JUPITER, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 27: Vidal Bruján #2 of the New York Mets reacts after being struck by a pitch during the second inning of a spring training game at Roger Dean Stadium on February 27, 2026 in Jupiter, Florida. (Photo by Rich Storry/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Vidal Brujan was once a top prospect, bouncing around the back half of top-100 lists in the late 2010s and early 2020s. He was lauded for his bat-to-ball skills, above average approach, standout speed, and defensive flexibility as he worked his way up Tampa’s system. The latter scouting call has certainly born out – Brujan has appeared at every position except catcher in the big leagues, logging significant time at second, third, short, and on the outfield grass. Everything else though, not so much.
Brujan has stolen only 16 bases since debuting in 2021 while being caught 14 times and hasn’t actually had above average sprint speed since 2022. He’s never walked all that much and, more relevantly, has never posted an above average SEAGER in the big leagues, typically sitting around 20% below league average. And the contact skills have been more good than great, certainly not enough to buoy the rest of the profile. Couple that with anemic damage on contact numbers and you get a player with a career 54 wRC+ and -2.0 fWAR.
If for some reason you remember Andrew Romine, that’s the sort of player we’re talking about here. Romine had an 11-year career as a utility man, accruing a net 0.0 fWAR and posting a career line 40% below league average. He also became just the fifth player to ever appear at all nine positions in a single game in 2017, the last such player to do it. Brujan has a very similar skill set, though you’d ideally hope the games down the stretch matter enough to the Mets that they can’t make time for it.
This archetype of player is simply not as common anymore. With the notable exception of Kiké Hernandez and the Dodgers (who I would assume keeps getting brought back for clubhouse reasons rather than on-field contributions), good teams are not prioritizing extremely limited offensive players who can stand at a bunch of spots without actually being very good anywhere. Even the Brewers, who loved multi-position flexibility under David Stearns and continue to under his successors, have rarely rostered a player with this level of anemic output.
This leaves Brujan – and other players like him – squeezed out of modern roster construction. Without a surprising late-career improvement to his approach, damage, or speed, there’s limited utility keeping him on the bench, particularly with the infield flexibility already offered by the Mets starters (Marcus Semien, Bo Bichette, Brett Baty, and Jorge Polanco can all move around). The injury to Grae Kessinger may have cleared the path to an early-season utility role with Francisco Lindor still working his way back from a hamate injury. Beyond that, the life span of this sort of throwback reserve is limited.
CLEARWATER, FL - MARCH 04: Jhoan Duran #59 of the Philadelphia Phillies pitches during the game between the Team Canada and the Philadelphia Phillies at BayCare Ballpark on Wednesday, March 4, 2026 in Clearwater, Florida. (Photo by Alex Zadorozny/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The other day, I posted a short piece about how the Phillies not winning a World Series title does not mean they haven’t had a successful season. There was a short survey to ask your opinion, so here are those results.
It’s interesting that the results are somewhat varied. Success can vary from person to person as at least one in five believe they have to win a championship to be considered successful. Yet the majority of people who voted believe they have to win a series as the bare minimum to feeling good about the season.
The National League does have some solid competition for the pennant this year. Everyone is chasing the Dodgers of course, but the Phillies can pretty solidly be lumped into a group with the Mets and (maybe) the Cubs as being threats to dethroning the defending champions. Your view on whether the Brewers can keep doing what they’re doing will likely shape how much of a chance you think they have and whether or not you would place them in that same bin.
Yet there are several other teams that are sprightly enough to give anyone a challenge in a playoff series. The Padres, Braves, maybe the Reds and Pirates, mayyyyyyybe the Giants and Diamondbacks, all of them have rosters that we can squint and tilt our head a certain way to visualize their being able to make the playoffs, making the National League quite competitive this year.
Focusing back on the Phillies, there needs to be something that stems the tide this season. They’ve take a few steps back in terms of how they have finished each season since making their World Series appearance in 2022, so taking a playoff series would go a long way to helping with perception. Is that the bare minimum? As you can, there is a good amount of you that believe that. If they don’t win a playoff series? Then those wholesale changes many are looking for with the organization might end up happening.
EDMONTON, CANADA - MARCH 6: Sebastian Aho #20 of the Carolina Hurricanes shields the puck from Jack Roslovic #28 of the Edmonton Oilers during the second period of the game at Rogers Place on March 6, 2026, in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Andy Devlin/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
After defeating Edmonton 6-3 last night, the Carolina Hurricanes travel three hours south to take on Calgary tonight at 10:00 PM ET.
Saturday night’s matchup is a tale of two opposites. The Flames are the second-worst team in the league, while the Hurricanes are tied for the second-best record in the NHL.
Calgary General Manager Craig Conroy has fully committed to a rebuild, offloading veterans and big contracts to stockpile draft capital and prospects.
In January, the Flames sent defenseman Rasmus Andersson to Vegas for a first-round pick, a second-round pick, and two defensemen.
Defenseman Mackenzie Weegar was sent to Utah earlier this week for three second-round picks, Olli Maatta, and Jonathan Castagna.
The big trade on Friday was center and leading scorer Nazem Kadri, who rejoined Colorado in exchange for a conditional first-round pick, a conditional second-round pick, Victor Olofsson, and Max Curran.
The two youngsters to keep an eye on are Castagna and Curran. Both are big, left-shot centers who will be critical in Calgary’s rebuild.
Castagna is a two-way center at Cornell and is expected to sign an entry-level contract once the NCAA season is over. This 200-foot player could make his NHL debut near the end of the season and will certainly compete for a roster spot next year.
Curran is a playmaker in the WHL, tallying 14 goals and 27 assists in 31 games with the Edmonton Oil Kings. The young Czech will likely be in juniors for another season.
The Flames have added a stockpile of solid draft picks, which will help build the prospect pool and enable trades for players who can help in the near term.
With these departures, Mikael Backlund is now the Flames’ leading scorer with 13 goals and 22 assists. Matt Coronato leads the team with 14 goals.
Another sore spot for Calgary fans is the injury to Jonathan Huberdeau. He was placed on season-ending injured reserve in late February and is undergoing hip resurfacing surgery to alleviate lingering issues.
In net, 24-year-old Dustin Wolf is taking the bulk of the starter’s workload. Wolf has played 44 games and has a 17-23-3 record. He is backed up by Devin Cooley, who has played 22 games and has a solid 2.27 goals against average and .923 save percentage.
Third-year coach Ryan Huska must completely shift his focus to developing players and executing his system. Huska’s philosophy relies heavily on structural defensive play, aggressive penalty killing, and quick transitions.
But the execution has not completely matched the blueprint.
Despite having the seventh-best penalty kill in the league, the Flames have a -35 goal differential, tied for 30th in the NHL.
The power play is abysmal, ranking second-to-last in the league. The units have been completely revamped, so expect some young forwards to get a shot on the man advantage.
Since the NHL returned from the 2026 Winter Olympics break in late February, the Flames have posted a 1-3-1 record. In these five games, the Flames have managed only eight goals while allowing 16. The lack of an offensive finish over the last four games is part of a larger problem for this team.
Calgary is the lowest-scoring team in the league, tallying 150 goals this season. The team has scored just 98 goals during five-on-five while allowing 125 goals.
When you look at the advanced statistics, the Flames’ season becomes both a little more encouraging and a lot more frustrating.
The Flames had 127 expected goals during five-on-five. That massive gap between their expected and actual goals shows that, while the Flames are generating some decent offensive chances, they severely lack the finishing touch needed to actually put the puck in the net.
The team has a Corsi percentage just over 50 percent, meaning they control the puck a bit more than the opponent during five-on-five.
Looking at expected goals against, it is 132 during five-on-five. Calgary has allowed 125 goals, and when looking at the number of high-danger chances, credit is due to Wolf.
The Flames are a young, retooled team. There is not much for them to gain this season, but putting up a solid effort against one of the best squads in the NHL can help them look to the future with confidence.
There are no nights off in the NHL, and the Hurricanes need to finish off this Canadian tour strong.
Brandon Bussi earned his first career shutout against the Flames back in November. With Frederik Andersen earning the win last night, and getting an assist on Jordan Staal’s goal, Bussi is expected to make the start.
Nikolaj Ehlers is the hot Hurricane right now. After his hat trick against Vancouver, Ehlers netted his 20th goal of the season last night.
Jackson Blake netted two third period goals to set a new career high in his sophomore season, and put him one marker away from the 20-goal threshold.
K’Andre Miller had three assists last night, his first three-assist night since February 8, 2023.
Sebastian Aho assisted on Shayne Gostisbehere’s first-period goal last night, putting him one away from 40 assists on the season. With his next apple, Aho will reach the 40-assist plateau for the fourth time in his 10 NHL seasons.
The most concerning news from last night was a lower-body injury to Gostisbehere. He left the game and did not return. Head coach Rod Brind’Amour did not have an update after the game.
Stay tuned for lineup changes, notably Gostisbehere and the fourth-line center.
Here’s how to check out the action:
Time: 10:00 PM ET
Location: Scotiabank Saddledome – Calgary, AB
TV: FanDuel Sports Network with Mike Maniscalco, play-by-play; Tripp Tracy, color analyst; Shane Willis, analyst; Hannah Yates, rinkside.
Just hours after the NHL’s annual trade deadline, the Anaheim Ducks had a game to play, once again, with first place in the Pacific Division standings on the line, as they hosted the Montreal Canadiens on Friday evening.
Anaheim had just split back-to-back games on Tuesday and Wednesday, and they entered play having won six of their last seven games.
The Habs entered play in the first wild card spot in the Eastern Conference, and were coming off an entertaining 7-5 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday.
The Ducks added defenseman John Carlson from the Washington Capitals on Thursday night, but he was unavailable for Friday’s game. The Ducks also traded forward Ryan Strome to the Calgary Flames, rendering him unavailable for the Ducks as well. Troy Terry and Mikael Granlund remained out of the lineup with upper-body injuries, so the Ducks lined up like this to start the game:
Kreider-Carlsson-Gauthier
Killorn-McTavish-Sennecke
Vatrano-Poehling-Harkins
Johnston-Washe-Viel
LaCombe-Trouba
Zellweger-Gudas
Mintyukov-Moore
Lukas Dostal got the start in net for the Ducks after watching backup Ville Husso face 43 shots on Wednesday. Dostal saved 23 of the 28 shots he faced in this one. He was opposed by Samuel Montembeault in Montreal’s crease, who stopped 28 of 33.
“We find a way to compete, right to the end, and we have some guys that could put the puck in the net, and we have some goalies that make big saves at big times,” Ducks head coach Joel Quenneville said of his team’s chaotic performance in this game.
Game Notes
Ducks defenseman Jacob Trouba called this game “high event,” and he’d be accurate with his assessment. This is the kind of style that the Ducks seem to be embracing, and they know they have the firepower to compete offensively in a track meet, and when games go past regulation, they can win the “skills competitions” in overtime and in the shootout.
The Ducks haven’t been making as many “shoot themselves in the foot” gargantuan mistakes in open ice that lead to endless chances heading Dostal’s way as they had at the early points in the season. The defensive mistakes they’re making now are coming in the smaller areas of the ice and in the minutiae. Mistakes are coming from recovering from failed breakouts, switching assignments when pucks move across the top of the defensive zone, and eliminating potentially dangerous lanes.
Puck Retrievals: Jackson LaCombe was the only Ducks defenseman who was able to consistently absorb the aggressive Montreal forecheck and leverage it against them to manufacture clean exits. Radko Gudas played firmly within his skillset, making simple, safe rims and chips to safety.
The remaining four blueliners had a difficult time spinning off or moving pucks around the Habs’ F1s. When they were able to advance pucks, Montreal’s F2 eliminated D-to-D lanes, and pinching defensemen, more often than not, sealed off winger outlets before pucks arrived, elongating time spent in the Ducks’ defensive zone.
Mason McTavish: Breakouts weren’t just an issue for defensemen in this game. McTavish was often late to read progressions and late to arrive for support in his end. Pucks were jumping off his stick, and he was rarely able to pick pucks up at full speed in the defensive or neutral zones.
Chris Kreider: Kreider seems to have found a home on his line alongside Cutter Gauthier and Leo Carlsson. Never a puck transporter, he’s always scanning for his linemates before pucks arrive at his stick as an outlet in transition, throwing little slip passes to Carlsson, longer area passes to Gauthier, hitting both in speed, then properly filling lanes in support to make himself an option after entry.
Gauthier and Carlsson have utilized their speed well to forecheck and pounce on loose pucks, again, with Kreider reading their cuts and putting himself in optimal positions for connecting give-and-go sequences.
Olen Zellweger: Zellweger has been forced to evolve his game and is anything but an offensive specialist at this point in his career. However, he’s finding ways to remain impactful in the o-zone without dictating play with the puck on his stick. He acts as a fourth forward on the forecheck, timing pressures on outlets perfectly, and he’s selectively choosing optimal opportunities to activate from the blueline without the puck, often driving through the middle of the zone when forwards move up the wall to disrupt the opponent’s defensive zone coverage.
The Ducks will wrap up their run of nine consecutive home games on Sunday with a matchup against the St. Louis Blues. Thereafter, they’ll head out on a four-game road trip to face the four eastern-most Canadian teams.
Feb 25, 2024; Clearwater, Florida, USA; a general view of the stadium during a game between the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees at BayCare Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
The Jays make the short drive to Clearwater to play the Phillies.
We get out first look Max Scherzer this spring. He says he’ll be ready for opening day. I didn’t expect that he would be in the rotation to start the season. I think the odds of him being able to give us 30 starts at age 41 are slim. He has said the hand issue has resolved itself.
I’m not expecting Cy Young type pitching (not that I would complain). I really don’t know what to expect. Steamer has him going 4-4 in 30 games, 10 starts. I’d bet anything that he isn’t going to have 20 relief appearances.
I’m putting this together Friday night, so I don’t have the lineups, but I’m hoping to be back around came time.
There is a lot to scrutinize with the Toronto Maple Leafs given the situation they currently find themselves in. While the team once expected to be contending for a Stanley Cup in 2026, that clearly doesn’t appear to be on their radar; instead, the focus has quickly shifted to the club's future regarding the NHL Draft.
This year, the Leafs only get to keep their first-round draft pick if they manage to fall into one of the top-five selections. This follows a trade where the Leafs sent prospect Fraser Minten and their 2026 first-round pick to the Boston Bruins in exchange for defenseman Brandon Carlo, with only top-five protection included in the deal.
The Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers are in a similar situation, but they took a different approach to risk management. When they dealt their first-round pick to acquire defenseman Seth Jones from the Chicago Blackhawks, they ensured the pick was top-10 protected, making it increasingly likely they would retain it.
When Leafs GM Brad Treliving was pressed on why he didn’t ensure his pick had top-10 protection like Florida’s, he was blunt.
Currently, the best chance for Toronto to keep the pick is to slide further down the standings. They could also hope to win the lottery to move up 10 spots from their current position.
Interestingly, Treliving did manage to pick up a first-round pick for 2027 in a separate deal that sent Nicolas Roy to the Colorado Avalanche. Ironically, that deal with Colorado is top-10 protected; otherwise, it pushes into an unconditional 2028 first-rounder.
It’s hard to know exactly what forced Treliving to make the 2026 pick so easy to attain. When it was all said and done, he likely assumed the Leafs would be back in the playoffs, meaning the difference between top-5 and top-10 protection wouldn’t have been enough to stall the trade he wanted to make. However, that assumption could prove to be very costly now.
The Leafs are 27-25-11 this season and enter Saturday's action with the seventh-worst record as far as points percentage goes.
MUNICH (AP) — Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer suffered another injury setback that will rule him out of Tuesday’s Champions League game against Atalanta.
Neuer will be 40 later this month and his contract with Bayern is up at the end of the season. The club reportedly wants to offer him a one-year extension.
HOUSTON, TX - MARCH 06: Victor Vodnik #11 of Team Mexico pitches in the eighth inning during the 2026 World Baseball Classic Pool B game presented by Capital One between Team Mexico and Team Great Britain at Daikin Park on Friday, March 6, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Rob Tringali/WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Game No. 1: Colombia (República de Colombia) at Canada
Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium — San Juan, Puerto Rico
First Pitch: 9:00 AM MST
TV: FS2
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
RHP Julio Tehran vs RHP Michael Soroka
Game No. 2: Nicaragua (República de Nicaragua) at The Netherlands (Nederland)
Venue: loanDepot Park — Miami, Florida, USA
First Pitch: 10:00 AM MST
TV: Tubi
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
RHP Erasmo Ramiréz vs RHP Jaitoine Kelly
Game No. 3: Brazil (República Federativa do Brasil) at Italy (Repubblica Italiana)
Venue: Daikin Park — Houston, Texas, USA
First Pitch: 11:00 AM MST
TV: Fox Sports App
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
TBD vs LHP Sam Aldegheri
Game No. 4: Panama (República de Panamá) at Puerto Rico
Venue: Hiram Bithorn Stadium — San Juan, Puerto Rico
First Pitch: 4:00 PM MST
TV: FS1
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
RHP Ariel Jurado vs LHP Eduardo Rivera
Game No. 5: Israel (מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל) at Venezuela (República Bolivariana de Venezuela)
Venue: loanDepot Park — Miami, Florida, USA
First Pitch: 5:00 PM MST
TV: FS2
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
RHP Ben Simon vs LHP Enmanuel de Jesus
Game No. 6: Great Britain at United States
Venue: Daikin Park — Houston, Texas, USA
First Pitch: 6:00 PM MST
TV: Fox
Radio: MLB Audio; Sirius XM
Lineups:
RHP Tyler Viza vs LHP Tarik Skubal
Game No. 7: Chinese Taipei ( 中華臺北) at Korea (대한민국)
HONG KONG (AP) — Thomas Detry was among eight players from LIV Golf who were stranded in the United Arab Emirates at the start of the week during Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran. Now he's tied for the lead with Jon Rahm, the player responsible for getting them out.
“If it wasn't for him, I don't think I'd be there,” Detry said Saturday after a 66 in LIV Golf Hong Kong left him in a three-way tie for the lead with Rahm (65) and Harold Varner III (63). “It's in a way a little bit funny that way.”
Golf.com reported Rahm and his Legion XIII team arranged a charter flight through the Spaniard's partnership with a private aviation company. That required a 280-mile drive from Dubai to Muscat, Oman, to catch the eight-hour flight, getting into Hong Kong at midday Wednesday.
The other players were Lee Westwood, Sam Horsfield, Adrian Meronk, Tom McKibbin, Caleb Surratt and Anirban Lahiri. Golf.com said Laurie Canter arranged his own transportation with his family.
“That was incredible of Jon to put (us) on that plane,” Detry said.
Detry said he had originally been booked on an Emirates flight from Dubai — and it left Wednesday morning as scheduled and arrived in Hong Kong that night, but “that was very unknown on Tuesday.”
“I was raised with certain values, that if you have the ability and capability of helping somebody ... especially in a scenario like that where my main focus essentially was getting them out of there, not necessarily playing a tournament,” Rahm said.
“With the ever-changing environment, it looked kind of dark for a second,” he said. “But yeah, here they are. Never thought they would be able to come. It’s amazing that so many of them are safe and that’s the most important thing.”
PHILADELPHIA, PA - FEBRUARY 19: Tyrese Maxey #0 of the Philadelphia 76ers drives to the basket during the game against the Atlanta Hawks on February 19, 2026 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 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 Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
What a perfect time to start a road trip for the Philadelphia 76ers!
The Sixers kick off a quick but tough two-game roadie with a visit to the Atlanta Hawks on Saturday evening. There are a number of reasons this matchup that might not sound terribly scary on paper could pose a problem for the Sixers.
The biggest issue is that they will continue to be without Joel Embiid for at least another week after the team told reporters at practice on Friday he is progressing through individualized strength and conditioning work as he continues to recover from the oblique strain and will be re-evaluated in a week.
To make matters worse, rookie VJ Edgecombe is currently listed as doubtful for the Saturday contest as he continues to heal from a back contusion suffered from a hard fall in a game on Tuesday. Edgecombe missed the following game hosting the Utah Jazz on Wednesday and then missed practice on Friday. Paul George also remains unavailable as he continues his suspension.
The Hawks are much healthier right now, with only Jonathan Kuminga listed as questionable with knee inflammation on their injury report at the time of writing.
Atlanta might not seem like this hugely formidable opponent on paper with a 32-31 record so far this season, but don’t forget they are 3-0 against Philadelphia this season so far — and it’s worth noting that Philadelphia was much less shorthanded for some of those losses.
(The Sixers’ opponent on Monday, the Cleveland Cavaliers, also are 3-0 against them this campaign. Again, a short but possibly deadly road trip.)
The Hawks are also enjoying the opposite momentum of the Sixers right now in that they’ve been stringing together more success in the later half of the season. Atlanta is on a five-game win streak, have won six of their last seven and are 12-6 in their last 18.
It’s interesting to look at the Hawks’ roster as an “outsider” also, because you might not see many names that you really recognize from years past, but Atlanta has a number of players performing at the best (in some cases, by far) that they ever have in their multi-season careers. Jalen Johnson is continuing his All-Star season averaging career-highs of 22.7 points, 10.5 rebounds and 8.0 assists per night. Nickeil Alexander-Walker is putting up a career-best 19.8 points per night and shooting 37.5% from long range on a 8.1 attempt per night clip. Six-foot-ten center Onyeka Okongwu is scoring 16.2 points per night and hitting 38.6% of threes on a 5.5 attempt average, all career-highs.
That’s not mentioning the more than a handful of players down the depth of the roster that can put up double-digit points — some with the capability for much bigger scoring bursts — any given night, such as Dyson Daniels, Jock Landale, Zaccharie Risacher, Corey Kispert, Kuminga (if he’s available) and others.
All of this is to say do not let the Hawks’ record or even their roster fool you. Atlanta currently leads the entire NBA in assists per game with 30.5. They are eighth in the league in offensive rating at 117.6 and seventh in three-point efficiency at 36.8%. This is a team that traded Trae Young at the deadline and has only been getting better since. It’s a squad getting the absolute best of each of their players individually, and it’s resulting in more and more success as a unit.
So, a team playing their best, battling to climb up the East coming in on a five-game win streak against a Sixers’ squad that has 2024-25 season vibes at times right now… what could go wrong?
This is also, unfortunately, not the time for a major skid for the Sixers. As of Saturday morning, Philadelphia sit in sixth in the Eastern Conference at 34-28. The problem is that the gap between the Sixers and the next few teams, down to the Charlotte Hornets in 10th place, is just three games at the most. There is a lot of room to fall and it won’t take much for the Sixers to start tumbling fast. Philadelphia did win their last game, just barely beating the tanking Jazz on Wednesday night, but it didn’t inspire a lot of confidence in how the next few games might go.
But, as they say, the show must go on.
The Sixers and Hawks tip off at 6 p.m. ET.
Game Details
When: Saturday, March 7, 6:00 p.m. ET Where: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic Follow:@LibertyBallers
SURPRISE, ARIZONA - MARCH 04: Pitcher Jacob deGrom #48 of the Texas Rangers throws against Team Brazil during the first inning of a World Baseball Classic exhibition game at Surprise Stadium on March 04, 2026 in Surprise, Arizona. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Philadelphia Flyers were fairly active ahead of the 3 p.m. NHL trade deadline Friday, but many of their old friends, too, ended up being attractive trade pieces for contending teams.
To round up the Flyers' business on the day, they made a few moves that shook up the roster, but nothing too major.
Notably, Rasmus Ristolainen stayed put, while Bobby Brink and Nick Deslauriers made way for David Jiricek and a 2027 seventh-round pick,
Other Flyers, who have long been away from the organization, made waves around the NHL.
One of the biggest deals involving a former Flyers forward came from the West, where the St. Louis Blues shipped captain Brayden Schenn off to the New York Islanders for a whopping package of Jonathan Drouin, goalie prospect Marcus Gidlof, a 2026 first-round pick, and a 2026 third-round pick.
Schenn's older brother, former Flyers defenseman Luke Schenn, was dealt to Buffalo by Winnipeg, alongside Logan Stanley, in exchange for former first-round pick Isak Rosen (drafted using the Flyers' first-round pick in the original Ristolainen trade), defenseman Jacob Bryson, a conditional 2026 fourth-round pick, and a 2027 second-round pick.
Those two are a pretty valuable pair of brothers!
Then, to round out the trade deadline, ex-Flyers forward Scott Laughton, who was dealt to the Toronto Maple Leafs this time last year for Nikita Grebenkin and a 2027 first-round pick, moved to the Los Angeles Kings for a measly conditional 2026 third-round pick.
Overall, that's a tidy piece of business for the Flyers, and an absolutely astonishing management of assets by the Maple Leafs.
SALT LAKE CITY, UT - JANUARY 27: Giannis Antetokounmpo #34 of the Milwaukee Bucks drives to the basket during the game against the Utah Jazz on January 27, 2025 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. 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 2025 NBAE (Photo by Jamie Sabau/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Milwaukee Bucks play the Utah Jazz in what should be a relatively simple game for the Bucks. They’ll search for their first win in five games as the gap between the tenth seed and the Bucks continues to widen. With a tanking team like the Jazz offering weak resistance to the Bucks, this game will be a reset for a tense team searching for continuity.
Where We’re At
Four games deep into a contentious losing streak filled with coaching outbursts and moments of frustration, the Bucks are flailing for consistency. Their slide away from the play-in spot has featured moments of incompetence in gameplanning, poor shooting, and defensive struggle. Wednesday’s 131-113 loss to Atlanta showed that. Key players like Cam Thomas (13 points, 3/9 FG), Ryan Rollins (13 points, 4/11 FG), and Bobby Portis (13 points, 4/8 FG) have all lost their rhythm despite Giannis’ return. As they return to Fiserv Forum, the Bucks have more questions to answer about their future than solutions.
They face a Utah Jazz team in the middle of a brutal tank. Resting at 19-44, the Jazz have been fined $500,000 for anti-tanking rules, and their tactical strategies of pulling star players out of close games border on point shaving. They recently notched their first win since February 11 on Thursday night off an Ace Bailey 32-point performance. Led by raw scorer Keyonte George, the Jazz are slogging through a meaningless season as they fight for lottery placement with the Pelicans, Nets, and Kings.
Injury Report
Kevin Porter Jr. (knee) will sit out on Saturday with an injury in the same place he tore his meniscus. Porter’s absence is a big blow to a Bucks team that needed stability and cohesion following an erratic stretch of games. Taurean Prince (neck) will also miss; he hasn’t played since early November.
The Jazz will miss several players due to injury. Isaiah Collier (personal reasons), Jaren Jackson Jr. (knee), Walker Kessler (shoulder), Lauri Markkanen (hip), Jusuf Nurkic (nose), and Vince Williams Jr. (knee) are all designated as out on the Jazz’s injury report at the time of writing.
Player To Watch
Ryan Rollins will need to be the guard to step up in Porter’s extended absence. Rollins stepped up as a playmaker in Wednesday’s loss to Atlanta, dishing out 12 assists. However, during the Bucks’ four-game losing streak, Rollins has shot .381/.261/.667, averaging 10.5 points and 3.3 turnovers per game. His shift from high-volume shooter to a playmaker and versatile guard hasn’t been without its struggles. He will need to prove his ability to step up as the Bucks’ floor general and shore up his inconsistent shooting going into Saturday’s game against the Jazz, the second-worst team at guarding the three.
How To Watch
Watch at 7:00 p.m. CST on Fanduel Sports Network Wisconsin.
PHOENIX, AZ - MARCH 02: Bobby Witt Jr. #7 of Team USA poses for a photo the Team USA photo day at Papago Sports Complex on Monday, March 2, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Ken Griffey Jr./WBCI/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Thames said he maintains open communication with players. He said he asks questions and focuses on their given strengths. His goal is to not suggest changes, but rather to elevate a guy’s particular skill-set.
“For me, it’s all about players understanding who they are and dominating their strengths,” Thames said. “We’re going to work on our weaknesses, but sometimes we forget who we are. And so for me, it’s all about dominating that. After that, it’s just being aggressive in your (strike) zone. Knowing what zone you like to hit and dominate it.”
Previously relying on a five-pitch mix that leaned primarily on his four-seam fastball and sweeper, Black refined his repertoire this offseason. The adjustment, along with support from the Royals’ pitching staff, has helped him settle into his new organization.
Black worked with assistant pitching coach Mike McFerran on his curveball release point, especially when facing left-handed hitters.
“That’s been a big help just getting into this organization, having the support staff around us here,” Black said. “Just [to] take the ball whenever they ask me to, whether that be starting, mid relief, short relief. I’m good with whatever [I have to do] to go out there and try to throw zeros.”
In the process, he also hopes he can provide some translation.
Not so much in the sense that Hosmer, whose mother is Cuban, understands a good deal of Spanish — though that should again be helpful in the clubhouse. But more in the context of the lexicon of the game, which Hosmer felt changing around him late in his career as analytics-speak became more common.
For part of this exercise, I visited David Pinto’s Lineup Analysis tool. This has been around for almost two decades so it’s not as up to date as you’d like as far as incorporating data into an output, but hey…this exercise is hardly scientific. The tool asks for OBP and slugging percentages, so since I’m projecting, I initially used ZiPS. Except ZiPS doesn’t really like the Royals offense—only three players are projected to be above average. That’s not exactly fun. So I ran another lineup using Steamer, which is quite a bit more bullish on the Royals offense.
Using ZiPS, India is the runaway favorite as the leadoff man. With Steamer, it’s Collins. The difference? ZiPS projects a higher OBP for India while Steamer favors Collins. In other words, among the players in the lineup who lack a certain amount of power, who gets on base with greater frequency? That’s your leadoff man.
First, Perez has swung at just five of 30 pitches outside the zone. That will not last, so I’m not telling you this to say there’s a trend. There isn’t. But it’s interesting. The two who I think are worth watching and I wish were in camp for this reason still are Jac Caglianone and Witt. Caglianone has swung at 10 of 53 pitches outside the Gameday zone. That’s a chase rate of 18.9 percent. Fangraphs actually shows it as lower, which I don’t really know why, but either number is great, so I’m not going to spend much time worrying about that. And Witt has chased just 10 of 47 for a 21.3 percent chase rate that shows as 17.4 percent on Fangraphs.
Feb 27, 2026; Jupiter, Florida, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Freddy Peralta (51) looks on against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
Robert Stock has been impressing this spring as he has fought for a roster spot with the Mets, but the well-travelled righty has now been removed from Team Israel’s World Baseball Classic roster due to shoulder soreness and will undergo testing.
Mexico and Great Britain were tied after seven innings, but the former squad then put up seven runs in the final two innings en route to an 8-2 victory.
