Round One Game Two of the 2026 NBA Playoffs on April 21, 2026 at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Lakers aren’t wasting any time building out their front office.
During his exit interview, Lakers President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka said the franchise would hire two assistant general managers, and they have moved quickly to do so. On Monday, the franchise announced the hiring of an assistant general manager, naming former Pelicans executive Rohan Ramadas to the position.
Now, it sounds like they’re quickly moving onto the other assistant GM spot and are targeting Philadelphia 76ers vice president of player personnel, Prosper Karangwa.
League sources also say that the Sixers remain hopeful that they can retain vice president of player personnel Prosper Karangwa as part of their revamped front office even though Karangwa has also drawn interest from the Los Angeles Lakers as well as Dallas.
League sources say that the Lakers has officially secured permission to speak with Karangwa while Dallas has not yet formally lodged that request, but Ujiri’s interest in bringing both Karangwa and Raptors executive Patrick Englebrecht is certainly anticipated. The Lakers have stated that they plan to hire two assistant general managers this offseason and already secured one of them by striking a deal with New Orleans Pelicans analytics ace Rohan Ramadas.
Dan Woike of The Athletic backed up that reporting later in the day on Monday as well.
Another name that I’ve heard connected with the Lakers over the last few days is Philadelphia 76ers player personal exec Prosper Karangwa.
It’s no surprise that Karangwa is a popular figure with plenty of teams wanting him in their front offices. He has plenty of basketball experience. He played professional basketball in France and after his playing days were done, he rose through the ranks with the Orlando Magic. He started as a scout back in 2012 and was promoted to the Director of College Scouting in 2016.
Karangwa’s been with the Sixers since 2020, when he was hired in his current role. Since 2021, he has also been the General Manager of the Sixers G League affiliate, the Delaware Blue Coats. They won the G League championship under his leadership in 2023.
The Lakers getting permission to speak with him is a good sign that they are in the running for another quality hire from a basketball mind that’s well-regarded around the league and not already associated with LA.
This is in stark contrast to how the team was run under Jeanie Buss, where many hires had some connection to the franchise.
Lakers fans should be excited that the Lakers are overhauling their front office and infusing it with more brainpower from outside the purple and gold family tree.
If all goes well, perhaps Karangwa can join the Lakers, and they can have their two assistant general managers hired before the offseason fully kicks off with the NBA Draft and free agency.
The Mets activated left-handed reliever A.J. Minter and outfielder/first baseman Jared Young off the IL ahead of Tuesday's game against the Reds at Citi Field, the team announced.
In corresponding moves, right-handed reliever Jonathan Pintaro and outfielder Nick Morabito were optioned to Triple-A Syracuse.
Additionally, outfielder Tyrone Taylor was placed on the 10-day IL due to a right hip flexor strain, with infielder Eric Wagaman called up to take his spot on the 26-man roster.
Mendoza said that there was a "sense of relief" that the team didn't get worse news on Taylor, though the manager did not want to put a definitive timetable on his recovery.
"I think we got relatively good news, especially after what he was expressing after the game last night," said Mendoza. "We were kind of expecting the worst to be honest with you. We just had the news here, it’s kind of like week-by-week here. So hopefully 2-to-3 [weeks], but putting a timetable here I think is too early."
A 40-man roster move will be needed to accommodate the transactions, and will be announced prior to Tuesday's game.
Minter has been out since early last season after needing surgery for a torn lat. His return should bolster a back end of the bullpen that has been a strength for New York over the last month or so.
Young, who is returning from a torn meniscus, excelled for New York earlier this season, hitting .350/.391/.450 in 23 plate appearances over 11 games.
It's fair to believe that the presence of the lefty-hitting Young could eventually cut into the playing time of MJ Melendez, who is hitting .063/.250/.063 in 40 plate appearances spanning 17 games since May 7.
Young is in the lineup at first base on Tuesday, with Mark Vientos on the bench.
With Morabito sent down and Taylor on the IL, the Mets have just three natural outfielders on the active roster, though Young, Melendez, and Brett Baty can play the corner outfield spots.
According to Mendoza, the decision was made to keep Wagaman and send Morabito down because the Mets like Wagaman as a right-handed hitter off the bench and against lefties, where as Morabito need to play every day.
"Just continue to play, I think that’s the biggest thing," Mendoza said about his message to Morabito. "There is a lot to like about the player. We saw flashes of his defense, his speed, but he has to play every day. There’s no reason for him to be here, playing once every two or three days just waiting on lefties. He got a taste, he knows what it’s like here at the big league level, and he knows how important he is to this organization.
"The message is keep going over there, we’ll see you back here."
Through 11 starts for the Milwaukee Brewers, Jacob Misiorowski has thrown 311 pitches at 100 miles per hour or faster — more than every other MLB starter combined.
The rest of MLB’s starters have combined for 170 such pitches through games played on May 25.
Pittsburgh’s Bubba Chandler leads the way behind Misiorowski with 52 thrown, while Miami’s Eury Perez has tossed 23. Just behind him with 22 is Cam Schlittler, then Chase Burns with 21 and Shohei Ohtani 20.
It’s not just raw numbers that are breaking the speed gun. It’s also Misiorowski’s rate.
He’s thrown 996 pitches this season across his 11 starts. That translates to hitting 100 miles per hour or more on 31.2 percent of his pitches. During his rookie season last year, his rate was 16.7 percent.
Cincinnati’s Hunter Greene, who led starting pitchers in 2025 with 296 hurls above 100 miles per hour, broke 100 at a 16.9 percent frequency last season. Greene, currently out with an injury, would project to roughly 165 triple-digit pitches through the Reds’ first 53 games if he had maintained that rate under a healthy five-man-rotation workload.
In 2022, Greene threw 337 pitches that broke 100 miles an hour, which set the single season record for 100-plus mile per hour pitches thrown by a starter in the Statcast era (2015 or later). If Misiorowski continues at his current pace, he could potentially reach Greene’s record in his next start.
The numbers also highlight the hard-throwing era baseball finds itself in. In 2017, MLB starters combined for 66 pitches at 100 miles per hour or faster for the entire season. This year, even excluding Misiorowski, starters already have 170 — with roughly two-thirds of the season still to play.
Methodology note: 100-plus mile per hour pitch data comes from the Baseball Savant / Statcast API. Starting pitchers were identified as the first pitcher used by each team in a game. Data is current as of 1 p.m. ET, May 26.
MONTREAL, CANADA- MAY 25: Alex Newhook #15 of the Montreal Canadiens skates against Jalen Chatfield #5 of the Carolina Hurricanes during the first period of Game Three of the Eastern Conference Final of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Montreal Canadiens and the Carolina Hurricanes at the Bell Centre on May 25, 2026 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Arianne Bergeron/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
The NHL has hit the business end of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with just four teams remaining. The Eastern Conference Finals is entering its fourth game between the Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens, with Carolina leading 2-1. The West sees the Colorado Avalanche trying to stave off elimination against the Vegas Golden Knights, who are leading 3-0.
That’s the top-down view, but if you haven’t been keeping up with the NHL postseason so far, but want to dive in, let’s go a little deeper into these four remaining teams, as well as discuss the broader theme of the playoffs so far.
Eastern Conference
Carolina Hurricanes
The Hurricanes have been the most consistent team in the playoffs with an overall record of 10-1, built on the back of their lane-clogging defense and suffocating forecheck. It’s also fair to say they’ve been one of the least-tested teams in the postseason thanks to back-to-back series against the Senators and Flyers to kick off their run.
On paper this team has every tool needed to hoist the cup, but they have two glaring issues right now:
Firstly is in net, where veteran Freddie Andersen has been extremely unreliable in the ECF. In three games he’s allowed 10 goals on 47 shots, an abysmal save percentage of 0.787% — not all of that is on Andersen, with Carolina having defensive breakdowns in every goal allowed, but a playoff-caliber netminder shouldn’t let in as many easy goals as he has.
The second issue is that the Hurricanes’ top line really hasn’t separated itself to prove it can be a cup-winning unit. Andrei Svechnikov/Sebastian Aho/Seth Jarvis have had a lot of opportunities, but not a lot of results. They need this top line to pick up their play in order to really feel like a team that can go all the way.
Montreal Canadiens
Montreal has re-emerged this season to become an exciting and young team, with legitimate Stanley Cup potential in the future. I say, “in the future,” because the ECF thus far has proven there’s still a lot to work on for the Habs. Their free-flowing offense based on long outlet passes to the wings is a beautiful tactic, but it’s too predictable and one-note. It caught Carolina off guard in Game 1, but they’ve since adjusted to allow only 25 shots in two games, after Montreal had 22 shots in Game 1 alone.
The team needs more toughness, both up front and on the blue line — which can come with time. The real story of the postseason for Montreal has been the breakout performance of rookie goalie Jakub Dobeš, who is cementing himself as an absolute phenom. Without Dobeš in goal the Canadiens would have likely allowed five or six more goals in this series, and the rookie legitimately looks like a future Vezina-caliber tender.
This series is far from over with Carolina really struggling to get quality opportunities because of Dobeš, while also having extreme goaltending issues of their own. Montreal is fast, skilled, and if they can crack the code to breaking through the Canes’ defense then they will cause problems.
The rest of the East …
The Canadiens went through the No. 2 and No. 3 ranked teams in the East to reach this point. They proved their mettle against the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Buffalo Sabres, both of whom were outclassed. Meanwhile the Hurricanes had an easier route through the Metropolitan division, but showed why they were the top team in the Eastern Conference this season.
Western Conference
Colorado Avalanche
The Avs were the runaway favorites to win the Stanley Cup this year on the back of an astounding regular season that saw the team finish at 55-16-11 to win the Presidents’ Cup — but everything is going wrong. A late-season injury to phenom defenseman Cale Makar carried into the playoffs, and his absence is really showing in the Western Conference Finals.
Without Makar at full strength, the shape of Colorado falls apart, both offensively and defensively. You can see the void on the ice, and problematically other players haven’t stepped up. Martin Necas has largely disappeared this postseason, and with him playing poorly we’ve see Nathan McKinnon suffer as well.
Call it the Presidents’ Cup Curse, but this doesn’t look anything like the Avalanche team which bodied the league during the regular season, then beat the Stars and Wild. Colorado is out of gas, and down 3-0 against the Knights means it’s almost assured they will go home.
Vegas Golden Knights
Full credit to the Knights, because they really looked nothing like a cup team until they installed John Tortarella as head coach late in the season. This team is an entirely different animal with Torts on the bench, and their veteran experience paired with star power have made them a team to watch.
One of the biggest benefactors of the new coaching scheme has been Mitch Marner, who was the Knights’ big free agent signing last summer. Initially, he struggled to find his footing in Vegas, but in the postseason he has 21 points in 15 games — earning every cent of his big money contract.
This is a team that is really difficult to put in a box. They were so average during the regular season it’s tough to ignore, but so good now that it can’t be overlooked. Now they’re taking it to Colorado in the Western Conference Finals to give themselves a legitimate shot to win it all.
The rest of the West …
This was a similar story to the East where the Avalanche went thought the toughest competition inside the conference, while the Golden Knights got an easy road. If you see people complaining about the playoff structure in the NHL then the west is the best reason why, because the Avs had to play the No. 2 and No. 3 ranked teams in the West just to reach the conference finals, despite being the best team in the conference — while Vegas drew No. 6 and No. 7 ranked teams, while finishing 5th in the division.
Stanley Cup Finals prediction
The Golden Knights should close out against the Avalanche, while I believe the Hurricanes will need six games to put away Montreal. This sets us up for Vegas vs. Carolina in the Stanley Cup Finals.
It’s been a tremendous run for the Golden Knights, but Carolina is the toughest team in these playoffs. Their defense alone makes them nearly impenetrable, and no team has solved it so far.
Jordan Clarkson’s role for the New York Knicks looks a lot different than it did with the Utah Jazz.
The now 33-year-old, 12-year NBA vet only comes in for a few minutes a game, and is not the flamethrower that he once was in Utah.
But on Monday night, in a game in which he only played nine minutes and scored three points, Jordan Clarkson clinched a ticket to the NBA Finals as the Knicks swept the Cavaliers to reach the franchise’s first NBA Finals since 1999. In his first season away from the Jazz since 2019, Clarkson has reached the place that many thought he could have reached in Salt Lake City.
However, this won’t be his first trip to the NBA Finals, as he was traded from the Los Angeles Lakers to Cleveland midseason in 2017-18. The last of four straight Finals appearances for LeBron James and the Cavs, that 2018 Cleveland team was a shell of its 2016 squad. By the end of the postseason, Clarkson had been taken out of the rotation entirely against the Warriors.
Two seasons later, he was traded to Utah, where he won the NBA’s sixth man of the year award with the Jazz, but failed to ever reach a conference finals.
While Clarkson likely won’t play many crucial minutes for the Knicks when they face the daunting task of playing either San Antonio or Oklahoma City, making it to this point in the playoffs should be seen as a victory for him, regardless of team impact. For three seasons prior to this Finals run, Clarkson was a starter on three different tanking Utah teams, that had no realistic shot of making it this far.
In five and a half seasons, Clarkson became one of the more beloved Jazz players in recent history and was an amazing member of the Utah community during his Jazz tenure.
Clarkson averaged 8.6 points per game in the regular season and is averaging 5.4 in the playoffs.
The New York Knicks made quick work of the Cleveland Cavaliers to sweep the Eastern Conference Final, punching their first ticket to an NBA Finals since 1999.
Now, the question that remains is, who will play the Knicks in the NBA Finals for the Larry O'Brien Trophy, the Oklahoma City Thunder or the San Antonio Spurs?
Let's explore the options below, ahead of Game 5 of the Western Conference Final.
Who will face the Knicks in the NBA Finals?
Start trading with Kalshi today!
Sign up now using our exclusive Kalshi promo code 'COVERS' and get a $10 trading bonus after you trade $10 on any other event contracts — including Lakers/Rockets!
Sign Up Now at img src="https://img.covers.com/betting/sportsbooks/336/kalshi.svg" alt="Kalshi" width="100" height="28" style="vertical-align: middle;"
*Eligible to ALL states + DC, (excluding Nevada)
How the Western Conference Final was won
The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs have traded body blows through four games of the Western Conference Final, with both teams looking like the definitive favorite at various times.
After the Spurs opened the series with a 122-115 victory in OKC, the Thunder answered with back-to-back victories before San Antonio returned serve with the most lopsided win for either side of the series, taking Game 4 103-82.
The Thunder, who hold the homecourt advantage for the final three games, are favored to advance to their second straight championship series. Kalshi has OKC listed at 60% probability of winning the seven-game set with the Spurs.
Wemby can change the tides
However, Victor Wembanyama is, unsurprisingly, the ultimate X-factor. In San Antonio's Game 1 win, Wemby went for 41 points and 24 rebounds. In Game 4, he scored 33. In the two losses, he's gone for 21 and 26 points, respectively.
The Spurs lack the Thunder's depth, but Wembanyama is such a dynamic player who has shown an ability to take over games like no one else has in this series, even back-to-back NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Buckle up for Game 5
Kalshi's series odds mirror the lines for Game 5, with OKC listed as having 60% probability to win tonight at Paycom Center. The Thunder have only lost once at home during the NBA playoffs, but that came in Game 1 of this series.
So, if you are confident in the Spurs, consider investing in the outcome of tonight's game by backing San Antonio.
No team has exhibited a stronger ability at counter-punching OKC than Wemby & Co., dating back to the regular season. It'll probably be the best value you'll get on the Spurs from here on out, too.
Knicks will be well-rested underdogs
The conventional wisdom has appeared to be that whichever team escapes the West will ultimately win the NBA Championship. The New York Knicks will be the underdog no matter who stands across from them, but they distribute the ball extremely efficiently, with five players averaging double-digit scoring during these playoffs.
Jalen Brunson leads the way with 26.9 points per game, but OG Anunoby (19.7) and Karl-Anthony Towns (16.9) aren't far off. The Knicks will also have the rest advantage after eliminating the Cavaliers on Monday.
During the regular season, New York went 0-2 vs. OKC and 1-1 against San Antonio. The Knicks will adjust their game plan depending on which team makes it through.
Brunson will almost definitely be used as a counterweight to SGA if the Thunder advance, where Towns will need to be his best big self to even slightly slow Wembanyama (you can't fully contain him).
After a spring of anticipation and high anxiety among an entire fanbase, the wait is finally over.
On Tuesday, the Pittsburgh Penguins and GM/POHO Kyle Dubas announced that they have signed 39-year-old forward Evgeni Malkin to a one-year, $5.5 million extension, a pay cut from his previous $6.1 million average annual value. The deal runs through the end of the 2026-27 season, which will be Malkin's age 40 season and his 21st in the NHL.
The extension includes hefty bonuses, which include a $500,000 games-played bonus, a $1 million bonus if the Penguins contend for the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2026-27, and a $500,000 bonus for every round won in the playoffs.
"We look forward to Geno continuing to provide great moments for the city of Pittsburgh, while helping us return the Penguins to Stanley Cup contention through his play on the ice and his leadership off the ice," Dubas said in a statement from Penguins PR.
During the 2025-26 season, the 6-foot-5, 213-pound Malkin recorded 19 goals and 61 points in 56 games - his first time above the point-per-game threshold since 2022-23 - and helped Pittsburgh secure its first playoff berth in four years. He had two goals and three points in six playoff games with the Penguins this season.
Malkin’s contract could go up to $9M if he hits all bonuses:
Malkin currently ranks 23rd on the NHL's all-time scoring list (1,407 points), and he needs just 14 more points to surpass Adam Oates enter the top-20. He also has 533 goals - tied with Frank Mahovlich for 36th all-time - and would enter the top-30 with 24 more goals. He is also second all-time in both categories only to Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin for Russian-born players.
Over the course of his NHL career, Malkin also has 183 points in 183 playoff games, which is second among active players and behind only teammate Sidney Crosby at 206 points. He is also only one of six active players to have hit the 500-goal plateau.
After the Malkin extension, the Penguins still have $37.04 million in cap space currently available for the 2026-27 season.
After recording 45 points (20 goals, 25 assists) in 70 games for the Bridgeport Islanders 2024-25, his first season as part of the Islanders organization, Foudy set career highs across the baord in season two.
In 60 games, Foudy scored 26 goals with 21 assists for 47 points, before being held pointeas in two postseason games.
Expect Foudy's deal to have an AAV of around $850,000 at the NHL level, the new NHL league minimum after making league minimum ($775,000) this past season.
The speedy forward was one of two players to get recalled for Game No. 82 of the season, after the Islanders were eliminated, officially, in Game No. 81.
He recorded one shot on goal in 11:17 TOI alongside Ondrej Palat and Casey Cizikas on the Islanders fourth line.
Foudy, who did play two games for the Islanders in 2024-25, has 105 games of NHL experience, recording seven goals and 15 assists for 22 points, averaging 11:55 minutes per game.
Expect Foudy to get a real opportunity to make this team come the fall.
On Tuesday, the Vegas Golden Knights look to do the unthinkable and complete the sweep against the President’s Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche in the Western Conference Final.
Puck drop is scheduled for 6:15 p.m. PST.
In Game 3, the Avalanche broke the ice early and took a 3-0 lead by the end of the first. The Golden Knights came out swinging to start the second, and tied the game before the period ended. Vegas took the lead in the third, and held on to complete the comeback and take a 3-0 lead in the Western Conference Final.
Carter Hart starts in goal for the Golden Knights. Hart has a record of 11-4 and an average save percentage of .923 in 15 games this postseason.
On the brink of elimination, the Avalanche are making a change in goal. They’ll turn to Mackenzie Blackwood, who has a record of 1-0 and an average save percentage of .873 in three games this postseason.
Golden Knights Lines
Ivan Barbashev — Jack Eichel — Pavel Dorofeyev
Brett Howden — William Karlsson — Mitch Marner
Colton Sissons — Tomáš Hertl — Mark Stone
Cole Smith — Nic Dowd — Keegan Kolesar
Defense
Brayden McNabb — Shea Theodore
Noah Hanifin — Rasmus Andersson
Kaedan Korczak — Dylan Coghlan
Goaltenders: Carter Hart / Adin Hill
Avalanche Lines
Artturi Lehkonen — Nathan MacKinnon — Gabriel Landeskog
Nazem Kadri — Brock Nelson — Martin Nečas
Ross Colton — Nicolas Roy — Valeri Nichushkin
Parker Kelly — Jack Drury — Logan O’Connor
Defense
Devon Toews — Cale Makar
Brett Kulak — Sam Malinski
Josh Manson — Brent Burns
Goaltenders: Mackenzie Blackwood / Scott Wedgewood
Special Teams
VGK power play: 25.0%, 4th
VGK penalty kill: 87.2%, 5th
Avalanche power play: 21.2%, 6th
Avalanche penalty kill: 78.9%, 11th
Game Notes
The Golden Knights are 11-9 in Game 4s in franchise history.
Historically, teams that take a 3-0 series lead go on to win 98.2% of the time.
Mitch Marner is the postseason leader in scoring with 21 points (7G, 14A).
Pavel Dorofeyev and Brett Howden lead the league with ten postseason goals. On Sunday, Howden became the sixth player in Golden Knights franchise history to record double-digit goals in one postseason.
Jack Eichel leads the league in assists this postseason with 16.
Golden Knights head coach John Tortorella had just one thing to say about his team following the miraculous Game 3 comeback. In his own words, that was a game where they “showed some balls.”
The six -- among thousands of Knicks diehards who partied like it was 1999 outside The Mecca -- were issued summonses for disorderly conduct and processed at the NYPD's Midtown South Precinct, authorities said.
Six people were hauled off in cuffs when celebratory madness erupted outside Madison Square Garden as the Knicks clinched the NBA finals for the first time in 27 years.
The raucous crew — among thousands of Knicks diehards who partied like it was 1999 outside The Mecca Monday night — allegedly climbed on light posts and other structures, blocked cars, jumped over police barriers and refused to disperse, law enforcement sources said.
Six Knicks fans were issued summonses for disorderly conduct when cops caught them stirring up mayhem outside Madison Square Garden following the team’s historic sweep, authorities said. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
They were issued summonses for disorderly conduct and processed at the NYPD’s Midtown South Precinct, authorities said.
Video from the jubilant scene showed one reveler — who appeared no older than his early teens — hoisting himself up a light pole, before two cops immediately slapped cuffs on him when he jumped down.
The crowd of partying fans then erupted into jeers of “Let him free!” and “Boo!
Another video showed people standing on the iconic arena’s marquee, and the outdoor lit-up signs, as one bystander yelled, “You’re going to jail.”
Members of the rowdy crew climbed on the arena’s iconic marquee. Aristide Economopoulos for NY PostRevelers also blocked cars and jumped over police barriers, law enforcement sources said. Aristide Economopoulos for NY Post
But an unfazed member of Knicks nation relished the joyful mood – as the hometown team bludgeoned the Cleveland Cavaliers 130-93 at Rocket Arena, punching their ticket to the championship.
“This is amazing! I waited years for this. I love Jalen Brunson,” he gushed, referring to the Knicks’ guard who was unanimously named the series MVP.
Jubilant fans exclaimed they’d waited years for the team to come this far. Michael Nagle for NY Post
The mob of revelers descended on the Garden despite the NYPD’s move to call off the venue’s usual outdoor watch party during Monday’s playoff game because unruly fans had been clogging the sidewalks during the team’s historic run.
MSG’s permits for the Eastern Conference Finals Game 4 shindig were summarily denied by the city’s Street Activity Permit Office, sources with knowledge of the situation told The Post, with cops reportedly refusing to participate unless fans tone it down a notch.
The celebrations came despite the NYPD’s move to call off the venue’s usual outdoor watch party during Monday’s playoff game. Michael Nagle for NY Post
“Games 1 and 2 have seen progressively more problematic issues at the watch parties outside MSG — six arrests last night alone — so the NYPD will not support more watch parties outside the stadium,” a police department spokesperson confirmed Friday.
“But we will continue to review requests to support parties at alternate sites, like Summer Stage,” the spokesperson added, referring to Central Park’s outdoor amphitheater.
No one was taken into custody outside Radio City Music Hall, which remained under control as orange-and-blue clad fans gathered there Monday night for a watch party, cops said.
PITTSBURGH, PA - APRIL 05: Rickard Rakell #67 of the Pittsburgh Penguins celebrates his first period goal with Evgeni Malkin #71 against the Florida Panthers at PPG PAINTS Arena on April 5, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
After some news trickled out that negotiations were undergoing earlier today, the Penguins announced a finalized contract extension for Evgeni Malkin for next season.
The Pittsburgh Penguins have re-signed forward Evgeni Malkin to a one-year contract extension, it was announced today by President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Kyle Dubas.
The deal runs through the 2026-27 campaign and carries an average annual value of $5.5 million.
A three-time Stanley Cup Champion (2009, ’16, ’17), Malkin has played all 20 of his NHL seasons with the Penguins, where he ranks in the top-three in team history in all major statistical categories including games played (1,269, 2nd), goals (533, 3rd), assists (874, 3rd), points (1,407, 3rd), power-play goals (187, 3rd), game-winning goals (89, 2nd) and overtime goals (14, 2nd). Only Sidney Crosby (21) has played more seasons in a Penguins sweater.
The seven-time NHL All-Star has won a plethora of individual awards, including two Art Ross Trophies (2009, ’12) awarded to the NHL’s regular-season scoring leader, one Hart Trophy (2012) awarded to the league MVP, one Ted Lindsay Award (2012) given to the “most outstanding player”, one Calder Trophy (2007) awarded to the league’s rookie of the year as well as one Conn Smythe Trophy (2009) given to the NHL’s playoff MVP. Malkin, who became the 48th player to score 500 goals in NHL history in 2024, was also voted Penguins Team MVP by his fellow teammates on five separate occasions.
Some of Malkin’s most iconic performances have come in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The 6-foot-5, 213-pound forward was instrumental to the team’s 2009 Stanley Cup Championship run where he was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy after posting a league-best 36 points (14G-22A). In doing so, he became the fourth-youngest Conn Smythe winner in NHL history at 22 years, 10 months. Malkin also led the NHL in playoff scoring during the 2017 postseason, recording 28 points (10G-18A) in 25 games en route to his third Stanley Cup. Malkin ranks 12th in all-time NHL postseason scoring with 183 points (69G-114A) in 183 playoff games while only Crosby (206) has more playoff points in franchise history than Malkin.
The 39-year old Malkin is one of just 40 players in NHL history to eclipse the 100-point plateau three times or more (2008, ’09, ’12), and is one of just eight active players to do so. The 50-goal scorer (2012) has averaged a point per game or better in 16 of his 20 seasons, a mark that only four players have accomplished in NHL history. Since entering the league in 2006-07, Malkin ranks fourth in the NHL in goals (533) and third in assists (874) and points (1,407).
Malkin, a native of Magnitogorsk, Russia, is one of the most accomplished Russian players in NHL history. He is one of just four Russian-born players all-time (Igor Larionov, Sergei Fedorov, Sergei Brylin) to win three Stanley Cup Championships, and his 1.11 points-per-game average is the fourth-highest in league history among his countrymen. Only Alex Ovechkin (1,687) has more points than Malkin among Russian-born NHLers. He has also represented Russia on the international stage on multiple occasions including three Olympic Winter Games (2006, ’10, ’14), eight World Championships (2005, ’06, ’07, ’10, ’12, ’14, ’15, ’19), three World Junior Championships (2004, ’05, ’06), two World Under-18 Junior Championships (2003, ’04) and one World Cup of Hockey (2016).
Malkin was originally drafted by Pittsburgh in the first round (2nd overall) of the 2004 NHL Draft.
The contract has a $5.5 million base salary with potentially more money available in the form of bonuses. Malkin also will have his usual no movement clause in effect.
While Evgeni Malkin's #pens extension is worth $5.5 million guaranteed, sources say he can also earn:
** $500,000 in games played bonuses ** $1M if #pens qualify for the playoffs ** $500,000 for each playoff round won
Malkin's new contract includes a no-movement clause
Some more details indicate the games played metrics can be hit when Malkin appears in 42 and then 63 games. Malkin played in 56 games in 2025-26 due to injury and suspension, and 68 games in 2024-25. Prior to that he had appeared in all 82 games in 2022-23 and 2023-24.
#LetsGoPens sign 39 y/o Evgeni Malkin to a 1 yr $5.5M cap hit, 9M AAV contract
Brooke Rose captured a candid moment of some of the Knicks' WAGs, and diehard fan, Timothée Chalamet, after the New York's Eastern Conference finals sweep of the Cavaliers on Monday night.
Brooke Rose captured a candid moment of some of the Knicks’ WAGs, and diehard fan, Timothée Chalamet, after the New York’s Eastern Conference finals sweep of the Cavaliers on Monday night.
Taking to her Instagram Story, Brooke, who is the daughter of Knicks president Leon Rose, shared a photo of Ali Brunson, Shannon Hart and Jordyn Woods all smiling during the team’s celebration on the court at Rocket Arena — with Chalamet and his girlfriend, Kylie Jenner in the frame.
“The best wives in the world,” Brooke wrote and tagged the women, as well as Chalamet.
(L-R) Ali Brunson, Shannon Hart, Kylie Jenner, Jordyn Woods and Timothee Chalamet after the Knicks’ four-game sweep of the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals at Rocket Arena in Cleveland on May 25, 2026. Instagram/Brooke Rose
Woods and her fiancée, Knicks center Karl-Anthony, posed together while holding the Eastern Conference finals trophy.
Shannon, who is the wife of Knicks guard Josh Hart, gushed over the team in an Instagram Story post for reaching the 2026 NBA Finals on her birthday.
Knicks president Leon Rose and actor Timothée Chalamet, a diehard Knicks fan, shared a moment after New York’s Eastern Conference finals sweep of the Cavaliers on May 25, 2026. Instagram/Brooke Rose
Another clip by Brooke showed Chalamet and her father shaking hands and hugging after the Knicks’ 130-93 Game 4 clincher.
One image included Brooke and Wynn Wesley, the daughter of Knicks executive, William Westley, aka “World Wide Wes.”
Wynn Wesley, the daughter of Knicks executive, William Westley and Brooke Rose, daughter of Knicks president Leon Rose, after the Knicks’ Game 4 series sweet of the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals on May 25, 2026. Instagram/Brooke Rose
Chalamet wasn’t the only Celebrity Row staple who made the trip to Cleveland to support the Knicks.
Comedian Tracy Morgan, rapper Fat Joe, actor Ben Stiller, and director Spike Lee all attended Game 4.
Knicks legends, Walt “Clyde” Frazier and Patrick Ewing were in the building to witness New York extend its win streak to 11 games.
The pair presented star guard Jalen Brunson with the 2026 Easter Conference Finals Larry Bird MVP trophy.
The Knicks — back in the NBA Finals for the first time in 27 years — have nine days off before the series begins June 3, and will face either the San Antonio Spurs or the Oklahoma City Thunder.
The Western Conference finals is tied at 2-2 heading into Tuesday’s Game 5.
The New York Knicks continued their torrid run through the playoffs Monday night with a 130-93 demolition of the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals. It wrapped up a 4-0 sweep and punched the team’s ticket to the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.
While the Knicks stayed hot on the court, the club is amid a plan to unlock its full potential off the court by splitting the Knicks and New York Rangers into separate publicly traded companies—both are currently part of Madison Square Garden Sports.
Here is a look at the who, what, when and why behind this potential transaction, which is still subject to league approvals and other conditions.
What is MSG Sports doing with the Knicks and the Rangers?
In February, the MSGS board approved a plan to explore a split. “We believe this proposed transaction would provide each company with enhanced strategic flexibility, its own defined business focus and clear characteristics for investors,” MSGS CEO James Dolan said when announcing the news.
The firm took the next step last week when it filed a Form 10 Registration Statement with the SEC for the proposed spin-off. It continued a long history of the Dolan family splicing up their business empire in the hopes of creating more value, i.e. a higher stock price.
Dolan family patriarch Charles built the family’s first fortune on the back of cable television by founding HBO and building Cablevision into a behemoth that was sold to Altice in 2016 for $18 billion. Dolan died in 2024 at 98; by that point, his son, James, had been running the family’s businesses for nearly three decades.
Cablevision acquired 50% of the Knicks, Rangers and related businesses in 1994 and the rest of the MSG properties three years later. In 2010, Madison Square Garden was spun off from Cablevision into its own publicly traded company.
“This enables MSG to freely pursue its business plan while providing shareholders with the benefit of being able to more clearly evaluate the company’s assets and future potential,” James Dolan said in announcing that split.
The MSG spinoff was the first domino in what is now three unique companies. In 2015, Dolan split MSG in two with the sports teams and venues (Madison Square Garden, Beacon Theater, Radio City Music Hall and Chicago Theater) in one and Madison Square Garden Network (MSGN) in the other.
The next machination was to split the teams and venues in 2020 under MSGS and Madison Square Garden Entertainment. This transaction forced the Knicks and Rangers to sign leases with their new landlords, MGSE. Meanwhile, Dolan launched his Sphere business at MSGN and renamed the company Sphere Entertainment in 2023.
Why is MSG Sports splitting the Knicks and the Rangers?
MSGS has long been pegged as having a “Dolan discount” for the stock trading at a steep discount to its enterprise value. MSGS’ current EV is $9.6 billion, a 29% discount to the $13.5 billion combined total from Sportico’s most recent valuations of the Knicks at $9.85 billion and the Rangers at $3.65 billion.
The reality is that sports teams have historically traded at a discount to what they might fetch in a private transaction. The Boston Celtics and Cleveland Indians—now Guardians—both traded at steep discounts before they went private.
Manchester United shares languished at $13 and below its 2012 IPO price but more than doubled on hopes of a sale when the Glazers hired Raine Group to explore their options in late 2022. Jim Ratcliffe ultimately bought 25% of the common stock at $33 per share in early 2024, implying a valuation of more than $6 billion. The stock sank back to $14 after the transaction closed, although it recently rebounded to a two-year high of $20.
There are a couple of strikes working against publicly traded sports teams. Soaring valuations are partly driven by scarcity value, and there is no scarcity value as a publicly traded stock. There are 8,000 securities traded on U.S. stock exchanges, including exchange traded funds, yet just 124 teams in the four biggest U.S. sports leagues, which have added only two new franchises during the past 20 years.
The other issue is sports teams are not great businesses by themselves. Team ownership opens doors for other investment opportunities and are a great tax break when you buy them, but there is reason that investment bankers started valuing teams on revenue multiples—still the standard today—instead of earnings ones, like most companies with a price-to-earnings ratio. Sports teams historically lost money, and while today’s collective bargaining agreements are more owner-friendly and TV deals have soared, teams still have low profit margins or can lose money, with the exception of the NFL.
The Knicks and Rangers lost a combined $22 million after taxes and interest during the 2024-25 fiscal year, per Madison Square Garden Sports’ financial filings, despite the Knicks’ run to Eastern Conference finals.
MSG Sports’ plan to potentially split the teams sent shares up 16% the day it was announced in February. MSGS shares are up 89% during the past year, bringing the public and private valuations more in line.
Why is MSG Sports splitting the Knicks and Rangers now?
A transaction 3,000 miles away last year helped heat up spinoff talks when Mark Walter agreed to buy the Los Angeles Lakers at a $10 billion valuation, months after the sale of the Boston Celtics for $6.1 billion. Before the rise of the Golden State Warriors, the Knicks and Lakers were the NBA’s financial titans in a league of their own.
“The spin enhances the possibility of raising capital, and [it] makes minority stake sales easier, as there are two distinct teams’ business models, which makes for a clearer investment vehicle,” Seaport Research Partners analyst David Joyce wrote in an April research note.
Sportico recently spoke with multiple investors who think Dolan could move beyond just an LP stake deal and sell one of the teams outright. Someone familiar with the spinoff details pushed back on the premise of a control sale of either team.
A spokesperson for MSGS declined to comment on the possibility of a control sale of one of the teams.
Dolan has long prioritized his sports teams, but the 71-year-old has increasingly spent time on the Sphere, a project that was his creation and described as his “baby” by those close to him. Dolan envisions a global network of Spheres, using the same IP, with the next two iterations already in the works for a mini-Sphere outside Washington, D.C. and a full-size version in Abu Dhabi.
What potential issues could arise in the Knicks-Rangers split?
The spin-off is expected to be structured as tax-free for shareholders, but there are other tax consequences to this deal.
A new federal tax law expands a 2017 tax provision that limited the compensation public companies could deduct for tax purposes. The 2017 provision capped the deduction at $1 million each for the CEO, CFO and the next three highest-paid officers. The new law expands the number of employees to also include the next five highest-compensated ones starting with the 2027 tax year.
An independently traded Knicks team would pay its top five executives and top five players $195 million—nearly 90% of that to players—triggering $55.4 million in taxes, per Joyce, after excluding the $1 million per employee in maximum compensation. The Rangers would incur a post-spinoff incremental tax of $19.8 million on $76 million in salaries.
Apr 12, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Washington Wizards guard Sharife Cooper (13) drives to the basket against Cleveland Cavaliers forward Tristan Enaruna (21) during the first half at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
Welcome to our Wizards player review series. We’ll go through each guy that played meaningful minutes and look back on their season. Here’s Sharife Cooper.
Sharife Cooper has had a winding basketball journey, bouncing around China, Turkey, Greece, and France after a year of sparse minutes as a rookie with the 2021-22 Hawks. The Wizards brought him in this season on a two-way deal.
In some ways, he was a classic tank captain — a journeyman guard who struggled defensively and primarily played big minutes in late-season games.
To Cooper’s credit, his numbers would place him above that status. He put together a 61 percent true shooting percentage, well-above-average for position, and he knocked down 38 percent of his threes. He was able to get to the basket consistently and finish. He’s capable of playmaking, too.
When the Wizards gave him the ball, good things generally happened. He put up positive numbers when he created out of the pick-and-roll and in isolation. When he iso’d, he managed an even one point per possession, an upper-percentile number.
Cooper plays with darting speed and a score-first mentality. He can score at all three levels, including a fairly efficient midrange shot, and he did a better job than the Wizards’ other young guards of penetrating the defense on a consistent basis.
That’s the good news. The flip side is that Cooper is not a particularly threatening off-ball player and doesn’t provide enough as a playmaker to offset that. His three-point shot, while efficient last season, came on low-volume despite his heavy offensive role. He has a low, somewhat labored shot-put release, lightly reminiscent of a Ball brother. He is not seeking out threes, and defenses at times sagged off him.
While he ran a solid volume of pick-and-rolls and produced a respectable number of assists, he did not turn that usage into consistent shots for his teammates. Per Databallr, he ranked in the 28th-percentile in potential assists per on-ball time — measuring how often he created shots, relative to how much he had the ball.
It’s likely for that reason that Cooper rarely broke into the team’s healthy rotation, and did not navigate his way to a standard NBA contract, unlike Tristan Vukcevic and Jamir Watkins. Small, defensively-challenged guards have to be higher-end playmakers in today’s NBA.
And Cooper was certainly defensively challenged. Defensive metrics can be wonky, but they point to him being one of the worst individual defenders in the league.
On a team with Trae Young and Tre Johnson, he is duplicative, which likely makes it an uphill battle for him to stick with the Wizards as they look to elevate out of tank territory.
The Cubs are exactly one-third of the way through the 2026 season.
Nine games ago, at 29-16, they had a .644 winning percentage, which would be a 104-win pace for a full season.
Now? After 54 games and on a nine-game losing streak, their 29-25 record is on pace for just 87 wins.
So which is the real Cubs team? We will find out over the next 108 games, of course, but the way this team has won — and lost — is utterly confounding. Two 10-game winning streaks and a nine-game losing streak, all within the season’s first third?
BCB’s JohnW53 noted this after the eighth loss:
The Cubs have tied for the longest losing streak in MLB history by a team that also had multiple double-digit winning streaks. The 1916 Giants won 17, 14 and 12 in a row (the last two separated by a tie) and lost eight. The losing streak came before the winning streaks, making the Giants 1-9. They were 2-13 when they won 17. The two subsequent streaks came in September. They finished 86-66, in fourth place, seven games out of first.
So now the Cubs stand alone in accomplishing that “feat,” something I’m sure no one connected with the team wanted.
This year’s Cubs aren’t alone in franchise history in roaring off to a great start, then posting a long losing streak.
In 1970, the Cubs began 1-3, then won 11 in a row — all but the last one at Wrigley Field, including two consecutive walk-off victories, one over the Phillies, one over the Expos. In that win over Montreal, the Cubs blew a 6-4 ninth-inning lead, using four different pitchers in that inning, and the Expos led 7-6 going to the bottom of the ninth. In that ninth, Willie Smith doubled in Boots Day to tie the game with one out, then the Cubs loaded the bases with two out with walks by Don Kessinger and Billy Williams. Ron Santo then ran the count full and Expos reliever Carroll Sembera walked him, forcing in the winning run.
The Cubs played around .500 ball for the next two months. Even with that, after defeating the Cardinals 8-3 on June 20, 1970 they were 35-25 and led the NL East by 4.5 games. It felt to many of us who lived through it that this version of the Cubs was going to make up for what had happened the previous year.
And then… the Cubs lost 12 in a row. The first seven of those were at home, including being swept in a doubleheader by the Mets. When the streak finally ended, the Cubs were 35-37 and 4.5 games behind.
They managed to pick up the pace — a little. They stayed close to first place much of the summer and on Sept. 13, they trailed the Pirates 2-1 in the bottom of the ninth when, with two out, Smith lofted a routine fly to center — and Matty Alou of the Pirates dropped it. Smith wound up on second, and three straight singles by Kessinger, Glenn Beckert and Williams won the game. The Cubs were 76-69 and one game out of first place. They won the next day, too, and at 77-69 and one game back, hopes were high.
They lost the next two games, but still trailed by only two games with 14 remaining.
1970 was the last year the Chicago Bears played in Wrigley Field. And by a scheduling agreement between the NFL and MLB, the Cubs were forced to play their final 14 games of 1970 on the road. They were a bad road team that year even while going a good 46-34 at home. On that 14-game road trip, though, they won the first three and at 80-71, were 1.5 games back with 11 remaining. Maybe… ?
Nope. The Cubs lost seven of those 11 and finished second, five games behind the Pirates. Apart from the wacky 1973 NL East race, they wouldn’t get that close to first place in September again until 1984.
What happened in 1970? The bullpen fell apart, mostly. The offense was great. Billy Williams hit .322/.391/.586 with a career-high 42 home runs (he’s the only Cubs left-handed hitter to have a 40-homer season) and had the Cubs won the division, he’d likely have been named MVP (he finished second to Johnny Bench). Jim Hickman was fantastic, batting .315/.419/.582 with 32 home runs and finishing eighth in MVP voting. The Cubs scored 806 runs, second-most in the NL; they hadn’t scored over 800 runs since 1937 and wouldn’t again until 1998. The pitching staff overall allowed 679 runs, third-fewest in the league. Their RS/RA projection was for 94 wins, which would have won the division easily.
The bullpen, though, was terrible. Phil Regan, who had started blowing saves near the end of the 1969 season, had 12 saves in 1970 — and nine blown saves. Right there, converting those save opportunities would have been enough to win the division. The team had 17 blown saves and six walk-off losses (all six in mid-June or later), and while the modern concept of “closer” did not exist back then, that was enough to doom the 1970 Cubs, who were probably a better team overall than the 1969 version. Plus, there was no real dominant team in the division — it was there for the taking. The Cubs just didn’t take it.
The Cubs sure could have used Ted Abernathy in 1970, but for some reason Leo Durocher didn’t like Abernathy. He was traded to the Cardinals for no one you’ve ever heard of and later went on to have three good years for the Royals.
A similar collapse happened to the Cubs in 1985 coming off the 1984 division title year. Rick Sutcliffe had been re-signed to a multi-year deal, which at the time made everyone happy. Ryne Sandberg was coming off his MVP season at age 25, and hopes were extremely high.
The Cubs started the year like they were going to repeat. They were 35-19 and led the NL East by four games after defeating the Expos on June 11, and many thought it could be a 100-win season.
And then… the team lost 13 in a row, which matched a franchise record that had been set in 1944 and equaled in 1982. No Cubs team has lost that many in a row in the four decades since. Four of the losses were by one run. After the streak ended the Cubs were 35-32 and 4.5 games behind the Expos, who were then in first place.
Sutcliffe had suffered a hamstring injury running the bases in a win over the Braves May 19. He came back after just a couple of weeks, but his pitching wasn’t quite up to his previous level. Later in the year he would suffer shoulder and groin injuries. It was the shoulder issues that eventually made Sutcliffe less than the pitcher he could have been.
And then the four other regular rotation Cubs starters also went down with injuries. Scott Sanderson, Dennis Eckersley, Steve Trout and Dick Ruthven all missed time with various maladies. No Cubs starter made more than 25 starts in 1985 (Sutcliffe), and so beyond those five, 59 games were started by Ray Fontenot, Lary Sorensen, Jay Baller, Steve Engel, Ron Meridith, Derek Botelho, Reggie Patterson, Johnny Abrego and whatever was left of Larry Gura, who had come up as a Cub in 1970 (of all years!), was later traded away for (again) no one you’ve ever heard of and who had good years for the Royals and Yankees, pitching in the World Series for K.C. in 1980. By ‘85 he was done and posted an 8.41 ERA in five games (four starts) for the Cubs late in the year.
So it was mostly the rotation going down in ‘85 that doomed the Cubs. They managed to stay marginally in the NL East race until Aug. 2, when a 5-4 win over the Mets made them 54-47 and had them 7.5 games out of first place. Then they lost seven straight and 12 of 14 and that, basically, was that. The Cubs offense did okay in ‘85, finishing fourth in the NL with 686 runs (in a lower-offense environment than 1970), but the pitching was horrific, giving up 729 runs. Only the 96-loss Braves (781 runs) allowed more.
Here are some video highlights from 1985, the title obviously referring to all the injuries:
There are, as you can see, some similarities between what happened in 1985 and what’s happening in 2026, with Cubs starters going down one after another. Only Jameson Taillon and Shōta Imanaga have not yet missed a start this year (and let’s hope they don’t!). The difference now is that the Cubs have better fill-in guys than the 1985 crew I listed above. and hopefully Matthew Boyd will return healthy, soon.
This year’s Cubs also have the advantage of multiple wild-card spots they could qualify for if they don’t win the NL Central, something that was not available in 1970 or 1985. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.
There are 108 games remaining. It would be good to end the nine-game losing streak… today.
